The Anne Sullivan School
cr
P.S. 238
5th Grade Newsletter
December Events
On Monday, December 1, the fifth grade will be going on a trip
to the Staten Island Museum to see an exhibit on geology called
“Fire and Ice”. This trip correlates to what we have been studying
in science since November and what we will continue to be
learning more about this month. On Tuesday, December 16, 5-321
will be going on a trip to Historical Richmondtown in Staten
Island. There they will become historical detectives and examine
primary documents that were important in the 1700 and 1800’s in
American history.
On Monday, December 22, P.S. 238 will have its annual
Winter/Talent Show. We hope all of you can attend this exciting
and fun night of dancing and singing! There will be no school from
Wednesday, December 24 to January 2, 2009. We would like to
wish everyone a happy holiday and new year!
Please make sure your child is reading every night and
completing his/her reading homework in preparation for the ELA
Test in January. On day one, the students will be required to read
several passages and answer questions and respond to one short
answer question. Day 2 consists of a listening passage followed by
four questions and one short answer response as well as an
editing passage where the students will have to correct several
errors in capitalization, punctuation and grammar.
Reader’s Workshop
Our emphasis for December is on reading realistic fiction
books, survival and adventures stories. We will be exploring high
quality books through Literature Circles. The students will work
independently, with a small group of their peers and with their
teacher to examine these selected texts. The students will
conduct discussions that facilitate comprehension and
accountable talk to complete written tasks which will
demonstrate their comprehension skills. They will each be
assigned a job in their literature circle.
During December, the fifth grade will continue to read for
stamina during independent reading. We will be focusing on
important reading strategies and skills during Reader’s Workshop
to increase the students’ literacy and fluency skills which they
will apply during guided reading and Literature Circles. We will
continue to prepare for the ELA State exam which will be on
Tuesday, January 13 and January 14.
Encourage your child to read as many books/essays on
these genres as possible that are on his/her “Just Right”
reading level. Ensure that your child reads for a minimum
of 30 minutes and completes their Reading Log entry
every night. Your signature is required on the Reading
Log. Please make sure that your child is also responding
to what they are reading by using the 50 Sentence Leads
for Reading Responses. Ms. Escowitz’ class is assigned
two leads a night. Please encourage your child’s
comprehension by asking him/her to restate, summarize,
and make connections to what he/she has read.
1633 East 8th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11223
December 2008
Vo l u m e 1 , I s s u e 2
Writer’s Workshop
In December, the fifth grade will publish their
realistic fiction stories and continue to use the
writing process to begin writing a Response to
Literature. The students will learn strategies to
engage the reader, advance a judgment that is
interpretative, analytic, evaluative, or reflective;
supports judgment through references to the text,
other works, authors, or personal knowledge; and
demonstrates an understanding of the literary
work.
Mathematics
We will cover Unit 5 and Unit 6 of Everyday
Math. Unit 5 focuses on Fractions, Decimals
and Percents. We will review fraction concepts
such as exploring mixed numbers, comparing
and ordering fractions, and finding equivalent
fractions; practice turning fractions into decimals
and percents; and review the properties and
construction of bar and circle graphs.
Unit 6 focuses on Using Data and Adding
and Subtracting Fractions. We will formulate
conclusions and make predictions from graphs;
develop and explain an argument verbally,
numerically, and/or graphically; and use a
variety of strategies to add and subtract fractions
and mixed numbers. Use the Family Letter for
Unit 5 and 6 to help your child learn the math
vocabulary and to review your child’s Study
Link HW.
Social Studies and Science
This month in Social Studies, the fifth grade will
learn about the geography of Latin America with an
emphasis on its landforms; its economics. its
people and key events that help shape this great
region. The fifth grade will also study the ancient
civilizations of the Aztecs, Mayans and Incas.
This month in Science, the fifth grade will
continue to learn about Earth Science with an
emphasis on the earth’s landforms and its
topography. The fifth grade will also learn about
the structure of the Earth, volcanoes and
earthquakes.