Welcome to 5th Grade
We are so excited that you are here.
Today our class worked together to defeat the clock in a classroom escape game! They reached their goal of earning 15 class beads and were rewarded with this fun and challenging game. Students had 50 minutes to solve a series of riddles and codes, unlock locks, and search for clues. Their ultimate goal was to unlock the case in the center of the room, which held a sweet treat!
Our game today focused on the use of coordinate planes, our current unit in math. Students applied this and many other math skills to their puzzles. They also learned about teamwork, kindness, and respect. Through our debrief after the game, we talked about ways to improve the process and our teamwork so the game runs even smoother next time. Ultimately, they escaped with just 6 minutes left on the clock! We look forward to doing many more escape games this year! **If you curious about any of the resources we used today, you can find out more at breakoutedu.com!**
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Students across the country participate in the Hour of Code each year, a program designed to get more students involved with STEM activities. Today, our fifth graders spent an hour learning the basics of coding: how do you instruct a computer to do what it needs to do? They explored two websites: code.org and playcodemonkey.com! We also discussed qualities that make a good digital citizen. Check out the gallery to see us in action!
This year, we are diving deep into the many uses of energy: mechanical, thermal, sound, light, and electric. We have already explored the properties of light energy--how it is reflected and refracted through objects. Now, we are getting into the intricacies of electric energy. Over the next two weeks, we will be discussing parallel and series circuits. We will also be discussing open and closed circuits, the effects of switches on circuits, and the practicality of circuits in our everyday lives. To start our unit, students explored Little Bits Kits, often described as circuit Legos. Using a battery as their energy source, they discovered how to create closed circuits that produce light, sound, motion, and many combinations thereof. Check out the pictures of our engineers hard at work! Today, we were so lucky to hear from children's author Chris Barton! Barton has penned such titles as 88 Instruments, Shark vs. Train, and The Amazing Life of John Roy Lynch. The last title, a bluebonnet book this year, is giving a whole new generation the opportunity to learn about reconstruction! Our students did a wonderful job listening attentively and asking great questions. It is always so inspiring to hear from authors and to dream big about where our curiosities can take us!
Many days in science, you will find student scientists with heads bent, pencils scribbling, and brains working hard. We do labs often so that we can learn more about the world around us. We discover so much by observing changes in experiments!
But what about those changes that we can't observe with just our eyes? Technology to the rescue! Today, we worked in small groups to explore a solubility simulation produced by the University of Colorado. This allowed us to view how water affects salt molecules. We also added the words soluble and insoluble to our scientific vocabulary. Take a look at some of our pictures to get a better idea of how we use simulations to help us learn! On Monday of last week, we read the book The Boy Who Loved Words. This launched a wonderful discussion about the power of words and how our writing benefits when we start using new words. Then, throughout the week, we began introducing students' weekly vocabulary homework assignment: Vocab Collectors. Your student has a composition notebook that we have already begun filling with guidelines and examples of the Vocab Collector assignment. Each week, they will be responsible for collecting interesting words that they encounter. We will start out with two as students get the hang of the assignment then increase to four. Notebooks go home on Fridays and are due the following Thursday with all words completed.
For each entry, students will be personifying the new word to explain its definition. They will also draw Mr. Stick, who will become their vocab word. The goal is to define new vocab by telling about their character's job, personality, or mannerisms. See your child's notebook for an example done together in class. Included is also a rubric for how each entry will be graded. This is a very creative and interesting way for students to round out their vocabulary. Our goal is make our writing and speaking sound more interesting and mature as we grow into middle school students! Questions you can ask your child: >What's the difference between a 10 cent, 25 cent, and 50 cent word? >What sources can you use to find your new words? >How can you ensure you receive the grade you want on this assignment? Hello and welcome to fifth grade. What an exciting journey we are about to embark on together! I am so glad you have found our class website and hope you will take the time to explore the resources I have compiled here. On this site, you will find a calendar of upcoming events and important dates; a guide to what we will be learning; online resources; and a little more information about me. Most importantly, you will find regular posts about what we are accomplishing in our classroom.
Over the next year, it will be important that we work together. Parents, students, and teachers working as a team means more opportunity for success! To that end, I hope to make myself as available to you as possible. Whether it be over the phone, via email, or through a conference, I look forward to collaborating with you. My contact information can be found to the right. This year will be one of growth and achievement. We will work hard. We will set goals. We will encourage our classmates. We will become citizens of our community. Welcome to fifth grade! |
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October 2016
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