DMS 5th Grade Newsletter
Important Dates
January 15th end of 2nd quarter
January 18th no classes
February 9th student-led conferences
February 11th student-led conferences
Winter Wear
As a reminder, we go out for recess daily, so students should be dressed appropriately. If students do not wear snowboots, they must stay on shoveled sidewalks only. If they want to play in the snow, they will need to wear snow pants as well.
Wanted: Readers!
Well, specifically, we want pictures of students reading. Our 5th grade hallway bulletin board will display pictures of students reading (the cover of the book should be clearly visible). You can send the printed pictures to school with your child or you can email it to one of the 5th grade teachers and we can print them off and hang them up.
Iowa Assessments
Iowa Assessments are coming up at the end of the month. Please encourage your child to do his/her best on these assessments. Please try not to schedule any appointments during the testing periods. Thank you.
Week of Jan. 25-29 vocabulary & reading
Week of Feb. 1-5 math & social studies
Week of Feb. 8-12 science
Iowa Reading Council Writing Contest
*Creative Stories- 750 words or less (will need an accurate count on entry form)- judged on: continuity, creativity/originality, clearly defined and developed story elements, organization and technical mechanics
*Poems- interest simulated, response evoked, creativity and originality, conciseness of vocabulary creating an image, rhythm, and spelling
*All Entries must be typed, double spaced (no pictures/illustrations)
*All Entries must have title on the first page
*name must NOT appear on any pages of the story (your teacher will help you complete the appropriate entry form)
Deadline to submit story/poem to writing teacher: January 22, 2016
Solving the Discipline Puzzle- Steps for Growing Respectful and Responsible Kids
A FREE workshop provided by Keystone AEA and the Parent & Educator Connection: the workshop will help parents find simple methods that help their kids be respectful and responsible while ensuring strong positive relationships with them and keep peace at home.
Join us to learn how to:
- View discipline problems as a chance to help your child learn new, socially appropriate ways to behave.
- Use common socials skills for children and youth to guide your discipline efforts.
- Clarify your personal expectations for your child/youth at home, creating more peaceful routines.
- Strengthen your child/youth and increase desired behaviors through the use of effective praise.
- Look at misbehavior as a teaching opportunity and to peacefully correct your child/youth.
Parents are encouraged to attend the workshop in person. However, teleconference participation will be available using Zoom (telephone or computer). A teleconference site will also be available at the Keystone AEA's Dubuque Office. Parents who select participation by Zoom via computer or telephone will receive further details through email.
Please go to http://tinyurl.com/pecpw16 by February 26th to register for the workshop. Further information is available on the Keystone AEA website under the Parent & Educator Connection tab.
NEWS FLASH!!
From Mr. Peterson: In science we started an exploration of forces and motion by banging some stuff around in science class. :) In reading, we continued our study of using context clues to figure out new vocabulary. In writing, we are finishing up a short “how to…” post for Kidblog. Check out what they’ve done by visiting the site with your child.
From Mrs. Nowack:
Science: This week students learned about the six land biomes of North America. Next week we’ll explore more about land biomes and learn about water ecosystems. A test is planned for Monday, January 25th.
Reading: Students presented their book talks to their classmates, we reviewed identifying main ideas and summarizing, and have begun a new unit on sequencing.
Language: Writing lessons focused on using figurative language (personification and idioms) and the students have been busy brainstorming ideas for their historical fiction writing piece.
VIP: week of Jan. 11th- Britann
From Mrs. Suhr:
Social Studies - We started unit 8 on slavery this week. Students will learn about choices West Africans had in surviving slavery.
Language - Students have been brainstorming ideas for good historical fiction pieces. They will do some research to learn about a historical time period and daily life of characters in a story.
From Mrs. Halweg: These past two weeks in math we’ve been learning and practicing adding fractions and mixed numbers, subtracting fractions and mixed numbers, and solving story problems involving adding and subtracting mixed numbers. We will be spending Tuesday and Wednesday of next week reviewing in class. Your student will be assessed on these skills next Thursday, January 21.
From Mr. Kelley:
Masaki Nakamura, a Luther education student, has joined us for three weeks. He has been sharing about the culture in his homeland of Japan. We are currently reading a book entitled Shin’s Tricycle, which is a narrative about a family's experience of the bombing of Hiroshima during World War II. We are going to be comparing the Japanese and American perspectives of the bombing. We have really benefited from having him in our classroom and learning from him.
In writing, the students have just finished up an informational report on a country of their choice. In social studies, students just finished taking a quiz about slavery during the 1700s.
Below is a picture of Mr. Masaki explaining the differences in transportation between Japan and the United States.
Important Dates
January 15th end of 2nd quarter
January 18th no classes
February 9th student-led conferences
February 11th student-led conferences
Winter Wear
As a reminder, we go out for recess daily, so students should be dressed appropriately. If students do not wear snowboots, they must stay on shoveled sidewalks only. If they want to play in the snow, they will need to wear snow pants as well.
Wanted: Readers!
Well, specifically, we want pictures of students reading. Our 5th grade hallway bulletin board will display pictures of students reading (the cover of the book should be clearly visible). You can send the printed pictures to school with your child or you can email it to one of the 5th grade teachers and we can print them off and hang them up.
Iowa Assessments
Iowa Assessments are coming up at the end of the month. Please encourage your child to do his/her best on these assessments. Please try not to schedule any appointments during the testing periods. Thank you.
Week of Jan. 25-29 vocabulary & reading
Week of Feb. 1-5 math & social studies
Week of Feb. 8-12 science
Iowa Reading Council Writing Contest
*Creative Stories- 750 words or less (will need an accurate count on entry form)- judged on: continuity, creativity/originality, clearly defined and developed story elements, organization and technical mechanics
*Poems- interest simulated, response evoked, creativity and originality, conciseness of vocabulary creating an image, rhythm, and spelling
*All Entries must be typed, double spaced (no pictures/illustrations)
*All Entries must have title on the first page
*name must NOT appear on any pages of the story (your teacher will help you complete the appropriate entry form)
Deadline to submit story/poem to writing teacher: January 22, 2016
Solving the Discipline Puzzle- Steps for Growing Respectful and Responsible Kids
A FREE workshop provided by Keystone AEA and the Parent & Educator Connection: the workshop will help parents find simple methods that help their kids be respectful and responsible while ensuring strong positive relationships with them and keep peace at home.
Join us to learn how to:
- View discipline problems as a chance to help your child learn new, socially appropriate ways to behave.
- Use common socials skills for children and youth to guide your discipline efforts.
- Clarify your personal expectations for your child/youth at home, creating more peaceful routines.
- Strengthen your child/youth and increase desired behaviors through the use of effective praise.
- Look at misbehavior as a teaching opportunity and to peacefully correct your child/youth.
Parents are encouraged to attend the workshop in person. However, teleconference participation will be available using Zoom (telephone or computer). A teleconference site will also be available at the Keystone AEA's Dubuque Office. Parents who select participation by Zoom via computer or telephone will receive further details through email.
Please go to http://tinyurl.com/pecpw16 by February 26th to register for the workshop. Further information is available on the Keystone AEA website under the Parent & Educator Connection tab.
NEWS FLASH!!
From Mr. Peterson: In science we started an exploration of forces and motion by banging some stuff around in science class. :) In reading, we continued our study of using context clues to figure out new vocabulary. In writing, we are finishing up a short “how to…” post for Kidblog. Check out what they’ve done by visiting the site with your child.
From Mrs. Nowack:
Science: This week students learned about the six land biomes of North America. Next week we’ll explore more about land biomes and learn about water ecosystems. A test is planned for Monday, January 25th.
Reading: Students presented their book talks to their classmates, we reviewed identifying main ideas and summarizing, and have begun a new unit on sequencing.
Language: Writing lessons focused on using figurative language (personification and idioms) and the students have been busy brainstorming ideas for their historical fiction writing piece.
VIP: week of Jan. 11th- Britann
From Mrs. Suhr:
Social Studies - We started unit 8 on slavery this week. Students will learn about choices West Africans had in surviving slavery.
Language - Students have been brainstorming ideas for good historical fiction pieces. They will do some research to learn about a historical time period and daily life of characters in a story.
From Mrs. Halweg: These past two weeks in math we’ve been learning and practicing adding fractions and mixed numbers, subtracting fractions and mixed numbers, and solving story problems involving adding and subtracting mixed numbers. We will be spending Tuesday and Wednesday of next week reviewing in class. Your student will be assessed on these skills next Thursday, January 21.
From Mr. Kelley:
Masaki Nakamura, a Luther education student, has joined us for three weeks. He has been sharing about the culture in his homeland of Japan. We are currently reading a book entitled Shin’s Tricycle, which is a narrative about a family's experience of the bombing of Hiroshima during World War II. We are going to be comparing the Japanese and American perspectives of the bombing. We have really benefited from having him in our classroom and learning from him.
In writing, the students have just finished up an informational report on a country of their choice. In social studies, students just finished taking a quiz about slavery during the 1700s.
Below is a picture of Mr. Masaki explaining the differences in transportation between Japan and the United States.