Friday, October 15,2010

Noah Webster

This week we learned a little bit about Noah Webster.Noah Webster wrote the "Webster Dictionary".Noah Webster was born on October 15,1758.By the end of his lifetime Noah knew 20 languages.He wanted to study law but ended up being a teacher because he could not afford to go to law school.Noah Webster was a very smart man because he came up with 12,000 words.That is why room 32 has honered Noah Webster by learning about him.Mr.Weinstein got his first "Webster Dictionary" for Hanukkah in  5th grade.We looked up the word "internet" in the dictionary and it did not exsist yet.That was because the copyright date was from 1976! Every year new words are added to the dictionary.Don't forget to say Happy Birthday to Noah Webster!                                                                                                                                             

Explorers

 In Social Studies we each have an explorer we have to research and resite to the class. We will have to put our information on index cards and dress up like our explorer.We put all our information in a packet with lots of detailed information. We have been looking for information in the computer lab and in our classroom books to help us answer our questions about our explorers. When we resite our information to the class we have to be looking at everyone while we read, dress properly like our explorer and put enough important information on our index cards as we resite. Mr Weinstein will score us on the things above. Hope you like our presentation!!

Monday, September 27

Hi everyone,
If all goes well this week, the next post will actually be written by the students, instead of me!  We harvested our first round of cucumbers and snap peas from our Seedfolk Community Garden this morning!  We've got a full week of great learning activities planned this week.

In Math, we'll be learning some new, exciting ways to complete double digit multiplication problems.  In Reading, the students will be creating online posters, called "Glogs" using Glogster.  The posters will allow the kids to apply what they learned during our unit on Story Elements.  They will all be creating posters on their Jerry Spinelli books!
In Social Studies, we will be starting our Exploration unit and the children which each be assigned an explorer to research and then make a short dramatic presentation on.
In Science, we will be graphing dtat from our pendulum experiments and going outside to perform our own controlled experiment.
In Writing, we will continue to revise our personal narratives.
In Engineering, we will be applying what we learned about properties, design, and materials to help us design design sails for working sailboats.

Lastly, on Friday, we will be taking a field trip to work on 5th Grade Teambuilding skills.

Have a good week,

Mr. Weinstein

Our First Full Week!

We're finally getting into a solid routine now that we have five consecutive days in the classroom this week. 
In Social Studies we used Google Maps and music from around the world to help us find locations in an atlas using latitude and longitude.  We learned how maps have changed over time and now we are also learning all about the Vikings.
In Reading, we are learning about story elements and applying them to books by Jerry Spinelli.  We are also learning about different parts of speech and adding words to our word wall (our most recent words are diligent and propaganda-ask your child what they mean!)
In Science, we are learning how to use the Scientific Method and create a controlled experiment.  We'll be creating our own pendulums to test various hypotheses about what can change the number of swings our pendulums makes in a set time.
In Math, we have been switching classes and learning basic Algebra by using cross number puzzles and input/output tables.
In Writing, we are choosing small moments from our lives and turning them into Personal Narratives.  We will eb learning how to write strong leads and add dialog later this week.
We also will be meeting our kindergarten buddies on Thursday!
We have a FANTASTIC group of kids-I am so excited to get up each morning and learn with them!

A Great First Week!

Hi everyone,

I hope you all had the opportunity to discuss with your children everything we did this week.  If not, make sure you read their Friday Letter Home (and write them back)!  We worked very hard to create a cohesive team with solid expectations.  I am very impressed with this year's class.  They are excellent writers and also seem to really love reading.  They are focused and respectful not only of me, but also of each other!
Even though next week is a very short week, we will be getting into our normal routine.  We will begin our author's study of Jerry Spinelli as we learn about story elements and apply them to our books.  We will begin working with our new math groups, writing personal narratives and working on some very fun and interactive geography review.

Have a great long weekend!

Mr. Weinstein

The Start of a Great Year!

Hi everyone,

Last week, I spent several days setting up our classroom, and I'll be going back in on Monday to put on the finishing touches.  I can't tell you how excited I am about this year!  We'll have the Seedfolk Community Vegetable Garden, some new technology in the classroom, and all of your smiling faces!  I guarantee this is going to be a great year.   We'll spend the first week getting to know each other, building a cohesive team, and setting out expectations so you can all be successful fifth graders.  Don't forget your school supplies and story maps...but most importantly, don't forget your GREAT attitudes!  I'll see you all on Tuesday!

Counting the Days!

Hi Everyone!

This week I'll be entering the classroom to set up for the beginning of a great school year!  The PRS "Seedfolk" community garden is looking great and we have lots of veggies growing.  I've been working on lots of new and fun ways to help you learn and I am SOOOOOO excited to get started on August 31.  Our building looks great (Mr. Bob and his team did a great job-the building is so clean and shiny, it seems like a brand new school)!  Make sure you have completed your two story maps (one for the fiction book and a second for the non fiction book) and that you bring them to school on your first day along with your supplies, and MOST improtantly...your smiles and great attitude.

See you soon,

Mr. Weinstein

Growth in the Garden!

Hi all,

With only two weeks until I start setting up our classroom for the new school year, I went by to check on our Community Garden.  We have lots of peas, carrots, pumpkins and cucumbers growing.  It's very exciting and the garden will give us an opportunity to do lots of neat things this year.  We'll be working with Ms.  Jenn's class to care for it, and other classrooms may pitch in, too.  It's a VERY exciting undertaking at PRS and I can't wait to share it with you!

See you soon!

Mr. Weinstein