9/18/15
Dear Parents,
It has been another wonderful week! Students are working hard on tasks independently, as
well as in partnerships and small groups. Students have been focusing on taking
responsibility for their work and actions, assessing where they are in phases of learning
and asking for help if needed. They have also been focusing on being an active participant
in their learning. Students are rising to the occasion! It has been fun to watch them
navigate through the first month of 5th grade!
FRIDAY FOLDERS are being sent home with student work. Remember, the policy is to
remove any flyers, review work with your child, and then RETURN ALL STAMPED WORK
to school so students can learn to organize their work into subjects for their portfolios.
IMPORTANT NEWS FOR THE WEEK:

STILL MISSING: Be sure to read, sign (parent and student), and send in the
signature portion of the Homework Policy handout (blue) from Curriculum
Night! SIGNATURES WILL BE DUE BY FRIDAY, 9/25. Please let us know
if you are missing this document.

The Seth Paine After School Book Club will be held on Monday, September
28th from 2:50 to 4:15.
Grades 4 - 5:
Matilda by Roald Dahl
Matilda's parents dismiss her as a nuisance but things change when, in the wake of a cruel
headmistress's bullying, she discovers she has a remarkable power. Please read the book
ahead of time.


***Parent Conferences: Please note that you can sign up for ParentTeacher conferences on Sign-up Genius. An email was sent with the links
and is also available on my website.
Revolutionary War Days: Calling all volunteers!!! Every year, the 5th grade
participates in Revolutionary War Days, an enrichment activity for 5th grade
students. They will learn about life during this period from hands-on
experience at a variety of stations. All volunteers are welcome regardless
of what grade your child is in. Parents of current 4th graders are strongly
encouraged to assist for purposes of becoming familiar with this activity.
Please find the link to sign up below:
http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0d4ca8a62da46-revolutionary/19588740
SOME FUN OPPORTUNITIES:
 Barrington Civil War Reenactment – See my email sent
earlier this week for a fun family Civil War opportunity THIS
weekend!

Rare Celestial Event Won't Happen Again Until 2033 – We will
be studying the solar system and moon phases when we switch to Science
from Social Studies. Nearly all of North America, South America and Africa
will have a chance to see something truly amazing later this month when
three celestial events – a full moon, a supermoon, and a lunar eclipse – will
coincide for a few hours on September 27th! Click on the link for some
wonderful pictures!
http://www.weather.com/science/news/who-has-best-views-of-supermooneclipse?cm_ven=Facebook_TheWeatherChannel_Science_JBa_Article_No_4_20150912_t
wcplayer
IMPORTANT DATES:
Tuesday, September 22
Thursday, September 24
Monday, September 28
Friday, September 25
Wednesday, September 30
Friday, October 16
Bullying Assembly
Bingo Night
After School Book Club
Institute Day – No school
EARLY RELEASE
Revolutionary War Day
READ ON TO SEE WHAT WE ACCOMPLISHED THIS PAST
WEEK:
Math- We continue working on Module 1 which entails concepts like place value to millions,
writing numbers in standard, written, expanded, and exponential form. We have also
worked on being able to place numbers accurately on number lines. Additionally, students
have worked on identifying multiplication patterns to help them solve related problems.
PLEASE have your child practice basic math facts with you or go onto Moby Max. As
concepts get more challenging, simple math computation can impede learning if facts are
not memorized. As a reminder, work that is considered “Practice” will receive a “P” at the
top, while work that has been “Re-done” will receive an “R.” Module 1 TEST tentatively
scheduled 9/30.
Literacy
· Reading- We have practiced and built onto the “Stop and Jot” strategy, also
incorporating it in nonfiction reading with our social studies text. We have also
been working on utilizing the highlighting text evidence strategy. This is one that is
crucial for our fifth graders to master, as, being able to explain an answer using
text evidence is a very big component of the Common Core State Standards. We
spent a lot of time discussing and practicing how to have a conversation around a
text. We have reviewed story elements this week as well.
· Spelling- Students worked on Words Their Way this week. Word lists are typically
distributed on Mondays, with testing on Fridays. Students must complete at least 4
word sorts of their choice.
Writing- Students have been working on narrative writing, describing a time that was
challenging for them.
Social Studies- We started to read about the background leading up to the
Revolutionary War. We are anxiously preparing for Revolutionary War Day, and are
learning everything we can about it! We’ll be doing a lot with our interactive social
studies notebooks, and will be mastering the important vocabulary by utilizing ROK
(Ring Of Knowledge) cards. Students will want to make sure that they study their
words a little each day. They can bring their ROK cards everywhere- they are very
portable! Students were also sent home with a parent letter this week discussing
Spelling City, the online site to access new spelling/vocabulary words. Student
usernames and passwords were distributed earlier. We showed students how to
access the site, use their passwords to get to Mrs. Lyons’s page, and then bring up
the vocabulary list to study for the Social Studies Chapter 8 test (tentatively
scheduled for 9/29)
Science- We will be switching off back and forth between social studies and science. We
will start and complete one chapter/topic in Social Studies, and then once we have tested
will move to science. Our first units will be on the solar system and weather.
As always, please feel free to contact me with any questions, concerns or compliments.
Have a great weekend!
Mrs. Lyons