Students finished up their first mini inquiry circle this week and it was a huge success! We love applying what we learn on our Fridays (when we go to school) and bring it into the classroom. Mini inquiry circles are a five day inquiry group of 3 students that research one question. This week our big ideas they created their inquiry questions from were: atoms, elements, rocks and minerals. Last week we continued to explore the Periodic Table through coordinate grids; we even added one to our window! Thanks Parker, Akira and the many others who worked diligently to create a coordinate grid on one of our huge windows! It looks awesome! We spent several days exploring multiplying fractions. Students used manipulatives, graph paper, models and Quisinaire rods to find the best way to model what happens when we multiply two fractions together. Key learnings:
I will post several of the videos students will use to understand and explore dividing fractions and different scenarios in which we divide fractions. Last week we embarked on a brand new Inquiry Unit - "Who We Are." This unit is in addition to the Exhibition Unit of Inquiry, "How We Express Ourselves." "Who We Are" has a central idea that "Scientific exploration can lead to new discoveries." Students were introduced to the Scientific Method, the Periodic Table of the Elements, and the Atomic Theory! Whew! This week we will continue to practice how to write up a lab report, complete with hypothesis, results and conclusion. I am adding new math videos to help reinforce strategies for finding common denominators at home. We use these models, as well as multiplying to find common denominators. Some students are not ready for multiplication, and I am encouraging them to stay with either one of these strategies rather than trying to memorize. As inquirers we have a genuine appreciation for learning for its own sake. All of these models give us the opportunity learn the magic of math! In math this upcoming week:
Workshop for March 14th--17thStudents will Adopt an Element for our Who We Are unit of Inquiry. This project will be completed during workshop this week, but to encourage your child to ask a variety of questions and show persistence, to not give up easily when seeking answers, any extra research at home would be very helpful! We had a great week for researching exhibition topics. Students used articles, the computers in the library and books they checked out. They have one more week devoted to research, but it will mainly need to be done on their own time. Students may need help finding resources and going to the library. They have their first Mentor meeting this Monday. Students set up Sage e-mails that can only work in the Sage network. They have been e-mailing their mentors and students in their group. Attached is the exhibition "Must Haves" and the due dates. We will devote some class time to working on these must haves, but they will need to mainly keep themselves on track. We have been encouraging the use of their planners.
Review Addition & Subtraction of Fractions and GraphsIn math this week, we have reviewed our understanding of fractions, created surveys, graphed results, researched statistics for Exhibition and graphed that data! Whew! Huge learning goals through stations this week. The stations will continue through Tuesday this week. Look for the mid-unit assessment in Thursday folders this week and next.
As a team, we have added a communication in Thursday folders. If your child is missing assignments, there will be a printed report in their folder. This should help students keep track of action that is needed during breaks at school or at home. Our hope is to encourage organization and personal responsibility. Please look for this important communication in Thursday Folders on March 10. Thank you for your support at home. Sage teachers are TAKING ACTION on a topic we feel very strongly about...empowering young girls! 5th grade teachers as well as Mrs. Dewese (4th Grade) and Libby Adams (Sage Parent) will be coaching Sage's first Girls on the Run club. The first meeting will be March 8th after school. If you are interested, please visit the website: gotrtv.org Practices will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 - 4:45. Thank you for coming to math night! What a huge turnout--Love it! I promised to upload videos for extra tutorials on the strategies we use, so... Thursday FoldersOur fifth grade team would like to apologize, because of extremely busy Thursdays, we have forgotten to send Thursday Folders home. They will go home on Monday! Exhibition Brochures and Schedule will be in the folders, so please pay special attention to these items. Thank you for your understanding!
Have a fabulous winter break! So great to visit with you at open-house conferences! Having access to all three 5th grade teachers at once provided new lines of communication benefiting everyone! This week in writing we will be working on our Civil War persuasive essay... Parents, when the rough draft comes home on Thursday before break, please let your student do all the writing. It is through our struggles that we grow. Our Valentines Day celebration will include a "healthy treat" party including the traditional sharing of Valentines Day cards. Please help your child decorate a shoe box or bag to collect those "secret" messages :) We were so proud of the professionalism shown by your children during our trip. We were all very proud to say we were from Sage International School. IB ALL the WAY! Math UpdateTen Marks for Mrs. Larson's Tribe is updated with new problems. Thank you for the kind reminder.
We will continue working on adding and subtraction fractions with unlike denominators. Through our Inquiry unit, we are analyzing data using fractions and percentages. This week:
Thank you for attending conferences! It was wonderful to see you all and meet our new families to math. If you have any questions, please email or call. Join Me on REMIND--you will receive reminder texts for math and Larson Tribe reminders.
Monday we will be heading to the Capitol Building! Inquiring minds want to know how people throughout history make change believing their cause was just.
Parent Teacher ConferencesOpen House Purpose:
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Kadie JohnsonJennifer LairdAngel Larson
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May 2016
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