Science Day!

Who done it?  Students tried to solve the case of the missing markers by using chromatography.

Owl Pellets!  Students got their hands dirty dissecting owl pellets.  What did your owl have for dinner?

Students experienced "A Touch of Magic" science show!

Picnic Lunch!

Other fun stations of the day: (I couldn't leave the crime scene, but hopefully people will share and I can post some pictures.)

• Students force and motion Tug O' War!
• Mary Nevins, Natural Resource Agent from Clemson Extension spoke to 5th graders about water pollution. 
• Mixtures Lab! Students measured and combined ingredients to create their own bath salts!

Algebra

We have been hard at work in our algebra unit.  Here are some of the learning activities we have done so far.

Equation Wheels: Match the variable value with the correct equation.

Dorito Math: Use the Order of Operations to simplify equations.

Inverse Operations Videos:  We used the first video as a teaching tool and then created our own teaching tools for others!

Menu Math or Algebra Gardens: Students wrote expressions based on their homemade artwork and price lists!

Web Resources: Check out these links for more practice.

Patterns

Writing Equations

Study Jams: Multiplication and Division Equations

Study Jams: Addition and Subtraction Equations

Also check out other games and activities at our Blackboard Classroom!

Blackboard

Teamwork! Student Blogging!

We practice teamwork on a daily basis in our classroom.  Collaborating is just a part of learning.  Check out this amazing video of an Apache helicopter being assembled.  What does this say about teamwork to you? 


Apache Helicopter Being Assembled

In the video if they did not use team work it would have taken them like years to build the helicopter.The reason I say that is because even with the video in fast motion it took them kind of along time.Team work in general is when you use cooperation an cooperate with your group and be a good sport and make sure that you agree with all your team members ideas.When you are using team work you are working with a group of people and you all are getting along with each other.

If they wouldn't have used teamwork it would have taken a long time. That is why it's important to use teamwork- you can get things done faster.Team work is awesome!  When you use teamwork that shows you are kind and you want people to help sometimes. I love team work because I like people to help me with some stuff. Teamwork is the best because working together is fun.

In the video they all had certain parts.They also had to use team work.Team work is when every one is cooperating and getting along.With a lot people it took a while before it was done.So if only one person was working on the whole plane it would have took a really long time.

With teamwork you have to be ready to work with others. Like the plane, it would have not gotten built without teamwork. If one person could not get along it would have messed everything up. On many other things teamwork is important. You have to do your best effort with teamwork. With teamwork anything is possible!

Teamwork is when you don't have many problems with the people you are working with. The people in the video weren't yelling, arguing, or fighting cause they were using teamwork to help each other.You use teamwork to get help on things instead of just working on them by yourself.  Sometimes you don't know how to do something and you can't figure it out so you have other people there to help you on it.  When they were building the helicopter in the video the workers never gave up on the thing but, even though it took them a very long time they finished building the helicopter.

I think that teamwork is important because without it it would be very difficult to do many things like, build a helicopter. Team work is when a group of people have to work together to do or make something and they help each other using kind words and motivation.  In the video that we watched in class people had to work together to build a helicopter. Each person had to do their job while also helping others do their's. When you work in a team you have to listen to others ideas carefully, participate and cooperate. I think that team work is very important in class and when you grow up and get a job.    


What I like about teamwork is that we could do it without fussing or arguing. When we did our projects on the landforms we did not fuss.  On that helicopter video they did it without fussing or arguing. I just like the way teamwork is together, it's just like a family putting up a Christmas tree. But when we do it in a learning club sometimes we don't like our groups, but it's not about the groups it's about teamwork.  I think we should say good things to our teammates before starting the assignment. Like we did on our videos for our mixtures and solutions.  First we had to agree on what we had to do, then we got the script ready. We practiced the script over and over.  Then we got it all right.

Cougar Carnival

Dice Race

                  Bounce House               Magician

Relay for Life

Administration having a good time!

Science Flashback!

Here are some 5th graders reflecting on our science units for the year. 

Scientific Inquiry!  We learned about the eight steps in the process of scientific inquiry.

Ecosystems!  We discovered different interactions in ecosystems.  Here is a food chain.

Landforms and Oceans!  We found out that the earth is always changing due to moving plates, erosion, and deposition.  Break it, take it, make it!

Matter!   We separated mixtures and solutions based on their physical properties!

Force and Motion!  We learned how different forces effect motion!

We love science!

Force Tournament

Force tournament finals today! After many head to head duels, the bracket is complete!  This afternoon, our final two competitors battled for the title of 2012 Force Champion.  There is no grand prize of a car or a million dollars, but we did learn some valuable things...  1.) Objects (students!) travel in the direction of the greatest force. 2.) Friction is your friend for Push-O-War.  3.) The more mass an object has, the harder it is to move. (Newton's Second Law!) 


And the winner is...

And the runner up is...

Action Shots!

Cougar Challenge

We are switching things up in Fifth grade!  We have built 5 of the toughest, strongest, math-mightiest, ELA-mazing color teams to compete with their coaches for the PASS prize.  Teams will spend time in training each week and use their brain power to earn points toward their team total.   May the best color win!

Meet the Coaches!
Blue Team- Mrs. Oliver ELA
Orange Team- Mr. Robinson ELA
Green Team- Mrs. Howe Math
Yellow Team- Mrs. Hoft Math
Purple Team- Mrs. Davis Math/ELA

 The Yellow Team Block 1

The Yellow Team Block 2 

Class Photos!

Mrs. Hoft's 5th Grade Class

 Mrs. Oliver's 5th Grade Class

Mrs. Hoft's Old 5th Grade Class (Can you find me?)