The Week of January 30, 2012

Dear Parents,
Thanks to all of you who donated snacks and Valentine goodies to our classroom. I appreciate your generosity!
I will be sending home a Valentine list with your student by the end of the week.
This is their last classroom Valentine Party....It probably seems like just yesterday that you were doing Valentines for Kindergarten!
I hope that your child has as much fun as I used to picking out Valentines.
VALENTINES that have candy are allowed but the candy will be taken home, not eaten at school.
Please make sure they give one to everyone!

THIS WEEK IN MISS TREFONAS'S CLASS:

SPELLING: Word of the Week is worth a bonus point for spelling it correctly and knowing the definition.

READING: We are doing various activities using cause and effect. We will be reading various historical fiction selections while using this reading strategy. We will also continue to refine our Extended Response techniques!

SCOOPer READING: Please check with your child regarding how many books they have read toward their goal. The due date is the end of February.

SOCIAL STUDIES: Chapter 8 The American Revolution
Ask your child about: NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION!!!
We will be simulating the experience of being unfairly taxed. We will be using our classroom tickets!!!
We will also be starting a point of view activity using the events leading up to the American Revolution from both the perspective of a LOYALIST and PATRIOT!

SCIENCE: Chapter 14 Ask your child about the "Can You Walk Through Paper?" challenge!
We will be doing an activity with the states of matter and learning about mixtures and solutions.

MATH:
Monday = Symmetry project due, Homework Sheet, and Chapter 18 review
Tuesday= Chapter 18 Test
Wednesday = Tangram activity
Thursday = begin Chapter 4 Algebra
Friday = Order of Operations

The Week of January 23, 2012

Dear Parents,

Some reminders:

Tuesday, January 24, 2012
*District Spelling Bee - 1:00 p.m. PV Gym - Parents are welcome to attend!
Congratulations to Robert, from our class, who will be competing!

*Project Challenge - 2:30 to 3:45 p.m.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012
*Early Dismissal - 11:00 a.m.

Friday, January 27, 2012
*Bingo Night - 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. Multipurpose room

HERE'S WHAT WE WILL BE UP TO IN THE CLASSROOM:

Spelling = Lesson 18 and word of the week

SCOOPer Reading = We are halfway through the second trimester....this means your child should be halfway through their reading goal!

READING = We are reading And Then What Happened Paul Revere and learning how determining fact and opinion express an author's viewpoint.
This week we will also be taking an assessment that covers these reading skills and comprehension strategies: setting a purpose for reading, author's purpose, main ideas and supporting details, prediction, inference, generalization, and summarizing.
We will also begin some extended responses to prepare for ISAT testing.

SCIENCE = Physical Changes

SOCIAL STUDIES = HOT SEAT review on Monday. In order for your child to participate in the review they most have written HOT SEAT questions.
Chapter 7 Test = Tuesday!
Chapter 8 "American Revolution"

T.G.F.D. = Your child should be able to tell you that this acronym stands for Too Good For Drugs. Deputy Seward sends home a weekly activity for your child to share with parents.

MATH = CHAPTER 18 - Geometry
**Geometry packet should be used at home for studying!!!
Monday - Review lessons 1-4
Tuesday - Quiz over lessons 1-4 and Homework Sheet
Wednesday -Lesson 5 Circles
Thursday - Lesson 6 Congruent and Similar Figures and Symmetry
Friday - Symmetry project

The Week of January 16, 2012

Dear Parents,

The end of this week is our halfway point of the second trimester. It is a good time to review your child's grades on Parent Connect.

Congratulations to our classroom spelling bee winners:
1st place = Robert!!
2nd place = Kyle G.!!
3rd place = Lucy!!

Good luck to Robert and Kyle G. in the 5th grade spelling bee this Wednesday morning!

HERE'S WHAT WE ARE UP TO THIS WEEK:

Too Good For Drugs: Session 3
Your child should be sharing a home activity each week with you.

SPELLING: Lesson 17 and word of the week

ENGLISH: We continue to share and critique narratives....
We are finishing our Noun Unit. The test is this Friday.

READING: Author's viewpoint is the skill we will be focusing on while using a variety of materials. We will be reading And Then What Happened Paul Revere? The students will have a vocabulary quiz on Monday with words from this selection.

SCOOPer Reading: Your child should be halfway through their reading goal!
We will be having a celebration at the end of the trimester for everyone who meets their goal!

SCIENCE: Chapter 14 We will be be making atom molecules out of mini marshmallows.
We will be learning about the phases of matter....solids, liquids, and gasses!

SOCIAL STUDIES: Chapter 7 "Fight for a Continent"
We are finishing lesson 3 this week, filling out our "How to Study" sheet (worth 2 bonus points), and reviewing the chapter.
The test will be Tuesday, January 24!

MATH:
Tuesday = We will be practicing extended response problem solving with T charts.
Wednesday = Chapter 18 Geometry - points, lines, and segments
Thursday = Angles
Friday = Polygons

The Week of January 9, 2012

Dear Parents,
Happy 2012!!

MAPS testing will be this week for our class. Reading tests will be given on Monday and math tests on Tuesday. Please make sure your child is well rested and eats a nutritious breakfast!

The Six Flags READ TO SUCCEED program which rewards your child with a free pass to the amusement park needs to be completed and turned in on or before Wednesday, February 1st.
Participation is optional.

This past week was our first session of T.G.F.D. which stands for Too Good For Drugs.
This is a substance abuse prevention curriculum. There will be a total of 10 lessons that focus on the dangerous substances that are used widely by young people. A letter will be brought home explaining this program in more detail on Friday, January 6th. Deputy Seward will be facilitating this program for the 5th grade.

We started working on our Memory Books this week. The students will have a personal and creative keepsake at the end of the year. I appreciate all the parents who have contributed by picking up and paying for pictures at Walgreens, donating scrapbook supplies, and coming in to help.
This is an ongoing project and more helpers will be needed......

THIS WEEK IN OUR CLASSROOM:

SPELLING: Lesson 16 and word of the week.

SCOOPer Reading: A lot of reading took place during our winter break. Most students have read and completed more than one book activity. I have given each child an update on how many books they have read toward their goal.

READING: Main Ideas and Supporting Details are what we will continue to work on as we read a selection in our reading anthologies. The students will be completing a vocabulary activity and have a vocabulary quiz on Friday.

ENGLISH: We have started sharing our Narrative writing! The students will receive a participation grade and comments on their piece of writing. I will give positive feedback and suggestions to use in future writing activities.

We will continue to do writing activities.....

Nouns are next in our English book. A pretest will assess prior knowledge and the students will be given appropriate assignments during this unit.

SOCIAL STUDIES: Chapter 7 We are learning about how Spain, France, and England are all fighting for land and power of what is now the United States. At the end of the week we will have finished Lessons 1 - 3. Your child should bring home their textbook and review with their notes in their binder.

SCIENCE: We will begin our next unit on Matter and Energy.

MATH:
Monday - No math due to MAPS testing
Tuesday - Chapter 24 Lesson 8 Volume
Wednesday - HOMEWORK sheet and review Chapter 24
Thursday - No math due to MAPS testing
Friday - Chapter 24 test