5th Grade ELA News
Reading
Reading stanza by stanza has been very powerful for students. As adults we know it can be a challenge to read an entire poem and grasp the meaning but by chunking it, kids are becoming increasingly successful in this. Poetry is great because it reaches all types of readers - even those who struggle with reading, it's often perceived as them as "easy" because it's shorter than a book. We'll wrap up the unit after winter break and move in to our next reader's workshop.
Book Projects
Spelling
Writing
As time allows, students are adding bibliographies to their pieces, too. We've talked at great length about the primary sources they are using as research resources, how to cite those (in a 5th grade way, that is) and how to put their sources' words into their own. I'll score these over winter break and provide them with that feedback before we move on to our next informational piece.