Weekly Newsletter
Week of February 9-13
Week of February 9-13
Week 6 begins today! My goal is to strengthen your child's reading, critical thinking and writing skills to make them a successful 5th grade student.
Independent reading at home is a huge part of that success, so I encourage you to set aside 10-15 minutes each night for your child to read a chapter book. They can log their minutes on Beanstack and continue to build their stamina and excitement for reading.
We are continuing Module 6, Marvels of Nature this week. We read the short informative text, The Seven Natural Wonders last week, and today we will begin The Mariana Trench & Exploring The Challenger Deep.. The focus for both of these texts are a review of nonfiction text features, as well as text structure (compare/contrast, chronological order, problem & solution., cause and effect). We will also utilize multipe sources to gather information about The Mariana Trench. Students will categorize relevant informaton as it relates to each source.
Our new vocabulary words are: trench, summit, thrive, prehistoric, vital, glimpse, submersible, remotely, autonomous. Our open-notes test will be on Tuesday, February 17th. Vocabulary will be fill in the blank due to the increased number of words. Vocabulary Slides are posted for review below.
Resources are posted on Google Classroom and under Reading Resources for your reference.
We are almost finished with our uppercase cursive letters, which means your child should be writing more assignents in cursive. I will also start giving them assignments written in cursive to ensure they are mastering and applying his standard. Your child will now be able to write names of specific people and places, as well as full complete sentences. Cursive homework will now be in a workbook for students to bring home and will be due on Friday.
We are reviewing comparative & superlative adjectives and adverbs, Students will learn Greek Roots auto, bio, photo, graph. We continuously use the skill of using context clues to determine the meaning of unknown words.
We are continuing our unit on Opinion writing, which is always so much fun! Students will practice with a variety of different topics, including The Seven Natural Wonders of The World & Mariana Trench.
Unit 4: Fractions
This unit will take us eight weeks to complete. We will learn about fractions and connect them to decimals.
Equivalent Fractions
We will begin by learning about equivalent fractions using concrete models and number lines. We will work with fractions with like and unlike denominators. We will connect our understanding of equivalent fractions with multiplication and division to help us make an equivalent fraction by multiplying or dividing both the numerator and denominator by a fraction with the same numerator and demonominator. See the Equivalent Fractions Video for a demonstration.
Comparing Fractions
We will use our understanding of equivalent fractions to begin to compare fractions with unlike denominators. This will require that we get a common denominator for both fractions which will require using multiplication or division. This will mirror our equivalent fractions lessons except that we will determine which fraction has a greater or lesser value.
Adding and Subtracting Fractions and Mixed Numbers
We will learn how to add and subtract fractions with like denominators and UNLIKE denominators. Additionally we will examine how to add and subtract mixed numbers.
Adding and Subtracting Mixed Numbers and Analysis of Line Plots
We will continue to use our skills of adding and subtracting mixed numbers with line plots. Please see the attached video for more information.
Line Plots- Adding and Subtracting Mixed Numbers
Decimals
We will work to understand how the place value of decimals. We will chart them and put them on a numberline to help students understand how the place value works.
Unit 4: Space
We will begin an exciting unit this week which will lead us into space.
We will begin with space exploration and how technology has improved over time. Our studies will take us through launches of space propes, rovers, and telescopes.
We have continued our exploration of space into the planets. We will continue to discuss their sizes, their orbits, and specific details of each planet.
We are wrapping up our study of Westward Expansion. Last week we covered Sojourner Truth & Harriet Tubman's fight to raise awareness against the practice of slavery in The United States. This week we will learn about Frederick Douglass & Susan B. Anthony. We will also discuss how the invention of The Cotton Gin impacted slavery in the south. Our unit test will be on Thursday February 19th. A study guide will begin coming home this week in order for your child to prepare. I have also posted an Abolitionist Slideshow to help your child review these important figures at home and in class. There are embedded video links that are helpful for studying.
Be sure to keep an eye on our Social Studies page for additional review resources. All of the above mentioned resources are posted for you.
Please send in your child's Permission Slip and $5 to cover the cost of our field trip to The Augusta Museum of History. This is due no later than Thursday, February 12th to be sure we are prepared.
2/13-Boosterthon Fun Run @ 1:30
2/13-Valentine's Exchange-Thank you for volunteering to send in goodies for this special day.
2/18-Field Trip to Augusta Museum of History-Pizza lunch will be provided.
2/26- 3rd & 4th Music Performances at 5 & 6, Family Book Fair Night
Wish List Items-Paper towels, hand sanitizer, Clorox wipes, candy for our treat jar (no peanuts, please)