Room 14 Classroom Constitution

Ms. Haskells
Room 14
Newsletter
Important Dates
September 22 New units begin
in Math, Science, and Spelling
September 22 Room 14 meets
their PM Kindergarten buddies!
September 22 Miss LeVine, a
Wellesley computer science and
education student, comes to
observe in the classroom
September 23 Week two of
Keyboarding lessons with Ms.
Martell
September 24 Mrs. Camelio in
for Ms. Haskell (Professional
Development)
September 25 No School in
observance of Rosh Hashanah
Thank you all for a great start
to the year!
From the bottom of my heart, thank you to all the students and
families who have made these past few weeks very special for a
Mitchell newbie. I look forward to what this year has in store
for us. It is sure to be a year of great intellectual, social, and
emotional growth for all.
1. Be the
best you
that you
can be.
2. Always
show
your
S.W.A.G.
3. Take
risk (to a
certain
extent).
S E P T E M B E R 2 1 , 2 0 1 4
4. Give
respect,
get
respect.


SEPTEMBER 2014
2
Academics This Week
Science
In science this week, we will begin our first full length
unit: Weather. We will begin this discussion with a
lesson on the most fundamental unit of matter: the
atom! We will go over the phases of matter (solid,
liquid, gas, excluding plasma for now) and begin our
Weather Lab Notebooks with an evaporation
experiment.
Our Room 14 mathematicians will embark on a three-
part unit that will enhance their understanding of
multiplication and the effect multiplication has on
numbers. This week will focus on factoring and fact
families.

Mathematics
Readers/Writers Workshop
In Writers Workshop, we will learn a few more
strategies for coming up with ideas in our writing,
including writing from the heart and getting inspiration
from the world around us. In Readers Workshop, we
will focus on reading partnerships and how to have a
constructive book talk with a peer and with an adult.
Starting this Monday, I will begin to administer the
Fountas and Pinneel (F&P) reading assessments. These
are the tests that help to determine where you student is
on an A-Z reading level continuum. The results will
inform not only my instruction, but will also help to
monitor progress as the year continues.


SEPTEMBER 2014
3
Conversation Starters:
Questions to Ask Your Children
About the Week

Spelling Words (9/22-10/3)
WordGeneration Unit 2 Spelling Word List
Essential Question: Should everyone be included?

encounter
isolated
require
integrated
controversy
dependent
1. Whats your classroom job? Was it your first
choice? How does it make you feel?
2. What does S.W.A.G. stand for? Give me an
example.
3. Can you show me how to do something cool
on Goodreads?
4. Who is your kindergarten buddy? Who is
your H.E.L.P. partner?
5. Whats your Spanish name? How do you
say, My name is in Spanish?
6. How many cups are in a gallon of milk?
7. What can you tell me about the life of a
refugee?
Currently Reading

Home of the Brave
by Katherine Applegate
Kek comes from Africa where he lived with his
mother, father, and brother. But only he and his
mother have survived. Now shes missing, and
Kek has been sent to a new home. In America, he
sees snow for the first time, and feels its sting. He
wonders if the people in this new place will be like
the winter: cold and unkind. But slowly he makes
friends: a girl in foster care, an old woman with a
rundown farm, and a sweet, sad cow that reminds
Kek of home. As he waits for word of his mothers
fate, Kek weathers the tough Minnesota winter by
finding warmth in his new friendships, strength in
his memories, and belief in his new country.




Lexington and Concord
Thank you to the many parents who volunteered to
chaperone our first field trip. I will be contacting you
about the outcome of the random chaperone selection
in the next week. I appreciate your enthusiasm and look
forward to the trip!
Thank you!
Questions? Concerns?

kaley_haskell@needham.k12.ma.us
www.mshaskell5thgrade.weebly.com
@MsHaskellinRm14
(781) 455-0466 x214