Week of 5/4/2009 - 5/8/2009

Highlights for the Week of 5/4/2009 - 5/8/2009 in Mrs. Bell's Classroom


Mrs. Bell's Reading Class


Spelling - Lesson 28 - "Greek Combining Forms"
The final test for this lesson will be on Friday, 5/8. "Words to Know" are tonight-two & the vocaublary word this week will be lethargic. Checklist work is due on Friday, 5/8.


Reading - The Kid in the Red Jacket
Students will have their final book club meeting on 5/4. We will begin a minibook project for this novel which will incorporate the reading strategies of predicting, connecting, summarizing, visualizing, inferring and questioning. Students will be given ample time in class to finish this project, which is tentatively due on 5/7. On Friday, 5/8 there will be a comprehension QUIZ for the novel. Students will be allowed to use their books for the quiz.

(from www.google.com)


"Bite into a Good Book" - Independent Reading Program
Students should ALWAYS have a silent reading book with them at school!



English - Verbs
Irregular verbs and phrases with have will be our focus in english this week. The verbs test will take place the week of 5/11.

Mrs. Bell's Math Class
The TEST on chapter 6 will be on Monday, 5/4. Our next unit in math will be the study of ration, proportion and percent, chapter 8




Mrs. Bell's Homeroom

Social Studies
The accomplishments of Thomas Jefferson will be our focus this week. We will study the Louisiana Purchase, and how it changed the face of America. The exploration of Lewis & Clark is another topic that will be covered.




Science - Ecosystems & Change

We will finish our owl pellet dissection on Monday, and have a QUIZ over that unit on Tuesday, 5/5. Later in the week, we will being chapter 6 with a look at how animals adapt to their environment in order to survive.




FYI...



With the health concerns in our community at this time, we have had discussions in class about good hygiene. Students have been reminded to cover mouths and noses when sneezing or coughing, and to keep their hands clean. Thank you to parents who have sent in hand sanitizers to help our cause!


Mrs. Karen Bell

Week of 4/27/09 - 5/1/09

Highlights for the Week of 4/27/09 - 5/1/09 in Mrs. Bell's Classroom

Mrs. Bell's Reading Class

Spelling - Word of the Week #3

This week's lesson will be on the last 8 vocabulary words. Students should study the definitions of the words, not how they are spelled. There will be no pretest or Checklist work this week. Practice work will include making flashcards, a crossword puzzle and a word search. The final test will be on Friday, 5/1.

Reading - Kid in the Red Jacket

Our first book club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, 4/28, and will cover chapters 4-6. Students will have their second club meeting on Thursday, 4/30. The second meeting will be on chapters 7 & 8. Students will be given time in class to read the chapters and to prepare their discussion sheets.
(from www.google.com)






"Bite into a Good Book" - Independent Reading Program
Students MUST always have a silent reading book with them. We are half way through the trimester...how many books has your child read?



English - Verbs
Our study of verbs continues with a look at subject/verb agreement, agreement with be & have, and contractions with "not".





Mrs. Bell's Math Class
We will finish our study of how to organize data this week. The chapter 6 TEST is TENTATIVELY scheduled for Monday, 5/4. This week we will study line graphs, misleading graphs & stem & leaf plots.




Mrs. Bell's Homeroom Class


Social Studies
The presidencies of George Washington & Thomas Jefferson will be our topics this week.







Science - Owl Pellet Dissection
The chapter 5 TEST will take place on Monday, 5/24. We will be taking a break from the text book to conduct owl pellet dissections. This unit ties in beautifully with our study of ecosystems. We will begin by studying the habits & habitat of the barn owl, and will begin the dissection on Friday.


OWL PELLET WEBSITE = http://www.kidwings.com/owlpellets/flash/v4/index.htm

FYI...


The PV food drive ends on 4/27.

Mrs. Karen Bell

Week of 4/20/09 - 4/24/09

Highlights for the Week of 4/20/09-4/24/09 in Mrs. Bell's Classroom

Mrs. Bell's Reading Class

Spelling - Lesson 26 - "Review"

This week's lesson is a review of lessons 19-25. Students should focus on practicing each lesson's spelling rule to prepare for the final test on THURSDAY, 4/23. The final test will be the proofreading format that we have used in the past for review lessons. There are no "Words to Know", or vocabulary words this week.

Reading - The Kid in the Red Jacket

We are starting a new novel this week, The Kid in the Red Jacket. We will study this book in small groups, and will be focusing on integrating each of the reading strategies that we have learned this year throughout the novel. Students will also work independently to prepare for book club meetings.
(from www.google.com)

"Bite into a Good Book" - Independent Reading Program

Students must ALWAYS have a silent reading book with them at school!

English - Verbs

Students will be completing a project related to the three verb tenses titled, "Tomorrow, Today will be Yesterday".

Mrs. Bell's Math Class
Our study of data organization continues this week. On Monday, we will have the midchapter QUIZ for Chapter 6. We will then take a look at bar graphs, frequency tables, histograms, ordered pairs, and line graphs.

Mrs. Bell's Homeroom Class

Social Studies

We will be finishing chapter 10 and preparing for the TEST that is scheduled for Thursday, 4/23. Students will be able to earn 3 bonus points on their tests if they can write the words to the Preamble.

Science - Energy & Ecosystems

On Tuesday, 4/21, students will be taking the open book/note ASSESSMENT for chapter 5, lesson 2. We will spend the rest of the week reviewing for the chapter 5 TEST which is tentatively scheduled for the following Monday, 4/27.

FYI...

We have early dismissal on Friday, 4/24. Students will be dismissed at 11:00.

It was a pleasure to see so many parents and siblings at Open House! Thank you for visiting our room.

My homeroom class became a stage last Wednesday when "American Idol's got Talent" came to town. Students had earned a celebration by showing outstanding behavior throughout the year. They planned the event, and ran it themselves. I was so proud of all of our our hosts, stage crew, performers and judges who all had a fabulous time. What a wonderful way to celebrate good character!
(from www.google.com)


Enjoy your weekend!

Mrs. Karen Bell

Week of 4/13/09 - 4/17/09

Highlights for the Week of 4/13/09 - 4/17/09 in Mrs. Bell's Classroom

Mrs. Bell's Reading Class

Spelling - Lesson 25 - "Silent Letters"

It's back to spelling this week! Students will have the final test for lesson 25 on Friday, 4/17. This week's "Words to Know" are they're - to & our vocabulary word is lamentation.

Reading - China

Students will be finishing their China travel posters & having some fun with writing their own fortunes.

"Bite into a Good Book" - Independent Reading Program

We have had very few book talks this trimester. I'm looking forward to hearing from every student soon!

English - Verbs

Linking verbs and the three verb tenses are our focus this week.

Mrs. Bell's Math Class

We have completed our study of fractions and will move on to chapter 6, which is the study of the organization of data. This week's topics will be making a table, a review of range, mode, median and mean, and outliers.

Mrs. Bell's Homeroom Class

Social Studies

We are up to our necks in the study of the Constitution, & having a ball! Ask your child to sing the Preamble song for you at home. This week we will focus on the ratification of the Constitution, and what it meant for our country.

Science - Energy & Ecosystems

The balance of nature and ecosystems is our topic this week. We will share the picture book, Wolf Island, to illustrate this concept.

FYI...

Please plan on attending the TGFD graduation on Monday, April 13th. The ceremony will take place at 8:45 in the PV gym.

I'm looking forward to seeing parents & friends at the Spring Book Fair & Open House on Thursday evening. Please stop by to see some of the amazing work that your child has done in fifth grade!


Mrs. Karen Bell