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Welcome to a new year at Salem Lutheran School! There’s so much to do during the beginning of the school year, but I am sure you are just as anxious as I am to begin your child’s school year. Salem Lutheran School’s fifth grade curriculum is packed with exciting opportunities for discovery and growth. I am eager to facilitate each student’s academic career as they advance through the fifth grade.

This is my second year at Salem Lutheran School and I would like to introduce myself and some of the activities I have planned for your children. I am a California native, born in Santa Monica and raised in New York and Southern California. Prior to Salem, I taught fifth grade in the Fontana Unified School district. The first week of school is such an important part of the year as it gives me a chance to learn about each child as well as giving each student a chance to learn about their teacher. During the first days of school, each student will be acquainted with my rules, procedures, academic and behavioral expectations, as well as a variety of activities geared to help each student get to know one another.

The 5^th grade curriculum at Salem includes language arts, mathematics, social studies, political science, bible study, science, art, technology, Spanish, music, and physical education. We use McGraw Hill‘s Open Court curriculum as the core of our language arts program, and the Saxon program for mathematics. Students will learn United States history and will go in depth on the United States Constitution. We use We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution as our political science curriculum, as well as a Bible program that emphasizes on the New Testament. Our science program teaches population and ecosystems, space and the solar system, light, plants, sound, and energy, as well as work and machines. Students will have the opportunity to study many different subjects in the classroom, as well as participating in study outside of the classroom. As a class, we will visit the Getty museum, as well as NASA’s Jet Propulsion lab. We will spend a week growing spiritually at El Camino Pines, and will witness a revolutionary war reenactment at Riley’s Farm. Our class will do this and more throughout the school year. If you have any questions regarding programs or areas of study please feel free to contact me at your convenience to schedule an appointment. Further details and additional information will be sent home as the year progresses.

My goals for the year will promote independence and self-reliance in your children. 5^th grade is a very transitional time academically and developmentally. Students will be prepared with the ability to organize, discuss, and defend their ideas constructively. Students will have classroom responsibilities that will require self-discipline on the part of the student. Each student will be required to perform tasks, without being reminded, in an effort to increase their self-regulation. Please visit my web page on Salem’s website http://www.salemlutheranglendaleschool.org/index.php/Teacher/HomeworkG5 progressively throughout the school year for current information.

You can expect an open line of communication with me during this school year. I am available by voicemail at extension 220 should you have any questions or concerns that arise during the year. I am also available by email, as it is sometimes easier to communicate through email due to our sometimes hectic schedules.

Curriculum & Information

Fifth Grade is a year of new discoveries. By reading short stories and novels on a variety of themes, children discover new worlds, ideas and experiences.

Students will produce creative reports, work on projects and deliver oral presentations across the curriculum. They will explore the life and ministry of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Gospels and the beginnings of the Church in the Acts of the Apostles.

Subjects covered in Fifth grade include, but are not limited to:

Science

Students will investigate through in-depth reading, hands-on activities and projects a variety of scientific material. They will learn how plants live, grow and react to environment. They also study population and ecosystems, space and the solar system, light, sound, and energy, as well as work and machines.

Physical Education

Fifth graders attend P.E. class in the gym three times a week. Fitness, health, and sportsmanship are taught through games, sports and exercise.

Social Studies

Students will fine tune their knowledge of United States history, research and write a report on a State, deliver a presentation on a current event and demonstrate knowledge of United States geography by identifying the location of all fifty states.

Math

Using Saxon based material; fifth graders will expand their knowledge of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Skills will extend to include fractions and mixed numbers and math problems with multi digits, decimals, and percentages. Fifth graders will also solve a variety of word problems using key strategies and explore geometric figures.

Music

Children in grades first through sixth will develop skills in singing, playing instruments and movement.

Spanish

Fifth graders are exposed to Spanish twice a week. They will read, write and understand Spanish on a much broader level.

Art

Salem art classes are relevant, fun and challenging. Students will develop artistic awareness and hands-on skills by using a variety of tools and mediums. Students in grades first through sixth will study well-known artists and works of art, as well as create age appropriate art projects.

Language Arts

Reading is taught using the Open Court Curriculum. Fifth graders will refine their grammar, spelling, and vocabulary skills by identifying and correctly using the various parts of speech: nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, prepositions, and interjections. Students will also construct good grammatical sentences and paragraphs using proper punctuation and mechanics.
Fifth graders will practice the writing process through drafting, revising, proofreading and publishing. They will write in various modes: description, persuasion, personal narration, summary and story.

Computers

Fifth graders expand on computer skills in Salem’s computer lab once a week. In word processing students learn how to Format a newsletter, and create numbered lists. On the Internet they will sharpen their Search skills. They will create PowerPoint presentations, and produce spreadsheets by entering data and making charts.

Bible

Classroom religious studies focus on applying Christ’s teachings to everyday life experiences.
All students (Junior Kindergarten through sixth grade) attend chapel services each Wednesday at 8:45 conducted by the School Chaplain. Parents are always welcome to attend chapel.

More information is available about the General Curriculum used at Salem.