Mrs. Ewing’s 5th Grade

Oh!  You thought I was talking to the students….I could be talking to myself.  Usually, by this time, I’ve written several posts on our class website.  As you can see…I’m a little behind schedule!  Hopefully, I’m getting back into the swing of things! 

These first few weeks can be best described as a whirlwind.  Poor little 5th graders!     They are beginning to adjust to the responsibility of remembering supplies, new schedules, and the demands of 4 different teachers.  That’s a pretty tall order!

So…what in the world is going on in 5th grade these days?  I’d love to tell you!

• You need to know:  This week was midterm!  Each teacher sent home a midterm report this Friday that details class average so far.  If your grade isn’t what you would like, there’s still time to bring it up.  Be on the alert for extra credit opportunities.

• Friday, we had a special speaker, Bridget Baird, who gave our classes a great presentation about the Constitution. 

• In Science, we’ve been learning about properties of matter, particle arrangement of solids, liquids, and gases, and what determines density.

• Our English class is still reviewing punctuation, and this week we are particularly focusing on direct quotations.  Split quotations are giving us a fit!!!!  Here’s a BrainPop to help you.  As fate would have it, National Punctuation Day is on September 24th!  What better way to celebrate it than properly punctuating direct quotations?  Here’s a site that has rules and examples.

• Our DARE program gets underway this week.  Officer Joey Maddox will be teaching the DARE program on Thursdays for the next 10 weeks.

Welcome to the real world…at least according to a fifth grader.  What does the “real world”consist of?  Remembering all your supplies, finding out “the hard way” that you actually have to study in fifth grade, and listening to and following directions are just a few of the “reality checks” we’ve experienced this week. But…this week I saw glimpses of the class we will be.  We’re nearing the end of basic training, and I noticed this week that we were getting very close to our goal!  Sooooo exciting!!!

Speaking of exciting…..our Biltmore trip is around the corner!  I can’t wait to see the looks on your faces!

 Some reminders:

• Last day to make payment is Friday, September 21, 2007.

• Make sure you bring a morning and afternoon snack as well as a lunch.

• You may bring money for the gift shop, if you want.

• No electronics!!!! This includes, but not limited to: CD players, iPods, mp3 players, PSPs, gameboys, DVD players….need I go on?

• Wear comfortable shoes.  We’ll be walking a lot.

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In other news…..we’ll be starting the DARE program this week.  Officer Maddox will be coming to our classroom to teach the lessons.  Make sure you get the permission slip he gives you signed and returned as soon as possible.

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Looking for extra credit in Science?  Be sure to check out the Cool Science Pics link.

In Science, we are starting to study a little bit of chemistry!  Chemistry???  In the 5th grade????  Why, of course!  Check out the Chem4Kids site.  It was created about 25 years too late to help Mrs. Ewing when she was first learning about chemistry!  lol!   But….oh well, at least it will help you!!!