Louisville Orchestra Field Trip

The Louisville Orchestra put on an awesome performance.

Twinsies!!!!!!!

Mr. Honey Badger  is having a blast!

Mrs. Whitley's class had a lot of fun! Thank you, Mr. Younce, for an awesome field trip.

Week of March 10-14

Good afternoon, parents! We have a lot going on this week and here is your weekly update to fill you in.

Oldham County EMS/CPR Forms

Tomorrow afternoon we will have the opportunity to receive firsthand instruction from Oldham County EMS workers on CPR as we learn about the human body systems! They will be coming at 1:30 to speak to the 5th graders in the cafeteria. If your child has not yet watched his/her CPR video and completed the white CPR training paper, please do so tonight. It is important that we get all the forms back tomorrow because those awesome kits came from a grant OC EMS received to help train more members of the community on life-saving techiques.

Orchestra Field Trip

This Wednesday we will be leaving school at 11:00am to take our Orchestra field trip. Please have your child dress nicely for the orchestra. Mr. Younce suggested khakhis for boys and nice pants or a skirt for girls. Please also send your child with a sack lunch that day as we will be eating in the classroom prior to our departure since we will miss our regular lunch time. If you prefer to buy, a sack lunch can be purchased from the cafeteria the morning of our trip as well.

Scrimmage Testing

Tomorrow begins our first round of scrimmage testing in preparation for the K-PREP Test the kids will be taking this May. We will be scrimmage testing over math and reading tomorrow and over social studies and on-demand writing on Wednesday prior to our field trip.

PE

Today we began a new rotation in PE. Please have your child wear tennis shoes to school for the next 5 days with the exception of Wednesday. Mrs. Kinnison said they will not need tennis shoes the day of their field trip.

MAP

We began our spring MAP testing today by taking the reading test. We will test over language on Friday and math next Monday. The results of the spring MAP tests will be available sometime after Spring Break.

Conferences

I will be hosting parent-teacher conferences Wednesday and Thursday this week, and Monday of next week. If you are unable to attend your scheduled conference, please let me know. Also, if you were unable to find a convenient time slot and would still like to meet, please contact me, and I will be happy to talk with you over the phone.

Oaks Day

In case you've not already heard, we will be in school on Oaks Day to make up for our most recent snow day.

Here's our learning plan for the week!

Math: This week we will do a brief study of data analysis and measurement. The kids will be working specifically with line plots, stem-and-leaf plots, and measuring to the nearest millimeter, centimter, whole, 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8 inch.

Social Studies: During social studies, we will continue our study Economics through lessons that will also prepare the kids for our visit to BizTown.

Word Study: We will continue exploring Greek and Latin roots.

Writing: The kids will finish their first draft of the historical narrative and begin the revision process.

Science: We will continue with our study of the human body systems which will culminate in a test late next week.

Have a great week and enjoy this beautiful weather!! :o)

Week of March 3-7

Good morning!!

Upcoming Tests

There will be a math test over all fraction concepts this Friday.

CPR Kits/OC EMS Visit

This week we will be starting a new science unit on the human body systems. To support the kids learning with this unit, I have invited Oldham County EMS to come visit our school next Tuesday to teach the kids the basics of CPR. Along with this visit, Oldham County EMS has donated a CPR training kit with a CPR dummy and a training DVD to each 5th grade student here at Harmony! These kits will come home today. Oldham County EMS has requested that each child watch the video and practice at home for homework. They should also train others in the household based on what they've learned. Along with these kits, each child will receive a white paper that needs to come back no later than next Tuesday, March 11. These forms are very important because OC EMS got a grant for these CPR kits and this paperwork shows how they are using the kits. This is a very cool opportunity for your child to begin learning about life-saving methods! Please be sure to have them watch the DVD, practice with the kit, and allow them to train someone else in the home.

District BOB Competition

Tonight is the 5th grade District BOB Competition! Good luck to our District BOB competitor, Audrey!!!

MAP Testing

We will be doing spring MAP testing over the next few weeks in the areas of Reading, Language, and Math.

Progress Reports

Progress reports will go home next Wednesday, March 12.

Conferences

If you have not already signed up for a parent-teacher conference, please do so this week. I will be hosting conferences from 2:40-5:00pm on March 12, 13, and 17. I added the 2:40 slot because spots are filling up quickly, so be sure to sign up soon!

Here's how to sign up in 3 easy steps:
1. Click this link to go to our invitation page on VolunteerSpot: http://vols.pt/dVfLKp
2. Enter your email address: (You will NOT need to register an account on VolunteerSpot)
3. Sign up! Choose your spots - VolunteerSpot will send you an automated confirmation and reminders. Easy!

Note: VolunteerSpot does not share your email address with anyone. If you prefer not to use your email address, please contact me and I can sign you up manually.

Here's what we're learning this week!

Social Studies: We will begin an economics unit this week in preparation for our field trip to BizTown on March 25.

Math: In math, we will review and wrap up our study of fractions with a test on Friday.

Word Study: During word study, we will finish up our unit on contractions and begin studying Greek and Latin roots.

Writing: This week the kids will begin drafting a fictional historical narrative that takes place during the Civil War.

Science: During our usual reading time this week, we will begin a new science unit over the human body where we will focus on the different systems that work to sustain human life.

Have a great week and, as always, if you have any questions or concerns, don't hesitate to call or email me. :o)

Week of February 3-7

Upcoming Tests
Math test on Friday over adding and subtracting fractions and mixed numbers (A study guide will come home tomorrow with problems for your child to practice.)
On Thursday afternoon, I'm going to ask kids to study using 1 or more of the following websites: http://www.quia.com/cb/62195.html
http://www.softschools.com/quizzes/math/add_and_subtract_unlike_fractions/quiz3230.html
http://studyjams.scholastic.com/studyjams/jams/math/fractions/add-sub-unlike-denom.htm

Capitalization Quiz on Friday (The kids will be asked to write me a letter applying their knowledge of the capitalization rules.)

Orchestra Field Trip
Please be sure to return your Orchestra field trip permission form and money at your earliest convenience.

Visitor
A friend of mine, Jamie Strang, will be coming to visit us for a little bit tomorrow morning. She will be observing myself and Ms. Poteet as she is seriously considering returning to school for an education degree.

BOB
The BOB competition is coming up soon...dates to be announced. Please encourage your child to continue reading BOB books and taking quizzes onwww.bookadventure.com to assess their comprehension of each story. You can also quiz your child by asking them to name the author of each BOB title.

This Week's Learning Plan
Math: Today I showed the kids how to use quick common denominators to solve addition and subtraction problems with fractions and mixed numbers. This skill requires them to simply multiply the denominators by each other to make a common denominator. For the remainder of the week, we will review adding and subtracting fractions and mixed numbers and we will test on Friday.
Social Studies: We are now exploring the beginnings of government as we explore the U.S. Constitution.
Word Study: Several kids are still making errors in capitalization so we are going to continue practicing the capitalization rules with an assessment on Friday.
Writing: This week the kids will choose a Civil War battle or person of interest to begin gathering more research about in order to develop an essay on this person/battle's role in the Civil War.
Reading: We will be reading the final section of our literature circle books this week, completing our final jobs, and writing a reflection to culminate the experience.

Week of January 27-31

Here is some important news from Mrs. Whitley's room for this week!

 

 

Upcoming Test

Capitalization Quiz on Friday

 

 

Homework
Please remind your child to record their book title and pages read in their agenda every night. This is taking the place of reading logs this month due to the summaries they must write for literature circles.

Please have your child do XtraMath each night. If they have already finished XtraMath, I've moved them to a faster program. Please have them do this at least 2-3 times a week.

 

 

Field Trip Form

There will be a field trip permission slip in the Wednesday folder this week for an Orchestra field trip coming up in March. Please return your child's field trip form and money at your earliest convenience. I will also need to chaperones. If you would like to chaperone, please check the box at the bottom of the field trip form and return it to school as I select chaperones based on first come/first served.

 

 

Classroom Guidance

This Friday Mrs. Hammons and Mrs. Clark will be coming to our classroom to do a lesson on Cyberbullying. This lesson is so valuable as our children are gaining more and more access to technology. Please ask your child about the lesson Friday afternoon so they can share their new knowledge with you.

**This week's learning plan is similar to last week's since we missed much of last week due to snow.

Math-Fractions
We are starting a new study of fractions with a focus on fraction computation beginning with adding and subtracting fractions and mixed numbers this week and next.

Social Studies-Declaring Independence
This week we will learn about the Declaration of Independence and we will begin studying the Revolutionary War.

English Language Arts
We will continue reading about slavery and segue into learning about the Civil War. This ELA unit is called America in Conflict. The kids will learn a great deal about the Civil War through reading and writing, beginning this week with researching a person or a battle from the Civil War for an essay.

Word Study-Capitalization

I've noticed that a lot of the kids are struggling with the capitalization rules, so this week we will have a few lessons on capitalization rules the class is making mistakes on followed by a quiz on Friday.

Reading-Literature Circles
Literature Circles will coninue throughout this week and next. Please discuss your child's book with him/her at home to help with comprehension of the story.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact me. Have nice week!!

Week of January 20-24

Good afternoon and happy MLK Day!  Here's what's happening this week in 5th grade!

Math Test!!  
There will be a test over fraction concepts on Wednesday.  A study guide was sent home Friday to be completed over the weekend.  Please remind your child to bring their completed study guide to school tomorrow so we can review and I can better address any areas of confusion.

Homework
Please remind your child to record their book title and pages read in their agenda every night.  This is taking the place of reading logs this month due to the summaries they must write for literature circles.  If your child has passed XtraMath, I have told the kids they no longer have to do the program.  However, I am going to encourage that kids begin practicing again a few times a week.  I have moved all that have passed onto a slightly more challenging program where they have to answer each fact in 2 seconds rather than 3.  If your child has not passed XtraMath, please encourage them to do it every night.  Learning math facts is so important in 5th grade!  As always, there will still be other homework such as a math or language arts sheet a couple of nights a week.  Please support your child throughout the winter by checking their agenda each night and reminding them to do their assignments.  Your support makes such a huge difference!

This Week's Learning Plan (...assuming there are no snow days!  Fingers crossed!  I'm ready for spring!)

Math-Fractions
We will review fractions and test on Wednesday.  Then we will begin a new unit on fraction computation beginning with adding and subtracting fractions and mixed numbers this Thursday and Friday.

Social Studies-Declaring Independence
This week we will be examining reasons the colonists declared independence and we will begin learning about the Revolutionary War.

English Language Arts
We will continue reading about slavery and segue into learning about the Civil War.  This ELA unit is called America in Conflict.  The kids will learn a great deal about the Civil War through reading and writing, beginning this week with researching a conflict or person involved in a conflict relative to the Civil War for a short essay.

During word study, we will also learn important terms related to slavery and the Civil War to deepen the kids' understanding.

Reading-Literature Circles
I have been very pleased with the kids' work on literature circles thus far!  So far, everyone is keeping up with their reading, their literature circle job, and their summaries!  Please feel free to discuss your child's lit. circle book with him/her at home as this well help with comprehension.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact me.  Have fabulous week!!

Week of January 6-10

Welcome back and Happy New Year!!  This week's update is short and sweet, but if you have any questions, please feel free to send me an email.  I hope you had a nice Winter Break!!

BOB Books

Please have your child bring back the BOB book he/she has checked out tomorrow.  Everyone has one checked out and we will be using many of these books for literature circles starting this week.

Upcoming Test

We will have a test over the tensions leading to the Revolutionary War (chapter 10) this Friday.  Your child may begin studying using the History Alive tutorial as early as he/she likes.  However, it will be homework on Wednesday and Thursday.

Here's what we'll be learning about this week!

Math:  We will continue studying fractions as the kids will learn different strategies for renaming fractions as decimals and percents.  They will also learn to find the fractional part of a whole.

Social Studies:  We will continue the study we began before break about colonial tensions and acts imposed upon the colonists by the British government.  These acts eventually lead to the Revolutionary War.

Writing:    We are beginning a new ELA unit entitled Conflict in America.  During this unit, the kids will read and write about the Civil War.  To segue into this, we will begin studying slavery this week.  The kids will learn about the different writing perspectives and verb tenses as they begin writing slave journals during their study.

Reading:  In support of the Battle of the Books competition and numerous 5th grade reading goals, we will also kick off literature circles this week.  The kids will be reading BOB books in groups and completing various activities including book discussions to demonstrate their comprehension of their assigned novel.