Thursday, April 29, 2010

Homework Term 2 Week 3

Spelling
WALT – Learn words from the essential list and the inquiry unit.

Write an interesting sentence for each of your spelling words. Try to be as creative as you can and don’t forget your VCOP’s.


Reading
You must read for a minimum of 15 minutes every night, any longer is a bonus! Draw up a table and record your reading progress. Be sure to write a small reflection of your reading this week. What did you enjoy? What did you least enjoy? Do you have any ideas on what might happen next?


Speeches
This week you have to choose a topic for your speech and to start to find some information. Remember to use a variety of sources. You will have seen some great examples of speeches that will help you when choosing topics. Have fun!

Be sure to answer the following:
• My chosen topic is:
• I will get information from:


Maths
Using junk mail or any supermarket website put together an interesting shopping list of up to ten items. Cut and paste the images and prices into your books. Add up the total and work out two different ways to pay for the items using cash and coins. Write down your two payment options into your books.


Inquiry - Optional - Extra for Experts!
You have just spent a few days in inquiry experimenting with circuits using batteries, bulbs and wires. See if you can answer the following:

• Who invented the first battery?
• Why do batteries come in different shapes and sizes?
• Are batteries recyclable?
• List five things in your house that use a battery.
• Anything else?

Use the internet, books or talk to an expert to find the answers to these questions.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Term 2 2010



Dear Parents and Caregivers

Welcome back to the new term. Hopefully everyone had a relaxing Easter break and managed to eat their fair share of chocolate eggs – I certainly did!

A special thanks to all the parents who contributed to making our annual trip to Forest Lakes a real success. The children had a sensational time and it was an excellent opportunity to establish strong class and team cultures at the beginning of the year.
The teachers are all looking forward to getting stuck into a solid term of teaching in Term 2. Here is the run down of what is happening.

Inquiry

This term we are focusing on Science, in particular concepts of electricity. We will use the solar panels that are operating on the senior side of the school for motivation. Our big idea for this unit is Solar Energy is the best way to generate electricity in New Zealand.’ Throughout the course of this inquiry students will investigate pros and cons of a variety of renewable sources of energy so they can form an informative opinion on this big idea. This is going to be a very exciting unit with lots of hands-on tasks like making electrical circuits and learning from experts who will be visiting the school.

Literacy

In writing we will be focusing on explanation writing where we will be writing factual accounts to explain how things work. This will be integrated with our Inquiry unit as much as possible, using our findings from scientific investigations.

Towards the middle of the term we will start preparing for speech presentations which will take place in classes at the end of the term. The best speeches from each class will be selected for the Team semi-finals. From there, the finalists will be chosen for the Finals on the 24th of June.

The majority of the speech preparation will occur through the homework programme although support will also be given in class.


Maths

Cross grouping will continue this term and commence in week 1. We start the term looking at Number, exploring addition, subtraction, multiplication & division. We then move into Geometry, exploring various forms of symmetry.

Visual Art
Students will be learning about various concepts of painting and will be building on their drawing skills using a variety of materials. The students will be focusing on portrait painting by looking at works from famous artists.

Physical Education

The start of the term sees us training for the school cross country in week 5. Training will take place every morning so it is essential the children have appropriate running shoes and clothes to wear.

We will also be focusing on developing throwing and catching skills of large balls along with improving team game strategies.

Homework

Homework will be completed on a weekly basis during term 2. Homework will be given out on Monday and will be due on the following Friday.
This term we will be trialling blogging homework tasks on this blog. We feel this is a great way to reduce the amount of paper we use plus it will encourage students to get more familiar with our blogging systems. Homework sheets will still be provided to students who have no or limited internet access at home. This is what you should expect to see in your child’s weekly homework:


Spelling: Each week your child will have between 8-10 spelling words to learn for the week. These words will be a combination of words taken from the Essential Spelling Lists (including extension lists if appropriate) and inquiry/literacy based words. There will usually be a spelling activity based on these words eg writing words in complex sentences, writing in alphabetical order, breaking words into syllables etc. Every Friday your child will be tested on their words either by the classroom teacher or a buddy.

Reading: Your child will also be required to read between 10-15 minutes every night and record what they read in their homework books. They will also be asked to write a brief summary (1-2 paragraphs) on what has happened in the story.

Maths: This will usually consist of maintenance on basic facts, especially timetables plus revising concepts of place value. It is essential that your child has a strong grounding of these facts and they need to have instant recall so regular practice is essential. Tasks will often involve playing or completing maths tasks that are linked from the classroom blogs.

Additional tasks: Most weeks students will be given an additional task to complete. This may be completing a task that was started in class or a reflection task based on a learning experience from the previous week.

As mentioned earlier, towards the middle of the term there will be a strong focus on preparing for speech delivery in class.

As the term goes on, we will add links on this blog for students who wish to do optional extension tasks.

When your child is completing their work at home please encourage them to present their work to a high standard so it is easy to follow and mark by their classroom teacher.

As teachers, we understand the weeks can be very busy and many children have a lot of after school activties to attend. If for any reason your child is unable to complete their homework, please write a brief note in their book or email your classroom teacher with an explanation.


T.G.I Friday Programme

Starting Friday Week 2 the classes from the Year 5/6 Syndicate will be mixed up to take part in a variety of high interest activities. The programme includes, Drama, Art, Music, Science experiments and Spanish. The structure of this programme has been altered slightly from last year. This term there will be 2 cycles that last for 4 weeks each. This will mean each activity will be longer so concepts will be taught more in-depth.

The students will have the opportunity to choose which activity they would like to take part in. This will encourage students to take part in an activity that will harness their talents and strengths. We will endeavour to give every student their first, second or third choice.

This programme is a great opportunity for the students to take part in fun, practical learning experiences with the possibility of showcasing their work at the end of the term.

Other things to note….


Slippers: In Term 2 we ask the children to bring a pair of slippers to wear in the classroom instead of their regular footwear. This eliminates the mud that is brought into the class from children playing on the field. Please ensure your child has a pair of slippers that are left at school for the next two terms.

Blogs: All classroom blogs are now up and running with some classes also operating literacy blogs to showcase the students writing. Thank you to everyone who has visited the blogs and have left comments for the children – they really appreciate your feedback. We will endeavour to keep the blogs updated regularly so make sure you visit frequently!
Click on the links in the sidebar to go to the classroom blogs.


Reports, Interviews & Portfolios:

In Week 11 of this term there will be an opportunity for you to make an appointment with your classroom teacher to discuss your child’s progress along with viewing their portfolio of work. Reports outlining your child's achievements will also be sent home at the end of this term.

Finally…. Please help your child remember to check they have everything they need each morning and they are at school in time for the first bell at 8.40. Students should see that being organised is part of growing up and an important life skill to be developing.

If you need to contact your child’s classroom teacher please feel free to drop by the classroom before or after school or make an appointment for an interview at the office. The easiest way to touch base with us is email e.g. teacher’s surname@muritai.school.nz



Thank you again for your support


Stu Devenport

Year 5 and 6 Team Leader.

Homework Week 2 Term 2

Year 5 and 6 Homework – Week 2 Term 2

Spelling
WALT – Learn words from the essential lists and the inquiry unit.

Write an interesting paragraph using all 10 words only once. Underline the spelling words.

Reading
You must read for at least 15 minutes each night.
Draw your table up and record your reading.
Write a small reflection of your reading this week. What did you enjoy? Predict what you think is going to happen.

Maths
Play Mystery Dice:
Take 3 dice and roll them behind a piece of paper. Add the total of the 3 dice tell your partner the total. Take one of the dice away and reveal the others to your partner. Your partner must guess what number the dice was that was taken away.

Play some maths games on from your class blog – use the links to find them.
Record what games you played.

Inquiry
Our inquiry unit this term is based on ‘solar energy’, which is a form of renewable energy. There are also other forms of renewable energy.
Check the newspaper and the internet to see if you can find any articles on renewable energy.
Paste the article into your homework book and write a summary of what the article is about. There may be some valuable information that you can learn!

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Homework

http://year5and6muritai.blogspot.com

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Homework - Term 2 Week 1

Hi Everyone!

Welcome you our very first e-homework sheet! You will no longer be given a hard copy of your homework sheet so we can try to save paper and so we can all get use to using the blogs.
So here is how it will work.
  • Every Monday a new post will be entered to this blog with the tasks to be completed for the week.
  • In class on Monday, each class will read over the tasks using the data projector.
  • When you get home to start you homework you can enter this blog to refresh our memory on what needs to be completed.
  • Because there is no homework sheet there is no need for you to stick one in your homework book!
  • Each week you will have to rule up your reading grid neatly so you can complete it throughout the week. Your classroom teacher you show you how to do this.
  • If you have any questions or comments about the tasks for homework you can leave a comment on the post for one of the teachers to answer.
SPELLING:

WALT : Learn words from essential words lists and our inquiry unit

Learn the 10 spelling words for the week. Use each word in an interesting sentence.

Underline the spelling word in the sentence.


READING:

You must read for at least 15 minutes each night. Record your reading in the table below. Write a small reflection of your reading this week. What did you enjoy? Predict what is going to happen.


Copy and complete this grid into your homework book.


Maths:


Write out the questions and answers to the 8 timetables (up to 12) in your book. Practise reciting them with someone at home and get them to time you. Record your fastest time.

Challenge: How fast can you reicte them backwards!



ANZAC Day:

ANZAC Day is coming up this weekend.

  • What does ANZAC mean?
  • How do people celebrate this day?
  • What does the poppy symbolise?
  • What is the connection between New Zealand and Turkey?
  • Anything else?
Use the internet, books or ask an expert to find the answers to these questions. Think of a creative way to present your findings either in your book or using a tool on the computer.
You might like to leave a comment on this post on good sources of information you used to help others.

All tasks due this Friday.

Good luck!