Happy March Families!
March has certainly come in like a lion! With any luck, it will leave like a lamb! We are off to a fresh start with our final trimester. There is still much learning to be done in these final months of school!
We are looking forward to meeting with you next week for parent/teacher conferences to discuss your child’s progress!
Please be sure to refer to the important upcoming dates at the end of this blog. It includes the date of an upcoming field trip (details are forthcoming soon!) and the 5th grade music performance.
Here’s what we’ve been working in this week:
Literacy:
In support of our new theme, Exploring New Worlds, we are finishing up our first nonfiction shared reading text, Explorers: Triumphs and Troubles. We’ve had some lively discussions about various explorers in our history, such as Marco Polo. We also gained insight about the motivations behind various explorations, as well as the positive and negative effects they had on society.
Writing:
Based on the reading we’ve been doing about explorers, students are currently planning and writing an opinion paper about what they feel primarily influenced explorers. Was it fame, wealth, the desire to find new routes—or was it to find new land to conquer? Be sure to ask your student about the topic of his/her opinion paper!
Math
In math, our first learning target for the new grading period has involved locating points on a coordinate grid. We’ve done some engaging activities with cubes and tiles in order to predict patterns. plot ordered pairs on a plane, and even write equations to solve such patterns. The strategy discussions that have been taking place around such problems have been impressive! There has definitely been some higher-level thinking going on!
Social Studies
We have started our unit on supply & demand and trade. As we progress through the unit we will learn about the history of the Columbian Exchange and the positive and negative effects which resulted from such trade.
Science
In science we’ve been learning about the states of matter. The online reading through our TCI science program has included some engaging interactive graphics for the I-Pads. With these technology enhancements, students have been able to see what happens to molecules as they change states between solids, liquids and gasses!
Important Dates and Friendly Reminders:
Friday, March 2—Student Progress reports available after 3 pm
Monday, March 6—Casimir Pulaski Day/ No School
Thursday, March 8—Early Release @2:00, Parent/Teacher Conferences
Friday, March 9—No School, Parent/Teacher Conferences
Tuesday, March 13—PTO Special Lunch (Culver’s)
Wednesday, March 14—5th Grade Field Trip
Thursday, March 15—5th Grade Music Performance 6:30 pm
Tuesday, March 20—No School, Teacher Institute Day/Election Day
Please email me if you have any questions. Have a wonderful rest of your weekend!
Enzie Pangilinan
