| Sparkman’s Sparks October 26, 2007
Website http://teacherweb.com/TX/Pflugerville/LisaSparkman/index.html
In Language Arts, we are finishing a pre-Revolutionary book club, with different responses,
questions, and a character map. We have taken AR tests, if available, on our book club books, and
will have a test on Thursday this week over the main character in the book. We have done several
reading stations, from a reader's theatre play about Ann Hutchinson, to an article on how Hershey
uses the scientific method to make tasty chocolate bars with peanuts, to a short reading on the
different states of matter. We work in various groups, as well as in partners and individually to read,
respond, and answer questions about what we read.
In Social Studies, we have been studying the thirteen early colonies in America, and using primary
source documents like the journal of Captain John Smith and a drawing of a Native American village
in Virginia as we act like history detectives and figure out how the geography of a region makes a
difference in the type of jobs people have there.
Please make sure your child is turning in their classwork, homework, progress reports, Friday
folders, and behavior sheets on time. Turning in work late can affect their grades, and we strive to
make sure that communication between school and home is consistent. Three-week progress
reports go home next week, but Mrs. Zibilski and I have already been passing out missing work
reports to our students so they know what they are missing before the progress reports go home.
We are also holding study hall during recess for students with missing work who need extra time to
finish.
Please let us know if you have questions or concerns.
Thank you,
Ms. Sparkman
Lisa.Sparkman@PflugervilleISD.net
Conference Period: 9:20 - 10:05
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Sparkman’s Sparks August 25, 2007
Website http://teacherweb.com/TX/Pflugerville/LisaSparkman/index.html
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Welcome to Mrs. Zibilski's and Ms. Sparkman's Classes
Dear Parents,
We wanted to take a moment to welcome you and your child to another exciting year at
Dessau Elementary School. We are thrilled that we will have the opportunity to work
with you and your child in our Math/Science classes and Language Arts/Social Studies
classes.
Your students have the unique opportunity to have two teachers
who are specializing in their curriculum areas, as we integrate our curriculum. Mrs. Zibilski's classes
will focus on math and science according to the scope and sequence as outlined by PISD. We will be
using a very hands-on approach to learning and many of our lessons will combine
both math and science skills. Ms. Sparkman's classes will focus on reading, writing,
spelling, and social studies. Much of the books we read, writing and research we do,
and our spelling units will be related to the social studies time periods we are studying.
Other materials and activities will complement the science and math your children do
in Mrs. Zibiliski's class.
Ms. Sparkman and Mrs. Zibilski are working very closely together in order to develop
relationships with our students. We are already seeing the added bonus of having two
teachers to monitor student needs. We are both certified Gifted and Talented teachers
and Ms. Sparkman is the GT coordinator for our school.
Fifth grade is our favorite grade, and we hope that it will be your child's favorite as well.
We have a number of fun activities planned throughout the year. Our science fair is
scheduled to take place in early fall this year. We will be spending some time these first few
weeks familiarizing ourselves with the scientific method and how to set up
experiments. More information will be coming home, which will help your student
prepare his or her project. In this first six weeks we will cover the following topics:
MATH SCIENCE
- place value
- number sense
- introduction to decimals
- reviewing area, perimeter and volume
- introduction to using metric measurement
- time & temperature
- scientific processes and skills
- lab safety
- the water cycle
- earth's atmosphere
- weather
- matter
- using measurement tools and metrics
In Social Studies, we have been studying map skills and are moving into early
explorers and early North American colonies. We will also be researching
landforms and using primary sources (real letters, photographs, newspapers, maps,
etc.) for reading and writing skills.
In this first six weeks, we will cover the following topics:
LANGUAGE ARTS SOCIAL STUDIES
- compare/contrast, summary
- point of view, fact and opinion
- connections and reading responses
- genre, Big 6 Research skills
- procedures for reading workshop
- root words, prefixes, suffixes
- science-related spelling words
- map skills
- primary sources
- early explorers
- early North American colonies
- reasons people came to America
- regions of the United States
- landforms
We welcome parent involvement, and will be pleased to have help with science labs;
book club reading groups; cutting, pasting, and other hands-on activities; Science Fair; Field Day;
Colonial Market; and any of our other activities this year. More information will come home about
the events, but if you are interested in helping with any of these, please contact us!
We look forward to getting to know you and your child better. If you have any
questions or comments, please feel free to contact us. The best way to do that is
through email, or by sending a note to us in your child's daily planner. We can already
tell that it is going to be a great year!
Thank you,
Mrs. Zibilski
Danielle.Zahm@PflugervilleISD.net
Conference Period: 8:30 - 9:15
Ms. Sparkman
Lisa.Sparkman@PflugervilleISD.net
Conference Period: 8:30 - 9:15
Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns! Send a note, or email me at
Lisa.Sparkman@PflugervilleISD.net.
Thanks so much,
Lisa Sparkman
Fifth Grade Fundamentals
2005 - 2004 Dessau Elementary
Dear Parents and Guardians of 5th Graders,
We are delighted to have your child in our fifth grade classes at
Dessau Elementary! We are looking forward to an exciting year of learning,
growing, and discovering! Please be sure to read the district handbook as
well as this letter. Together, these should answer most questions, both
general, and specific to our classes. If you have further questions,
please ask your child’s teacher.
An important way for you to get information about school activities
and events is the Friday Folder your child brings home each Friday. Please
read the contents, sign the folder and the Behavior Sheet, and remind your child to
return it on Monday. You may keep your child's work that comes home in the folder.
Your child will bring home their homework planner Monday - Thursday, with daily
homework assignments written in it. Please help your child each day by looking over
the assignments, signing that day's page, and reminding them to return the planner to
class each day.
Homework is assigned Monday - Thursday, for a maximum time of 50 minutes a
day. Please let your child’s teacher know if homework regularly takes
longer than 50 minutes. Unfinished classwork may be sent home for
homework.
We go outside for recess everyday the weather permits, even on cold
and windy days. Please remind your child to dress for the weather, so they
will be comfortable outside as they play.
We still need lots of help in 5th grade!
Please let your child’s teacher know if you are interested in volunteering to help in the
classroom or the school. We welcome and encourage parental involvement!
5th Grade Grading Policy
Grading Scale
A = 90 - 100
B = 80 -89
C = 75 - 79
D = 70 - 74
F = Below 70
Tests that receives a grade of less than 70 may be done over
for a maximum grade of 70. District CBA tests may not be done over.
Grade Weight
Tests and Projects Count twice
Quizzes, Daily Work, and Homework count once
Each subject will have a minimum of 12 grades per six week.
Make-up Work
If a child is absent and needs to make-up missed work, the child
will be given two days to make up the work for every day absent. Please
remind your child to discuss missed work with their teacher when they return.
Late Work Policy
Work that is not turned in on time will have points taken off the
grade.
One day late 10 points off
Two days late 20 points off
Three days late 30 points off
Classwork turned in later than 3 days will receive a maximum grade of “50”. Work
never turned in will receive a grade of "0".
Report Cards
Grading periods are 6 weeks long. Each 6 weeks, a minimum of 12 grades will be
taken in each subject. These grades will be a combination of homework, classwork,
quizzes, projects, and tests. A 3-week progress report will be sent home in the middle
of every six weeks period.
Thank you so much for sharing your children with us in what promises to be an
exciting and interesting 5th Grade year.
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