It's Definitely the End of the Year

Phew!  This week has been more exhausting than the entire year put together!  The students are completely crazy.  All of them. :)  But luckily I still really like them. 

Just a reminder...we do still have three weeks left of school.  Here is a breakdown of those three weeks:

May 8/10 -- Normal School Day
May 15 -- Field Day!  All students (Tuesday and Thursday) come on Tuesday, May 15 at the normal time.
May 22/24 -- Last Day of School!

Reminders:

• We are still in school.  Please act that way, students!  Homework and behavior have been lacking lately. :(
• For Field Day, 5th Grade is wearing GREEN.  Also, bring a lunch, water bottle, and put sunscreen on before the day begins!  Wear comfortable shoes and jeans, shorts, or sweats.
• I will need a few classroom volunteers for Field Day. 
• Anyone have a cooler on wheels that we can borrow for Field Day?
• Mr. Ford also needs volunteers for Field Day.

Hope you all have a fabulous week!  We are so close to summer!!!!! :)

Field Trip ~ April 26!

Our Fifth Grade Field Trip is coming up soon!  We will start the day at Old Chicago on Woodmen/I-25.  From there, we will travel to Serenity Springs Wildlife Center (http://www.serenityspringswildlife.org/) and then end our day at Cottonwood Creek Park for lunch (bring a sack lunch!!) and some fun time playing with our classmates!  We will arrive back at TCA by 3:30 dismissal.  Please make sure that you wear comfortable shoes, pack a sack lunch, and are ready for an awesome day!

***You are allowed to wear blue jeans and a uniform top for the field trip! 

Please still tuck in your shirt and wear a belt! :) ***

Please e-mail me if you have any questions...and I also posted the Field Trip permission slip with all of the information on the sidebar for your convenience! :)

Tuesday Class -- Snow Day Make-Up Work!!!!

Wow, I did not expect that snow day at all on Tuesday!  Not good timing, with so little time left in the school year.  Please check the Tid Bits -- they are posted in the right side bar.  I am also attaching anything you need to know to this blog entry to keep you up to date with my Thursday class. :) 

Grammar :
Today we continued working through Pattern 4 : SN LV PrN.  We also continued working on verb tenses.  No new information.    Please do all of each sheet.

Literature :

Today we discussed Imagery. 

Imagery -- writing so that you can see images (vivid pictures) in your mind.

We discussed that Imagery uses many poetic terms (similes/metaphors, personification, alliteration, onomatopeia, etc) to create a vivid picture in your head. 

Writing :
We actually did not hit any writing today.  We will be starting to write our own poetry next week!

I emailed your parents all of the sheets you need to do for homework!  Please let me know what questions you have!

Writing Poetry

For the past few weeks, we have been studying Poetry in Literature.  We have been learning different poetry terms and how to use them correctly.  We have also looked at examples of poems that include these terms.  Starting the week after Spring Break, we will be learning about different types of poetry and we will write our own poems.  We will focus on four different types of poems:  Haiku, Limerick, Cinquain, and Free Verse.  The Scholastic Website has a fantastic "Poetry Idea Engine" that helps students learn to write poems.  If you so desire, play around with this tool over Spring Break!  I think you will have fun and learn a lot while doing so! :)

Poetry Idea Engine

“Frijoles Negros de Guatemala”

A few weeks back, Mrs. Dillon came during Spanish to share with the class about Guatemala.  She did an amazing presentation and shared some beauitful photos with the class.  She even brought in a delicious Guatemalan dish for us to try!  We all loved it so much, we asked for the recipe.  I even made this for my family a few days after the presentation.  Delicious! 

So here you go...

Frijoles Negros de Guatemala

1 pound dry black beans

1 small yellow onion

1 clove garlic

1 tsp. salt (or to taste)

1.  Rinse beans & then soak overnight in about 6 C of water.

2.  Chop onion into large pieces.

3.  Mix beans & onions together in a large crock pot, cover w/ water & cook on low overnight or for about 8 hours, until beans are soft.

4.  Drain beans & onions, reserving some of the water. 

5.  Puree the beans & onions in a food processor until smooth, adding the bean water as needed to desired consistency. 

6.  Add crushed garlic & salt to taste & return mixture to the warm crock pot.

Serve w/ tortilla chips or homemade corn tortillas.

Enjoy!  And thank you, Mrs. Dillon, for taking the time to come share with us!

Research Paper Information -- Due March 13/15

Our Formal Research Paper is due next week!!!  Along the way I have made a few changes to the "Research Paper Asssignment and Timeline" sheet.  Please click to see the new one for a reference guide:  Research Paper Assignment and Timeline.  Please make sure it is complete, all steps, and ready to be turned in when we start Writing Class.  Along with turning in your paper, each of you will present your research to the class.  If you have misplaced your information sheet for this part of the Formal Research Paper, please click here:  Presenting Research!

Okay, here goes!  Read carefully, as I am going to tell you how to turn in EVERYTHING to me next week an in what order.  I will also post examples of the sheets we went over in class.  I don't want anyone to come to class next week confused or not understanding what is expected!

For next week... 

Please staple the first three items together in the upper left corner.  ***Just these items!!!***

• Title Page
• Final Copy
• Bibliography Sheet

Also, you need to bring:

• Formal Outline (typed) 
•  The link will show you the formatting of the outline...yours may look very different, but as long as your formating (spacing, Roman Numerals, Letters, Numbers, font, double-spaced, etc...) look the same that is okay.
• Presentation

As mentioned in class, you need to place everything you are turning in to me in a folder.  Please don't go buy a folder, use one that you have laying around the house! 

I should have checked your bibliography cards, notecards and rough draft in class.  If I have done so, you DO NOT need to bring these with you next week.  We are done with them!

Formal Research Paper--Rough Draft (Due March 6/8)

Today in class we began writing the rough draft for our formal research paper.  I spent a lot of time teaching the students how to cite their source in order to avoid plagerizing.  I know when they come home they will have more questions, so I'm going to tell you what I told them in class. :)

• Make sure that your outline matches your rough draft.  That's not to say your outline is set in stone, but if you decide to change the order of something in your rough draft, make sure your outline reflects those changes.
• Skip sentences when writing your rough draft.  This will make editing easier.
• You must have at least four citations in your research paper.  That means you must have at least one citation per source.  You may have more...but at least one per source
• You must cite ANYTHING that you learned from research.  You do not want to plagerize, or steal, another's work.
• Examples:
• Arctic foxes live in frigid climates (Stuhr 38).
• According to Carrie Stuhr, arctic foxes live in frigid climates (38).

Parents, please continue to ask me questions as you come up with them!  Here is a link to refresh your memory on citing sources.  http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/02/  This link is quite advanced, and would confuse your student more than anything.  This is for you! :)