Week 29

Hello all! This is a very important week for the kids to “show what they know” on STAAR math (Tuesday) and reading (Wednesday). Parents can continue to support these efforts by providing a healthy breakfast, clean snacks (the kids know what I mean by this!), and a good night’s sleep prior to testing. I have also discussed excellent review resources to look over this weekend: math journal and folder (POD questions), Go Math textbooks, Think Through Math, Quizlet Vocab (link in last week’s blog), Math Antics Videos, reading folder (and previous practice passages), and blue reading workbook to name a few! We have worked very hard this year, and I feel confident that this group will do great! Also, please ask your child what they plan to “brain dump” on their test come Tuesday!

Math: On Thursday, we will begin to take a look at ratios and equivalent ratios. This video acts as a great introduction: Ratios

Reading: Book club groups wrapped up last week, so we will be getting started with our projects. A description of options will be given on Wednesday, and projects will be due on Monday, 4/3. Spelling and Quizlet quizzes will take place on Friday.

Science: This week we are continuing our unit on life science and adaptations. The students will explore different animal and plant adaptations. We will also be going over heredity and complete vs. incomplete metamorphosis. Study Jams has plant and animal adaptation videos that would be great to take a look at.

Social Studies: We will be continuing the Civil War… Students have their week 18 newspaper to take notes on as weekend homework (more great summarization and main idea practice!) We will review and have a cumulative test on the Civil War the following week.

Week 28

I hope you have all had a wonderful spring break! As we prepare to get back into the normal routine on Monday, here is a look at our upcoming week.

Math: Our in-class review will cover input/output tables, dot plots, scatter plots, stem & leaf plots, geometry (polygons), and financial literacy. Again, students are encouraged to review at home by looking back through their math notebooks and folders (especially POD and exit tickets), checking out 5th Grade Math Quizlet Review, and logging on to Think Through Math for extra practice. Math STAAR: Tuesday, March 28

Reading: We are finishing our book club novels this week and will be meeting in groups to discuss jobs. Students will be assigned their book project (centered around the jobs they’ve been working on throughout the novel) which will be due on 3/31. We will also be focusing on summarization and reading passage skills in preparation for the quickly approaching STAAR test. At home practice may include: reading aloud to someone and focusing on inferencing, summarizing, and predicting, working through practice passages in blue workbook, reviewing objectives in reading folder, and checking out 5th Grade Reading Quizlet Review. Reading STAAR: Wednesday, March 29

Quizlet and spelling quizzes on Friday.

Science: This week we are covering invasive species and plant/animal adaptations. Here are some great videos for review: Study Jams - under the “Plants” tab -> Roots & Stems, Flowers, Plants with Seeds. Under the “Animals” tab -> Animal Life Cycles

Social Studies: Civil War - students will continue to learn the causes of the war, the differences between the Northern and Southern economies at that time, states' rights, slavery/underground railroad, and a couple of key battles of the war.

Week 27

Math: We will continue to review previously taught objectives in preparation for the math STAAR test coming up on March 28th. This week, our focus will be on order of operations, unit conversions, area, perimeter, and volume. I also strongly encourage the kids to log on to Think Through Math to get some extra practice in at home!

ELA: Book club meetings will continue to take place this week. It is extremely important that students are keeping up with their nightly reading (but not ahead), and come to class each day prepared to discuss their “job” with the group. This meeting time also provides a review of this year’s objectives in preparation for the reading STAAR test on March 29th. In addition, we will be fine tuning our main idea and summarization skills with use of several practice reading passages this week.

Quizlet and spelling quizzes on Friday, 3/10.

Science: This week we begin our unit on life sciences. Ecosystems, habitats, and the interaction of living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic) things. Study Jams: Ecosystems has some great videos to check out: Ecosystems, Carbon Cycle, Population Growth, and Biomes.  

Social Studies: Civil War (Compromises)

Happy spring break! Be safe and have fun!