M.L.K. Jr. Day!

Here are the students' timelines!  Each class created their own.  :)

The Halfway Point is Here!

It is hard to believe, but today marks the end of the second nine weeks and the first semester. So many new activities are on the horizon.   Tuesday will bring a new novel for cafe in Reading called The Upstairs Room by Johanna Reiss.   We will begin to study the continent of Europe in Social Studies!  Groups will be rearranged in the room, and students will begin new related arts classes; Technology and Foreign Language for group 308 and Music and Art for group 310.  Sixth graders will begin the D.A.R.E. program too!  New exploratories will start, including the anticipated "Kids of Steel!"  Since the grading period has ended, report cards will be sent home next Friday, January 24th.


The students have been learning a lot about the Civil Rights Movement and the leadership of Martin Luther King Jr.  Look for their special posting on Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Our Social Studies classes performed a couple historical plays today, including one about the Civil Rights Movement called Crusader for Justice, a story about the contributions of activist Ida B. Wells.  Another play performed on a much different topic was The Hunt for Osama bin Laden.  It was based on the Navy SEALS storming the house where bin Laden was located.  These plays were found in our current events magazine Junior Scholastic.  The students enjoyed taking part in the readings.

During Language Arts, we focused on possessive nouns.  The students reviewed rules for forming singular and plural possessives, and they applied the rules in many exercises.  We will continue our review next week with a few more activities.

Homework:
GET YOUR TEST PACKETS SIGNED.  CHECK FOR YOUR VIDEO ON M.L.K. Jr. Day.  See you back in school on Tuesday!

Timeline Presentations

The students had an opportunity to learn from each other as the research work they completed for the Martin Luther King Jr. timeline was built and presented.  We opened the wall to allow for each class sharing with the other.  Each student explained the important events as the audience viewed their colorful illustrations.  Tomorrow the students will explain the events while being filmed.  The movie we create will be a tribute to Dr. King's great contributions.  Please check back!

We took our 

Homework:
Math - 5-5 Equivalent Fractions
Science - Hot Air Balloon page due on Thursday

Mrs. Friday's Assignments:
Spelling - ABC order, 2 wk.bk. pages
Math - fraction w.s. - group 1
           lesson 36 - group 2

Book Salesmen and Saleswomen

Our day began with sharing our book reports!  Each student has been reading a book of choice for a few weeks, in addition to our cafe novel that we just finished.  They created book reports which fanned out in the shape of a flower, but today made an attempt to get others in the class interested in reading their books.  Each student spoke to the class with enthusiasm to sell their book!  They shared a bit about the setting, characters, and conflict.  They told a bit about the plot, but just enough to entice others to read their book.  The presentations were great!  Before lunch, one of the students asked another if he could read Tim Tebow's autobiography!  Awesome!

During P.S.S.A. prep, we continued our study of ways to make connections while reading text.  The students did a great job of applying each tip to brief stories. We will continue to apply them to every passage we read. The following tips were reviewed and practiced:  1.  Use the details to make an inference.  2.  Use your inferences to make a conclusion.  3.  Make sure your answer is supported by the passage.  4.  Look for words that show causes and effects.  5.  Use the word because to connect events.  6.  Look for words that show comparisons and contrasts.  7.  Pick out details to make your own comparisons.  8.  A generalization should be supported by details in the passage.  9.  A passage organized by sequence tells the order in which things happened.  10.  Authors sometimes present a problem, then offer possible solutions to it.  11.  Authors sometimes ask a question and then suggest possible answers.  The most important thing is to never stop thinking when reading.  Always work on making connections!

This afternoon, students in both 5th and 6th grades shared their talents in our annual C.I.S. Talent Show!  Some sang, some played piano, some danced, and everyone enjoyed the show. Thank you to Ms. Meyers, Ms. Carroll, Mrs. McIlvaine, and Mr. Chambers for all your hard work in directing the students and planning the event.  There is another performance scheduled for this evening at 7:00 p.m. for family and friends to enjoy. 

Homework:
Math - Fraction word problems 1-12
Social Studies - Review all notes for your Nelson Mandela test!  The test is tomorrow.  Also, finish your piece for Martin Luther King Jr. timeline.  These will be shared tomorrow.

Ms. Friday's Assignments:
Spelling - Stairstep, 2 wk.bk. pages
Math - Fraction w.s. - group 1
            Lesson 35 - group 2