Have a safe and happy holiday everyone! See you in the New Year!



Our Friday started off with concert practice. The Grade 5's have a wonderful performance to share with everyone on Tuesday!

After recess, we completed 4 Math stations. Students had the opportunity to use base ten blocks to solve 2 digit multiplication questions. We also drew some arrays to solve 2 digit multiplication problems. The students did a wonderful job! We will be wrapping up the multiplication portion of this unit before we leave for the holiday break.

We enjoyed yet another Christmas luncheon. Thank you to everyone who helped to make the luncheon another success!

Our day finished with our school assembly!!

Have a great weekend everyone!

As Christmas draws near, we continue to be very busy in the classroom!!
We completed Day 3 of Centers this morning. We are wrapping up the stories we are working on before the holiday break. Students will write their Spelling test and TWAS on Monday as tomorrow we are practicing for our concert.

After recess, we took some time to review the Exemplar students worked on with partners.  Everyone did a great job on solving the problem using the multiplicaiton strategies we have learned this year.

Students then enjoyed an hour of Art with Mrs. Schentag.

After lunch, students continued to use base ten blocks to create arrays to solve 2 digit multiplication questions. We also worked on drawing these arrays using grid paper. We will continue with these two strategies tomorrow.

We finished up our day with Phys Ed and a new read aloud book: The Winter Room.

Reminders:
*Spelling test - Monday
*Turkey Luncheon - tomorrow
* Christmas concert - Tuesday
* Early Dismissal (2:00) - Wednesday
* Class party - Wednesday

As the holidays approach, Room 20 continues to work very hard! Our Wednesday started off with Day 2 of Centers. Students continue to celebrate the wonderful books they are reading. The converstations students are having about their books are amazing! Here are a few more students celebrating what they are reading...



After recess, we continued to work on our coat of arms in Social Studies.

Students then did a wonderful job practicing for the Christmas Concert.

Our afternoon started with Math Pods. At station 1, we worked on using base ten blocks to create an array to solve 2-digit by 2-digit multiplication questions. At station 2, students continued to practice the Halving and Doubling strategy. A student has done an excellent job in explaining the Halving and Doubling strategy in the short video below.

We finished off our day with Phys Ed and read aloud.

* I will be gone for the next few days so there won't be any blog posts until next Thursday.

Sorry for the lack of posts over the last few days!

We started our day off with a new set of Centers.

After recess, students had art with Mrs. Schentag. We will be practicing for the Christmas concert over the next few weeks.

After lunch, students worked on their personal Coat of Arms they are working on in Social Studies.

Students then had French with Mrs. Orosz.

We finished off the day with a partner problem solver - Missing Key Dilemma. We will continue with this problem tomorrow. Students are continuing to work on explaining the steps they are taking to solve problems.

**We will not be doing a gift exchange amongst students this year. Students are more than welcome to exchange gifts amongst their friends but we will not have a formal gift exchange.

December Newsletter

December 2010 Newsletter


Room 20 – Mrs. Shields

http://www.mrsshieldsblog.blogspot.com/

December is finally upon us. As we wrap up 2010, we are wrapping up a number of topics in the classroom and getting ready to introduce the new.

Language Arts

We continue to work through various stations during our Center time. Students are enjoying Centers and the active learning that is taking place. We will continue to focus on various reading strategies during Guided Reading, as well Independent Reading.

Spelling will continue as we have in the past with students choosing their words from the stories that we are currently reading.

Students are doing a wonderful job in expanding and including detail in their TWAS. Students are being encouraged to include that “little bit more” to help improve the quality of what they are writing.

Math

We will continue to work on our Multiplication and Division unit throughout the month of December. Students are doing a wonderful job sharpening their multiplication skills and learning new strategies. Keep up the great work Grade 5!

Science

We are beginning our second unit, The Human Body. Within this unit, students will explore a variety of body systems, such as the digestive system, musculatory system, and nervous system. We will also explore the importance of healthy food for our bodies.
Social Studies

Students will continue with the unit: Canada-Our Country. We are currently researching a variety of Canadian symbols. Students will be working on a research project to present their findings for a Canadian symbol of their choice.
Art – Mrs. Schentag

Students have been busy “clowning” around while participating in drama games and other drama activities related to clowns. We will conclude this unit of work with a visual art activity on clown face painting and a discussion about the famous tour group – Cirque du Soleil.

The month of December will bring about a theme change where we will begin a visual art unit entitled, The World of Art. Students will prepare a Time Capsule Me Box depicting their interests, culture and values. The Elements of Art will also be emphasized in this unit of work. As Christmas quickly approaches, we will also practice for the upcoming Christmas Concert. Students are not expected to have a special costume for the concert, just their regular concert attire (unless told otherwise).
I wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Joyous Holiday Season!
**Important** Students, please make sure you have your shoe box at school to use for your Time Capsule Box. Also, begin thinking about and gathering items to attach to your box. Items should depict your interests, culture and values. More information will be handed out to you very soon.
Physical Education/Health - Mr. Leidl

Students will continue to work on their fitness and wellness plans. Strategies for improved health will be discussed. The students will focus on team play, cooperative games and the promotion of positive physical activity and fitness strategies. Emphasis will be on participation, fun and sportsmanship.

French – Mrs. Orosz

Students will learn to do a dance called “La Bastringue.” Along with our regular work, we may do some seasonal activities, and students may listen to some Christmas carols in French.

Have a Happy and Safe Holiday!!

Our Wonderful Wednesday started off with a new set of Centers. Great job today!!

After recess, we continued with our Fish Dilemma problem solver. We completed the problem as a whole group as we continued to focus on the areas we need to improve upon. Our next problem solver will place more focus on explaining in words what it is we are doing when solving the problem.

Before lunch, students jumped into some books in search of writing a new lead. Students worked in pairs to write two new leads for two different books. We will continue with this activity next writing class.

After lunch, students watched a short video on the Digestive System in Science. We then read together a short reading explaining the five main parts of the digestive system. Students then worked in pairs to draw their digestive system on their real sizes paper model.

Our day finished in Phys Ed.

Reminders:
Spelling test - Friday

We started off our Tuesday morning with Day 4 of Centers. Tomorrow will start a new set of Centers. Students have been really involved in reading and enjoying a variety of different books. Two students are celebrating their books in these short videos. Great job guys!!


After recess, we worked in partners to complete our Social Studies Canadian Symbols booklet.

Our afternoon started with Math Pods. Mrs. Lippai led a group and reviewed the estimation strategies with multiplication. I led a second group and introduced a new strategy to the students that will help students break down two digit numbers in order to multiply. I will post a short video tomorrow that helps to explain this strategy. The computer station had students playing the mulitplication games from the blog.

Our day finished with Phys Ed and the classroom read aloud.

Reminders:

-Spelling Test Friday

- Santa's Workshop December 14

We started off our new week with Centers this morning. Students chose their spelling words from their past TWAS. Students will have their spelling test on Friday, December 3.

Students had art with Mrs. Schentag after recess.

Our afternoon began with Problem Solving. We are working through a new problem together as a whole group. We are continuing to work on explaining the steps of how we are solving problems.

Students then had a short period of French.  After French, we continued to work on our Canadian Symbols booklet by discussing the beaver and the RCMP.

Rider Day!!

Great job Grade 5 in showing your Rider pride!!

Centers kicked off our Thursday morning. We completed Day 2 this morning with our Spelling Tests and TWAS.

After recess, students used a half hour to complete their RAFTS assignment. We then discussed Writing Leads. We looked at how authors use leads to begin their writing by using: dialogue, sounds, and questions. Students then went on a Lead hunt at the library to find children's books that have these writing features.

Our afternoon was filled with Math. We completed Math Pods. Our lesson was on using estimation with multiplication. The three strategies, Front End Rounding, Compensation, and Compatible Numbers, are very similar to when we used them for adding and subtracting estimations, except we are now multiplying. Mrs. Lippai worked with Front End Rounding, and I worked with the students with Compensation and Compatible Numbers. Students also worked at the computers to practice multiplying by mulitples of 10.

Our day finished off with Phys Ed and read aloud.

Have a great weekend everyone!! Enjoy the Grey Cup on Sunday!! GO RIDERS!

Sorry for not posting Monday or Tuesday but my interview schedule was very full.

Our day started off with our monthly assembly. Students working on their RAFTS assignment after we returned from assembly.

After recess, we worked through our math stations. Students completed a Doubling to Multiply worksheet applying this strategy to single digit mulitplication. At the rug, students worked in partners to play a variety of multiplication game. Students were also able to choose from any of the Multiplication/Division games from the blog to play during the computer station. 
Please encourage your child to practice their mulitplication tables daily!! The students are starting to see just how important it is to recognize these facts!

After lunch, we discusses some of the symbols of Canada that they saw in the last video we watched during Social Studies. We discussed the maple leaf and why this is such a popular symbol of Canada. We will continue with this discussion next class.

Students finished off the day in French and Phys Ed.

*Thank you to all of the parents who were able to attend parent/teacher conferences. This sharing time is very important for everyone involved as open communication is very important for you child's success at school. If you ever have any questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch with me through email, phone, or stop by the classroom.

Chalk up another snow day!! 4 buses did not run today so we used the day to review some concepts so those students who were not here didn't miss out on new concepts.

We completed Day 3 of Centers this morning. Students wrote their spelling test and completed their TWAS.

In Social, we compared the student's version of O'Canada to the actual version. I had to chuckle at some of the students' responses! Students also received their Science tests. Please review these and sign and return them on Monday.

After lunch, we completed Math Pods to review multiplication. One pod had students playing a muliplication table game with Mrs. Lippai. At my pod, we reviewed multiplying by multiples of 10 and finding patterns to multiply. Students were assigned numbers 7 and 12 from page 83. At computers, students could choose from any of the multiplicaton sites from my blog.

We finished up our day with Phys Ed and read aloud.

Report cards were handed out at the end of the day!

Have a safe weekend everyone!

Being that it was early dismissal today, this post will be short and sweet!!

Day 2 of Centers started off our snowy day!

After recess, students had Art with Mrs. Schentag.

Don't forget to study for you spelling test tomorrow!

Just a reminder that tomorrow is report card day!! I also sent home an interview time with your child today. I have no empty time slots left Monday or Tuesday. If the time does not work for you that's on your slip please let me know so that we can reschedule for a different night. I tried to my best to schedule interviews around brothers and sisters at the school but in some cases my hands were tied as Mrs. Gale and I are doing some interviews together.

Sorry for the lack of posts in the last few days!

Our Wednesday morning started off with a fresh, new set of Centers.

After recess, students were introduced to the next trait of writing: Organization. We discussed RAFTS and how this writing tool can help us organize our writing. Students worked in groups to discover different components of various prompts.

We started off our afternoon with math pods. Mrs. Lippai worked at a pod to discuss mulitplying with multiples of 10. Students were assigned page 82 (1 a,c/ 2 a,c). I worked with a pod and discussed how looking for patterns when multiplying can be a helpful strategy. Students were assigned pages 74/75 (1,3). Students played a multiplication game at the computer pod.

We wrapped up our day in Phys Ed and with read aloud.

Students will be provided with a time for interviews tomorrow. I have tried to meet the schedule needs of everyone as best I can. I do not have any open time slots on either day. Please let me know through email or phone if you are unable to make the time alotted for you.

Marvelous Monday!

Monday started off with a brand new set of Centers. There will be no Spelling List or TWAS for this week as we only have a 3 day week.

Students enjoyed Art with Mrs. Schentag after recess.

To start off our afternoon, students received their Math test from Friday. Please sign and return these for tomorrow. Those students who did not receive the Math markbook through email also received their paper copy of their markbook today.
Our next unit in Math, Multiplication and Division, relies heavily on students knowing their multiplication tables. I strongly encourage your child to practice his or her times table every evening, whether it's on the computer or on paper. Today, we practiced with "Roll a Rectangle." We will continue over the next few days to brush up on our Mutliplcation skills.

In social, students completed their Title pages as well as labelling their maps of Canada with all of the provinces and territories.

Students are bringing home a letter explaining parent-teacher interview. Since some of the students have Centers (language arts) with Mrs. Gale you may be interested in seeing her. If you would like to meet with Mrs. Gale, myself, or the both of us please indicate this on the letter and return to me as soon as possible. We will do our best to schedule your child's interview to coincide with other siblings in the school.

We wrapped up our week by finishing our final day of Centers this morning.

After recess, we jumped into adding specific details to our writing. Students did a wonderful job adding details to given sentences. We are working on adding specific details to our own pieces of writing.

Students wrote the unit test for Whole Numbers after lunch. The tests will be returned on Monday.

We finished off our day with Phys Ed and read aloud.

Have a great weekend!!

November Newsletter

Thank you to all of the parents who provided snacks for our Halloween party. The students had a wonderful time!


The month of November is an action packed month with lots of exciting things going on in Room 20!

Report cards will be going out on November 19. Parent teacher interviews will take place during the two scheduled evenings, November 22 and 23. Because of the co-teaching taking place within the grade 5 classrooms, Mrs. Gale and I will perform the interviews together. We will be sending out an information sheet in regard to parent teacher interviews very shortly.

Language Arts
Students will continue to choose their spelling words from the stories we are reading during Guided Reading. We are currently working on Lesson 9. Please encourage your child to study their spelling words every night for the weekly spelling test given on the Friday of every week.

We will also continue with Centers. Now that the students are in the groove, students are really enjoying the independent activities as well as the small group instruction.

We are currently wrapping up the Ideas trait of 6+1 Writing. We will continue to work on adding detail to our writing pieces. Our next trait, Organization, will provide the students with an opportunity to sharpen their skills in making choices of how to arrange their ideas in their writing.

Math
We are finishing our second unit, Whole Numbers, with a unit test on Friday, November 5. Our next unit, Multiplication and Division, will focus on a variety of strategies. Please encourage your child to practice their multiplication table. The many websites provided on the blog are an excellent way to practice these skills.

Problem solving will also continue to be a focus. Students work on problems as a whole group, in partners, and individually.

Science
We will wrap up our first unit, Weather, during the month of November. We will continue looking at topics such as adapting to weather and weather patterns for the remainder of the month.

Social Studies
Our next unit, Canada - Our Country, will follow the new Social Studies curriculum for Grade 5. In this unit, we will focus on identifying the provinces/territories, as well as their capital cities. We will focus on a variety of information for each province and territory. We will also look at some Canadian symbols that Canada is very popular for.

Physical Education/Health - Mr.Leidl
Students will review the areas of physical literacy they have participated in so far this year (sending, receiving, striking, and evading). They will also be introduced to the dominant movement patterns in gymnastics. Students will review the elements of personal safety and how they can create a safe checklist that applies to their daily lives.

Art – Mrs. Schentag
We are now well into our Drama Unit entitled Clowns Around the World. Students will be engaged in drama games, improvisation activities and role-type exercises. My hope is that the students will be involved in short presentations for their peers as well as perform for a younger group of students. This unit will culminate with an introduction to the circus group, Cirque de Soleil.

French – Mrs. Orosz
Students are working orally with the play called: L’ Arbre Ungali. The more gestures students recognize, the more this supports their comprehension, recall and speaking with known vocabulary. They have seen the play being acted out on DVD by student actors, and have enjoyed and tried to sing along to the song: “L’Arbre Ungali.” Soon, they will do the dance for this song. Students will begin to participate in guided reading and writing activities based on the play, using the SmartBoard and handouts.

We started off our Wednesday with Centers. We welcomed three teachers from Yorkton into our classroom this morning as they have heard wonderful things about Centers and wanted to see our students in action. Thank you to the students for welcoming them into our classroom and sharing with them the wonderful experiences they are having in our classrooms!

After recess, students had Health with Mr. Leidl as well as worked on their Remembrance Day posters.

Students were given a Math unit review for Friday's test. Please have this review completed for tomorrow so we can discuss in class.

Students finished off the day in Phys Ed and with read aloud.

Reminders:
- Spelling test Friday, November 5
- Math test Friday, November 5
- Hot lunch money

Today started off with Day 1 of Centers.

After recess, students worked in Math Pods. We continued to work on our partner activity from yesterday. At teacher table, students  began to review for the Unit test Friday, November 5. At computers, students were able to choose from any of the activitites in the Whole Numbers folder.

Students then had Phys Ed before lunch.

After lunch, we worked on completing our detailed paragraphs.

Students also had French, and worked on their Remembrance Day posters.

Reminders:
-Book orders due tomorrow
-Spelling test Friday, November 5
-Math test Friday, November 5
-Hot lunch money
-Bowling money

Day 2 of Centers kicked off our day today!

After recess, students took a paragraph we wrote last week and began to break it apart and see what they could do to make it better. Students used the "funky pens" to add details to their work. We also took some time to look for words that we think might not be spelled correctly. Students are doing a wonderful job in making their writing juicier and recognizing some of their spelling mistakes.

Our afternoon started off with Math pods. At teacher table students worked with using estimation to check addition and subtraction questions. Students were assigned numbers 1 and 2 from page 62. At the second station, students worked with Mrs. Lippai to practice using benchmarks when estimating. Students were assigned numbers 3,4,5,7,and 11 from page 55. Both of these assignments are due for tomorrow.

We finished off our day with Phys Ed and read aloud.

Reminders:
-Spelling Test tomorrow
-Book orders due Wednesday, November 3
-Halloween party tomorrow (please, no costumes until 1:15)
-Bowling money

Our first snow day has arrived!!

We kicked off our morning by combining both grade 5 classrooms and worked with our detail cubes to write a paragraph about an item. We then worked together to make our paragraphs "juicier" by adding details. Students also started to work on trying to find words that we might need to check for spelling. Great job today grade 5!!

We also completed a set of pods using adding details as one of our stations. A second station had students on Mathletics.com. Finally, students read quietly independently.

In the afternoon the students enjoyed a movie and phys ed.

Hopefully, I will see everyone tomorrow!!

We enjoyed a wonderful show this morning, Fizzical Fizzics!

After recess, students completed Math Pods. At Teacher table, students began estimating using number lines. At seat work, students completed a subtraction estimation sheet. The final station had students working on the Mathletics website.

We then continued to focus on adding details during 6+1 Writing. We will continue with this activity tomorrow.

After lunch, students wrote their Social Studies unit test.

After French, students finished off their test and enjoyed Phys Ed with Mr. Leidl.

Another week has come and gone!! Students completed Day 4 of Centers this morning. A new set of Centers will begin on Tuesday.

After recess, students handed in their Survival Island assignments. Students also received their outline for their Social Studies unit test that will be on Monday, October 25.

After lunch, we completed Math Pods. At computers, students continued to practice on Mathletics.com. The contest begins next week!! At the rug, students worked with cards and a partner to create adding and subtracting questions to estimate using Compensation. At the back table, students worked with all 3 estimation strategies and solved addition questions. The students are doing a wonderful job with estimation! Keep up the great work!!

We finished off our day in Phys Ed and continued to read our Dear Canada book during Read Aloud.

Have a great weekend everyone!!

We started off our day with Problem Solving. Students worked in partners to try to solve an Exemplar. We will continue with this problem next class.

To celebrate Library Week, students were then split into varying groups throughout the school to enjoy the reading of 2 new books.

After recess, students had Art with Mrs. Schentag.

Students were introduced to the third and final estimation strategy today: Compensation. We will continue with this strategy tomorrow.

Students also worked on their Survival Islands. This activity is due tomorrow.

We finished off our day in Phys. Ed.

Reminders:
- Spelling test tomorrow
- Survival Island due tomorrow

Our Wednesday began with Day 3 of Centers.

After recess, we continued to work on adding details to our writing. Students had to choose an item from the classroom. We then used our Detail Cubes to write about this item. The students got a wonderful start with these detail filled paragraphs.

Our afternoon started off with Math Pods. Students began their Math Challenge at the computer station. Using the website Mathletics, students are practicing this week to sharpen their math skills. The students are taking part in a world wide math competition starting next week. I encourage the students to continue the challenge at home as each student has their own sign in and password in their agendas.
At seat work, students worked on choosing which estimation strategy to use, Front End Rounding or Compatible Numbers.
At teacher table, we continued to practice estimation with Compatible Numbers.
Two students also demonstrated the two estimation strategies we are using. They did a wonderful job explaining these strategies.

We finished off our day with a new read aloud: Dear Canada - A Prairie as Wide as the Sea.

Our day started out again with Centers.

After recess, students worked hard during Math Pods. At station 1, students finished up yesterday's Front End Rounding practice. At station 2, students practiced estimation using Compatible Numbers. We are doing an excellent job with both strategies. At station 3, students played Ice, Ice Maybe on the computer.

Students had library with Mrs. Schentag before lunch.

We started off our afternoon by enjoying a presentation from Josh Leidl. He spoke to the students about how to make animations on the computer.

We then finished off the afternoon in French and Phys. Ed.

Students were given a copy of their Markbook for unit 1 Math. Please review if you have not received this already through email. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to call or email me.

The list for classroom parties has also been sent home today. Please check to see what your child is responsible for. Please feel free to switch amongst yourselves if you choose to.

This week started off with a new set of Centers. Students choose 7 of their spelling words from their past TWAS or Spelling Lessons. Test will be Friday, October 22.

After recess, we completed Science pods. At station one, students completed the next day of their weather station. We will complete one more day. At station two, we reviewed the water cycle. Students were able to choose from a variety of links on the computer for station three.

Math Pods started off our afternoon. At the computers, students played Ice, Ice, Maybe. At the back table, students were introduced to the second estimation strategy, Compatible Numbers. At seat work, students were working on an adding and subtracting sheet using Front-End Rounding.

We finished off the day by completing our read aloud, Hatchet!!

We finished up our week by completing yet another set of Centers. The students have been enjoying the different stations and are continuing to improve every day.

After recess, we completed 3 stations during Math Pods. At the computer station, students worked with partners to practice saying and writing numbers using the website Can You Say Really Big Numbers? At seat work, students worked to complete a handout asking students to write out numbers in words, as well as write words into numbers. At teacher table, front end rounding was introduced to the students. We will continue to work on various estimation strategies over the next few weeks.

After lunch, students used all of their weather instruments that they have created so far and set up the first day of their weather stations. Students had to record the temperature, measure air pressure, measure wind speed, use their rain gauge, and describe the type of clouds. We will complete this activity two more times.

Students then had French with Mrs. Orosz.

We finished up the day by working on our Survival Island Project in Social Studies. Students will get one more class to complete this activity. This project is due Thursday, October 21.

I hope everyone has a great weekend!!

We started off our short day with Day 3 of Centers. We will wrap up this set of Centers tomorrow.

After recess, we continued to work on our Survival Island project in Social Studies.

Studetns finished up the morning with Mrs. Schentag and Art.

I have emailed out the latest Markbook for Math. Now that I have it set up, you will receive updates from the various subjects after the completion of units. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. If I do not have your email address, I will send home a paper copy of your child's Markbook tomorrow.

I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday! This week is going to fly by as Thursday is also early dismissal!!

We started off our week with a new set of Centers.

After recess, we completed Math Pods. At the computer station, students could choose any of the links we have played so far. At teacher table, we reviewed Friday's assignment, as well as practiced expanded notation using the wipe boards. At seat work, students completed an expanded notation worksheet. The students have worked extremely hard and have really impressed me with their number work!!

After lunch, we completed the last day of our field test for the Reading Assessment for Learning.

To finish up the day, we had Phys Ed and read the next few chapters of our exciting read aloud, Hatchet!!

Reminders:
-Spelling test Friday, October 15
-Early Dismissal Thursday, October 14

Students came in this morning beaming from ear to ear with excitement from last night's Family Fun Night! I'm happy that the students had a wonderful time.

We completed our last day of Centers this morning. Students worked eagerly to get all of their activities completed and ready to hand in. We will begin a new set on Tuesday.

After recess, we completed Math Pods. At computer, students played Hangman Expanded Notation. Please encourage your child to practice with this game as expanded notation has really challenged the students. At the rug, students played a card game in pairs to try to create the largest 6-digit number. Students had to read their numbers correctly in order to get a point. We will continue to practice how to say numbers. As we start working with larger numbers, students are finding this challenging as well. At the circle table, students worked on page 45 and 46 of their textbook. We are working on numbers 3,6,8, and 13. This was assigned for homework for the weekend.

We finished up our day with French and Phys Ed.

Have a great Thanksgiving everyone!!

Our classroom has been chosen to complete a field test for the Assessment for Learning department at the Ministry of Education. We are completing this field test for the grade 4 reading assessment that will be given in the spring. The Ministry field tests the assessment to help them find any flaws in the assessment. We completed the first hour of the assessment this morning, and will continue with the last hour tomorrow.

After recess, students worked in groups to describe the purpose of a specific object in as many ways as they can. Students were asked to compile a list of the purposes of string. We then categorized these uses and wrote a paragraph compiled of this information. We focused on using a good introduction sentence and not simply listing our ideas.

We completed Math Pods after lunch. At the computer station, students were able to choose from any of the math links we have used already. At the back table, students were introduced to writing numbers in standard and expanded form. We will continue with this next class. At the rug, Mrs. Lippai shared a children's book that helped the students put the size of numbers into perspective.

We finished off the day with Phys Ed and read aloud.

Reminders:
-Spelling Test tomorrow
-Family Fun Night tonight

We were treated to a wonderful October assembly to start off the morning.

We worked to finish our group writing activity focusing on adding detail to our writing. These are hanging in the hallway. Stop by during Family Fun Night to read what a wonderful job the students did!! Our writing is improving every day!

During Math pods, students got a chance to play a new place value game on the computer, Fruit Shoot Place Value. At the rug, students worked in their group to construct 1 000 000 dots!! At teacher table, we continued to work on place value and completed yesterday's worksheet.

After lunch, students got the chance to use an anemometer in Science. Students will be putting their completed weather stations together to help them compile a variety of weather information for one day.

Students had French with Mrs. Orosz before recess.

In Social, we worked to complete the Geographical terms activity, as well as Brandon Beaver's map activity. Both of these assignments were handed in today.

We finished up the day in Phys Ed with Mr. Leidl.

Students began the day with a presentation about wind instruments with Mrs. Schentag. Ask them what instrument they want to play in band next year!!

After recess, we completed day 3 of Centers.

In math, we worked through Math Pods. At the computer station, students worked on practicing how to write and read numbers using Cookie Dough Place Value. At the rug, students practiced using numbers to 100 000 with Mrs. Lippai. At the back table, we also worked on practicing our numbers to 100 000. We will continue with this worksheet tomorrow.

We finished up our day with Phys Ed and Read Aloud.

*I have sent newsletters home with students or emailed them. I have also posted the newsletter on the blog so please take a few minutes and take a peak. If you have any questions please contact me.

**I will also be sending home a Markbook update for the subject areas very soon. You will be able to see how your child has been doing up to this point. If I have your email address, I will send it that way. If not, I will send home a paper copy.

October Newsletter

I hope that everyone is enjoying the beautiful weather that we have been having. I hope October can be just as beautiful!!

The month of October is full of lots of exciting new things for us in Grade 5. Here is what we will be doing this month…

Language Arts
The students have had a blast with Centers during our Language Arts time. We will continue with Centers, changing our stations every 4 days. Students have done a wonderful job being responsible and getting their work done and handed in on time.

We are just starting Lesson 5 in Spelling. Students are continuing to pick their 7 spelling words from stories we are reading during Guided Reading. We will also have weeks where students choose their spelling words from their own work (T.W.A.S, past spelling sentences, creative writing). Students are reminded to write their words in their agendas to study.

The students have done a wonderful job with the Ideas trait of 6+1 Writing. We are beginning to work on adding details to our writing. We have some of our most recent writing displayed in the hallway so stop by during Family Fun Night and enjoy!! We will continue with the Ideas trait throughout the month of October.

Students will continue T.W.A.S. as well. This allows for the students to share with you what they are doing every week. This also allows for us to practice proper paragraph structure and letter writing. Please remember to look for these letters every Friday!

Independent Reading – Mrs. Lippai
We are off to a great start in Independent Reading! During the past month students have practiced how to pick the right book using the 5 finger rule and an awareness of their interests. As well, students have learned to recognize and use a variety of strategies to help them pause and clarify while they read so that they can make better sense of their text. We have recently identified and discussed fiction and non-fiction texts, along with narrative and expository pieces of writing. Within these we have learned to identify a variety of text features (title, table of contents, index, glossary, diagrams, maps, timelines, etc…) to help us easily find our way around a book and gain information quickly and easily. Students alternate our lessons together with a chance to read their book on their own every other day. Ask your child what he/she has learned in Independent Reading!

Math
Congratulations to all of the students for doing such a wonderful job on the last unit, Patterns and Equations!!

We will be working on our Whole Numbers unit for the month of October. In this unit, students will work on recognizing and reading numbers to 1 000 000. We will be writing numbers in standard and expanded forms. Working with place value and manipulatives will also be a major focus for this unit. Students will be working with estimation strategies for sums and differences as well.

I will be constantly adding math links to my blog. Please encourage the students to practice their math skills using these links.

We will also be continuing with our Problem Solving skills. Students will be working with the Making an Organized List strategy. We will work as a whole group, then partners, and finally individually.

Science
We will continue with our Weather unit during the month of October. The students will continue to work on their weather stations with their partners. We will also look at types of clouds, the water cycle, adapting to weather, and climate.

Social
We are currently wrapping up our Location unit. The final project for this unit will have students design their own island using the different landforms that we have looked at.

Our next unit, Canadian Symbols, will focus on the many different symbols of Canada, as well its provinces and territories.

Phys. Ed./ Health – Mr. Leidl
The Grade 5’s will shift from sending/ receiving skills to work on striking and movement patterns. Fitness planning, strength training, and flexibility skills are ongoing. Students will continue to work on strategies to improve their fitness and wellness. Students will begin to examine how nutrition plays an important part in the maintenance, growth, and development of the human body.

Art – Mrs. Schentag
During the month of September, students have been working in the Music Strand, learning about musical instrument families, creating their own musical instruments and listening to different types of music genres. Mrs Hearn, the band teacher from the High School, will visit our class to share her expertise and allow the students to try a few intruments out. Should be fun!

In October, we plan to conclude our Music unit by playing musical games and participating in rhythm activities.

As well, we will begin a new unit of work concentrating on the Drama Strand. It is entitled The World of Drama and the topic will be Clowns Around the World.

Students will have the opportunity to learn a few drama techniques such as mirroring and improvisation while getting into clown characters. They will even have the opportunity to present a clown performance for an audience of sick children (another class assuming this role). This is always a fun unit of work and I look forward to working with the students in order to enhance their dramatic skills and interests.

French – Mrs. Orosz
Students are learning basic communication in French, in a new and enjoyable way. Vocabulary is introduced with gestures, which assists students with comprehension and expression. Students have reviewed and extended known vocabulary and gestures, and are learning some more. We are beginning a new play called: L’ Arbre Ungali.

It is very important for students to observe and listen carefully and to participate in all pronunciation, action and other activities.

Day 2 of Centers started off our day today. Students chose their new spelling words and wrote them in their agendas.

After recess, the class spent an hour and a half in Art with Mrs. Schentag.

We started our next problem solving strategy after lunch today. We are focusing on Making an Organized List. We will continue with this problem next class.

Students then had French with Mrs. Orosz.

We finished the day off by starting to match our landform pictures to the definitions.

Phys Ed wrapped up our day!

Reminders:
Spelling Test Friday, October 8
Family Fun Night Thursday, October 7

September has come to an end...and very quickly I might add!!

We completed yet another set of Centers this morning. The students have been enjoying the many different activities. Great job this week!!

After recess, we took part in the 6th annual Terry Fox run at Gillen school. Great job to all of the students!

After lunch, we finished up our Brandon Beaver map activity booklet, as well as finished coloring our geography terms activity. We will complete the geography terms activity next class.

Students finished the day in French and Phys Ed.

Reminders
Spelling test tomorrow!!

Our Tuesday began with Centers.

After recess, we wrote our unit test for Patterns and Equations in Math. The students did a wonderful job!! I'm very proud of them!! I will return the tests to the students tomorrow!

Students have been doing a wonderful job narrowing the topic in writing. We discussed today how adding detail to our writing will make it more interesting. Students broke into small groups today. Each group got a picture from a National Geographic magazine. Students had to describe as many things as they could about their picture using their 5 senses. We worked to compile webs to show our descriptions.

After lunch, students worked to create thier barometer's in Science. We will test out our new weather instruments next Science class!

Students then had French with Mrs. Orosz.

In Social Studies, we worked in three pods. At pod one, students worked on a map search activity where students used a map of Canada to find examples of various things (bays, cities, oceans). At the second pod, students worked to color a geographical terms activity that we will continue with next class. Finally at pod three, students were on the computer practicing with the Continents of the World.

We finished off our day in Phys Ed!

Welcome to yet another week! The weather has finally started to cooperate!!

We started our Monday with a new set of Centers. Students are continuing to work very hard. Students were reminded today that it is there responsibility to get their work done at the individual stations. Gaining independent skills is very important.

After recess, we discussed Landform terminology in Social Studies. We will use these terms for our next assignment.

Students then had an hour of Art with Mrs. Schentag.

After lunch, we discussed the unit review the students had for their Math test. Students also had the opportunity to play some of our computer games, as well review equations with a partner and a wipe board. We will write the Math test tomorrow.

To finish off the day, students had Phys Ed with Mr. Leidl and we read the next chapter in Hatchet.

Reminders:
- Remember to bring your supplies for making your barometers in Science tomorrow

We completed Day 4 of Centers this morning.

After recess, students worked to complete the Narrow the Topic activity using their special something! I'm excited to read all about each of the student's stories.

After lunch, we worked in Math Pods. At the computer, students were given free choice of any of the math games we have done so far. At the back table, we worked to review yesterday's math assingment. We didn't quite get finished but will have time tomorrow. Students also worked with Mrs. Lippai on a unit review. This review is very similar to what the test on Monday will look like so please use this to study over the weekend.
I have also added more multiplication sites to my Math Games links. Please use these to help practice multiplication skills as knowing our tables will make the other units in grade 5 a lot less frustrating. You may want to set aside time each evening for your child to practice using these websites.

Students then had Phys Ed with Mrs. Nell.

We finished up the day by reading chapter 9 of Hatchet.

Reminders:
-Cross country run tomorrow
-Spelling test tomorrow (cross country runners will write before they leave)
-Math test Monday, September 27
-Book orders due Friday, September 24

Another day has flown by! We completed Day 3 of Centers this morning. Remember to study your spelling words for Friday's test. Students who are running in the Saltcoats run will be writing their test before they go.

After recess, we completed Math Pods. At the computer station, students practiced their multiplication table by playing Multiflyer. At teacher table, students reviewed yesterday's assignment. We will continue to review division and multiplication equations tomorrow. At seatwork, students continued to work on the unit review from yesterday. We added page 31 (7,8,9,10) to the list as well.
Remember that the unit test is on Monday, September 27.

Students had library today with Mrs. Schentag.

After lunch, we started working on RectuangularLand in Social Studies. Students are focusing on reading the key of a map and drawing a map using the symbols.

Students finished up the day with French and Phys Ed.

Reminder
- Book Orders due Friday
- Cross Country run on Friday

Tuesday started off with Day 2 of Centers. Students worked at Guided Reading with Mrs. Lippai as I pulled students for Fontas and Pinnell reading assessment. We will be testing over the next few days. It is very important for students to be at school over the next few days so we can complete the assessment.

After recess, we completed Science Pods. At the teacher table, we read a bried overview of the barometer and how how low and high pressure systems effect our weather. Students then broke off into their pairs to discuss who will bring what supplies for our Tuesday construction of our own barometers. Students then worked on a Rain Gauge question sheet at the next station. Students handed these in. At the computer station, students played The Space Place.

After lunch, we completed Math Pods. At station 1, students worked on numbers 3 and 4from page 27 in the textbook. Students also reviewed yesterday's assignment. We will review today's division equation questions tomorrow. At station 2, students worked on the unit review (page 30) numbers 1,3, and 4. These are not due tomorrow as we will continue to review tomorrow. At computers, students were able to choose from any of the games we've played so far. We will have a unit test on Monday, September 27.

We had Phys Ed after recess and finished the day off with our read aloud, Hatchet.

Another great start to yet another week!!

We started off with a new group of Centers this morning. Students picked their spelling words. Spelling test will be on Friday.

After recess, we completed Math Pods. At station 1 students worked on solving multiplication equations. We worked on page 27 (1,2). This is homework if not completed. At station 2, students worked in partners to match equations to problems. Finally, station 3 had students choose any of the equation web sites we have played so far on the computer.
We will be having a unit test very soon on Patterns and Equations!

To finish off the morning, students worked on Narrowing the Topic with their special item that they brought from home. We will continue to write our stories next class.

After lunch, students worked with their partner on a problem solver. We will continue with this next class as well.

We then worked on identifying the 7 continents and 4 oceans on a world map in Social Studies.

Students finished off the day in Phys Ed.

Reminders
- Saltcoats cross country run is Friday, September 24
- We are accepting Non-Perishable food donations for Farm Credit. Farm Credit is going to make a donation to our school based on the amount of food we collect!

Centers started off our day again this morning. We completed Day 3 of our Center maps today.

Students had Art with Mrs. Schentag after recess.

To start off our afternoon, students began their first Problem Solver with a partner. We got a good start today at this problem and will continue with it next class.

Students then had French.

To finish off our afternoon, we continued to work on location scavenger hunt in Social.

We finished off the day in Phys Ed.

Reminders:
Please return the blog permission slip as soon as possible.

The Gillen recipe book will be sold for $10 a piece. The money from this fund raiser will be going towards buying new desks and/or tables for our classrooms!!

Sorry that I missed yesterday's post. I was at a Literacy meeting in Yorkton.

We started off our day today with our school Assembly. We had a wonderful presentation from the Karate club in which some of our students provided the school with a great presentation! Great job!! I was quite impressed!!

To finish off our morning, we worked to complete the Problem Solver that we have been working on. The students did an awesome job!! Again, I was impressed!!

In Writing, we talked about how we choose ideas once again. We took it a step further today. We talked about how to narrow our ideas once we have a good one that we think we could work with. For example, instead of writing about Halloween, I might choose to write about the clown make-up I had for Halloween one year. Students had the opportunity to choose an idea of their own, and narrow the topic. We then wrote about our new topics.

After lunch, we completed Math Pods. At the computer station, students worked in pairs to play Algebra Four. At the rug, Mrs. Lippai worked with the students to practice equations. Students worked in partners. They each had a wipe board in which they wrote an equation. Their partner had to try and solve the equation.
At the back table, students handed in yesterday's math assignment. We then reviewed yesterday's rug activity. Students were then assigned page 24/25 (1,2,4). This assignment is due for tomorrow.

To finish up our day, students had Phys. Ed. with Mr. Leidl.

We read the next chapter in Hatchet. We also worked on the reading strategy "Predicting" as students wrote on sticky notes what they predict will happen next in the story.

Great day today boys and girls!! You all worked very hard today and I'm very proud of you!! Yahoo!!!

Reminders:
- Please return the Internet permission form asap.
- Please hand in your recipe by tomorrow

As we begin our new week, we completed another day of Centers. Students picked their 7 spelling words for this week at the Guided Reading station. Continue to practice these words for the test on Friday.

In Science, students worked in their groups to complete their Temperature Investigation that they have been working on for the last 5 days. Students were able to use the information they have gathered to answer the question they set out to discover. Great job!
We also worked in our Weather Station partners to design and create our rain gauges. The students did a wonderful job of being creative and practical! I was impressed!!

After lunch, we completed math pods. At teacher table, we worked together to compile equations from word problems. With Mrs. Lippai, students worked on using Guess and Check or By Inspection to solve addition and subtraction equations. At the computer station, students worked on two equation games: Late Delivery and Equations Practice.

We finished up the day with Phys. Ed. and Chapter 5 of our read aloud, Hatchet.

Have a great evening everyone! Don't forget to get your recipes in for the Gillen Recipe Book!!

Our Friday started off with Day 4 of Centers. Students wrote their spelling test and completed their TWAS at the Guided Reading station. Monday will start off with a fresh set of Centers as we go in cycles of 4 days.

After recess, we completed Math Pods. At the computer station, students watched a short video, Teaching Equations Video. At the independent station, students work to complete a patterns worksheet and handed this in. At the teacher station, we reviewed our last assignment and started to talk about equations. We will be using a Guess and Check strategy and By Inspection to solve equations over the next week or two.

Students worked in partners in Science to start designing their rain gauge's. Students need to bring whatever supplies they discussed with their partners to school for Monday.

In Social, we completed the atlas activity that we started last class. These were handed in.

Phys Ed wrapped up our day!

Have a great weekend everyone!! It was excellent to see how many students ordered books this month! I'm very proud of the students! They are showing a love of reading!!

Reminders:
Please return recipes ASAP

Thursday started off with Day 3 of Centers.

After recess, we had a short period of Social. Students worked together and started to work on an atlas activity. We will continue with this activity next class.

Students finished off the day in Art with Mrs. Schentag.

Reminders:
Spelling test tomorrow
Book Orders due tomorrow
Newsletter emails were sent last night. Please check your email. Paper copies will be sent home with those students who requested one tomorrow.
The PJ Gillen recipe book fundraiser is in full swing. Please return a favorite recipe of yours that you would like included in the book as soon as possible.

September Newsletter

September Newsletter

Room 20 – Mrs. Shields
www.mrsshieldsblog.blogspot.com

Welcome to a new and exciting year in Grade 5! Grade 5 has so many new things to offer students that this year will sure to be fun filled!

Communication is very important to me. I feel communication between everyone involved in your child’s education is extremely important for success. Please use my blog as a constant means of communication. I try to update my blog daily. If you ever have any questions, please feel free to contact me through email, kshields@mail.gssd.ca, or by phone 745-2171.

Co-teaching has been a positive addition to our school. We are very lucky in Grade 5 to have many co-teachers. The unique and positive teaching situations we are encountering this year are difficult to explain with words at time. We will be hosting a parent night in late September to help clarify any questions you may have. Please keep an eye out for a date.

Here is a breakdown of what the month of September will look like for us:

Language Arts:
We are using a Centers approach to Language Arts. Students have been split into 8 different small groups. Co-teaching is taking place in this area of study to help create smaller reading groups and more individualized instruction.

The two teacher led groups are Guided Reading and Independent Reading.
Myself and Mrs. Gale will be working at the Guided Reading stations, while Mrs. Lippai, Mrs. Kulscar, and Mrs. Nel will be working at the Independent Reading stations.

Guided Reading – Students will be enjoying a variety of stories and poems in small groups. We will be working on reading fluency, comprehension, and written responses. Some stories or poems that we work on will lend themselves to students also writing stories or poems with similar elements, topics, or structures found in the initial story or poem.

Independent Reading – Students will be learning how to select a book that is “just right” for them. Too easy a book does not challenge and too hard a book make reading enjoyment and comprehension very difficult. Throughout the year students will learn a variety of reading strategies that will assist them in their reading and comprehension of what they are reading. The first reading strategy that will be a focus is predicting.

Students will work on individual stations if they are not at one of these two reading stations.

Spelling words will be given every Monday (or first day of the week in the case of a long weekend). Students will be choosing 7 words from a word list provided from the story they are reading in Guided Reading. Each student will have an individualized list therefore it is very important for students to write their words in their agendas. Students will write their Spelling test every Friday. Please practice these words throughout the week.

We will also be using the 6+1 Writing strategies within our creative writing class. With this system, students are encouraged to be creative and let their individualities shine! At this stage in our writing process, we are focusing on Ideas, the first of the 6+1 traits. With this trait, we are not concerned about spelling words correctly. We want kids to step out of their comfort zone and use words that may not be common place for them.

Read aloud has been scheduled into our day. I feel reading aloud to students is a critical component of modelling reading strategies and allowing students to simply enjoy a good book. We are starting off the year with “Hatchet,” an adventure filled realistic fiction book.

Math:
We will be using a Math Pod approach during our Math classes. Within this system, students rotate through three separate stations. One station is always computer based. I will continue to post the sites we use in the pods on my blog site for students to practice the skills. A second station, guided by myself, is for introducing new concepts. At this station, we often work through examples and begin working on the new concepts. The third station, sometimes run by a co-teacher, is meant for reinforcement of the previous lesson. The activities done at this station are usually hands on.

Our first unit in Math is Patterns and Equations. Throughout this unit students will be analyzing number patterns and stating pattern rules. We will also be working with problem solving strategies by applying patterning. Students will also be working with number expressions and solving equations.

We will also work to practice our problem solving skills using Problem Solvers and Exemplars.

Science:
We will be following the new Science curriculum this year. Our first unit will be Weather. In this unit, we will be discovering and learning about weather and climate. We will also find out about weather patterns and how they help us to forecast weather. The students will have many opportunities to design, build, and test different weather instruments.

Social Studies:
Our first unit in Social will be Location. In this unit, we will compare globes and various types of maps. We will also learn a variety of map skills. We will use an atlas to complete a variety of activities. Students will also learn the names and locations of the different continents and oceans.

Physical Education/Health (Mr. Leidl):
The Grade 5’s will begin their Physical Education classes focusing on sending and receiving skills. Students will also work on fitness planning, strength training, and flexibility skills. Participation, fun, and enthusiasm are required.
Students will get an overview of the Grade 5 Health Curriculum which will begin with a unit on Personal, Social, and Emotional Wellness. Students will learn strategies to improve their fitness and wellness initiatives.

Arts Education (Mrs. Schentag):
Welcome Back to School! I hope that everyone had a relaxing summer and has come back to school filled with excitement. I am very happy to be teaching your child Arts Education this year and I look forward to watching them create in the areas of Music, Visual Arts, Drama and Dance.

We will begin the school year in the Music Strand working on the unit entitled The World of Music. Students will learn about various musicians and the different genres of music, the musical instruments used to create their work and the elements of music. They will also explore rhythm activities; participate in musical games and musical listening activities.

I hope to challenge the students in the areas of technology and research so that they explore all aspects of the art world-creatively, culturally and historically.
I look forward to a productive and fun year in Arts. Ed. If you ever have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact me at the school – 745-2171. Also, if you have any artistic talents that you would like to share with the students we would be happy to welcome you to our classroom-just let me know!

Have a great year everyone!!

Sorry for missing yesterday's blog!!
Today is International Literacy Day. We started our day with a Literacy Assembly in the gym this morning. Students watched the following YouTube video created by a middle school in California:

After watching the video, students broke off into 12 groups as a whole school and read two books with their assigned teacher. We then created bookmarks that will be shared with other students all over the world!!

After recess, students had Art with Mrs. Schentag.

To start off our afternoon, we continued to work on our Problem Solver that we started last week. Students are using the Creating a Pattern strategy to solve the problem we are working on. They are doing an excellent job!

We finished off our afternoon with Social Studies. Students worked in pairs to discuss transportation routes and ways of communication in a variety of scenarios throughout the world.

Mr. Leidl made the day complete with Phys. Ed!!

Book orders are due by Friday, September 10.

YESTERDAY
We completed our second day of Centers yesterday. Students got their first spelling list at Guided Reading. Their first spelling test will be Friday. Students have written their spelling words in their agenda to study from.

During writing we continued to work on the Ideas trait. Students drew a "Treasure Map" of their ideas and picked one of their treasures to write about. The students are doing a wonderful job digging for some great ideas!!

In math, students worked on pages 11/12 (2 a,b,c, and 3). This assignment was for homework if not completed. We also watched our Born Numeracy video that we created our first week of school. The students worked in their pods to take math pictures around the school. We then compiled these pictures to make our own video!!


We finished off the day by reading the next two chapters in our read aloud, Hatchet!!

Friday began with our first day of Centers! The students did a wonderful job of following their map and knowing which station they had to be at.

We worked to complete our T.W.A.S. (This Week At School). Students will be completing this every Friday. With this, students will be writing a letter to someone special to them that details what they have done at school over the week. Please take the time to read these letters and sign and return them to school on Tuesday. We will use this activiti to practice writing a letter, paragraph structure, and sentence structure.

After recess, we completed a short set of Math Pods. At the computer station, students could choose any of the Pattern games that we have played already. At teacher table, we discussed yesterday's homework assignment and corrected together. We also began talking about how to use patterning to problem solve. Students continued to work on their chart paper patterns at the rug to complete the third station.

During Social Studies, we looked at 4 different types of flat maps and discussed the advantages and disadvantages of these.

Students finished off the day with French and Phys Ed.

Have a safe and fun long weekend!! See everyone on Tuesday!!

We started off out day with Independent Reading. Mrs. Lippai spoke with the class on how to choose a "Just Right Book." Students will be working on developing the skills to pick books that they can enjoy and that are at their reading level. We spent the morning trying to find that book!! Students then took some time to dive into their new books!!

After recess, we completed three stations in Science. At the computer station, students worked on some weather puzzles on Weather Channel Kids. At a second station, students finished their title pages for our Weather unit. At the final station, students worked in groups to develop a question about temperature. Students then had to design an investigation that will allow them to answer this question over a 5 day span.

After lunch, we sqeezed in some Math Pods as we also took our school pictures! At the computer station, students worked on Number Cracker. At the rug, students worked on creating number patterns with their groups and began to write them on chart paper. These will be in the hallway very soon!! Come check out our patterns!! At the final station, students worked to complete yesterday's assignment from page 8 of the textbook. We worked on numbers 1 and 3. These are for homework if students did not get complete.

To finish off the day, students had Phys Ed and we read Chapter 2 of our read aloud, Hatchet.

Another day has come and gone!

We started off our day watching the Math Video that was being "stubborn" for us yesterday. We watched The Born Numeracy to see examples of math in the real world.

We also took some time this morning to review our language arts centers. Please ask your child about this. Some students are switching classrooms and working in Mrs. Gale's room. We will explain this in more detail in our first classroom newsletter, as well a parent night that we will be hosting in September. We also reviewed the expectations for Spelling.

After recess, we completed Math pods. Station 1 had students working as a group to go on a "Math in the Real World" hunt. Students took the digital camera and took pictures around the school of math. We will be creating a short video similar to the Born Numeracy video we watched earlier in the day. Station 2 had students watch a short video on the computer, Patterns. At station 3, we worked on our first textbook assignment from page 8 (numbers 1 and 3).

We also started with our 6+1 Writing Traits. We compiled a list of ideas in our Seed Idea Lists that will help us build on later.

We also had our first Science class today. We talked about what we will be covering in our first unit, Weather, and started to work on our title pages.

In Social, we completed a worksheet on The Globe.

Have a great night everyone!!

The Pancake Breakfast was a wonderful way to start off another day. Thank you to everyone who helped make the breakfast yet another success!!

Students spent some time today picking a "Just Right" book. We talked about how to choose that perfect book for them!

After recess, students spent an hour with Mrs. Schentag in Art.

In the afternoon, we completed our first day of Math Pods!! The students did wonderfully!! We completed 3 stations.
Station 1 was at the computer where students had the option of two games: Color Patterns and Pattern Generator.
Station 2 had students working with Mrs. Lippai and creating patterns using the pattern blocks.
At station 3, we worked on recognizing number patterns and finding the next few numbers in the pattern.

To finish off the day, students had Phys Ed with Mr. Leidl. We also began our Read Aloud titled Hatchet.

Reminders
Please return the following tomorrow:
Newsletter Preference form
Highlights magazine form

First Day Back!!

We started off the year with a great day!!

We began this morning with our supplies and getting to know the classroom. Students spent much of the morning in art with Mrs. Schentag.

After lunch, we worked together on Problem Solving as reviewed the template that we will use.

Students then went off to French with Mrs. Orosz.

We worked on our title pages for Social Studies. These are due for tomorrow.

We finished off the day in Phys Ed with Mr. Leidl.

Here's to the start of another great school year!!!

Welcome Back!!

Welcome back everyone! I am excited to start another fun filled year! Please bookmark this blog in your favorites to get daily updates as to what we are doing in class, view pictures and videos of our work, and see what's coming!

We started off our day with a swim!! We wrote our Math test shortly after we returned from swimming. The kids finished the day with Art, French, and Phys Ed. Here are a few more of the photostories...

We finished day 3 of Centers this morning. After recess, students had library. Students have been asked to return all library books to school as soon as possible. We corrected the math unit review to finish up the morning. Students will write their last math test on Friday, June 18! Students finished off the day in French and Phys Ed. Here are a few more Photostories...

Photostories

Here are a few of the Photostories that the students worked so hard to complete. I will post a few each day!

Sorry about the missing posts. Our internet at school has been hit and miss these past few days!!

We started our day today with Centers. This will be our last set of Centers before the end of the school year!!

After recess, students shared their Photostories with the class. They have all done a wonderful job with this assignment and put so much "extra" into it!!
We also finished reading our read aloud "Hatchet."

After lunch, students worked on their unit review (pages 290-291, 1,2,3,4,5,6,8).

To finish off this beautiful day we spent the last hour of the day at the swimming pool.

Grade 5 Band Orientation will be held on Thursday, June 24 at 9:30am.

Reminders:
Thursday, June 17 - swimming
Tuesday, June 22 - swimming and lunch at the park

We started off our week with another day of Centers.

After recess, students continued to work on their Photostories. I will begin to post these stories on the blog as the students have done a wonderful job!!

Students finished off the morning in French.

After lunch we completed 3 stations in Math Pods. At seat work, students completed a Spinner Experiment. At teacher table, we reviewed last week's assignments. Students played Probability Sets. Once completed with this link, students were able to choose any of the Probability links already in their folders.

To finish off the day, we enjoyed a presentation from Miss. Kennedy about the relationship between predators and prey.

Reminders
Swimming money
Baby pictures

We started our day with Spelling. Students have been asked to pick 7 more words from their writing that they find difficult. We worked on choosing our 7 words today and will work on composing the sentences tomorrow.

We completed Math Pods before recess as well. Seatwork had students working on page 274/275 (2,4,5,6) focusing on the language of probability. At teacher table, we constructed and completed a probability experiment in which we will discuss the results tomorrow. At computers, students played BBC Probability and Fish Probability.

Students finished off the day with Art, French, and Phys Ed.

Reminders
Baby pictures
Swimming money

We completed another set of Centers today. All activities are due for tomorrow.

After recess, students had Science with Mrs. Gale. We then wrote our spelling test and read another chapter in our read aloud, Hatchet.

After lunch, students wrote their graph quiz. We then worked to complete our Census graphs.

To finish off the day, we continued to work on our Photostories.

We have finally reached our Scamo goal and will be celebrating with a wacky hair and pj day on Monday, June 7.

Reminders
Book Orders due tomorrow
Baby Pictures

June Newsletter

June ’10 Newsletter
Mrs. Shields Room 20
http://mrsshieldsblog.blogspot.com/

Here we are...June! This year has flown by quicker than I had thought it would. Time flies when you are having fun!

Grade 5 Farewell is scheduled for Friday, June 25. Students will be bringing home a request from the Tea Committee asking for a specific item for the Farewell. Students will also be bringing home an invitation to the Farewell that asks for an estimate of people who will be attending. Please send a baby picture as soon as possible. These pictures will be returned. We thank you for your cooperation in helping us to make the Farewell a special event for our students.

We will be going to the swimming pool three times in June. Our scheduled days are:
- June 15 (2-3pm)
- June 17 (2-3pm)
- June 22 (11-12pm)
If the weather cooperatives with us, both grade 5 classes will have lunch in the park as well.

Nicole Kennedy will be visiting our classroom. She will doing a presentation on Predator/Prey Relationships and Adaptations. She will be in our classroom Monday, June 7 from 2:30-3:30.

To finish off Grade 5 we will...

Language Arts
We will continue with Centers until the end of June. Guided Reading will also continue as we are moving through the material and focusing on more challenging strategies and discussion.

Spelling will continue, although with a bit of a twist. Students will be asked to pick their own spelling words, chosen from words they notice they have trouble with in their writing. The format will be the same as previous lessons.

Students continue to do a wonderful job with writing. I am very proud of how far everyone has come as authors! We are currently working on writing and using Photostory to create a digital book.

Math
We have begun our last unit: Statistics and Probability. The students get to have fun with this unit as we do many experiments to test probability and conduct surveys to collect information for graphing. Within this unit we will focus on the following outcomes:
• Learn the difference between first-hand and second-hand data
• Ask questions and decide whether the answer requires first-hand or second-hand data
• Find examples of second-hand data in print and electronic media
• Solve problems by constructing and interpreting double bar graphs
• Use words such as likely, unlikely, impossible, and certain
• Describe the probability of everyday events
• Compare the likelihood of two events

Social
We will continue our Federal Government Makes Decisions unit throughout the month of June. Students have been doing a wonderful job exploring various resources to learn some of the many components of our government. We will finish off the year by doing a small research project on a Prime Minister (past or present). We will also conduct a classroom election where students will get to experience the voting experience.

Science – Mrs. Gale
We will continue to work on our Resource Unit; students will work on an activity of their choice that is related to water, air, and soil pollution, or waste disposal practices. The topics of conservation and recycling will be a focus.

Phys. Ed – Mr. Leidl
Students will complete preparations for the school track and field meet during the first week of June. They year will end with school swimming, tennis skills, and softball.

Health – Mr. Leidl
The year will end with students reviewing their personal wellness action plans that they established at the beginning of the school year.

Art – Mrs. Schentag
We will conclude our Ethnic Dance Unit in the first week of June. Students have learned some fun, novelty dances but they have also learned the popular prairie dances such as the Butterfly, Polka and Schottische. They were great sports and were always willing to give each dance their best effort. You may be pleasantly surprised by their talents at the next family dance!

We will finish up the year by delving into a Visual Art Unit concentrating on drawing while focusing on the summer activity of biking in order to inspire our artwork. I plan to invite Mr. Zack from the high school into our class, to give a presentation to the students about the technique of biking and the success of the local bike club.

Students will also practice their Farewell Song for their Grade 5 Farewell.
With that, I would like to say "Farewell" to a wonderful group of Grade 5 students. I hope that you enjoyed your time in Arts Ed. as much as I did. Your motivation and excitement in everything that we did in class made for a wonderful and memorable Grade 5 year.

I wish all of you the very best as you enter the High School. I only see great things happening in your future!

Best Wishes, as well, for a relaxing summer holiday!

French - Mrs. Orosz
Students will take home a portfolio of their work based on the play L’Arbre Ungali during the second week of June. At that time, they are to present the play to you with their paper puppets, and show you their “cahiers” or exercise booklets.

Please fill out and return the brief parent feedback form which they will give you then, about your child’s French presentation to you. Thank you for returning them by June 14th (Monday).

The class has participated in creating a class “written story re-telling” of L’Arbre Ungali. Some students have completed their cahiers, and are writing out their own “story re-telling” or “histoire avec des mots différents.” It is exciting for students to realize that they can tell the same story with different words, in French! We look forward to adding details to, and sharing, this work with each other in our remaining classes.

Students have shown significant growth in their ability to understand, speak, read and write in French this year. It has been a pleasure to guide your child in these achievements.





I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for being a part of my classroom this year. We have had a tremendous year of learning, full of excitement and new experiences. I can honestly say that I will miss spending each day with this wonderful group of unique students.

Best of luck next year in Grade 6!

Mrs. K. Shields

Our week started off with Day 3 of Centers.

After recess, students had Library with Mrs. Schentag.

We completed Math Pods today as well. Seat work had students working with the Census information they compiled last week. Students have to construct a double bar graph using any of the information from the Census. At teacher table, we reviewed the graphs drawn last week. We also began talking about the language of probability. Students were assigned #1 from page 274. At computers, students watched a short video introducing Probability. Once you click on the site go to lesson 19 for the video.

Students finished off the day with French and Phys. Ed.

Reminders:
Our last book order has gone out. Please have all book orders in by Wednesday, June 2.
Spelling Test tomorrow
Please bring $5 for swimming

Day 2 of Centers started off our Friday. Great job Grade 5!

After recess, we continued to work on our Photoshop narratives. Students also handed in their Creative Creature stories.

Students had French with Mrs. Orosz before lunch.

We completed Math Pods today as well. At seatwork, students continued to work on their graphs from page 268 (#2). This graph is due for Monday. We reviewed yesterday's assignment at teacher table (pages 264/265, #3,4,5,6). Students also started to work on #4 from page 268. We are continuing to work on our double bar graphing skills!! At computers, students inputed information into the Census Canada website that we will use for activities next week.

To finish off our day, the Grade 5's enjoyed a Farm Safety presentation.

I hope everyone enjoys the weekend!

We started off our short week with our monthly assembly. Great job to those students who performed this morning.

We continued to work on our spelling sentences for Lesson 25. Choosing "trouble" words has been challenging!

After recess, students continued to work on their Creature Creation stories. Some students also started our next assignment in which students are using Photostory to present their next narrative.

After lunch, we discussed and completed a chart comparing the duties of our federal government, provincial government, and municipal governments using the website Canada Info.

We finished off our day with Math Pods. One group worked with Mrs. Lippai to discuss interpreting double bar graphs. Another group worked with me to construct a double bar graph. Lastly, the computer group worked through a Reading Charts and Graphs quiz on the computer pertaining to double bar graphs.

Reminders
Students have been asked to bring a baby picture to school. You can also email a picture to Alana Burns. These pictures will be returned.

We started out this beautiful Friday with Spelling. Students had to look through their writing binders and choose 7 words that they have had trouble with spelling. They then used these words, as we have all year, to compile 7 sentences.

We then completed Math Pods to start out our new unit: Statistics and Probability. At teacher table, we worked through questions 1-3 from page 260 focusing on the difference between first and second-hand data. At seat work, students worked on question 4 from page 260. Students worked in partners to come up with a question to ask their classmates to collect first-hand data. At computers, students used the website Grapher to create a graph using the information given in a short story from class. Students then printed these graphs to hand in.

Students finished off the day in French and Phys Ed.

Have a great long weekend everyone and see you on Wednesday!

We finished up our last day of Centers this morning. Activities are due for tomorrow.

After recess, students had Science with Mrs. Gale. They took home their tomatoes plants as their green thumbs shown through!!

We then wrote our spelling test and read the next chapter in our read aloud.

After lunch, students wrote their Transformations unit test. I have sent the tests home for you to look at and send back to school tomorrow. I have also sent home an updated Markbook for math through email. We began discussing first and second hand data also, as part of our next unit: Statistics and Probability.

To finish off the day, we continued to work on our Creative Creature stories.

Have a great day and enjoy the heat!!

A special thank you to Mrs. Davis for coming in and taking pictures of the Grade 5's for the Farewell!

We worked on Day 3 of Centers this morning.

After recess, students had library with Mrs. Schentag.

We then reviewed Transformations for our Math Test tomorrow.

After lunch, students had French and Phys. Ed.

Reminders:
Spelling Test tomorrow
Math Test tomorrow

We started a new set of Centers this morning.

After recess, students had Science with Mrs. Gale. We then went to the computer lab where students could choose any math game from the Transformations folder.

We completed a unit review in Math after lunch. We will be having a unit test on Thursday, May 20.

Students finished the day off outside in Phys. Ed.

Reminders:
Donnica Davis will be coming in to take pictures of the Grade 5's on Wednesday morning.

Grade 6 Orientation will be held in the evening of June 8.

Subway lunch - Wednesday, June 19