Pics!

Here are a few pics from our science project. The first day it was so windy and cold and we had to beg for a ray of sun! The second day our 3rd graders joined us!

Beautiful day...

...for some down time at the park!

Happy Spring!

I hope your families enjoy the week off and get some much needed down time amd rest!

Your children worked very hard this week.

We took 3 practice SBAC tests in math, reading and writing - while still holding steady to our science standards! We braved the cold wind every hour to get our measurements and then graphed our data Wednesday afternoon -- while teaching Mes. WindRiver ' s class what we were doing, all 20 of them!

Can I just tell you how amazing your kids are?! Everything I just listed was challenging and I needed them to be the most responsible, and they really stepped up for me, I appreciated them so much!

The two weeks after our break will be filled with reviewing the skills we have used all year.

In reading, we will begin reading the book, Crash by Jerry Spinelli which I think they will love! We will be talking about narrative elements throughout this book.

In writing for 4th and 5th grades, we will be practicing using 2 or 3 pieces of text to draw from. We have done this with 2 pieces throughout the year and they have improved a great deal. These are the same skills we use for researching during projects so they are fairly proficient already. Practice makes prepared!

In projects, we are moving back to social studies. We have some civics standards to begin covering which will include government, laws, responsibilities and democracy. It will be interesting and we have some fun activities planned and guest speakers lined up soon!

💙 I adore your children. They have given me an incredible year and I will continue to do my best to prepare them for middle school-- can you believe it?! Middle school!! 😲

Schedule change this week and homework

Here are the changes I talked about in my last post, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me! 

1.) This week your 5th graders will NOT have math class until Thursday. 

Mrs. Neal has assigned homework in the following format: As you saw at student led conferences, your children now know how to access their ixl reports. They will need to go through those reports and find the stands they have not yet mastered this year. They need to work on those strands for 20 minutes every night. This will take the place of any new ixl homework this week. 

2.) My class will be taking the practice English/Language Arts SBAC test -starting at 1:30 tomorrow, Tuesday the 22nd.

3.) My class will be taking the practice Math SBAC test on Wednesday the 23rd starting at 8:30. 

Schedule change

We are doing some SBAC testing practice this week so our schedules are very different! There will most likely be no math homework this week as well, although I will clarify that with Mrs. Neal today.

I will post my schedule here so you can see how it all folds out.

We also had all parents except for 2, come to student led conferences! Thank you so much. They work so hard and were really proud to show you their accomplishments.

We will be working very hard this week reviewing, writing, and gearing up for qtr 4! Still lots to accomplish and learn.

Engineers!

We have been designing parachutes for two weeks and yesterday we finally competed to see who's design fell to the ground the slowest, ask your child about theirs!

Parent conferences reminder!

I am looking forward to seeing you all tomorrow! Please come by at your convenience anytime between 7:30 and 4:00 with your 5th grade student to be impressed with their student led conference! They have worked very hard to prepare for this day and I know that they are very proud of their growth and achievements. Report cards will not be sent home without a visit from you so I hope to see you tomorrow!

Sucess!!

Taco Bell Tuesday was a huge success!! Thank you so much for helping me with this, it was so much fun to surprise them! Ask them about the DMV story, they were a blast and Mrs. Hyde and I enjoyed them very much!! Here are some pics!

3/8/16

Reading:  We are almost done with reading The Tiger Rising! We had the BEST conversation yesterday about how there are so many parallels between this book and the book we read last, Wringer. I was so completely impressed with their discussion that it totally made my day!

Writing: We have spent the last two weeks comparing two stories from different points of view and creating a venn diagram to support our thoughts--we are also working on comparing two stories from within the same genre, using the venn diagram to show our evidence as well. They are a thoughtful group to work with. During writing we are also preparing for our student led conferences. This is serious business. They have organized their files within their Google Drive, they have reflected on their growth, their need for more growth and their achievements they are most proud of. I think they will impress you!

Projects:  We ROCKED our energy presentations! It is the most wonderful thing to have other teachers in the building complement us on the way we presented to their students, the information we presented and the way we were so knowledgeable about questions that were asked.  I was thrilled with ALL OF THEM!

Please don't forget to send in your child's bean bag money! If you don't know what I mean, please read the email I sent last Thursday. We want everyone to be able to participate in enjoying the special things we have in our room! 

Thank you for sharing your children with me, I do enjoy them immensely. As we are on the down hill side of 5th grade, I know I will hate to see them go.....

Parent conferences letter

Student-Led Conference Information

******************************************************

Dear Family,

Our class has been working hard this year on personal responsibility, work ethic and building community through our academic achievements.  As parent-teacher conference time approaches, I would like to implement a student-led style of conferencing.  Your child will take you through their achievements, difficulties, reflections and goals. I will be in the room as an observer, but not leading the traditional conference.

Their report cards will be available this day as well.  Your child will go through their report card with you, as well as other work we have gathered and then they will take you through their ixl reports for math.  

These conferences will take place on Friday, March 18th.  My classroom will be open from 7:30-4:30.

There is NO set schedule; you may come in at any time mentioned above, unannounced, at your convenience.  Each conference will take about 20 minutes.  If you feel that you would like a separate conference with me after your child has presented their packet, I will have a signup sheet.  Those conferences will be held at a later date.

I am excited to watch them take control of, and be responsible for, their conferences and work.  They have made so much growth this year.  Their reflections are meaningful and their achievement has strengthened their confidence and self esteem.  I look forward to seeing you

As always, if you need to contact me, I am available!

Thank You,

Christine Mori