Fifth Grade News

Monday, September 30 - Picture Day!

Thursday, October 3 - Systemwide Professional Development Day - Schools Closed for Students

Friday, October 18 - Schools Closed for Teachers and Students (MSEA Convention)

Friday, October 25 - Field Trip to Oregon Ridge (more information coming soon)

Saturday, October 26 - PTA Fall Fest

Monday, October 28 - Thursday, October 31 - Book Fair

Tuesday, October 29 - Donuts with Grown Ups (evening PTA event)

Thursday, October 31 - First Marking Period Ends - Schools Close 3 Hours Early & Book Character Day!

Friday, November 1 - Systemwide Professional Development Day - Schools Closed for Students

Tuesday, November 5 - Election Day - Schools Closed for Teachers and Students

Tuesday, November 12 - Picture Re-Take Day

Thursday, November 14 - Report Cards available on Focus

Tuesday, November 19 - Parent Teacher Conference Day - Schools Closed for Students

Friday, November 22 - Fancy Day/ Dress to Impress (School Wide Spirit Day)

Wednesday, November 27 - Schools Close 3 Hours Early

Thursday, November 28 - Friday, November 29 - No School

Thursday, December 12 - Winter Concert

Friday, December 20 - Schools Close 3 Hours Early & PJ Day! (School Wide Spirit Day)

Monday, December 23 - Wednesday, January 1 - Winter Break - Schools Closed for Teachers and Students

Thursday, January 2 - Schools Reopen

Monday, January 20 - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Schools and Offices Closed

Friday, January 24 - Second Marking Period Ends - Schools Close 3 Hours Early

Wednesday, January 29 - Systemwide Professional Development Day - Schools Closed for Students

Friday, January 31 - Color Wars! Wear purple to support 5th grade (School Wide Spirit Day)💜

When notifying the school about a change in dismissal or early dismissal, please send an email to both fifth grade teachers as well as both of our office staff Barb Balestrini bbalestrini@bcps.org and Katherine Taylor ktaylor3@bcps.org on the morning of the change or early dismissal.

In this unit, students add and subtract fractions with unlike denominators, using a variety of strategies to find common denominators.

The big ideas for this unit include:

• A fraction can be expressed in numerous ways.
• Representing a fraction or decimal in an alternate way might make it easier to compare with other fractions or decimals and to compute.
• Computation with fractions is an extension of computation with whole numbers.
• A fraction is relative to the size of the whole or unit.

In this unit, students...

• Learn to understand and use the terms “ratio,” “rate,” “equivalent ratios,” “per,” “at this rate,” “constant speed,” “constant rate,” “unit rate,” “speed,” “pace,” “percent,” and “percentage.”
• They recognize when two ratios are or are not equivalent and that equivalent ratios have equal unit rates.
• They represent ratios as expressions, and represent equivalent ratios with double number line diagrams, tape diagrams, and tables.
• They represent percentages with tables, tape diagrams, and double number line diagrams, and as expressions.
• They use these terms and representations in reasoning about situations involving unit price, constant speed, measurement conversion, color mixtures, and recipes.

We are continuing Module 2 titled "What a Story." In this module, students will listen to, read, and view a variety of texts and media that present them with different ways to tell a story. A genre focus on fiction provides students with opportunities to identify characters, setting, plot and conflict in order to better understand unfamiliar texts. Students will also encounter poetry, myth, and fantasy/adventure to build knowledge across genres. As students build their vocabulary and synthesize topic knowledge, they will learn that the elements of a great story can be found in literature of all genres.

We will also begin the narrative story-writing process as part of our Module 2 Performance Task. We'll be exploring and identifying plot structure elements in preparation for utilizing that structure to help students craft their own stories.

Students will take their Unit 1 Assessment on Tuesday, October 1st. Students will be able to use their resources from class on this assessment.

In this unit students will learn about...

• Thirteen Original Colonies
  
• Colonial Crafts and Trades
  
• New England’s Economy
  
• Economy of the Middle Atlantic Colonies
  
• Colonial Gristmills
  
• Hidden Figures of African History
  
• Economy of the Southern Colonies
• Southern Plantation Life
  
• Linking Cash Crops to Slavery
  
• Trade with Britain in 1750
  
• Triangle Trade Routes

Unit 1 of the BCPS Science Curriculum is called "Blast Off!" and will have students working in teams to plan and conduct investigations developing a fuel for a rocket they will design. At the end of the unit, they will put their fuel to the test by using it to launch their own liquid-propelled rocket and measure its altitude. Finally, after reviewing the flight data, they will propose how to make their rocket fly even higher.

We will begin constructing our rocket on Tuesday of this week. While we have all of the supplies necessary for my current Science class, I'll be teaching the same Science lessons to the other half of 5th grade in a few weeks. To do this, we will need donations of empty 16.9oz soda bottles. Any help would be greatly appreciated!