What does On Demand Wednesday look like?

Good evening!

With our fourth On-Demand Wednesday in the books, we wanted to share what the day looks like. On these Wednesdays, we do not trade for our core classes and spend the day focusing on our writing. Today, we refined our narrative skills. All three teachers and classes agreed that this Wednesday was the best ODW yet! :) Below are some pictures from our day. Over the next dew days, we'll post writing samples for you!

We started out reviewing our knowledge of narratives, brainstorming individually and as table groups. We then played a round of quiz, quiz, trade!

After reviewing our knowledge, we had a mini-lesson on using the active voice in our writing. Rather than saying, "The boy sat in the chair and played the game." we might say, "Sitting in the chair, the boy was playing his handheld game." Using the active voice helps to engage our reader and allows them to 'jump-into' the narrative's action. We took mini-paragraphs written in the passive voice and edited them to be in the active voice. Then, we used SU, HU, PU (stand up, hand up, pair up) to share our more engaging paragraphs.

Working in small groups, we also had some fun responding to picture prompts. These picture prompts help us practice telling an imagined story {narratives can be real or imagined}.

With our narrative review, quick writes, and mini-lessons complete, it was time to show what we know about narratives. Our timers were set for 30 minutes and everyone went to work!

Mrs. Stillwell, Mrs. McNees, and I spent several hours this afternoon blind-scoring the narratives, and we'll begin to review the results in class tomorrow and Friday. These narratives will be hung in the hallway next week and will make it home the following week. :)

-Ms. Wintuska

The Winter Break Challenge!

Thursday we celebrated the 40 students who accepted the Winter Break Challenge! I am so proud that these students choose to spend time reading and engaging with books over our l-o-n-g break. Some students completed a few days of the challenge, while many students completed all 15 days – woohoo!

I loved seeing the lists of favorite words and the numbers of books students have access to each day.

My favorite part of the challenge was reading the letters that student wrote to their favorite authors. From J.K. Rowling to Jeff Kiney, it was so neat to see what questions our kids have about their favorite books. :)

Fantasitc job, friends!

-Ms. Wintuska

Celebrating Success!

Congratulations to all 3 classes for meeting their Common Assessment goals in reading! I am so proud of all you all. :) This test (over text structure and context clues) was our best yet! Mrs. Stillwell’s class chose extra recess as their celebration, Mrs. McNees’ class chose PJ day, and Ms. Wintuska’s class chose a read-in. Here are pictures of our read-in celebration!

My best,

Ms. Wintuska

Good evening!

After a very long Winter Break, today we hit the ground running.

As a class, we discussed how we've grown as readers, our favorite books, things that have surprised us about reading, and general observations. It was really neat to see how the kids' perception of a ‘reader’ has evolved. The entire conversation was so encouraging. After the whole-class discussion, students completed an individual form that shared how many books they’ve read, told about their favorite book, and explained what their reading game-plan is! :) 

We also spent time reflecting on what’s gone well this school year, what we need to do as students to succeed, what I need to do as a teacher to help every student succeed, and what our class should be every day. Students traveled around the room responding to each question and reading what their peers thought. After everyone used their post-its, we had a whole-class discussion about their ideas and what ‘works’ for them and their learning. I absolutely love that ‘our kids’ are beginning to assume responsibility for their learning!

To finish out, I wanted to share my take-aways from today:

• What should our classroom be every day?  Our classroom should be comfortable, safe, exciting, and a place to read.
• What should we do more of this spring? We should do more literacy centers and more journal writing.
• What can I {Ms. W} do to help my students be successful? Ms. W can re-teach us, work in small groups, and make more literacy centers.
• What can we {students in the 5^th grade} do to be more successful? We can read more, listen harder, have an open mind, and work with our friends.

My best,

Ms. Wintuska

Opinion On-Demand

Situation: Recent medical research reflects a sharp rise in obestu among American adults and children. Your Kentucky legislator are considering passing a law which would require all students in the state to attend an exercise class for 15 minutes of every school day.

Task: Write a letter to Representative Mike Harmon giving your opinion about whether this law is necessary or not.

Dear Mike Harmon,
     I have recently heard that the legislators of Kentucky are passing a law that makes kids have to go to an exercise class every day for 15 minutes. Think about it...kids running and being healthy for 15 minutes every day. I think this is a very good idea.
     If kids got exercise at school, they would be way more healthy. Kids often just go to school then come home and lay down. Most kids don't eat very healthy either. So if you get kids to exercise at school, you don't have to worry as much about what they eat. Kids, these days, neeed to get 60 minutes of exercise every day. I think this is a good way to start.
     Doctors predict that kids now days will be very large when they become adults because they don't eat right or exercise. If you teach them to exercise when they are younger it will be easier for them when they are older because it will be a habit. So kids need to start working out at a young age.
     It will be good to exercise at school because many kids don't know that you can become very ill in many areas, not just physically. Like mentally, emotionally, and socially. That's why it is just a good idea to exercise.
     As you can see, it is a very good idea to start exercising for 15 minutes at school. After you have heard my opinion, I hope you can make a decision.
     
                                                                                Sincerely,

                                                                                Emily G.


****This is a sample of recent work completed by our 5th graders.