Global Horizons: Fifth Grade- Foxworth & Bosch

Mr. Bosch has been doing a fantastic job with those videos!  I just have a few quick comments to make.  Students have been working hard to complete their poetry portfolio videos.  We hope to post these online.  They have also started a new project.  After learning about propaganda and persuasive writing, students are working to design an advertisement. 
Mrs. Foxworth’s class is having a Social Studies quiz tomorrow on “The Roaring Twenties” and “Good Times End. ” Here’s a link to our Wetpaint wiki where they posted their summaries of the topics, and there are links there to the Quia review activities.

Daily Video Log Entry. Includes a video showing the students working on the next step of their ecosystems projects.

Enjoy,

Mr. Bosch
Click To Play

Another video log (vlog) entry.

Enjoy,

Mr. Bosch

Click To Play

Today’s entry is being done a little differently. I decided to try something a little different and do a video entry. In this entry I discuss some of the day’s events, the students’ ecosystems projects, and include a description and video showing the students working on their projects. The finished projects will be posted on my Wetpaint wiki (GH708 Community), so please come check out this site that includes information for the GH708 community and resources for students and parents.

Enjoy,

Mr. Bosch

Click To Play

Students received new vocabulary words today which are all based on the Latin roots ped, numer, and lib.  Then block 1 had an introductory lesson on propaganda techniques.  Block 2 had Spanish today and will receive that lesson tomorrow.  We are working to finish up our poetry unit, and students spent writing time today finishing the poems required for their poetry portfolios.  Mr. Bosch’s students will take their MAP reading test tomorrow.

We were so proud of our students who performed at the spring concert!!!  The chorus, band, and strings did a wonderful job with their performances.  They have learned a lot about music this year.  Click on the MP3 files below to hear a song from each group.

Chorus
Strings
Band

Today’s lessons were posted on our class activities blog.  Students had to read and follow directions.  They reviewed genre and author’s purpose.  They also studied onomatopoeia and wrote a poem using onomatopoeia.  A challenging online MAP practice test was also on the agenda. Our classes will take the MAP reading test on Thursday and Friday of this week.  Students did an excellent job of reading, thinking, and following directions!  Both classes will take the MAP reading test at the end of this week on either Thursday or Friday.  Check out the assignments today on the class activities blog.
I had the privilege today of going to the State House with Brianna and her mother for the Governor’s Citizenship Award ceremony.  Gov. Sanford gave a speech that stressed the importance of developing leadership in our youth.  After waiting in a long line, Brianna had the opportunity to have her picture taken with the governor.

I have to say that this week has been very good so far. The students have been doing a great job thinking and putting forth effort. Today in Math we continued to look at Mixed Numbers and Improper fractions and we looked at a website that allowed them to practice identifying mixed numbers and improper fractions from number lines. The students did 10 problems each on both sites and I took these two scores together to make their test grade. I am so pleased to report that nobody scored less than a B on this assessment.

Today only my Block 1 had time for Science since Block 2 had Spanish. During Science we continued to look at the notes about how energy is needed and transferred in ecosystems.

On a different note I have been looking at some interesting web tools and one of them is something called a Wet Paint wiki. This is a place where a page can be created to share information, tools (such as videos and slide shows), and ideas. I created a GH708 Community wiki with Wet Paint and I hope to use this as a place to share information including slide shows and videos used in class and that relate to things that we do in class. Stay posted for the link to this site once I have a chance to play with it a little.

Mr. B.

Everyone seemed to really enjoy the break, including the teachers! Students were wide awake this morning and seemed enthusiastic about being back together. Mrs. Foxworth’s students enjoyed reporting on all their “misadventures” over the break that caused minor injuries. We work so hard to ensure safety at school that they seem to delight in telling about their somewhat “unsafe” adventures during Morning Meeting.
We finished reading Love That Dog by Sharon Creech this morning. It had a sad ending, but we appreciated the author’s writing style, the way she slowly revealed the details of Jack’s loss, and the way the real poems were interwoven within the text. We are continuing to work on our poetry unit. Students began working on a personification poem today about some object in our classroom. Word study this week will be 10 suffixes, their definitions, and sample words.

Please have a conversation with your student about how important the next few weeks are academically. We still have new material to cover and need to begin reviewing for MAP and PACT testing. Students need to continue to be very focused during instructional time. Please talk with your child about staying focused, listening, and working hard. Thanks for your continued support!

It’s been a very different kind of day!  We began the morning with a fire drill.  Then all of fifth grade went to the courtyard for a special activity planned by our guidance counselors called the Peacekeepers Fair.  Classes rotated to 7 different stations to hear presentations about conflict resolution, peaceful ways to solve problems, and positive ways to deal with our own emotions when we feel angry.  The presentations were interactive and very helpful. 
In language arts, we are continuing to read Love That Dog by Sharon Creech.  We explored some great poetry websites and students are beginning to write their own poems.  Check out some of these sites: Gigglepoetry, Poetry4Kids, and Shel Silverstein. 
Mrs. Foxworth’s students will have a social studies test tomorrow on World War I.  They have 2 study guide papers and may study online with a Quia Review. Students had 30 minutes of class time today to study for this test.  They also created an Open Mind map this week to organize and study this unit.
This afternoon the related arts teachers sponsored a celebration for those students who did a great job modeling Roadrunner Responsibilities during the 3rd nine weeks in related arts.  The activities included games, dancing, popcorn, slushies, and they were entertained by some special guests.  Check out these lovely ladies! (Click image for larger view.)
 

Just a quick reminder that students have an early release day tomorrow. Students will be dismissed from school at 11:40.

Mr. B.