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Spelling: We finished a spelling pretest today.

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

Reading: We practiced Literature Circles reading groups today. Today we reviewed making connections by thinking about something a story reminds us of.

Writing: Students worked on editing and publishing their personal narrative. A personal narrative is due Monday, September 24.  Homework is to work on writing for 15 minutes and to finish publishing.

Math: We had a shorter work time today due to a false-alarm fire drill. Homework is to practice math for 15 minutes using MobyMax or Khan Academy.

Science: We used a scale tool to think about the sizes of different objects from people, to jellyfish, to grains of sand, to cells. We are going to use this information to try to answer how animals grow their bodies so that we can figure out why the animals in our study rainforest aren’t healthy.

Social Studies: We read about how American Indians might have migrated to North America and then spread out to eventually live in different parts of North and South America.

Character Strength: We are learning about curiosity this week.

Notes:

• The BioBlitz field trip is Friday, September 28 from 9:15-2:30. Students need a sack lunch with disposable containers. Would you like to chaperone? Just contact me and make sure you have a volunteer profile on file with the office.
• Chromebook insurance payments are due September 27.
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance at JupiterGrades.
• Sign up for a fall conference.

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

Spelling: We started a spelling pretest today.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences, seven or more words each, are due Friday. 

Reading: We practiced Literature Circles reading groups today. In Literature Circles, students will read a small book and write notes on one day, and then discuss their notes a following day.

Writing: Students shared their writing with a partner to give each other revising and editing comments and suggestions on how to improve their writing.

Students should be editing for spelling, capitals, sentences, periods, and paragraphs at this point. A personal narrative is due Monday, September 24.  Homework is to work on writing for 15 minutes.

Math: We worked on decimal place value today, focusing on writing numbers in standard form, expanded form, and in words. Homework is to practice math for 15 minutes using MobyMax or Khan Academy.

Science: Students work in groups to make a terrarium with soil, grass seed, and alfalfa seed. We’ll use it as model to observe an ecosystem.

Social Studies: We read about how American Indians might have crossed over a land bridge during a past ice age to reach North America.

Character Strength: We are learning about curiosity this week.

Notes:

• Picture Day is tomorrow!
• The BioBlitz field trip is Friday, September 28 from 9:15-2:30. Students need a sack lunch with disposable containers. Would you like to chaperone? Just contact me and make sure you have a volunteer profile on file with the office.
• Chromebook insurance payments are due September 27.
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance at JupiterGrades.
• Sign up for a fall conference.

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

Spelling: None today.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences, seven or more words each, are due Friday. 

Reading: We talked about rereading when things get confusing, and how to think about the sequence of a story. We also read some of a a realistic fiction story about a boy that raised chickens to support his family.

Writing: We talked about the three main details of story writing:

• talking: what the characters say
• action: what the characters do
• visual details: what the characters and places look like.

Every story should have a mix of these details over and over.

Students also started revising their personal narrative today by adding parts, taking out parts that don’t fit, improving ideas, and finishing unfinished thoughts. A personal narrative is due Monday, September 24.  Homework is to work on writing for 15 minutes.

Math: We practiced decimal place value using Khan Academy today. Homework is to practice math for 15 minutes using MobyMax or Khan Academy.

Science: We learned about a rainforest ecosystem that isn’t thriving and we will investigate reasons why in science in the coming days.

Social Studies: None due to extra science today.

Character Strength: We are learning about curiosity this week.

Notes:

• MSTEP test reports were sent home Thursday.
• Chromebook insurance payments are due September 27.
• Picture Day is Friday!
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance at JupiterGrades.
• Sign up for a fall conference.

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

Spelling: None today. We used this time to discuss some class expectations and what types of topics that are fine to discuss. Romantic topics are inappropriate for a workplace and distract from our main task of making our brains smarter. I’ve asked the class to help with this to keep us focused and not distracted on side issues.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences, seven or more words each, are due Friday. 

Reading: We read two realistic fiction stories today about people that recognized a need and did something to help out.

Writing: We talked about adding details to writing to prove what the writer is saying. For example, if the writer says a ride was exciting, prove it with some action or talking! If a gift was great, prove it! If a haunted house was scary, prove it with visual details and creepy sounds. Details make the writing more realistic.

Students also continued drafting their personal narrative today. Your student should be finishing the ending today. With this first piece of writing, a half page is the suggested minimum, but students may need to write more to make the story feel finished. A personal narrative is due Monday, September 24.  Homework is to continue drafting for 15 minutes and to finish drafting with a beginning, middle, and ending.

Math: None today due to art. Homework is to practice math for 15 minutes using MobyMax or Khan Academy.

Science: None today due to extra social studies.

Social Studies: Today was Constitution Day. We reviewed the Bill of Rights and how important the constitution is. Then we watched a short movie called Future Fright: Losing the Bill of Rights. It was about a future America and what it would be like without the Bill of Rights. Needless to say, it was terrible. The people did not have freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the right to protest or assembly, the right to a speedy trial. They had cruel punishments and lost all freedom. The movie dramatically showed why our constitution is so important.

Character Strength: We are learning about curiosity this week.

Notes:

• MSTEP test reports were sent home Thursday.
• Chromebook insurance payments are due September 27.
• Picture Day is Friday!
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance at JupiterGrades.
• Sign up for a fall conference.

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

Spelling: We practiced spelling compound words today. We noticed that compound words at just two words stuck together. The trick is to spell the first word, then spell the second word right after the first. The spellings never change.

Cursive: Ten cursive sentences, seven or more words each, are due Friday. This week’s assignment will be due next Friday. Looking for some cursive practice pages to kick start things? The Cursive page has some.

Reading: None today due to extra time with science.

Writing: We talked about focusing on a short time in a piece of writing. Instead of writing about a whole vacation, or even a whole day, focus on just a short time. Students that try to write about too much time end up leaving out important details. File this under: less is more.

Students also continued drafting their personal narrative today. Your student should be about half done with their draft at this point. With this first piece of writing, a half page is the suggested minimum, but students may need to write more to make the story feel finished. A personal narrative is due Monday, September 24.  Homework is to continue drafting for 15 minutes.

Also, students are able to use their chromebook for writing even without an internet connection. To do this, your student will need to sign in, then search for Google Drive, using the search button or pressing the app drawer button in the corner of the screen.

Math: None today due to art. Homework is to practice math for 15 minutes using MobyMax or Khan Academy.

Science: We finished a pretest about how to restore a damaged ecosystem. We also used a simulation to test what happens to an ecosystem when it gets out of balance by removing an organism.

Social Studies: We read a little about how the first American Indians migrated from Asia.

Character Strength: This week we are reviewing the #OtherPeopleMatter mindset this week. This is about five things:

1. Look for the good in others.
2. Know your words and actions affect others.
3. Cheer for the success of others.
4. Support others when they struggle.
5. Give others your attention.

Notes:

• MSTEP test reports were sent home today. Get that from your student and see how they did in math and reading!
• Chromebook insurance payments are due September 27.
• Check out our class calendar to stay up-to-date.
• View grades, assignments, and attendance at JupiterGrades.
• Sign up for a fall conference.

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