Mrs. Holzhauer's 5th Grade Blog 4/5/19

Welcome back! Happy Friday! 

I hope that everyone had a spectacular spring break! It seems that warmer weather and sunshine are finally heading our way! We can finally pack away the winter jackets, hats, and gloves....I think! Until we meet again next year, winter... 

The month of April is certainly a packed one. Within this upcoming month, the students will continue to take assessments such as placement tests, Illinois Assessment of Readiness, and MAP. Please remind your student to get a good night's rest, eat a hearty breakfast, and bring a healthy snack. Also... don't forget to charge those iPads! 

Upcoming Assessment Dates
April 16-24 -- Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) Window (all tests in the morning--details about exact dates are forthcoming)
Thursday, April 11 -- 6th Grade Placement Opinion Essay (afternoon)
April 29-May 8 -- MAP Window (more details will be forthcoming on exact dates)

Literacy

This week, we finished off a short, fictitious story titled "Secrets of Canyon Cave", which explores the ancient civilization of the Anasazi people who were considered cliff dwellers. Through this shared text, the students were able to learn more about ancient civilizations within the United States and how the Anasazi adapted to their environment by creating homes within the cliffs of the canyons. Today we played several spirited games of interactive Quilt in order to practice vocabulary from the story. In addition, we continued to practice literacy skills such as finding main ideas and summarizing informational text. We read an interesting article about the benefits of utilizing insects as an alternative to meat. Ask your student what his/her thoughts on eatings bugs as a source of protein are!

Writing

Within writing, the students have researched through multiple sources about Christopher Columbus and his expeditions. After doing so, they will analyzed their findings to determine if they believe that Columbus was a hero of a villain. Students have been utilizing the strategies we’ve been learning throughout the year in order to compose a well-written opinion paper that contains evidence and reasons to support their views.

Math
Transitioning from graphing and locating coordinates on a plane, we have started exploring the hierarchy of polygons. First, students learned about classifying triangles by their sides and angles. This week, we have begun to explore classifying quadrilaterals by their properties and attributes. A majority of the students already knew that "a square can be a rectangle, but a rectangle cannot be a square"; however, they will now build upon their knowledge of quadrilaterals attributes to fully explain why the previous statement is true. 

Social Studies

We will soon begin our unit on Economics. We will study how goods and services work in a market economy, and we will eventually study how people of the past were positively and negatively impacted by cultural exchanges.

Science
We have started our new science unit on Changes in Matter, which encompasses the three states of matter (solid, liquid, and gas). We will be conducting some engaging investigations where students will identify various powders by their attributes and reactions to substances. 

Upcoming Events
Monday, April 8-- Apple Field Trip
Friday, April 12 -- Breakfast with Your Buddy
Tuesday, April 16 -- PTO Special Lunch
Tuesday, April 16 -- Variety Show Auditions
Tuesday-Thursday, April 16-18 -- Math IAR @ 8:30-10:00
Friday, April 19 - District Holiday // NO SCHOOL
Monday-Wednesday, April 22-24 -- Math IAR @ 8:30-10:30
Friday, April 26 -- Half Day // Dismissal @ 11:45
Tuesday, April 30 -- Variety Show