5th Grade Weekly Update Week of February 12th
Picture: We celebrated Walker’s half-birthday on Friday! Happy Birthday Walker!
Math: Last week, students had a blast as they raced with teammates to piece together a math puzzle that served as a review of adding and subtracting mixed numbers! This week, we will kick off our new unit of study. Students will learn how to analyze data by finding the mean, median, mode, and range. This will build on their previous knowledge by incorporating fractions and decimals. Then, we will use our knowledge to analyze Winter Olympic scores!
Science: We are beginning our unit about simple machines. So exciting! Within this unit, students will learn the meaning of work in the world of science and learn how to calculate work done using simple machines, including a fixed pulley, incline plane, and lever. At the end of our unit, students will complete a STEM challenge where they will work in groups to design their own simple machine using only household items!
ELA: This week we are going to sharpen our comprehension skills by using small passages that focus on Winter Olympic sports! We’ll learn about how they choose the host city, the biathlon, luge, and Olympic history; just to name a few. Students will also be introduced to new vocabulary that you would see in the Olympic games. We will continue working on our research paper by focusing on topic and closing sentences this week. We’ll practice identifying different types of sentences within paragraph including: topic, closing, and detailed sentences.
History: Students should be finishing up their Westward Expansion packet this week. It’s due on the 22nd, after they return from their conference break. Mrs. Butcher has students completing one of the assignments in technology using Microsoft Publisher. They’re creating an advertisement luring Chinese workers to immigrate to America to work on American Railroads. We’re also going to start a fun writing assignment that will culminate our Westward Expansion unit. Students will complete a narrative writing that we’ll share around the “campfire” on the 23rd!
Other: Conference sheets went home in the Friday Folders, please send them back signed in the folder on Monday to confirm. A couple of new WA ginkgo-donned car magnets went home in Friday Folders this week, a small token of appreciation for enrolling for 6th grade!
Don’t forget! Valentine’s Day is on Wednesday. We’ve decorated our boxes and will be ready to share valentines and a little Valentine’s Day treat during lunch! If you need an extra copy of the class list, please let me know! We have 25 students between both classes. We will meet with Book Buddies on Wednesday to share a Valentine’s Day treat and make a fun craft!