1. Welcome to 5th Grade!
Communication between all parties is essential to making the partnership between student, teacher, and parent successful.
is best during the day:
Phone calls will be returned as soon as possible.
Conferences may be scheduled by or phone call. Our conference times are during PE, 12-12:30.
Your child will also have a space near the teacher’s desk to place notes.
Comments may be left on the average strip of graded papers.
Correspondence through agendas is possible as well.

2. Daily and Weekly Schedule
Lunch – 10:44-11:10 daily
P.E. – 12:00-12:35 daily
Recess – morning around 9am, afternoon around 2pm
Science Lab – most Mondays
Computer Lab – 12:40-1:25 Monday
Music – 8:40-9:20 on Wednesday
Library – 8:05-8:45 Thursday
Art – 8:40-9:20 on Friday
Guidance – 1:00-1:45 Thursday (week 2, once a month)
:20

3. Trading Classes Mrs. Furman teaches math and science to both classes.
Mrs. Vaughn teaches English language arts (reading and writing) to both classes.
Math, English language arts, and now science are taught to the Alabama College and Career-Readiness standards, see the Alabama Dept. of Ed. website ( for more information.
Mrs. Furman and Mrs. Vaughn each teach social studies to their respective homerooms.
This is an opportunity that has been implemented in order to provide your child with the experience of changing classes before middle school. We are hopeful it will reinforce organization and accountability.

4. Math
Mrs. Furman teaches math using the AMSTI program adopted by OMIS. It is designed to support students in making sense of mathematics and becoming mathematical thinkers. The investigations give students time to develop a strong conceptual foundation before moving into the more abstract algorithms.
Resources available include:
Math journals created in class
Student resource pages available through Pearson SuccessNet and posted on Mrs. Furman’s blog
Ms. Champion’s blog link on Mrs. Furman’s blog
“Parent Roadmap: Supporting Your Child in Grade Five Mathematics” link under Students and Parents on OMIS site

5. Science
Mrs. Furman teaches science using the AMSTI program adopted by OMIS this year. First semester we will dig deep into ecosystems. Other fifth grade objectives cover:
Matter and Its Interactions
Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions
Earth’s Place in the Universe
Earth’s Systems: Biosphere, Atmosphere, Hydrosphere, Geosphere
Earth and Human Activity
and MAYBE we’ll dissect frogs in the spring!

6. English Language Arts
Mrs. Vaughn teaches English language arts from the College and Career Readiness Standard in ELA/Literacy which shift the focus to reading and writing grounded in evidence from rich, complex texts.
Building knowledge through content-rich nonfiction
Reading and writing evidence from text, both literary and informational
Regular practice with complex texts, syntax and vocabulary

7. Social Studies
Mrs. Furman and Mrs. Vaughn each teach social studies for their respective homerooms but collaborate on joint projects. Fifth grade focus is on Early American History:
Native Americans of North America
Eastern Hemisphere
Explorers
Colonies
Revolutionary War
Forming of our government
Westward Expansion
Civil War

8. Keeping You Informed
There are several routines in place to keep parents informed about what is going on at school. Please take advantage of these efforts:
Daily homework/announcement board for agendas
Weekly updates (Sunday)
Weekly graded paper packets with ongoing averages (Tuesday)
Furman Fifth Grade Blog
Mrs. Vaughn’s video update (Friday)
OMIS ListServe Announcements

9. Classroom Management Plan
Both teachers use a joint system for recognizing good choices and addressing poor student choices:
Students earn tickets for good choices to be used for privileges such as First Friday Market.
Each homeroom has a Responsibility Book where students sign and record poor choices in any area of the school.
Students may be referred to the office immediately for serious infractions or if classroom interventions do not address repeated lesser infractions after notifying parent/guardian(s) of the issue.

10. Other Items For Discussion
First Friday Market
Camp McDowell Field Trip
Graded paper packets with average strips
GRC/Enrichment (intervention/projects)
Flexible Seating (comfy silent work)
Dress Code (leggings do not equal pants)
Birthdays (pre-cut treats welcome at lunch!)
Thank you for coming! It is going to be a great year!