Week 25 - February 17 - 21

Science Fair - Boards and projects from all fifth graders are due on Wednesday, February 19th. If your child wants to bring his or her project in on Tuesday we can store it in the classroom.

Math Unit 4  - Most students finished the assessment on Friday. You should see your child's test on Monday or Tuesday. We will be starting Unit 5 on Monday, February 17th. A family letter will come home.

Valentine's Day - The kids did a great job being patient throughout the day and sharing their treats at the end of the day. Thanks to Dylan's mom for bringing in a special drink for all the class to kick off the day!

Reading - All students should continue to read at least 20 minutes a night. It's a great way to settle down before going to bed! The students have been going through guided reading books and Newsela articles in class. We will be doing some work with specific strategy groups in the next couple of weeks before we begin the next books.
The students did a great job with our last "Flashlight Friday"! We will be sure to do this again next month. March is reading month and there will be some special activities planned for that.

Week 20 - January 13 - 17

Winter is coming... survival that is! 

Friday, January 17 is winter survival day. By now you should have gotten a paper that has information about what your child has agreed to bring for his or her group. Please let me know if you have any issues with the menu for your child's group. I also sent home a paper that explains in detail what the students will be doing the day of winter survival. This trip takes place from 9:30 - 2:00'ish. The students will come home smelling like a camp fire! Please do not send them in special clothing that cannot be thrown into the washing machine!

Math: We are finishing up Unit 3 and will be taking the end of unit test by Wednesday. Your child can prepare by making sure to complete all math pages in the unit, asking questions in class, staying in at lunch for additional help (I am available every day at lunch to help students), and working on Dreambox to support the skills that may be helpful.

NO SCHOOL MONDAY, JANUARY 20TH - MLK JR. DAY

NWEA Testing: Thursday, January 16th - Math (afternoon);  Tuesday, January 21 - Reading (morning)

Week 16 - December 16 - 20

Cold Weather - With the changing temperatures, please be sure your child not only has appropriate clothing for the day, but understands what is expected to be worn for recess! I have several students who choose not to wear their coats out to recess. Often they are running around and I know that they are warmer than normal. I will remind them to wear them but I don't force it!

Math - We are well underway with Unit 3. The students are doing a lot of work with division and figuring out what to do with remainders. A real life application came up when I told the students that I had 2 boxes of star cookies. A serving size is 5 cookies and there are 16 servings per box. We had 23 students in class that day so the students had to figure out how many cookies each student would get and what to do with the remainder. These are the types of problems that they are learning to solve. A few students suggested that the remainder goes to me (Ha!) but they worked through to solve it. 

During vacation, please encourage your child to continue to use his or her math skills in everyday ways such as this. They could also do work using Dreambox. Each child knows how to log into this and it will keep them thinking mathematically while we are away from school. 

Reading - Please have your child read over vacation. Most students are successful at choosing books that are interesting to them and are just right. The students have a lot of access to books at school and can also do so at home. If your child has a device and an Ann Arbor Public Library card you can download the free app, Libby, and check out books through that. 

Your child could also work on Lexia during the vacation. This is also an online program that they have access to and can log into. 

Mrs. Evans is our new librarian and is able to help the students choose books as well. Our class has library on Fridays at 1:35. If you are able to volunteer your time and help students check out books, please be sure to contact her. 

Science Fair - Students should be turning in their science fair papers by Thursday, December 19th. Your child can work alone or with up to 2 other students. The fifth graders should be working on an experiment that is of interest to them. If your child is having trouble coming up with an experiment, please have him or her check in with me. We will be talking about this in class on Monday. Please let me know if your child needs support in school in order to complete the science fair. 

No School - Monday, December 23 - January 3

Week 13 - November 25 - 29

NO SCHOOL WEDNESDAY - FRIDAY

Math - The students will be taking their Unit 2 math test on Monday. We have spent a lot of time practicing division, multiplication, and converting units over the past few weeks. On Friday they brought home their Unit 1 tests. The students should be working on Dreambox throughout the week when we are not able to get it completed in class.

Reading - We are wrapping up our realistic fiction unit. The students should continue to read 20 - 30 minutes every night. I will continue to monitor the students reading progress throughout the year. In class we talk about the only way to become a better reader is to read!

Spirit Day - We are having our 5th grade spirit day on Tuesday, November 26. This is the day that the fifth grade students dress up in their best/favorite school/sport spirit wear. We encourage over the top participation on this day! At lunch the students will perform whatever skit or routine they have organized and will be judged. A trophy is up for the winner but most of all we are want the students to have a fun time before break! Any hair or face painting done at school must have a note from a parent saying that is ok. It can also be done at home before coming to school. Below is a picture of students from a previous class.

Week 6 - October 7 - 11

Conferences are beginning Monday, October 7th. On Friday, I sent home reminders of the Monday and Tuesday times. I will send home Thursday reminders early this week. If you have not signed up for a conference, please check your child's backpack for the form that has the remaining times.

These conferences are an opportunity to set goals for the coming year as well as talk about how things are going so far. Please bring your child if possible. With busy schedules, I understand when they are not able to make it!


 .  Picture Day is Thursday, October 10. Order forms went home a few weeks ago. If you need another, please have your child get one from the office. Ordering can be done online or orders with payment sent in to school up to the day of pictures.

Math -We have almost finished Unit 1 in math. The assessment is going to be on Wednesday, October 9. Students should know how to find the are of a rectangle, volume of rectangular prisms, and how to use parenthesis. Here is a link to Khan Academy that would help explain finding volume:

Finding volume

5th Grade Camp - Please be sure to complete and turn in all necessary camp forms. If you are missing anything, check the school website for the link to 5th grade camp.

Heart Healthy 101 - Our field trip is Tuesday, October 22. We will leave school around 9:15 and return around 11:30.  We could use one more chaperone if possible. Please let me know if you could join us. If it is more convenient, you can always meet us at St. Joe's and leave from there when we are done.

Week 4 - September 23 - 27

We've made it through a few weeks of school now and routines are under way. I hope everyone is getting a rhythm at home for wake ups, getting everything together, and after school reading and homework (when we have it).

Math: We are making our way through Unit 1 in EDM. You should have received the parent letter the second week of school. Our focus is on finding area, volume, and being able to multiply some mixed numbers. Students are also working their way through multiplication facts using the Xtramath program. Please support your child in using this at home nightly if he or she did not get a chance to complete it in school.

Reading: Your child should be reading between 20 and 30 minutes each night. Below is a graphic that helps explain the importance of that daily reading.


PLTW: The students are currently working on making their robots in Project Lead The Way. By the end of the session, they will have learned how to program their robot to do a job that is dull, dangerous, and/or dirty. Be sure to ask about this work! They are in groups of 3 or 4 and I'm impressed with all of the work.

NWEA: We have almost finished the first round of standardized testing that takes place in the fall. The students will take this test again in the winter and in the spring.