Week of October 20

Fall has finally arrived! The cooler weather reminds us that it's Fall and that we are well in to the school year. Students are in a groove and getting the hang of 5th grade and Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School.

Reminders:

• Money for our three upcoming field trips is due Wednesday and our field trip to the Museum of the American Indian is this Friday!

• Conferences will be held Monday and Tuesday, November 3rd and 4th. You will be receiving a conference time reminder in Friday Folders this week. We are looking forward to meeting with you!

• As the school-year is in full swing and the fall and winter travel season is approaching - a quick reminder about the school's make up work policy - students are responsible for making up all work that (is possible and appropriate to be done outside of the classroom) the student missed while out. The time frame for making up the work is at the discretion of school staff. It is the student's responsibility to obtain the make up work upon return from an absence. All trips that will be longer than three days should be pre-approved by the school administration.

• This is Red Ribbon Week! This week students will be participating in a variety of activities surrounding the theme of being drug-free for life.

This week in Science... What is a chemical change? How is that different from a new mixture? We'll be conducting some experiments to explore those questions and more! Students should be working on their element project final drafts. Details and resources for that can be found on Angel under "Arctic Science", "Units", then "Matter". The final project is due Monday, Oct. 27.

This week in Social Studies... we are continuing to explore the cultural regions of the US as defined by historians. We are studying what natural resources each Native American group had to use that influenced their culture. Students should know where each region is as well as which tribes settled where and what some key artifacts are that belonged to the different cultural groups. Details and notes can be found on Angel. Wednesday night students should complete the Chapter 3 tutorial on the History Alive website. We will have a quiz on locating the cultural regions on a map on Friday, Oct. 24. The Unit Assessment on Native Americans will be Thursday, Oct. 30.

This week in math... we are wrapping up our Graphing unit by continuing to practice ways of analyzing data: finding the range, mean, median, and mode. Students will be receiving a study guide this week and the test will be on Tuesday, Oct. 28.
Assignments:
Monday - WKS: MMMR1
Tuesday -Begin working on review guide. Due Monday, Oct. 27
Wednesday -continue working on review packet
Thursday -continue working on review packet
Friday -No math today --> Field Trip

Week of Oct. 13 - 17

I hope everyone had a restful three-day weekend. If you have not done so already, please be sure you send in field trip money by Wednesday, Oct. 22. Fall Picture re-takes will take place Friday, Oct. 17 in the morning. New picture forms are available in the library this week.

This week in Social Studies we are finishing up studying about how the first Americans came to settle in North America and how they had to adapt to different environments. We will begin studying cultural regions of North America and which Native American group settled in which region.

This week in Science we will spend a few minutes in the computer lab finishing up some research for our element project. Students should all be able to log in to ANGEL now. Under Arctic Science students will find all the online resources they'll need to finish their research as well as two different electronic copies of the final project. Students can either type in their answers and then print out the document OR they may print out a blank one and hand write the answers in. Students may stay after school this Thursday if they need help or want more time with the school's print resources. The final project is due Monday, Oct. 27. This week we will also be exploring molecules and compounds as well as the difference between a chemical and physical change.

This week in Math we are finishing up exploring different types of graphs and ways to display data with the line plot. Students will be able to read data off of line plots as well as create their own by collecting numerical data. Students will also begin to learn how to analyze data using: median, mean, mode, and range. Students can bring their math notes home to help them with homework this week.
HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS:
Tuesday - WKS: "Line Plots - If the Shoes Fits..."
Wednesday - WKS: "Crazy for Cookies"
Thursday - WKS: "Bicycle Prices"
Friday - NO HW

Week of October 6-10

This week in 5th grade...
We have sent home a pink letter in Friday Folders about upcoming field trips. Please make sure you read over that letter -- this letter is a request for the funds for three our remaining field trips: WILLIAMSBURG (which is a 12-hour long field trip where students ride commercial buses down to the historic city, enjoy guided tours, and have lunch at a tavern), Brass Rubbings (an in-house workshop where students explore historical figures who helped in the exploration and discovery of America), and a Jamestown Outreach. The total cost of these three experiences is $72.00. We are asking for the money by Wednesday, Oct. 22.

Wednesday, Oct. 8 is an early release day.

Congrats to Mrs. Brizendine who is getting married this weekend!

This week in Science...
Students should be bringing home a grading scale and some instructions for a mostly in-class research project on an element. Parents, please sign this sheet acknowledging your awareness that your child has this assignment. While it will mostly be done in school, what does not get finished in school will need to be finished at home. We will spend time this week in the library and the computer lab working on this project.

This week in Social Studies...
we are staring a new unit! Students will begin to explore patterns of migration and how early Americans settled in North America. We will explore how geographical features and climates influenced the culture of early Americans in different regions. The Geography Test will come home this week. Parents, please sign it and return it back to school with your student.
Thursday Night - Students should complete the "History Alive" online tutorial. It can be accessed through the "Atlantic Social Studies" class in Angel or by google-ing "History Alive" and clicking on the first link that appears or right here.

This week in Math...
we are continuing to explore graphs! We are working on creating double bar graphs both by hand on graph paper and on the computer with Excel. We will also start looking at stem and leaf plots and line plots and what kind of data can be displayed in those diagrams.

Assignments:
Monday - Finish Side Two of "The Cookie Sheet"
Tuesday - WKS: Stem and Leaf Plots
Wednesday - WKS: Sweet Sales
Thursday -
Friday -No Homework

WEEK OF SEPT 29 - OCT 3

This week in 5th grade...
we are sending home a pink letter in Friday Folders about upcoming field trips. Please make sure you read over that letter -- this letter is a request for the funds for three our remaining field trips: WILLIAMSBURG (which is a 12-hour long field trip where students ride commercial buses down to the historic city, enjoy guided tours, and have lunch at a tavern), Brass Rubbings (an in-house workshop where students explore historical figures who helped in the exploration and discovery of America), and a Jamestown Outreach. The total cost of these three experiences is $72.00. We are asking for the money by Wednesday, Oct. 22.

In Science we are... continuing to explore what makes up matter around us! Students will learn the four main parts of an atom -- protons, neutrons = nucleus, and the electrons. Students will also become familiar with The Periodic Table of the Elements and what information can be found in that resource. Students will be introduced to their first research project in Science -- My Element! This project will mostly be done in class with resources in our own library. Look for an assignment sheet to come home detailing that project.

In Social Studies we are... working on our last three maps for our Create-A-Country: Natural Resources, Agricultural, and Industrial. Students should be studying for the Geography Test which will be on FRIDAY, OCTOBER 3. For a complete list of terms and skills that will be assessed: www.mrsbriz.com --> "Subject Links", "Social Studies", "Geography". To study for the test students should use the blank maps in the workbooks they've just received, look at the power point about the regions, and study their notes.

Any students that would like to stay after school with me on THURSDAY, OCT. 2 may do so to review Geography for our test, re-take the Geographic Regions quiz, or catch up on Create-A-Country maps. See you then!

In Math we are... reading double bar graphs and discussing why we might use them. We will create our own bar graphs given information, then collect our own data in order to create a bar graph. We'll also analyze nutritional information found on cookie boxes and make our own double bar graphs to report that data.
ASSIGNMENTS
Monday - WKS: Favorite Cereals
Tuesday - Collect data for bar graph - @ least 25 pieces of data
Wednesday -WKS: Flavor Graph
Thursday -No HW
Friday - No HW

WEEK OF SEPT. 22 - 26

Important Dates - Friday, Sept. 26 - Field Trip to Natural History Museum. Don't forget to bring your lunch if you did not check off on the permission slip that you want to purchase one from school.


This week in Science... we are beginning a new unit on Matter! What is an atom? What is an element? What is the Periodic Table of Elements and what kind of information can we find on it? These are some questions we will be exploring this week. Friday we will write our first Thursday Thought - if you do not finish it in class, you will need to finish it for homework and turn it in on Tuesday, Sept. 30.

This week in Social Studies... we will take a quiz on Tuesday on important bodies of water and mountain ranges in the United States. We will also begin a two week long in-class project called "Create-A-Country". Students will be given specific coordinates and be responsible for creating a country given the characteristics of that region. Thursday we will begin our geographical maps for our countries. Students should be studying the geography we've learned so far and be prepared for a quiz on the geographical regions on North America on Monday. Students have notes in their notebooks and SS folder. A rundown of the specific content can be found on www.mrsbriz.com

This week in Math... we are beginning our unit on Graphing and Data Analysis. Why do we use graphs and which kinds of graphs are best for certain situations? How do I choose an appropriate scale? This week we'll be exploring different kinds of graphs as well as begin a class data collection project for graphing in a few weeks. We will also be certain that we include everything we need to for a complete and accurate graph: TAILS... what does that stand for?
Monday Night - NO HW
Tuesday Night -WKS - "Bar Graphs: It's a Wonderful Life"
Wednesday Night -WKS - "Line Graphs: Hello? Are you there?
Thursday Night -WKS - "Pictographs" - will be due Monday since we will not have math on Friday.
Friday Night - No math (Field Trip)

Week of Sept. 15 - 19

DON'T FORGET! Back to School Night is this Thursday, Sept. 19!
Remember to turn in both permission slips for our upcoming field trips - pink and green forms.
Friday, Sept. 26 is our first field trip to the Natural History Museum. We will leave around 9:15 and return by 2:00pm. Unless you checked off that you wanted to purchase a bag lunch from the cafeteria that day, don't forget to bring one along. We still need one more chaperone for that trip! Any takers??


This week in Science we are... continuing to explore the steps and components of a good experiment. We will also be introduced to a regular writing assignment in math called "Thursday Thought".


This week in Social Studies we are... exploring the geography of North America by locating important waterways including oceans, rivers, the Great Lakes, and the Gulf of Mexico. Students will also continue to locate specific places using lines of latitude and longitude. Toward the end of the week we will begin to look at the regions of North America and what important landforms and features are in each one. How does the sentence Creative Bob Really Gets Into Create- A - County help us remember the regions??

ASSIGNMENTS - Monday Night - Write down and bring to school on Wednesday the longitude and latitude of two places in the world you would like to visit! We will have a 2nd quiz on the Oceans and Continents on Friday. Make sure you have studied!


This week in Math we are... continuing to explore units and tools of measurement. Later in the week we will participate in the Metric Olympics! We are going to try to give Michael Phelps a run for his money... OK not really. :)

We will be rearranging math classes beginning Monday, Sept. 22. New placements will go home in Friday Folders.

2008-2009: Welcome!

Welcome to a new and exciting school year! Check here weekly to see what's going on in the classroom as well as assignments! As soon as students' ANGEL accounts are up and running and students are familiar with the program, this information will be found there instead.... I'm thinking October???

WEEK OF SEPT 8 - SEPT 12
This week in Science we are... exploring the steps of a good scientific experiment by testing the amount of water apples lose throughout the week. One apple is unpeeled, one is peeled, and one is chopped. Which one do you think it will be? Check out our graphs on Friday. The final lab will be due Monday, Sept. 15.


...using technology to make posters for the classroom, reminding us of the steps of a good experiment.


ASSIGNMENT - Students should finish their "Water-in-Apples" Lab report if not already done so in class.



This week in Social Studies we are... locating the continents and oceans on a map, understanding how to read maps and knowing words like hemisphere, equator and prime meridian. By the end of the week students will be able to use lines of latitude and longitude to locate places on a world map. Google Earth is a great resource for students to explore and practice latitude and longitude.


Other resources -- practice your geography skills by playing games online! Go to Mrs. Brizendine's website: www.mrsbriz.com - click on "subject links", "Social Studies", "Geography". Explore this page, but about half way down you'll see "Geography Games" :) Happy Playing!



This week in Math we are... exploring units and tools of measurement. Students will be familiar with appropriate ways to measure mass, length, and volume.


ASSIGNMENTS - Wednesday Night - WS: Estimating and measuring items around the house in centimeters. Due Thursday.


FIELD TRIPS! - Students are bringing home two field trip permission slips - a pink one for the Natural History Museum and a green one for the American Indian Museum. These field trips are free so the permission slips should be returned ASAP but definitely by Friday, Sept. 19. Don't forget to indicate whether you will need to purchase a bag lunch from the school or will be bringing one from home.