Homework
In general, you can expect your child will be assigned 50 to 60 minutes of homework a night on Monday through Thursday. All assignments (daily as well as long term) are recorded in student assignment notebooks each afternoon.
Homework typically consists of the following:
- Math practice sheet
- 20-30 minutes silent reading
- A weekly spelling assignment and test
- Work that was not completed in class
Happenings
MATH - My math group is beginning work on Chapter 11 which focuses on adding and subtracting decimals.
SOCIAL STUDIES Hear Ye, Hear Ye! Our unit on Colonial America has begun. We are transforming our classroom into a replica of Colonial Boston, circa 1773. Students have been grouped in "families" and are busy authoring the characters they represent, staying true to the clothing, customs and careers of the times. Throughout this unit, we will be experiencing some of the difficult choices colonists made in response to British rule/policies/politics. Our unit will end in the year 1776...and you might be able to guess how the story ends:) See the links section below for websites pertaining to our studies.
RELIGION The Seven Sacraments have been our focus lately. Next week we students will be tested on the Sacraments of Healing.
SCIENCE On the horizon...the SOLAR SYSTEM.
READING My Brother Sam is Dead by Christopher Collier and James Lincoln Collier. This novel study will focus on character development while bringing to life our study of the causes leading up to the Revolutionary War.
WRITING Students finished a draft of a story and are now in the process of revising and editing their work. We will publish these exciting narratives while honing our keyboarding skills. (see below)
TECHNOLOGY Our school has installed a new keyboarding program called Type To Learn 4 on all our student computers. The fifth graders have been developing their speed and accuracy in class and have the opportunity to practice their skills at home as well. Open the following link for a letter from Senor Pablo describing how to install the program on your home computer!
Type To Learn 4 installation instructions
Educational Links
Eduplace.com supports our math text and themathworksheetsite.com is an excellent resource for at-home computation practice.
www.eduplace.com
www.themathworksheetsite.com
www.logic-puzzles.org
www.worldmathsday.com
Want to find the reading level and point value of a book for Accelerated Reader (AR)? Check out the following link!
http://www.arbookfind.com
Links with interesting information on Colonial America:
A great site to see clothes from the times - www.colonialwilliamsburg.com/history/clothing/intro/
Take a virtual tour of Colonial Williamsburg - www.colonialwilliamsburg.com
Test your wits! Can you survive and thrive in Colonial Jamestown? - www.historyglobe.com/jamestown/
See what happened when modern day people tried living as early colonists! Could you? - www.pbs.org/wnet/colonialhouse/history/index.html
A great list of resources and links: www.kent.k12.wa.us/KSD/GR/curriculum/5th/colonial_america.htm
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How can I print out the math homework if my student forgets to bring his/her workbook home?
A: please visit www.eduplace.com (see link above). Click on "Mathematics," and then choose the 2007 edition of the Houghton Mifflin math book (one of the blue ones). Then choose the grade five circle. From there, select "leveled practice." This takes you to the page that lists lessons and worksheets from each of units in our math book. Students record their math book homework by chapter and number in their assignment planners each day. For instance if they record their assignment as: homework 3.1, that means their work is from chapter 3 lesson 1. Each unit in our book is generally comprised of 2 chapters...so you may have to do a bit of searching to find the correct unit on the website.
Once you find the correct unit, chapter and lesson, you must next select your child's assignment category (ie; homework, practice, reteach, problem solving, etc.) This information should be recorded in your child's assignment notebook. Then, click GO and you should have what you need!
Q: When is the Family Life unit taught?
A: These lessons are presented in the spring. Prior to the start, parents will be invited to a program overview meeting to preview materials and learn more about content.
Q: Do fifth graders need to write in cursive?
A: Absolutely! Every assignment must be completed in Zaner-Bloser cursive with the exception of math papers. The cursive rule also applies to all headings on student work, no matter the subject.