This Week in Grade 5/6

We are working our way into February and it's cold outside but our minds are warm with knowledge!  This is what we have coming up in the next week:

Math:  We are wrapping up our unit on Data and will be having a test on Wednesday.  A formal review will be given tomorrow.  Our next unit will be "Decimals."  We are going to be spending a significant amount of time on comparing and ordering, adding and subtracting and multiplying and dividing decimals.

Reading:  We continue to summarize both fiction and non-fiction pieces.  Last week we summarized stories from Haunted Canada.  This week we will be looking at the "newsela" website.  Ask your children to show you this website so you can help them at home!

NEWSELA



Writing:  We are writing summaries and examining point of view in writing.  More details to come.

Media:  We are wrapping up a unit on media right now.  Students will be given an assignment and write a test about "overt and implied messages" this week.

Science:  We have begun a unit on flight for grade 6 and structure and force for grade 5.  We will continue this for the next few weeks.

Religion:  We are wrapping up our study of the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus.

Phys-Ed:  Our dance presentations will be held on Tuesday.  We continue to work out and will begin playing basketball in gym.

Health:  We are looking at how to maintain a healthy lifestyle while eating out.

Notes:  Tuesday is our "Wintry Wizardry Math Day!"  Come and join us at 9 am or 1 pm for half an hour of Math with your kids!

This Week in Grade 5/6

This week was an absolute blast in our class.  It is definitely up there as one of my most favorite weeks in my career.  It just flowed, was easy.  We worked hard, all of the kids were invested in the learning and behaving well, and the activities were fun!  We worked out and exercised in Math, we danced in gym, we competed in Social Studies and we studied things from summarizing to media to data to creating goals.  I LOVED our week.  Hopefully we can keep it up next week as well!

This week we will be studying...

MATH:  We continue with our unit on Data Management.  Please ask to see your child's notebook.  The Learning Goals for thew unit are posted there.

READING:  We continue looking at how to summarize both fiction and non-fiction pieces. 

WRITING:  We continue our new Word Study program by entering our second week.  Please ask your child to see their notebook.  Some students did not hand in their work Friday.  I will follow up with this by leaving you a note in your child's agenda.

SCIENCE:  We will begin a new Science Unit this week.  Grade 5s will  be studying Forces Acting on Structures and Grade 6s,  Flight

MEDIA:  We are analyzing how the media affects our food choices, and the overt and implied messages in ads and commercials.

RELIGION:  We will be looking at the Parable of the Rich Young Man to identify what it means to strive for a life of holiness (God is the source of holiness; to strive for holiness we are to obey the commandments, follow Jesus Christ and live a life of justice and charity toward God and neighbour.

PHYS-ED:  We continue running the beep test and working out on Tuesdays, while doing dance on Thursdays.

HEALTH:  We are looking at making healthy choices while eating out of the home.

NOTES:

TUESDAY the sixth graders will be heading to Assumption Middle School for a transition day from 9 am to 1:30.

Agendas are a very important tool for learning.  The students are not using them enough, so I am initialing them daily.  I will leave you a note in the agenda if your child does not complete their work.  PLEASE check these nightly.

Happy New year!

Welcome back everyone!  I know that 2019 will bring us great opportunities and memories to make, and I am so looking forward to sharing these with your children!



Let's start the year off right!  The kids will be bringing their December mark booklets home on Monday.  Please sign and return ASAP.  If your child is coming home with a booklet that has some assignments labeled "not submitted," please discuss this with your child.  Most assignments are posted on google classroom, with the expectations in writing. 

Math:  We are starting a unit on data management.  We will be analyzing and interpreting graphs, creating graphs, and making calculations with graphs.

English:  We are going to work on analyzing messages in the media in regards to food advertisements and how they affect our choices.

We are starting a new word study program on Monday.  Ask your child what this entails.

We will continue with our guided reading groups with a focus on "summarizing."

Social Studies:  We will be wrapping up our unit on government and trade this week. 

Phys-Ed:  We continue running the beep test, doing aerobics, and we begin working on our basketball skills.

Religion:  We are finishing up our study of the Beatitudes.

Dance:  We will continue to dabble in various dances.

Countdown to Christmas: Advent Week 2

We are busy in Grade 5/6R preparing for the birth of Christ and our Christmas Concert!

The concert is on WEDNESDAY, December 12, at 1 PM and 6 PM.  Please write a note in your child's agenda letting me know if you can not make it to the night performance.  We are asking that all students arrive at the school by 5:45 pm the night of the performance.

A note has gone home with suggested costume items.  If your child needs help with a costume they should have let me know by Friday.  If not, please do so as soon as possible.

THANK-YOU to Sister Connie who organized an unforgettable night for our fifth and sixth grade girls.  They were treated to a shopping spree of clothes new to them, hair done, nails done, snacks, and overall fun!  We had a special night with our little ladies and loved every minute we spent with them!

The can drive continues!  Thanks so much for your generosity in bringing in so much food for those who need it!  We will collect cans until this Friday, the 14th.

Math Test:  Measurement on Tuesday

Students who are not completing work by the due date will be given a homework slip.  Please sign and return immediately.  Students need to attempt to meet the expectations put in place for them.

A piece written by one of our very own Grade 6 students

Countdown to Christmas: Advent Week 1

We are going to have a very busy month ahead and our first week looks like this:

Math:  We will be wrapping up our unit on Measurement this week, and will have a test next week on area, perimeter and converting different units of measure ex:  cm-mm, mm-m, etc.

Literacy:  We continue to focus on the main idea in reading, and we begin to work on writing non-fiction articles in writing.

Social Studies:  We are looking closely at provincial and federal governments in grade 5 and economy and trade in grade 6.

Religion:  We will be discussing advent week 1, as well as delving deeper into the Beatitudes.

Dance:  We focus on our Christmas dance this week

Congratulations to Jayden-Ryan for winning the student of the month this month.  The theme was RESPECT.  You're a great example to others Jayden.

Reminders: 

Can Drive:  We are collecting cans for a can drive.  If you have extra cans that you can send to school with your child, a family in need will be most grateful!

Girls Night:  Reminder of our girls night Thursday, December 6.  The time is from 3-6.  Please ensure you have pick-up plans arranged for your child.

Christmas Concert:  Our class is performing a short song and dance.  Some students are shepherds, some are angels, some are sheep and we have a Mary, Joseph, and some lead singers as well.  If you can outfit your child with the appropriate costume, it would be much appreciated, and if they need help with a costume, no worries!  We can set them up with something at school.

This Week in 5/6R

Math:  We are working on area and perimeter this week, and will be delving deeper into these concepts. We will also be looking closely at estimating and how to do that before actually calculating a measure.

Area and Perimeter Practice Site

Reading:  We have been looking at finding the main idea in a text recently, specifically in poetry.  We are also looking for different literary devices in writing (hyperbole, simile, personification, metaphor, symbolism).  We are also working on how to correctly write a reader response journal more closely.

Writing:  We are writing our own poetry, and will be putting on a "poetry slam" and orally reciting our poems for each other.  We are focusing on editing our work

Social Studies:  The Grade 5s are working on a poster of a current politician, which is due Monday, and the 6s have just completed a brochure about human rights.

Religion:  We are delving deeper into the meaning behind the Beatitudes this week.

Dance:  We danced to "The Patty-Cake Polka" on Tuesday and the kids were absolutely adorable!  This week we begin to work on our own dance for the Christmas Concert.

Notes:

The Christmas Concert is coming up and our class will be performing "Mary's Boy Child."  The kids can find the link to the song HERE if they would like to practice at home.  We will be holding an afternoon and evening performance.  Details to follow.

Homework:  I don't give much homework but if a student has not completed work in class or has a due date for an assignment, they are expected to adhere to the specified due date.  Some students are not using their agendas regularly.  Please discuss this with your child and ask to see their agendas nightly.

This Week on 5/6R

Math:  We will have our unit test on Patterning on Monday, and will then move onto Measurement.  In this unit we will convert different units of measure and calculate area and perimeter.

Literacy:  We are continuing to analyze poetry in both guided reading and whole class instruction.  Last week we looked at the deeper meaning of In Flanders Field and A Canadian Moment.  We will be looking at a few more poems this week, and locating literary devices in the poems.  We also continue to write our own poetry and discuss where to split our writing into paragraphs.

Religion:  We are finishing up prayers and presentations, and beginning a new set of lessons this week based on preparing for the Advent Season.

Social Studies:  We continue to look at the different roles of government and Canada's role in foreign trade.

Dance:  We will look at different types of dances and discuss creating our own.

Notes:  We hep our kick off houseleague assembly on Thursday and our theme this year is courage.  The students made posters to decorate the gym.

Thanks to all of the parents that came for parent-teacher interviews.  If you did not come for a meeting, please feel free to call me any time for a phone interview or we can reschedule another day.