Friday, April 24th, 2026

Happy Friday Families,

Is spring finally here to stay? Let's hope so! We have had a busy few weeks wrapping up our units of study across all subjects and we have dug into our final learning cycle of the year! Keep reading to learn more about what's been happening in our classroom!

Literacy

This week, we began reading the story Jess and Layla’s Astronomical Adventure. We read closely to understand the characters’ points of view and how their personalities and feelings impacted the choices they made. After reading, we will discover a common theme between the book and another short story called Mayday on the Moon. Then, we will discuss the various strategies the author used to develop a theme to compare and contrast their approaches. 

Writing

Last week, we wrapped up our Real Life Superhero speeches. Students really enjoyed researching, working on their notecards, and presenting about their real-life superhero to the class. We learned so much about individuals, such as Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Muhammad Ali, who made a positive impact on society. The kids did a wonderful job! For the rest of the year, we will continue to work on refining our narrative writing skills.

Math

We are in our last unit of math this year! This unit teaches us multiple strategies for dividing whole numbers like partial quotients and area models. Students have been working hard to improve their skills to divide multi-digit numbers using the strategy they feel most comfortable with. Within the unit, we will also be learning more about the powers of ten and multiplying and dividing decimals. 

Social Studies

We started our final unit of study in Social Studies - The American Revolution. Our students are being challenged to examine the people, events, causes, and effects of the American Revolution. They will create connections between the ideals of the American Revolution and our own modern challenges to promote life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all. Ask your child to explain what sparked the American Revolution. In the coming weeks, our students will explore the ideals of democracy that fueled the American Revolution and turned the power structure of the world upside down.

Upcoming Events

• Wednesday, April 29th - MAP Testing (Reading)

• Thursday, April 30th  - MAP Testing (Math)

• Friday, May 1st - Field Trip (Twin Groves Musical)

• Thursday, May 7th - Field Trip to the Dunn Museum (Chally, Knutson, & Deger)

• Friday, May 8th - Field Trip to the Dunn Museum (Mosior & Pangilinan)

Friendly Reminders

• Please remind your student to charge his/her iPad and Logitech Crayon every night

• Please remember to send your student with a healthy snack

• Please continue to have your student practice multiplication facts up to 12

• Band and orchestra students should remember to be prepared with their instruments and music books on the days of lessons

Monday, April 13th, 2026

Happy Monday Families!

Welcome back! With Spring Break past us, it could only mean one thing...the countdown to summer has officially begun! We are looking forward to all the fun and learning that's ahead of us within the last couple months of school! 

Literacy

This past week, we read and learned about the Navajo code talkers. During World War II, the code talkers played a crucial role in helping the U.S. Marines send coded messages using the complex and unwritten Navajo language. Using texts from RAZ Kids,  Newsela, and Epic, we practiced our skill of compiling information from multiple sources together in order to demonstrate a deep understanding about a specific topic. Throughout the readings, we are also working on explaining relationships and interactions, such as cause/effect and problem/solution, while using text evidence as support.

Writing

Students have begun working on a research project and oral presentation. Piggybacking off the previous reading we did on real life superheroes such as Richard Martin and Raoul Wallenberg, each student chose someone they felt embodies the qualities of a real life superhero. They will conduct research about this outstanding individual and give an oral presentation to the class explaining why they are a real-life superhero. This project incorporates many reading and writing targets for students.

Math

We are continuing to practice skills in the area of geometry in Unit 6. We explored the hierarchy of polygons, with an emphasis on triangles and quadrilaterals. Using academic language related to angles and sides, students have been classifying and describing shapes based on their attributes. This week, we have been reviewing and extending our thinking on the concept of volume, which was covered in Unit 1. 

Science & Social Studies

This week we finished a series of lessons within our matter unit about how to know when new substances are created. We ended with an investigation where students mixed substances such as water, vinegar, iodine, baking soda, salt, and alka-seltzer together in different combinations and observed whether new substances were formed! We looked for changes in color, temperature, and fizzing/bubbling to indicate when a chemical reaction had taken place. 

We will begin our final unit in social studies next week- the American Revolution!

Upcoming Events

• Tuesday, April 14th- Early Release

• Thursday, April 23rd- PTO Pizza Bingo

• Friday, April 24th- Half Day Dismissal

• Wednesday, April 29th & Thursday, April 30th- MAP Testing

• Friday, May 1st- Field Trip- Twin Groves Musical

Friendly Reminders

• *Please remind your student to charge his/her iPad and Logitech Crayon every night.

• *Orchestra & Band Parents: Please make sure your students have their instrument on assigned days.

• *Please remember to send your student with a healthy snack - nothing feeds the brain like a healthy snack!  

• *Please continue to have your student practice their multiplication facts up to 12

Have a wonderful week!

Friday, March 13th, 2026

Happy Friday Families!

It's hard to believe that we've officially entered our final trimester and Spring Break is only a week away! Our students have had the opportunity to reflect upon their 5th grade year so far and are looking for finish our school year off strong! Please read our classroom update below!

Literacy

Our students are currently reading several non-fiction texts in order to find relationships between the topic, events, or people in a text. With this analysis, students are able to draw conclusions about the author's craft based on evidence from the text. This week, our students read about women of discovery, who accomplished great feats and helped pave the way for many young girls and women today! These magnificent women include Bessie Coleman, Katherine Johnson, Mae Jemison, and Wilma Rudolph! We are looking forward to reading about more real life superheroes next week!

Writing

Our students are wrapping up their analytical persuasive essays where they have been tasked with convincing their reader why their choice animal would make the best class pet! Students have utilized several resources in their research in order to craft well balanced and convincing essays with an organized introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Ask your child why their choice pet would be the best fit for a classroom!

Math

 Our students recently started Unit 6, which incorporates skills in the area of geometry. Last week, we learned about locating and labeling ordered pairs on a coordinate plane and investigated patterns within a number series. Within the coming weeks, our students will start to explore the hierarchy of polygons, which include triangles and quadrilaterals. We will work classifying shapes based on attributes using academic language related to angles and length of sides.

Science

This week we completed our study about the Conservation of Matter.  The students had a lot of fun doing various activities to learn about physical and chemical changes.  They used digital scales to weigh the mass of Skittles and created bar graphs comparing the mass of different colored candies. We also started our last science unit about mixtures and solutions.  We finished the week with an assessment about the Law of Conservation of Mass.

Upcoming Events

• March 17--No school

• March 19 -- PM conferences

• March 20 -- AM conferences (No student attendance)

• March 31- April 2 -- IAR testing

• April 3 -- No school

Friendly Reminders

*Please remind your student to charge his/her iPad and Logitech Crayon every night.

*Orchestra & Band Parents: Please make sure your students have their instrument on assigned days.

*Please remember to send your student with a healthy snack - nothing feeds the brain like a healthy snack!  

*Please continue to have your student practice their multiplication facts up to 12.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Enzie Pangilinan

Friday, February 26th, 2026

Happy Friday Families!

Believe it or not, Trimester 2 has come to an end and we are ready to kick off our third and final trimester! Over the last several weeks, our students completed literacy/writing assessments to demonstrate their progress on Trimester 2 learning targets.  Students showed quite the perseverance & stamina!

Check below to see what we've covered over the last couple of weeks, as well as some of the learning we are looking forward to starting!

Literacy

As the second grading period came to a close, we continued to practice analyzing multiple perspectives using nonfiction texts.  With various reading passages, we compared and contrasted different author's points of view regarding topics such as school uniforms, video games, and rescuing penguin populations.  While we read these texts, we continued to practice identifying the author’s main point, and the reasons and evidence that the author uses to support it. 

This week, we started to work on finding relationships between concepts and ideas in nonfiction.

Math

It’s hard to believe, but we completed our Unit 5 assessment this week.  Students worked hard to understand how to multiply and divide fractions using labeled models. 

Next week, we start Unit 6…Geometry!  Our students will learn about locating and labeling ordered pairs on a coordinate plane and investigate patterns within a number series.  Over the next few weeks, we will explore the hierarchy of polygons, which include triangles and quadrilaterals.  Our students will work on classifying shapes based on attributes using academic language related to angles and length of sides.

Science

We started our final science unit exploring the concept of conservation of matter.  During our lab this week, students tested liquids to see which ones would clean the tarnish off a penny.  When their pennies changed from dark and dirty to bright and shiny, they had the chance to think about where the tarnish went.  We are looking forward to many more hands-on investigations later in the unit.

Important Dates

Wednesday, March 4th - Thursday, March 5th: 5th Grade Illinois Science Assessment

Thursday, March 19th: Early Release/Conferences 5-8:30

Friday, March 20st- No School: Conferences 10-1:30

Friendly Reminders

**Please remember to send your child with a healthy snack.  Nothing feeds the brain better than something healthy!

**Please continue to have your child practice his or her multiplication facts up to 12.

**Band and orchestra students should remember to be prepared with their instruments and music books on the days that lessons take place.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Enzie Pangilinan

Sunday, December 7th, 2025

Happy Friday Families!

Can you believe that December has already arrived? I hope you were able to spend some quality time with loved ones last week during our short break! This week we have "hit the ground running" and have been working very hard! Please read below to find out what we are working on in each academic subject!

Literacy

We are currently reading a shared text titled Washed Up, a story about three families who encounter various challenges while trying to win a survival reality show.  Our students are working hard to best summarize each chapter, with a focus on how the characters respond to different challenges.  In the coming weeks, we will continue to explore various fiction texts to help our students practice summarizing, as well as working on describing how a narrator's point of view influences how events are described.

Writing

We've shifted our focus to narrative writing.  Over the next few weeks, our students will plan and compose a narrative paper based on a science fiction based prompt. This will tie in nicely with our small group novel, George's Secret Key to the Universe!

 

Math

We wrapped up our math unit on decimals and place value before Thanksgiving. Our new unit encompasses multi-digit multiplication. Students learn and practice how to use the standard algorithm to multiply. In Number Corner, we will measure our height and feet length within inches. Throughout the month of December, we will regularly plot the data onto a line plot. We will also plot the data onto a scatter plot to analyze the correlation between height and foot length. Over the last few days, we have worked on converting customary and metric measurements. We've learned a cool tic-tac-toe strategy to help us convert accurately! Be sure to ask your student how it works!

 

Science

We're continuing to dig deeper into our unit about the Earth's systems. We've learned about Earth’s four systems (biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere). The focus has been on how the four systems constantly interact.

 

Upcoming Events

Tuesday, December 9th - Early Release

Friday, December 19 - Winter Break Begins

 

Friendly Reminders

• As winter weather approaches, please make sure your student is properly dressed for recess.

• Please remind your student to charge his/her iPad and Logitech Crayon every night.

• Orchestra & Band Parents: Please make sure your students have their instrument on assigned days.

• Please remember to send your student with a healthy snack - nothing feeds the brain like a healthy snack!  

• Please continue to have your student practice their multiplication facts up to 12.

Thank you for your continued partnership and have a great week!

Enzie Pangilinan

Friday, October 24th, 2025

Happy Friday Families!

It's so hard to believe that October is almost in the rear view mirror and that November is just around the corner! Now that we're deep into the first grading period, I am excited to see how much more our students will grow throughout the year. There is so much to teach and so much to learn, but so little time!

Literacy

Last week, we started reading a nonfiction text titled Explorers: Triumphs and Troubles. This text highlights the details and impact of various explorers' expeditions throughout history. As we read the text, we worked on identifying the author's main point(s) while determining reasons and evidence as support. To practice determining the author's main point/s, we ask ourselves, "What does the author MOST want us to know or believe about what was written?" We continued our work on this learning target this week, using various texts, including electric vehicles and rising sea levels.

Writing

Our students are finishing an analytical writing piece, using the nonfiction text from literacy, Explorers: Triumphs and Troubles. Students had very strong opinions about which explorer was the worst! Their focus was to write an engaging paragraph that included their big idea and evidence. We also discussed what makes a strong topic sentence and conclusion sentence. Students are also practicing writing to different audiences. Be sure to ask your child to share it with you! They made quite compelling arguments!

Math

This week, we wrapped up our second unit in math, which focused on adding and subtracting fractions. Next week, we will start Unit 3, which focuses on adding and subtracting decimals.  Over the course of the next few weeks, our students will turn their focus on rounding numbers, including decimals up to the thousandths place.

In a separate email, I'm sending the Unit 3 Family Letter, which discusses the concepts covered in the unit.

Social Studies

We are really enjoying our first Social Studies unit! Our discussions have focused on the perceptions of Indigenous American Cultures and learning how to formulate questions to help guide our students' learning on how to better honor the cultural heritage of this land. Soon, we will be looking at what really happened at the First Thanksgiving Dinner!

Upcoming Events

Wednesday, October 29th- Music Show- 6:30 (6:00 student arrival)

Friday, October 31st- Halloween Parties

Tuesday, November 4th- Early Release

Wednesday, November 12th- Special Lunch

Friday, November 14th- End of Trimester 1

Friendly Reminders

**Please remind your student to charge his/her iPad and Logitech Crayon every night.

**If your child participates in orchestra or band, please remind him/her to bring their instrument on their lesson day.

**Please remember to send your student with a healthy snack - nothing feeds the brain like a healthy snack!

**Please continue to have your student practice their multiplication facts up to 12.