Chapter 5 Math Test

We completed a review in class today as well as a study guide notecard.  I told the kids they can use this notecard to help them tomorrow on the test! I know this is hard to see, but hopefully your student has their own copy to study from!  Happy Studying!

Comparing Fractions

Today we talked about how to compare and order fractions.  Here are our class notes in case you need them to help with tonight's homework!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Good Morning 5th Graders!

This morning let's learn a little bit about the pilgrims first Thanksgiving.  The link below will take you to a webpage that offers a virtual field trip.  That's where you get to pretend you were there all through the computer.  Watch some of the videos and then list 2 facts you learned in the comments section of this post.  Remember to leave your name!

Click here to watch the videos!

Election Results

Hey 5th Graders!  I wanted to share this link with you to make your extra credit homework a little easier!  I believe if you click here you will be taken to abc news homepage.  If you scroll down there is a map that will start to change colors as soon as results come in.  I should tell you this might be a long night... as I told you my mom works as a city clerk in Wixom.  I just hung up the phone with her and she told me the lines were still crazy long and there was no way they'd be done by 8pm.  Although the polls technically close at 8pm, they stay until the last voter in line gets to vote.  Leave me some comments - let me know what you think about this experience!  (Please respect other classmates by not sharing your political views, but just comments about the election, news, voting, etc. in general.) See you in the morning! 

Math Review Day

Hey 5th Graders!  Welcome to math review day!  You may choose any one of these games to play to help review many math skills before tomorrow's big test.  Try to play as many as you can while we are here today!  Good luck! 

(Remember - this is to help you review, help you push your thinking.  Don't play the easy ones!)

Fraction Monkey

Fruit Shoot

Bus Driver Math

Comparing Equations

Fraction Balloon Pop

Fractions to Decimals

Scooter Quest

Perimeter

Area

Volume

Measurement Mania

Number Ball

Fraction Games

More Fraction Games

Triangles and Shapes

Math Playground

Prime Numbers

Battleship

Graphs Galore

Clock Games

Estimation Station

Chapter 2!

We're starting chapter 2 in math today!  Chapter 2 has to do with whole and decimal number addition and subtraction, then later multiplication and division. 

Chapter 1 test is coming home today, for those students who took it on Friday.  If your student scored less than a 70% on the test, they are encouraged to make test corrections and return the test the next day.  For test corrections they can use any materials to help them.  I will raise their score up to a 70% in the computer. 

Here are today's notes.  We learned two new algorithms for addition with decimals.  (Ask your student what algorithm means!)

Prime Factorization

Wow!  Today was a hard concept to learn but they seemed to catch on rather quickly!  We talked about prime factorizations and how to solve factor trees.  We did the number 24 twice so we could see that no matter how we started (either with 2 x 12 or 8 x 3) we always ended up with the same answer!  Remember we have a math test on Friday this week over all of chapter 1!  We'll do a review in class tomorrow to see what's coming up on the test. Happy Studying!

Chapter One Math Notes

Now that we are getting into the swing of things, I'd like to share the new routine we'll be doing each day.  Our math workshop will consist of 15 mintues of fact practice, a 15 minute lesson of new material, 15 minutes of independent work time, then 45 minutes of station completion.  Last week in class we reviewed what each of the SMART stations were in depth and this week they are trying it on their own.  The SMART menu should be located in their HOME binder under the "Math" tab.  If you have any questions, please let me know!

During the 15 minute lesson we write in our math notebooks together.  I keep one and complete it the same time the students do.  This way if someone is absent, they can borrow mine to catch up AND I can take a picture of the notes and insert here on the blog for parents to see that night to help with homework.  Hopefully the notes will be easy to follow and give a better understanding of the step by step process.  I apologize for being behind on this, but would like to insert our last 3 lessons now. 

Hopefully these notes will help with the homework as I mentioned above.  It should also give you a better understanding of what we're learning about at school.  I typically don't require students to bring home their math notebook (with our notes) but it is something that may be helpful to your students if you find they are struggling.  Just please remember to bring the notebook back to school!

Another helpful hint I wanted to draw your attention to was the planner page on the home page of the blog.  Each day we write in the planner as a class.  We write everything we did that day so you know what's happening.  We bubble/circle anything that is homework.  I will bubble anything in my planner that MIGHT be homework (example: if it's not done in class, it is homework) but your student will only bubble their homework for that night.  I will insert a picture of the planner of the day on that planner page (found on right hand side of main page).  Here's what yesterday's planner looked like. 



Spelling has been another complicated issue!  We work on spelling words for two weeks at a time.  Your students will be divided up into multiple spelling groups based on their individual needs.  For this first routine we are all starting with the same rules "oi" and "oy."  We have a routine in class that we will practice every day - the schedule of IN CLASS work is on the back of this week's spelling homework.  Again, this is IN CLASS work, not additional homework.  They do have homework, however.  The homework went home yesterday for the first time.  They must pick one activity from box A, one from box B and one from box C.  These three activities are to be completed using their spelling words from the week and turned in on the 2nd Friday of each spelling cycle.  The students will be tested every other Friday on 12 words randomly from their list.  They will be required to sort the words into the correct column on the test.  (Example, joy should be spelled correctly under the "oy" category/rule.)  

Lastly, reading logs.  I have put a reading log (pink) in each student's binder.  This is to be completed 5 out of the 7 nights a week.  Whichever days is up to them.  Each entry should be a different date though, even if they are still reading the same book.  I'll be looking for the number of entries, and dates read, not the number of books completed.  I will NOT be requiring AR tests this year.  As a personal preference, I don't think they are important for the growth of the students.  I do know that some students still enjoy taking them so the option is open if they would like to. 

I hope this information has been helpful.  Again, if you ever have any questions please do not hesitate to email (kmetevia@madison.k12.mi.us) or call the classroom.  I've taken the students to the computer lab today and showed them how to explore around on this blog a little more - please take time to have them show you how to leave a comment tonight and please leave one!  (Even if it's a simple hello - we love to hear from you!)

Have a great Tuesday!

Divisibility

Along with many new ideas this week in math was the concept of divisibility.  We learned rules to help us remember if numbers are divisible by other numbers without even having to do the math! 
*2 -> Ends in a 0, 2, 4, 6, 8
*3 -> Add the digits, divide by 3
*5 -> Ends in 5 or 0
*6 -> Divisible by 2 and 3.
*10 -> Ends in 0.

Here's a fun game for you to keep practicing at home!  Click Here!

Welcome!

Welcome fifth grade class of 2012-2013!

I'm hoping you are enjoying your summer vacation as much as I am! I've gone on a few trips, read a lot of great books and enjoyed spending time outside in this hot weather! What have you been up to this summer? Take a second to respond to this post and introduce yourself!

While you are here, please check out the "back to school" tab to see pictures, teacher info, and the supply list.  Enjoy your last few weeks of summer because we are going to have a busy year!!

Ms. Metevia

**How to Post:
1. Click "Comments" next to the date at the bottom of the post. 
2. Type your comment. At the end of your comment, type your name. 
3. In the pull down menu click "Comment As: Anonymous" 
4. Click Publish.  The comment then comes to my email for approval. 

Looking Back...

This will be our last time in the computer lab this year. :(  I would like you to take a moment to reflect over the last year and pick one or two favorite things.  Please be specific, don't just say camp.  I want to know two of the most memorable experiences you had as a member of this family this year. Leave them below in a comment.  Don't forget, I'm expecting each of you to come back and visit next year! :)

Reading Rate

It's that time of year again... NWEA tests are right around the corner!  While I was at the EBLI conference last week, Miss Nora shared with me a great website that I wanted to share with you!  The website gives you a passage to read online and then asks comprehension questions afterwards.  This is a good tool to have because it gives you extra practice reading on a computer screen, tells you your reading rate (speed), and also gives you an idea of your comprehension skills.  All of those skills are necessary on the NWEA test!  Please follow the directions below and go to this site a few times before the NWEA test in a few weeks.  Come back and try again in a few days to see if you beat your previous score - especially since we're learning so much EBLI in class!

Reading Practice

1. Click the link above.
2. Click "Get your Reading Rate" on the left side.
3. Change "Recommended" (on the top right, next to Tests) to "Children's Reading Level 5-6."
4. Choose a story to read and click "Take Test."
5. Click start. It will begin timing you as you read.  Then afterwards take the comprehension test. 

*Have your parents try at their level!

Video #2

Here's another example of a video of dissecting pig lungs, but this one is quite graphic. 

Pig Lung Dissection Video

Unit 3 Base Words

We started unit three today in our base word study.  Below are the 5 words for this week.  The quiz will be next week, Unit 3 and Unit 4.

photo - light
struct - build
aud - hear
therm - heat
vis - see