New Vocab, HG&D, and Jolly JOYner Market

Hey hey hey!


We have some new vocabulary words this week. The assignments for these words will be due December 2 and we will have a quiz that day. The words are listed at the end of this entry.


Peak Learning contracts are due next Tuesday, November 22. We have been working on these in class for several weeks and today I encouraged students to take the assignments home to ensure they finish them by Tuesday. Please check in with your child to assess his or her progress on the learning contract.


Human Growth and Development began yesterday. Tomorrow we will be switching classes to isolate the boys and girls. We will teach them about the reproductive systems of both genders. Please remember to be "askable" this week as your children might come home with important questions. On Friday we will take a field trip to the Poe Health Center to learn more about puberty.


On December 1 from 5-9pm, just in time for the holidays and gift buying season, JYJ will be hosting the Jolly JOYner Market. Local artists and craftsmen (including yours truly) will be selling their wares. The Haiti Team will also be fundraising for this years project. Please come out for an evening of holiday cheer and great shopping.


Thanks!


Mr. B


Peak Vocab 5 (vocab words are marked by dashes, examples follow select words)

-Persist (v) – to continue stubbornly or firmly in an opinion or action despite difficulty, opposition or failure

Ex. Despite frequent failures, the inventor persisted in creating his flying skateboard.

-Spite (v) – deliberately or intentionally hurt, annoy or offend someone.

Ex. The golf course maintenance man spited the geese by yelling obscenities at them after they left him presents all over his course.

-Overzealous (adj) – excessively, overly excited

Ex. Fans of musician, kids on Halloween, winners of the lottery, World series winners, sports fans

-Deport (v) – to expel, or kick out, of a country

Ex. The traveler got deported after the authorities found he had overstayed his visa.

-Rouse (v) – wake something up; awaken

Ex. The bright sunlight streaming through the large windows roused the man from his deep slumber.

-Envious (adj) – showing an unhappy want for someone else’s possessions, qualities or luck

Ex. The peasant was envious of the Duke’s fine clothing.

-Dreaded (adj) – regarded with great fear or apprehension; something not wanted to happen

Ex. The dreaded EOG’s brought a terrible feeling to the boy’s stomach.

-Corpse (n) – a dead body

-Water Cycle (n) – the continuous movement of water between the Earth’s surface and the air, changing from liquid to gas to liquid to gas to liquid etc.

-Evaporation (n) – the changing of a liquid to a gas

-Condensation (n) – the changing of a gas to a liquid when molecules come closer together

-Precipitation (n) – any form of water molecule that falls from the atmosphere and reaches the ground

-Infiltration (n) – when precipitation soaks into the ground and becomes ground water

-Transpiration (n) – loss of water from plant leaves when they “exhale” oxygen. Similar to evaporation because water is released as vapor

-Vapor (n) – a liquid in gaseous form

What's happenin' at JYJ?

We have new vocabulary words! Vocab contract work is due THURSDAY Nov 10. We will also have a vocab assessment that day. The words are listed below.


Report cards went home on Friday afternoon. You may keep the report card but should return the signed report card envelope as soon as possible. If you would like to have a conference, please email me at mbutler3@wcpss.net.


Tomorrow is Pronto Pasta Dine Out Night. The proceeds collected tomorrow night will go towards the DC field trip so PLEASE come out and support us!


Speaking of DC, first payments for the payment plan were due on Oct. 28. If you have not turned it in yet, please do so as soon as possible. The next payment is due Nov. 30.


While on the field trip front, we will be heading to Poe Health center on Friday November 18th. If you have not yet done so, please send in $15 and the signed permission form.


Check back later for more information!


Mr. B


Vocab Words! (Words have a dash in front of them and an example of the proper usage of the word follows)

-Exclusive (adj) – not shared, or belonging to only one person

Ex. Holly asked Peak for an exclusive interview because she wanted more publicity.

-Discourage (v) – to persuade or convince NOT to do something

Ex. Paul discouraged Tom from jumping off the cliff because they weren’t sure how deep the water was.

-Devastate (v) – to destroy or ruin completely; to make helpless or overwhelm

Ex. The earthquake devastated Haiti. Ex. Jill was devastated by the news that her dog died.

-Protest (v) – to speak out against or object to something; (n) the act of people protesting

Ex. (v) MLK protested the mistreatment of blacks by the government.

Ex. (n) Many people across the US are holding protests against the US government.

-Elusive (adj) – not easy to catch or see; somewhat rare or secretive

Ex. Some say that the elusive Sasquatch lives in the mountains of Montucky.

-Optimistic (adj) – hopeful or positive outlook

Ex. The optimistic hunter felt confident he could find the elusive Sasquatch.

-Distraught (adj) – very upset, extremely worried or troubled

Ex. Jill was distraught when her dog died.

-Previous (adj) – happening or coming before in time or order

Ex. Tom thought back to the events of the previous day.

-Assumption (n) – a guess, a total shot in the dark

Ex. Jim made the assumption that Charles would love the clown he sent to his birthday.

-Treacherous (adj) – dangerous or unreliable; not something that is going to come hurt us, loose footing

Ex. Climbing a skyscraper, rickety old rope bridge with crocodiles under it, climbing a volcano while its erupting

-Haggard (adj) – worn out and tired looking (usually describes a person)

Ex. When might you look haggard: after playing a long football game, after running a marathon, after trying to climb out of a deep hole, after a long workout, after climbing Everest

-Revolution (n) – a war or conflict that changes who is in power

Ex. In the American revolutionary war, Colonists (not in power) fought the British (in power) and won.

-Evaporate (v) – changing a liquid into a gas; to disappear

Ex. The burglar evaporated into thin air as soon as they heard the sirens.

-Vigil (n) – a ceremony dedicated to paying tribute to or praying for someone or something

Ex. Friends and family of the girl that was hurt held a vigil to pray and give thoughts for her.

-Detain (v) – to hold back; or keep in custody for a while (held by police)

Ex. The suspect was detained by police for questioning. 

Update for the week

Hello!


Washington DC field trip information went home yesterday. Look it over and send back the filled-out information sheet as soon as possible.


Vocabulary contract assignments are due this Friday and we will have a quiz on their definitions as well. Please encourage your student to study!


We will be having a short quiz on landform vocabulary this Thursday. Students should be studying their vocab flipbooks that we created in class.


The JYJ Jamboree is happening this Friday. The Fifth Grade Fundraising committee has organized a hot dog and bake sale to raise money for the DC trip. Make sure you come out and support them!


This Friday we will be working on painting the awesome landforms we created two Fridays ago. If you have any egg cartons laying around, we could use them to hold paint. Please send them in by Friday morning. If you would like to come help out in the classroom as we paint it would be very much appreciated. We will begin around 845.


Thanks!


Mr. B

New Vocabulary words

New vocab words were handed out today! Students are expected to create a word-square for each word and complete two of the activities by October 21. Students will also be assessed on the meanings and usage of the words on October 21.

      auspicious- (adj.)   favorable, hopeful, or successful

belligerent- (adj.)  eager to fight or having an aggressive attitude

blindsided- (v.) to surprise unpleasantly

cringe- (v.) to pull back or shrink in fear, pain, or distaste

daunting- (adj.) overwhelming or intimidating

disperse- (v.) to spread out or break up

garish-  (adj.) overly bright or tastelessly showy

reevaluate- (v.)-  to look back, check or study  the significance, importance, or correctness of  something

pandemonium- (n.) a crazy place; a state of chaos, confusion, or disorder

poignant- (adj.) very emotional or moving

First Post 2011-2012

Hello parents!


Thank you for checking in on my blog! You should be able to subscribe to it allowing you to receive notification when I update it in the future. 


I will make my best effort to post updates from the classroom frequently. I will post assignment updates, topics we are studying in class and requests for help or supplies in the classroom. 


The first request I have is for materials we will use for a hands-on landform project we will be creating on Friday. For this project, we will create dough to make models of landforms. We will need 8 bags of all purpose flour, 8 containers of table salt, 8 pieces of foam board or cardboard and 5-6 large mixing bowls. In addition to those supplies, I would really appreciate volunteers on Friday morning to help with mixing the dough. We will be making the dough from 845 to 945. Please comment on this post to make note of what you are able to send in or whether or not you are able to help.


Thank you for everything and check back here for more very soon!


Mr. B

Sarah B's update.

Lately, we've been learning about biomes and ecosystems in science class, and we've done many fun projects on the subject. We're nearing the end of fifth grade, though, as EOGs are in less than a month. Review packets will be coming home soon. We recently got back our report cards, and a form about our middle schools. In writing we're learning about poetry, with a small spotlight on haiku poetry for now. Our class is off to a good start in the exhibition project we're doing, and if you don't already know; the exhibition project is about sharing the earth, and the groups are- Animal group, bad-issues group, Air group, human needs group and the environment group. We are just starting out on a healthy choice marathon, which consists of 26 days of healthy choices.


      Attention-Fifth grade parents!!!
We are putting together a video for the graduation, and would like a baby picture and a recent/5th grade photo of each student. Please send pictures electronically to abaird@nc,rr,com . There will also be envelopes in each classroom to collect the photographs. Actual photos will be returned. Be sure to include your child's name and where they will attend middle school. Please submit photos by Monday, may 9th. If you have any questions, please call Anna Baird at 821-5559 or Beth Radulovic, 847-1166

Update from Brode

 Our class has been working really hard the past few weeks. This past week in science we have been studying Eco Systems.  In math we are starting geometry and we just came out of graphs and mean, median, mode and range. In social studies we have been working on writing our own copies of the Declaration of Independence. Most groups have finished typing them up. We have been taking these benchmark tests. We took the math test Monday and we took the reading test today. It was really boring!!! I am SO glad we have finished it. 


Stay tuned for the
 next post!!!


Brode : ) : O : )