I hope you and your families were able to experience a nice balance
of recreation and relaxation this past week! I look forward to continuing this
educational journey with your children as we begin the second quarter of fifth
grade!
Language Arts: I am
thrilled that we are beginning one of the most enjoyable, witty, and timeless
books your child will read this year: The
Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster. We will be gradually reading this novel
together in class, so we can spend integral time focusing on the vast literary
elements that it lends. I encourage you to read along; it truly is one of my
favorite books (as well as that of my friends and family who I’ve convinced to pick
it up)! :)
We
are picking up right where we left off in spelling; this week we will cover
chapter eight: Power Trip.
Latin / Greek Word
|
Root
|
English Derivatives
|
GREEK
dynamis
|
dyn
|
dynamic, dynasty, dynamite
|
LATIN
dominus, domus
|
domin/dom
|
dominate, predominant, condominium
|
LATIN
rex, regere, rectum
|
reg
|
regal, regular, irregular,
|
LATIN
vincere, victum
|
vinc, vict
|
convince, invincible, victory
|
Affixes
|
||
The prefix “pre-”
means before.
The suffix “-ible”
means “able to be”.
|
||
In
Grammar, the children will revisit the sentence diagrams we have been covering
to refresh their memory. We will move into discussing types of nouns and ways
to classify them (by means of their job, whether they are singular or plural,
and whether they’re common or proper). The students will also learn more
vocabulary words and analogies. We will also spend time working with common
homonyms in English. In writing, the students will do some journaling as well
as writing activities that connect to our literary studies.
Have
you had a chance to look over your child’s Latin and Greek quiz from the end of
the first quarter? Most students did a fantastic job, which reflects the time
and initiative put forth in studying. It is evident that a few students did not
prepare at all, which is a responsibility that these students should carry out
as we move into the second quarter. (Remember, there are three more of these
tests! Encourage your child to not let these grades go by why wayside!) We will
continue to learn more Latin and Greek words and derivatives this week. Be sure
to check the right side of this page for the updated list of word origins.
The idiom that will be discussed this week is “out of the frying pan and into the fire”. Try to implement this idiomatic language at home! :)
As of
this quarter, the students will begin the Zaner-Bloser cursive handwriting
program. Each child will receive a bound, purple handwriting book that he/she
will work out of all year. This is something that will be completed
progressively throughout the year. Your child can put it in the “Writing”
section of their expandable folder for safekeeping. The workbook looks like this:
History: We are beginning a new unit this week; your children will learn about the fascinating era of the Golden Age through the Glorious Revolution. We will begin the unit as we always do, with a focus on geography. The students will map out England and the important locations during the Glorious Revolution. Throughout the week, the students will learn about:
·
the transition from King Henry VIII to
Queen Mary I.
·
the transition to Queen Elizabeth I and
the ways she was different from her sister.
·
Queen Elizabeth I’s nicknames and the
way she loved her country (and showed that love).
·
the English defeat of the Spanish
Armada. They will also understand why it was important to the English.
·
why the English fought a Civil War. They
will also learn about both sides of the war and who led each side.
·
who the Puritan Ruler was and why he
rose to power during the Civil War.
·
the transition from one English
ruler to the next. They will understand how the English reacted to the plague
and how it affected their people.
Science: Because
this is a week of half-days, we will resume our study of science next week. We
will begin learning about animal cells, so feel free to bring in books and
other educational resources about this topic that you’d like to share. :)
