ROOM 12!

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013

NEWSLETTER

Students work diligently on their state poster projects during Social Studies

In Social Studies, students will soon begin to memorize all states and capitals and are slowly working their way from the east coast to the west coast of the U.S. In order to deepen their understanding of the states, students will write chose one state and write a
HELLO, TRIMESTER 2!

detailed research report. They will help their classmates to get a feel for their state by creating posters that include the state ower, motto, an interesting fact or two, and a lot of visual interest.

Trimester 1 has come and gone. Report cards went home before the Thanksgiving break and students should look forward to a new trimester with renewed enthusiasm. Now is a time to reset priorities, focus on areas needing improvement, and strive to achieve more during the next third of the year. I am condent that

each student will make leaps and bounds as the year continues. Please be sure to carefully look over your childs Trimester 1 grades and goals, and discuss the details with him/her. It is important to reinforce social and academic goals both at home and at school.

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ROOM 12!
Poetry ! In December students will be studying poetry. We will create our own diamantes, Where Im From poems, haikus and more. Our very rst piece of poetic work, our Where Im From poem, is especially meaningful. This type of poetry is focused on the writer - their families, friends, and histories. Students must reect deeply on meaningful times, important people, and even household items that explain who they are. It is a wonderful way to think back on what is important to us, as well as to help others understand who we really are. This special piece of writing will be proudly displayed throughout the rest of the year in Room 12. Begin to get excited about seeing your childs nished poetry. I think you will be impressed with their creativity and artistic talent. It is especially helpful to share enthusiasm for poetry with your child if you have a special fondness for it. Moving from Fractions to Students have worked intensely with fractions over the past month. Our fraction work involved using fraction tiles, creating visuals from word problems, and even playing some competitive fraction games with partners. We are now moving on to multiply and dividing decimals. Students will see the similarities and differences between manipulating decimals, versus the fractions they are now so familiar with. Winter Celebration ! We have a special Grade 5 d a y i n s t o r e f o r D e c e m b e r. December 20th will be the Grade 5 holiday party. Students will rotate through stations themed around the

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2013
winter holiday. Students will come away with beautiful artwork and fun crafts to decorate their homes over winter vacation. Hopefully the students are looking forward to working with all of the fth grade teachers and parent chaperones. Writing In the area of writing, we will soon be conquering Persuasive. If your children can argue for hours, come up with evidence to support their views and can even counter your arguments, they will be extremely successful with this writing genre. In the month of January we will locate and dissect magazine ads to uncover how they try to persuade us and whether we think they have been successful. Between television, billboards, and printed ads, we see that persuasion is truly all around us! We will engage in lively debates about whether the school year should be extended, if students should be allowed to have cell phones in the classroom, and more. The students are doing a wonderful job of tackling the persuasive format and coming up with strong arguments. Be on the alert - their powers of persuasion are really improving! POM The Problem of the Month problem-solving work is quite challenging but often quite fun! Students have been working through a series of math problems - all related, but increasingly difcult. When they complete as many as they can, they create a poster to explain their solutions. Often, this involves multiple problemsolving methods. Its amazing how many different ways there are to solve a problem! Please ask your child about the December Miles of Tiles problem and Gallery Walk!

December Calendar
5 - Benjamins Bday 9 - Hyrums Bday 22 - Nishas Bday 21- Jan 5 - Winter Break!

January Calendar
7 - Vishals Bday 20 - MLK Day (No School) 22 - Theater Field Trip (The Princess & the Pea)

Our P.O.M. Gallery Walk

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