5V News

Curriculum Topics:

• Multiplication
• Character study in reading and writing
• Colonization
• The circulatory system 

Some activities we did this week:

• Took a test on adding and subtracting decimals
• Practiced traditional multiplication 
• Chose books to read for our character study
• Stepped outside of our books to build theories about our characters
• Noticed our character's actions and what that may reveal 
• Became familiar with the circulatory system
• Labeled the parts of the heart
• Set up U.S. history timelines on Tiki-Toki
• Discussed push and pull reasons for people to leave Europe 
• Painted pumpkins for Halloween! 

Notes and reminders:

• Early release on Friday, November 7th 
• No school Monday and Tuesday November 10th and 11th 

Have a great weekend! 

5V News

Parent conferences:
Parent conferences begin next week.  Please see the schedule below and email me if you would like to change your time.  I'm looking forward to meeting with you!
Parent Conference Schedule Fall 2014

We are learning about:

• Adding and subtracting decimals
• Memoir writing
• European exploration
• Reading strategies 

Some activities we did this week:

• Practiced reading aloud with power and expression
• Reflected on our first quarter reading
• Went "shopping" during math 
• Reviewed our math unit 2 I can statements
• Solved Halloween word problems in our table groups
• Concluded our memoirs by writing strong conclusions
• Researched one aspect of European exploration with Ms. Hodgdon's class 

Coming up:

• For our next science and social studies topics 5V will have Ms. Hodgdon for science and Ms. Valenti for social studies and rotate the two topics 
• Early releases- Wednesday, October 29th and Friday, November 7th for parent conferences 

Have a great weekend!

5V News

Have you signed up for parent conferences yet?  They begin in a couple of weeks!  Please sign up here.

We are learning about:

• Adding and subtracting decimals 
• Writing memoirs
• Reading comprehension strategies
• Early European explorers

Ask your child about:

• Our first Mystery Skype!  
• His or her job during our Mystery Skype
• Christopher Columbus
• Creating an astrolabe 
• His or her memoir topic
• The Global Read Aloud book- The Fourteenth Goldfish 
• The Storyworks character contest 
• His or her pattern during word study this week 

Have a great weekend! 

Scratch in the Maker Lab

In the SMS MakerLab 5th grade students are about to start a unit of study on coding, and one of the tools they will use is called Scratch, which is a web-based programing site for students created by MIT. Steve Gagnon, the technology integrator, would like students to have their own accounts so that they will be able to save and share their programs.

Students under 13 signing up for an account are requested to submit a parent email that could be used for lost passwords. Please send me a note by Tuesday, October 21st if the parent email you would like your child to use is different than the one I have on file.  

To learn more about Scratch, click on the following link.

http://scratch.mit.edu/parents/

Note: Please be advised that without the ability to use a parent email, your child will not be able to participate in the web-based Scratch activity. In this case a less robust iPad application, Scratch Jr, that doesn’t require an account would be used by the student.

Students who already have Scratch accounts may use them with parent permission.

If you have any questions, please direct them to Steve at sgagnon@sau16.org.

5V News

Happy Monday!

A few updates...

Word Study:
We have started the Words Their Way program as a class, and for the past two weeks we have been spending time learning the routines and procedures.  This week your child will have a spelling test on Friday as a practice.

Beginning next week, each week, your child will receive a set of words that is matched to his or her spelling level.  We will spend time each day in class working on learning and practicing the patterns. Your child will be expected to spend some time at home doing the same.  He or she will bring home a list of words on Monday and your child will choose from a menu of options for word study homework. This word study homework will not be checked by the teacher and it will be up the students to practice on their own.

If you would like to find out more about the program, there is a great description here.

Math Facts:
Today a flyer went home on how to set up Xtra Math at home with your child.  Students do not need to use Xtra Math, however, I am asking that they are spending time each night practicing their facts. Students can choose to do Xtra Math, flashcards, another website, or any other routine your family has established.

Global Read Aloud:
Today our class began the book The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer Holm as a read aloud book. The exciting thing about this read aloud is that there are thousands of kids all over the world reading the same book at the same time that we will connect with using Twitter, blogging and Skype.  You can find out more about the project here.