2nd Grade Buddies and Holiday Program

This week we had 2nd grade buddies. We played games and had COOKIES!  It was a really fun way to celebrate the holidays with our buddies. Plus it was a really nice way to learn a little about our buddies.

In our Holiday Program, Shine Your Light, we used black lights and had really cool special effects to enhance our singing. I really liked when the 2nd and 3rd graders performed Sleigh Ride with white gloves in the black light. It looked really cool to see only hands floating in the air!

-Janel

Veteran's Day Celebration 4th and 5th Grade

Veteran's day at Kennedy school is a great chance to learn about real live veterans up close and personal.  You can learn so much! like what it was like to be in a war or battle. One of the veterans had a story about an orphanage. They had no running water at the orphanage so they would have to send two kids to get water from a well. When the vet came he saw the kids carrying the water and helped them. And kept coming back to help them. And one of the times he saw a little girl in one corner of the room and said "Lati! Lati!" which means come here come here. When the little girl didn't come to him he came to her and eventually when he came again she was just waiting for him, so when he said "Lati! Lati!" she would run over him and sit on his knee.

-Alix

November?!

We've had an eventful couple of days! Yesterday, we were able to meet with our 2nd grade buddies for a second time. We helped them put on their costumes if they needed it and then read some Halloween and Fall books while snacking on cookies. The 5th graders really enjoy spending time with their buddies!

In math we started working with volume and exploring rectangular prisms. We have been giving the kids a volume and they would then have to construct a rectangular prism that has that volume. We have been working with base-ten ones blocks, and they have really picked up on the concept of volume!

It has been very encouraging to see how well a lot of kids are doing with the math program, especially when they are able to tell us all of the "math" behind what they are learning. 

In science, I like to do as much hands-on activities as I can. Unfortunately, the science units that I teach aren't very friendly with my hands-on approach. Right now, we are studying space. If I could give them a planet, a star, or a Mars Rover to hold and study, I would do so in a heartbeat. As you know, that isn't possible. So, I've supplemented with other things. We've been working with the new iPads our school received to study space. Below, the kids are completing an AppWalk through a variety of space related apps. If you are interested in any of the apps, let me or your child know! All the ones I have the kids explore are free and wonderful! :)

It's already November. My, how time flies! Have a great weekend!

~Mrs. Lengyel

Quick Note About Conferences

Conferences are upon us! I told all the kids today (after an unexpected absence yesterday) that they are all more than welcome to come to their conferences, that I actually ENCOURAGE them to come with parents or guardians so that we are all on the same page. I truly believe that it will be valuable for your child to hear what we all have to say during their conference. If possible, have them come with! I look forward to meeting everyone!

~Mrs. Lengyel

Ms. Kuhn

Last week, Ms. Kuhn came in to speak to us. Ms. Kuhn taught us stuff about Native Americans.We were taught how Native Americans survived in the wild. She also taught us how they build their homes and how they used every thing they didn't waste any thing.She taught us tips of homes for an example people who live in the desert made houses so they would stay cool.She also taught us some Indian tribes.In a few weeks she is going to teach us some games that the Indians played. Ms Kuhn taught us alot of things about the Indians. Sam

The First Field Trip of the Year

We just had our first field trip of the year! Our class went and saw the symphony preform with the other fifth grade and both fourth grade classes. It was fun to look at all of the instruments and hear them play. I really wanted to see the french horns but they are at the back so you could not see them well but at least i heard them! There was one song that took five minutes I bet. Later we found out that back in the olden days when a band played it played five of those for the peoples entertainment! Some of the songs we knew so we sung them to. We had a lot of fun at the symphony and were sad to leave.

~Mary

A Fraction of Math

We learned about some "tricks" with fractions.We also learned how to put fractions on number lines when they don"t evenly match up.  And most of us got to go on dreambox!

Tela

Post-its

Today we were told that we need to write post-its (or more for some people).And it's a good way to share thoughts.:) reading is great!

Tela

A New Month!

It's already October 1! Hopefully we'll get some more "fall-like" weather this month! However, the winter weather can hold off in my opinion...

Please don't forget to check your child's homework or remind them to look over their assignment notebook to make sure everything is done! Our goal is to have as few children in Homework Club as possible for the entire year. If you are ever wondering if your child was in homework club, they will have a little sticker in their assignment notebook saying they were in homework club and what homework wasn't done or turned in. I know they all can do it!

Thank you for your support, and Happy October!

~Mrs. Lengyel

Popcorn/reading time

As the Friday afternoon crept by, we had a little treat; popcorn at reading time!  As it just so happens we (5th graders ) get our treat last, we had it at the end of the day. It was a lot of fun!

Thanks for reading!

Ben

Personal Narratives

Today, we talked about personal narratives. Mrs. Bryhan showed us one about her trip to Puerto Rico and we found out that it wasn't up to 5th grade standards. We helped her fix it to narrow it down into a small moment. It turned out much better than when she started. We told her to talk about less but also to describe more about that moment. Then we took one of our own narratives and did the same thing by either making a new draft or narrowing it down to include less by talking more about the part we wanted to focus on.

Thanks for reading about our day!

Ben

Fractions!

Whew! It has been a busy couple of weeks! With everything that is new in math, it has been a learning experience for all of us. One strategy that we really did well with was halving and doubling. Ask your child what that means :) We just started a new module (or unit) today that kicked off with some good ol' fractions! 

A note about Dreambox came home this week. Dreambox is something special for your child and truly allows us to see where they are with the math concepts. I know this next part may be difficult, but please refrain from helping your child on Dreambox! This is something we want them to own and take pride in as their own work, and it will only do them a disservice if they don't truly understand a concept. The great thing about Dreambox is, if they are struggling, it will scaffold the support they need based on how they answer questions. That's right, Dreambox analyzes exactly how a child answers a question and the strategies they use along the way. Once again, feel free to WATCH your child on Dreambox, but do not help them!

They are learning so much at this time and we truly thank you for all of your support!

~ Mrs. Lengyel

Happy Friday!

We made it, week 2 complete! Everyone is really loving our read aloud book, Among the Hidden. Whenever we have to close the book, there are a lot of groans of disappointment.

A couple notes for parents and guardians. Don't forget to send your brag letters back to school! We have truly enjoyed reading each and every letter to learn a little more about your child through your eyes. Also, the Mr. Z fundraiser has begun! Look for the packets being sent home today. There was a little surprise for the kids in the envelope as well. See if you can tell what is different about our class in the picture below...

Wonderful Writers and a Cool Down!

We have a room FULL of wonderful writers!!! We have been amazed at how dedicated and engaged everyone has been during writing time. Often it is difficult to write, and writing is usually a "least favorite" subject. However, I do have to say that I truly love how much effort is being put towards writing.

Here we are, hard at work!

We have also been inspired by the amount of writing our students generate in one sitting. Our writing motto is "The only mistake you can make is to NOT write!" and we have taken that motto to heart. By then end of 5th grade, a student should be able to write 2 full, single lined pages in one half hour sitting. Some were doing this (the 4th and 5th days of school) in a 15-20 minute sitting. Keep up the great work, writers!

On a slightly different note, I sure am looking forward to this cooler weather! It has been a little toasty the past few days and it will be a great change to get the cool breeze wafting through the classroom.

~ Mrs. Lengyel

First Days!

We successfully made it through our first few days of school! It has been so much fun to get to know everyone in our class, and to see all of the different, shining personalities. I know this is going to be a great year! 

We've already been working on our netbooks and creating a Top Ten Things From Summer presentation.

We also have been getting back into the reading routine, and they look forward to reading their books during independent reading time. It's comforting to see a room full of readers, and all excited to dive in and read!!!

Today we decorated our writing notebooks. Thank you, parents and guardians for sending supplies to school with your child! They turned out great and everyone is very proud of their notebooks!

I can't believe tomorrow is already Friday! This week has gone so quickly and I am looking forward to the rest of the year! 

~ Mrs. Lengyel

Welcome!

Hello and welcome to our class blog! I hope everyone has been having a relaxing and exciting summer; I look forward to hearing about what everyone has been up to! It's hard to believe but we start school next week! Hopefully you have all of your supplies and are ready to jump into 5th grade!

This is our class blog. Throughout the year, the students and I will be updating the blog a couple times a week with what we've been up to in class, important happenings, funny moments, or anything else we think you should know, including homework assignments. When I say the students and I, that's what I mean! Not only will I be blogging, but each week one student will have the exciting opportunity to contribute to our blog. They will write about something we did or that happened, and include a picture or two. At the end of the blog post, he or she will "sign off" with his or her name, so keep on the look out for when your child is updating the blog! 

If you want to be notified every time there is a new post, go ahead and enter your email address at the top of the page.

I look forward to seeing everyone next Tuesday! Here is a picture from my summer! Any idea where it was taken?

~ Mrs. Lengyel