The 5th Grade Curriculum

Fifth grade is an exciting year for students. There are significant differences between 4th and 5th grade that influence the 5th grade curriculum and affect the overall school experience. While the 5th grade curriculum creates more responsibilities and challenges for the students, these changes are designed to develop the students and prepare them for the demands of the 6th, 7th, and 8th grades at Heminway Park School and Swift Middle School.

Language Arts

Fifth grade language arts incorporate three key elements of study: reading, writing and vocabulary/grammar/spelling.

The writing process is developed through Writers Workshop. This process includes prewriting, drafting, revising, proofreading and finally publishing. We also incorporate grammar, vocabulary and spelling as parts of the process. The specific writing skills developed in fifth grade include sentence development, word usage, paragraph development and language mechanics.

Math

This year in math we will be studying a variety of topics including: multiplication and division, decimals and fractions, measurement, geometry, probability, graphing, interpreting graphs, and algebraic expressions

The fifth grade curriculum emphasizes problem solving. Students will learn how to explain in writing the means by which they solve problems. Students will also learn that there is often more than one way to solve a problem.

Social Studies

Current Events is an important area of study, each week four different students will share with the class a current event within our world, country, state, or community.

Friday is usually the day the students will read and discuss current events with Time For Kids. The students are asked to bring them home and share them with their families and encourage discussions at the dinner table.

Science

5th Grade Science utilizes hands on and cooperative group work to facilitate student’s understandings of basic scientific principles. We will be covering the following areas of study:

· Unit 1: Electricity and Magnetism

· Unit 2: The Solar System

· Unit 3: Hearing and the Ear

· Unit 4: Vision and the Eye