Week of December 15 - 19

Here we are, in the last week before a long Winter Break. Keep in mind school is in session until 2:30 on Friday, December 19! We'll be busy learning this entire week.

This week in Social Studies... we are taking a closer look at American Colonies and will compare life in three regions: New England Colonies, Middle Colonies, and Southern Colonies. Why was each colony started? How did the geography and natural resources affect how they lived? How did political and social lives evolve in each region?
Wednesday we made billboards to advertise six different colonies. Students came up with slogans and sales gimmicks to encourage new settlers to come to their colony!































This week in Science... we will continue to explore light and how it travels. Last week we learned what light was and how it can act in different environments. When light hits an object it can be absorbed, refracted, or reflected... sometimes a little of all three!! This week we'll explore different wavelengths of light and discover that visible light is only a small part of the electromagnetic spectrum!

This week in math... we are beginnig our multiplication unit. We will look for patterns in multiplication and use them to solve problems mentally. We will also explore estimating products, as well as some different strategies for solving multiplication products with two or more factors.
Assignments:
MONDAY - WKS: Problem Solving 2-18 (Subtracting Decimals Review)
TUESDAY - WKS: Practice 3-1
WEDNESDAY -WKS: Practice 3-2
THURSDAY -WKS: Multiplication Practice
FRIDAY -NO HOMEWORK :) HAPPY HOLIDAYS!



Congratulations to our three 5th grade Geography Bee Finalists! They will represent the 5th grade on Friday, January 9th in the school-wide Bee!







Guthrie, Chase, and Brandon

Math @ Home

As we are starting our multiplication and division units, I can't stress enough the importance of students knowing their (0-12) multiplication facts! Knowing means being able to give the product automatically and not having to "figure it out" each time. While we encourage students to have strategies for figuring out problems they do not know, we want 0-12 to be automatic.

Students should be practicing their facts at home especially over the long, 2 week break. Flashcards are great! If you have them, use them! If you don't have any you can pick some up at Staples or even make your own on index cards!

Another fun way to practice facts are with the game "Multiplication Top-it". It's a variation on the classic card-game "War". Take a standard 52-card deck of playing cards and divide them evenly, face-down, between two players. Each player turns over two cards and multiplies the values of those two cards together. The player with the greatest product, takes all 4 cards into a separate pile. When all cards in the deck have been used, each player takes the pile of cards they have won, shuffles them, and uses them as their new deck. The player to win all 52 cards wins the game. If there is a tie (two equal products), leave the four cards on the playing surface and turn over two more. The player to win, wins all 8 cards. Keep in mind, A=1, J=0, Q=11, K=12.

Happy Multiplying!

Week Of Dec. 8-12

CHECK OUT OUR NEW PICS! We explored refraction by putting a colored pencil in a jar of water. Why does it appear bent or enlarged in some cases?







































Reminders for this week -
Wednesday, Dec. 10 - Early Release
Thursday, Dec. 11 - Math Test - Place Value, Decimals, Adding & Subtracting
Friday, Dec. 12 - Progress Reports go home

This week in science... we are beginning our unit on LIGHT! We have learned that light is radiant energy, it travels in a wave, and at speeds of 186,000 miles per SECOND! That's like going around the earth 7 and a half times in one second. We will also look at how acts when it hits something -- it can reflect, refract, or be absorbed... what do those three terms mean?

Check out what we did on Wednesday with a flashlight, some colored film, mirrors, and prisms:

This week in Social Studies... we are beginning our 4th unit -- Colonial America. We will explore Roanoke, Jamestown, and Plymouth, then the 13 original US Colonies. We will spend time comapring and contrasting life in New England colonies, Middle colonies, and Southern colonies. This unit will be wrapped up with a 5th-Grade trip to Colonial Williamsburg on January 16!

This week in Math... we are concluding our unit on Place Value, Decimals, Adding and Subtracting. Students should be working on their study guides which are due Wednesday, Dec. 10. We will have our test on Thursday, Dec. 11.
ASSIGNMENTS
Monday - Continue working on study guide - due Wednesday
Tuesday - Continue working on study guide - due Wednesday
Wednesday - Study Guide Due Today
Thursday - TEST!
Friday - TEST CORRECTIONS DUE TUESDAY, DEC. 16.

Week of December 1 - 5

I hope everyone had a restful and safe Thanksgiving Break! 3 more weeks until Winter Break!
Reminders for next week: Wednesday, Dec. 10 - Early Release
Friday, Dec. 12 - Progress Reports go home


This week in science... students will take a unit assessment on Matter - Tuesday, Dec. 2. Students will get their graded tests back on Thursday. Parents, please sign them and have your student return the test on MONDAY.


This week in Social Studies... we will learn and practice study skills as we prepare for our Explorers Unit assessment that will be given on Friday, Dec. 5. See the Social Studies page on ANGEL for resources and check out the video on: www.vimeo.com/ss5


This week in Math... we will continue exploring place value and decimals by reviewing rounding decimals, estimating sums and differences, as well as determining actual sums and differences of decimals.
ASSIGNMENTS:
Monday - WKS - Rounding Decimals
Tuesday -WKS - 3-6 Rounding and Estimating Data
Wednesday -WKS - 2-17 - Adding Decimals: ODD ONLY!!
Thursday - Students will receive a study guide for our Unit test on Place Value/Decimals/Adding and Subtracting. This study guide will be due on Wednesday, Dec. 10. The test will be on Thursday, December 11.
Friday - Continue working on Study guide. Due Wednesday.