Week of 2/2/09 - 2/6/09

Highlights for the Week of 2/2/09-2/6/09 in Mrs. Bell’s Classroom

Mrs. Bell’s Reading Class

Spelling
We will start lesson 19 this week, which focuses on adding suffixes to root words.

Reading - Clarify

We have all enjoyed sharing the suspenseful novel, Night of the Twisters. We will be finishing the book this week. Students will have a vocabulary QUIZ on Friday for the new words that we have studied for this book. We will finish our week by viewing the movie version of this story. Students will be comparing and contrasting the movie and the novel.

(from www.google.com)

“Bite into a Good Book” Reading Program
Students must reach their reading goal and give one book talk by 2/27!

Language Arts - Expository Writing
Our focus this week will be on writing the introductory paragraph of the expository essay. We will practice writing an introduction together, then students will have the opportunity to write several on their own. Pen pal letters have been delivered, and everyone did a wonderful job writing their first letter. We are all anxious to hear back from our new friends!

Mrs. Bell’s Math Class
Fractions, fractions everywhere, not a drop to spare! We will continue our study of fractions with writing fractions in simplest form, ordering like and unlike fractions, and converting mixed fractions to improper fractions (and vice versa). Students will have their second mid chapter quiz on Monday, February 9th.

Mrs. Bell’s Homeroom Class

Social Studies

We will continue to march down the road towards the Revolutionary War. Students will consider point of view as they delve further into the causes of American independence.

Science
We have gone from the deep blue see to the world beyond. Students will learn about Earth's seasons and take an open book assessment on Tuesday, February 3rd. This will cover the material from lesson 1 in Chapter 13.

FYI…

Congratulations to Sarah & Andrew, the winners of our classroom Spelling Bee. They will be competing in the 5th grade level bee on 2/3. I'd also like to thank all of my students who showed true sportsmanship and good character throughout both of our classroom bees.

The field trip to Naper Settlement is Wednesday, 2/4. Students MUST have a SACK LUNCH that day...no exceptions! We will be eating our lunch while at Naper Settlement. We will be walking outside between buildings throughout the day. Please be sure that your child dresses for the weather...boots, hats, gloves & warm coats are a must!

Our Valentine's Day celebration is scheduled for the afternoon of 2/13. Students will be given a class list of homeroom students for the Valentine card exchange. Due to time constraints, we are asking that students only bring cards for the homeroom class.

Enjoy your Weekend!

Mrs. Karen Bell & Miss Allison Cronin

Week of 1/26/09 - 1/30/09

HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF 1/26/09-1/30/09 IN MRS. BELL’S CLASSROOM

Mrs. Bell’s Reading Class

Spelling

This week will review our ten previous vocabulary words. Students will be responsible for vocabulary definitions. We will use some engaging in-class review games to help prepare students for their final test on the Friday, January 30th.

Reading - Clarifying

We will continue our small group study of the novel, Night of the Twisters.

“Bite into a Good Book” – Independent Reading Program

The deadline for reaching your goal is February 27th.

Language Arts – Expository Writing

Writing an introductory paragraph will be our focus this week. Students will work on how to "hook" a reader by beginning their paragraph with an interesting phrase. We will also concentrate on effective topic sentences.

This year we are lucky enough to have another area school interested in setting up a pen-pal system with our class. Our reading class will be paired up with a student from Miss Steinway's fifth grade class. Miss Steinway and I are both student teaching and see this as an excellent opportunity for our students to gain valuable writing skills and learn about someone from a different school. Students will learn how to craft a friendly letter while sharing information about themselves. Students will not be allowed to share their last names or any other personal and/or identifying information, such as email addresses or phone numbers. Their letters will be screened before they are delivered. If you have any questions or concerns, please email or call.

Mrs. Bell’s Math Class

We have entered the amazing world of fractions! We will build on our knowledge of prime and compositie numbers and prime factorization, and begin studying Greatest Common Factors. Tuesday will be a review for our midchapter quiz on Wednesday, January 28. Students will be responsible for the information learned in lessons 1-3 of Chapter 4.

Mrs. Bell’s Homeroom Class

Social Studies

The British are coming! The British are coming! Our exciting unit on the Revolutionary War will begin this week. Students will discover the answers to questions such as, "What caused the Revolutionary War?" " What's taxation without representation?" Hold on to your money colonsits, because King George, his Parliments, and tax collectors are coming!

Science – Earth’s Oceans

We will be completing this unit with the chapter 12 TEST on Tuesday, 1/27. We will play a round of Ocean Bingo on Monday to prepare for the test. On Wednesday, we will begin our new unit on space: Earth, Moon & Beyond!

Mrs. Karen Bell & Miss Allison Cronin

Week of 1/19/09 - 1/23/09

HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF 1/19/09-1/23/09 IN MRS. BELL’S CLASSROOM

Mrs. Bell’s Reading Class

Spelling

This week we will be reviewing words from chapters 10-16. The chapter 17 pretest will be given on Tuesday 1/20 and the final test given on Friday 1/23. There are no new "words to know" or vocabulary words this week!

Reading - Strategy = Clarify

We will be starting the reading strategy of clarifying this week. Students will work to categorize nonfiction text by using a category chart in order to make the information more clear. At the end of the week, we will begin our study of the novel, Night of the Twisters. This book is based on a true event in which 7 tornadoes passed through the town of Grand Island, Nebraska. We will be meeting in small groups as we read and discuss this exciting story.

(from www.google.com)

“Bite into a Good Book” – Independent Reading Program
The deadline for reaching your reading goal for second trimester is 2/27.

Language Arts – Expository Writing
We will continue our study of expository writing. Students will learn the differences between expository, persuasive, narrative & descriptive text. We will finish the week by learning the formula for expository writing and by practicing writing expository paragraphs.

Mrs. Bell’s Math Class
The chapter 7 TEST is scheduled for Tuesday, 1/20. On Wednesday, we will celebrate our knowledge of circles by holding “Pi” day. We will then move into divisibility and factorization on Thursday and Friday. Get ready for fractions!

Mrs. Bell’s Homeroom Class

Social Studies
The Chapter 7 TEST will be on Wednesday, 1/21. We will review by playing Jeopardy in class on Tuesday.

Science – Earth’s Oceans

We will be completing our study of Chapter 12, Earth's Oceans, this week. Students will have the lesson 3 OPEN BOOK ASSESSMENT on Wednesday, 1/21. The chapter test will take place the week of 1/26.

FYI...

The final classroom spelling bee will be on Friday 1/23. The top two spellers from our class will represent us in a grade level bee the week of 2/2.

Many parents have inquired about the school refunding the fee for the cancelled outing to the Tivoli movie. At this time, plans are being made for an outing in the spring to the Tivoli for which the original fee will be used.

Enjoy your holiday weekend!

Mrs. Karen Bell & Miss Allison Cronin

Week of 1/12/09-1/16/09

HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK OF 1/12/09-1/16/09 IN MRS. BELL’S CLASSROOM

WELCOME MISS CRONIN!

Our classroom family has a new member, Miss Allison Cronin. Allison is a student teacher from DePaul who will be with us for 12 weeks. She has observed and visited our room many times this fall, so she has already gotten to know the students, and they know her as well! We're thrilled to have her here!

Mrs. Bell’s Reading Class

Spelling – Lesson 16 – Silent “H”
The final test for this lesson will be on Friday, 11/16. “Words to Know” are millimeter-myself, and the vocabulary word for the week is exuberant.

Reading
Due to Iowa testing this week, we will be taking a break from our usual routine. We will be playing reading comprehension board games in small groups when we have “down time” from testing. We will be focusing on the reading comprehension strategy of “Clarifying” beginning the week of 1/19.

“Bite into a Good Book” – Independent Reading Program
Many reading students have been coming to class without a silent reading book. Just a reminder that every student should be reading a minimum of 20 minutes per day, and should have a silent reading book with them at all times in school.

Language Arts – Expository Writing
We will be finishing our study of how to write a paragraph. Each student will be writing a paragraph to explain how he/she will make 2009 a “Soup-er” year in fifth grade.

Mrs. Bell’s Math Class

The study of circles will begin this week. Students will be introduced to Π, and will learn how to use formulas to calculate circumference and the area of a circle. On Wednesday and Thursday, all fifth grade students will take the Iowa tests for math in their math classrooms. The chapter 7 TEST is scheduled for the week of 1/19.

Mrs. Bell’s Homeroom Class

Social Studies
We will complete our study of chapter 7 by focusing on the French & Indian War. We will be testing on this chapter the week of 1/19.

Science – Earth’s Oceans
Students will explore the effect of waves on a beach by performing an investigation this week. We will also focus on the structure of the ocean’s shoreline.

FYI…

This week, all fifth grade students are beginning the "Too Good for Drugs" program, which is a drug, alcohol & tobacco awareness program sponsored by the DuPage County Sheriff’s Office. For the next 10 weeks, our class will participate in weekly sessions that are designed to give them the skills to deal with pressures experienced during adolescence.

On February 4th, fifth grade will be taking a field trip to Naper Settlement. This learning experience will enhance our social studies curriculum and meets Illinois Learning standards. Students will participate in hands on activities that will help them to relate to life during the 1800's. Permission slips were sent home on Friday, 1/9 and must be returned with the fee on or before 1/23/09.

Enjoy your weekend…stay warm!

Mrs. Karen Bell