Good evening 5th Grade Families:

Welcome back from our short Spring Holiday.  We hope you have had a relaxing and refreshing R&R weekend with your loved ones, and that your scholars are ready to take on the last 7 weeks of elementary school!

It is April, and testing season is upon us!  We have several days of it ahead, with the AASA Writing this week.  Please note the dates below and make sure students are on time and attending the entire testing session. We kindly ask that you do not plan appointments or unnecessary absences during the testing times to avoid having students miss class for make-up testing.  It is important that all students try their best on the state testing.  These activities help to measure their growth and proficiency levels as individual learners. Families can help by ensuring students get a good night of sleep, and eat a healthy breakfast.  They can also help their scholars walk through the practice tests linked below.  Here is the calendar for the rest of the 5th grade state testing.

5th Grade:

  • AASA – Writing – Friday, April 5th
  • AASA – 1st Math/ELA –Thursday, April 18th
  • AASA – 2nd Math/ELA – Friday, April 19th

AASA Practice Test Link:

https://az.testnav.com/client/index.html#

From this link, scroll down and choose “Mic Check & Sample Tests”, then “AASA TestNav Sample Tests”, and “Grade 5 AASA Sample Tests”.  The top 3 are applicable to our students.

Please reach out to your child’s teacher with any questions!

Save the Date: Fine Arts Festival – April 13th

Fine Arts Festival is coming soon!  Please join us on Saturday, April 13th from 9a-1pm.  Come enjoy student artwork, music performances, and Latin! There will food trucks, Book Fair, Face painting and much more – Please see the flyer for more information.  We look forward to seeing you there!

Curricular information for Q4, Week 3

Maths – This week we are beginning our test prep and review of the material that we have covered this year to prepare for state testing on April 18th and 19th.  We will not be working in our blue or green workbooks until testing is finished. Homework will be packets for students to complete and we will check these in class.  Students also received  a packet of the maths vocabulary words that they should be familiar with.  We will be going over these terms when time permits and their homework for Tuesday is to review the vocabulary packet.

Science – This week we are preparing for our Unit 5 Test! This week, students will play a jeopardy review game. Students revised their study guide last week, so they should be using that to guide their review.  I also strongly advise students to use the jeopardy game to review. Even though we will play it in class, it is a good gauge as to what types of questions they may see on the test. Here is a link to the jeopardy:

https://jeopardylabs.com/play/unit-5-modeling-earths-systems-review

Scholars will take their test on Monday 4/8 and Tuesday 4/9! Happy studying!

History – This week we are beginning our first unit focused on American History: American Expansion before the Civil War.  The reader for this unit is linked on this blog!

English Language Arts –

  • Literature – The Secret Garden is the last novel study of this 5th grade year.  We will be reading Chapters 5-6 this week, and we will also continue our Across Five Aprils read-aloud.  Please have your student bring these books to school if they haven’t already!
  • GYV – This week’s GYV is review of Level 6 Chapters 1-5.  Due to the short week and Friday’s Testing, we will pause on chapter work until next week.  Links to study aids are on the GYV tab on our blog.
  • Idioms/Proverbs: We have covered all the 5th grade idioms and proverbs, and will be reviewing them throughout the rest of the year!
  • Grammar/Writing – This week in Writing, we are finishing working on an Informational Essay in preparation for the upcoming AASA writing test on Friday and their Informational Essay is due Thursday.  We will also be reviewing 5th grade grammar standards that we have been covering over the course of the school year.
  • Poetry – “The Road Not Taken”, by Robert Frost.  Students will be assigned 2 stanzas, which are due Friday, May 3rd,

 

GREAT HEARTS DAY AT CHASE FIELD: FRIDAY, MAY 3!

Join us for another Great Hearts Day at Chase Field, Friday, May 3 as the Dbacks take on the Padres!

Enjoy a discounted ticket package that includes a co-branded Great Hearts x Dbacks hat (limited quantity), plus the opportunity to win game day experiences and prizes exclusive to Great Hearts families and friends.  We hope to see you at the ballpark!

 

Important Dates

  • April 3rd – 2nd Grade Headmaster Coffee Talk
  • April 10th – 1st Grade Headmaster Coffee Talk
  • April 12th & 13th – Spring Book Fair
  • April 13th – Fine Arts Festival
  • April 24th – Kinder Headmaster Coffee Talk

Have a great week!

The 5th Grade Team