Hello All!

Spring is in the air....and snow is on the ground!  That is living in New England for ya!  And just when I thought the snow days were behind us....

Well, even with the days off, we are still keeping the pace in 5th grade.  In math, we are learning strategies to multiply fractions and mixed numbers.  We have been using lessons from Cathy Fosnots Context Units in which students are given real world problems and work in teams to develop strategies.  I was amazed by the strategies students used this week to solve the mystery of the "blacktop!"  Ask the kiddos for more information about this investigation.  Next week, we will continue to learn more explicit strategies to solve fraction by fraction multiplication problems.

In reading, we are continuing to learn test taking strategies in preparation for the ELA MCAS.  This year, the test will introduce new types of questions.  Our focus is to ensure that these questions will not be new to the kiddos and that they will have strategies to tackle them.  We will work on reading 3 nonfiction passages next week.  Following that, we will begin a new unit on the genre of Fantasy!

In writing and social studies we are working within the theme of Westward Expansion.  In social studies, the students have learned about the various ways that the United States acquired land in the 1800's.  We have also learned about the diverse group of people who made up the population in the west.   We have analyzed pictures and advertisements to get better insight into the people who lived during this time period.  Next week, students will create advertisements to either encourage or discourage people from heading west!

In writing, we are beginning out informational unit.  Today, students looked at trade books and brainstormed various topics they could research under the umbrella of Westward Expansion.  I was impressed by some of the complex topics that the kids came up with, such as "relationships between settlers and natives."   We also discussed the characteristics of informational writing and looked at samples of what students are expected to do within the unit.


Below, I have included some important dates to keep in mind.

 

Spring Parent Conferences: April 7th, April 14th, and April 28th. 

Please let me know if you would like to sign up for a conference. 

ELA MCAS: April 4th, 5th and 6th for the 5th grade.

Have a great week!

Savannah Phillips

Recess Fun!

Analyzing Pictures to Help Us Understand History!!! 

Yes....I have to show my thinking in math!!! They did so GOOD developing models on their own!!!

Advertisements can teach us a lot about people in history! 

Hello Everyone,

It feels like awhile since I posted, and I apologize for that!  Last week, we had our Read Across America Day!  We had students from Amherst College come to our class and read a Dr. Seuss book in honor of his birthday.  Students also presented their American Revolution Group Projects!  I was very impressed with how knowledgeable the students were on their topics and how well they worked together in groups.

In math, we have recently finished our unit on decimals. This week, we will be starting a new unit on multiplying and dividing fractions. Students are expected to learn how to use area models in order to conceptually understanding what is occurring when a fraction is either being multiplied or divided.  Students will also learn to recognize fractional parts of a whole within a context.  For example: "a class contains 30 students. 1/5 of the students are wearing red.  How many students are wearing red?"  Below, I have included  2 videos from Khan Academy that might be helpful for both students and parents to watch at home when discussing these concepts.

Videos:
Multiplying 2 fractions with area model

An explanation of Multiplying Fractions

In reading, we have finished our historical fictions books and will be beginning our test prep unit.  We will be taking the English Language Arts MCAS test at the beginning of April.  This MCAS will contain new types of questions, so we will be familiarizing the students with the format as well as teaching them test taking strategies.

This week in writing workshop we will be learning how to write a short narrative in the point of view of a character from a story.  Students will learn how to think about characters point of view while reviewing narrative craft strategies.  This a short mini unit, and will only take place over the course of the week.  The following week, we will begin our larger unit on informational writing in which students will learn and write within our Social Studies topic of Westward Expansion.

In social studies, we will begin to learn about how the United States came to acquire the land west of the Appalachian Mountains during the 1800's.  Students will explore topics such as the Louisiana Purchase, the  Lewis and Clark's Expedition, and The Mexican American War.  We will also learn about the diverse groups of people who settled in the west and the many reasons that settlers decided to venture into the territories. Lastly, we will explore the impact that Westward Expansion had not only on the growing country of the United States but also on the Native People who already occupied the west.

Have a great week!!
Ms. Phillips