ELA UPDATE:
WHAT ARE WE DOING NOW?
In between class novels and using the Wonders program throughout the year, we often read incredible stories in Storyworks, a monthly magazine the district provides for our fifth graders, which have a variety of genres within it.
In the months of November and December, we read a class novel called Save Me A Seat. Students defined new words and placed into their Vocabulary Pocket in their ELA Notebook as well as practiced those new words in a Vocabulary Packet. Additionally they practiced their strategies while we read together in our Reading Community as well as independently worked in their Comprehension Packets and Slideshows in Google Classroom.
For the majority of the first half of the year, we will use the Wonders program. You can find it in the Classlink section under the red tab labeled McGraw Hill. Students have online access to each weekly unit with use of their Chromebook; this includes the stories we are reading, the vocabulary words we are learning as well as on-line games to practice reading skills and strategies.
Each weekly unit has an essential question that follows throughout all our reading selections. Please keep in mind we are working on an approximate two week cycle and always give assessments upon completion. We have incorporated guided reading groups to work on skills in a small group setting. At the start of each unit, we send home a new student packet which focuses on vocabulary and skills assigned for that particular week.
Upon the completion of a weekly unit, we give a Selection Test (Wonder's assessment for the vocabulary words and comprehension questions for the anthology book for that week's unit) as well as Weekly Assessments. Sometimes these weekly assessments will be on an "approaching level" format which include two new stories students have never read before and they are expected to answer multiple choice questions without a reading response.
ELA PROGRAM: WONDERS
We are using Wonders as our ELA program, which is a comprehensive literacy program which integrates authentic literature, where we will practice the application of reading strategies as well as strengthen our writing skills during different themed units. We are practicing using different reading strategies as we close read a variety of texts; our goal is to help students become more engaged with the text as active readers.
Everyday students are given independent reading time. Students are encouraged to always have an independent reading book at their desk, and they often borrow from our classroom library or from the school one to make sure they have a book at their side for reading time.
HOW CAN I HELP MY CHILD IN ELA?
*Please encourage your child to log into his/her Wonders account at home. There are a variety of interactive games to reinforce weekly vocabulary, spelling and grammar lessons.
*Please continue to encourage your child to read each evening for at least 30 minutes. Students have access to my classroom library as well as the school library to find a wonderful array of books at their fingertips. If they do not have access to a book, students can use SORA, which is an e-reader database available to each child in school and at home. Hopefully if we help them find books that they love, then reading each night will not be a chore. Please use my recommended authors link to help find new books for your child.
*Please see the link titled reading strategies to see what we are using in our class reading. Please encourage your child to use these strategies as he/she reads; feel free to prompt them and ask them what strategies were used. As the year progresses, hopefully each child will begin to internalize these strategies and use them in their independent reading.
MATH UPDATE:
WHAT ARE WE DOING NOW?
At the start of the year, we are in Chapter 1 of Math in Focus, which can also be found online in Classlink, known as HMH Ed. Students are learning about place value. Specific IXL is assigned for each Math unit to help students practice the necessary concepts for each chapter. Encouraging students to use IXL and First in Math in and out of school is critical for your child's success in math!
Knowing their basic facts is critical for success! Please encourage your child to use the program First in Math to help them with their fact fluency, especially learning their times tables up to 12.
Here is an overview of some of the components on your students' home page of the First in Math program:
Just the Facts is a timed assessment of how many facts they can answer correctly in 5 minutes.
Very Important Facts has videos to teach the lessons and puzzles to try.
Practice Gyms is where your students can go to practice their facts.
Skill Sets are for practicing and applying their knowledge.
***EACH DAY EITHER IN OR OUT OF SCHOOL, STUDENTS SHOULD TRY TO DO 1 PRACTICE GYM, 1 SKILL SET AND THEN A BONUS GAME TO APPLY THEIR KNOWLEDGE IN A FUN WAY!
WORD PROBLEM PRACTICE:
We will continuously practice how to solve word problems with the use of a four square approach.(I provided a copy of it in our parent handout at Open House). Students are also using bar models as one strategy to help them solve word problems. Knowing how to multiply and divide is almost secondary in the actual word problems themselves. It is important for students to be capable and confident in their multiplication and division skills, and it requires a great deal of practice. Please encourage your children to have fact fluency in their multiplication and division facts so that they feel confident to multiply and divide with larger numbers, as well as use these facts in fractions as well.
MATH PROGRAM: MIF
As you are all aware, we are using a math program called Math in Focus. The students were given a Student Edition math workbook which they can use as a reference for the math concepts we work on daily, and the best thing about it is that they are able to write within it! They also have a thin Extra Practice and Homework workbook which we refer to as "EPH" book which is used primarily for reinforcement and homework purposes. Everything is on-line through our Classlink platform; they should be familiar with the HMH icon to find their math resources online including virtual manipulatives and videos for support at home.
Please be sure to use these resources to help reinforce your child's understanding of our math concepts throughout the year.
HOW CAN I HELP MY CHILD IN MATH?
*For math enrichment and reinforcement, there will be a Google Classroom assignments with the chapter heading on it which will correspond with our lessons in Math in Focus for students to complete in class and at home, at their option. For example, students can find Chapter 1 math and Chapter 2 heading in their Math Google Classroom, which provides videos as well as IXL strands assigned for purposes of practice and reinforcement of the math concepts.
*To promote Fact Fluency, please encourage your child to use First in Math Practice Gyms as well as Tests.
*Additionally, students have been given access to IXL, which they may access through Classlink. IXL is an amazing resource to help your child work specifically on his/her weaknesses as identified through their own individual performance on an IXL Diagnostic.
*Students were given access to ST Math, which is a visual online program that builds a deep conceptual understanding of math through creative problem solving,
SOCIAL STUDIES UPDATE:
WHAT ARE WE DOING NOW?
Sept-October: Geography.
Nov-Dec: Government.
Dec-Jan: Economics
SS CURRICULUM: We will be using TCI SS Alive which is on our Classlink.
SCIENCE UPDATE: We will be using Inspire Science which is on our Classlink.
WHAT ARE WE DOING NOW?
We started off the year with the unit on Matter and are specifically exploring physical and chemical changes. We use the Science program called Inspire Science, and this too is accessed online through the red McGraw Hill icon off Classlink.
MISC:
Please be sure to check out the links I have provided as suggestions to help your child in the different content areas. Please also encourage them to use the student resources provided on the school website for fifth grade.
Thank you for your continuous support!
Mrs. Kapitansky