December 21st from 9:00-10:00 ~ All 5th/6th classrooms will be walking over to the City High auditorium to listen to a choir performance by City choral members.
*Students should be coming home with permission forms on Monday. Please send them back by Thursday of this week. Thank you!
CHANGE IN TIME:
December 21st from 1:00-2:00 ~ Holiday party for 5th/6th classrooms. A big thank you to the parents who are providing treats for the festivities! I really appreciate your support and the time it takes to prepare special treats for the students!
We will be rotating to each 5th/6th classroom next Tuesday for our holiday party. We will start out in our homerooms, enjoying the food and drinks, then move to game activities planned in each room.
Structures in our Neighborhood!
A shelter built by 2010-2011 Hoover 6th graders. This year, all 6th graders will go to School of the Wild the week of April 9th!
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
First week of December!
As we looked out our windows this afternoon, the snowflakes fell softly outside. The small white bits were a pretty scene as we worked with our own white bits in science. Today, we did not use snow...we used salt! Students weighed salt, water and salt water in an effort to observe the properties that influence floating and sinking. Tomorrow, students will test several objects in their salt water to see if the buoyancy is affected....and how it is affected.
Students have been hard at work in science and I see many meaningful connections in our floating and sinking unit. It's evident that this unit is as inspiring as it is thought-provoking. For this reason, the end of our unit will include an opportunity for inquiry projects. For the inquiry projects, students will create experiments to test their questions, predictions and scientific thinking. I look forward to some creative ideas!
5th grade math: We are in our fifth unit, dealing with fractions. It is evident that Everyday Mathematics, the materials we use to support our curriculum has been very helpful in students' understanding of math concepts. For example, 5th graders are now just starting to work with equivalent fractions and mixed numbers. However, I have seen such confidence and prior knowledge about equivalent fractions that helps them start off on the right foot. I credit this knowledge to the exposure students receive in past grades and their wonderful Hoover teachers!
Language Arts:
Critical Literacy - Students have been focusing on texts about Mumbai, India. We have used several reading strategies as a large group to improve our understanding of the situations dealing with poverty in Mumbai. Several millions of citizens live in the 'slums' of Mumbai and students have read about the roles of the government, private companies, and citizens who live in and outside of the slum area. The past week, they have debated their positions according to their roles and brainstorms ways to problem solve. Students are reflective and their critical thinking shines through when they have these conversations with each other. I am so impressed!
New reading groups have started and students meet in the afternoon to read Maniac Magee and Tuck Everlasting as well as other short stories and texts. During their meetings, students use their RRJ (Reader's Response Journal) to write a challenged response. They additionally have prompts to aid them in their discussions. I also meet with groups to work on grammar skills and individualized goals for reading.
Have a great...and snowy week!
Go Hoover Hawks!
Ms. Dobyns
Students have been hard at work in science and I see many meaningful connections in our floating and sinking unit. It's evident that this unit is as inspiring as it is thought-provoking. For this reason, the end of our unit will include an opportunity for inquiry projects. For the inquiry projects, students will create experiments to test their questions, predictions and scientific thinking. I look forward to some creative ideas!
5th grade math: We are in our fifth unit, dealing with fractions. It is evident that Everyday Mathematics, the materials we use to support our curriculum has been very helpful in students' understanding of math concepts. For example, 5th graders are now just starting to work with equivalent fractions and mixed numbers. However, I have seen such confidence and prior knowledge about equivalent fractions that helps them start off on the right foot. I credit this knowledge to the exposure students receive in past grades and their wonderful Hoover teachers!
Language Arts:
Critical Literacy - Students have been focusing on texts about Mumbai, India. We have used several reading strategies as a large group to improve our understanding of the situations dealing with poverty in Mumbai. Several millions of citizens live in the 'slums' of Mumbai and students have read about the roles of the government, private companies, and citizens who live in and outside of the slum area. The past week, they have debated their positions according to their roles and brainstorms ways to problem solve. Students are reflective and their critical thinking shines through when they have these conversations with each other. I am so impressed!
New reading groups have started and students meet in the afternoon to read Maniac Magee and Tuck Everlasting as well as other short stories and texts. During their meetings, students use their RRJ (Reader's Response Journal) to write a challenged response. They additionally have prompts to aid them in their discussions. I also meet with groups to work on grammar skills and individualized goals for reading.
Have a great...and snowy week!
Go Hoover Hawks!
Ms. Dobyns
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