Grade 5
Fifth Grade Curriculum
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Literacy Curriculum
Writing Workshop
Students engage in the writing process--- brainstorming, drafting, revising, editing, publishing, and sharing
Students keep Writer’s Notebooks to gather writing ideas (seeds), to explore different genres, and learn a variety of writing techniques
Each student will gain a sense of self as a writer and become a positive, contributing member of a responsive, literate community
Writing cycles in fifth grade will include: speech writing, research paper, fiction adventure story, persuasive essay, non-fiction picture books, and free write
Reading Workshop
Students read grade appropriate literature in groups, independently, and in pairs
Students engage in discussion about literature, create art and drama based on the literature, and write Reading Responses and key questions
Students implement various reading strategies—for example decoding words, predicting, making connections, making inferences, determining important information, visualizing, and synthesizing the information; the Daybook and the Houghton-Mifflin are used to supplement the skills obtained form reading literature
Independent Reading
Students spend 15 minutes at least three times a week reading in their homeroom
Students are required to read for 30 minutes every night and 60 minutes over the weekend
Students are also required to write one reading response letter to their teacher each week about the independent reading book they are currently reading
Students will produce three independent book projects throughout the year
Vocabulary Development
Students work with the Wordly Wise Vocabulary program, learning 15 new words--- their definitions and appropriate use—every two weeks
Spelling Skills
Students work with the MegaWords program learning to identify parts of the words, phonetic structures of the words, and spelling rules and patterns---- quiz every two weeks
Grammar
Students work with the Ridgewood Grammar program to name specific parts of the English language and how to use them
Math Curriculum
After much discussion and research, our school has decided to adopt the Scott Foresman math program to help us address the Massachusetts State Frameworks. We will continue to use TERC for its strength in concept exploration and development, however we believe that the Scott Foresman curriculum will better equip our students with basic mathematical skills.
The following are topics that will be covered in fifth grade:
Place Value, Adding, Subtracting: Place Value: Whole Numbers and Decimals, Building Number Sense, Adding and Subtracting Whole Numbers and Decimals Multiplying Whole Numbers and Decimals: Multiplying Whole Numbers, Multiplying Whole Numbers and Decimals, Algebra Dividing with One-Digit Divisors: Division Number Sense, Dividing, Algebra Dividing with Two-Digit Divisors: Number Sense, Dividing Whole Numbers, Dividing Decimals Data, Graphs and Probability: Reading and Making Graphs, Interpreting Data, Probability Geometry: Lines, Angles, and Circles, Polygons, Symmetry and Transformations Fraction Concepts: Understanding Fractions, Fraction Relationships, Fractions, Decimals and Percents Fraction Operations: Adding and Subtracting Fractions, Adding and Subtracting Mixed Numbers, Multiplying and Dividing Fractions Measurement: Linear Measurement and Perimeter, Area, Time and Temperature Measuring Solids: Solids, Volume and Capacity, Weight/Mass
We will continue to have 10-minute math periods throughout the week to reinforce concepts taught in class. In addition, students will be exposed to algebraic concepts through the Groundworks program.
Social Studies Curriculum
This year we are implementing a new Social Studies Curriculum called History Alive!. Students will explore America’s past using a series of interactive activities and assessments.
TOPICS OF STUDY:
Geography of the United States
Continents and oceans, hemispheres, lines of latitude and longitude, and physical features of land and water
Native Americans and Their Land
Migration of Native Americans to North America, natural environments for settling and adaptations to those environments
Native American Cultural Regions
Use of artifacts to discover cultural adaptations of seven Native American cultural regions
Why Europeans Left for the New World
European exploration in the 15th and 16th centuries
Routes of Exploration to the New World
Discovery of how European explorers claimed land in North America and the impact this had on Native Americans
Early English Settlements
Early English settlements at Roanoke, Jamestown, and Plymouth (reasons for settlement, hardships and reasons for success or failure of each settlement)
Comparing the Colonies
Similarities and differences among the New England, Middle and Southern Colonies
Facing Slavery
Slavery from the perspective of West Africans facing difficult dilemmas as European slave traders take them farther and farther from their homeland
Life in Colonial Williamsburg
Daily life in the settlement including government, social life and religion
Growing Tension Between the Colonies and Britain
How feelings of powerlessness led to historic events such as the Stamp Act, Boston Tea Party and Intolerable Acts
To Declare Independence or Not
Loyalists versus Patriots debate about whether or not to declare independence
The Declaration of Independence
Important events leading up to Declaration of Independence and understanding of excerpts from the document
The Revolutionary War
Allies and factors contributing to the defeat of Britain in the Revolutionary War
The Constitution
Creation of the Constitution and the branches of government
The Bill of Rights
Bill of Rights and key amendments
This curriculum will be supplemented with Current Events and Geography activities throughout the year.