We had another exciting week in Room 315! We spent a few days completing the IOWA test. I am proud of how hard all of the students worked during our testing days. Those days can be LONG, but they all showed such perseverance and open-mindedness. I am grateful to teach such an amazing group! A special thank you to the Killimett family for providing donuts to celebrate the end of testing. We enjoyed them!! This week, we are wrapping up our first unit of inquiry. It has been a learning experience for all of us, but the students have become historians in the process! They have learned so much about the history of conflict and resolution in the United States over the past 118 years. Students are focusing on completing their "Adviser to the President" summative task. Students are working on analyzing their "sorting out" chart in order to identify patterns in our history that could assist them in advising President Bush. The students have access to the class sorting out chart, their Google Slides, and task rubric in Google Classroom. Because this is an assessment piece, students should not be working on it at home. However, I encourage you to take a look at the assignment to better understand the task and requirements. I am sure that the students will BLOW ME AWAY with their ideas. Last Friday, we finished Refugee. The students did an excellent job with our first novel study. We are continuing to work on completing the summative tasks for the novel. Students are completing their character analysis projects this week. Students will also be assigned one final interpretive question to respond to for Refugee. When we return from fall break, we will begin our second unit of inquiry. Our novel study for that unit will be Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling. If your child did not order a copy of the novel at the beginning of the year and you have not purchased one yet, it is imperative that every child have a copy of the novel. The book is available at the public library, Barnes and Noble bookstore, and on Amazon. As the students will tell you, we use our novels daily for all of our literary analysis assignments, so it's very important for everyone to have a copy. It's hard to believe that we are approaching the end of the first marking period! The students have come so far in such a short time. It is so encouraging to see them growing and learning each day. As the marking period nears its end, I know there are many questions about grades and progress. With the implementation of IB this year, our grading practices have evolved from what your child may have been accustomed to in 4th grade. My hope is that the weekly progress reports sent home Fridays have been insightful. I went through the digital grade book today to make sure all of the settings were correct, as some had mentioned that assignments were not showing up. Please remember that students and parents have access to the grade book via StudentVue and ParentVue. If you have any questions about how to access, please don't hesitate to let me know. Remember, my goal is to support your child's growth and achievement. If your child feels that he or she has made growth since some of the assessments were given, I am always happy to allow them to retest. The request to retest form is available under "Useful Links" on the website. Typically, the protocol is that students must submit their request the Monday following the grade being posted. Retakes are typically administered on Fridays. Since this process is new for many, I am very flexible this first nine weeks. Talk with your child about their progress. If there are areas where they feel they could do better, please encourage them to retest. (specifically in math!) Additionally, please remember, students can access their work after submission through Classroom. If you would like to review their assessments after they have been completed, they are always available to you. REMINDERS/ANNOUNCEMENTS:
UPCOMING DUE DATES: Friday, September 21 - History Assessment (Matching) Friday, September 21 - Character Analysis Project Friday September 21 - Adviser to the President Slides Tuesday, October 2 - History of Conflict and Resolution Test (Multiple Choice) Friday, October 5 - Refugee Reading Skills Assessment (Multiple Choice) Check out a video below of our very own, Samuel, solving a Rubik's Cube in 1 minute and 20 seconds. Each morning, we build community by answering a question of the day. On "Totally Awesome" Tuesday, Samuel shared that he's totally awesome because of his Rubiks skills. I agree, Samuel, YOU are TOTALLY awesome!! Have a great week!
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It has been an exciting two weeks in 5th grade! My apologies for not posting last week. The short week got the best of me, but do not worry, all of the fun will be shared in this post! Our class attend the escape room field trip on Friday, August 31st. Students were put into groups with students from the other two classes who attend the trip with us. It was so great to see the students connecting with students from across the grade level. Anyone who has ever been to an escape room knows that the challenge is difficult. I was so proud of the way my students responded to the challenge. They all exhibited a growth mindset. They were determined in their journey to escape, and they had fun trying! Of the 12 groups that participated in the escape room challenges, only one team escaped. A special shout out to Gabby Miller and Hayden Kupris for being part of that group. Not only did their group escape, but it was Gabby and Hayden who led the charge for their team. They were communicators, inquirers, thinkers, open-minded, and risk takers. They were able to open King Tut's Tomb with 10 minutes to spare! Kudos to you both!! As if that field trip was not exciting enough, we returned from Labor Day and attended the Breman Museum to learn about the Holocaust. We spent an hour touring parts of the gallery and then had the privilege of hearing a 2nd generation Holocaust survivor. It was an absolutely amazing day. Our class toured together as a group. The docent could not believe that the students were 5th graders at a public school. She was taken aback by the depth of understanding and scope of knowledge that our students brought with them on their tour. I could not have been prouder of my students! The Breman sent an email to Ms. Mansfield celebrating our students. They represented Teasley in the best way. It was amazing to see the connections the students were making between the gallery, the presentation, and our study of US history. In addition to the field trips, we have continued our study of conflict and resolution over the past two weeks. At this point, all students have received my feedback on their initial research. Research is one of the most essential yet challenging standards that we address in 5th grade. i was impressed with the students' willingness to take risk with their research, as I know it can be daunting. The main piece of feedback that was given across the board was that our study of history focuses on US history. Therefore, we must always look at history through a "US" lens. Mrs. Crosby told the students that before they sit down and research, they should put on their stars and stripes glasses. That image speaks to the perspective that students should consider when doing research for historical topics. While I certainly encourage my internationally-minded thinkers to always look at the global perspective, we must make sure that we dive deeper and consider the following:
Tomorrow, we remember the events of 9/11/01. We will be reading the book 14 Cows for America. If you are not familiar with this text, I have included a link to an online read aloud here. If you are comfortable doing so, please share with your child where you were on 9/11/01. For many of us, 9/11 was the first major historical event of our lifetime. Hearing firsthand accounts of the event always helps students understand that what happens today can be history tomorrow. In math, most students have completed their work with order of operations and expressions and have begun work on multi-digit multiplication. In 5th grade, we do introduce the standard algorithm for multiplication. It is important for students to understand that zero serves as a place holder in the standard algorithm because the multiplication occurring involves tens and not just digits in the ones place. I have attached the standards clarification document for your reference. A few students demonstrated mastery of multiplication and have begun work on partial quotient division. This standard can be challenging, so if your child is struggling, please know that we will practice this standard MANY times over then next two weeks. REMINDERS/ANNOUNCEMENTS:
UPCOMING DUE DATES: Friday, September 14 - Vocabulary Assessment Three Friday, September 14 - Grammar Assessment (Verbs) Friday, September 21 - Fictional Narrative Due *extended* Wednesday, September 19 - Character Analysis Project Due *extended* Have a great week!
Another week has come and gone in room 315. Last week, we reviewed and practiced our independent, self-directed learning with the use of our Google Classroom platform for completing and submitting assignments. Everyone is at a different level of understanding and independence, but I know that with practice we will all end up where we need to be. Last week, we got deeper into our novel study. I am so impressed with the depth of our conversations, connections, and understanding of the text. Students went through their first full vocabulary and grammar protocol for the week. We ended with an assessment in each subject on Friday. Please note that for this initial assessment, I am not scoring for accuracy. I believe that it's important for the students to become familiar with the process before assessing their understanding of the content. I wanted everyone to become familiar with the format of the assessment, as it may be different from what has been done in the past. With vocabulary in particular, it is important that students review their words throughout the week. I am teaching a different study skill each week to assist the students in understanding ways that you can effectively study. While students are given time to review their words in class, I encourage them to spend 5 minutes a day reviewing when they are away from school. This is a suggestion, not a requirement, but one that can help students develop good study habits. In math, most students completed their assignments for OA.1 (order of operations) and have begun work on OA.2 (expressions). I will continue to work in small group on extending or practicing these skills this week. Finally, students reached their first research checkpoint for their unit f inquiry. I am very pleased with how the students performed on their initial research. I am providing individual feedback to each student as we move into the next phase of research this week. This week, we will continue with our novel study. We will be focusing on using RACE-CE as a strategy for writing a response to literature. I will be teaching students the expectations and providing the rubric that will be used to assess their responses to the interpretive question each week. Additionally, we will be practicing using conversation moves during our Socratic Seminars. While the first half of the year, I will facilitate the Socratic Seminar for each reading group, my goal is to gradually release the students and empower them to facilitate their own conversations about the novel. It will take practice, but I know we will succeed! Students will be provided with a new vocabulary list for the week today. Additionally, our grammar focus for the week will be identifying nouns. Students should be working on their character analysis projects and narrative writing pieces for a few minutes each day, as well. Finally, our inquiry focus for the week will be synthesizing our research. Students will be sorting out their understanding of each conflict studied in order to identify any patterns or overarching concepts. The sorting out organizer will be due for feedback on Friday. In math, students will continue their investigation of order of operations and expression. Additionally, we will introduce multi-digit multiplication using a variety of strategies this week. I have reviewed and shared the rubric for our "Move On" which is the name of our class work time model with students. Everyone should be clear on the expectations for our math work time in class at this point. If there are any questions, please don't hesitate to let me know. REMINDERS/ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Friday, August 31 - Vocabulary Assessment Two Friday, August 31 - Grammar Assessment (Nouns) Friday, August 31 - Sorting Out - Research Check Point Friday, September 6 - Fictional Narrative Due Friday, September 14 - Character Analysis Project Due It's going to be another great week for teaching and learning in room 315!
It's an exciting week in room 315! As we begin week three, we are beginning to move towards independence. We spent some time over the past few days setting up all of our technology resources. Among them, the most critical is our Google Classroom. When students log in, they have access to two classes, Sharing the Planet and Math. This digital work space will house the majority, if not all, of the work that we do at school. I am very excited to use this tool, as it will allow for a more personalized learning experience for my amazing students. As I mentioned to the class, within our new inquiry-based learning style, much of our learning is student-led. Organization, time management, and responsibility are CRITICAL to our success. We will focus on strategies that support these habits and will continue to work to be self-directed learners. This week, we will continue our research of conflicts in American history. The goal is to complete the initial research phase by the end of the week, so that we can begin to synthesize and identify patterns within our learning next week. We are getting deeper into our study of Refugee by Alan Gratz. This week, students are beginning to learn the protocols of Socratic Seminar. We will use Socratic Seminar for our collaborative discussions of all texts that we read this year. As part of that protocol, students will write a weekly reading response using their text and highlights from the seminar discussions. I look forward to reading their initial responses and beginning to provide feedback! In order to practice important reading skills, students have also been assigned a character analysis project. They will work in groups of four to complete these projects over the next few weeks. Finally, this week marks the beginning of our vocabulary and grammar study. Students have been given their vocabulary list. Starred terms are terms that may be found on the weekly assessment. Students should focus on studying those terms. The grammar focus for the week is identifying simple subjects and simple predicates. In math, we began our study of order of operations today with an investigation using color tiles. The students were asked to represent 3 + 4 x 4. Students provided two possible solutions. We then discussed why we arrived at two different solutions and debated which solution was correct. Our discussion led us to naturally discover the order of operations. We will continue to evaluate simple expressions and will also move into "naming" expressions this week. REMINDERS:
UPCOMING DUE DATES: Friday, August 24 - Vocabulary Assessment One Friday, August 24 - Grammar Assessment (Subject/Predicate) Friday, August 24 - Finding Out - Research Check Point Friday, September 6 - Fictional Narrative Due Friday, September 14 - Character Analysis Project Due It's going to be another great week for teaching and learning in room 315! We had an amazing week last week as we dove into our first math unit and our first unit of inquiry. I was so encouraged by the enthusiasm and depth of our conversations. We started the week by looking at our end goal for our unit of inquiry. Students participated in a gallery walk of primary sources related to the attacks of 9/11. As a final task for this unit, students will be asked to serve as an adviser to President Bush. The question being, "Given the attacks, how should the United States react? What advice would you give the President?" Based on this task, students began using questioning skills to develop inquiry questions related to the topic. We generated an impressive list of questions! This week, we will continue our unit of inquiry on conflict. Novels should be arriving this week. As soon as they do, we will dive into our first novel study. We will also begin to develop our research skills so we can start finding out more about the historical conflicts that will guide our decisions on how to advise the president. We also visited the media center for a book tasting hosted by Mrs. Crosby and Mrs. Hogan. Students were able to sample various excerpts of text. Based on their selections, Mrs. Crosby provided the students with book recommendations. Book choice is critical to student engagement with reading. This year, we would like to see students read entire books, rather than starting many texts, but abandoning them. Hopefully, the book tasting was a great way to set students up for success in book selection this year. In math, we began our study of place value. Students worked on gaining a deeper understanding of the place value system and why we are a system in base ten. We also began to explore the relationship between our base ten pattern and exponents. (powers of ten) We will continue to look at powers of ten and place value this week. We will also introduce order of operations. REMINDERS:
The first three days of school are in the books! I am so proud of my students for all of the hard work that went into making the first three days a success. This week, we did several getting to know you activities. Some of the most popular included the all about me tangram in which students were tasked with developing their own tangram that would form both a rectangle and a figure that represents them. It was interesting to see the levels of creativity and the willingness each student showed in challenging himself or herself with this task. We also collaborated with one another to complete the cup challenge. Students had to build a structure using six cups, one rubber band, and four pieces of yarn. We also reviewed the IB learner profile traits and reflected on our strengths and weaknesses. I am very impressed with the depth and self-awareness that my students had even with our first reflection. Students have been creating sketchnotes in their reflection journals to document their ideas about how each profile trait is best represented. I am excited to see the growth these students will show on their journey to becoming internationally minded students. Next week, we will begin our instruction. I am very excited to officially begin our first transdisciplinary unit, Sharing the Planet - All's Fair in Love and War. In this unit, we will study how human interaction may lead to conflict and/or peace. This unit is social studies heavy, as we will cover all of the wars in our nation's history beginning with the Spanish-American War and ending with 9/11. For our novel study, we will be reading Refugee by Alan Gratz. If you would like to read the novel along with us, I highly encourage you to do so. We would love to have you continue the dialogue at home with your child. In math, we will begin our study of place value (NBT.1). We will look at the pattern that exists in numbers as you move left and right within a number system in base ten. Finally, this week, in our morning meeting, we will continue to get to know one another. Additionally, we will be talking about choosing a successful seat given our classroom's flexible seating arrangement. REMINDERS:
It's a going to be a week to teach and learn in room 315!
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January 2019
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