Updates and announcements

Apologies for the late blog post. While I’d like to say I was Christmas baking all weekend, I was actually in bed sick through Monday. Though this was not ideal, I did get some great pictures of my cats playing nurse.

If your child does not have a block bag, please send one in on Wednesday. We need to empty desks over break for the cleaning crew to clean the carpets in our classroom. Students need a canvas grocery bag or something similar.

Tuesday and Wednesday are half days!

Our week in learning

The idiom of the week is “Read between the Lines”.

Roots will continue in the third quarter.

Spalding will continue in the third quarter.

We will do sentence diagramming wars in Grammar.

For literature, students will finish “Where the Red Fern Grows” and complete their final journal entry.

We are winding down this week in science! Students will be quizzed over the stages of mitosis on Monday. The remainder of the week will be focused on celebrations and reviewing knowledge from earlier in the unit.

This is a short and simple week in History. Students will present their state brochures, which are due Monday morning, to the class on Monday and Tuesday. Students were assigned this project on 12/4.

In math, we will finish up our very short unit on ratio with a quiz on Tuesday.

Updates and announcements

I was so excited to see some of you at the Winter Carnival on Saturday! It was nice to also see some of you selling candles and holiday goodies. If you are interested in a bowl cozy, let me know! They make great holiday gifts and I have plenty left over.

I will be out of the classroom this Wednesday for my eval writing day. I may be slow to respond to emails, so it may be best to email both me and Ms. Vaughn. Thank you to those who are helping out in our classroom that day!

Our winter celebration is on Wednesday, 12/18. Be on the lookout for a sign up genius from our wonderful class parents.

Our week in learning

Students will learn about the idiom “A penny saved is a penny earned.”

The roots test over #26-50 will be on 12/11. 

Students learned about the poem “The Snowstorm” on 11/13 and recite it on 12/11. We are giving extra time for this poem because it can be challenging. The poem does not have a rhyme scheme. It has been helpful for students in the past to listen to a recording while in the car or getting ready in the morning.

Here are some good recordings of “The Snowstorm”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yznm4hXXIMc 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_RnjUva5fI 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9jJr7IFgQo 

In Literature, students will continue reading “Where the Red Fern Grows”, ending the week with chapter 20. Students will journal every day we read in Literature about a given prompt. We are a spoiler-free school, so if students or older siblings know the end, please encourage your child to discover the text on their own (especially the ending). As we get to those sad chapters at the end, our fifth graders start to feel some very big, sad emotions. 

In Grammar, students will construct their first persuasive essay using real facts from provided articles. Students will finish writing an essay to convince their parents that they either should or should not get a pet. Students will edit and revise their essays on Monday, the work on their final drafts, which will be due on Wednesday. Students will have ample time in class to work on their essay. Homework will be what students do not finish in class.  

On Wednesday, we will have a full day writing workshop where students will practice what is expected of them on the AZMerit-writing an entire 5 paragraph essay in one day. For this workshop day, students will conference with an adult throughout every step of the process. On Thursday and Friday, we will review the AZMerit rubric and they will score their own essays. This is a wonderful opportunity to show humility, as no fifth grade should score a perfect score in the middle of the year, as the rubric is for what students will need to do at the end of the year. Students will identify something they can do better for their next essay. 

Tutoring is CANCELLED on Monday, 12/16.

This week in Science, students will continue their study of cells. They will dive into prokaryotic cells on Monday, and on Tuesday they will be assessed on their knowledge of the different parts of plant cells. We will then begin studying the process of cell division. We will spend several days in class practicing identifying the different stages and what happens in the cell during each, and there will be a quiz over the stages on Monday December 16th. Because these quizzes are short, there will be no study guide. We will review which pages to review in their notebooks, and both quizzes will be partially open notes.

This week in History, students will present in groups regarding their assigned chapter in Unit 8: Feudal Japan. Presentations will occur on Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday there will be no history due to an all-day writing workshop. On Thursday, students will work on a unit assessment for feudal Japan, which will be open notes. We will correct this together in class – no study guide was handed out, this is simply another learning opportunity to review all the material regarding feudal Japan. On Friday, students will be given another opportunity to work on their state brochures, which are due Monday, December 16^th. Students will have access to computers to complete research, if needed.

In math, students finish our unit on area and have the unit test on Tuesday. Starting Thursday, we will work through a speedy unit on Ratio. There are no more math groups dates for the rest of the quarter.

When a “test b” (multiplication test) is assigned for homework, it contains questions very similar to a quiz the following day. We take a lot of low-stakes math quizzes in fifth grade. All math workbook assignments are half of every type of problem. Please keep in mind that students may do test corrections on any math quiz for partial credit (fill in the blank sheets, not multiple choice homework sheets).

Updates and announcements

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving break! We were up in Flagstaff with my husband’s family. We weathered the storm coming back on Friday and relaxed with our cats for the rest of break.

As the semester draws to a close, Archway Arete teachers are hard at work drafting narrative evaluations for each of their students. This labor of love requires many hours of intentional reflection and to facilitate this process, our teachers are given one work day to focus on writing these evals. On Wednesday, December 11^th, I will be away from the classroom writing narrative evaluations. If you are interested in supporting our classroom during my absence, please email me. Thank you in advance! We are looking for a fingerprint cleared parent to cover lunch and recess (12:40-1:20), and possibly help with a reading group (12:10-12:40).

The Winter Carnival is this weekend! I hope to see you there! I’ll be selling some bowl cozies and possibly other quilted goods at one of the merchant booths.

Our week in learning

Students will learn about the idiom “Out of the frying pan and into the fire.”

The study guide for roots #25-50 is due on 12/4 and their test will be on 12/11. 

Students learned about the poem “The Snowstorm” on 11/13 and recite it on 12/11. We are giving extra time for this poem because it can be challenging. The poem does not have a rhyme scheme. It has been helpful for students in the past to listen to a recording while in the car or getting ready in the morning.

Here are some good recordings of “The Snowstorm”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yznm4hXXIMc 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_RnjUva5fI 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9jJr7IFgQo 

In Literature, students will continue reading “Where the Red Fern Grows”, ending the week with chapter 15. Students will journal every day we read in Literature about a given prompt. We are a spoiler-free school, so if students or older siblings know the end, please encourage your child to discover the text on their own (especially the ending). 

In Grammar, students will construct their first persuasive essay using real facts from provided articles. Students will write convincing their parents that they either should or should not get a pet. We will analyze articles, cite sources, construct a sentence outline, and write their rough drafts this week. Students will have ample time in class to work on their essay. Homework will be what students do not finish in class. 

This week, students will continue learning about animal cells and their organelles. There will be a short quiz over the location and function of the organelles on Thursday, December 5th. Later in the week, students will begin learning about the structure and function of plant cells. Students may expect a quiz over plant cells on December 10th. 

We hope to see everyone at this week’s Science Fair on Wednesday from 6:00PM-7:00PM!

This week in History, students will learn about feudal Japan by completing a group project. This unit has 5 chapters, and the class will be split up into 5 groups. Each group will be assigned a chapter, and create a presentation to share with the class. Presentations will take place next Monday and Tuesday (December 9^th and 10^th). All work will be completed in class. On Wednesday, students will also individually be assigned one of the United States, and will create a brochure on that State to present in class. Students will have two class periods to work on this project (12/4 and 12/13), including an opportunity to do research on computers. The brochure is due on Monday, December 16^th, and presentations will take place throughout the last week of school (12/16-12/18).

In math, students continue our unit on area, surface area, and perimeter with practicing using ½ X base X height to find the area of a triangle, finding the area of a parallelogram (b X h), and total surface area of a 3-dimensional figure. There are no more math groups dates for the rest of the quarter.

When a “test b” (multiplication test) is assigned for homework, it contains questions very similar to a quiz the following day. We take a lot of low-stakes math quizzes in fifth grade. All math workbook assignments are half of every type of problem. Please keep in mind that students may do test corrections on any math quiz for partial credit (fill in the blank sheets, not multiple choice homework sheets).

Updates and announcements

Happy Thanksgiving week! I hope everyone had a restful weekend. Ms. White and I hosted a baby shower for Mr. and Mrs. Giammalva, whose baby girl is due on December 18^th.

Please keep me updated on planned absences so we can plan make up assessments accordingly. I am in the midst of starting student evaluations, so the data is incredibly important for your child’s growth and my data tracking.

Our week in learning

Students will learn about the idiom “It’s never too late to mend.”

Students will learn about the roots humus, folium, sal, and mare. Students will be quizzed over these roots next Wednesday. Students should expect a similar quiz each week. Students will get their study guides for roots #26-50. This is due on 12/4 and their test will be on 12/11. 

Students learned about the poem “The Snowstorm” on 11/13 and recite it on 12/4. We are giving extra time for this poem because it can be challenging. The poem does not have a rhyme scheme. It has been helpful for students in the past to listen to a recording while in the car or getting ready in the morning.

Here are some good recordings of “The Snowstorm”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yznm4hXXIMc 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_RnjUva5fI 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9jJr7IFgQo 

In Literature, students will continue reading “Where the Red Fern Grows”, ending the week with chapter 12. Students will journal every day we read in Literature about a given prompt. We are a spoiler-free school, so if students or older siblings know the end, please encourage your child to discover the text on their own (especially the ending). 

In Grammar, students will continue reading their final turkey essay drafts for the class.

During our short week, students will present their science fair projects to their classmates. Students only need their trifold board for this. They will have two minutes to explain their hypothesis, procedure, results, and conclusions and answer any questions from classmates. When they are done presenting, they will turn in their science fair packets for a grade. Students may reference their posters during the presentation, but should be mindful to face the audience.

On Monday, students will turn in their rough drafts of Charles I Newspaper Articles, when we will peer-edit them. Final drafts of the assignment are due on Tuesday. Instructions were handed out on Wednesday, November 20^th. On Tuesday, we will further explore the English Bill of Rights and compare it with the American Bill of Rights. Students may also share their Articles at this time.

As we explore this period in the history of England, please utilize this student reader, and other free resources on Core Knowledge’s website: https://www.coreknowledge.org/free-resource/ckhg-unit-06-england-golden-age/student-reader/

In math, students continue our unit on area, surface area, and perimeter with comparing the area of a triangle to that of a rectangle and using ½ X base X height to find the area of a triangle. There are no more math groups dates for the rest of the quarter.

When a “test b” (multiplication test) is assigned for homework, it contains questions very similar to a quiz the following day. We take a lot of low-stakes math quizzes in fifth grade. All math workbook assignments are half of every type of problem. Please keep in mind that students may do test corrections on any math quiz for partial credit (fill in the blank sheets, not multiple choice homework sheets).

Updates and announcements

Happy Week 6! It is hard to believe that we are over half way through the semester. Our students have been working so hard on their turkey essays (mostly completed in class) and science fair essays. I am so excited to read these and see their hard work come to fruition through presentations in the following weeks.

Thank you to everyone who has informed me of a planned absence. Please continue to do so, especially as we approach Thanksgiving and Winter Break.

Our week in learning

Students will learn about the idiom “A miss is as good as a mile.”

Students will learn about the roots agon, dromos, and mons. Students will be quizzed over these roots next Wednesday. Students should expect a similar quiz each week.

Students learned about the poem “The Snowstorm” on 11/13 and recite it on 12/4. We are giving extra time for this poem because it can be challenging. The poem does not have a rhyme scheme. It has been helpful for students in the past to listen to a recording while in the car or getting ready in the morning.

Here are some good recordings of “The Snowstorm”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yznm4hXXIMc 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_RnjUva5fI 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9jJr7IFgQo 

In Literature, students will continue reading “Where the Red Fern Grows”, ending the week with chapter 11. Students will journal every day we read in Literature about a given prompt. We are a spoiler-free school, so if students or older siblings know the end, please encourage your child to discover the text on their own (especially the ending). 

In Grammar, students will use the writing process to construct an essay from the perspective of a turkey around the holidays who is convincing a farmer to not eat him/her. Students will work through the revising and editing steps, handwriting a final draft and typing a final draft this week. Starting Friday, students will read their finished drafts for the class. Students will have class time to work on all of these components, then what they do not finish is homework.

On Monday, student science fair essays are due to their homeroom teachers. Their posters will be due on Friday, November 22nd to their homeroom teacher. Students will present their projects to their classes on November 25th-26th. These presentations should be no more than two minutes in length, and should focus on their hypothesis, procedure and conclusions. Posters will remain at school until the science fair on December 4th. We will begin studying cells this week. There will be no major unit test for this unit; instead, students will be assessed with several short quizzes and prepare using their notes. The first of these will be on December 3rd and will be over the parts of the animal cell.

This week in history we will finish our unit on England. Study guides are due Thursday, 11/21. The test will occur on Friday, 11/22. On Monday we will discuss the reigns of Charles II who restored the monarchy, and his brother James II, who was the first Catholic monarch of England since Queen Mary I. On Tuesday we will finish our instruction, covering the Glorious, or bloodless, Revolution. On Wednesday students will be given an assignment to create a newspaper article about the execution of King Charles I of England. Students will have the day to work on this, with a rough draft of their ½-1 page article due on Monday, 11/25. Final drafts are due on Tuesday, 11/26. Students will be provided with construction paper to complete this assignment, and will be given a half sheet with detailed instructions.

As we explore this period in the history of England, please utilize this student reader, and other free resources on Core Knowledge’s website: https://www.coreknowledge.org/free-resource/ckhg-unit-06-england-golden-age/student-reader/

In math, students will finish the unit on multiplying and dividing fractions, taking their test on Tuesday. We will begin our unit on area, surface area, and perimeter on Wednesday. Students will learn about square units, the area of rectangles, symmetry, and perimeter. There are no more math groups dates for the rest of the quarter.

When a “test b” (multiplication test) is assigned for homework, it contains questions very similar to a quiz the following day. We take a lot of low-stakes math quizzes in fifth grade. All math workbook assignments are half of every type of problem. Please keep in mind that students may do test corrections on any math quiz for partial credit (fill in the blank sheets, not multiple choice homework sheets).

Updates and announcements

I hope everyone had a wonderful 3 day weekend. I was able to go to two of my husband’s performances-a Best of Broadway show and a Veteran’s day concert with the Salt River Brass.

We reviewed the results of the homework survey and saw mostly positive feedback! It was consistent with what we discussed with every family in conferences. Remember, if your child is consistently far exceeding about 1 hour and 15 minutes of focused homework time per night, please let me know and we can work something out.  

Our week in learning

Students will learn about the idiom “Make a mountain out of a mole hill.”

Students will learn about the roots cutis, cor, dorsum, and athlon. Students will be quizzed over these roots next Wednesday. Students should expect a similar quiz each week.

Students learned about the poem “The Road Not Taken” on 10/30 and recite it on 11/15.

In Literature, students will continue reading “Where the Red Fern Grows”, ending the week with chapter 8. Students will journal every day we read in Literature about a given prompt. We are a spoiler-free school, so if students or older siblings know the end, please encourage your child to discover the text on their own (especially the ending). 

In Grammar, students will use the writing process to construct an essay from the perspective of a turkey around the holidays who is convincing a farmer to not eat him/her. Students will work through brainstorming, pre writing map, sentence outline, and rough draft this week. Students will have class time to work on all of these components, then what they do not finish is homework.

On Tuesday, students will take their classification test. This test will be partially open notes. Thursday will be a work day for science fair-we will go over how to write the science fair essay and begin writing the essay in class. To complete the essay, which is due November 18th, students must already have their results and conclusions finalized. Work on the poster should begin on the 15th, with posters being due on the 22nd. On Friday, students will start their study of cell theory by learning about Robert Hooke and the beginnings of cell theory, and be given additional time to work on their essays. Study guides for this unit will be distributed the following week to allow more homework time for science fair.

This week we continue with our unit on England, and discuss the end of Elizabeth I’s reign, including England’s ruling navy, their chief sailor, Sir Francis Drake, and their escalating relationship with Spain. We will move to the monarchs after Elizabeth I, including James I of England, and the Civil War that broke out under Charles I, resulting in his execution. The religious conflicts between Catholics and Protestants will be a major theme for these rulers, as well as the governmental shift in which England left their pure monarchy and developed a strong parliament. On Wednesday we will look at the life of William Shakespeare, and reading a retelling of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Homework each evening will be to work on study guide questions in response to the day’s lesson.

As we explore this period in the history of England, please utilize this student reader, and other free resources on Core Knowledge’s website: https://www.coreknowledge.org/free-resource/ckhg-unit-06-england-golden-age/student-reader/

In math, students will divide a fraction by a fraction and solve multi-step word problems that involve division of fractions. Here are the dates for math groups for the rest of the quarter:

11/13

When a “test b” (multiplication test) is assigned for homework, it contains questions very similar to a quiz the following day. We take a lot of low-stakes math quizzes in fifth grade. All math workbook assignments are half of every type of problem. Please keep in mind that students may do test corrections on any math quiz for partial credit (fill in the blank sheets, not multiple choice homework sheets).

Good morning,

Science fair preparations are well underway! We have some big due dates in the next two weeks. Here are the remaining science fair due dates:

11/8

Record your results. Draw conclusions.

11/13

Start your project essay.

11/15

Begin work on project display poster.

11/18

Turn in the project essay to Ms. White.

11/22

Turn in project display poster to homeroom teacher .

11/25

Present project and turn in project packet.

12/4

5^th Grade Science Fair 6PM-7PM in Arete Gym.

Some projects take a little more time to conduct than others, however all essays must be complete and turned in on 11/18 and all display posters must be complete and turned in on 11/22. A failed hypothesis is still a wonderful project! That is part of science and students should not be discouraged if their hypothesis was wrong. The bold due dates are hard deadlines.

Please let Ms. White or myself know if you have any questions or concerns.

• Due to our field being reseeded, Running Club will not start until after Thanksgiving break.
• The PSO normally has a uniform exchange to help families with putting together concert attire, but they needed to move the date of the exchange for the Prep's awesome playoff game! Unfortunately the exchange is now after the concert, Nov. 20th. If you would like to use the uniform exchange, please email Deanna Carpenter at uniformexchangepso@gmail.com
• The dress attire for the concert will be as follows:
• Boys: Black pants, white dress shirt, black dress shoes, and black socks.  Hair should be combed neatly.
• Girls: Black skirt, white top, black tights, and black dress shoes. Hair should be pulled away from the face with no distracting adornment. Please follow the Archway Arete dress code for guidelines on jewelry.

Updates and announcements

I hope everyone had a festive Halloween season! We bought 3 bags of candy and only had 7 trick-or-treaters, hence the treats students got to bring home on Friday.

Our week in learning

Students will learn about the idiom “Lock, stock, and barrel.”

Students will learn about the roots rhinos, cornu, and derma. Students will be quizzed over these roots next Wednesday. Students should expect a similar quiz each week.

Students learned about the poem “The Road Not Taken” on 10/30 and recite it on 11/13.

In Literature, students will start reading “Where the Red Fern Grows”, ending the week with chapter 6. Students will journal every day we read in Literature about a given prompt. We are a spoiler-free school, so if students or older siblings know the end, please encourage your child to discover the text on their own (especially the ending). 

In Grammar, students will review the writing process. Students will learn about persuasive and propaganda techniques and the difference between fact and opinion. Students will also help the teacher write a persuasive essay, following the steps to the writing process.

This week in science, students will continue their study of classification. They will learn about the kingdoms Protista, Monera and Plantae (please note that the plant kingdom will be studied much more in depth in a later unit). Students should continue working throughout the week on their study guides, as they will be due on Friday. In science fair, students should begin trials of their experiments by Monday, November 4th. Their table and graph should be done by the 6th, and their results should be recorded by the 8th.

On Wednesday, students will be tested on the location of all 50 States. A word bank will be provided. This week we will begin our instruction on Unit 6: England in the Golden Age. We will begin with a discussion of Henry VIII, his predecessors, and his heirs. We will then examine the life and ruling of one of his daughter’s, Queen Elizabeth I. As we explore this period in the history of England, please utilize this student reader, and other free resources on Core Knowledge’s website: https://www.coreknowledge.org/free-resource/ckhg-unit-06-england-golden-age/student-reader/

In math, students will divide a fraction by a whole number, divide a whole number by a unit fraction, divide a fraction by a unit fraction, and divide a whole number by a fraction. Unit fractions have a denominator of 1. Here are the dates for math groups for the rest of the quarter:

11/6

11/13

When a “test b” (multiplication test) is assigned for homework, it contains questions very similar to a quiz the following day. We take a lot of low-stakes math quizzes in fifth grade. All math workbook assignments are half of every type of problem. Please keep in mind that students may do test corrections on any math quiz for partial credit (fill in the blank sheets, not multiple choice homework sheets).

Updates and announcements

It was so wonderful getting to meet with all of you last week! Parent teacher conferences are one of my favorite times of year. I am happy to be setting into our new house more and am grateful for the three day weekend. I finally got my sewing room set up and got to work on some bowl cozies.

The Read a thon is this Thursday. I look forward to seeing our parents read to the students selections from their favorite books.

Friday is another half day.

Our week in learning

Students will learn about the idiom “To kill two birds with one stone.”

Students will learn about the roots medicus, sanus, and holos. Students will be quizzed over these roots next Wednesday. Students should expect a similar quiz each week.

Students learned about the poem “Narcissa” on 10/16. Students will recite “Narcissa” on 10/30. Students will learn about the poem “The Road Not Taken” on 10/30 and recite it on 11/13.

In Literature, students will start reading “Where the Red Fern Grows”, ending the week with chapter 3. Students will journal every day we read in Literature about a given prompt. We are a spoiler-free school, so if students or older siblings know the end, please encourage your child to discover the text on their own (especially the ending). 

In Grammar, students will review interjections and possessive notes. They will get a practice test containing questions on complex sentences, independent clauses, dependent clauses, and direct objects. Their grammar test will be on 11/1.

This week in Science, students will continue studying classification. On Tuesday, students will review the correct answers to the Animal Kingdom quiz they took on Friday. This should be kept and used to study, as similar questions will be on the unit test. Students will learn about Kingdom Fungi on Thursday, and take an open notes quiz on Friday to test their knowledge. They will continue filling out their study guides, which are now due November 8^th with the test being November 12^th.  By the 29^th, students should have their experiment designed and materials listed and gathered in anticipation of beginning trials by November 4^th. They are also welcome to begin trials earlier!

This week in history, students will be tested on Unit 4: The Reformation, on Wednesday. Their study guides are due on Tuesday, which will be review day. Thursday will be an activity day, learning about Henry VIII, and Friday will be a review day for their 50 States quiz, which will occur on Wednesday, November 6^th. Encourage your children to be diligently preparing for this quiz at home - consider using the website https://online.seterra.com/en/vgp/3003 for practice.

In math, students will multiply a fraction by a fraction and solve word problems that involve multiplying a fraction by a fraction. Here are the dates for math groups for the rest of the quarter:

10/30

11/6

11/13

When a “test b” (multiplication test) is assigned for homework, it contains questions very similar to a quiz the following day. We take a lot of low-stakes math quizzes in fifth grade. All math workbook assignments are half of every type of problem. Please keep in mind that students may do test corrections on any math quiz for partial credit (fill in the blank sheets, not multiple choice homework sheets).

Congratulations to the Prep football team for making the playoffs! Due to AIA regulations and the scheduled playoff game this Friday, Movie Night is moved to Friday, November 22nd. Details can be found in the school newsletter. 

Parents, thank you for partnering with us in your child's learning.  We believe that homework, while important, needs to be carefully balanced with a child's full family and extra-curricular life.  With that in mind, please reflect on your child's experience with homework in the first quarter by responding to a short survey. 

Updates and announcements

We are running full force into this second quarter! I love this quarter because students get to learn about some of my favorite topics, like the Reformation, the Golden Age of England, Classification, fractions, and persuasive writing. Coupled with this is a wacky weekly schedule filled with 3 day weekends and 2 or 3 day weeks. We use every day to its fullest during this quarter. If your child has a planned absence, please let me know so I can coordinate their work and assessments (especially around Thanksgiving).

There are no clubs or tutoring this week due to the half days.

Please send in “Where the Red Fern Grows” with your child next week.

Our week in learning

Students will learn about the idiom “The grass is always greener on the other side.”

Students will learn about the roots pais, schole, ludo, and iatros. Students will be quizzed over these roots next Wednesday. Students should expect a similar quiz each week.

Students learned about the poem “Narcissa” on 10/16. Students will recite “Narcissa” on 10/30. 

In Literature, students will start a poetry unit, learning about and identifying alliteration, assonance, consonance, rhyme schemes, slant rhymes, and imagery. 

In Grammar, students will learn about interjections and possessive notes. They will get a practice test containing questions on complex sentences, independent clauses, dependent clauses, and direct objects, which will be due on 10/29. Their grammar test will be on 11/1.

This week in science, students will continue their study of Kingdom Animalia. They will take a deep dive in Phylum Cnidaria on Tuesday. The study guide questions for Kingdom Animalia will be spread out throughout the week as homework. Students should have their research completed by Tuesday, with all the information and sources recorded in their packets. Their hypothesis for their experiment should be completed  by Thursday, and students will have a chance to workshop their completed hypothesis with their homeroom teacher. If your child is planning an experiment with a longer time frame (this includes many experiments with plants and animals), it is a good idea to start early so the results are ready by early November.

This week in History, students will finish instruction in our unit on the Reformation. We will finish our lesson on the Counter-Reformation, and discuss the revolution in science that was seen most prominently with Nicolaus Copernicus and Galileo Galilei. Study guides are now due on Tuesday, October 29^th; our unit test will be on Wednesday, October 30^th. On Thursday, students will be quizzed on the Rocky Mountains, Southwest, and West Coast regions, and will learn about Alaska and Hawaii. On Friday, students will be quizzed on the location of Alaska and Hawaii and review all 50 States to prepare for their location test over all 50 States on Wednesday, November 6^th. Please encourage your children to utilize their paper protectors, as well as the website https://online.seterra.com/en/vgp/3003 for practice.

In math, students will solve word problems involving fractions and review for their test on 10/24. Students will start another unit on Fractions on Friday, starting with finding a fraction of a fraction. Here are the dates for math groups for the rest of the quarter:

10/23

10/30

11/6

11/13

When a “test b” (multiplication test) is assigned for homework, it contains questions very similar to a quiz the following day. We take a lot of low-stakes math quizzes in fifth grade. All math workbook assignments are half of every type of problem. Please keep in mind that students may do test corrections on any math quiz for partial credit (fill in the blank sheets, not multiple choice homework sheets).