Fifth Grade School Program

A comprehensive, literature-based reading series is used that is one year above grade level. The textbook series offers selections written by award winning authors allowing students to apply their skills and strategies to rich, authentic texts.  The series provides for the systematic development of vocabulary, comprehension, decoding, critical thinking, and knowledge of the elements of good literature.  The reading program also includes enrichment activities such as novel studies, poetry, and a structured motivational program for encouraging and monitoring extracurricular reading. Students complete quarterly book reports on a variety of genres.

The language program aims to improve written and oral expression. To strengthen their writing skills, students study grammar, punctuation, spelling, and how to write effective paragraphs. The writing process is stressed through the writing of several genres over the course of the year. Group discussions are used to increase the students’ ability to present ideas orally to both small and large groups. Students learn how to use the library and various types of reference books to enhance expository writing.

Emphasis is placed on basic operations using whole numbers, fractions, and decimals. Strategies and practice in choosing and applying problem solving skills are also emphasized. The basic skills of adding, subtracting, multiplication, and division are reviewed and practiced daily.

American history, from Native American tribes through the Civil War, is the focus of the social studies program. Students also study the development of the American economic system and the American system of government.  Students write a detailed research report on a historical figure from the American Revolution.  Map skills and geography skills are taught with a weekly geography focus.  Some of the units in both science and social studies are coordinated with field trips.  Current events, global awareness, and citizenship are taught with Scholastic News weekly readers.

Science units include properties of matter and changing matter, Earth’s systems, land and water, the solar system, energy and food, and ecosystems.  Students engage in the engineering design process with hands-on labs and explorations and participate in interactive lessons in the school garden.

The art curriculum integrates the four disciplines of art education: art history and culture, aesthetic perception, creative expression, and art criticism. Each lesson exposes students to works of fine art, history and culture, creative art production activities, and critical thinking. Artists from a range of cultures and historical art movements are introduced with picture books. These skills are built upon annually with a greater degree of difficulty as students advance through the upper grades.

The fifth-grade music program introduces the alto recorder. Students compose, rehearse, and perform music in small and large ensembles. The focus continues to be on singing in tune, melody and harmony, moving in syncopation, and learning more advanced musical terminology.

The physical education program emphasizes more involvement with leisure activities and competitive sports. Physical fitness is highly emphasized as well as teamwork, participation, and sportsmanship. Instruction is provided to help develop skills for team and individual sports. Health units are taught throughout the year.

In the elementary computer course, students will become familiar with basic knowledge of how computers work, hardware, software, terminology, and related technology efficiency. Emphasis will be on developing keyboarding skills and creating Microsoft Office Suite projects. Students will utilize the Scratch platform to learn basic coding skills necessary for computer programming. Age-appropriate discussions of online safety and proper computer etiquette will be covered.

Elementary Spanish focuses on a variety of themes that will be reintroduced and expanded upon in successive years, building vocabulary, communicative competence, and comprehension. These themes include: greetings, family, colors, clothing, school life, farm animals, body, food, household, numbers (1-100), and environment. Focus is on verb conjugations and paragraph sequencers. Cultural lessons are taught through stories, games, songs, and videos.

The library curriculum focuses on information access and problem-solving skills. Emphasis is put on using resource databases to complete classroom research projects. Students will learn to locate important information for database citations used in research. Literature appreciation is also emphasized through class discussions. Students can choose from over 28,000 titles on our library shelves and in our e-book collection from the digital Sora library.