Updates: December 5th

Thank you for taking the time to stop by our blog and read about what's going on in 5th Grade. Please be sure to check the Google Calendar that is linked at the top of the blog for important updates. 

Announcements

• We will be having Specials from 9:30-10:30 this Wednesday and Thursday so that the learners can rehearse for the program in the cafeteria. 
• We will be having lunch at 12:00 PM on Wednesday, December 14th. Please be aware of this time change if you plan to come and have lunch with your son/daughter.
• Our Winter Party will be on Thursday, December 15th at 2:00 PM. The entire 5th grade will have our party together. 
• Please be aware that we will have Early Dismissal at 12:50 PM on Friday, December 16th. (See info on District Website)
• Town Center Cookbook - We wanted to have the opportunity to create a TCE Family Traditions cookbook this year since our theme is all about family and celebrating the diversity within our community.  We would love to have you share one of your favorite family recipes to go into our cookbook this year.  If you are interested in participating, please send in your recipe to Casey Wagner, cwagner@coppellisd.com, or you may send in a paper copy of your recipe to the front office. 
• Our Art for the Sky Program with Daniel Dancer was a huge success. Thank you to PTO for providing us with the opportunity, and for all of you for finding a white shirt for your kids and for donating jeans. 

5th Grade Program

• 5th Grade Program - The learners will be performing in the North Pole Musical this year. The program will be Tuesday, December 13th. We will have a morning performance at 8:30 PM and an evening performance at 6:00 PM. Both performances will be in the TCE Cafeteria, and you are all invited to attend. 
• Mrs. Garrett has asked that the learners arrive at 5:30 PM in preparation for the evening performance. 
• Learners that do not have specific speaking roles should wear a white shirt and jeans. Learners that have specific speaking roles will wear costumes provided by Mrs. Garrett. 
• If you have any questions regarding the program, please contact Mrs. Garrett or your child's classroom teacher. 

Service Learning Opportunities

Giving Tree

• When: November 30th-December 15th
• Where: Place new, unwrapped toys under the Christmas Tree by the front office
• What: Town Center first graders are collecting new, unwrapped toys for children in need. We will be donating the toys to the Lions Club. When you place your toy under the Christmas Tree, please sign your name on an ornament and hang it on the tree!

Sky Ranch Updates

• Please see our Sky Ranch flyer for updates and details about our trip. Within this flyer, we have included a link to our payment letter and a place for you to ask questions about the trip (should you feel the need). 
• We will have an informational meeting for all 4th grade parents on Thursday, January 26, 2017 at 5:30 PM.

Spelling Bee

• We had so many learners participate in our school bee, and we are so impressed by their dedication, commitment, and bravery! 
• Congratulations to our 5th Grade Spelling Bee Champion, Mihir from 5C, and our Runner Up, Parthi from 5D. Way to go 5th graders!

Curriculum Tidbits
*We hope that you will periodically check our Twitter accounts as we tweet glimpses of what we're learning in class. You can find our tweets by searching the hashtag #tce5th or by going to our individual pages.

Math

The learners will continue to work on the different operations with fractions. This includes multiplying a whole number by a fraction, dividing a whole number by a unit fraction (fraction with 1 as the numerator), and dividing a unit fraction by a whole number.

Science

The learners will be taking a test over our force, motion, and energy unit this week. Then we will begin on our next unit, earth’s changing surfaces.

Reading, Writing, & Spelling

In reading, we have been reading and responding to the Junior Great Book story, All Summer in a Day! It is an interesting story that our kids enjoy.

In writing, the learners are continuing their study of the proper way to write and punctuate dialogue. They are having fun reading and creating comics and transcribing them using the rules of dialogue!

As a note, the learners do have a weekly spelling list that they are expected to study throughout the week. We include "Study for Spelling Quiz" in the homework section of our daily agendas, so if every your learner says they don't have homework, they do. While we do cover spelling in class, it is important for them to take the time to study at home as well. 

Social Studies

We have just wrapped up our study of the European Explorers and their reasons for exploring the Americas. We will be starting our study of the Early English Settlements!

Homework Tidbits

• Weekly Spelling List - Quiz on Friday
• Reflex Math
• Weekly Math Homework - Due Friday

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Finally, thank you again for taking the time to read our blog. We know how important it is for our TCE families to know what is happening at school! If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to ask. Our contact information is linked below for your convenience.

5A Morgan Peccarelli - mpeccarelli@coppellisd.com

5B Kate Seifert - kseifert@coppellisd.com

5C Marly Natherson - mnatherson@coppellisd.com

5D Jenna Taylor - jltaylor@coppellisd.com

Updates: Week 13

Thank you for taking the time to stop by our blog and read about what's going on in 5th Grade. Please be sure to check the Google Calendar that is linked at the top of the blog for important updates. 

Announcements

• The TCE Turkey Trot will happen on Friday, November 18th during specials (11:10-12:00). 
• Please remember that the learners will have the week of November 21-25 off because of Thanksgiving. 
• Coppell ISD will providing ESL classes for parents. Click here to see the flyer. Classes will be Monday evenings 5:30-6:30 with beginning classes offered at Wilson and Intermediate/Advanced classes offered at Austin.  The classes are open to any parents who need them.
• Please see the attached newsletter and calendar from our PE teacher, Mrs. Martin.
• Town Center Cookbook - We wanted to have the opportunity to create a TCE Family Traditions cookbook this year since our theme is all about family and celebrating the diversity within our community.  We would love to have you share one of your favorite family recipes to go into our cookbook this year.  If you are interested in participating, please send in your recipe to Casey Wagner, cwagner@coppellisd.com, or you may send in a paper copy of your recipe to the front office. 

5th Grade Program

• 5th Grade Program - The learners will be performing in the annual Winter Program this year. The program will be Tuesday, December 13th. We will have a morning performance and an evening performance.
• The learners are currently participating in auditions. 
• We will have more information about the program coming soon. 

Service Learning Opportunities

• Trim the Turkey
  The second grade learners at TCE will be having a canned food drive to ‘trim the turkey’ for families in need this holiday season. We will be partnering with North Texas Food Bank to collect nonperishable trimmings for turkeys donated online. The district will not be collecting frozen turkeys as they have in previous years, but you may still donate a turkey online. (The link to donate a turkey online is in the flyer attached below.) For more information, please click on the image below to read the attached flyer! 

• Blue Jean Drive
  We will be having a special program coming to our campus this December that focuses on art, the world and each individual's role in helping our environment, and the importance of having good character within their lives.  In preparation for the program in December we are doing a blue jean drive collection in order to help with our school art design that we will be creating. Please bring any kids or adult size jeans that you might be able to donate to the front office of TCE.  They can be gently used or have holes in them as well.  After we use them for the school wide art display we will be donating them toward a non-profit organization to be given to others or recycled as other products.

Sky Ranch Updates

• Please see our Sky Ranch flyer for updates and details about our trip. Within this flyer, we have included a link to our payment letter and a place for you to ask questions about the trip (should you feel the need). 
• Our next payment is due Friday, November 18th. If you are unable to make that payment, please be sure to email or reach out to your learner's homeroom teacher. 
• We will have an informational meeting for all 4th grade parents on Thursday, January 26, 2017 at 5:30 PM.

Spelling Bee

• Our class bees will occur on the morning of Thursday, November 17th.  (This is a date change as we originally scheduled it for Friday the 18th.) Any learner that would like to participate is invited to participate in those bees. The top 8 learners from each class bee will be invited to participate in the school bee. 
• Learners have been given grade level lists to study. They will need to study and prepare on their own time. Learners should practice spelling orally as this is not something they are used to doing. 
• The school bee will occur on Monday, December 5th during the school day. We will designate one winner and one runner up from our school bee. The district bee will occur on January 11th at 9:00 AM. 
• If you have any questions regarding the spelling bee, please email your learners' Language Arts teacher.

Curriculum Tidbits
*We hope that you will periodically check our Twitter accounts as we tweet glimpses of what we're learning in class. You can find our tweets by searching the hashtag #tce5th or by going to our individual pages.

Math

This week in math the learners will be continuing learning about fractions. They will be working in groups on a “holiday fest” project and incorporate different operations with fractions throughout the learning experience.

Science

In science the learners will continue exploring force and motion. They have been working in groups to design a structure and test how force affects an object.

Writing & Spelling

In writing, we are continuing our Imaginative Writing Unit which will focus on writing imaginative stories and incorporating various grammar skills such as writing compound sentences and punctuating dialogue correctly.

In addition, our learners are participating in our Annual Gratitude Challenge. Learners have choice in how they respond each day, but they are required to post on their individual blogs. We are very grateful to PTO for providing these blogs for our learners. Your son/daughter can login to his/her blog to show you their posts. They really enjoy sharing their writing on the blogs.

As a note, the learners do have a weekly spelling list that they are expected to study throughout the week. We include "Study for Spelling Quiz" in the homework section of our daily agendas, so if every your learner says they don't have homework, they do. While we do cover spelling in class, it is important for them to take the time to study at home as well. 

Social Studies

We really enjoyed our election unit! The learners learned about the voting and election process and were able to make connections between what they had learned about the Constitution and the election process.

Homework Tidbits

• Weekly Spelling List - Quiz on Friday
• Reflex Math
• Weekly Math Homework - Due Friday

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Finally, thank you again for taking the time to read our blog. We know how important it is for our TCE families to know what is happening at school! If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to ask. Our contact information is linked below for your convenience.

5A Morgan Peccarelli - mpeccarelli@coppellisd.com

5B Kate Seifert - kseifert@coppellisd.com

5C Marly Natherson - mnatherson@coppellisd.com

5D Jenna Taylor - jltaylor@coppellisd.com

Service Learning Opportunities

Please read about a few great service learning opportunities happening at TCE right now! 

Jeans Donations
We will be collecting blue jeans for a school-wide art project. If you and your family have any old jeans that you do not need anymore, please donate them to our project! You can send them in with your learner any day over the next few weeks. 

Trim the Turkey
The second grade learners at TCE will be having a canned food drive to ‘trim the turkey’ for families in need this holiday season. We will be partnering with North Texas Food Bank to collect nonperishable trimmings for turkeys donated online. The district will not be collecting frozen turkeys as they have in previous years, but you may still donate a turkey online. (The link to donate a turkey online is in the flyer attached below.) For more information, please click on the image below to read the attached flyer! 

Updates: Week 11

Thank you for taking the time to stop by our blog and read about what's going on in 5th Grade. Please be sure to check the Google Calendar that is linked at the top of the blog for important updates. 

Announcements

• The TCE Turkey Trot will happen on Friday, November 18th! 
• Please remember that the learners will have the week of November 21-25 off because of Thanksgiving. 
• Coppell ISD will providing ESL classes for parents. Click here to see the flyer. Classes will be Monday evenings 5:30-6:30 with beginning classes offered at Wilson and Intermediate/Advanced classes offered at Austin.  The classes are open to any parents who need them, not just parents of ELLs in case you have that situation/question.
• Last week, Veteran's Day flyers went home. If you and your family would like to honor a veteran in your family, please return the flyer. 
• We will have our Growth and Development presentation on Friday, November 11th. Please be sure to read the letter that came home a few weeks ago regarding the presentation. As always, please don't hesitate to ask if you have questions. 

Sky Ranch Updates

• Please see our Sky Ranch flyer for updates and details about our trip. Within this flyer, we have included a link to our payment letter and a place for you to ask questions about the trip (should you feel the need). 
• Our next payment is due Friday, November 18th.

Spelling Bee

• We discussed our class and school spelling bees with our learners in Language Arts class today. Your learner received a list of 4th & 5th grade words to study in preparation for our class bee. Once they are ready for the next grade level lists, they may ask us for them! 
• Our class bees will occur on the morning of Friday, November 18th. Any learner that would like to participate is invited to participate in those bees. The top 8 learners from each class bee will be invited to participate in the school bee. 
• The school bee will occur on Monday, December 5th during the school day. We will designate one winner and one runner up from our school bee. The district bee will occur on January 11th at 9:00 AM. 
• If you have any questions regarding the spelling bee, please email your learners' Language Arts teacher.

Curriculum Tidbits
*We hope that you will periodically check our Twitter accounts as we tweet glimpses of what we're learning in class. You can find our tweets by searching the hashtag #tce5th or by going to our individual pages.

Math

This week in Math we will be starting our unit on Operations involving Fractions. The learners will be taking a pre-assessment on Tuesday.

Science

This week in Science we will be participating in learning experiences that deal with Force, Motion, and Energy. They will be learning about sound waves, thermal energy, friction, electric circuits, heat energy, and light energy.

Reading
In reading, we will begin our nonfiction unit. The learners will practice nonfiction reading strategies in a variety of texts.

Writing & Spelling

In writing, we have just wrapped up our Personal Narrative Unit and our learners are publishing their narratives. You may see your learners' finished writing in their Google Drive.

We are beginning our Imaginative Writing Unit which will focus on writing imaginative stories and incorporating various grammar skills such as writing compound sentences and punctuating dialogue correctly. 

Social Studies

We have just wrapped up our study of the Bill of Rights. Your learner should be able to tell you what each of the 10 amendments protects! We are now beginning a short unit on Presidential Elections. The learners will learn about the election and voting process. We will not be studying the specific candidates or their specific political beliefs. The learners will, however, have the opportunity to participate in a mock election in which they'll vote for either Duck or Squid for president! They are excited about this opportunity.
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Finally, thank you again for taking the time to read our blog. We know how important it is for our TCE families to know what is happening at school! If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to ask. Our contact information is linked below for your convenience.

5A Morgan Peccarelli - mpeccarelli@coppellisd.com

5B Kate Seifert - kseifert@coppellisd.com

5C Marly Natherson - mnatherson@coppellisd.com

5D Jenna Taylor - jltaylor@coppellisd.com

Updates: Week 9

Thank you for taking the time to stop by our blog and read about what's going on in 5th Grade. Please be sure to check the Google Calendar that is linked at the top of the blog for important updates. 

Announcements

• The first Sky Ranch payment is due Friday, October 21st. If you and your family will not be able to make this payment, please email your son/daughter's teacher. (See the blurb below about more Sky Ranch details.) 
• Pumpkin Design Challenge - Town Center is having another Pumpkin Design Challenge. Please click on the picture to learn more about the challenge. 

Conferences

As you know, we will be having Parent Teacher Conferences during the beginning of October. Our official conference day (in which learners will not have school) is Friday, October 7th, but we will be offering additional time slots as well. If you have not yet done so, please sign up for a conference time slot. 

If you sign up for a face to face conference, you will have a 15 minute slot to meet with both of your son/daughter's teachers. These conferences will be learner-led, and we invite you to bring your son/daughter with you.

Miss Peccarelli & Miss Seifert's Classes: 

• 5A/5B Conferences Sign Up
• 5A/5B Pre-conference Question Form - Complete prior to your conference time. 

Miss Natherson & Miss Taylor's Classes: 

• 5C/5D Conferences Sign Up
• 5C/5D Pre-conference Questions Form - Complete prior to your conference time. 

During our conference, one of the things we will be discussing is your learner's beginning of the year data. To help you better understand the data and because the 15 minute time slot can go by quickly, we have created a short presentation for you to view prior to your conference. This presentation includes two videos and will explain each of the assessment tools in detail. Please take a few minutes to view it. 

5th Grade Fall Conferences Parent Presentation

PDF | Google Presentation 

We look forward to conferencing with you about your learner! 

Updates Week 6

Thank you for taking the time to stop by our blog and read about what's going on in 5th Grade. Please be sure to check the Google Calendar that is linked at the top of the blog for important updates. 

Announcements

• We loved having visitors in our room for Special Friends Day last week! 

Parent Teacher Conferences

• Friday, October 7th is our Parent Teacher Conference Day. On this day, learners will have the day off, and educators will be at school having conferences. We would love to conference with you and your son/daughter, and we hope you will be able to sign up for a conference time. 
• If you sign up for a face to face conference, you will have a 15 minute slot to meet with both of your son/daughter's teachers. These conferences will be learner-led, and we invite you to bring your son/daughter with you. (If there is a topic you'd like to discuss without your son/daughter present, we can arrange that as well.) 
• We are offering some conference slots during the week prior to October 7th as well. If you are unable to find a time slot that works for you, please let us know and we will be happy to set something up. 
• If your schedule does not permit a face to face conference, we would still love to offer you a phone or email conference. If this is the case, please email your child's homeroom teacher to set one up. 

Conference Sign Ups: 

If you would like to sign up for a face to face conference, please access the following links. Prior to your conference, please complete the quick questionnaire so that we may be more prepared for your conference. 

Miss Peccarelli & Miss Seifert's Classes: 

• 5A/5B Conferences Sign Up
• 5A/5B Pre-conference Question Form - Complete prior to your conference time. 

Miss Natherson & Miss Taylor's Classes: 

• 5C/5D Conferences Sign Up
• 5C/5D Pre-conference Questions Form - Complete prior to your conference time. 

Classroom Communities

• We have emphasized that at TCE, we are one big family. In keeping with that theme, we will be showcasing family pictures in our classrooms again this year. If you have not already done so, please send a picture of your family to your child's teacher. You may email the picture or send in a printed picture. Thank you for your help with this! 

Curriculum Tidbits

Math

The learners will begin a new unit exploring the place value of decimals. They will be able to represent numbers with decimals up to the thousandths place.

Science

This week in science we will continue exploring the different properties of matter.

Reading

In reading, we will wrap up our study of our first short story, Charles, through the Junior Great Books curriculum with a "Great Debate" in which the learners will discuss their ideas about the story. In preparation for this "Great Debate," the learners will be working on justifying their opinions with evidence from the text.

Writing & Spelling

We are loving our Narrative Writing Unit! So far the learners have learned about how to "Begin with a Bang" and end their narratives with a "Take Away Conclusion." Later this week, we will focus on writing more descriptively and really engaging our readers.

In spelling, the learners will continue to get a new list each week, study and understand the spelling patterns throughout the week, and take a quiz on Friday. As requested at Curriculum Night, you may access the learner's spelling lists on our class websites.

Social Studies

We have begun our study of the United States Constitution! Our learners are beginning to understand the purposes of our checks and balances system and the role of our three branches of government!
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Finally, thank you again for taking the time to read our blog. We know how important it is for our TCE families to know what is happening at school! If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to ask. Our contact information is linked below for your convenience.

5A Morgan Peccarelli - mpeccarelli@coppellisd.com

5B Kate Seifert - kseifert@coppellisd.com

5C Marly Natherson - mnatherson@coppellisd.com

5D Jenna Taylor - jltaylor@coppellisd.com

Upcoming Events: Special Friends Day, Fall Family Picnic, & Conferences

A few important updates for this week: 

• We will celebrate Special Friends Day this Friday, September 23rd from 1:30-2:30. Learners may invite special friends (such as family members or close family friends) to visit during this time. During their visit, the learners' special friends will have the chance to visit our classroom, the book fair, and other areas of our school. Please let us know if you have any questions! 
• The Annual Fall Family Picnic is this Friday, September 23rd at 5:30 PM at the Town Center pavilion right next to our school. This is a fun event for the whole family, and we hope to see you there! 
• This week will be our second Texan Town, and we will be selling popcorn again. Learners may buy a bag of popcorn for $0.50 or purchase a subscription for $4.00. 
• As you may have learned, we do have the book fair going on this year! We would love for you to visit the book fair with your learner before or after school. In addition, you may send your learner with cash to spend. However, we recommend sending the money in an envelope, bag, or wallet; We want to be sure the learners don't lose their money. 
• Finally, we will have Parent Teacher Conferences on Friday, October 7th. We will be sending out a sign up for these conferences in the next few days, but we thought you might want to be sure to add it to your calendar. 

Thank you for taking a few minutes to read our blog! 

Updates: Week 4

Thank you for taking the time to stop by our blog and read about what's going on in 5th Grade. Please be sure to check the Google Calendar that is linked at the top of the blog for important updates. 

Announcements

• Safety Patrol is up and running, and our fifth graders are doing a fantastic job serving our school. Each learner that has signed up to participate in Safety Patrol received a copy of the Safety Patrol Schedule, which you can also access here. 
• We will start Texan Town this Friday, September 16th. In preparation for Texan Town, our learners will have the chance to fill out a job application and rank their top five club choices. Learners will also have the opportunity to run for Student Council on Monday. We encourage our learners to take a risk and try for Student Council if they're interested. 
• Destination Imagination and the Geography Club are both after school programs that will be offered this year. To learn more about these clubs, please access these links: Destination Imagine & Geography Club. 

Classroom Communities

• We have emphasized that at TCE, we are one big family. In keeping with that theme, we will be showcasing family pictures in our classrooms again this year. If you have not already done so, please send a picture of your family to your child's teacher. You may email the picture or send in a printed picture. Thank you for your help with this! 

Curriculum Tidbits

Math

This week in Math we will continue to focus on Whole Number Operations. The learners will be working on estimating and different algebraic expressions.

Science

This week in Science we will begin investigating different properties of matter. We will be looking at the different ways that we can describe properties of matter.

Reading

In reading, we have been enjoying our first short story, Charles, through the Junior Great Books curriculum. The learners will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of self-paced stations including focusing on vocabulary, point of view, and theme. Then we will wrap up our study of the story with a "Great Debate" in which the learners will discuss their ideas about the story.

Writing & Spelling

This next week we will begin our narrative writing unit. We are excited to dive back into the narrative writing process and watch as our learners get creative with their writing. Learners will have the opportunity to work through a set of blended, self-paced lessons in which they will learn about refining their craft as writers.

In spelling, the learners will continue to get a new list each week, study and understand the spelling patterns throughout the week, and take a quiz on Friday. As requested at Curriculum Night, you may access the learner's spelling lists on our class websites.

Social Studies

This week we will finish our study of map tools and the physical geography of the United States! The learners will participate in a review game on Tuesday and will take a test over what they've learned on Friday.

In addition, we will celebrate Constitution Day at the end of the week as we begin our unit on the Constitution of the United States.

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Finally, thank you again for taking the time to read our blog. We know how important it is for our TCE families to know what is happening at school! If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to ask. Our contact information is linked below for your convenience.

5A Morgan Peccarelli - mpeccarelli@coppellisd.com

5B Kate Seifert - kseifert@coppellisd.com

5C Marly Natherson - mnatherson@coppellisd.com

5D Jenna Taylor - jltaylor@coppellisd.com

Curriculum Night Information

First, thank you so much to those of you that were able to come to Curriculum Night this year. We appreciate the time that you took to come and participate in our evening. We also understand that some of you may not have been able to make it, and we want to be sure everyone has access to the information we shared.

Click here for a PDF copy of our Curriculum Night Presentation. You can also find these on our teacher websites.

Last week, Dr. Applegate included an informational video on her blog, Town Center Elementary Principal News. If you have not already done so, please check her blog for that important piece of communication. If you'd like to bookmark this blog for the future, the link is: http://tceprincipalnews.blogspot.com/.

Updates: Week 2

Thank you for taking the time to stop by our blog and read about what's going on in 5th Grade. Please be sure to check the Google Calendar that is linked at the top of the blog for important updates. 

Announcements

• 3rd-5th Grade Curriculum Night will be this Thursday, September 2, from 6:30-7:30. (Each grade will be in a different room. We will email later this week about which room we will be in.) During this evening, we will share a presentation with important details, guidelines, and procedures for 5th grade. We will share our presentation after Curriculum Night, so if you aren't able to make it, you'll still be able to access the information. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. 
• If you have not yet done so, please take a few minutes to complete your child's Student Information Form online. Your teacher has emailed this link out to you, but if you do not have it, please email them for it. This is a very important document and we really appreciate you completing it. 
• This Tuesday, the 5th graders will have the opportunity to attend an information meeting to learn more about Safety Patrol. Once we have the meeting, Mr. Shelby will begin to create a schedule for all those participating. We will share that schedule on this blog once we have it. Thank you, in advance, to all of the 5th graders (and their families) that have volunteered to participate. If you have not yet seen the letter that went home regarding safety patrol, you may access it here. 

Classroom Communities

• We have worked hard to foster safe and comfortable learning communities in our classrooms through various activities during the first week. One of the activities we did was to invite the learners to create their own class code. Ask your learner about his/her class code! 
• Last Friday, the learners participated in Growth Mindset stations. During this activity, they learned about a growth mindset vs. a fixed mindset. Ask your learner if he/she can tell you the difference! 
• We have emphasized that at TCE, we are one big family. In keeping with that theme, we will be showcasing family pictures in our classrooms again this year. If you have not already done so, please send a picture of your family to your child's teacher. You may email the picture or send in a printed picture. Thank you for your help with this! 

Curriculum Tidbits

Math

This week in Math we will be focusing on Whole Number Operations. The learners will be reviewing multiplication and division concepts.

Science

This week in Science we will be continuing our discussion of science writing, the scientific method, and the Engineering Design Process.

Reading

In reading, we will take the data from our genre pretest to create self-paced blended learning opportunities based on learner needs. Once the learners have learned about each of the genres, they will be able to create a small project to share what they've learned.

Writing

Last week the learners started the year with two writing assignments! They wrote about the legacy they want to leave at TCE, and their personal hopes and dreams. Be on the look out for these displayed in your learner's classrooms. This next week we will begin our narrative writing unit. We are excited to dive back into the narrative writing process and watch as our learners get creative with their writing.

Social Studies

Last week we started our first unit of the year: Geography. This week we will begin to dive into our study of map tools and the physical geography of the United States!

Finally, thank you again for taking the time to read our blog. We know how important it is for our TCE families to know what is happening at school! If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to ask. Our contact information is linked below for your convenience.

5A Morgan Peccarelli - mpeccarelli@coppellisd.com

5B Kate Seifert - kseifert@coppellisd.com

5C Marly Natherson - mnatherson@coppellisd.com

5D Jenna Taylor - jltaylor@coppellisd.com

Important Papers Coming Home/Student Info Forms

Please be on the look out for a few important papers that have been sent home with your learner. The first is a pink packet, and it includes our Responsible Use Policy. The second is a neon yellow paper, and it is a Safety Patrol permission slip. You may read more about Safety Patrol on that letter, and you and your family may decide if your son/daughter will sign up. 

Both of these forms are due this Friday, August 26th. 

Finally, please make sure that you have completed the Student Information form that your child's teacher has emailed about. If you do not have the link, please don't hesitate to email and ask your child's homeroom teacher as this is an important piece of communication and safety for us. 

We hope you and your family have enjoyed the first week of school as much as we have! 

Meet Miss Seifert

Hi! My name is Kate Seifert and this is my fourth year of teaching and my third year to be teaching at Town Center. I am so excited to get to share in your learner’s 5th grade year!

I grew up in Coppell, Texas and graduated from Coppell High School in 2008. After high school I attended the University of Arkansas (GO HOGS!), where I earned my Master of Arts in Teaching. In my spare time I love spending time with my friends and family, watching movies, spending time outside walking or riding my bike, and listening to great music.

Meet Miss Taylor

My name is Jenna Taylor. I am so excited to be teaching at TCE for my third year!

I grew up in Garland, TX with a large family. I am lucky enough to have the support of three wonderful parents: my mother, father, and step-father. I also have three brothers and one sister.

During my first two years of college I moved to east Texas where I had the amazing opportunity to attend Kilgore College as a Rangerette. I then packed my bags and moved west where I attended Texas Tech University. In May 2014, I graduated with my Bachelor's degree in Education and began teaching in Coppell that fall.

In my free time I love practicing yoga, cooking, reading, and watching movies!

Meet Miss Peccarelli

Hi! My name is Morgan Peccarelli and this is my third year to be teaching at Town Center! I have previously taught first grade and fourth grade and I am very excited to be teaching fifth grade this year!

I grew up in Coppell, Texas and graduated from The University of Oklahoma where I studied Elementary Education. I have recently decided to continue my education at SFA where I am pursuing a master's degree in educational leadership.

When I am not at work or studying, I enjoying spending time with my sister and parents. My sister recently graduated with her Doctoral degree in cell and molecular biology and lives in Arizona. I have loved visiting her and her new puppy!

Meet Miss Natherson

Hello! My name is Marly Natherson, and this will be my ninth year teaching at Town Center. I really love having the opportunity to loop with my learners, and I’m looking forward to an exciting and enjoyable year in fifth grade.

I, too, am a Coppell High School grad, and I studied Elementary Education at the University of Texas at Austin. When I’m not teaching, I am often spending time with my adorable nieces and nephew, traveling to some fun new place, catching a movie at Alamo Drafthouse, trying to learn how to better use my fancy camera, painting and crafting, or spending time with my friends.

With my large and blended family at my niece's second birthday party

Exploring and taking pictures in Palo Duro Canyon

I love being Aunt Marly! 

5th Grade News

Language Arts/Social Studies:

In Language Arts, we started a new Junior Great Book Story. In The Time of the Drums is a Gullah Folktale. Learners discussed ways characters show strength. We also had our second week of book clubs. Finally, in Social Studies we studied the Bill of Rights. Learners presented a tableau of one of the first ten amendments.

Math/Science:

This week in Math we began budgeting and planning a dream vacation! The students are choosing a destination as well as planning out the cost to get there and back, hotel stay, and activities to do. In Science we are using flipped and blended learning to study our Life Science unit. The learners are completing activities using resources such as Discovery Education, Study Jams, Schoology, and many others.



In Other News...

• Don't forget that Sky Ranch is this coming Wednesday-Friday! Please refer to your Sky Ranch packet and previous e-mails for important reminders. 
• Please consider supporting a group of 5th graders that are trying to raise money to go to the Destination Imagination Global Competition! Click on this link to see more: https://www.gofundme.com/globalconquerors
• 5th Grade homeroom parents are beginning to collect photos for the 5th grade graduation ceremony slideshow. Please check the e-mail from your homeroom parent about specific expectations for the photos. The e-mail address to send the photos is tce2016gradpics@gmail.com. 

5th Grade News

Language Arts/Social Studies:

This week we learned about the three branches of government in Social Studies, The students were able to test out their knowledge on icivics.org with interactive learning games and simulations. We also started our new book clubs this week. The students had a chance to choose a book club to participate in with other students, and today they met together with their group. We heard so many great questions and discussions!

Math/Science:

This week in Math and Science we have been wrapping up our Solar Powered Car Engineering Design Challenge. The learners got a chance to display all of their hard work from last week in a presentation of their choice that included their research, pictures and videos of their solar cars, and the results of their tests! Ask your learner about their presentation! We are looking forward to starting our Life Science unit next week. As a reminder the Science STAAR test will be May 11.



In Other News...

• Please consider supporting a group of 5th graders that are trying to raise money to go to the Destination Imagination Global Competition! Click on this link to see more: https://www.gofundme.com/globalconquerors
• 5th Grade homeroom parents are beginning to collect photos for the 5th grade graduation ceremony slideshow. Please check the e-mail from your homeroom parent about specific expectations for the photos. The e-mail address to send the photos is tce2016gradpics@gmail.com. 

5th Grade News

Language Arts/Social Studies:
This week in Language Arts, the learners started a new Jr. Great Book, "The Invisible Child". Ask your kids all about it. It had some very unique characters! In Social Studies, we began our study of the Constitution. We used the metaphor of a three-legged stool to represent its balance of power.

Math/Science:
This week we started a new Engineering Design Challenge. We worked on designing a way to create a car that runs entirely on solar power! We completed research, sketched our designs, and came up with a plan to create a solar-powered car. We even got a chance to test them out and race them! This engineering project went along with our Alternative Energy unit. In math we continued to practice skills using Think Through Math, Hands on Equations, and our DynaMath magazines.

In Other News...

• We will take a practice Science STAAR on Monday, April 11th. As a reminder, 5th grade takes the Science STAAR May 11th.

• The TCE Hoedown is on Friday, April 15th. Please click here to sign up to be a volunteer for the event. 

• 5th Grade homeroom parents are beginning to collect photos for the 5th grade graduation ceremony slideshow. Please check the e-mail from your homeroom parent about specific expectations for the photos. The e-mail address to send the photos is tce2016gradpics@gmail.com. 

5th Grade News

Language Arts/Social Studies - This week in Language Arts, we read an interesting Junior Great Book story called, The Coming of the Surfman.  Learners were challenged to examine human behavior in stressful situations.  In Social Studies, we examined the British army and the Continental army and explored their roles in The Revolutionary War.

Math/Science - This week we reviewed multi-step problems as well as vocabulary for personal finance, whole numbers operations, fractions, decimals, graphing, expressions and equations, and geometry. Learners will have these over the long weekend to review as needed.

In Other News - Please remember that next Tuesday and Wednesday we will be administering the STAAR test for Reading and Math.  Please have your students arrive on time, bring a light sweater or jacket (in case the rooms are cold) and make sure they remember to eat breakfast.

5th Grade News

Language Arts/Social Studies:
This week in language arts, we completed our work on persuasive writing and the use of outlines. We posted our writing on our websites.  In social studies, we studied the Declaration of Independence. Learners chose a task to complete to highlight their knowledge of the Declaration and its history. Many learners chose to persuade others that the move towards independence was necessary. We loved getting to hear all the presentations! Some of our classes also had the chance to participate in a Twitter chat to discuss citizenship with other schools around the country. They were able to share great ideas and also hear new ideas from others!

Math and Science:
In math this week, we did activities to explore geometry and measurement. We measured objects around our classroom to find the area, perimeter, and volume of them. We are also beginning to review all of our past concepts for math in order to help prepare for our Math STAAR test on March 29th. We also continued to have conversations about fossil fuels and alternative energy.

In Other News:
If you did not purchase your child's frame at the art show, there is still time!  You may order through Friday, March 25th, and the frames will be shipped to TCE.  The cost will be $35 per frame.  Please complete this form and send payment (cash or check made out to TCE) marked with your child's name to Mrs. Garza.  Thank you for supporting your little artist.

5th Grade News

Language Arts/Social Studies:

This week in language arts, we continued to work on persuasive writing and the use of outlines to organize our ideas. We also finished our class read aloud, Diary of an Imaginary Friend, and the students loved every moment of it. We can't wait to start our next one! In social studies, we learned about specific loyalists and patriots. The students now have a great understanding or each group's point of view. We look forward to our study of the Declaration of Independence next week!

Math/Science:

This week in math we took our Coordinate Planes and Graphing test. We also began our unit on Geometry and Measurement. We looked at the formulas for finding area, perimeter, and volume. We used a new math resource to help us find the volume of prisms. Click here to see our new resource and use it with your learner at home. You can also ask your learner how to find the area and perimeter of irregular figures! In science, we continued to talk about fossil fuels and alternative energy source. We looked at the location of fossil fuels around the world using this awesome technology tool! 

We also now have access to another math resource called Think Through Math. This is a great tool for extra math practice and review at home before we take our Math STAAR on March 29th. Here is the link for them to get on and utilize this great resource! 

Think Through Math

Their username is their Coppell Username and the password is town. 

In Other News:

• Don't forget to check out Ms. Applegate's parent blog at http://tceprincipalnews.blogspot.com/. This will have information on Donuts for Dad, Open House, and Shamrock Shuffle.
• Open house is Thursday, March 10th, 2016. We have a lot of QR codes around our classrooms and our hallway. You can download a QR reader to your iDevice to scan the QR codes during open house. We hope to see you there!
• The final Sky Ranch payment is due Thursday, March 24th. This is also the due date for chaperone money for those that will be joining us. 
• Please see the following information from Coach Yaegar on the lap tracker system.
• Website: laptracker.net
• Username: tce(followed by students FULL ID number) example : tce12345
• Password: (students FULL id number) followed by students first and last initial in lower case form Example: 12345ay
• See below for information on the art show next week.

Click here to pre-order your frame or take advantage of the pre-show family discount.

*Only cash or check will be accepted this year.