Spring Festival this Sunday

See you at the St. Jerome Spring Festival this Sunday from 10 am to 3 pm.

Family Newsletter

Hello 5th Grade Families!

We are an ocean of activity in 5th Grade this week! Please read below for special reminders and a curriculum overview of the week.

Walking Wednesdays starts this week.  Parents are invited to walk and chat with Miss Wilkie after morning assemblies on Wednesday.

Spring Festival is this weekend!  I am looking forward to seeing you at the Spring Festival this Sunday from 10 am until 3 pm. The money we raise through this event helps fund technology for the school.  Thank you for your generosity. See you there!

The Parent Appreciation Fiesta is next Wednesday, 5/29.  In gratitude for our parent community, we are having a get together to celebrate.  I hope you can make it. See you there!

Please remember to return the signed progress report slip as soon as you can.  Also, I am collecting Spring Picture money and returned pictures.

Overview of Curriculum:

Religion: We are concluding our lessons on the Holy Spirit. Our prayers we are learning include:  Act of Faith, the Memorare and Hail, Holy Queen since May is the month of Mary.

Math: We are solving problems with ratios and writing algebraic expressions with ratios.

English/Language Arts: Reading Folk Tales from Around the World is our theme this week. Our reading strategies are visualization and character development. Our language skills include helping verbs and words ending in -le.  Our writing is linked to our anthology theme and MARE (Marine Activities Resources and Education).

Science: We are conducting both MARE and FOSS (Full Option Science System) experiments on ocean currents and convection which connects to our theme of Open Ocean.  We are also reading the many Open Ocean books that MARE has loaned to us.

Social Studies: Military Battles in the Revolutionary War and review and test prep for Revolutionary Era on Friday.

Thank you as always, for your support in your child's education.  Please email me if you have any questions or concerns.

Family Newsletter

Greetings 5th Grade Families!

Please read below for special announcements and an overview of this week's curriculum.

This is a very eventful week as we have progess reports, our official MARE (Marine Resources Activities and Education) kick-off, Grandparent's Day and the Father/Daughter Dance on Friday. I am looking forward to seeing all of your for Grandparent's Day on Friday.  Please remember there will be a special liturgy at 8:45 and it is a 12n dismissal.

Please sign the bottom portion of the progress report and return it Thursday.

Do you have a special experience with the Open Ocean that you would like to share?  If so, please email me and we can arrange for you to share it with the class.  We are studying the Open Ocean in 5th Grade as part of our MARE Science.

In Religion, we are studying the Holy Spirit by reading a Bible story about Jesus promising to send the Advocate (related to this week's gospel reading).

In Math, we are studying ratios and equations.

In English Language Arts, we are studying Tricky Tales and, integrated with Social Studies, we are studying the Declaration of Independence.  We are also re-writing the Declaration of Independence in a song, fable, poem or folktale.

In Science, we conduct an experiment on how clouds form and also create 3D ocean organisms for MARE.

Thank you for being involved in your child's education.  I appreciate your support.  Please email me if you have any questions or concerns.

Family Newsletter

Hello 5th Grade Families,

Welcome back from a long weekend! We are almost mid-term. We are very busy working towards the 5th Grade standards and preparing for middle school.  Here's an overview of our learning in 5th Grade this week.

In Religion, we concluding our Bible story of Jesus revealing himself to two believers on the road to Emmaus. We will also begin studying another Bible story of the promise of the Holy Spirit (as we approach Pentecost).

In Math, we are concluding our unit on operations with integers and coordinate planes.  We will continue our study of Algebra with ratios and functions.

In Language Arts, we are integrating our Social Studies unit on the Revolutionary era with an interview with George Washington (in the form of a talk show so everyone participates).  We will also be reading and writing about Tricky Tales in our Literature Anthology.  The Paul Revere Poems students wrote last week were very clever and creative.  Good Job, 5th Grade!

In Social Studies, in addition to George Washington activities, we are studying a modern rewrite of the Declaration of Independence and 8 major battles of the Revolutionary War.

In Science, we are doing a hands-on experiment on condensation.  We are also exploring food webs in the open ocean for MARE and studying the organisms that live at different ocean levels.

As always, thank you for your support in your child's education.  Please email me if you would like to volunteer during our Science classes or if you have any other concerns.

Special Free Dress and School Holiday

Please remember that Friday, April 26th is Spring Picture Day and students are to come in free dress.  Also, Monday, April 29th is a school holiday.

Sonoma Mission Field Trip

This week, the 4th and 5th Grades enjoyed a field trip to Mission San Francisco Solano in Sonoma.  We also visited General Vallejo's House nearby. Our docents were very knowledgeable and helped bring California history alive for the students. Thank you to all of the chaperones who helped make our day a success.

Family Newsletter

Hello Fifth Grade Families!

Welcome to a new week of learning!

Important Reminders

Tuesday, 4/23 is our field trip to Mission Sonoma and General Vallejo's house.  Please make sure your child is in complete uniform with a bag lunch.  No money is needed and we will not be stopping at the gift shop.

Please return your Read-A-Ton papers and pledges as soon as possible.  Thank you for your support.

Please return to the office your registration materials for next year.  If they are submitted by Friday, 4/26, your child gets a free dress pass for the following Friday.

Curriculum Overview for the week

In Religion we will share our Easter booklets with the 1st graders and also read a bible story about Jesus appearing to his disciples after his resurrection.

In Math we are performing operations with integers.

In Reading/Language Arts we are reading Fairy Tales and examining sequence of events as a comprehension strategy.  We will also be integrating Social Studies with English/Language Arts by conducting a talk show interview with George Washington.

In Social Studies we are comparing "Paul Revere's Ride" by Longfellow with the Real Story of Paul Revere and writing a historically accurate poem.

In Science we are learning about the precious and limited resources the ocean offers to the planet.

Please feel welcome to contact me via email if you have any questions and also welcome to volunteer during Science.  I appreciate your support in your child's education.

Multicultural Day!

A big thank you to all of the parents who supported St. Jerome Multicultural Day!  The 5th Graders enjoyed learning about all of the cultures and tasting the delciious food!

Family Newsletter

Hello Families!

Welcome to a fresh week in Fifth Grade!  Please continue to encourage your child to Read-A-Ton and log their free choice reading time.

We have our field trip to the Sonoma Mission and General Vallejo’s Home in Sonoma next week on Tuesday, April 23^rd. A permission slip will go home on Tuesday and is due by this Friday, April 19th. Please make sure your child is on time, in full uniform, and brings a bag lunch (we will not be at school for hot dog lunch that day!) We will return by 3PM.

Please complete and return the school registration packets that went home last week by Friday, Aoril 26th.

Here is an overview of what we are learning this week.

In Religion we are preparing minibooks on the meanings of Easter symbols and traditions to share with our First grade buddies next week and will be attending a multicultural liturgy on Friday.

In Math we are dividing integers and writing equations with integers.  We are continuing to incorporate hands-on math activities into our lessons.

In Reading and Language Arts we are studying Trickster Tales and Fairy Tales.

In Social Studies we are studying 6 main events leading to the Revolutionary War.

In Science we are conducting an experiment on evaporation and surface area as well as delving into the open ocean and the organisms that live there as part of our MARE (Marine Activities Resources and Education) program.

Thank you for your support in your child's education. Please email me if you have questions, concerns or would like to volunteer during Science (afternoons).

Family Newsletter

Hello 5th Grade Families!

Welcome Back!  I am happy to be back in the classroom after a restful Easter Break! I have many wonderful learning experiences planned for your children and this newsletter will provide a brief overview.

Reminder: April is Read-A-Ton month, so please encourage your child to complete their reading log and ask supportive family, friends and neighbors for their support! Make daily free choice reading at home a relaxing habit!

In Religion, the 50 days of the Easter Season have begun!  We are investigating the symbols of Easter in an Internet webquest and preparing a mini-book of the meanings behind the Easter symbols to share with younger students.

In Math, we are exploring integers: comparing, ordering, adding, subtracting, graphing, multiplying and dividing positive and negative numbers.

In Reading, our new anthology theme is Using your Wits so we will be reading, writing and discussing critical and creative thinking and problem solving skills.

In Writing, we are completing our essays comparing and contrasting life in the colonial regions. We will also have writing assignments in Religion (mini-book) and Science (MARE see below)

In Social Studies we are opening our Revolutionary War unit: this week, prelude to the revolution where we study 6 main events that led the colonists to revolt against England. Students will write brief reports in class on how each of the events leads to the War for Independence.  This is a multi-week unit.

In Science, we are continuing our (FOSS) hands-on activities with evaporation and condensation.  We are also starting MARE (Marine Activities Resources and Education) unit on the Open Ocean.  5th Graders will be exploring life in the open ocean and the different ways that it impacts life on land.

Thank you so much for your support in your child's education. Please feel free to email me with any questions or concerns.