April 17, 2025

Buckle Up!

As crazy as it sounds, we are mere weeks away from the last week of school! We know some students are beginning to keep track of how many days are left. Of course, one STAAR test is in the rearview and two remain. Far more fun and less stressful things are on the horizon for your kiddos. We will continue to help our students focus on the fun that lies ahead and feel less anxious about STAAR. As mentioned in previous newsletters, we try hard to help our students understand that the STAAR test is part of what we do, but it's not the most essential part of the 5th-grade.

Throughout the remaining weeks, we want your kiddos to see how much they've grown, so our discussions will highlight their growth and accomplishments. After all, they have nearly an entire school year's worth of hard work and experience to help prove the STAAR test isn't the most essential aspect of their final year in elementary school. We look forward to finishing the year strong and making some final memories as we wrap up their elementary experience. Buckle up because time flies once we've gotten past our STAAR tests!

Save the Date

Friday, April 18th

• -Good Friday- No School

Tuesday, April 22nd

-5th-Grade Science STAAR Test

Tuesday, April 29th

-5th grade math STAAR

-6th grade math STAAR

-8th grade math STAAR (this is the STAAR taken by students in 7th accelerated math)

-Alg I EOC STAAR exam

(3rd & 4th math STAAR on this date as well)

Charged Chromebooks and Headphones For STAAR

Parents, please have your child bring headphones to school starting Monday for our upcoming STAAR reading test. They can keep them in their backpack, but we want to ensure students have access to headphones because what we have in the classroom isn't always reliable, and we have a limited amount available. We would also like to ask you to remind your kiddos to charge their devices for our STAAR tests. We don't want any student to run into issues for the test due to their device not being charged. 

Thank you so much for helping us with this!!

American Historical Figures Wax Museum Project

Dear 5th Grade Parents,

We are excited to announce an upcoming project for our 5th-grade students: the American Historical Figures Wax Museum Project! This project encourages students to explore and research significant historical figures or events that have shaped our country.

Note: Most of the work will be done in class during school hours. 

Project Details:

• Research Paper: Each student will complete a research paper about their chosen historical figure or event, focusing on important contributions, life events, and historical significance. 

• Tri-Fold Project: Students will create a tri-fold display that highlights their findings. This will visually represent their research and include images, key facts, and important dates. Students are asked to bring a tri-fold from home for this project. Please reach out to Mrs. Robertson or Mr. Wahpekeche if you are unable to provide a tri-fold for your child. 

• Dress-Up Presentation: On the presentation day, students will dress up as their chosen historical figure or represent their selected event. This is a fun way to connect personally with their research and engage with their classmates.

Presentation Date:
Parents are invited to view the presentations on the morning of May 16th at Glenhope (THIS DATE COULD CHANGE). This will be an excellent opportunity to celebrate your child’s hard work and creativity!

If your child would like to bring materials such as borders or letters from home for their tri-fold project, they are more than welcome to do so! We encourage students to use creativity and personal touches to enhance their presentations.

If you have any questions or need further information, please feel free to reach out.

Thank you for your continued support!

Warm regards,

Christi Robertson and Mr. Wahpekeche

Teacher Emails

Should the need arise for you to contact one of your child's teachers for academic questions/concerns/comments, or anything else, here are their email addresses:

6th Grade Accelerated Math (@iUPrep) - chad.baker@gcisd.net

5th-Grade Math- ashley.carter@gcisd.net

Science/Social Studies - christi.robertson@gcisd.net

ELAR - rion.wahpekeche@gcisd.net

Please do not hesitate to contact us. Our goal is to respond the same day if possible, but it may be the following morning before we can. 

Curriculum 

ELAR:

• I can analyze media techniques and explain their impact on my understanding of various texts.

• I can use text and graphic features to help me deepen my comprehension of a variety of texts.

• I can identify direct and indirect objects in various texts and use them consistently and correctly in my writing.

Math: 

• Next week, we will continue to review our math skills in preparation for STAAR.

Science: 

• Next week, we will continue to review for our upcoming Science STAAR test.

Social Studies:

• Next week, we will talk about a joint project for Social Studies and ELAR.

Feedback

We know we aren't perfect. Please click the link below and give us feedback on the first two weeks of school. We'd love to improve, and we'd appreciate your feedback. Thanks in advance!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfoE_vXWi42rGbnGON6X8uq5rLuCOsINgrfBgzyQa9kozcBrA/viewform?usp=sf_link