November 2018

November 2018

Testing out the pumpkin catapults in Science

     As we close out term 1 and begin term 2 of the 2018-2019 school year, we'd like to reflect and share a bit about what has been going on in school over these past few months.  There certainly has been a lot of growth as we see it every day with our students!
     In Math, we continue working on multiplication of 2X3, 2X4 and 3X3 digits.  Currently, we are heading into Order of Operations with the goal of going back to revisit multiplication again.  To help your students at home, continue working on the memorization of math facts, the Chegg flashcards, and X-tra Math.  All of these can help your child get a strong handle on their math facts.

Working as a team to solve Quizlet

Using the catapult to launch a mini-pumpkin

Working as a team to stack cups given certain limitations

      In Science, we have covered the basics of science discovery by going over the scientific method, using tools in the science classroom, making observations and collecting data.  We are now in our Engineering unit and look forward to students going through the design process to create. One aspect of this process is the revision process and helping students to realize that a necessary element is going over their work with a critical eye to make adjustments and improvements.  This is often a difficult process for students and one that sometimes takes time to cultivate.

Which water transport system works best?  Let's experiment...

Science observations

     In Social Studies we have finished our Government unit which aimed to help students understand how our government works and what a democracy is.   With this basis, we are now heading way back in time,  to the 1600s,  and seeing the start of this democratic mindset in the beginning colonies.  Our first discovery begins with the Jamestown colony.  We are starting with its rough beginning, then we'll move forward to the other 13 colonies.  One of the overall goals of this Colonization unit is to help students see the perspectives from the different groups of people involved in this period of history.  With these groups of people at the forefront: the English, the Native Americans, and the Slaves, was America a land of opportunity for all? We will be reading the book, Blood on the River by Elise Carbonne to supplement this unit.  This book will help us to see the beginning of Jamestown from the point of view of the character, Samuel Collier and all that he experiences.

     In English, we are fine-tuning our reading goals based on what we have read the last term.  Our goals are located in the students' Google Drive folders.  If you would like to take a look,  have your child show you what they have written for goals in term 2.  We are currently writing responses to Wonder, adding dialogue to our writing, and writing stories from different perspectives!  Please continue to encourage your student to read at least 20 minutes at home each night.
 

   Thank you to all who were able to come in for a conference or touch base through email or phone calls.  It was so nice meeting everyone, even for such a short 7-minute timeframe.   
     We appreciate all you do at home to support us working with your students.  Please continue reaching out with questions and touching base with email.  All are helpful to keep the lines of communication open!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Enjoy the long weekend.

Welcome!

Dear Fifth Grader,
We hope you’ve all had a good summer and have had time to spend relaxing and having fun with family and friends.
Recently, we have started to prepare our classrooms for a year of exploration, collaboration, and achievement together.
     Our main goal this year is to develop your sense of belonging within our team and Miscoe as a whole while helping you become a more responsible and independent learner who welcomes new challenges. Until we meet, here are some things to get you excited about your fifth grade year at Miscoe.

 Your fifth-grade team consists of Mrs. Crawford, Mrs. Keenan, Mrs. Langdon, and Mrs. Rutkowski.

 Mrs. Crawford is located in room 301 and will be teaching science and social studies to the Spanish Immersion students. More than anything Mrs. Crawford’s family (husband and three kids) enjoy traveling the world. They just returned from a month long trip to Asia visiting Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, the country in which her husband was born and raised. They’re still recovering from jet lag! Other than traveling, Mrs. Crawford sings in a choir, exercises at the YMCA and drives all over CT bringing her kids to their hockey and lacrosse games.
      Mrs. Keenan teaches math and language arts and is located in room 126. This summer she spent time with her family on the cape and enjoyed long days at the beach with her family. She is married and has two boys ages twelve and nine. She spends a lot of her free time walking her dog, going to concerts, reading, and in hockey rinks.
      Mrs. Langdon will be in room 303 and will be teaching Science and Social Studies. At any given day, you may find her skiing, kayaking, or hiking with family and our Bernese Mountain Dog, Winter. She has two boys that are also enrolled in MURSD. She loves this community of family and friends and gets involved whenever she can!
      Mrs. Rutkowski teaches math and language arts in room 124. This summer, she went on a cruise to Bermuda to celebrate her parents’ fiftieth wedding anniversary. She is married and has three kids, a daughter who will be in seventh grade at Miscoe, and two sons who are in sixth and fourth grade in Hopedale. She spends a lot of time watching her kids at soccer, baseball, basketball, and cheer.
      Hopefully, this letter answers some of your questions. If you have others, please email us. Otherwise, we’ll see you in a few weeks!
                                                                                                        Sincerely,

                                                                                                                                  Mrs. Crawford, Mrs. Keenan, Mrs. Langdon, and Mrs. Rutkowski

#Kindness Matters!

Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.  ~ Aristotle

 In our classroom, as we approach February, our project and many discussions will be about celebrating the friendships that we have made this year and showing kindness to others.  We will be talking about this in class during our community meeting times and talk about how showing kindness to others is an important aspect of our character that we can learn to develop and nurture.
     We recently learned about a school in Africa where the students live in conditions that make it very hard to learn.  The students viewed pictures of the school and saw a very different setting than what they see every day!  They immediately wanted to help.  Our contact person in Africa said that her students would love encouraging words and cards from our students, so we got to work...        As the students got busy creating cards,  I heard wonderful conversations happening.  They were excited to help and I could feel the positivity in the room as the students figured out what to write as encouragement in their cards.

    Another project we like to do at this time of the year is our Boxes of Hope and Inspiration project. It is a project we adapted from Laura Candler and is based on the story, "Hattie's Birthday Box" by Pam Conrad.   It is a historical fiction story where the main theme is about how the best gifts are not material gifts at all!  For this project,  students get a secret box buddy that they will be observing and paying special attention to so that they can create their own box of hope and inspiration for them.  In school, we will be writing stories, letters, poetry and creating beautiful illustrations that will all be put inside our box for our buddy.
     At home, your student will need to complete some sort of craft to give to their box buddy based on some of the information they have learned from their person.  This craft is due January 31, 2018.  All other items for this project will be done in school.  Occasionally though,  students will need to finish some things at home that they started in school.  Please don't hesitate to email with any questions.  An information sheet went home, and your child was asked to discuss this project with you.
     Every year, it is a joy to watch the students receive their Boxes of Hope and it is something that is fondly remembered when they look back on their experiences in fifth grade.
      I hope that you talk to your student about their ideas for a craft, and help them to complete this for another student in our classroom.
     As we near the end of January, it is important to keep talking to your student about school and helping them to process getting through these next few winter months.   These months are sometimes difficult because we don't get outside as much, and there are many colds and flu viruses going around.  With Term 3,  students begin a different electives schedule, and workload increases and the pacing gets a little quicker and more intense.  We talk about keeping up our motivation to do our best every day, and always putting effort into our work to show our learning.  For many, this is tough work!
      I appreciate all you are doing at home to help us with this awesome task of molding these children, our future.  Thank you for your support.
 

Student Relfections

ELA

by Paul Bonina & Ben Reitz 

So far, we've been doing lots of fun things in ELA.  We've been doing things like IXL, Growing Your Vocabulary, Newsela and vocabulary tests every week and a half.  In IXL, we've been working on the I's which work on our commas and punctuation.  In "Growing Your Vocabulary" we've been learning our new vocabulary.  In Newsela we've been reading stories about people who have accomplished many things.

I think the Pioneers have been doing lots of fun things with the teaching aspect.  The IXL has been manageable, the "Growing Your Vocabulary" books have been very helpful, and the activities have been enjoyed!  Especially Kahoot and Quizlet Live! Quizlet Live is an online team activity consisting of 12 questions; first team to score 12 in a row wins!  Kahoot is a solo activity, also performed on the iPad, in which players try to answer questions correctly to earn points, the faster the answer, the more points you earn.  In conclusion, ELA has been fun and looks to improve in the future.

Both Pioneers and Explores are working on two narrative writing projects!  One is a version of the classic Gingerbread story, and the other is a narrative based on an animation of a snowman.  We will be analyzing story elements so that we can add these elements into our own writing.

Dillon is commenting on an interesting article he read.

SCIENCE

by Harmony Melendez-Torres & Kylie French

In Science class these past few weeks, we have been working on sky viewers to tell whether we are spinning or if the sun is.  The answer is that we are spinning.  Recently we have been working on toys from history and if they are as popular now as they were back then and if they are good toys or bad toys.

Observing the Earth's Rotation 

MATH
by Kayla Aubut & Hannah Le

 In Math class we are working on "Rules of Divisibility" which is which numbers you can

divide by. We have learned the rules for each number, like for example: the rule of

divisibility for the number 3 is you have to add all of the digits and then if that number is

divisible by 3, it is. This is a picture of our tables of divisibility in our notebooks:

We are also working on "Beans and Scoops." First, we had to guess how many 1/8 cups it would

take to fill the jar. Everyone gave their predictions, and it turned out to be 18 scoops. In the

jar, there were 117 kidney beans, so we did the division 117 divided by 18 = 39 r 9. A few students

got a scoop of kidney beans to count. Some people got 41, some got 42, and some got 38.

Then came the lima beans.

So we made our predictions on how many 1/8 cups it would take to fill the jar, and it turned out to

be the same as the kidney beans! 18 1/8 cups. In the jar, there were 411 lima beans in total. We

divided 411 by 18 and it was 22 r 25. So we counted the average scoop, and everyone got an

answer in the 20's. Then Sra. Crawford brought out a bigger jar of kidney beans that had 1,508

beans in it. We all made a poster dividing 1,508 by 39 for the average scoop of kidney beans.

Here is one of the posters:

We had a whole gallery of posters! And all of (or most of us) got the quotient of 38 r 26. We had a

lot of fun on this project. And I think our classes had fun too. We can't wait to look at all the posters in

our wonderful math gallery.

It's important to reflect

It's an important time to reflect!

      Year after year Alyssa and I spend valuable time in conferences with parents discussing our students.  What an important time of the school year!   At these conferences, we hear how the school year is going from a different point of view. Every day, we see growth from our students at school, but we are always curious about the parent's perspective. When we meet as a team, it helps to reinforce new goals for ourselves as teachers, and our students,  and to get on the same page for the needs of all involved. 

We are growing learners in our classroom. 

In order to do that, one of the skills we are using is the skill of reflection. John Dewey said “We do not learn from experience … we learn from reflecting on experience.” So with many activities we do in class, an oral reflection occurs afterward. How did this activity go? What did we learn? How can we make this experience better?  It is natural then, after our first term, that students were able to reflect on how their learning went.  I shared these reflections at our conference and was pleased that so many wonderful conversations erupted from sharing these words from our students. Below, you'll see some video reflections from our class as well.

The struggle is real, and it's okay!

     A common theme in our discussions with our class has been that it is okay to make mistakes.  These mistakes point the way to successful learning.  In order to learn,  there also may be a struggle to understand something.  Many parents reiterated these same ideas being discussed at home, so it was great news to hear this has been a supported theme at home and school.

Teamwork makes the dream work

     Recently, our classes have been working toward being kickball experts.   Let me explain how it all got started.  At the beginning of the year in September, we went outside to have some fun and play together.  We were shocked and surprised to find out that we had a hard time playing kickball together.  Half our students had no idea of how to play, some were great players already but they didn't share what they knew to the whole team, and some had no interest at all in working as a team.  As you can imagine, there was a lot we could improve on.  

     After that first game, we reflected as a class and decided that we will have to work on this throughout the year. 

      Our first task was to learn the rules of the game and have a discussion.  Yesterday,  we went out to play the game again, and our students reflected on how the game went. 

      "We are already getting better!"  

     "That was so much fun!" 

     "There are some improvements we can make."

  This made me smile because... 

I think they are getting this learning thing.

  

What's Happening? October 2017

Models of the Earth, Sun and Moon

 During the last few weeks we have been exploring two essential questions, "Where is Earth?"  and "How does the Earth rotate and revolve?".  The students have researched these questions independently, created models and then developed fact-based arguments to support their ideas.  Next week the students will create a slide presentation to showcase the highlights of their Nature's Classroom trip.  

 As we write this blog, we're enjoying our second day on our Nature's Classroom trip.  So far the students have spent time trekking through the woods in field group, working together in teams to solve various "quests" and have taken classes such as Shark Dissection, Endangered Egg Babies, Shelter Building, Savage Ravage, Wolf Howling, Mouse Trap Catapults and Mad Science.  The students were able to choose their own classes so be sure to ask your child about their specific experiences during class time.  We're gearing up for a night hike tonight to learn more about the constellations and the nocturnal life of the critters that live in the woods of Nature's Classroom. Throughout our time here, the students have been learning about their roles to be responsible for themselves and respectful of others.  Ask your child for their personal definition of "IALAC."     

  After exploring the multiplication of numbers by powers of ten, we have begun to work on multiplying multi-digit numbers.  Please help your child to practice basic multiplication facts by reviewing with flashcards or by practicing third and fourth-grade multiplication skills on ixl.  Over the next few weeks, we will continue to multiply multi-digit numbers and then will begin to review division by connecting the operations of multiplication and division.  Most nights, homework for Math class is a page from the student workbook of the "GO Math!" program.  Please remind your child to put their Math books back into their accordion binders each night so we have them for school the following day.  

 Students have been learning about verbs. We have looked at verbs in our writing, and have worked on creating 'vivid verbs' in our writing by using a Thesaurus.  We have also been reading articles in Newsela about people with disabilities and analyzing how they show resilience in their lives.  Our hope is that our students can see how resilience can play out in their own lives and relate to it as a positive character trait they can develop.

Conferences

 We have been meeting with families for conferences.  In preparation for our November conferences, we have created a ‘Sign-Up’ page.  Please access this link to sign up for a November Conference:  CONFERENCES SIGN UP

Please know that we meet continually with parents outside of these November conferences.  If you feel that another time is better for you, please send us an email and we can set something up at any time!

What's Happening? September 2017

Science ~ 
In Science, we are starting a unit on the Earth and its Systems.   How can you reason why the sun rises and sets?  We made a model to work this question out!

Math ~
During Math class this week, we've been reviewing place value and on recognizing the 10 to 1 relationship between the place value positions in our number system. We began the week thinking about defining and finding factors and multiples and then we took it a step further to determine if a certain number is prime or composite.  We wrapped up the week by multiplying and dividing numbers (including decimals) by 10, 100, 1,000, etc.  Check out these Padlet links to see some of our Math thoughts for the week: Recognizing Patterns of 10 and Factors!

Genius Hour ~ 
Earlier this week, we were able to meet with Mrs. Arnold in the media center to learn how to access the databases ("Britannica" and "Gale") that will help us with our Genius Hour projects and with research, in general, this year.  In just a short time, the students have become quite adept with researching their interests.

Nature's Classroom ~
Rocky, the "principal" from Nature's Classroom, spoke with everyone about our upcoming adventure to Nature's Classroom this week.  She explained the trip in detail and answered many of the students' questions about the trip.  Please check your child's Friday Folder for the paperwork required to attend Nature's Classroom.  If you owe a balance for the trip, this information is included in the Friday Folder as well.  Please let us know if you have any further questions about the trip.


English~  We continue in growing our vocabulary and learning about words.  We have just finished chapter 1 and we will begin chapter 2 soon.

Our writing projects have begun!  The students have been partnered up, and they are writing the words to a short film.  This activity allows students to experiment with using sensory details in their writing, and it's a lot of fun!

Classroom Donations ~
If you are able to help with donating materials to our classroom, we would welcome the following items:  colored cardstock, board games & crafts for indoor Project Block, colored computer paper, self-adhesive laminating sheets & Scotch tape.  We really appreciate your help!

#Miscoe #fifthgrade Speaking, listening, writing, thinking....#collaborativewriting ❤️ pic.twitter.com/V0PD9k6ZRq

— Heather Langdon (@mrslangdon303) September 22, 2017