Week of March 25-27

News for this Week

It is that time of year again.... MARCH MADNESS! And with March Madness comes the 7th annual North Campus March Mania! YAY!!! Come cheer on the North Campus as the 5th graders from Harmony play the 6th grade Alumni team this Thursday, March 28th. This is not only a fun event for the players, but for students, friends and family as well! There will be face painting, Chick-fil-a and lots of basketball! Admission is $1. Doors open at North Oldham High School at 5:30 and the game begins at 6:00pm. See you there!

Spring Break is next week, April 1-5! I hope you all have a fun and relaxing week!

Upcoming Tests
Facts quiz on Friday

Below you will find photos of the kids making several of our gemetric terms with their bodies.  They had so much fun doing this and now I'm certain they can identify these geometric figures!

point

ray



angle

parallel line segments

perpendicular line segments

line

 

Here's what we'll be learning this week...
Social Studies: The kids will continue to explore westward expansion as they perform skits depicting the diverse peoples of the west, and we will also explore the impact of westward expansion on Kentucky.
Math: Last week we began a unit on 2-dimensional geometry and we will continue with that this week as we explore polygons with a focus on quadrilaterals.
Word Study: We will continue to review our geometric terms through word study.
Writing: This week we continue with on demand writing as we focus on passage-based on demand.
Reading: Our final literature circle meetings will take place in reading this week with a culminating project each group will complete together by Friday.

Week of March 18-22

Happy Monday!  I hope you enjoyed your crazy weather weekend!  Here's hoping for good weather in the coming weeks so we can have some outdoor recess!

Reminders
Early Release is this Wednesday at 12:25pm.  Please send a note if your child's afternoon transportation will be changing that day.

We are currently doing literature circles in class and the kids need to be prepared to discuss their reading each week.  At the last literature circle meetings, I had several students who were not prepared.  Please check in with your child to make sure he/she is prepared for their meeting.  They should have completed the reading, finished a lit. circle job (handout), and written a 1 page summary.

Upcoming Tests:
Math facts quiz this Friday

Here's what's coming up this week...
Social Studies:  We will be exploring westward expansion as we study different groups of people, why they settled in the West, and the effects of this movement.
Math:  This week we will begin a new unit on 2-dimensional geometry.
Word Study:  Our word study focus will be on the language of geometry and we will do fun activities to help the kids learn the geometric terms.
Writing:  Last week, the kids did a unit on stand-alone on demand writing.  This is a situation in which a child is given a writing prompt and then allowed 30 minutes to write a response in the form of a letter, email (pretend), essay, or article.  This week the kids will be looking at how they did on the one they were given Friday and they will set goals.  We will also begin learning how to do passage-based on demand, in which students are given 90 minutes to read a passage and write a detailed response in the same possible forms as stand alone.
Reading:  Literature circles will continue as students read their novels, write summaries, and meet in groups to discuss.

Week of March 11-15

Hello everyone!  I'm baaaaackkk....  :o)

After staying home with my baby for 3 months, I am coming back!  It has been an absolute joy to spend all this time with him watching him grow and develop into a smiling, wiggly baby boy!  I look forward to seeing everyone and getting back into the school routine!

Here's what's coming up this week.
Monday~Band Information Session @ 1pm in the cafeteria
Tuesday~5th Grade District BOB Competition (Good luck, Avery!)
Thursday & Friday~Literature Circle Meetings during Reading.  Students need to come with all literature circles reading and responsiblities entirely complete. 

Upcoming Tests
Extended response over Government in Social Studies on Friday
Math Test over Volume and Capacity on Friday

Our Learning Agenda for the Week
Social Studies:  We will explore the various powers at each level of government (federal, state, and local).
Math:  We will wrap up our unit over volume and capacity with some transfer tasks and a test.
Word Study:  Students will review government terminology and learn new terms related to exploration.
Writing:  We will begin a new On Demand Writing unit.
Reading:  Students will continue working in literature circles.

Week of December 10-14

Mrs. Whitley’s Last Day

In case you didn’t catch the e-mail, here is a reminder that my last day before maternity leave will be this Friday, December 14, unless Baby Dylan has other plans.  My long-term substitute, Marcie Wilson, will begin working with me in the classroom Monday and she will be with me all week to learn the routines, get to know the kids, and prepare to take over.  If you have any last minute questions or concerns for me, please e-mail or call.  Marcie’s e-mail is marcie.wilson@oldham.kyschools.us should you need to reach her.  I will return mid-late March, but I am certain the kids will be in good hands with Mrs. Wilson!

Husky Helping House

As a reminder, please send your purchased item for Husky Helping House to school no later than December 10^th!  We will be wrapping the presents and sending them off this week!

 Food Drive

Please remember to send in any canned goods or non-perishable items you would like to donate to our annual holiday food drive.

PE

Our PE rotation continues through Tuesday.  Please remind your child to wear or bring a pair of tennis shoes.

Shopping Spree Unit

At the end of the week, we will also begin a fun math unit we like to call “The Shopping Spree.”  During this unit, kids will select a Secret Santa and 4+ family members to go pretend shopping for.  No gifts will actually be bought, but the students will learn how to shop on a budget using catalogs.  They will calculate tax, total cost, and figure out what percent of their fictional budget was spent on each person they “shopped” for.  Secret Santas will be revealed at our Holiday Party by giving each other homemade cards with the picture of the item they would buy if we were using really money.  It’s a fun way to go over many of the skills we’ve learned over the past several months, and even though there is no real gift buying or giving, the kids always enjoy it!  So, if you hear them talking about Secret Santa, please know there is nothing you need to buy.  However, if you have any catalogs you can send in for our “shopping,” we’d love to have them!

Pajama Day
Pajama Day will take place the last Monday before break, December 17th!

 Upcoming Tests

• Social Studies Test over the Colonial Williamsburg on Wednesday (Chapter 9 tutorial)
• Math Test over fractions on Thursday

This Week’s Learning Plan

Social Studies:  This week, we will wrap up our unit on Colonial Williamsburg.  The kids will continue to have the opportunity to walk through stations set up to depict colonial life in Williamsburg long ago.  Then we will culminate with a test and an extended response on Wednesday.

Math:  Fractions!  We will continue learning about fractions, ordering, comparing, finding equivalence, as well as reading graphs as we wrap up our unit on fractions.  We will also begin a fun holiday unit called “The Shopping Spree” at the end of the week.   

Word Study:  We will review the different uses of the comma and begin to explore the use of the semicolon.

Writing:  The kids have done an amazing job using various points of view to write about slavery.  They will continue to explore point of view and verb tense as they write about colonial Williamsburg experiences this week.  I have been so impressed with their work, I’ve even invited Mrs. Horn to come check it out!

Reading:  In reading this week we will learn strategies for selecting the best answer on multiple choice questions through reading comprehension sheets.  The kids will also transfer their knowledge of how to learn about a culture through reading.

Week of December 3-7

As the countdown to Winter Break begins, we have many things going on in our classroom!  Here are a few reminders.

Husky Helping House

Thank you to the many parents who signed up to buy and item or donated money for our Husky Helping House child!  He is lucky to have such wonderful people working to make his holiday special!  Please remember to send your purchased item to school no later than December 10^th!  We will be wrapping the presents and sending them off that week.

Food Drive

Please remember to send in any canned goods or non-perishable items you would like to donate to our annual holiday food drive.

 PE

Our next PE rotation begins Tuesday.  Please remind your child to wear or bring a pair of tennis shoes.

Upcoming Tests

Social Studies Test over the Colonial Regions on Wednesday (Chapter 7 tutorial)

 Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Thank you to the many parents who made a donation to the classroom in order for your child to participate in Boys’ Night Out and Girls’ Night Out!  Both events were a big success!

 This Week’s Learning Plan

Social Studies:  After we wrap up our learning about the colonial regions we will begin an interesting unit on Colonial Williamsburg where the children will have the opportunity to walk through stations set up to depict colonial life in Williamsburg long ago.

Math:  Fractions!  We will continue learning about fractions, ordering, comparing, finding equivalence, but this week we will explore how to do these things by converting to decimals.

Word Study:  We will explore the different uses of the comma for introductory phrases, for use in a series, etc.

Writing:  Point of view will be explored this week as we have the kids write about slavery for 1^st person, 2^nd person, and 3^rd person viewpoints.

Reading:  In reading this week we will read about slavery and use the skill of gathering information from various texts to write about it.

Week of November 26-30

Welcome back!  I hope your Thanksgiving was peaceful and relaxing!  We only have 3½ more weeks until Winter Break!  Below you will find a few things you need to be aware of in the coming week or so.

 

Husky Helping House

As is Harmony tradition, our class is adopting a child for the Husky Helping House to ensure that this child has a joyous holiday season.  I will be sending home a letter on Monday requesting your support.  You may sign up to buy an item or donate money.  Please respond to this letter no later than Wednesday and enclose your donation should you choose to donate money, so I can organize the child’s wish list to assign families items to buy by this coming weekend.  All gifts are due no later than December 10^th!  This is such a cool event and the kids really get into it each year, so please consider contributing if you can.

 

Girls’ Night Out
Last chance to sign up!  Girls’ Night Out will take place this Friday afternoon from 2:30-4:00pm.  I ask that you please send your money in no later than Wednesday so I will know how many girls to order pizza for.  The girls may bring pajamas that day to change into after school so they will be comfy as we watch our movie and chow down on pizza!

 

Harmony Food Drive
We will continue to collect cans for the annual Harmony Food Drive.  Please send in canned goods and other non-perishable items.

 

BOB
Please encourage your child to keep reading those BOB books so they will be successful competitors in the Battle of the Books competition come February!  You can support their comprehension by discussing what the books and asking them to tell you about their reading each night.

 

Upcoming Tests
Measurement Quiz on Friday over converting between measures in the same system (U.S. customary and metric)

 

Here’s what we’ll be learning this week!

Social Studies:  Recently, we have learned about the first English colonies in the New World.  Now we will delve a little deeper to explore characteristics of the 3 colonial regions of the 13 original colonies.

Math:  This week kicks off a new unit on fractions and mixed numbers.  It is going to move fast because the kids should have some background knowledge from 3^rd and 4^th grade.   We will be learning to calculate the fractional part of a whole, compare and order fractions, find equivalent fractions, and how to make fractions into decimals.

Word Study:  I plan to use this time to review the systems of measurement and how to convert between various measures within the same system.  Learning the root meanings of words such as centimeter, millimeter, and kilometer will help the kids a lot.

Reading:  This week we will work in guided reading groups to utilize comprehension strategies as we read common texts.

Writing:  Students will learn to support their thinking on extended response questions using support taken from a reading passage.

Week of November 12-16

Hello, parents!  Sorry I didn't update last week.  Please read below for lots of information.  I've also added some photos of the plant and animal cells the kids made out of Play-Doh during our units on cells.

Plant Cell #1

 Animal Cell #1

 Animal Cell #2

 Plant Cell #2

Boys’ Night Out

This Friday is Boys’ Night Out from 2:30-4:00pm.  Thank you to those who signed up as proceeds go directly to our classroom budget!   If you have not signed up and would like to please send in your $25 no later than Wednesday.  I need to be sure I have enough pizza, drinks, and candy for all.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Please remember that I am holding parent-teacher conferences again this Tuesday from 2:40-6:00pm.  If you have scheduled to come in, but find you can’t make it, please call the office to cancel.  If you were unable to attend conferences, but would like to schedule a phone conference, please send me an e-mail.

Early Release

This Wednesday is another Early Release Day.  Please make arrangements for a 12:25pm dismissal.  If your child’s transportation will be different than usual, please send in a note.

Food Drive

Harmony has once again begun our annual food drive.  Please send in canned foods and non-perishable items to help donate food to families in need this holiday season.

Viewing of “Squanto”

Next Tuesday, November 20^th, we will be hosting a viewing of the movie “Squanto” in the afternoon.  This film goes along perfectly with our curriculum and the Thanksgiving holiday.  Students are invited to bring water, a snack, and a pillow for the show which we will watch in the library. 

BOB

The Battle of the Books competition (BOB) has officially begun!  There are 10 books which we are encouraging the children to read between now and February to compete in a school-wide reading comprehension competition.  Students who read 7 or more books will also have the opportunity to take the district test and possibly compete at the district level this spring!  Please encourage your child to take an active role in the BOB competition.  It’s a fantastic way to get kids excited about reading!

Upcoming Tests

Division Test on Tuesday

Read below to see what we’re learning this week.

Social Studies:  We will be learning about the first colonies in the New World, why some were successful, while others weren’t, and how the colonists adapted to and governed themselves in the new environment.

Math:  We will shift our focus from division to measurement and conversions.  You can support your child at home by helping him/her learn basic conversions in both the customary and metric systems.  Example, 1 foot = 12 inches, 1 meter = 100 cm

Word Study:  Correlating to our reading lessons, this week, we will be working on learning roots for measurement words such as centi, milli, etc. to better aquaint kids with the measurement system.

Reading:  This week’s focus will be Greek and Latin roots.  It is our intention to teach the kids how many new words can be decoded using Greek and Latin roots.

Writing:  We have been working hard to learn how to craft opinion pieces and express opinions through writing.  This week the kids will be learning how to complete an opinion piece “on demand.”  This means I will teach them how to take a prompt, analyze it, and write either a letter, article, or essay that clearly expresses their opinion within a 30 minute time frame.