It's a brand new grading period!!

The new grading period actually started last week on Tuesday 10/23.   This week the new grading period is in full swing. which means for my classes that the conduct marks now start to count 10 points each off the weekly conduct grade.   Something else new will be that I am asking that parents sign the planner each weekend to verify that you have seen the conduct grade for that week. Please do not sign early, wait until the end of the week to review and discuss/reward for the week's grade.  Mrs. Hopkins will be using a pin system in her classroom to document behavior daily and to arrive at a grade for the week.  Mrs.  Hopkins and I will let each other know of any conduct infractions that need to be recorded for students who are not in our homeroom.  The final grade for each week will be recorded in the planner regardless of which homeroom your student is in.  Please look for the first conduct grade of the nine weeks this Friday, 11/2.

Students are aware of and have been aware of the following information,  but it has come to our attention that some students may not have shared this information with parents. Mrs. Hopkins gives  a spelling test and a vocabulary test  but gives them on alternate Fridays.  This reduces the frequency of the tests and gives students a chance to focus on either spelling OR vocabulary and thus a better chance of success.   A spelling test  will be on Friday 11/2 and a vocabulary test will be given on Friday 11/9. This alternating schedule will continue throughout the grading period.  Students receive a list of spelling and vocabulary definitions at the beginning of each new reading selection.  They received the first new list of the grading period  Monday  and were required to write their spelling list in the planner.


We are finishing up our Science chapter on the water cycle, and our test is next week on Tuesday 11/6. We will then start a chapter on weather.  In Math,  we are working on number theory concepts ( divisibility rules, primes,  composites,  factors,  and multiples and  prime factorization or "factor trees" as we call it in 5th grade). We will next add and subtract decimals, fractions and mixed numbers.    In Social Studies we just finished a "foldable" about the election process and are involved in a writing assignment "If I Were President" (interesting and something  I hope they all aspire to be someday).   Work will begin next week on Chapter 4 packet in Social Studies.

Homework is cancelled for 10/31/2012 !!!   Have fun as a family instead !!!!