11/11-11/18 Fifth Grade Newsletter

Dear Fifth Grade Families,

I hope everyone is well. Here’s a look at what’s coming up this week, 11/11-11/18. Please make sure to read all important information to avoid questions that are clearly stated on all emails. I would greatly appreciate it! If you missed my email last week, you can check out my school blog; http://www.stanthonygardena.org/fifth-grade/

As we conclude the first trimester, I want to express my immense pride and gratitude for the remarkable progress our third graders have made over these past months.

The students have showed dedication, hard work, and growth.

As we start second trimester, I am excited to witness their continued growth and achievement I have no doubt that they will continue to excel, and achieve even greater milestones in the coming trimester.

Deadlines:

• February 24: 2nd Trimester Mass Reflection (7 reflections required)

I already gave out the reflection papers with your child last Friday.

Monday, Nov. 11

No School, Happy Veterans’ Day! Enjoy the 3-day weekend with your families. Thank you to all our veterans for their incredible service to our country!

Tuesday, Nov. 12.

Vision To Learn (VTL) will give your child a chance to have their visiontested on campus. If they FAIL the exam, your child will be fitted for a FREE pair of glasses in January 2025.

1st Trimester Grades & Missing Assignments

I will be finalizing our 1st trimester grades by Wednesday, Nov. 13. If your child has any missing homework, projects or classwork, please turn it in by Tuesday, Nov.12. After this day, I will not be accepting any late work. All grades are updated in a daily manner so parents are more aware of their child’s progress Please check Gradelink for more updated grades.

I kindly request to avoid waiting until the end of the trimester to address any missing assignments or incomplete work. Timely submissions significantly impact my ability to finalize and accurately assess grades within the given deadlines.

Awards Ceremony

Our 1st Trimester Awards Assembly will take place in the hall on Wednesday, 11/20, starting at 8am. Grades K-4 at 8am in the Hall, and Grades 5-8 at 9am in the Hall.

Awards

I will be sending out direct emails to all families of our awardees by Monday, Nov 18. For a student to receive a Citizenship award, a student must earn A’s (Outstanding = 92-100%) on both work habits and behavior grades. Therefore, students’ daily behavior, participation, attendance, assignments, projects, ST MATH AND AR goals and work habits are IMPORTANT factors in receiving an award.

Students are not eligible for a Citizenship award each trimester if they have one of the following:

• 5 tardies
• 5 unexcused absences
• 5 unexcused early leave
• 3 conduct slips
• 3 effort slips
• 3 detentions
• ST Math and AR goals are not reached

Please know that if your child doesn’t earn Citizenship this trimester, there’s still a chance to earn it in the next two trimesters. 

Honors

• 1st Honors – All A’s including Handwriting, Music, and PE
• 2nd Honors – A’s & B’s including Handwriting, Music, and PE

Grading Scales (from 3rd grade syllabus)– Grades 3-8

Subject Areas                                                                  Skill Areas

A (93 -100) Excellent                                                       O      Outstanding

B+ (90 – 92)                                                                   G      Good

B (87 – 89) Very Good                                                    S       Satisfactory

B- (85 – 86)                                                                   NI     Needs Improvement

C+ (80 – 84)

C (75 – 79) Average

C- (70 – 74)

D (65 – 69) Poor

F (0 – 64) Not Passing

Focus of the Week:

• Math: Adjust Quotients, More Division Word Problems
• Grammar: Possessive Nouns
• Religion: Finding God Lesson 6
• Social Studies: Chapter 3

Tests

Wednesday

• Religion: TOB Lesson 4 Quiz

Thursday

• Social Studies Quiz (Defenders of the Indians pp. 45-49)

Friday

• Math: Module 3 Test
• Religion: TOB Book 1 Test

2nd Trimester Chapter book

Our second trimester chapter book is, Esperanza Rising, by Pam Muñoz Ryan. It’s a heartwarming story which will be a key part of our reading and discussion over the next few weeks.

2nd Trimester Expectations

Friday, Nov 15 is the start of our 2nd trimester. This is an exciting time, but it is also a time when our expectations grow to further our preparations for the next grade level. Here are some of the expectations that I am looking out for

1. Writing Skills

• Paragraph Writing: Write at least one paragraph with 5-8 sentences on a given topic, ensuring that each sentence contributes to a complete thought.
• Grammar and Mechanics: Use correct punctuation and capitalization. Each sentence should begin with a capital letter and end with appropriate punctuation (period, question mark, or exclamation mark). Emphasis is placed on creating complete sentences and coherent thoughts.

2. Reading and Comprehension

• Fluency: Improve reading fluency by reading aloud with accuracy and appropriate expression.
• Comprehension: Answer questions about the main idea, details, and sequence of events in a story. Students should be able to summarize a text and explain character motivations and story outcomes.

3. Math Skills

• Recognizing fractions: Be able to identify the written form of a fraction, and recognize proper and improper fractions, numerators, and denominators.
• Converting fractions to decimals: Understand that some fractions can be expressed as decimals, and be able to convert them. For example, 1/2 is equal to 0.5.
• Converting decimals to fractions: Use a place value chart to convert decimals to fractions. For example, 0.7 is the same as 7 tenths, which can be written as the fraction 7/10.
• Solving problems: Be able to use fractions and decimals to solve real-life problems, such as calculating the total cost of items with decimal prices

4. Personal and Classroom Responsibilities

• Homework Responsibility: Submit homework independently by the deadline without reminders.
• Organizational Skills: Keep personal belongings and supplies organized. Students should bring their own supplies and take responsibility for their learning materials.
• Listening and Following Directions: Actively listen during instructions and follow directions promptly
• Preparedness: Come to class prepared with all necessary materials, including personal supplies and Chromebooks, as well as an organized workspace.

I am encouraging all students to meet these expectations every day, and it would be helpful if you could also encourage your child to work with these expectations at home too!

Lastly, if you’d like to support our classroom, here’s the link to our Classroom Wishlist: Wishlist.

Upcoming Events:
For more details, please refer to the [school calendar here].

• November 11– VETERANS’ DAY HOLIDAY, NO SCHOOL
• November 12 – Vision to Learn on campus for screening at 8:30 am (everyone gets screened for FREE eyeglasses, except the opt-outs, form was due 10/4)
• November 14 – BMX show for all qualifying families from Chocolate Sale, End of 1st Trimester
• November 18 – Poinsettia PRESALE ends for 8th grade fundraiser (pick up on 12/6 after school or 12/8 at 8th grade bake sale at church)
• November 20 – 1st Trimester Awards Ceremony (not in the church), report cards go home K-4 at 8am and grades 5-8 at 9am in Hall (2 sessions)
• November 25-29 – Thanksgiving Holiday
• November 22 – All School Ice Skating Annual Event (8th grade fundraiser)
• November 25-29 – Thanksgiving Holiday

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out.

Thank you & God Bless!

Warmly,
Ms. Alejandre