5th Grade Weekly Update for Week of March 9th
Math: Our unit test for chapter 7 is on Monday. In addition to the study guide students received, they should also study the unit vocabulary terms and types of graphs graphic organizer. Our next unit will include decimal operations. We will begin with a review of decimal place value. Then, students will learn how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide decimals.
ELA: We have completed are outlines for the research paper and are currently working on writing our papers. Students are handwriting a rough draft a section at a time. Then, we conference about that section, and they type it before moving on to the next section. This allows students to work at their own pace. Mark your calendars for Friday, April 3rd for our Presidential Trivia Celebration! We invite parents to join us as we break into teams and test our trivia knowledge of our presidents! This is a fun way for students to show what they learned throughout the research process because they help create our trivia questions! Trivia will begin at 9:45 a.m. in my classroom.
Our second Daily Paragraph Editing test will be on Wednesday, March 11th. It will include excerpts from the following passages: “Foreign Exchange”, “Trade Route to India”, and “Busy as a Beaver”.
We finished reading the Watson’s Go to Birmingham in class and students received a study guide to prepare for the novel test, which is on Friday, March 13th. We will begin our next outside reading assignment on Monday, March 23rd, so please make sure your child has ordered a copy of The Van Gogh Deception by Deron Hicks.
Science: In lab, students are exploring the concept of density. They learned that liquids and solids that are more dense will sink and those with less density will float. Then, they learned how to calculate density using the formula mass divided by volume. Through experimentation, students learned that there is a direct relationship between an object’s mass and volume. As mass increases, so does the volume. However, the density will remain the same. On Monday, students will continue exploring this concept as they create rainbow density towers in a test tube. I will also introduce the extra credit assignment where students can build their own density tower at home. Then, share a picture with the class by Monday, March 16th to receive 10 bonus points on a previous test. On Thursday, students will complete a quiz to show what they have learned about density.
History: We will really dive into the Renaissance this week! Students will learn about the progression from an artisan of the medieval time to an artist in the Renaissance time period. We’ll look at the shift in status that these men had throughout the Italian city-states. Artwork from both time period will give visualization to students, so they’re able to use those primary sources to gain a deeper understanding. We’ll then turn our attention to Florence and the prominent families that lived in that cradle of Italian culture. Students will take a “Which Medici are You?” quiz to match up their personalities to Cosimo de’ Medici, Lorenzo the Magnificent, and Pope Leo X. Our last focus of the week will be Venice: it’s republican government, printing advances, most famous artist, and its eventual decline.
Other: We are gearing up for our trip to Camp Widji! As you begin preparing, please let me know if you have any questions. Also, remember that the final payment is due on Monday, March 9th. Thank you for those who volunteered to donate snacks. You are welcome to drop them off with me, and I will store them in our conference room until our trip.
Our Spring Book Fair begins on Monday, and it will continue until Friday, March 13th. Flyers will be sent home on Monday.
Week at a Glance:
Monday: Camp Widjiwagan payment due; Chapter 7 Math Test; WGTB study guide due
Wednesday: DPE Test 2
Thursday: Density Quiz
Friday: WGTB Novel Test
Future Dates to Mark:
-Bring 4th quarter outside reading novel to class on Monday, March 23rd (Parents need to purchase)
-Presidential Trivia Celebration on Friday, April 3rd at 9:45 a.m. (Parents are welcome to attend and participate)