Happy Hump Day!

We love Erin's shirt she wore on Wed. before spring break! 

2015-16 class

Our 2015-16 class officially rocks.Our class officialized this during today's recess in the spare time.

New read aloud

Our new read aloud the BFG is SO funny. Don't forget to watch the new movie coming out this summer!

This Week in Room 33! March 28- April 1

I hope everyone had a wonderful Spring Break! Welcome back! Check out the above video and ask your student what it means to them. Here's what to expect this week-

Science- We are beginning to review past concepts for our upcoming MAP test. We will discuss the scientific method and apply it to a force investigation. Students were given the opportunity to "re-take" their force and motion test on Friday before break and still have that option (link to test in science tab). Retakes will be due Wednesday. Test grades will be emailed to students later this week.

Writing- Portfolios went home the Thursday before Spring break and are due back tomorrow (Tuesday).  Please celebrate your student's hard work on their 2nd argument essay! This week, students will begin to work on their DARE essay. Click HERE for more information on the DARE essay!

Math- We are completing our study of geometry (chapter 12) this week! We will be finding the volume of composite figures and problem solving. Our chapter 12 test will be on Thursday. Students should also be working on ALEKS at home (at least 20 min. by Friday). Ask your student what their new 4th quarter ALEKS goal is! We want 100% of the class to go to the 4th quarter ALEKS Pie Party! :)

Reading- We are continuing to analyze, discuss, and answer higher level questions relating to complex passages and texts as we prepare for the MAP test.

Reminders-
Thurs. 3/31- Geometry (Ch. 12) Test
Thurs. 3/31- Spring Parent/Teacher Conferences
Fri. 4/1- Half Day
4/21-5/3- MAP Testing (More info. will be shared at a later date)

Homework club

We have all created our own little cards like the one shown above. If we don't do our homework, our name gets taken off the board, and then we do not get to participate in Homework Club. At the end of the week, everyone that is still on the board gets a special surprise. #homeworkclub :)

Pi day

This Week in Room 33! March 14-18

Fantastic job at the Spring musical, 5th graders! You all rocked it- I especially loved our class' dance moves, awesome outfits, and enthusiasm! Here's what's happening this last week before Spring Break...

Science- We will be reviewing ch. 11 on forces and motion on Monday and Tuesday. Our short Google form test will be on Wed. Students will complete their test online as we prepare to take the MAP on computers in April. Students will receive a study guide on Monday and can also study from their textbook.

Writing- We are publishing our argument essays this week. 5-paragraph argument essays based on our Opinion Writing Checklist (see writing tab) will be due on Thursday for our celebration. On Friday we will conduct mini-debates to bring further awareness to our debatable issues. 

Math- We are working on geometry (chapter 12)! We are classifying polygons, triangles, quadrilaterals, and three-dimensional figures. I am SO proud of students who are continually working on their independent ALEKS goals- to celebrate ALEKS goals from 3rd quarter, those who reached their goal will be invited to Thursday's pizza pie party. As a reminder, students are working on ALEKS in class (about an hour+ a week) and also at home for at least 20 min. a week.

Reading- We are continuing to analyze, discuss, and answer higher level questions relating to complex passages and texts as we prepare for the MAP test. We are becoming alert test takers by predicting the answers and locating them in the text before looking at the answer choices, being aware that often times all the answers SEEM correct, and paying attention to and inferring about the characters by reading between the lines. Students are also continuing to focus on their independent reading goals for this year- how many books has your 5th grader read so far in 5th grade??? 

Social Studies- We are wrapping up our 13 colonies presentations. Google slide presentations will be shared on the blog later this week!

Reminders-
Wed. 3/16- Ch. 11 Forces & Motion Science Test

Thurs. 3/17- Argument Essay Due

March 21-25- Spring Break

Thurs. 3/31- Spring Parent-Teacher Conferences

Fri. 4/1- Half Day

April 19- May 4- MAP Testing (More info. will be shared at a later date)

Quotes of students all around the classroom

If you have quote, stick with it. You  never know when it will come in handy. Thanks Mrs. Critchlow for an awesome counseling lesson!

Counterclaims, Rebuttals, and Responses in our Arguments

Created with Padlet

Todays Meet

We used TodaysMeet.com to share our learning from Science. We are spending some days reviewing topics from 4th and 3rd grade to prepare for the upcoming MAP test!

This Week in Room 33! March 7-11

This week...

Science- We are continuing to study force and motion by working together to create Lego models of simple machines. Heads up- our ch. 11 test will be Wed., March 16th.   

Writing- We are taking our arguments up a notch with more extensive research, including counterclaims and rebuttals, evaluating our evidence, and appealing to the audience. Our goal is to raise more awareness to our issues. We will publish and celebrate these pieces next week!

Math- Our chapter 11 test on measurement is on Wed. We will be working on our study guides in class on Monday and Tuesday. Students can use the following to study/practice measurement conversions:

• study guide 
• textbook (pgs. 883-886 has review problems)
• old homework forms (Daily homework tab)
• Online Textbook (see Math tab)

Reading-  This week we are beginning a test-preparation unit in reading. We will begin to discuss strategies that will help us with test-taking such as determining if a question is about the whole text or just a detail from the text, predicting answers before finding them, and being aware that test takers try to trick us by making all the answers SEEM correct! The BEST way to become better readers is by simply reading, thinking, and discussing- I love doing all these things with your 5th graders everyday!

Social Studies- We are continuing to discuss the 13 colonies and will begin creating Google slides to teach the class about each region.

Reminders-
Tue. 3/8- Father/Daughter Dance 6-8
Wed. 3/9- Measurement Ch. 11 Test
Sun. 3/13- Spring Musicals
Wed. 3/16- Force and Motion Ch. 11 Test

Our Metric Song!

The Metric Song

Milli, Centi, Deci, meter

Deka, hecto, kilo, too

Put them with a gram and liter

That is all you have to do

Milli is the smallest measure

Ten of these a centi makes

One hundred centis make a unit

That’s not very hard to take

Liters measure only liquid

Grams measure weight or mass

Meters measure length or distance

You can go to the head of the class

National unplug day!!!!!

Today we had a conversation on how electronics are bad. It was a great conversation. Don't forget! Unplug day is tomorrow. NO devices!

Researching Our New Topics!

Check out our work from today's writing class. We are starting our 2nd argument essay by gathering evidence from BOTH sides of the argument!

Thoughts As We Research

We used padlet today to share our thoughts and ideas about an article we read on our next argument topic. Check it out below or click on the link!

http://padlet.com/wall/uyyjuw5gnhux

Created with Padlet