Week 8 - October 23 - 27

Conferences - Thank you to all of the parents who have attended conferences so far. I know it makes for a long day and I appreciate you coming in with your children, going over the goals that we've set, and helping set up plans for a successful year. I'm looking forward to meeting with the rest of the parents on Monday and Thursday of this week. Reminders were sent home on Friday. Please email if you did not receive yours.


Early Release - Wednesday, October 25 is another early release day for the students. They will not need to bring instruments on that day. School is dismissed at 1:29pm.


Friday, October 27 - The fifth grade classes will celebrate...


The fifth graders are allowed to dress up in their most outrageous get ups to celebrate homecoming for any school of their choice! At lunchtime each class will perform some type of class spirit presentation to show their school spirit. Winning class gets to have the trophy for the year. Hair coloring, face tattoos, and sports wear are welcome!

Week 7 - October 16 - 20

I hope everyone got a chance to get out and enjoy some of the sunshine that finally came on Sunday. I know I had plenty of leaves in my yard by Sunday evening.

Student Council - Congratulations to everyone who ran for a position for student council. It takes a brave person to get up in front of the entire school and make a speech, stand up in front of everyone, or even get enough signatures to get on the ballet. We will be voting this week on a class representative as well as an alternate.

Camp - We will be making final plans for camp this week. You should have a packing list that was in the envelope. If you need another, please let me know.

Conferences- I will be starting conferences this week. They are Tuesday and Thursday. I will send home reminders in case you do not remember your time.

Substitutes - From time to time I will be out of the classroom for meetings or personal reasons. There is an expectation that your child will continue to behave in an appropriate manner with the sub. I will try to let parents know ahead of time when that will be the case. I have a meeting this Tuesday afternoon. It can often be helpful if parents can have a conversation with their child ahead of time about this.

Week 4 - September 25 - 29

We know it's going to be hot the first part of this week. Please be sure your child has a water bottle in order to keep hydrated. As you know we do not have air conditioning in most of our building. We will do what we can to keep cool. I have a couple of fans and we keep most of the lights off to feel cooler. Hopefully this will help us get through this short heat wave.

Reading class - All students will be starting with their reading teacher on Monday. On Friday the students were told which class they would go to. Your child should have a just right book to read every day. They should also be reading for 30 minutes every night. Every child has the opportunity to become a better reader and one way this is accomplished is by continuing to read daily.

Camp packets - You should have received the camp information packet. Please fill out all of the paperwork and return it by Friday, September 29th. If you can get it in sooner, that would be great! Check to be sure that you have filled out both sides of any papers that are double sided. Be sure you and your child have signed everywhere that is necessary. Let us know if you have any questions regarding camp.

Picture Day! Wednesday, September 27 is Picture Day. All students will have their picture taken, at least for the yearbook. Please be sure to fill out the order form or order online before Wednesday.




Early release day - Wednesday at 1:29pm - This is our first early release day. Your child will eat lunch at his or her regular lunch time. There is no child care on early release day afternoons.

Conferences - If you have not done so, please send in the paper letting me know when you can attend a conference next month. If none of the available times work for you, let me know and we will work something out.

Book Orders - Book orders were passed out on Friday. If your child would like to order books, please order online or send in to me by Friday, September 29th.

Thank you! Thanks to all of the families who have sent in snacks and disinfectant wipes. The students have been going through the snacks pretty quickly. If your child is able to pack a snack to eat in the afternoon, please remind them to do so.

Week 2 - September 11 - 15

Hopefully this week has not started off like this for you! I have two in middle school so I understand how this can be!

Curriculum Night - Tuesday, September 12 from 6:30 - 8pm. Please come and find out what will be going on this school year for your fifth grader.

NWEA Testing - We will test 3 different times this year. The first round is upon us. We will take the reading portion this Thursday in the afternoon. The math portion will be administered this Friday in the morning.

Homework - Students will have math homework most days of the week. They should also be sure to be reading 30 minutes every day. Please remind your child that it doesn't have to be 30 minutes in a row. If they have 10 or 15 minutes at some point and then can finish later that is fine.

Week 1 - September 4 - 8

Welcome to Mrs. Embry's class! 
I'm looking forward to this school year and the many things that we will be doing. I will use this blog to update you on the events that are going on in our classroom as well as the school. There are helpful links on the right side of this blog to connect you to different sites. Some of the sites are practice for math or social studies. There is also a link to the book orders if you would ever like to directly order instead of sending money or a check in to school. If there is anything that you would like to see added to the blog, let me know! I'm always looking for ways to make this more useful to families.


Curriculum Night - Tuesday, September 12 from 6:30 - 8pm. Meet in the cafeteria then come to the classroom to hear what happens in fifth grade this year.

Classroom needs - Some items were listed on the back to school letter that I sent home on the first day. All students should bring in a clean old sock to use as a white board eraser. If you would also like to donate Expo whiteboard cleaner that would be greatly appreciated!

I will be updating the "important dates" tab as well as adding pictures as soon as I get them in.

Last Week!! June 12 - 16

It's hard to believe this is the last week of school. Most of the kids are saying how quickly it has gone by. I have to agree with them!

Items due: Please be sure that your child has turned in or payed for all library books. I will be collecting social studies books, calculators, and templates on Tuesday. Your child will need to turn these items in or pay for them.

Field trips: All field trips are on as planned. The weather looks a bit dicey on Wednesday but we'll see what happens. If we need to, we will make a plan for an activity to do at school that day. I will not be going with the students to Rolling Hills on Monday due to meetings that I have to attend. Other fifth grade teachers will be there though.

Promotion ceremony: The ceremony will be at 2pm on Thursday. I will be out part of the morning on Thursday. My own daughter has her promotion ceremony that day.





Just in case this happens to you, here are a few options around town...


Ann Arbor District Library Summer Game: http://play.aadl.org/ Use your Library this summer and earn points towards useful AADL stuff, all thanks to the Friends of the Ann Arbor District Library!

Ann Arbor Observer: http://annarborobserver.com/calendar/family__teens____kids_stuff_170529.htmlEvents for families, teens, and kids.

Association for Library Service to Children’s Summer Reading List: http://www.ala.org/alsc/publications-resources/book-lists/2017-summer-reading-list

Morning Movies at Quality 16 Ann Arbor: https://www.goodrichqualitytheaters.com/morning-movies Those belonging to the Frequent Moviegoer Rewards (FMG) will be able to see any movie in the series free-of-charge when they present their FMG card at the box office. Each member will get up to 6 free admissions with their FMG card per show. Non-members will be charged $1.00 per ticket. It's easy to become an FMG member for FREE.

Morning Movies at Rave/Cinemark  Here’s how it works:
Purchase a 10 movie pass in advance from your local box office or online for $5. (While supplies last.) If you don’t plan to go every week, you can also see individual movies for $1 each. http://www.thesuburbanmom.com/2017/04/24/cinemark-summer-movie-clubhouse-2017-schedule/

If you are interested in going a little out of town:  
http://www.dailydetroit.com/2017/06/03/30-things-to-do-detroit-summer-2017/

Week 37 - June 5 - 9

We have several field trips coming next week. The forms went home on Monday and it would help us out a lot if they could be signed and returned right away.

Rolling Hills - Monday, June 12
Students will need:
- a sack lunch
- swimsuit, towel, sunscreen
- quarters for the lockers (if they choose to use them); remember that they need a quarter every time they open it and need to lock it again
- money for the snack bar if they want anything from this
Click on the link below to see the water park location, features, etc.
Rolling Hills Water Park 


Dairy Queen - Tuesday, June 13
We will walk to Dairy Queen after lunch. Students should wear comfortable walking shoes and may bring sunscreen to apply before leaving. Students will be allowed to purchase one item. Although it can be tempting, I encourage the students not to get the largest items. As much as I love ice cream, walking back to school in the hot sun after eating a lot of ice cream does not always end well! Please let me know if you need assistance purchasing something for your child at DQ.

Buhr Pool - Wednesday, June 14
We will be walking to Buhr Pool. Students will need:
 - a sack lunch
- swimsuit, towel, sunscreen
- comfortable walking shoes, flip flops would not be appropriate
There are vending machines at Buhr Pool. Students can bring money to purchase items if they choose but they should not plan on this as a substitute for lunch.

Electronics morning - Thursday, June 15
Students may bring in electronics to play on Thursday morning after they have returned all items and cleaned their area. Students are responsible for anything that they bring in. Any games played must be school appropriate (no weapons, PG-13 or higher games, etc.).

Promotion ceremony - Thursday, June 15
The promotion ceremony will take place in the afternoon at 2pm. There will be a small reception in the gym afterwards. The ceremony will take place in the cafeteria and it gets very warm and crowded in there so be prepared! Many students will wear comfortable clothing in the morning and change into something nicer after lunch for the ceremony.

Please be sure your child has turned in all library books. All students were given a calculator, History Alive book, and template at the beginning of the year. These must be returned or paid for. We often find missing items when the room is cleaned at the end of the year.

Please check the lost and found by the office. There are many nice items there!