Fifth Grade Newsletter
From: Miss Bane and Miss Dellano
Date: February 22nd, 2013
Staff Pages
Check out our webpage to find updated information. Go to
the Lafayette School website and click on Staff Pages.
Specials Schedule
Monday- Dellano- Health Bane- PE
Tuesday- Bane- Art Dellano- Music Both- Spanish
Wednesday- Bane/Dellano- PE
Thursday- LMC/Spanish
Friday- Bane- Health Dellano- PE
Upcoming Events and Reminders
School Spirit Day is on Friday.
Please encourage your child to
wear blue and white!
Unit 3: Goin’ Someplace
Special assessment will be on
Thursday, February, 28th, 2013
Language Arts News
Last week, the students compared and contrasted the similarities and differences of two
nonfiction texts- “Polar Bears in Peril” and “Rescuing Cheetahs”. In the article,
“Rescuing Cheetahs”, the students learned about Dr. Laurie Marker, founder of the
CCF (Cheetah Conservation Fund) and how she is helping to save cheetahs in Namibia.
The purpose of the Cheetah Conservation Fund is to research and implement strategies
for cheetah conservation in its natural habitat. This week, our special guest, Melissa
Wimer spoke with the students about her experience when working with Dr. Laurie
Marker in Namibia. The students loved hearing about her adventures in Namibia and
how she helped protect and care for the cheetahs. The students were thrilled, engaged,
and asked her wonderful questions! Ask your child to tell you about some of the
pictures that she showed them.
Science News
We are having so much fun in science learning more about the bones in the
body. The students are putting together their own skeletons and we will be
displaying them in the halls outside our classrooms.
Math News
In math, we finished our topic on units of measurement. The students worked
very hard to learn the different conversions. We also did our fourth
Continental Math League this week. Now, we will be beginning to work with
ordered pairs and coordinate planes!
Also, just a reminder: Students should be practicing their multiplication and
division facts every night for 5-10 minutes. They can do this using flash cards,
math wheels (which are available on my web page), or one of the websites that
is available on my web page. Multiplication war with regular playing cards is
another fun way to practice, as well!
Social Studies News
The students have developed a mural to show the settlements of these colonies: New Spain, Virginia,
Massachusetts, and New France/New Netherland. The students have analyzed the differences in
colonization of the America’s by England, France, and Spain, including governance, and interactions with
other colonies and Native Americans. Students have determined the positive and negative effects that the
colony brought to the Native Americans.
Lesson 1 Locate the lands in North America claimed by Spain.
 Describe relations between Spanish settlers and Native Americans.
 Study relations between Spanish colonists and Native Americans.
Lesson 2


Learn how the Virginia Colony was settled.
Describe the relations between English settlers and Native Americans.
Understand the cooperation and conflict that existed between the Powhatan and settlers in Jamestown.
Lesson 3 Learn how people lived in the Plymouth Colony.
 Describe the cooperation and conflict between settlers and Native Americans.
 Explain how English settlers developed ways to govern themselves.
Lesson 4 Describe how European nations struggled for control of North America.
 Describe the relations between French and Dutch settlers and Native Americans.
Vocabulary:
Lesson 1- colony, plantation, slavery, borderland, presidio, mission, hacienda
Lesson 2- raw material, stock, cash crop, profit, indentured servant, legislature, represent, royal colony, primary
source, secondary source
Lesson 3- pilgrim, compact, self-government, majority rule
Lesson 4 – demand, supply, ally, proprietary colony