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).