Update

We have been working hard in the classroom!  

We had our first night of conferences last night!  Thank you to all of the parents that came out; it is always so wonderful to meet all of you and talk about each of your children!  We will have conference on Tuesday morning and again next Thursday evening.  We are excited to speak with you about your child!

In math, we just completed our unit on Order of Operations.  The students really enjoy this unit, but still need to remember the order in which they should approach EVERY problem is using our rule of P (parenthesis) E (exponents) M (multiplication) D (division) A (addition) S (subtraction)!  A common mistake for many students has been remembering that when they get to multiplication/division or addition/subtraction, it is which ever operation comes first in the problem when you read it from left to right! Next week we are going to work on plotting points on a coordinate plane and also starting geometry!

In Science, we have been working on our light unit. We have discussed, in depth, how we see light/color, by discussing the parts of the human eye.  I shared a story with the students about having laser eye surgery to correct my vision-they seemed to really enjoy this. We finished our week by completing centers on light (we did several activities working with reflection and mirrors).  We will be finishing up our unit on light next week, with a test at the end of the week.  I also would like to dissect the cow eyeball right before break or right when we return from break, depending on how many students are leaving early for the holiday! Please look for a permission slip to come home early next week about this.  

Have a great weekend!  We hope to see many of you next week!

Reminders...

This Thursday, we will be having picture re-take day.  If your child needs to have their picture redone, please just send back the picture package that came home earlier this week.  This will be your child's "ticket" to get their picture redone.  There is no need to sign up, etc.

Tomorrow is our NA spirit Day!  The High School band, cheerleaders, etc. will be touring our buildings and playing our New Albany fight songs, etc.  Please wear NA colors tomorrow :)

Friday is our Day of Pink.  Students should wear as much pink as they can, to show their support against breast cancer.  

Fall conferences will not be held until mid-November.  We have had a lot questions about conferences, since middle school is currently holding conferences.  Please remember that the middle school is on quarters and we are on trimesters...so, we have a little more time during this grading trimester!

Math

Math

We have started our next unit on Place Value.  Students have been working to identify place value through the ten thousandths place.  We have worked on writing/saying numbers in standard form, expanded form.  Students have also been working on ordering decimals from least-greatest/greatest -least.  We will finish out this week by working on exponents.  Next week we will begin working with powers of 10's.  Please make sure that your child continues to practice their basic multiplication/division facts and record these on their math logs, which are due on Monday's!

The Wetlands

The Wetlands and More...

We had a great trip out to the Wetlands, last week!  Thank you to all of our parent volunteers that made our trip possible!  While we were out at the wetlands, the students were asked to find a decomposing log.  We wanted the log to be pretty far along in it's decomposing process.  They were then asked to observe the characteristics about the log (length, stage of decomposing, organisms that live in , on, or underneath the log).  The students really enjoyed being out in the woods...I have a lot of students that really enjoyed exploring the logs, finding organisms, etc.  

week #4

Week #4

We had a great week!  We have been working really hard in both subjects, even though we had a short week!  

This week we moved in to division.  We worked on 1- digit divisors for the majority of the week, including story problems where we needed to figure out what to do with our remainders.  Today, we grouped ourselves by self assessing...we grouped by 1 digit divisors and 2 digit divisors (which is a new concept).  As students caught on with 1 digit divisors, they transitioned to our two digit divisor group.  We ended our class on Friday by doing a quick check on a post-it to see how everyone was doing.  Based on the results, we will create three small groups for our work on Monday. 

This week in science, we worked on the scientific method.  We complete a couple of experiments and then learned how we would put this in to a presentation (like science fair).  The students completed a Skittles experiment today, which they will then use their information to create a mini-board on Monday.  We will then progress in to Life Science.

Week #3

Week #3

Well, we made it to week 3!!!!  I hope that everyone enjoyed their 3 day weekend!  The kids will get an additional 3-day weekend this weekend!  

Picture Day is Tuesday when we return, September 15th.  Please make sure that you send your child with their picture money on Tuesday!

This week in class we have been working hard on the beginning of Division.  We have gone over division vocabulary and also various ways to help us with a division problem.  Today, we also worked on our endurance of working on a challenging problem.  This was a very interesting task for many...it was hard for them to not ask questions, sit in their seat, etc. for 10 mins!  We worked on strategies on how to handle a large problem, with multiple steps...and then reworked our problem!!!  Next week, we are going to start working with long division!

In Science, we worked on the scientific method.  We discussed the steps that we need to take EVERY time we complete a science experiment.  We also completed 2 small experiments.  The students are really focusing on how to write a well-written procedure. They were challenged to make sure that it was a procedure without assumptions, or missing pieces.  This possess a challenge to many!!! We will continue to work on this idea!  Next week we will start our Life Science Unit.  

First Two Weeks!

First Two Weeks

Phew!!!!  These last two weeks have flown by!  We have really been working hard in math and science class.

In Math, we took a pretest last Friday on Multiplication and Division.  On Monday, I place students into small groups, based on where they tested/their knowledge of the content.  I explained that we would be working on multiplication (one x one, two x one, two x two, three x two, three x three, and decimals) for the next week or so.  Students have a menu of activities to complete for each level and take an exit slip at the end of class each day, in hopes to advance to the next level for the next day.  I have also been working with small groups to provide them with direct instruction on their particular area.  We will continue this next week and then advance in to division.  Please make sure that your child is studying their basic facts!!!  

Our Math Logs are due EVERY Monday!

In Science class, we worked in small groups to create a design challenge.  Students were to design a car that was built only out of edible items (THANK YOU to all of the wonderful families that donated supplies! We had extras items, and we will keep these for a reward for the students at the end of the trimester.)  The students realized with my rules, this challenge was not as easy as they thought it was going to be!  They could only place a total of 3 supply orders, and any supplies they took, MUST be placed on their car (this was the most challenging part!).  Students did a great a job working together during this challenge and never gave up!  On Wednesday, we "raced" our cars down a ramp outside of our classroom.  Many students were surprised that in the end, the car actually was able to make it down the ramp....some not all in one piece!  I was so proud of all of the students.  We finished out the week by learning about the various tools that we will be using in science class this year and now they are creating a tool poster to provide what the particular tool is and safety features for the tool.  

I am looking forward to another great week! 

Here are some pics of our completed cars!!!          

Welcome Back to School!

Welcome Back to 2015-2016 School Year!

Wow!  It has been a busy start back to school!  The students have been setteling in to their new space in the 2-8, with their new SLC (Smaller Learning Community) B.  We have been working on how to S.O.A.R (Self control, Operate Safely, Act Responsibly, and Respect myself and others) in our classroom, our new learning facility, the playground, etc.  We have also completed a few team challenges (the first one, students were asking to quit!).  We have discussed what it means to be a part of a team, how we should handle ourselves during any challenge that would be presented to us in our daily lives.  Additionally, we have also completed several activities on simply, following directions-hopefully, your child shared these activities with you tonight!  

The last two nights, I have asked the students to prepare an All About Me Page...however, the trick was to use equations to communicate their facts. For example, I shared that I have 2 children.  Instead of simply stating that I have 2 children, I could write this using an equation:

4 x 5 - 3 x 6 = the number of children I have.  

This was a great way to see what the students are familiar with in math!  I also suggested, to make sure they were on the right track, to share these equations with a family member!

Finally, we completed a challenge in class today to Save Fred the Worm.  Fred (gummie worm) and his boat (a paper cup) got caught in a terrible storm.  Fred's boat tipped over and trapped his life preserver (gummie life saver) under the boat.  The students were then provided with 4 paper clips.  The object was to get the life preserver on Fred and the students could only use the paper clips to touch Fred, the life preserver, and the boat.  They also could not hurt (poke Fred with the paper clips!) Fred.  The students were partnered with students that I chose, and in the end, they were shaking hands, saying good job, etc.  They really worked well on this group challenge.  

 

Next up...we are going to job in to multiplication and division facts  for math, and working on an edible car challenge in science.  Thank you to all of our families who contributed to our edible cars!!  I will post pictures when they are created!

DARE DRUNK GOGGLES!

Today was a very powerful day in our final DARE class. Officer Kelly brought in goggles that simulate what it looks like through the eyes of someone who has been drinking. 

The students enjoyed some laughs, however, Officer Kelly shared an extremely powerful video of one of his personal friends who was hit by a drunk driver. Please ask your kids about the details from class today. 

Eyeballs!!!!

3rd Time WAS the charm!!!

After many reschedules due to weather, etc. we FINALLY got to dissect the cow eye!!!  The students partnered up and worked together to dissect the cow eye.  While they read directions on how to dissect, students needed to identify the various parts of the eye (cornea, lens, pupil, iris, retina).  The pupil was the most challenging part to find, as many students were looking for an actual part while dissection (it is literally just a hole within the iris!).  Thank you to all of the parent volunteers that came in to help us make this day successful!  It will be a great memory for all!

Below are some pictures taken by one of our terrific parents!

Cold Days!!!

Updates!!!!

What a crazy week!!! Only 1 day of class?!?!?! Due to all of our missed days, we are going to reschedule our eyeball dissection.  We are going to dissect on Tuesday of next week!  REMEMBER- if you haven't turned in your permission slip, please do so on Monday!

If you are board today or this weekend, try to beat me by completing the typing contest!  I typed 61 words per minute!  Also, visit any of the testing sites that I have put up on Schoology to get you prepared for our tests that are coming up!

Enjoy your long weekend!

Eyeball Dissection on Friday...

Eyeball Dissection on Friday and Enrichment Activity

On Friday, February 20th, the student's will be dissecting a cow eyeball in class.  We have been studying the eye, how it works, and it's different parts.  We will take it to a real-world level and actually dissect the a cow eyeball during science class.  Our goal will be to locate the various parts that we have learned in class.

Students who complete the enrichment activity below will have the opportunity to earn an A on their reflection that they will write after their dissection.

·        By Thursday, February 19th, using your home computer, smartphone, library, etc., I would like you to visit the website: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVka_eojVnM&safe=active

·        When you visit the site, I would like you to follow the directions on the site.  View the various parts of the human eye and read what their functions are.

·        Once you have viewed the parts of the eye, begin the interactive eye dissection.

·        When completed, I would like you to log on to Schoology and send me a message explaining something new that you learned while you were visiting this site.

Science Fair!!!!

Science Fair!!!

The presentations are complete, the scores have been tabulated!!!!  We had a fantastic Saturday morning filled with science!  All of our students did AMAZING!!!!  I couldn't be more proud of them and what they have learned through this process.  We have a few students moving on to the next round and when you see these individuals, be sure to congratulate them:

Colin, Aaron, and Jack are moving on as a team of 3

and

Mithuna is moving on as an individual!

Congrats to EVERYONE!!!!

vLab

vLab

On Friday, the students journeyed out to the 1-8 building to work on technology skills with our technology team.  The students were really excited to be in out new building.  I had students that asked me, "How much does it cost to be in this building?" We explained to the students that there is no cost to be in this building! 

The students were working on an example language arts PARCC test.  They were focusing on the various tools that students should become familiar with during this test.  We did not focus on the actual content, as this will be their focus the next couple of weeks of class leading up to the test.  

Students will have vLab every other Monday for the remainder of the school year.  The focus of vLab during the next month, will be the skills needed to work through their state tests.  After that, students will learn other important technology skills and programs that will assist them at home and at school.

Force and Motion

Force and Motion

On Friday, we started our next unit....Force and Motion.  We learned about how we know we are moving, by using our Frame of reference and clues that will help us determine if the object is moving...Speed and Velocity.  Today, we did an activity that involved force.  The students had to sit back-back, link their arms together (not use their arms at all!) and try to stand up only using the FORCE between them!  This was a really fun activity for the students (they didn't know why they were doing it).  We discussed why we completed this simulation and ALL students understood that we balanced out our forces to get us to stand up!

Choir

Choir!!!

Our fifth grade choir performed for us last Thursday!  Both groups did a fantastic job singing...it is always great to see them in a different element other than our traditional classroom scene!  GREAT JOB CHOIR!!!

Upcoming State Test Information

Upcoming State Test Information...

This year, our students will be taking a newly formatted test.  This will all be completed on the computer, which is a new concept for 5th graders at New Albany.  We are preparing the students for this new test within the classroom, but it is always great if the students can explore some of the attached websites to help prepare even more.  In addition, the students can really benefit from the use of typing practice.  Please try to have your child typing, whenever possible!

Click on the links below to start your practice!!!!

Mystery Plant simulation

Practice Test

Review on concepts

DARE

DARE

Today, the students start DARE class with Officer Kelly!  The students learned what DARE stands for (Drug Abuse Resistance Education).  They learned about the DARE decision making model.  There are different options that we have when we are presented with a decision.  The students will work through various examples throughout the course of DARE and how they can handle common challenges while growing up.

All students that were in class today were given the book below.  This book should remain in the student's binder for the duration of DARE class!

First Post for the New Year!

Planets!!!!!

It's been a little while since I have posted!  Welcome back to a New Year!  Hopefully everyone had a terrific holiday season and are ready to get back in to their studies!

Currently, the students are working in Outer Space!!!  We are learning about the characteristics of the 8 main planets.  This week, students have been completing research on a planet of their choice.  They are trying to decide if life on another planet is possible, based on comparing their planet to Earth.  We are really working on finding information from multiple sources (several books, our packets, and the internet as a last resort). This is proving to be very interesting!

Later this week, the students will share their findings with the class and each student will take notes on each planet from their peers.  We will use this information to complete a more in depth look at a particular planet (MARS!!!!)