First in Math

Our class is team of the week this week in our school's program called First in Math. Our has has won team of the week several times this year because of the students commitment to using this program at home. I am very proud of our students who use this program. It helps them to excel in math because of the extra practice it provides. Encourage your child to keep working on this program at home. Here is a picture of us with the trophy! Way to go!

Boosterthon Fun Run!

We got pledges, ran our laps, and had a blast! Now it's time to get the money from those pledges collected. Let's try to get 100% collected from our class. Our class got $21.30 per lap in pledges for a total of $690.50! That's great! I'm so proud of everyone's hard work. The pledges are due this Friday, November 1, 2013. Our class voted to have a PJ/Hat day if we collect 100% of our pledges. I have posted some pictures below from Friday's fun run.

Reading With Your Child At Home

I am very excited about our new reading program that we have this year at Fork Shoals. It is going to allow us to better meet the needs of all of our students. It will guide them to be better readers, writers and thinkers. I am looking forward to conferencing with you more about your child's reading this month. Here are some frequently asked questions and answers that may help you at home.

• How can I help my child become a better reader?
  Continue to read with your child every day and expose him or her to the language of books. Have him or her read to you and you can read to them, too. (They still love being read to even at this age! They love for me to read to them in class.) If your child makes a mistake while reading, simply tell your child the correct word and let him or her move on. This increases enjoyment and fluency. To increase comprehension, talk about the story while you are reading. I have included some question stems in a link below  that you can ask to your child while reading. These question stems go with almost every book you read. Here is the link to those question stems.

           Question Stems to use while reading with your Child

• What level should my child be reading at in fifth grade?
  There is a range of levels within fifth grade. I will  address your child's current level and the goals your child is working on with you are your fall conference this month.

• How can I find the “just right” books for my child?
  After I share with you what level your child is at, I can provide a list of appropriate books.

If you or your child read this post and it was helpful for you, have your child whisper the word "hamburger" to me and they will receive a star card and a homeword pass.

Concentration Versus Dilution

We did an experiment in class and the students loved it because it involved drinking Kool aid! We changed the amount of solute (powder) and the solvent ( water) to learn about the difference between concentrated and diluted. So, ask your child to explain the difference and share what they learned.

Science lab

Our class created mixtures and solutions this week in science class. We learned what separation techniques worked to separate different mixtures and solutions. It is evident that we have many scientists in our class. They loved this hands on experiment! Their excitement for learning and experimenting makes me look forward to all that we have in store for this year. I can already
tell its going to be a great year ahead.

Happy Summer!

I hope everyone has a wonderful summer! I will be taking a trip to Maine to visit my husband's family. I will also be taking a trip to Jacksonville, Florida to visit some friends. I am looking forward to time to relax and be with friends and family. Hope you will enjoy this time, too.

Please email me and let me know how your summer is going.  Also, email me when you get to sixth grade and let me know how you are doing. I would love to hear from you!

aholloway@greenville.k12.sc.us

Boosterthon Fun Run!

            The Boosterthon was a great experience. Our class collected $1429.00 in pledges! That is awesome! I was super proud of them! I am also so thankful for all of their hard work to make this fund-raiser a success! Here is a picture of our class after the fun run. They learned about making good choices, had fun, and raised money for our school all at the same time!

3rd Quarter Awards

We had our awards for third quarter this past week. Our class worked hard to achieve many accomplishments this nine weeks. I am so proud of them all!

Table Rock Field Trip

We had a blast on our field trip to Table Rock this past Thursday. The students were able to have an outdoor classroom for the day. This field trip aligned with our study of ecosystems and human's impact on ecosystems. While we were there, we were able to investigate the abiotic and biotic factors of the stream ecosystem and the forest ecosystem. Ask your child about what they learned on the field trip. They were able to learn and have fun at the same time!

Boosterthon Fun Run

Thank you for your support of this year’s Boosterthon Fun Run!  The Boosterthon Fun Run is quickly approaching. The Fun Run is next Wednesday, April 17th  at 10:50 am. Hope you can make it out to see us run our laps. So far as a team, we are up to $ 28 per lap.  Our goal is $40 per lap. We’ve gotten pledges from 3different states, NC, SC, and TN! We even got a pledge from Canada!

 The students are having a blast learning about MAKING GOOD CHOICES through the HIGHWAY USA theme!  So far this week, we learned about how important it is to CHOOSE LEADERSHIP by being bold, setting a good example, and strengthening others with our words. Our class was also challenged to CHOOSE CHARACTER by making the right choice, even when no one is looking.  Yesterday, we were challenged to CHOOSE LEARNING. Our Highway Hero is Thomas Edison and students learned about how he changed the world through inventions. All of his success began with a desire to read and learn how the world works. We hope this creates some excitement to learn as we push through this final 9 weeks!

I hope that you are logging-on with your students every night and watching the Highway USA music videos, as well as getting pledges to help our school. You can log on at www.funrun.com .Thanks again for your help and support of our class! Let’s work together to finish strong and reach our goal as a team!

See you next week at the Fun Run!

In need a good laugh?

Click on link below if you need a laugh today

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-OcBcbCFYQ

PASS Writing Test this Week

The Palmetto Assessment of State Standards (PASS) Writing tests will be given to students on March 19 & 20.  Day 1 (March 19) will be extended response and Day 2 (March 20) will be multiple choice. PASS tests are untimed for each day of testing. Help us help your child perform to the best of his or her ability.  

Parents can be a great help to their child by following these suggestions:

• Please see that your child gets rest on the nights before these tests. 


• Please see that your child eats a nourishing breakfast on the morning of these tests.


• Make every effort to have your child in school and on time, except in cases of illness. Please do not schedule any doctor's appointments during testing. 


• Do encourage your child to read each test question and each response carefully before marking an answer choice.


• Do encourage your child to stay calm if there are questions that seem difficult.


• Encourage your child to mark his/her best answer.


• Provide positive feedback by praising your child for what he/she does well.


• Students may not bring any electronic device that can be used for communicating, timing, or imaging into the testing location.

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Converting Temperatures

Here are two example problems to remind your child how to use the

formulas to convert temperature:

1. The first one is converting Fahrenheit to Celsius:

The formula is F -32 x 5 / 9 = C

Here is a video showing them how to use it:

http://www.showme.com/sh/?h=Ny9UQiG

2. The second one is converting Celsius to Fahrenheit:

The formula is C x 9 / 5 + 32 = F

Here is a video showing them how to use it:

http://www.showme.com/sh/?h=1xpj59M

Upcoming Social Studies Test on WWII

Here are some good questions that you can discuss with your child to help

them think about what they have been learning during this unit of study.

These questions require critical thinking and are good to make sure

they truly understand the content of what we have been learning in class.

1) Cite evidence from your text to explain why Historians called the treatment of Jewish people the Holocaust. (you can  refer to p. 362 in SS textbook)

 

2) Compare the war strategies used by the Allied Powers to defeat Germany vs. their

war strategies used to defeat Japan.

 

3) Analyze and give your opinion of which war strategy was more effective in ending WWII. The one used against Germany or the one used against Japan. Use evidence to support your opinion.

 

4) How would the "possible" invasion of Poland by Germany have been handled if we would have already created the United Nations?

 

 

Stay posted...I will be posting some more resources to help with upcoming SS test...

Lily Holley- Science Fair Winner

Our very own Lily Holley entered her "Yeast Balloon Race" project

 into the school science fair and won 3rd place for 5th grade.

We wanted to give a shout out to her and wish her the best of luck in

the district Science Fair! Way to go, Lily!

Hello world!

Welcome to our class blog! I am am so excited to start a blog since I have always wanted my very own blog. I hope you will enjoy it and visit often!