Week of August 31 - September 4

MAPS Testing the next 2 weeks!
Please make sure you children have a great breakfast and a good night's sleep the next two weeks. We will be doing MAPS testing on Tuesday Sept 1 and Tuesday Sept 8 in the morning. Because of the change in our schedules we will be shifting our math, reading, and science/social studies rotations to the afternoon. Each class will still meet, but only for 40 minutes on the days we are MAPS testing. We will test reading skills this week and math skills next week.

In math this week . . .
This week we are review multiplication and division facts and the students are testing each other to see which facts they need to work on. This information will help us determine which students need to be working on their facts during MARS time, as well as at home. This week we will also review multiplication with multiple digits. Look for some practice of this to come home in the next couple of weeks. Don't hesitate to let me know if you child is really struggling with this at home.

In writing this week . . .
If I did not mention this the other night at Parent Information Night - Spelling Tests will be on Wednesdays. Spend some time practicing those words each night.
The kids are really enjoying working on their realistic fiction pieces. We will be finishing those up this week.

Week of August 24-28

Welcome to the second full week of school!

* Don't forget Back to School Parent Information Night on Wednesday, August 26. Fifth grade teachers will be presenting from 6-6:30 in our pod. Parents will have time afterwards to sign up for their conference time. This time will be used for both conferences.

In Math this week . . .
Students will finish up Unit 1. On Monday we will be working on problem solving word problems. Students will take their Unit 1 test on Tuesday. Make sure your child is studying their vocabulary words for this Unit.
The rest of the week we will begin Unit 2 which focuses on reading and writing larger numbers.

In writing this week . . .
* Students will have a spelling test on Wednesday morning. Spend some time studying words each night.
* We will begin a new writing piece this week. Students will have a choice of topic for a realistic fiction piece. Final copies will need to be turned in on Friday.

This week we will also be . . .
Meeting with our book buddies for the first time. Mrs. Minor's class will be paired up with Ms. Ross's 2nd grade classroom. On Wednesday we will watch the second graders perform their reader's theater.

Week of August 17-21

We are back in the swing of things at Langston Hughes! I will be using my blog again this year, as will the other 5th grade teachers. We will give out those addresses at Back to School Night, August 26.

This Week in Math ...

Monday we will be finishing up our TIMS lab from last week. We will also be reviewing averages of mean, median, and mode.

Tuesday - Friday we will read a story from the Adventure Book about sampling populations and begin a TIMS lab that will run through Friday.

DPP (Daily Practice Problems)- Have been handed out in packet form for the unit. Students are expected to work on these packets in their own time (free time, study hall, or as homework). The packets are due Friday, August 21.

Our first unit will conclude next week. The test will be on Tuesday. Students should be studying their vocabulary words for the unit. These words were glued into their math notebooks on the first day of class.

This week in Writing ....

Students have started a writing project called "The Life and Times of ..." Students were paired with a partner to interview them about their life and then write about the student. Students will finish up interviews on Monday and begin rough drafts and editing through out the week. Final copies are due on Friday.

* Book Orders were sent home Friday. They are due Friday, August 21, if you chose to order. Ordering is optional! Make out one check to Scholastic.

Looking foward to seeing you all at Back to School Night!