NAME:
Mrs. Kelley
SCHOOL:
St. Joseph School
CLASS:
Grade 5B
SCHOOL PHONE:
781 396-3636
This is my tenth year as a fifth grade teacher at St. Joseph School
where I teach math, science, spelling, and reading. I have a Bachelor of
Science Degree in Elementary Education from Framingham State College and a
Master of Science Degree in Elementary Education with a concentration in
math from the State University of New York at Cortland. I taught fourth and
fifth grades in New York in the public schools for several years before
moving to Massachusetts. Since then, I taught fourth grade and also special
needs students in grades seven and eight before my arrival at St. Joseph
School in 2000.
I try to make learning interesting, fun, and challenging. I believe every
child can learn and should work to his/her potential. My goal is to help
each child achieve this by taking into consideration his/her particular
learning styles and adapting my teaching methods to meet those needs.
The goal of my reading curriculum is to make my students have a love for
reading and develop skills they will use throughout their lives. My reading
curriculum incorporates the teaching of multiple strategies for reading
comprehension and increasing their vocabulary, particularly with skills for
discerning the meaning of vocabulary in context. It also includes test-
taking strategies that will be beneficial throughout their school years.
(See Reading Skills Links.)
To make math successful, the basic facts must be automatic. These are
applied throughout the fifth grade curriculum, which has a heavy emphasis on
adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing fractions. However, a real
understanding of math and not merely computation is my goal. Students must
be able to relate and apply math skills to their daily lives. Solving word
problems, making math challenging, and stimulating creative thinking are my
objectives to accomplish this end. Students use technology in the form of
interactive games for reinforcement of the tables and concepts being studied.
(See Math Links.)
The main focus of science is to foster a curiosity and a desire to learn
more about the students' world. To make science fun, interesting, and
exciting, students participate in hands-on experiments throughout the year.
They use the scientific method as a basis for inquiry and investigation. In
addition, technology plays an integral role in the various topics they
study and the projects they research. (See Science Links.) Together, they
incorporate skills and a base of knowledge that is essential for creating
awareness of the occurrences in nature of today and how that will affect them
in the future.
The spelling curriculum consists of learning and using skills to become
better spellers. Emphasis is placed on syllables, using spelling words
correctly in the spoken and written context, and improving writing
techniques.(See Study Skills Link.)
Finally, my goals are for my students to:
- Learn organizational skills.
- Master study skills for science and math. (See Study Skills.)
- Become better readers and thinkers.
- Leave fifth grade well prepared for grade six.
- Say they had a great year and learned a lot!