Poetry Readings ~ 9/21/12

Below you will find readings of poems from the book Joyful Noise:  Poetry for Two Voices by the kiddos.  These readings were done after much practice and discussion over what characteristics make a fluent reader.  They were not easy poems to read because not only did the kids have to use inflection, rhythm, and read the words correctly, they also had to time it so they're reading was synchronized.  At times, you'll notice they were supposed to even read different lines simultaneously. I was very impressed with their efforts to read these poems fluently!

Fireflies by Wade & Steve

The Moth's Seranade by Ian & Ayush

Book Lice by Hana & Addie

House Crickets by CJ & Daniel

Mayflies by Emma & Karlee

Requim by David & AJ

Crysalis Diary by Breanna & Avery

Water Boatmen by Amber & Quinn

Grasshoppers by Spencer & Sam

Whirligig Beetles by Aidyn & Hannah

This final video is a class reading of the poem, Eletephony.
Class Reading of Eletephony

Week of September 24-28

MAP Testing

This week the kids will finish up MAP testing to assess their language skills.  The test will take place Thursday morning.  I will use this data to inform my teaching of each individual child and I will be happy to share with you your child’s MAP scores at parent-teacher conferences in November.

Husky Hustle

The Husky Hustle is fast approaching and many students are already out collecting donations!  Please encourage and help your child to collect donations to sponsor them as they walk in the annual Husky Hustle October 12 during Related Arts.  The donations this year will be going towards purchasing a class set of iPads to be shared school-wide and the class who collects the most donations wins an iPad for their classroom.  Please support Harmony and your child as he/she looks for sponsors.

Upcoming Tests

Social Studies Test on the First Native Americans and Their Land this Friday

Please go to http://www.tutorial.historyalive.com/ to study.

Here is what we're learning this week...

Social Studies:  This week we will be learning about the first inhabitants of the Americas and the various theories of their migration.  We will also explore the life of the Inuit tribe, a group of Natives living in the Arctic region.

Math:  A new unit on computation will begin this week as we learn to estimate, add, and subtract whole numbers and decimals.

Word Study:  We will explore the use of conjunctions to make complete sentences.

Reading:  We will begin reading about and taking notes on famous Renaissance artists and inventors as studnets learn how to gather information from multiple sources.

Writing:  Renaissance thinkers will also be the theme for writing as we explore how painters told stories through their painting and write about the works of different Renaissance artists.

Week of September 17-21

What's Happening in Mrs. Whitley's Class

Field Trip Forms for Riverside, Farnsley-Moremen Landing

If you have not already returned your field trip form and money for the trip to Riverside, Farnsley-Moremen Landing on October 11, please do so at your earliest convenience.  The cost is $14 and it is a fabulous field trip that is unforgettable.  The kids will have the opportunity to tour a historic Kentucky home, create their own brick, and participate in an actual archeological dig!

Room Mom Correspondence

Last call!  If you would like to receive correspondence from our room mom, Beth McBride, please send her your name and e-mail address at captainmcb@aol.com. She is sharing the job of room mom with Liann Moeller. I'm lucky to say that we will have 2 wonderful ladies helping out this year!

U.S. Regions

As we wrap up our unit on the 5 regions of the United States, if you have any paraphernalia from any U.S. region (postcards, pictures, souveniours) that your child would like to share, please feel free to send it in. 

MAP Testing

This week the kids will participate in MAP testing to assess their skills in math and reading.  The tests will take place Monday and Friday morning.  I will use this data to inform my teaching of each individual child and I will be happy to share with you your child’s MAP scores at parent-teacher conferences in November.

Upcoming Tests:

Weekly Facts Quiz:  Please keep practicing those math facts!  I promise it will make all the difference if the kids know their facts!

Word Study Quiz over Homophones on Friday!  A list of commonly misused homophones will be in your child’s agenda.

Math Quiz over Place Value (whole numbers and decimals) on Wednesday

This Week's Learning Plan

Social Studies:  This week we will wrap up our study of the 5 major regions of the United States and at the end of the week we will begin studying the first inhabitants of North America.

Math:   As our unit on place value comes to an end, we will have short quiz Wednesday and then we will precede into a unit on mathematical operations with whole numbers and decimals.

Word Study:  Homophones will be the major focus of this week’s word study.  You will find a list of commonly misused homophones in your child’s agenda this week. 

Writing:   We will continue learning how authors play with words as we write our own poems and very short narratives using idioms, figurative language, and interesting word choice.

Reading:  Fluency is this week’s focus as we practice reading aloud poetry and even break into pairs to do 2-person readings from a collection of poems called Joyful Noise: Poetry for Two Voices.

Week of September 10-14

What's Happening in Mrs. Whitley's Class

Room Mom Correspondence
If you would like to receive correspondence from our room mom, Beth McBride, please send her your name and e-mail address at captainmcb@aol.com. She is sharing the job of room mom with Liann Moeller. I'm lucky to say that we will have 2 wonderful ladies helping out this year!

U.S. Regions
This week we are going to begin a short unit on the 5 regions of the United States.  If you have any paraphenalia (postcards, pictures, souveniours) that your child would like to share, please feel free to send it in.  We will begin with the Southeast and Northeast regions Monday and Tuesday, continuing into the Midwest Wednesday, the Southwest Friday, and finally the West next Tuesday. 

MAP Testing
During 3 different Friday sessions beginning this week, the kids will take a MAP test each Friday for approximately 1 hour to assess their math, reading, and language skills.  These tests will help to provide useful information so I can better meet their needs as learners.  If you'd like to know your child's score, I will be sharing this information at Parent-Teacher conferences this fall.

Upcoming Tests:
Weekly Facts Quiz:  Please keep practicing those math facts!  I promise it will make all the difference if the kids know their facts!

This Week's Learning Plan
Social Studies:  This week we will begin studying the 5 major regions of the United States.
Math:   A unit on place value will precede our upcoming unit on mathematical operations with whole numbers and decimals.
Word Study: This week's focus will continue to be on figurative language including similes, metaphors, rhyme, alliteration, and onomatopoeia.  We will also delve into synonyms and antonyms.
Writing & Reading:   Wrapping up the 6 traits of writing, students will write biopoems and short reports about the people they researched in biographies.  We will also read and explore idioms as we study how language is used in reading and writing.

Week of September 3-7

Happy Labor Day, everyone!  Please read below to see this week's important reminders.

Early Release
This week we will have our first Early Release Day.  Students will be dismissed at 12:25pm.  Please send in a note if your child's transportation will change on this day.

Room Moms
If you would like to receive correspondence from our room mom, Beth McBride, please send her your name and e-mail address at captainmcb@aol.com.   She is sharing the job of room mom with Liann Moeller.  I'm lucky to say that we will have 2 wonderful ladies helping out this year!

Upcoming Tests:
Thursday:  Social Studies Test over Geography (Students may go to www.tutorial.historyalive.com.  They will need to be able to do everything that is covered in the tutorial as well as be able to identify and label the 4 oceans and 7 continents, prime meridian, equator, and Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn on a blank map.

Friday:  Math Test over factors, products, prime factorization, divisibility, using exponents, and the order of operations.  (A study guide will come home this week.)

Here is what we're learning this week.
Social Studies:  We will do a geography review in preparation for their test on Thursday.
Math:  How to use parentheses in math problems and the order of operations will be introduced.
Word Study:  This week's focus will be on figurative language including similes, metaphors, rhyme, alliteration, and onomatopoeia.
Writing:  We will explore the 6 traits of effective writing and learn how to use them in our daily work.
Reading:  Students will begin learning to take notes as they select important information from biographies.

          I hope everyone had a great weekend!  We have another full and busy week ahead of us!  Now that we have completed Library Orientation, everyone is free to check out library books and I encourage you all to do so. 

 Reminders

Please remember that Parent Orientation will take place this Thursday evening at 7pm.  Please return the RSVP form sent home in last week’s Wednesday folder at your earliest convenience.

 Facts!

Please help your child to practice his/her multiplication facts!  Knowing these well makes a huge difference in 5^th grade!

Helpful Tool

In math right now we have been talking about factors, finding factors of numbers, and learning about prime and composite numbers.  Below is a list of divisibility rules to help your child succeed when determining factors for any number.

2	If the last digit is even, the number is divisible by 2.
3	If the sum of the digits is divisible by 3, the number is also.
4	If the last two digits form a number divisible by 4, the number is also.
5	If the last digit is a 5 or a 0, the number is divisible by 5.
6	If the number is divisible by both 3 and 2, it is also divisible by 6.
9	If the sum of the digits is divisible by 9, the number is also.
10	If the number ends in 0, it is divisible by 10.

Here’s what’s coming up this week in class…

Social Studies  We will continue learning about geography as we begin talking about geographic terms and physical features of the United States.  The kids will also have an opportunity to design their own island with all sorts of geographic features on it.

Math  We will continue practicing the skills of finding factors and testing for divisibility as we also introduce exponents, square numbers, and square roots.

Word Study  To support all the learning occurring in math our word study this week will continue to focus on math terminology.

Writing  One of the most important skills in writing is learning to collect lots of ideas, so this week I will be reading lots of meaningful picture books aloud to help students spark ideas for their writer’s notebooks.

Reading  Students will continue developing their reading stamina this week as we learn about what to do when a book isn’t making sense, how to use metacognition, and as we set short and long-term reading goals.

Welcome to the first full week of school!  We had a great first 3 days and I’m looking forward to many, many more!  Please check this blog regularly to see what’s coming up each week!

Parent E-mail Addresses

I still need e-mail addresses for several families so I can finish putting together a group listserv to send out weekly updates.  If you have not given me your e-mail address, please write it in your child’s agenda.

Time for Kids

You probably noticed a letter in the Wednesday folder regarding Time for Kids magazine.  We are requesting the every 5^th grade parent send in $4 so we can buy each child a subscription.  This magazine will support our teaching of current events, reading, and social studies skills.  I will often assign it for homework and use it for in-class activities as well.  Please return your $4 at your earliest convenience.

Parent Orientation

If at all possible I’d love for to have at least one parent from each family attend Parent Orientation next Thursday, August 30^th at 7pm.  It is a great opportunity to ask me questions and to find out just what’s coming up in 5^th grade.

Read below to find out what we’re learning about this week…

Social Studies:  We will begin studying geography and learning about how to use latitude and longitude.

Math:  The plan is to kick off the year by reviewing multiplication and division as we look at factors, arrays, and prime and composite numbers.

Word Study:  I plan to begin a Math Word Wall in the classroom this week as we work on various strategies for learning math vocabulary!

Writing:  The writer’s notebook is a phenomenal tool for collecting ideas and sharing one’s thoughts through written expression.  This week we will begin by gathering lots of entries in our writer’s notebooks.

Reading:  It is important as a 5^th grader to develop a reading stamina and to make good choices when selecting books.  Through our lessons this week we will begin developing our reading stamina.  On Friday, we will go to Library Orientation and students may begin checking out books!

*It’s going to be a busy week!  If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to e-mail me:  jennifer.whitley@oldham.kyschools.us or feel free to call me at school.