Week 9, Quarter 2

This week we are just wrapping everything up! 

Here is a reminder of what we will be doing on Thursday, December 22nd.

Just a quick reminder about tomorrow. We are going to the movies and either watching "Sing" or "Moana," both movies are PG. Please send your child in with $5. We ask that you not send in more than $5 as they will each be getting a small drink and small popcorn only. We will leave at 9 and return when the movie is over.

Secret Santa gift exchange will be tomorrow as well. This is a small item with a $5 limit. Your child should have come home with the name of who they drew and a list of 3 items. Please let me know if you have any questions.

 

Also, don't forget....The students will be allowed to wear anything "HOLIDAY"  (think ugly sweaters, Christmas shirts, red, green, gold, anything that makes you think HOLIDAY FUN)!  No pajamas! Dress code shoes.

​I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas!​

Week 8, Quarter 2

Two more weeks until Christmas Break! I can't believe how fast the second quarter has flown by!

4th and 5th Grade Writing: We are finishing up our narrative papers and reviewing language standards on grammar.

Projects: We will start our Science Experiments today and will present to the class on Thursday.

Reading: We will continue to work on our reading stamina while reviewing Main Idea, Narrative Elements, Inferencing, and Summarizing.

Auctions: Will be next week, please have your child send in one item.

Secret Santa: The class has voted on having Secret Santa for our class. Students will draw names today. This will be a maximum of $5.00. We will do Secret Santa on Thursday December 22nd.

Hope you all have a fabulous week!

Week 7, Quarter 2

4th and 5th Grade Writing: We will continue on with our narrative paper. We will revise and edit this week and all papers will be due on Thursday.

Projects: We will prepare for our Science Experiments. We will make lists of items that we need. Your child should come home with a material list sometime this week. All materials need to be in by next Monday, December 12th. Students will conduct their experiments multiple time next week and present to the class on Thursday December 15th.

Reading: We will continue to practice our reading strategies and independent word stamina using a good fit book. This week we will continue to review Main Idea, Prior Knowledge, and Inferencing.

I hope you all have a GREAT Week!

Week 6, Quarter 2

5th Grade Writing: We will begin a new narrative going through the whole writing process. First, we will review the narrative elements in our writing papers. We will have a vocabulary test on this. Students have access to study this at home on quizlet.

Projects: We are starting a new Science Project called, "What's the Matter." Students will be conducting an experiment to the class. This week. we reviewed the Scientific Method. Tuesday we will introduce the new project and vocabulary. Wednesday, we will research as a class what experiments are available. Students will be paired with a partner and pick the experiment they want to do and start researching on Thursday. Students will need to bring in supplies for this experiment, I will keep you informed on when they will need these supplies by.

4th Grade Writing: We will start a new narrative paper. We will use the whole writing process for this paper.

Reading: We will continue with George Washington's Socks. Some of us will be assessed on "Main Idea" and start a new strategy. Some of us will continue to review Main Idea and will be assessed at the end of the week.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving Break!

Week 5, Quarter 2

5th Grade Writing: We will create a thankful tree for ten things that we are thankful for. On Tuesday we will perform "community service," by cleaning up the school.

Projects: Students will watch a Disney Movie from 1957 titled, Johnny Tremain. 

"An apprentice silversmith (Hal Stalmaster) is there at the Boston Tea Party and other highpoints of the Revolution."  


Students will watch this movie while practicing the reading strategy, " Making Connections." Students will write down text to text, text to self, and text to world connections. We will watch half on Monday and half on Tuesday. Students will discuss their findings at the end of each projects class.

4th Grade Writing: Students will finish their "Favorite Holiday" paper. We will revise and edit on Monday, type and hand in on Tuesday.

Reading: We will continue reading George Washington's Socks. Students will read two chapters on Monday and Tuesday. Students will continue to fill out the Main Idea IVF for each of these chapters. If they do not finish in Reading, it is homework. They have more than enough time in class to finish these.

We will NOT have a Main Idea assessment this week or next week. I will move this to two weeks after Thanksgiving Break. I feel that we need a little more time practicing this because of our Chautauqua presentations and Thanksgiving.

Also.. Thank you to ALL of you who came to our Chautauqua presentations. We had such a great turn out! The students worked so hard on these and it showed, they ALL did an AMAZING job.. I am so proud of them ALL! Here are a few pictures from Thursday:)

Quarter 2, Week 4

5th Grade Writing: We are working on being able to analyze two or more accounts of the same events or topic. We are reading The Story of the Three Little Pigs and The True Story of The Three Little Pigs. Students will create a venn diagram to compare and contrast these two stories.

 Projects: We will practice, practice, practice for our chautauqua presentations on Thursday. These presentations are THIS THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, IN THE LUNCHROOM FROM 2:30-3:30. WE HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL THERE. 

4th Grade Writing: We are working on another opinion piece.

Reading: We are continuing to work on various reading strategies. As a whole, we are working on Main Idea. Students will have an assessment on Main Idea the following week.

I hope you all have a GREAT week! 

Quarter 2, Week 3

5th Grade Writing: We are working on language and grammar. We will learn how to use commas, be able to explain the function of conjunctions, prepositions, and interjections.

Projects: We will continue on with the research of our important person of the Revolutionary War. We have a quiz on Thursday. We will review in class, but I strongly encourage your child to study them at home. Don't forget our Projects Presentation on November 17, in the lunchroom at 2:30-3:30.  

4th Grade Writing: We are going to review and learn how to write an opinion paragraph.

Reading: We will continue on with George Washington's Socks. We are all working on learning and reviewing Main Idea while also working on our individual reading strategies in our groups.

I hope you all have a great week!

Quarter 2, Week 2

5th Grade Writing: We are continuing on with our opinion papers on our favorite season. These are due on Thursday.

Projects: We are continuing on with our people of the American Revolution. Final presentations will be on Thursday, November 17, from 2:30-3:30 in the lunchroom. Students will need to have their full attire costumes for practice NO LATER THAN Monday November 14th. We hope you are all able to attend.

4th Grade Writing: We are learning some grammar such as listing adjectives, confused words, similes, and metaphors.

Reading: We will continue on with our George Washington's Socks novel while also working on our reading strategies.

Conferences: Please remember to sign up for parent teacher conferences if you have not done so already. They are this Friday, November 4th. Please let me know if you are having trouble signing up or need to schedule another time. Looking forward to meeting with you all!  

Thank you! to all who helped with our Halloween Party. I think it was a success. :)

Quarter 2, Week 1

Writing: We will be working on an Opinion piece on "What is your favorite season?" We will be going through all 6 steps of the writing process and students will conference with me throughout the whole process.

Projects: Students picked their Revolutionary person and they are researching them this week for the wax museum. We will have a vocab quiz on this, your child can study this on quizlet at home. I will give them classroom time as well.

Reading: We are going to start a new book this week, George Washington's socks. Students will work in their reading groups and meet with me at their allotted time to work on their reading strategies.

4th Grade Writing: We are working on dictionary skills.

Halloween: We will celebrate Halloween on Monday, October 31. This will be in the afternoon after lunch. Students can dress up all day, please no scary masks.

I hope everyone has a GREAT week!

Week 9

This first quarter has flown by!!

In Writing: We finished up learning about similes and metaphors. We will spend the rest of the week learning about different words. Students will find three words from websites that I will share with them and they will look up the following: Why do they like the word so much? What is the word's etymology? When and where was it born? How has it evolved?

In Projects: We will introduce a new Project. Students will have to pick an important person from the Revolutionary war and research that person. We will have a wax museum at the end of this project where students will dress up like this person, write a speech, and memorize this speech for the Wax Museum. This presentation we will invite parents to. When it gets closer I will let you know of the date and time. Students will choose their important person the week after fall break.

4th Grade Writing: We will finish up our Evidence Based Paragraph. The rest of the week, we will all about idioms!

Reading: I finally have all students grouped. We will start working in our groups working on various strategies using Wonder Stories.

Spelling: We will no longer be giving Spelling tests in 5th grade. We feel that it is more beneficial for students to have to use the dictionary in their writing and have to really pay close attention to their Spelling all of the time, not just once a week. We feel that if they have to take the time in their writing to ensure they are spelling all words correctly rather than just memorizing them it will help them in the long run. The spelling pertains to all assignments, vocabulary, projects, reading,etc.

I hope everyone has a Fabulous Week!

Week 8

5th Grade Writing: This week we are learning all about idioms, similes, and metaphors.

Projects: We are wrapping up our biographies. We will finish them on Tuesday and share them whole class on Wednesday and Thursday. I will have them hung outside our classroom on the bulletin boards for those of you who would like to stop and read them.

4th Grade Writing: We are learning how to write an evidence based term paper.

Reading: We are learning and reviewing new reading strategies. This week, we are working on Making a Picture or Mental Image, Reading an Appropriate Level Texts that are a Good Fit, and Reviewing all Previous Reading Strategies that we have learned. 

Auction Items: Will be next week, everyone needs to bring in at least 1 item to participate.

Maverick: Our class has earned a trip to Maverick! We will go NEXT Thursday October 13, 2016 during our PE time. Please send your child in with $5, your child will only be able to spend $5 and they will only be allowed to get two items.

I hope everyone has a GREAT week! 

Week 7 - Quarter 1

5th Grade Writing: We are wrapping up our Three Branches of Government paper, it is due tomorrow. We will work on learning and reviewing idioms the rest of the week.

Projects: We have started writing our biographies on the person that we interviewed.

4th Grade Writing: We are working on our Favorite Character Narrative.

Reading: We are learning and reviewing different reading strategies. I am still assessing students this week. The students will be placed in their reading groups in the next couple weeks.

Auctions: This is week 7, we will hold auctions in week 9. Please send in your items :)

Pajama Day is on Thursday. Students can wear pajamas that cover as much skin as the uniform IF you make a donation to childhood cancer.

 I hope everyone has a FANTASTIC week! 

Week 6

Writing: We are continuing on with our Three Branches of Government paper all week. I am conferencing with all students as we work on the steps of the Writing Process and the 6 Traits of Writing.

Projects: Students need to have their interview question answers by Thursday. This week we are learning about social responsibility and how technology has changed throughout the years in the United States.

Reading: We are still reviewing and learning Reading Strategies as we review are Daily 3 Reading procedures.

Monday Folders: Your child will bring home a Monday Folder tonight. There will be various papers of your child's work. Please take out the papers and initial in the correct date so that I know you received their graded work. These will come home every Monday.

Auctions; Thank you to those of you who have donated, we only have three short weeks before the auctions start. I am asking that each student donate at least one small item. These do not have to be large items, they can be from the Dollar Store. Food is also acceptable.

Pictures - Our class pictures will be this Thursday, September 22, at 2:00.

I hope you all have a great week! 

Week 5

Writing: We are starting our very first informational paper! We are going through the rubric step by step so everyone knows what is expected before we start writing. Students will use the 6 steps of Writing along with the 6 traits of Writing. The Prompt for their paper is the following: a)Name and explain in detail the three branches of government and why they were created, defining their roles in our government.b) Name the two houses of the United States Congress and explain how representation is determined. This will take us quite awhile as I will conference with each student paragraph by paragraph.

Projects: We are participating in the "Great Mail Race." This is where we fill out a questionnaire about our 5th grade lives in Fallon, Nevada and send it to other 5th grade classes around The United States. Ask your child which state they chose. Starting on Wednesday, students are going to interview someone older than the age of 50. Students will make a list of possible interviewees and this list must be approved by you. Students will  have one week to interview this person and will be writing a biography on this person starting next week.

Reading: We will continue with Daily 3. I am still assessing students individually for placement in their reading groups. There will be a Spelling Test, so please encourage your child to study. Test on Thursday.

Auctions: As an incentive, students earn "Mac Bucks" in my classroom. "Mac Bucks" are basically the classroom cash. Every quarter, for a week or two, we hold auctions at the end of the day so students can spend their "Mac Bucks." For the auctions, we need small items. If you could donate at least one small item that would be greatly appreciated. These can be items your child makes, candy, or items from the Dollar Store. I will donate as well. These items can be sent in starting now. I want to thank you in advance for you donations and contributing to our 5th grade classroom incentives :) Our first auction will start on Week 9, we are in week 5.

I hope you all have a GREAT week!

4th Week of 5th Grade

Time is flying by, we are already in September!!

In Writing, we are learning some grammar standards such as the definition of a subject and predicate and fine tuning our dictionary skills. On Thursday, we are going to use our knowledge of word choice and voice to create a fun "How to Survive" activity.

In Projects, we are finishing up our slideshow presentation of our famous Congressperson, US Supreme Court Justice, or President. We will finish our note cards up tomorrow. Your child should come home with already finished note cards tonight or tomorrow so they can practice memorizing their speech for Thursday. Thursday is their presentation to the class, it is optional for them to dress as the person.

In Reading, we are continuing on with our Daily 3. Introducing and reviewing various reading strategies. I am assessing each student individually before I place them in their Reading Groups.

There will be NO Spelling Test this week because of the short week. 

Below are a few pictures of our 5th graders listening to high school bio poems last week. 

3rd week

Things are rolling in 5th grade! We have been practicing and practicing our routines and procedures and everyday it gets better:)

In Writing we are going over the 6 traits of Writing to introduce and review before we start Writing.  In Projects, we started a new project where the students had to pick a President, a US Supreme Court Justice, or a congressperson. The rest of this week, we will work on researching about these people, their position, and their responsibilities. Students will present next Thursday. In Reading, we have been reviewing and learning the routines and procedures for Daily 5 and have introduced a few reading strategies.

A couple reminders, your child should have brought a new Spelling List home last night. That test will be on Thursday. Also, Parent Journals will come home on Thursday and are due back on Monday morning.

I hope everyone has a great week! 

Spelling Test

Hello All!
Your child should come home tonight with a Spelling List. They will have a new list every Monday and will be tested on 10 of those words every Thursday. They will have at least twice a week to study for 10-20 minutes in class.

Thanks!
Mrs. McElhannon

The First Week is almost here!

The first week is approaching fast! I wanted to let you all know ahead of time that your child will be bringing home a blue binder on the first day of school. It will need to be brought back and forth to school each day! This will be their binder they will be using for all subjects.

In the binder, there will be forms that need to be taken out of the binder on Monday night. These forms will need to be filled out, but we are asking that you wait and bring them in on Thursday night at Back To School Night. We are going to have an organized system in which the forms will be turned in that night. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me.

I am looking forward to a great school year! :)

Welcome 5th Grade Families!!

I am looking forward to this school year! The supply list is listed directly on the right side of this blog. Please remember to follow this blog by entering your email address under the "Follow by Email" tab located right under the supply list so that you will be updated on all the current events and important information going on in 5th grade. :)

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer and will see you all soon!

Mrs. McElhannon

Three Weeks Left!!!

This week we will FINISH testing on Tuesday...YAY!! We will spend the rest of the week wrapping up our historical event project. On Thursday, don't forget about our Carson River Work Day, you should have all gotten an email from Mrs. Mori regarding all the details of this event. Please email her or I if you have any questions.

I also want to invite you all to our Historical Event Project on Wednesday from 2-3 pm in our classroom. The students have all been working hard on these, I am excited for you all to see them :)

That about sums up our upcoming week, I hope you all have a GREAT weekend!

Two More Weeks of Testing to Go! ~ 4 weeks left of school!

Please remember that 5th grade tests resume on Monday and Tuesday this week. Any questions about remaining testing dates, please check my blog. Make sure your child has their own snacks, (please only send the snacks that are on the approved list, the list is on my blog) water bottle, headphones, and gets plenty of sleep! I know this time of year is crazy busy for everyone:) One week down of testing, two more to go! 


Our field trip to City Hall and Maverick was a success! A huge thank you to Mrs. Taylor for walking with the class and to Judge Lister, he did an amazing job of presenting his role in the court system.

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

Please read this WHOLE email as it has important testing dates and SNACK information. 

MAKE SURE TO SEND YOUR CHILD'S HEADPHONES IN WITH THEM BY MONDAY, THEY WILL NEED THEM THE NEXT THREE WEEKS. :)

Please mark your calendars for the following dates for 5th Grade Testing. We will start promptly at 8:30am all of these days. Please make every effort to have your child here on time and not absent on these days. 

​4/19/2016​   5th Grade Science

4/20/2016   5th SBAC Math Part 1

4/21/2016   5th SBAC Math Part 2

4/25/2016   5th SBAC ELA Part 1

4/26/2016   5th SBAC ELA Part 2

5/2/2016    5th ACT ELA

5/3/2016    5th ACT Math/Science

​

I have attached below a testing schedule for all grades that was emailed to you on Monday. 

Snacks will also be allowed at testing, but ONLY the snacks from the following list due to allergies. PLEASE DO NOT SEND ANY OTHER ITEMS THAT ARE NOT ON THE LIST. 

​Goldfish

Cheez-its

Pirate Booty popcorn

Any fruits and Veggies

String Cheese

Gogurt

Beef jerky

Ritz

Wheat Thins

Frito Lay Brand--Doritos, Cheetos Puffs & Twisted, Fritos, Ruffles, Lays Classic, Wavy & Original chips, Baked Lays, Baked Doritos

Sun chips

Pringles

Stacy's Pita Chips

Gums

Mints

**All gum and mints are safe.

​Also, if your child's snack comes in a noisy wrapper, please put that item in a plastic bag so that it is not distracting to others while testing. ​

​Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Thank you!​

-- 

IMPORTANT TESTING INFORMATION-PLEASE READ!!

Please mark your calendars for the following dates for 5th Grade Testing. We will start promptly at 8:30am all of these days. Please make every effort to have your child here on time and not absent on these days. 

​4/19/2016​   5th Grade Science

4/20/2016   5th SBAC Math Part 1

4/21/2016   5th SBAC Math Part 2

4/25/2016   5th SBAC ELA Part 1

4/26/2016   5th SBAC ELA Part 2

5/2/2016    5th ACT ELA

5/3/2016    5th ACT Math/Science

​

Snacks WILL ALSO BE ALLOWED at testing, but ONLY the snacks from the following list due to allergies. PLEASE DO NOT SEND ANY OTHER ITEMS THAT ARE NOT ON THE LIST. 

​Goldfish

Cheez-its

Pirate Booty Popcorn

Any fruits and Veggies

String Cheese

Gogurt

Beef jerky

Ritz

Wheat Thins

Frito Lay Brand--Doritos, Cheetos Puffs & Twisted, Fritos, Ruffles, Lays Classic, Wavy & Original chips, Baked Lays, Baked Doritos

Sun chips

Pringles

Stacy's Pita Chips

Gums

Mints

**All gum and mints are safe.

​Also, if your child's snack comes in a noisy wrapper, please put that item in a plastic bag so that it is not distracting to others while testing. ​

​Please let me know if you have any questions. 

Thank you!​

Walking Field Trip April 19th!!!

On Tuesday, April 19th, we will be walking to City Hall and Judge Lister will be giving us a presentation on the court responsibilities and process. We are excited about this, but I also wanted to let you know early so if your child has to leave early we would have time to make different arrangements for them. We will be leaving school at 1:10 and return when finished, not sure of exact time. 

Welcome Back!!

Welcome Back 5th Grade Families! I hope everyone enjoyed their much needed time off! Here is a quick overview of what our week back will be like...

Reading: We will start reading The Maze Runner. Students will read this individually and take notes as they go. We will have an end of the book project that I will go over with them as it gets closer.

Writing: We will be practicing for our tests that are coming up, we have two weeks to brush up and summarize all that we have learned.

Projects: We will be learning civic standards.

I hope you ALL have a great week! :)

Week 30 - Quarter 4

This blog will be pretty short and sweet.. One more week until Spring break!

Our schedule will be different next week due to the fact that we will be practicing for SBAC testing in Math, Reading, Writing, and Science. Please make sure that your child has their own pair of headphones that they can keep at school all week long. 

Thank you!

Thank you to all who came to student led conferences on Friday, I enjoyed listening to each child talk with their parents. I look forward to meeting with the rest of you next week. The schedule goes as follows:

Monday, March 21 4:00pm-5:30pm and 
Tuesday, March 22 4:00pm-5:30pm.

Please email me if you have any questions, I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Week 29 - First week of Quarter 4!

Reading: We will continue on with Wringer. 

5th Grade Writing: We will continue working on our "Key Prompt Narrative." We haven't looked at these for a couple of weeks. Last Thursday, we brought them out again and the students are working on revising and editing them. They are learning that Writing is never really done, there is ALWAYS something you can fine tune. These will be shared with you at conferences. On Thursday, we will finish preparing for Student Led Conferences.

4th Grade Writing: We will practice presentations on Monday and present on Tuesday to parents. We will then revise and edit our Smarter Balance practice essays that we completed in December.

Projects: We will finish our parachute projects and will have a Vocab Test on Thursday.  


JUST A REMINDER....Please don't forget about conferences starting on Friday. Information is posted below...THESE ARE STUDENT LED, YOUR CHILD IS REQUIRED TO COME WITH YOU SO THEY CAN SHOW YOU ALL OF THEIR HARD WORK :)

Student-Led Conference Information

******************************************************

Dear Family,

Our class has been working hard this year on personal responsibility, work ethic and building community through our academic achievements.  As parent-teacher conference time approaches, I would like to implement a student-led style of conferencing.  Your child will take you through their achievements, difficulties, reflections and goals. I will be in the room as an observer, but not leading the traditional conference.

Their report cards will be available this day as well.  Your child will go through their report card with you, as well as other work we have gathered and then they will take you through their ixl reports for math.  

These conferences will take place on the following dates:

Friday, March 18th, 1:00 - 5:00pm,

Monday, March 21st, 4:00-5:30pm, and

Tuesday, March 22nd, 4:00-5:30pm.

There is NO set schedule; you may come in at any time mentioned above, unannounced, at your convenience.  Each conference will take about 20 minutes.  If you feel that you would like a separate conference with me after your child has presented their packet, I will have a signup sheet.  Those conferences will be held at a later date.

I am excited to watch them take control of, and be responsible for, their conferences and work.  They have made so much growth this year.  Their reflections are meaningful and their achievement has strengthened their confidence and self esteem.  I look forward to seeing you

As always, if you need to contact me, I am available!

Thank You,

Jenna McElhannon

Conference Information

Student-Led Conference Information

******************************************************

Dear Family,

Our class has been working hard this year on personal responsibility, work ethic and building community through our academic achievements.  As parent-teacher conference time approaches, I would like to implement a student-led style of conferencing.  Your child will take you through their achievements, difficulties, reflections and goals. I will be in the room as an observer, but not leading the traditional conference.

Their report cards will be available this day as well.  Your child will go through their report card with you, as well as other work we have gathered and then they will take you through their ixl reports for math.  

These conferences will take place on the following dates:

Friday, March 18th, 1:00 - 5:00pm,

Monday, March 21st, 4:00-5:30pm, and

Tuesday, March 22nd, 4:00-5:30pm.

There is NO set schedule; you may come in at any time mentioned above, unannounced, at your convenience.  Each conference will take about 20 minutes.  If you feel that you would like a separate conference with me after your child has presented their packet, I will have a signup sheet.  Those conferences will be held at a later date.

I am excited to watch them take control of, and be responsible for, their conferences and work.  They have made so much growth this year.  Their reflections are meaningful and their achievement has strengthened their confidence and self esteem.  I look forward to seeing you

As always, if you need to contact me, I am available!

Thank You,

Jenna McElhannon

Week 28 - Last Week of Quarter 3!

Reading: We will continue with Wringer. 

5th Grade Writing: We will continue with comparing and contrasting stories, but this time, we will be comparing and contrasting stories in a same genre using a Venn Diagram.

4th Grade Writing: We will continue our State Research Projects.

Projects: We will start a new Project where we will be building parachutes.

FYI: I will be emailing more information about Parent/Teacher Conferences this week. These will be Student Led, so your child will be required to attend with you. Your child will have LOTS to show you :) You must attend in order to get your child's report card. 

Hope you ALL had a GrEaT Weekend! 

Quarter 3 week 27

Reading: We will continue to read Wringer.

5th Grade Writing: We will work on the standard, Analyze two or more accounts of the same events or topics. We will read two books on the story of The Three Little Pigs and on Little Red Riding Hood. We will discuss as a class and students will fill out a venn diagram showing the similarities and differences of the two books.

4th Grade Writing: We will continue to work on our research project.

Projects: Students will finish their presentations on Monday and we will present on Tuesday and Wednesday to the various classes they are assigned to.

Just an FYI: As conference time approaches, I want you to know that your child will be presenting their work and their growth in a student led conference. We have much to share with you, and I am excited for you to see their growth! I will send more information on this as it gets closer.

I hope everyone is having a great weekend! 

Quarter 3 - Week 26

Reading: We will continue with reading Wringer. 

5th Grade Writing: Students will continue working on their "Key Prompt Narrative." We will finish these on Wednesday and share with the class on Thursday.

4th Grade Writing: We are going to start a fun new project! Students are going to research one state that they are assigned to. Students will research this state, write about this state, and create a fun project with their state. This will go on for a few weeks.

Projects: Students are working on their conserving energy tips. We will work on presentations this week and they will present to various classes in the school the following week.

Auctions: We will continue with auctions this week as we were unable to fit them in everyday this last week. 

I hope everyone has a GREAT weekend! :)

Week 25

Reading: We will start the book "Wringer" this week. Students will work in their book clubs while also using this time to complete their Daily 3 assignments.

5th Writing: Students will continue on with their "Key Prompt Narrative." So far the students have been having fun with this, ask your child to tell you about what their "key prompt" is about.

4th Writing: 4th Grade will work on language standards. This week will be " use modal auxiliaries to convey various conditions."

Projects: We will continue on with our Conserving Energy Project. Students will finish researching and take what they learned from our guest speaker on Thursday and start to put together presentations for the school so we can promote everyone to start conserving energy.

Student Stores: We will do these this week, last week we took advantage of the nice weather and played PE for 30 minutes at the end of each day.

I hope everyone had a great 4 day weekend! :)

Week 23-24

Third quarter is going by fast...we are already half way through!

Reading: We are starting to wrap up The Tiger Rising. We will finish up our projects and students will present them to the class on Wednesday and Thursday.

5th Grade Writing: We wrapped up our last project in Writing last week. Students learned about Hydrosphere, Biosphere, Geosphere, and the Atmosphere. They learned and created a drawing of the different layers of the atmosphere. They ALL did a really GREAT job!

4th Grade Writing: We learned a lot in 4th Grade Writing this week. We learned how to Show, not Tell in our descriptive, narrative writing. We started writing our own paragraphs while also revising and editing. We will finish these paragraphs on Wednesday and Thursday this next week.

Projects: We started our new project on Earth and Human Activity where students are learning about renewable and nonrenewable resources. They started researching how different cities conserve their own energy. This coming up week, we will have a guest speaker and the students will learn more ways of how they can help conserve energy. The end result will be students presenting different ways to conserve energy to classrooms in our school. We will then watch the school power bill for the next three months to see if we notice any change.

Student Store-We will have student store this week as it will be the 6th week of the quarter. Have your child bring in different items that they would want to sell. This is optional.


Valentine's Day: Just a reminder, we will not be having a Valentine's Day Party. Please do not send in any treats or valentine's with your child as we will not be able to let your child hand anything out. 

I hope you all have a great weekend! 

Quarter 3 - Week 22 and 23

Reading: We will continue with our Tiger Rising projects and questions.

5th Grade Writing: We will finish our Columbus Essays. After that, we will learn about the four spheres of earth. We will then create  a diagram where students will label each sphere, describe the sphere, and list the different features of the sphere.

4th Grade Writing: We will continue working on our narratives. Last week, we learned all about introductions and how to "Show, Not tell," in our writing.  This week, we will continue to work on our paragraphs and learn about conclusions in narratives towards the end of the week.

Projects: We will continue to learn about the 4 spheres of earth. The spheres are Geosphere/Lithosphere, Hydrosphere, Atmosphere, and Biosphere. Students will learn and write about them in Writing and learn about the different interactions in Projects. This will be the end of our Organisms and Ecosystems Project.

Thank you to ALL who were able to make it for our presentations. I have to say I was very impressed with these kids! They ALL worked so hard and it really showed in their presentations. 


 Here is a quick pic from our Maverick trip! 

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I hope you ALL have a great weekend!

Valentine's Day: Just a reminder, we will not be having a Valentine's Day Party. Please do not send in any treats or valentine's with your child as we will not be able to let your child hand anything out. 

Week 21 / 22

Please read WHOLE blog for this week as there are a few important events for this coming week at the very END of this blog:)

Reading: We are still working on finishing up The Tiger Rising and the questions that go along with the book. We will start a fun activity of each students choice to go along with the book this week. 

5th Grade Writing: We worked on the standard Compare two counts of the same event. Students are reading two different articles on Christopher Columbus based on fact and opinion. Starting on Monday, they will write a few paragraphs on the similarities and differences of the articles based on what they read using evidence from the text. This will be due on Tuesday, the rest of the week we will do a fun activity learning about INTERJECTIONS!! 

4th Grade Writing: Last week we learned about our new narrative that we will be writing. Students started the 6 Traits Writing Process on Thursday and will continue with this next week. The writing prompt is If you could design your own room, what would it look like? Describe in detail. This will be due on Thursday at the end of class. 

Projects: We learned a lot in projects this week! Students learned about and how to use a bar graph and about the different distribution of water on earth. Students had to work in partners and make their own bar graphs on chart paper. We learned a lot about being meticulous and how important it is :) 

Students will work on putting presentations together this week for you! We are inviting all parents to our classroom on Thursday from 1:30-2:30. These presentations will be on the last few weeks including their terrariums, parts of a plant, the water cycle, and gardening tips in Nevada. These presentations will be a few short minutes, you are welcome to come in and see as many or as few of these as your time is allotted.  

2nd Maverick Trip! We will finally be going on our 2nd Maverick trip on this Thursday as well. We will go around 3:00pm after our presentations so that we can make sure we are back in time for school to be dismissed. Please send $5 with your child. They will be allowed to buy ONLY two small items. 

Valentine's Day: Just a reminder, we will not be having a Valentine's Day Party. Please do not send in any treats or valentine's with your child as we will not be able to let your child hand anything out. 

Thank You! Hope you ALL are having a great weekend and I hope to see you ALL on Thursday :)

Week 20/21 Quarter 3

Reading: Students have still been working on The Tiger Rising and will continue to do so this week. Working on finishing the book and the questions that go along with each chapter. We will still do this in a Daily 3 rotation allowing students to choose between reading, vocabulary, and cursive packets. They get to choose what they do each center as long as they finish all of the required work on time.

4th and 5th Grade Writing: We reviewed verbs with both 4th and 5th Grade. In 4th grade, we will start writing a narrative using the 6 traits of writing steps. We will really focus on introductions and conclusions with this narrative.  In 5th grade, we will compare and contrast two articles on Christopher Columbus.

Projects: We will continue to observe our terrariums, and learn more about the different distributions of water on earth. Students will then start researching gardening tips in Nevada. After their research, they will start putting together a presentation. We will have parents come in to see these presentations the week of the 25th. I will send out an email on exact day and time this coming week. This past week, the students have been learning to use Google Drawings and they have created their own water cycle and parts of a plant. These turned out really good! These will be apart of their presentations.

Just FYI and a reminder for students: There will be a vocabulary quiz on January 27, 2016 on their terrarium projects. Students should have their vocab study organizer in their binders so that they are able to study at home. 

2nd Maverick Trip: I have decided to move the Maverick trip to Thursday, January 28th in the afternoon. This will just work better with our project schedule, as this will be the end of our terrarium project.

Thank you all and I hope you have a Great Weekend :)

Week 19/20-Quarter 3

Hello 5th grade families! Below is a quick overview of what is to come in the next week :)

Reading: We will continue with our book clubs reading The Tiger Rising. Students are discussing their questions in their groups, reading and answering questions individually. We are running this in our Daily 3 Reading Program. Student centers are reading/discussing book, cursive packets, and vocabulary building. 

Students are to answer questions that go along with the chapters. Students are reminded to answer questions completely, using evidence based terms, and restating the questions in their answers. Students are also to double check their work and make sure they are spelling everything correctly while also using the correct punctuation. 

4th and 5th Grade Writing: We will continue to learn new language standards this week. 5th Grade is learning about common idioms and perfect verb tenses. 4th Grade is going to learn about common idioms, past, present, and future verb tenses. 

Projects: We learned all about what we will be building in our terrariums this coming week. We also planted out radish seeds. Thank you to everyone who has donated supplies for the terrariums, we will be building them on Monday:) Also, last week we learned all about ecosystems and photosynthesis. We will continue with photosynthesis on Monday/Tuesday. Students will then learn about the water cycle, parts of a plant, and different percentages of water that cover the earth. They will make their own graphs on this. Students will also be required to fill out a daily log on their observations of what is going on in their terrariums. 

2ND MAVERICK TRIP- The whole class has earned another award and they have chosen to walk to Maverick again. We will go sometime in the next couple weeks. Please send $5 with your child. Students will be allowed to purchase two small items. I will send an email a day or two before we go so that everyone is prepared. 

I hope everyone has a FaBuLoUs Weekend! :)

Quarter 3, Week 19

Welcome Back 5th Grade Families! I hope you all have had a great holiday break!

Here is a quick overview of our upcoming week...

Reading: We are going to start a new whole class book club on The Tiger Rising. Students will read individually and in their groups. They will also answer discussion questions in their groups as well.

4th and 5th grade Writing: We will learn and review language standards. I will also review report cards with each student and set individual goals with them in Writing.

Projects: We will introduce our new 4 week project on Molecules and Organisms. We will learn the vocabulary for this project. Students will make a study guide for a vocab quiz they will have the following week. For this project, we will be building terrariums out of 2 liter soda bottles. Students will be required to bring in one 2 liter soda bottle by the end of the week. We will construct these terrariums the following week. After we review what will be required and learn the new vocabulary for this project, we will then learn some background knowledge on ecosystems and photosynthesis.

I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their break and I am looking forward to seeing everyone back on Monday January 4th!