The Upton 4/5 Team News
Curriculum News for April 2017
M-STEP Testing
5th Grade
Tuesday, April 11th: Social Studies
Tuesday, April 18th: English Language Arts Performance Task
Wednesday, April 19th: English Language Arts
Tuesday, April 25th: Mathematics
Wednesday, April 26th: Mathematics Performance Task
**Fifth grade students will have no math homework from April 10th-28th.
4th Grade
Tuesday,May 2nd: English Language Arts
Thursday, May 4th: Science
Tuesday, May 9th: Mathematics
Thursday, May 11th: Mathematics Performance Task
**Fourth grade students will have no math homework from May 1st-12th.
Please encourage your child to take their time and do their best! Please be sure your child gets a good night of sleep and arrives to school on time as each test begins first thing in the morning.
Marvelous Math with Ms. Wasil
4th Grade - Students are finishing Unit 7, which focuses on fractions and decimals. Students are comparing decimals, working with equivalent fractions, comparing decimal numbers, and reading/writing decimal numbers. Students will take their Unit 7 math test when they return from spring break. They will then begin Unit 8, which focuses on Geometry. Students will be measuring and drawing angles, discussing triangles and angle measurements, and analyzing quadrilaterals and polygons. We will also begin reviewing a variety of topics in preparation for the MSTEP.
5th Grade - Students recently finished Unit 5, which focused on the division of whole numbers and decimals. Students are working within Unit 7 and studying coordinate planes and the order of operations. We are also reviewing a variety of topics in preparation for the MSTEP. If you student would like extra practice on a specific topic, please encourage them to work on that skill on IXL or ask me for help. Due to the MSTEP, fifth grade students will have no math homework from April 10th-28th.
All students may access Prodigy, Front Row, and Xtramath from home. These online programs will help students practice math skills.
Have an enjoyable and relaxing spring break!
Spectacular Science with Mr. Boyer
5th Grade - Students should be working on their Science Fair projects during this month. We spend time each week discussing the projects and tracking progress. I am very excited about the ideas they have come up with and look forward to seeing their finished projects. The Science Fair will be on Thursday, March 23. Students will bring their projects in that morning and store them in my classroom. We will set up our projects in the gym after lunch. Classrooms will have a chance to come around and see the projects throughout the afternoon and they will be left up for viewing during the Open house that evening. Thank you for your continued support during this project.
Social Studies with Mr. VanFleteren "Life is More than Who We Are!"
4th Grade
Rights and Reponsibilities
In this unit students explore the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Through a lesson on the Bill of Rights, students learn how government affects their daily lives by identifying situations in which specific rights are involved. They also explore why rights have limits and the relationship between rights and responsibilities. In exploring the responsibilities of citizenship, students focus on the need for citizens to be informed about public issues. They deepen their understanding of public issues and the importance of citizen action in a democratic republic. They identify public policy issues facing citizens in the United States and then use graphic data and other sources to analyze information about a particular issue. In exploring the issue, they evaluate alternative resolutions and analyze how conflicts among core democratic values often lead people to want different resolutions to a public policy issue. Finally, students demonstrate competency in expressing their own opinions relative to a public issue in the United States and justify their opinions with a reasoned argument.
Key Concepts
Bill of Rights
citizenship
civic responsibilities
core democratic values
individual rights
public issuesLesson Sequence
Lesson 1: What is the Bill of Rights?
Lesson 2: What are the Responsibilities of Citizens?
Lesson 3: Becoming Informed about Public Issues
Lesson 4: Core Democratic Values and Public Issues
Lesson 5: Exploring a Public Issue Facing U.S. Citizens
Lesson 6: Taking a Position on a Public Issue Facing U.S. Citizens
5th Grade
American Revolution
In this unit students explore the actions of people and the policies of nations during the Revolutionary War. Students begin by creating a timeline of events leading to the Declaration of Independence. They explore colonial experiences with self-government, including the Continental Congress, the influence of political ideas, and role of the press in unifying the colonies to support independence. Throughout the unit, students examine primary source writings including Common Sense and the Declaration of Independence. After considering the philosophical and political ideas about government contained in the Declaration of Independence, students analyze the colonists’ grievances in terms of unalienable rights, government by consent, and limited government. Next, students explore the course of the Revolutionary War. They evaluate the strengths and weakness of the British and colonial armies and investigate the course of the war with special emphasis on the winter at Valley Forge, the Battle of Saratoga, and the Battle of Yorktown. Students examine the influence of key individuals and other nations during this era, and compare perspectives of Loyalists and Patriots during the war. They also assess the role of women, African Americans, and American Indians on the outcome of the war and the impact of the war on their lives. The unit concludes with students assessing the Treaty of Paris, as well as the short and long term consequences of the American Revolution.
Key Concepts
Declaration of Independence
government by consent
military advantages and disadvantages
Patriot / Loyalist
revolution
right of revolution
sovereignty
treaty
turning point
tyranny
unalienable rights
Lesson Sequence
Lesson 1: What is the Bill of Rights?
Lesson 2: What are the Responsibilities of Citizens?
Lesson 3: Becoming Informed about Public Issues
Lesson 4: Core Democratic Values and Public Issues
Lesson 5: Exploring a Public Issue Facing U.S. Citizens
Lesson 6: Taking a Position on a Public Issue Facing U.S. Citizens
Wonderous Writing with Ms. Kirkwood and Mrs. Piccirilli
4th & 5th Grade Writing~
Informational Writing Unit 3~
As Fourth and Fifth Graders put their finishing touches on their published informational books and begin to share them with classmates on Google Slides, we look forward to our next unit. When we return from our break we will begin a review of our prior Narrative, Persuasive and Informational Units. This time we will focus on the use of narrative strategies in Poetry, Persuasive Letter Writing and Mini Research Reports. We will use our creativity to complete smaller, sometimes one or two class projects. This will also give students several opportunities to present their work and revisit the skills they've learned in preparation for middle school.
Writing Tools & Expectations:
- Students are using professional editing marks to check their own and peer writing.
- We are focusing on correct sentence structure. Students have learned that every sentence needs a subject and predicate. They are expected to use capitalization and punctuation correctly.
- Understanding grammar is vital to becoming an excellent communicator. In writing conferences and as a whole group, students will be asked to work on specific grammar rules and issues that may present themselves in their writing.
- All 4th and 5th grade students have Google Classroom accounts. Ask your child about Google Classroom. Please also note that all of our final copies are done on Google. This means that when deadlines draw near, students may be able to complete their final drafts as homework.
Contact Us on "Class Dojo" or by Email
Mr. Boyer: boyert@royalaokschools.org
Ms.Kirkwood: kirkwooda@royaloakschools.org
Mrs. Piccirilli: piccirillik@royaloakschools.org
Mr. Van: vanfleterenw@royaloakschools.org
Ms. Wasil: wasilk@royaloakschools.org
Website: royaloakschools.org
Location: 4400 Mandalay Avenue, Royal Oak, MI, United States