Good afternoon,
Happy Friday and first day of February!  Here are some updates from Room 206:
Math:
The corrected Unit 4 test was sent home this week to be reviewed and signed.  All students completed the mid-year test, and the scores will be shared with you by the end of next week.  We will be starting Unit 5 on Monday which is about "Operations with Fractions".
Reading:
Graded survival fiction literature circles were sent home yesterday, and the mystery literature circles will be sent home today.  I am asking that both be signed and returned by Monday.  We will reading graphic novels next and meeting once, on Thursday, February 14th from 11:15-11:45 AM to discuss the books.  Thank you to Mrs. Czado and Mr. Patil who volunteered for the mystery discussion groups.  I am looking for volunteers for our meeting on the 14th.  Please let me know by Monday if you are interested and available.  We would love to have you join us!
Author Visit on Monday:
We finished reading our class read aloud Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea just in time for his author visit next Monday, February 4th.  He gives a fabulous presentation and then works with small groups in a writing workshop format.  I think the kids will really enjoy it!  If they would like to bring in any of his books, he is always willing to sign books for them.  He will not sign anything else besides his own books, and they are not available to purchase on Monday.
Valentine's Day:
I have attached notices about our Valentine's Day party, Valentines, and a Valentine's Day activity that I am asking for your help with.  The kids have a hard copy of these notices too.  I would love to have some parent volunteers to help me during the Valentine's Day party on February 14th from 1:30-2:15 PM.  If you are available, please let me know.
Other:
Miss Juliana Viscione shadowed me for three days this week and will be popping in over the next couple of weeks to help make her transition as classroom teacher as smooth as possible.  The kids seem to be so excited to have her as their teacher for March, April and May, and I am confident she will do an excellent job.  She will be reaching out to you soon.
Reminder:
Next Wednesday is an early release day!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Have a great weekend!  Go Pats!
~Amanda

Good afternoon,
I hope everyone stayed as warm as possible on this long, cold holiday weekend!
Here are some updates:
Math:
We finished Unit 4 today, we will be reviewing tomorrow, and the Unit 4 test will be this Friday, January 25th.  The mid-year math test will be next Tuesday.  We will spend one day in class reviewing (Monday), but students are welcome to independently review and use their math binders, math journals, and online accounts to help them review any concepts from units 1-4.
Social Studies:
The Colonial America benchmark graded test is being sent home today to be reviewed and signed by this Friday, January 25th. It is really important that it is returned to school.  We went over it together in class, so I hope all students will be able to explain any questions you might have, but please don't hesitate to send me an email if you have additional questions.  I have asked them to self-reflect on what they did well, what they learned, and how they prepared/studied for this test to help them in the future. The test is just one form of assessment that will be used for their report cards.  I also take into account the chapter quizzes and class discussions and projects.
Science:
We are going to start the Earth, Moon, and the Stars unit in science tomorrow!  We will be studying this science unit with a project based learning approach.  The students will use their learning to pretend to be training a new group of astronauts who will be living on the ISS (International Space Station).
Reading/Writing:
The students will be participating in their second literature circle group discussions for their mystery books tomorrow.  We are also studying the non-fiction genre in reading and using this knowledge as writers to research, plan, draft, revise, edit and publish informational writing pieces about social studies topics.
Other:
Our newest classroom member joined us today.  All students warmly welcomed Nicole, and we are happy to have her join our classroom community!
Congratulations to Eesha, who won our classroom spelling bee today!  She will go on to represent our class in the school-wide spelling bee on Tuesday, February 5th.  If she can not participate, our runner up, Aanika, will proudly represent our class!  Way to go to both students and all students who participated!
The class was all very excited to learn that Ms. Juliana Viscione will be taking over for me during my 12-week maternity leave (beginning on Friday, March 1st).  I am excited as well and think she will do a fantastic job with this wonderful group of kids!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.
Best wishes,
Amanda

​Good Afternoon and Happy New Year!
Here are some updates from 5th grade in Room 206:
Reading & Writing:
Students have had some time to read their independent reading books, and we will be starting mystery books for our next literature circle groups.  These books will be distributed tomorrow, and the first assignment needs to be completed by Thursday, January 17th.  We are also starting informational writing and studying text features and structures in reading and practicing these skills and techniques in writing, along with researching and note-taking.
Math:
We have started Unit 4, which focuses on decimal concepts and coordinate grids.  The test for this unit will be on Friday, January 25th.  We will then spend one class day reviewing concepts from Units 1-4 before the students take the mid-year math test on Tuesday, January 29th.  They can use their online accounts, their student reference books, and their math binders to independently review any concepts from units 1-4 before the mid-year test.  The family letters are a great resource for them to review which concepts they have worked on thus far.
Social Studies:
The kids are working in groups of three to design and create a billboard for one of the 13 original colonies.  They will be using these billboards and our green screen in the Innovation Lab to film a commercial tomorrow convincing others to move to their colony.  Once these are complete, we will share them with you to enjoy too!  We will be wrapping up this unit next Monday, reviewing on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the Colonial America unit test is scheduled for next Thursday, January 17th. They all received the study guide and vocabulary cards at the beginning of the unit and should use these, their social studies textbooks (chapters 6, 7, and 8), and their handouts in their social studies folders to study.  An additional copy of the study guide and the vocabulary cards can be found on our classroom webpage.
Other:
I still owe the kids a pajama day for their last Respect Party reward, so we are wearing our pajamas this Thursday, January 10th.  This is optional, of course.
Scholastic book orders are due by this Thursday, January 10th.  The online code is- H3MVL if you would like to place an order.  This will probably be the last book order this year.
My last day before my maternity leave is Thursday, February 28th, and I will be returning on Monday, June 3rd for the last two weeks of school (or possibly more if there are snow days).  We are in the process of hiring my permanent substitute.  Once that has been determined, I will share that information with you and will be working with the new teacher to have a smooth and successful transition.
Exciting news- we are getting a new student on Wednesday, January 23rd.  She will be stopping by the classroom on Thursday for a quick meet and greet, and the class is really excited to welcome her!
Finally, there are many new pictures on our classroom webpage to check out!
https://nedroom206.weebly.com/
Best wishes,
Amanda

Dear Parents of Room 206,
I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving holiday.  We have been working hard here in Room 206.  Here is the latest update:
Reading:
Students finished their realistic fiction literature circle books yesterday and participated in high quality conversations about the books.  We will start our next literature circle book next week (survival fiction), and in the meantime they should be reading their independent book of their choice (hopefully for at least 20 minutes each night). If you are interested and available to participate in our next round of literature circles, please let me know.  We will be meeting on Thursday, December 13th, Thursday, December 20th, and Thursday, January 3rd from 11:15-11:45 AM. I would ask that you are willing to read the chapters each week and are available for all three dates for our in class discussions. In addition to literature circles, we are studying characters and theme and comparing and contrasting within a text and two different texts.
Writing:
All students have finished drafting their personal narratives and are now working on the revision and editing process.  This will be complete by next Friday.  We will have a writing share to celebrate all their hard work before moving onto our next genre- Informational Writing.  Students are also working on writing winter themed haiku poetry.
Science:
Today was the last day for students to work on their summative project for our ecosystems unit.  Because we are using parts of the project based learning model, I have been acting more as a guide for this final project.  It has been mostly student driven and their projects are based on their brainstorming, planning, and group collaborative efforts.  We have a brochure being distributed to Nashoba Valley Ski Area, a trifold being displayed at the JV Fletcher library, a video being shared with multiple schools in Westford, a comic strip being shared with 2nd graders at Miller, and a newspaper being distributed around town to different audiences. Although all the projects are very different, they all answer the same question- How can you help maintain healthy ecosystems in Westford and why (the science behind it)?  We hope to receive feedback from you and Westford residents about their hard work.
Social Studies:
We will be starting the Colonial America unit next week.  I have updated our classroom website to include the vocabulary for this unit.
Math:
We are continuing to study all aspects of fractions in math.  We will be wrapping up this unit around December 14th.
Other:
The Day School Holiday Shop will be held next week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday.  The PTO is in need of about 10-12 more volunteers to help this run smoothly.  The link to sign up for volunteering is- https://www.signupgenius.com/go/70a0f44ada62fa5fd0-holiday
Scholastic Book Orders were sent home today.  If you would like to participate, the online code is- H3MVL and the deadline is next Thursday, December 6th.
I attached to this email the two flyers that were sent home this week about our December "Kindness" Project and our Winter Holiday Party (scheduled for Thursday, December 20th from 1:30-2:15 PM).  Please let me know if you have any questions. Again, all parents are welcome to join us for the Winter Holiday Party!
Have a great weekend!
Best wishes,
Amanda

Dear Parents of Room 206,
I hope everyone is enjoying two days of sunshine in a row.  I know I am!  Just a couple updates for this week-
Math:
The corrected Unit 2 math tests were sent home yesterday to be signed and returned to school by tomorrow- Friday, November 9th.  In this order you will see- your child's self-reflection (which includes celebrating what they learned by comparing the final test to the pre-test taken before the unit got started, analysis of their kinds of mistakes, and goals for the future), the graded test taken after the unit was finished, and then on the bottom the pre-assessment test they took before the unit began.  By attaching the pre-assessment, I hope you can see how your child grew as a mathematician this unit.  I was really proud of them for their learning and growth and was happy to see them writing quality self-reflections.  I really want them to feel their successes and take ownership over their learning. Thank you for taking the time to review this and return it to school for their portfolio binders.
Reading:
We had our first realistic fiction literature circle meeting groups today, and the kids did an excellent job participating in quality discussions about the book.  They all seem to be loving the four books, and I hope some of them get some recommendations to add to their "to read" lists on Bookopolis for the future.
Other:
Race for Education- The school will all be participating in Race for Education activities tomorrow.  5th grade activities will be from 9:55-10:35 AM, and I believe they are still hoping to have some volunteers.  Please check today's email from the school about this.  It should be a lot of fun!
Parent Conferences- Thank you all for returning your conference time preference sheets.  I was able to schedule all conferences, and I sent home a letter today with your date and time and a few questions for you to answer to help me best prepare for our 15 minutes together. I ask that you fill that out and send it back with your child by next Tuesday, November 13th.  It also acts as a confirmation that you know your time.  If you just want to fill in your child's name and who is attending the conference, that works for me too! :-)
Turkey Day Event- Every year Mrs. Claycomb organizes a fun event around Thanksgiving for all grades to participate in, and she asks for students to bring in a non-perishable food item.  A notice was sent home today about this collection.  Our class would like to win for the most donations in the school, and we set a goal of 100 items.  If this is possible for your family, please consider sending in donations anytime from now to Tuesday, November 20th.  Thank you in advance for your support!
As always, please don't hesitate to email me with any questions or concerns (or even if something is going well that you just want to share).  I always enjoy hearing from you.
Also, thank you to any of you that are veterans.  I appreciate your service and will be keeping you in mind this long weekend.
Best wishes,
Amanda

Hello,
Just a couple updates:
Reading: Our class wrapped up our fantasy literature circle groups this week.  We will start a new genre next week, and I would love to have more parent volunteers who can commit to reading the chapters each week and coming into our classroom for the three meetings (Thursday, November 8th from 11:15-11:45, Thursday, November 15th from 11:15-11:45, and Thursday, November 29th from 11:15-11:45).  If you are available and interested, please let me know by next Wednesday.  Thank you again to Mrs. Czado, Mrs. Mysore, Mr. Sardella, and Mrs. Bates for participating in our first round of literature circles!  It is a huge help to me, and the kids really enjoy having a guest with their group too.
Math: The unit 2 test is scheduled for next Tuesday, October 30th.  Students will be completing a self-reflection on Monday about how they feel about each of the concepts (place value, expanded notation, powers of 10, U.S. traditional multiplication, division of multidigit numbers, and interpreting remainders in division number stories).  We will spend time in class on Monday reviewing these concepts individually, with a partner, and with guided math groups.
Other: Our Halloween party is scheduled for next Wednesday, October 31st from 1:35-2:20.  All parents are welcome to join us if available.  Students can bring in their own special snack to enjoy (not to share) and are allowed to wear a favorite costume (no makeup, masks, or fake weapons). Also, our class reached 200 respect points.  They voted to have a pajama and crazy hair day, and we scheduled this for Thursday, November 1st.  This is completely optional, of course.
There are several photos from this week added to the photo gallery on our classroom webpage.  Please check them out when you have a chance and ask your child to explain what was going on at that moment.  :-)
I hope you all have a great weekend.
Best wishes,
​Amanda

Good afternoon,
Here are some classroom updates for the week:
MATH:
Students took home their unit 1 test to be signed and returned for today.  If you haven't signed it yet (to let me know you are aware of your child's grade), please do that over the weekend.  The students spent time this week working on test corrections, classifying their mistakes (handout attached), and completing a self-reflection (celebrating successes, classifying errors, and setting future goals).  When students are unable to correct their own mistakes, I meet with them to talk about the problems, and we continue to work on these tricky concepts throughout the year. They are also practicing setting their own goals as mathematicians and working with me for a plan on how to achieve these goals.  Please ask your child what he or she is working on for their independent math goals.
SCIENCE:
I have received four nature pictures so far, so I have extended the deadline for this assignment.  I am hoping to have a picture from each student by Monday of something in nature in Westford.  It can be emailed to me anytime over the weekend or brought into school on Monday. Thank you for your help with this.  We will be using this as a springboard to our Ecosystems unit in science next week.
READING:
The students participated in their first literature circle discussions, and I was so impressed with the level of conversation happening and students using evidence from the text to support their thinking. I took a few pictures, and the pictures are available for viewing on our classroom website. Students were given the new assignment yesterday (chapters and double-sided sheet), and this is due next Thursday.  Although students are given class time to work on this, they should also be reading for 20 minutes every night, and I ask that literature circle reading comes before independent choice reading.
OTHER:
The deadline for submissions for the school's "Race for Education" fundraiser is this upcoming Monday.  Please consider participating. Scholastic book orders are due by next Wednesday, October 17th (if interested).  I encourage you to use our online code- H3MVL- to order online.  Lastly, our school is continuing to collect box tops.  Please send them in with your child if you have any in your house.  We really appreciate the support!
I hope you have a wonderful fall weekend!
Best wishes,
Amanda

Good afternoon,
Just a few updates this Friday-
Reading-
The students will be participating in their first literature circle discussion next Thursday, October 11th.  They were given specific chapters to read and a double-sided sheet to complete by this date.  I am looking forward to our first meeting, and I want to thank Mrs. Czado and Mrs. Mysore for volunteering to help during literature circle discussions, along with Principal Sardella and Literacy Specialist Mrs. Bates!
Social Studies-
Students were given a completed rubric on Wednesday for their first unit in social studies.  This was to be shared with you and signed for today.  If you haven't had a chance yet to see it, please review it with your child this weekend and have them bring it back to school on Wednesday for their portfolio folders.
Math-
You can expect to see Unit 1 graded math tests come home next Wednesday.  I will be asking for a signature on this too.  We have started Unit 2, which focuses on place value, exponents, and the traditional multiplication strategy. Students were given a Family Letter with more specific details and vocabulary about the unit.
Just for Fun-
Our classroom Halloween party will be on Wednesday, October 31st from 1:30-2:15 PM.  If you would like to join us and are available, we'd love to have you!  I won't be serving any food, but students are encouraged to bring in their own special snack to enjoy while we play some spooky games together!
I look forward to seeing some of you and your kids tomorrow at the movies at 3:15 PM!  I plan on getting there around 3 and will look for families in the lobby.
Have a great long weekend,
​Amanda

Dear Parents of Room 206,
We are starting to really get into a routine here in 5th grade!
SOCIAL STUDIES: Today in social studies, the kids presented their Google Slide presentations, and I was so impressed with the quality of their work and their knowledge about the subject. Next week we will be using this information to decide what attributes should be celebrated for an "Explorer Day" in October instead of Columbus Day.  Stay tuned.
READING: Last week students were introduced to a website for kids called Bookopolis.  A letter went home explaining it to families.  If you would like your email added to your child's account, please email me and let me know.  It is a great way for students to track their reading, create a digital list of books they want to read, and to recommend books to each other.  I am a big fan of the adult version of Bookopolis called Goodreads, and I am hoping the students use their accounts to grow and connect as readers.
TECHNOLOGY: All students took a pre-assessment for typing skills and speed.  The 5th grade standard is for students to be able to accurately type 25 words per minute by the end of the school year.  I sent a letter home today with information about Typing Club and your child's current WPM.  Until students reach the goal of 25 WPM, they are expected to be using Typing Club for at least 15 minutes 3 times a week.  This will be done in school; however, students are able to access their accounts from home as well.  I used this program last year and saw great growth with all of my students.  This is a life skill that will help them this year and in the future.  I am asking for you to sign and return the letter for Monday, so I know you are aware of the program. Thank you!
Because we use Chromebooks and iPads for learning throughout the day, it is really helpful if students can have a pair of earbuds to keep at school.  If you have an extra pair at your house to send in with your child, please send them in as soon as possible.  Thank you for those of you who have already sent them in.  If you don't have any, it's not a problem.  I do have a few extra pairs to use.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED: Throughout the year, we will be participating in literature circles.  We will read a variety of genres and meet once a week to have quality conversations with people who have read the same assigned chapters.  I am hoping to have some parent volunteers who would be willing to read the chapters as well and volunteer as a group facilitator during these meetings.  We will be starting in about two weeks, and the groups will meet on Thursdays from 11:15-11:45 AM.  If you are available and interested in giving it a try, please let me know as soon as possible.  I welcome parent support in the classroom, and in the past, the parent volunteers have enjoyed both the books and the great conversations they have with the kids.  By having parent support, I am able to move to each of the groups throughout the set time.  Thank you for considering this opportunity!
MOVIE DATE: Our class is currently reading as a read aloud The House with a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellair which comes out in the theaters today.  I read it last year with my class as well.  I would like to invite this year's class (and last year's class too) to see the movie with me on Saturday, October 6th (probably in the late morning).  Once tickets are available to purchase, I will give you all more specific details; however, I wanted you to save the date if your son or daughter is interested.  I did this last year with A Wrinkle in Time when it was released in the theaters, and it was a lot of fun!  I do ask that all students are supervised by a parent at all times.  No students are to be dropped off unsupervised.  Again, I will send the exact details by the end of next week.  I hope to see many of you there!
CLASSROOM WEBSITE: Please check out the new pictures on our classroom website from this week.
Have a fantastic weekend,
Amanda