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.