Friday, March 15th, 2019

Happy Friday Families!

March has definitely roared in like a lion! Let’s hope that pleasant weather is soon on the horizon! We have only one week until spring break and we planning to work hard right up until next Friday! 

As we progress through the coming months of school, we will have many special events and dates that will be important to mark on calendars. Please pay special attention to the dates listed at the bottom of the blog so that you can stay informed!

Please also note that student council is working with Bernie’s Book Bank in order to collect gently used books for donation. Bernie’s Book Bank is a wonderful organization that does a great job of getting books into the hands of children who really need them! If you have any books to donate, please send them with your student to school! We have collection bins located throughout the school for this purpose.

Here is what we’ve been working on in each of our content areas:

Literacy

This week in shared reading we are continuing our theme of “Exploring New Worlds” as we begin reading a book titled Pedro’s Journal, a story that depicts the exploration of Christopher Columbus. Interestingly, it is told through the perspective of a young boy who traveled with him as a crew member. Much of our learning as we read will focus on author’s perspective, as well as determining theme. 

Writing

We are using the above-mentioned story, Pedro’s Journal, as a springboard for our next opinion essay. Here, students will be utilizing multiple sources in order to research about Christopher Columbus and his explorations. In doing so they will decide whether they feel that Columbus should be considered more of a hero or a villain. Students will utilize the strategies we’ve been learning throughout the year in order to compose a well-written paper that contains evidence and reasons to support their opinions.

Math

We have officially finished our focus on multiplication and division of fractions. We have now started Unit 6, which will emphasize skills in the area of geometry. Students will practice classifying figures in a hierarchy based on properties. They will also locate points on a coordinate plane based on ordered pairs. In addition, students will identify patterns between corresponding terms and show their ability to generate numerical patterns when given specific rules.  

Social Studies

We will soon begin out unit on Economics. We will study how goods and services work in a market economy and we will eventually study how people of the past were positively and negatively impacted by cultural exchanges.

Science

We have started our new science unit on Changes in Matter. We will be conducting some engaging investigations where students will identify various powders by their attributes and reactions to substances.

Upcoming Events

Tuesday, March 19—6th Grade Literacy Placement Test

Wednesday, March 20—Illinois Science Assessment (taken in a.m.)

Friday, March 22—Last Day before Spring Break

Wednesday, April 3—First Day back after Spring Break 

Friendly Reminders

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

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

Have a wonderful weekend!

Sunday, February 24th, 2019

Happy Friday Families,

This week Trimester 2 has come to and end and we are ready to kick off our third and final Trimester next week! Here is what we’ve been working on in each of our content areas:

Literacy

*This week we started a new unit in reading. We have started reading a nonfiction text, “Explorers: Triumphs and Troubles”. In this text we have been learning about different explorers throughout history and the positive and negative impacts of their explorations. While reading this text we are working on looking at how authors use reasons and evidence to support their points. We are also continuing to work on identifying multiple main ideas within a text and the supporting details.

Writing

*In writing we have been working on analyzing the author’s writing style through our Explorer’s books. By understanding the author’s style we can better understand their point of view and purpose for writing.

Math

*Within Unit 5, we are continuing to work on multiplying fractions. We’ve continued to practice multiplying fractions by fractions. The students have continued to work on creating diagrams using the area model. We have also been practicing our skills with fraction multiplication story problems.

Social Studies

*As we move into the third trimester we are beginning our unit on economics. We are looking forward to our trade fair that will occur later in the trimester in relation to this unit. Stay tuned for more information about this exciting event!

Science

*This week we have wrapped up our unit about the Earth, the Moon, and the Stars. Our next unit will be on Matter. Students will start by identifying and comparing and contrasting the various states of matter.

Upcoming Events

Tuesday, February 26 -- PTO Special Lunch

Friday, March 1 -- Teacher Institute Day // No School

Monday, March 4 -- No School

Thursday, March 7 -- Early Release - Collaborative Conferences

Friday, March 8 -- No School - Collaborative Conferences

Friendly Reminders

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

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

**Don’t forget to sign up for your collaborative conference. Students are working hard to prepare for these conferences and are excited to tell you about their learning and progress in 5th grade. Use this link for our class:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0e44a4ab2fa6f58-march19

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.  Thank you and enjoy your weekend!

Friday, February 8th, 2019

Happy Friday Families,

With the chilly temperatures and the rain and ice, it seems as if Spring can't come soon enough. Trimester 2 is quickly wrapping up, and Trimester 3 is quickly on its way.  

Here is what we’ve been working on in each of our content areas:

Literacy

*We are continuing to read through Angel Island, which discusses the journey and challenges of Chinese immigrants as they entered the United States. To dig deeper into the topic of Angel Island, students also began reading about Li Keng Wong's personal story as a Chinese immigrant. By exposing students to first and second hand resources, we are continuing to explore more about perspective and point of view. As students are reading about Angel Island, many of them made connections to Ellis Island, which they learned about in 4th grade. 

Writing

*Recently, students read Real-Life Superheroes, which they learned about honorable names such as Rosa Parks, Richard Martin, Raoul Wallenberg, and Thomas Barnardo. From these four "superheroes", students chose a person to conduct research and create a Keynote presentation to highlight his/her biography and accomplishments. Be sure to ask your student about his/her chosen superhero! 

Math

*Within Unit 5, we are continuing to work on multiplying fractions. This week, we've practiced multiplying fractions by fractions. The students are working on creating diagrams using the area model and geoboards to represent dimensions and the area of rectangles. As we head into the next week, students will be practicing their skills with fraction multiplication story problems. 

Social Studies

*We are beginning to learn about patriotism. Previously, we've learn about liberty and the Pledge of Allegiance. Connecting those two topics, students will explore the meaning and importance of patriotism. They will also discuss how people in the United States can show patriotism to their nation. 

Science

*We have started our unit about the Earth, the Moon, and the Stars. This week, we learned about the sun and other stars. Students read about how the brightness of star depends on their proximity to the Earth. We even learned that one star (Rigel) is 773 light years away from the Earth. This means that the light left that star 773 years ago! 

Upcoming Events

Tuesday, February 12  -- 5th Grade Band Concert (Twin Groves) @ 6:30 pm
Thursday, February 14 -- Valentine's Day Parties @ 1:45 pm
Monday, February 18 -- President's Day // No School
Tuesday, February 19 -- PTO Book Fair @ 6:00-8:00 pm
Tuesday, February 19 -- Ivy Hall Celebrates Diversity @ 6:30-8:00 pm
Friday, February 22 -- Half Day Dismissal @ 11:45 pm // End of Trimester 2
Tuesday, February 26 -- PTO Special Lunch
Friday, March 1 -- Teacher Institute Day // No School

Friendly Reminders
**Please remember to send your child with a healthy snack. Nothing feeds the brain like a healthy snack!

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

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.  Thank you and enjoy your weekend!

Enzie Pangilinan

Friday, January 11th, 2019

Happy New Year Families!

We've hit the ground running into the new year! We enjoyed sharing our winter break adventures with each other, and now we are ready to resume the school year with renewed energy and enthusiasm!

Please read below to find out the specifics of what we've been working on!

Reading:

During shared reading we have been delving into a  nonfiction book entitled Real Life Superheroes.  Be sure to ask your student about some of the amazing individuals which are highlighted in this book! We are using this text as a springboard to work on literacy targets in the areas of finding main idea, summarizing and comparing and contrasting texts of similar topics. 

Writing: Along with reading about Real-life superheroes, we will also be writing about them! Students are selecting an individual in history who they feel has made an outstanding contribution to society--someone who they feel portrays the characteristics of a real-life superhero. After researching about this individual's life, students will be writing an essay which highlights the important biographical, as well as the reasons this person should be considered a hero. Upon completion, students will share their essays with each other so that we can all hear about the amazing accomplishments of these remarkable people!

Math:  This week we've been continuing the work we started prior to break with multi-digit multiplication. Upon completion of our unit, students should feel comfortable in utilizing the traditional method, as well as other algorithms such as partial products. Ideally, students will show proficiency in being able to solve two and three digit multiplication problems with accuracy. Those students who have already demonstrated mastery of such skills have been working on extending their skills with related challenges.

Social Studies:  Students have been "digging deeper" into the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance. We've done a variety of activities to increase each student's understanding of what they are saying during our daily recitation of the Pledge. In coming weeks we will also be learning about patriotism and further explore the liberties we value in our country. During this learning, we will compare our liberties with certain countries that are not as fortunate to possess such rights and freedoms.

Science:   In science we are starting our unit on the Earth, Moon and Stars. Within this unit we will explore such concepts as gravity, how distance affects the brightness of stars, and how day and night occur. 

** Please keep in mind that on MOST days students will be going outside for recess. Please make sure that your child brings appropriate outdoor clothing, including gloves, to school each day.

**Band and orchestra students should remember to be prepared with their instruments and music books on the days that lessons take place. Students are not able to call home once the school day begins.

Important upcoming dates to remember:

Wednesday, Jan. 16th--4/5th grade Orchestra concert at Twin Groves @ 7:00 p.m.
Monday, Jan. 21st--No school Martin Luther King Day
Tuesday, Jan. 29 PTO Special Lunch/Early release @ 2:00 p.m.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Enzie Pangilinan

Sunday, December 16th, 2018

Happy Bears Victory Sunday!

Winter break is quickly approaching and students have been hard at work. As the calendar year comes to a close, I can't help but look back on all the wonderful things students have done so far this year! With winter MAP testing finished up, students have been doing some reflection on the work that they have done so far this year and the progress they have made towards meeting their goals. This reflection and goal setting is important for student growth and will continue as we move forward into the New Year. 

I hope that everyone has a wonderful winter break and that you are able to take time to rest and be surrounded by peace, love and joy!

Here are the targets we are focusing on as we continue to work through the second grading period:

Literacy
*Through our ReadyGen lessons students read a historical fiction piece titled "Operation Clean Sweep". This story was told from the point of view of a young boy living in Umatilla, Oregon in 1916. The story tells how the women in the town had recently earned the right to vote and had decided to run in the election for local political offices and surprised everyone when they won! After reading and analyzing this story, students spent time comparing and contrasting this story with our previous story "Road to Freedom" and looking at how the two stories approach similar themes of "people fighting for equality". We are now reading and analyzing a biography with a similar theme about Cesar Chavez, and we will proceed to compare that story to the previous two. Through all lessons we have been working on summarizing, comparing and contrasting, and point of view.

Writing
*We have finished our opinion papers based on our reading of The Road to Freedom, and are currently writing opinion papers on the effects of video games on kids. Students conducted research on the pros and cons of video games and are now writing opinion pieces using the evidence they discovered.

Math
*We have started our next unit on multiplying multi-digit whole numbers. In this unit students will learn a variety of strategies for multiplying multi-digit whole numbers, but ultimately will be responsible for knowing how to solve problems using the standard algorithm. As we work through this unit, students are also being exposed to and practicing multiplication involving decimals and division strategies.

Social Studies
*We are starting to dive into our new unit on government/civics in the upcoming weeks, and our students will begin to start digging deeper into the concepts of patriotism.

Science
*We are reaching the end of our unit on Earth Systems. The unit discussed the four main systems of Earth: the biosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and geosphere. In addition to learning about their attributes and characteristics, we also identified interactions that occur between the systems. We also looked at how humans impact the Earth's system, particularly the affects of farming and industry. Students conducted an investigation to model the effects of the mining industry on the geosphere by "mining" chocolate chips from chocolate chip (safe snack list approved-"Enjoy Life" brand) cookies!

Upcoming Events

December 21 (Friday): Winter Parties @ 1:45 PM 

December 22 - January 6: WINTER BREAK

January 8 - Feb 15: 5th Grade Parents don't forget to provide the office with your proof of residency. See Mr. Hanrahan's blog for more details: https://www.kcsd96.org/ih-principal/blog/1617015/december-7-2018 

February 19 - Ivy Hall Celebrates Diversity 

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.

**If students want to play in the snow outside, they must have the appropriate snow gear in order to do so. Students must be equipped with snow pants, snow boots, jacket, gloves, and hat. 

Sunday, December 1st, 2018

Happy Sunday Families!

It was great seeing everyone to discuss your students' academic progress during conferences last week. I loved that I was able to learn more about each student through the conversations we shared! Now that we're already into trimester 2, I am excited to see how much more the students will grow throughout the year. There is so much to teach and so much to learn, but so little time! 

I hope that everyone had a terrific Thanksgiving break and enjoyed spending time with love ones. As our snow day this week reminded us, winter has fully arrived, and we are quickly heading into the last month of 2018. With that being said, let the countdown to winter break commence! 

Here are the targets we will focus on as we work through the beginning of the second grading period:

Literacy
*Our students are wrapping up our shared text, The Road to Freedom. The story was narrated from the point of view of a young girl, Emma, who is traveling on the Underground Railroad with her mother in hopes of making it North to freedom. Our students were highly engaged throughout text and had many great discussions related to topics raised within the story. Our previous social studies unit covered slavery, and the students were able to make cross-curricular connections to help deepen their understanding of slavery and the Civil War era. Using this shared text, we worked on literacy skills such as summarizing and identifying narrator's point of view.

Writing
*We are currently using The Road to Freedom as a springboard for various writing samples. We have practiced writing short-constructed responses, and we are currently planning and writing an opinion paper based on topics/issues related to slavery from the book.

Math
*We are continuing our unit with decimals, which include writing, comparing, rounding, adding, and subtracting decimals. Recently, we started working on converting within powers of ten using the metric system and real life examples such as technology storage (gigabytes, megabytes, kilobytes). As the students explore powers of ten, they are also solidifying their conceptual understanding of shifting place values when multiplying and dividing by tens.

Social Studies
*Last trimester, we closed off our unit about slavery and how it affected the growth of Colonial America. We will be diving into government/civics in the upcoming weeks, and our students will start to dig deeper into the concepts of patriotism.

Science
*We recently started learning about earth systems in science. The unit discusses the four main systems of Earth: the biosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and geosphere. In addition to learning about their attributes and characteristics, we are also identifying interactions that occur between the systems. Our most recent investigation involved creating a clay model of the Earth, showing each Earth's system. 

Upcoming Events
December 4 (Tuesday): Math MAP

December 5 (Wednesday): Reading MAP

December 11  (Tuesday): Early Release @ 2:00 PM 

December 11  (Tuesday): Special Lunch

December 12 (Wednesday): Lewis and Clark Assembly

December 13 (Thursday): Student Council Field Trip to Belmont Village

December 21 (Friday): Winter Parties @ 1:45 PM 

December 22 - January 6: WINTER BREAK

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.

**If students want to play in the snow outside, they must have the appropriate snow gear in order to do so. Students must be equipped with snow pants, snow boots, jacket, gloves, and hat. 

Enjoy your Sunday!

Enzie Pangilinan

Friday, November 16th, 2018

Good Afternoon Families!

It looks as if winter weather already here!  Please be sure your child is wearing a coat and appropriate articles of clothing (gloves, hats, etc.) to school.  We want all students to stay warm during outdoor recess. 

I am excited to meet with you during Parent-Teacher Conferences. There is so much to cover, and so little time (15 minutes), so in order to stay on schedule, we want to make sure that everyone is on time.  You can log onto Sign-Up Genius to check your conference time.  Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. 

School Progress Reports

***Your child’s progress report will be available online after 3:00 pm this afternoon.  

Parents, please note:
Your child’s progress report indicates his or her current progress toward an expectation. When a standard repeats in more than one trimester–as is typical in literacy instruction, for example–we do not expect students will master the knowledge and skills indicated until the completion of the last trimester in which the standard is reported on. In fact, it’s likely that many students will earn a score of Developing.

For example, we assess students using text we expect they will be able to master by the end of the school year. For a literacy course standard that repeats, we report each trimester based on your child’s progress toward those end-of-year expectations. This practice gives you consistent information regarding where your child is performing currently, compared to where he or she should be later in the school year or at the year’s end. 

What might you expect to see for a standard that repeats in more than one trimester? You might expect to see a steady progression, such as Not Mastering (1) or Developing (2) in Trimester 1; Developing (2) in Trimester 2; and Mastering (3) in Trimester 3.

Here's What's Happening in Class:

Literacy

This week we, we started our new story, The Road to Freedom.  It is narrated from the point of view of a young girl who is traveling on the Underground Railroad with her mother in hopes of making it North to freedom. We look forward to having many valuable discussions related to topics raised within the story.

Writing

Our students are currently wrapping up their research on an endangered animal, and creating a brochure or Google Slideshow discussing why the animal is endangered, and what the world can do to save them from becoming extinct.  Have your child tell you some fun facts about his or her endangered animal!

Math

Our students are continuing their work with decimals.  They are currently refining their skills in the area of using expanded  decimal notation, comparing decimals, adding and subtracting decimals, and rounding decimals. 

Social Studies

Last week we wrapped up our learning about slavery and how it affected the growth of Colonial America.  We will dive into Government/Civics in the coming weeks. Students will be able to describe how a citizen can show patriotism, explain why liberty is an important thing, and also explain the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance. 

Science

We have been studying the four main systems of Earth: the biosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and geosphere. We’ve been learning about the attributes and characteristics of each, as well as how they interact with each other. We are now focusing on determining which of Earth’s systems interact to produce weather and climate. Students will be creating a diagram and giving a weather report about one of their examples.  Stay tuned for weather news you can use.

Upcoming Events

**Monday, November 19: Early Release - 2:00 PM

**Monday, November 19 & Tuesday, November 20: Parent - Parent / Teacher Conferences

**Tuesday, November 20-Friday, November 23: No School - Thanksgiving Break

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.

Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.  Enjoy your weekend and stay warm!

Enzie Pangilinan