5TH GRADE FINISHES ANOTHER YEAR
Where has another school year gone? We can’t believe how quickly it has flown by! We are proud of how hard our fifth graders worked this year. Watching them grow and mature as the year progressed is one of the best things about teaching. Our students learned to reflect more upon their learning, solve their own problems, and build their collaboration skills. It has been our goal all year to have our students not only learn academics, but to also grow their character, so we focused on integrity, compassion, empathy, initiative, and perseverance. We enjoyed getting to know our students, encouraging them in their learning, joking around, and having fun with them.
In math class, our students were challenged with multiplication of fractions and mixed numerals, as well as division with fractions. We also extended our learning about volume that we started way back at the beginning of the year. We finished the year with fun, relatable math activities that had us use our collaborative and perseverance skills.
In English/language arts class we learned how to share in a discussion, write narrative stories and opinion essays, and understand complex text.
We studied the rainforest and learned about conservation. We also studied how different athlete leaders have been important in making changes in society. Throughout the year, students also participated in Accelerated Reader challenges to help grow their reading skills.
Junior Achievement was an activity we once again enjoyed this year. We were fortunate to have Amanda Rodriguez come into our fifth grade classrooms to teach us all about finance, economics, and entrepreneurship. She did an amazing job, and students enjoyed the learning activities each week, as well as exploring the possibilities of what they might want to do as they get older. The last month of school brought some fun activities. In May, in honor of athlete leaders, we celebrated Jackie Robinson Day by watching a baseball movie and eating hot dogs and Cracker Jacks. In May, our students had so much fun and learned about the outdoors at the Taylor County Youth Expo. The goal of that event was to enrich our relationship with nature and try different outdoor activities.
Students stamped fish on t-shirts, and learned about campfire cooking, fly fishing, archery, target shooting, snowmobile safety, ATV safety, and taxidermy, to name a few. We were so grateful to all the parents who gave of their time to help make this event possible. May also brought the Rocket Way Fun Day, Track and Field Day, and our last music concert as Spencer elementary students, as well as our first concert for our new band students. In addition, we created May Day baskets and delivered them to Stoney River to brighten the residents’ day. It was nice spreading some cheer and kindness around our community, as well as creating some special memories together!
As teachers, we have learned a lot from our young fifth grade Rockets this year. The memories and stories we take with us about this class will stay with us. It has been a privilege to spend the year with them, and we wish them all the best in middle school!
~ Shamaira Cline and Patti Jennings, fifth grade teachers
Second graders enjoy expanding pollinator garden Spencer second graders have had a fantastic year! They have spent a lot of time learning about pollinators this spring! After learning about the importance of pollinators, they decided to add to and fence in a pollinator garden at school! They also created seed packets to share with their families and friends! The packets explain why we should help pollinators and include some wildflower seeds to plant! We have learned so much!
~Wendy Comstock, second grade teacher
