We have finally started science!  We have been doing experiments in the Curiosity Lab and I've loved having the ability to facilitate more teamwork and small group collaboration.  We started with the basics of matter and will evaluate the differences between mixtures, solutions and chemical reactions.  This content will be our focus through the month of December (which always has lots of random interruptions) and I plan to administer the  unit test by December 18. (I will let you know the actual date when it's closer.)  In addition to a paper test, this includes some stations where students need to apply their knowledge to explain various phenomena. Please let me know if your child will be leaving early for Winter Break so they can take the test early!  The semester ends on December 19 and all work needs to be turned in prior to Winter Break.  This would be a great time to review Schoology with your child so see if there are any lingering "Dreaded Zeros!" The slate will be wiped clean in January.

We are starting a new read aloud on Monday called The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary.  It's written in poetry and told in the voices of 18 students.  I have the kids read this one - most students are assigned a character or job to do (they were able to opt out if they didn't want to read).  I assign the parts fairly randomly since I struggle to remember details of all of the characters from one year to the next.  If your student is upset about something that becomes apparent about their character, please remind them that I do not type cast the rolls and I do not attribute these characteristics to the student who is reading the part!  With that said, students typically enjoy this format a lot.  

We will begin our study of Human Growth and Development the first day that we get back in January.  I will be emailing you a letter in early December with more details, but thought you should know the timing as you finalize your travel plans.  We mostly talk about the changes that happen to bodies during puberty.  Although students groan and fuss a lot, they generally enjoy learning about this topic.  

As we head into winter, please be sure to send your child to school prepared for any weather.  We will go outside unless it is exceptionally windy, well below freezing or pouring down rain.  Welcome back!

November 16

Three day weeks are a challenge on many fronts so we used it to tidy up loose ends.  We finished our study of history and government and will start science on Monday!  We started talking about the StoryCorp project and I am working hard to get my students to choose to interview an older person from their family (grandparent, interesting aunt or uncle, etc.) to encourage more intergenerational dialog.  We will work on interview questions and techniques this week.   

We finished the reading module assessment that is required by the District and I will need to do more reading assessments when we return in December.  Students are expected to read a new (fiction) book over the next two weeks so that they have something to write/record a book review about during the first week of December.  

Here are some upcoming dates to be aware of:

• Lip Sync sign up:  November 21 is the last date to sign up your group or express interest.

• 5th grade ensemble sign up:  December 5 is the due date to sign up on the form (I encourage all of my students to participate in this bonding experience!!)

• Winter band concert: December 15 at 2:15 in the cafeteria

November 9

This week, we finished our study of the American Revolution and everyone submitted their research paper.  Look for these in the hallway across from the library next week!  I will send home copies in next week's Friday Folders.  Most students did quite well on the American Revolution test.  It had a few essay questions to practice using the RACE model and we "studied" together in class to practice this important skill.  We also started learning about the Constitution and how our government was designed to work.  We will finish that up next week and move on to science for the next 5 months.  

Most book clubs will end next week (When You Reach Me will extend into the week before Thanksgiving break) and we will take a short break.  We will start a new project next week which is based on StoryCorp interviews.  Students should choose a family member to interview sometime before we return in January.  I always start this project early since a lot of my students see family members over Thanksgiving.

This Thursday, we are off to Mackey to see the Boulder Philharmonic.  Students should again wear their Green Bear Creek T-Shirts but we will be back in time for lunch, so a sack lunch is not mandatory.  The class really enjoyed the trip to Fairview last week and I thought that it was the best show that we've seen to date!  I enjoyed reconnecting with alumni as well.  They do grow up fast!!

This week, we will continue combining literacy skills with our study of the American Revolution.  We will begin a new independent research project related to the people and events that were part of this time period and create yet another timeline.  With luck, this writing will be up in the hallway in time for the upcoming school tours.  Also, everyone has a new novel to read for book group and all of the groups will meet on Tuesday to discuss the first section. 

In essence, this is another short week since this Friday is Halloween.  Students typically wear their (non-scary and non-gory) costumes to school. No weapons (even cardboard) are permitted.  We will have a parade in the morning starting at 8:15 that parents are invited to watch from the school grounds.  (More information can be found in Friday's BLAST!)  Many kids choose to change out of their costumes after the parade.  We will have a bit of time for schoolwork, then watch a movie in the afternoon.  Nikoletta created a sign up on Help At School if you would like to contribute a treat.  Thanks for your support!

Finally, here is a note from Mrs. Fries:   4th/5th Grade Intramurals HOCKEY

Nov 5th, 12th, 19th 3-3:45  (The form to join can be found in Friday's BLAST!)

Students will play a round robin tourney the first two days and then finish with a double elimination tournament on the last day. Please fill out the form for your student to participate.

On Wednesday, the class learned that they earned $2,549 at the Carnival.  Rachel Walker came to talk to all of the students about how to write a persuasive letter. She did a fabulous job of laying out the key steps and weaving in personal examples. They began working on a letter to Mr. Dayhoff,  detailing their ideas (with a budget).  We will finish and deliver them this week.  They are coming up with some very creative ideas!

As part of preparing for Parent-Teacher conferences, I analyzed the results of the "Forced Choice Survey" that shows what motivates students. ( It evaluates adult approval, peer approval, consumable, academic competition, intrinsic reward.) As a class, this group of kids prefers "intrinsic" rewards which I equate to "getting to do what they choose to do."  Hence, we are now earning points towards "Free Choice Friday" at the end of the day Friday.  The class starts with 10 minutes on Monday and can gain or lose minutes depending on how well they adhere to our "Ellis Compact." (It's loosely based on the Mayflower Compact and defines how we collectively choose to "govern" our class.)  The photos above show some of the options that they chose this week (writing, playing Gimkit games on the computer, building LEGO robots, artwork, reading). 

This week we will go to see the Fairview marching band on Wednesday.  Please send a sack lunch - the bus will pick us up at 12:30 and we should be back by 2.  We will have a "picnic lunch" before getting onto the bus.

I am looking forward to starting conferences on Wednesday.  As a reminder, they are 15 minutes long and this one is for adults only.  I will set a timer to help me stay on schedule!  

We have a guest speaker on Thursday morning starting at 8:00 - please have your students arrive on time!  

I sent emails to the two parents who will join us for the Boulder Philharmonic field trip so if you did not hear from me, I will put you on the waitlist for our next excursion. I wish we could take everyone.  Thank you for your support!

I am still missing some permission slips for the marching band field trip on October 22.  We are not taking chaperones to that one and kids will need to bring a sack lunch.

We have a social studies test coming up so you should see a study guide at home this week.  I am trying to teach my students that they should not "cram" for tests. We are finishing our first round of book groups on Wednesday as well.  Life moves at a fast pace in fifth grade! I hope you had a chance to enjoy the fall colors.

This week, we created and signed our "Ellis Compact" (think "Mayflower Compact") to describe how we would like our classroom to be "governed." This led to some excellent discussions about the meaning of  the word respect - a concept that we will continue to practice all year.  This week's focus will be on comparing and contrasting the three geographic regions of the thirteen colonies.

The kids are over the moon about this week's Carnival (October 9).  The organizers have been working hard to place students into  their desired spots while balancing the need to fill all of the shifts.  There are inevitably some disappointed kids when the assignments are given but honestly, everyone has a good time regardless of their shift.  Please remind your child to be gracious when they receive their assignment.  A heartfelt thanks goes out to all of the adults who make this event happen! 

For National Hispanic Heritage Month, Mrs. Fries took the class to the curiosity lab for a creative building challenge. I posted some pictures above.  I was impressed by the creativity and teamwork that I saw over such a short time period.  I will be looking for more opportunities to use this space for STEM projects in the near future.  On that note, if you ever come across STEM materials at your house (such as Lego, K'nex, WonderLab Dash robots or Hot Wheels) that you have grown tired of stepping on or picking up, please consider donating them to the Creativity Lab!  You can send them to school with my name on it at any time during the schoolyear and I will put these treasures to good use!

Conference sign-ups have been going quite well and almost all of the spots are now full.  Please let me know if you are having a hard time navigating this system.  In the fall, each conference is 15 minutes long and students will not join us. This is your conference, so if there is something on your mind that you would really like to talk about, please drop me a note next week so that I can arrive well prepared.

I sent home a Scholastic book flyer in Friday folders.  I plan to place an order on Wednesday at 5.  If you would like to order a book for your child, you can choose from anything on their website: https://clubs.scholastic.com/home.  The books will be delivered to school in mid-October.  

Finally, here's a note from Mrs. Fries: 

4th/5th Grade Intramurals Fall 2025

Dodgeball OCTOBER- 8th, 15th, 22nd

Don’t miss our Dodgeball intramurals! This game is not played during class, so it is the only chance to pla it. 4th and 5th graders will be intermingled on teams. They will play a round robin tourney the first two days and then finish with a double elimination tournament on the last day. Please fill out the form in the Bear Creek BLAST! for your student to participate.  (Note: Sign up for Battle of the Books was also in the BLAST email last week.)

BCE PE Website

Please check out BCE’s PE website for pictures of students in action, intramural Dates / sign ups, and more! BCE PE WEBSITE

September 28

Now it feels like school has really begun!  Students did a fabulous job on the first social studies test, the graphic novel/book comparison projects are starting to arrive in my mailbox and everyone completed the final beginning-of-the-year reading assessment.  I will have a lot of information to share with you at parent-teacher conferences in October (15, 21 or 23) and I am looking forward to connecting! 

This week, we will continue to study the colonization of North America with a focus on the thirteen colonies and early steps in self-governance.  Students have also begun reading historical fiction books for book clubs.  Hopefully, you have seen your child reading one of these books: Chains (read through page 75 by Tuesday), Blood on the River (page 75 by Tuesday), Midnight Rider (pg. 116 by Wednesday) or Fighting Ground (pg. 80 by Friday).  All of these books will helps students build some background knowledge about the Jamestown colony or the American Revolution.  For the record, it is okay for students to listen to audio versions of these books, especially if they read along while listening.

In literacy, we are taking a short break from writing projects.  We will be working with morphemes, which are the smallest chunks of words that have meaning, reviewing parts of speech and reviewing sentence structure.  We will also have our first official IntoReading module test this week.  It sometimes feels like there are an awful lot of tests in fifth grade, but my former students report that they feel well prepared for middle school. Their only complaint is that the amount of homework jumps dramatically in 6th grade!  

Monday's writing section of the Social Studies test will go along with the study guide that your child should have filled out and used to refresh their knowledge. I have been teaching the class the concept of "retrieval practice" - quizzing yourself so that the brain needs to retrieve information.  This helps the information go into long term memory.  With social studies,  I am less interested in having them memorize a bunch of facts.  Instead, I am trying to build some background knowledge (they will learn ALL of this content again in middle and high school) and help them to apply the concept of "cause and effect."   I am also working to teach them how to articulate their thinking and defend an argument.  This ability will help them on the Science CMAS later in April!  So far, they are doing quite well.

September 14 

For the most part, we had a grand time at Cal-Wood!  Because the weather was so lovely, some of the kids did not bring pants and found that the burrs in the field were very irritating to their skin.  I came home with a nasty cold (COVID test was negative) and spent much of my weekend sleeping it off! I emailed the photos in a shared album so I don't plan to post any pictures here.  There are over 900 images of this trip!!!

Because I wasn't feeling great, the class spent a lot of Thursday and Friday writing a poem and a story about the same Cal-Wood "small moment" experience.  I am honestly BLOWN AWAY by the quality of writing that they are producing so early in the year!  I used the book Alone to frame this lesson.  Alone is written by a local author who originally wrote the book in third-person prose but decided that it didn't work she she rewrote the story in first-person verse.  She included a bit of the original prose so that we could compare the effectiveness of these two types of writing.

Thursday's soft lockdown was a bit of a hiccough but my students handled it well.  We watched some Mark Rober videos during the indoor recess.  Since the band and orchestra teachers were impacted by the lockdown at Southern Hills, we did not have instrumental music, so I allowed kids to leave their instruments at school. On Friday, we talked about this incident briefly in class to make sure that everyone had gotten factual information.  A lockdown drill had been planned for Bear Creek this week but this has now been moved to October.

This week in Social Studies, we will wrap the Columbian Exchange with a visit to the garden on Tuesday, where we will harvest the "New World" crops of potatoes and tomatoes.  We will finish editing the invention writing and get that project up on the wall by the library.  We will put together a book of our Cal-Wood experiences and settle back in to the BVSD prescribed reading curriculum to practice more prompt writing.  

Since the next reading unit focuses on the elements of fiction and my students are pretty strong in this arena, I plan to have them compare and contrast a graphic novel and a book of the same title to see how the story is told differently in the two different formats. Most students will do this with a partner and I am modeling the project using The City of Ember as a class read aloud. Students will create a slide show comparing/contrasting the various story elements (setting, characters, plot, point of view) and discussing the "art style" of the graphic novel.  I use this project to teach them some technical vocabulary of sequential art (e.g. frame, gutter, spread, bleed), to get them to slow down and notice the choices that an illustrator makes to move the story along and also to teach them how to make a WeVideo movie to narrate their slide deck. At the end, they need to tell us which is better - the book or the graphic novel. (Spoiler alert - the books usually win!!)  We will try to have these done for Parent-Teacher conferences so that you can enjoy them!

September 8 - Off to Cal-Wood

We had a great short week of PE (fastest fifth grade class!), instruments and independent research.  We're looking forward to sharing our Cal-Wood stories with you on Wednesday!  The bus should arrive back at Bear Creek around 2:00 on Wednesday and students need to be picked up by a parent if they want to go home early.  See you then!

We've started learning about the Columbian Exchange in social studies.  We began by reviewing students' knowledge about Native American cultures (a big part of the fourth grade curriculum) and wove in some history of Asia and Europe so that students understand the underlying causes of the Age of Exploration.  

To connect social studies to literacy (which starts with inventors in our textbook), we came up with our own list of inventions that changed how people live and everyone picked a unique topic. Students should have completed most of their research last week.  We will write a short report this week and post it, along with a timeline, across from the library. I use this project to review the world map and teach my students how to use software called "Noodle Tools."  Initially, we focus on capturing their sources to include a properly formatted "Works Cited" (BVSD uses MLA through high school).  Later this year, we will use Noodle Tools to connect their notes and to their sources.  I showed the class what it looks like on a teacher's computer when students copy and paste sections of text...  This first report is a bit formulaic and I hope to have it done this week! 

In literacy, we cracked open the textbook and began working through the initial lessons.  I do not have students write in these books because I like to read all of their responses and 32 workbooks are unwieldy!  Hence, I type the prompts into Schoology and students respond through a discussion post.  Initially, these are not graded.  I teach the CLASS to use the "RACES" acronym to help them answer prompts. The model works like this:

• R - Restate the question (Students write stronger topic sentences when they use the language from the prompt.)

• A - Answer all of the parts (Often, we are asked to answer multi-part questions!)

• C - Cite evidence from the text (This takes a bit of practice, so we work on in all year!)

• E - Explain how the evidence relates to the prompt (Elaboration is also something that we work on all year...)

• S - Summarize (We are not using this part yet, but it will come into play later with multi-paragraph essays.)

As always, I have some exceptionally strong readers in my class and will begin differentiating reading instruction in a couple of weeks.  Ideally, kids will be reading for 25 minutes a night at home.  While I do not track the number of pages or books read, I strongly believe that the more kids read, the better readers they become! School is more accessible to those kids who read fluently, so I try to convince them that practicing now will make high school easier...

Although we have one week to go before Cal-Wood, Carolyn needs your child's medicine to be at school by Thursday!! It takes a lot of work to organize all of this medicine.  Teachers carry the meds during the daytime and these packs need to be handed off in the evening when we are back at the lodge.  Many thanks for your support on this request!  

Happy long weekend!

I sent home Cal-Wood paperwork on Friday, along with an on-line link for Cal-Wood's form.  We have an informational meeting this Wednesday at 5:00 and should be able to answer your questions then.  Your students are invited to this meeting, too!  On Thursday, they will have the chance to fill out an index card telling us their preferences for the cabin groups - they are guaranteed to have at least one friend in their cabin.  Teachers build the daytime learning groups, where friends are intentionally mixed up and parents are not placed with their children during the day.

We plan to switch classes for math on Monday.  I currently have a group of kids who are "on the cusp."  These students will start in the Advanced 1 (A1) class to see how it feels.  I expect that a few of them will move to fifth grade math after the first or second test.  These students will still have the opportunity to accelerate next year and will still have the option to take Calculus in high school. I expect students in the A1 math class to score 80% or above on all of the module tests.  There are 18 modules so it feels like we take a lot of tests...  Students in this class will also have a lot of homework and may initially need some support in developing good homework habits at home.  If your child is disappointed in their placement or if math feels too hard, please encourage them to come and talk to me!  If you have questions, we will be switching to math classes at the end of back-to-school night so that both math teachers can clarify their own expectations and address your concerns!

Finally, I thought I would share this article from the Atlantic about being a "Lighthouse Parent" since it relates to how I view my role at recess.  I explained to the class on Friday that one of my jobs is to help them develop skills to resolve their own recess conflicts.  They are welcome to come and tell me if there is a problem, but my first response should be, "How have you tried to resolve this so far?"  This is not to say that I don't watch the kids and gather my own impressions.  I still want to hear about safety issues and I will step in if I feel like something has gone to far.  However, I want my students to leave my classroom feeling confident in their own abilities to navigate friendship drama and other challenges. If your child is having unresolved conflict, please encourage them to come and talk to me so I can help them develop a plan and follow up over time. 

Thank you for getting all of the summer photos sent in and for your thoughtful responses to my parent survey!  I am looking forward to our year together.

Years ago, parents indicated that they were getting too much email from the school.  Based on their feedback, I switched over to maintaining a class website, and found that it has the added benefit that information doesn't get lost or accidentally deleted.  I still send email for important, time-critical or personal communication but this website is where I post photos, information about upcoming projects and general news from our classroom. I tend to update my blog on the weekend, so Sunday evening is a good time to check in.  I know that websites are not for everyone and I welcome feedback!  Please let me know if you are struggling to find information.

A QUICK NOTE ON  MY GRADING PHILOSOPHY

BVSD requires 4th and 5th grade teachers to use Schoology as our "Learning Management System" and parents have access to the grades in this system.  However, the "grade" that you see in Schoology does not directly translate to the standards based grading system that BVSD uses for elementary school report cards.  While I don't use Schoology to formally calculate a student's "grade" for my class, I have discovered that a lot of my students struggle to turn in their work and Schoology does a really good job of tracking completion.  (This will be yet another good habit to build before middle school.)  If a child completes a task but gets the answer wrong, does not fully complete the assignment, or uses incomplete sentences for a short answer question, I will give them  partial credit to avoid the "dreaded zero."  If your child has a very low grade in my class, it's probably because they have a lot of missing work. I DEEPLY believe in giving feedback and building strong school habits, but I also want my students to be curious and more focused on learning than on jumping through hoops.  There will be plenty of time to stress about grades later!!  

We can discuss this more at Back-To-School night on August 27 (in person).