We've been busy in Club Ed....
S.T.A.R. Testing
State Testing and Reporting is now complete, and we thank the scholars for
not only working hard all year, but also for participating actively in review
activities to prepare for testing. This year, we practiced strategies in all
subject areas and focused more intently in the area of Language Arts.
Scholars seemed to enjoy rotating through each of the five classrooms to
review and refresh concepts in Math as well as fourth and fifth grade
Science. A special thank you goes out to the parents for making sure that
your sons and daughters were well rested, had a healthy breakfast, and
arrived at school on time! .
Open House - May 20th (6-7PM)
Please join us on Wednesday, May 20th for our annual Open House. Scholars
have been working hard this year, and they are anxious to reflect on and
share all of their great learning this year. I look forward to sharing in
the scholars' many accomplishments with you.
Dismissal will be at 11:50 AM that day.
Please see the Math and Science pages on this site for detail about what we
are studying in each subject.
In Math, we are a pilot classroom for two textbooks that the district is
considering for adoption for the next seven years. We have finished testing
the second book, Houghton-Mifflin's California Math. Based on a district
vote, we are recommending the Pearson Scott Foresman book for adoption and
will use those materials for the remainder of the school year. This book has
a digital path -- the entire book is online, and there are also many great
resources for scholars. Please look for the link on
the "math links" page.
Some General notes about the class.....
A unique aspect of this class is that scholars have two teachers this
year. In my classroom, scholars focus on mathematics, science, and
technology; in Mrs. LeFever's class, they will study Language Arts and
Social Studies. Mrs. LeFever and I have many exciting, standards-based
learning activities planned for the year, designed with the diverse
scholars' learning styles in mind.
As the year progresses, please check out the Science and Math pages on this
website for more specific details about the topics we're studying.
Why "scholars" instead of "students?"
Simply put, these fifth graders seem to like their distinction as scholars.
They are encouraged to embrace the concept of scholarliness in their
approach to their learning. Following our study of scholarly attributes, or
behaviors, the first week of school, you will soon hear scholarly vocabulary
such as academic humility, resources, tools, exercising intellect,
needing time to ponder, and being curious by asking purposeful
questions. Additionally, we will consider different perspectives,
particularly from the point of view of a disciplinarian. For example, during
a field trip to the Ocean Institute in Dana Point, scholars were
asked to think like a chemist when experimenting with water chemistry and
to think like a marine biologist when dissecting a fish to determine
affects of pollution on the fish's health.
Depth and Complexity
Mrs. LeFever and I will introduce icons of depth and complexity as a
thinking tool and differentiation strategy while studying the curriculum.
Scholars formulate "big ideas" to generalize the main points of study, and
they also look for "language of discipline","details", "patterns",
and "unanswered questions." There are more icons and concepts within the
depth and complexity model, and we will be introducing and working with more
of the icons as the year progresses. The strategy lends itself nicely to
differentiation as scholars are able to interact with the subject matter
with a level of depth and complexity that is appropriate with their
cognitive ability.
Interactive Newsletters, or circle maps, began on Friday
(9/05) and are part of our Friday routine. This thinking map serves
as a tool for scholars to share with their parents the events of the past
week in class as well as upcoming important events. We hope you enjoy
these interactive newsletters and that parents will appreciate the
opportunity to find out that more happened in school than "nothing!"
I am truly fortunate to have the opportunity to work with such bright and
energetic scholars and am excited to teach and learn from them!
Mr. Tobenkin
