Second Quarter
History
During the second school quarter the class focused on geography and indigenous people of North America. The fifth graders worked in groups to prepare written reports on a tribe of their choice. The students learned to gather research materials from books, the library, encyclopedias, and the Internet. They analyzed the reliability of Internet sources. Part of their report included the general format of a bibliography. In addition, each group prepared a diorama or other artistic component to supplement their written presentation.
The class also learned about famous Explorers of the Americas. Each child researched an explorer and created a journal from the point of view of his or her chosen explorer. Currently, the fifth graders are learning about the European colonization of the Americas.
Math
In our second school quarter the class focused on reviewing the basic skills of multiplication, division, and place value. The students built on these skills to examine the relationship between decimals, fractions and percents.
The children learned multiple ways to use mathematical symbols to conceptually understand decimals, fractions and percents. For example, they used coins such as quarters to explain how .25 is equivalent to ¼, which is also 25 out of a hundred or 25%. Using these methods the students are becoming familiar with converting between equivalent decimals, fractions and percents.
The class then learned to identify factors, particularly the greatest common factor, to simplify fractions. They built on their knowledge of factors to add and subtract fractions with different denominators.
English
During the second school quarter the class focused on writing projects; their assignments emphasized paragraph formation, including a clear beginning, details, examples, and a closing sentence. The fifth graders built upon their knowledge of paragraphs to begin writing full essays. The students continued their grammar, cursive and reading programs.
Each fifth grader used a discussion group format (book clubs) to read and analyze two books. The first set of book choices focused on Native American life: Children of the Longhouse, Adventure on Thunder Island and Island of the Blue Dolphin. Our second set of book clubs focused on colonial life. The children chose between The Witch of Blackbird Pond and Emma’s Journal. Each child responded to the literature through various activities, such as story mapping, character poems and writing sequels, helping them interpret and analyze the books.
Science
In science the class used two mysteries to practice using scientific methods. First we focused on molecular structures, experimenting with different inks to solve a mystery. The children learned about chromatography and created different models explaining how molecules move through paper.
Next we became forensic and crime scene investigators. The students examined a mock murder scene to learn how investigators use chromatography, fingerprints, fabric composition and pH to analyze a crime scene. The class compared their data to suspects’ statements, making hypotheses about the events of the crime and determining what physical evidence did or did not corroborate various alibis. They then assumed courtroom roles and conducted a mock trial, but did not convict the accused.
The class studied the atomic structure of atoms: protons, neutrons, and electrons. They investigated how atoms form molecules and were introduced to the periodic table. Currently, the fifth graders are experimenting with creating chemical reactions, seeing the results, and determining evidence of chemical change.
The fifth graders at Archway school are impressing their teachers with their can-do attitude and competence.
Fifth grade boys work together to solve a math problem
Let's reread that question!
We like to math with candy!
Friday, September 11, 2009
Dear Parents and Guardians,
The first few days of school have been very exciting. I am having a wonderful time getting to know your children. They are incredibly charming and very helpful. The fifth graders are quickly learning their way around the school and their schedule.
We have spent most of the first week getting acquainted with each other and starting to build our classroom community. As you may have noticed, I hold off from giving homework during the first week. Starting the second week, your child will have at-home reading assignments while I train the students on my standard for completing work. Their first “real” homework will begin the third week of school.
As you may expect, the hot topic is Off-Campus Lunch (OCL). This is a lunch period when the students may visit Shattuck Avenue to purchase a lunch from their restaurant of choice. The children are required to follow a few rules: 1) they must stay on the west side of Shattuck, between Hearst Avenue and the Cheese Board, 2) they must not run, 3) they must stay in their group or with their partner, and 4) they must look both ways and obey traffic laws and stop signs when crossing the street. To train the students on these rules, I chaperone the fifth graders on their first OCLs until I am satisfied of their safety. Two parent chaperones have agreed to accompany me the first week and I have one chaperone for the second week. It is helpful to have parent volunteers for the following weeks. If you can help chaperone, please contact me. The fifth graders have their OCL on Friday between 12:40 pm and 1:30pm.
Shauna
