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Spelling: None today.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences of seven or more words each are due on Fridays.

Reading: We rehearsed our class play today.

Writing: Students worked on drafting for their fiction novel project today. During this project, each student has a daily word goal of 150-300 words. The novel is due Tuesday, March 26. See below for more details. Students should be drafting at this point. See below for more details.

Novel Writing Project 2013

The final piece of the 3rd Marking Period will be our final fiction project of the year. Students will write and publish a novel. Each student will write their own novel, with a word goal minimum of 1,500-3,500 words, based on their reading level (each student’s minimum writing goal is equal to their reading level multiplied by 500). The novels will be written in Google Docs (docs.mrhowd.com) to make use of the word count feature. Final novels will be uploaded to Lulu.com and published as paperback books, which can be purchased for reasonable prices. So yes, students will actually write and publish their own novels. This project is based on the National Novel Writing Month Young Writers program. Here are more details:

• Here are some novels written by former students:
  • One Demi-God’s Story
  • The Secret
  • Space Invaders
  • Lonely with Some Spark
• We will start this project in class on February 27 and it will be due on March 26; however, students can begin early.
• This is our final fiction project; the novel can be any type of fiction story (mystery, science fiction, fantasy, realistic, historical, etc.)
• We will be working in the computer lab most days, using docs.mrhowd.com to type the novel. Students can also work on this from any internet-connected computer outside of school.
• Students might want to start thinking now about how they will use a computer after school if they need to, and if they will go to the library, use a home computer, or use a friend or family member’s computer.
• If friends and family would like to order a paperback version of the book, we will upload the final texts to Lulu.com. Most books will cost between $5 and $10.
• Half of this grade will be if students complete their own, personal word count goal.

Math: None on Fridays.

Science: We learned about qualitative and quanitative data today. Qualitative data is about qualities (fast, slow, tall, red, big). Quantitative data is about quantities (5 years, 12 inches, 90 beats per minute). Homework is to finish analysis questions 1-3 on p. 35.

Social Studies: We leared about the triangular trade between Europe, Africa and the Americans that was fueled by the slave trade.

Behavior Update:

• Yellow magnets: 2
• Orange magnets: 0
• Red magnets: 0
• STAR Awards: 6
• Magnets moved this week (goal: 8): 9

Check your student’s Personal and Social Growth grade online to see if your student moved their magnet.

Notes:

• Spring parent teacher conferences are next week, March 12-14. View your conference time here.
• Our class is performing a play called The Legend of Lightning Larry, based on a story by Aaron Shepard. Here are the after school practice and performance times. I’ve asked each student to look for things they can wear as their costume for this western cowboy play. If any family members would like to help with the set, just contact me!
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance online.
• Fifth Grade Camp is April 18-19, 2013. The cost is $100 per student.
• Thinking of summer school or summer enrichment? Learn more here.

Our Mission:
All students in Room 130 will do their best and get ready for 6th grade.

Spelling: None today.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences of seven or more words each are due on Fridays.

Reading: Today was the final discussion day for this Literture Circles cycle. We’ll be working on our class play for the next few days, and after that, students will create projects to share their Literature Circles book with the class.

Writing: Students worked on drafting for their fiction novel project today. During this project, each student has a daily word goal of 150-300 words. The novel is due Tuesday, March 26. See below for more details. Students should be drafting at this point. See below for more details.

Novel Writing Project 2013

The final piece of the 3rd Marking Period will be our final fiction project of the year. Students will write and publish a novel. Each student will write their own novel, with a word goal minimum of 1,500-3,500 words, based on their reading level (each student’s minimum writing goal is equal to their reading level multiplied by 500). The novels will be written in Google Docs (docs.mrhowd.com) to make use of the word count feature. Final novels will be uploaded to Lulu.com and published as paperback books, which can be purchased for reasonable prices. So yes, students will actually write and publish their own novels. This project is based on the National Novel Writing Month Young Writers program. Here are more details:

• Here are some novels written by former students:
  • One Demi-God’s Story
  • The Secret
  • Space Invaders
  • Lonely with Some Spark
• We will start this project in class on February 27 and it will be due on March 26; however, students can begin early.
• This is our final fiction project; the novel can be any type of fiction story (mystery, science fiction, fantasy, realistic, historical, etc.)
• We will be working in the computer lab most days, using docs.mrhowd.com to type the novel. Students can also work on this from any internet-connected computer outside of school.
• Students might want to start thinking now about how they will use a computer after school if they need to, and if they will go to the library, use a home computer, or use a friend or family member’s computer.
• If friends and family would like to order a paperback version of the book, we will upload the final texts to Lulu.com. Most books will cost between $5 and $10.
• Half of this grade will be if students complete their own, personal word count goal.

Math: We practiced subtracting fractions of unlike denominators. First, we found a common denominator, then we we renamed the fractions to have that denominator. Lastly, we subtracted the fractions. Homework is to finish Journal P9-8.

Science: We started to learn about how scientists study people.

Social Studies: We learned about dilemmas faced by enslaved Africans being transported to the Americas. Homework is to finish notebook p. 47.

Behavior Update:

• Yellow magnets: 3
• Orange magnets: 0
• Red magnets: 0
• STAR Awards: 5
• Magnets moved this week (goal: 8): 7

Check your student’s Personal and Social Growth grade online to see if your student moved their magnet.

Notes:

• Spring parent teacher conferences are next week, March 12-14. View your conference time here.
• Our class is performing a play called The Legend of Lightning Larry, based on a story by Aaron Shepard. Here are the after school practice and performance times. I’ve asked each student to look for things they can wear as their costume for this western cowboy play. If any family members would like to help with the set, just contact me!
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance online.
• Fifth Grade Camp is April 18-19, 2013. The cost is $100 per student.
• Thinking of summer school or summer enrichment? Learn more here.

Our Mission:
All students in Room 130 will do their best and get ready for 6th grade.

Spelling: We reviewed spelling patterns for the /er/ sound. There are many different patterns: er, or, ar, ir.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences of seven or more words each are due on Fridays.

Reading: Today was the final reading day for this Literture Circles cycle.

Writing: Students worked on drafting for their fiction novel project today. During this project, each student has a daily word goal of 150-300 words. The novel is due Tuesday, March 26. See below for more details. Students should be drafting at this point. See below for more details.

Novel Writing Project 2013

The final piece of the 3rd Marking Period will be our final fiction project of the year. Students will write and publish a novel. Each student will write their own novel, with a word goal minimum of 1,500-3,500 words, based on their reading level (each student’s minimum writing goal is equal to their reading level multiplied by 500). The novels will be written in Google Docs (docs.mrhowd.com) to make use of the word count feature. Final novels will be uploaded to Lulu.com and published as paperback books, which can be purchased for reasonable prices. So yes, students will actually write and publish their own novels. This project is based on the National Novel Writing Month Young Writers program. Here are more details:

• Here are some novels written by former students:
  • One Demi-God’s Story
  • The Secret
  • Space Invaders
  • Lonely with Some Spark
• We will start this project in class on February 27 and it will be due on March 26; however, students can begin early.
• This is our final fiction project; the novel can be any type of fiction story (mystery, science fiction, fantasy, realistic, historical, etc.)
• We will be working in the computer lab most days, using docs.mrhowd.com to type the novel. Students can also work on this from any internet-connected computer outside of school.
• Students might want to start thinking now about how they will use a computer after school if they need to, and if they will go to the library, use a home computer, or use a friend or family member’s computer.
• If friends and family would like to order a paperback version of the book, we will upload the final texts to Lulu.com. Most books will cost between $5 and $10.
• Half of this grade will be if students complete their own, personal word count goal.

Math: We practiced adding fractions of unlike denominators. First, we found a common denominator, then we we renamed the fractions to have that denominator. Lastly, we added the fractions. Homework is to finish Journal P9-7.

Science: We finished reviewing the last experiment about human variation.

Social Studies: We learned about how Africans during the slave trade faced the dilemma of selling their own people as slaves for guns, or refusing to take part and not being able to defend their villages. Homework is to finish notebook p. 46.

Behavior Update:

• Yellow magnets: 1
• Orange magnets: 1
• Red magnets: 0
• STAR Awards: 4
• Magnets moved this week (goal: 8): 4

Check your student’s Personal and Social Growth grade online to see if your student moved their magnet.

Notes:

• Our class is performing a play called The Legend of Lightning Larry, based on a story by Aaron Shepard. Here are the after school practice and performance times. I’ve asked each student to look for things they can wear as their costume for this western cowboy play. If any family members would like to help with the set, just contact me!
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance online.
• Fifth Grade Camp is April 18-19, 2013. The cost is $100 per student.

Our Mission:
All students in Room 130 will do their best and get ready for 6th grade.

Spelling: None today.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences of seven or more words each are due on Fridays.

Reading: Today was a reading and discussion day in Literture Circles.

Writing: Students worked on drafting for their fiction novel project today. During this project, each student has a daily word goal of 150-300 words. The novel is due Tuesday, March 26. See below for more details. Students should be drafting at this point. See below for more details.

Novel Writing Project 2013

The final piece of the 3rd Marking Period will be our final fiction project of the year. Students will write and publish a novel. Each student will write their own novel, with a word goal minimum of 1,500-3,500 words, based on their reading level (each student’s minimum writing goal is equal to their reading level multiplied by 500). The novels will be written in Google Docs (docs.mrhowd.com) to make use of the word count feature. Final novels will be uploaded to Lulu.com and published as paperback books, which can be purchased for reasonable prices. So yes, students will actually write and publish their own novels. This project is based on the National Novel Writing Month Young Writers program. Here are more details:

• Here are some novels written by former students:
  • One Demi-God’s Story
  • The Secret
  • Space Invaders
  • Lonely with Some Spark
• We will start this project in class on February 27 and it will be due on March 26; however, students can begin early.
• This is our final fiction project; the novel can be any type of fiction story (mystery, science fiction, fantasy, realistic, historical, etc.)
• We will be working in the computer lab most days, using docs.mrhowd.com to type the novel. Students can also work on this from any internet-connected computer outside of school.
• Students might want to start thinking now about how they will use a computer after school if they need to, and if they will go to the library, use a home computer, or use a friend or family member’s computer.
• If friends and family would like to order a paperback version of the book, we will upload the final texts to Lulu.com. Most books will cost between $5 and $10.
• Half of this grade will be if students complete their own, personal word count goal.

Math: We practiced finding common denominators and renaming fracions by finding equivalent fractions. Homework is to finish Journal P9-6.

Science: We continued to review the last experiment about human variation.

Social Studies: None today due to our math and reading skills practice time.

Behavior Update:

• Yellow magnets: 2
• Orange magnets: 0
• Red magnets: 0
• STAR Awards: 4
• Magnets moved this week (goal: 8): 2

Check your student’s Personal and Social Growth grade online to see if your student moved their magnet.

Notes:

• Our class is performing a play called The Legend of Lightning Larry, based on a story by Aaron Shepard. Here are the after school practice and performance times. I’ve asked each student to look for things they can wear as their costume for this western cowboy play. If any family members would like to help with the set, just contact me!
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance online.
• Fifth Grade Camp is April 18-19, 2013. The cost is $100 per student.

Our Mission:
All students in Room 130 will do their best and get ready for 6th grade.

Spelling: We practiced the strategy of breaking longer words into syllables or pieces while spelling.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences of seven or more words each are due on Fridays.

Reading: Today we practiced reading our Lightning Larry play script.

Writing: Students worked on drafting for their fiction novel project today. During this project, each student has a daily word goal of 150-300 words. The novel is due Tuesday, March 26. See below for more details. Students should be drafting at this point. See below for more details.

Novel Writing Project 2013

The final piece of the 3rd Marking Period will be our final fiction project of the year. Students will write and publish a novel. Each student will write their own novel, with a word goal minimum of 1,500-3,500 words, based on their reading level (each student’s minimum writing goal is equal to their reading level multiplied by 500). The novels will be written in Google Docs (docs.mrhowd.com) to make use of the word count feature. Final novels will be uploaded to Lulu.com and published as paperback books, which can be purchased for reasonable prices. So yes, students will actually write and publish their own novels. This project is based on the National Novel Writing Month Young Writers program. Here are more details:

• Here are some novels written by former students:
  • One Demi-God’s Story
  • The Secret
  • Space Invaders
  • Lonely with Some Spark
• We will start this project in class on February 27 and it will be due on March 26; however, students can begin early.
• This is our final fiction project; the novel can be any type of fiction story (mystery, science fiction, fantasy, realistic, historical, etc.)
• We will be working in the computer lab most days, using docs.mrhowd.com to type the novel. Students can also work on this from any internet-connected computer outside of school.
• Students might want to start thinking now about how they will use a computer after school if they need to, and if they will go to the library, use a home computer, or use a friend or family member’s computer.
• If friends and family would like to order a paperback version of the book, we will upload the final texts to Lulu.com. Most books will cost between $5 and $10.
• Half of this grade will be if students complete their own, personal word count goal.

Math: We practiced finding the least common multiple of two numbers today. Homework is to finish Journal P9-5.

Science: None today due to our math skills practice time.

Social Studies: We started to learn about the dilemmas faced by slaves and Africans during the slave trade.

Behavior Update:

• Yellow magnets: 0
• Orange magnets: 0
• Red magnets: 0
• STAR Awards: 3
• Magnets moved this week (goal: 8): 0

Check your student’s Personal and Social Growth grade online to see if your student moved their magnet.

Notes:

• Our class is performing a play called The Legend of Lightning Larry, based on a story by Aaron Shepard. Here are the after school practice and performance times. I’ve asked each student to look for things they can wear as their costume for this western cowboy play. If any family members would like to help with the set, just contact me!
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance online.
• Fifth Grade Camp is April 18-19, 2013. The cost is $100 per student.

Our Mission:
All students in Room 130 will do their best and get ready for 6th grade.