Grade 5 Curriculum Information

English/Social Studies Math Science
Art Computer Spanish Music
Technology Education Physical Education

Math
Mrs Kristin Hartman

The fifth grade math curriculum is designed to build on and expand students' knowledge of numbers through work with decimals, fractions, algebra, probability, statistics, measurement and geometry. We will be using the Glenco text: Mathematics - Applications and Concepts. There are five general goals for all students:

• To become confident in their ability to do mathematics
• To learn to communicate and reason mathematically
• To become mathematical problem solvers
• To value mathematics
• To "like" math more than they did before (even if just a little)!

These goals are intricately bound together in the process of doing and thinking mathematics. Boys will learn math by doing math. Rather than becoming passive receivers of rules and procedures, my goal is that the boys will be active participants in creating their own knowledge about mathematical concepts.

Problem solving and understanding "why" permeates the entire math curriculum. It provides the context in which concepts and skills can be reinforced and investigated. Problem solving gives students a view of mathematics as a discipline concerned with thinking, sense making and a search from patterns. Problems are regularly explored using important mathematical ideas. Problem solving is a way of thinking and reasoning used in the learning and doing of all mathematics.

This year's text book has many wonderful resources that can be used when questions arise at home: step-by-step examples; an answer key to all odd numbered problems; an internet site including extra examples, practice tests and quizzes, the actual pages of the text bok, and more. (see Mrs Hartman or your curriculum handout for User Name and Password).

Please take some time to make yourself familiar with these resources. They will be useful tools to help your son help himself when needed.

Science
Mr Bob Farrell

Mission statement: Science at University School involves each boy in hands-on inquiry that engages his imagination, connects him to the larger world, and leads to critical thinking."

Topic: Space Science and Weather
Subtopics: Solar System and Weather

Students will analyze and understand the characteristics of the sun and eight planets. They will analyze changes in the Earth and sky and be able to identify and classify weather stystems.

Lab work and projects include a project centering on learning about specific space missions - past and present, creating clouds, monitoring the weather, and making frost. Students will investigate how water is recycled in our atmosphere and track weather patterns locally and globally. Periodic quizzes will also be given.

Topic: Physical Science
Subtopics: Light/Color, Flight, and Rocketry

Students will understand and identify Newton's three "Laws of Motion." They will be introduced to the principles of flight. The boys will also build an understanding of the effects of turbulence and wind on the flights of their airplanes and rockets. Finally students will be introduced to the electromagnetic spectru, reflection and refraction, and color.

Lab work will include construction of a small balsa airplane and several small model rockets. The students will examine different lenses and mirrors, as well as identify factors that determine the color of objects.

Worksheets and quizzes will be used to assess students.

Topic: Health
Subtopics: Respiratory System, Reproductive System, and the Eye

Students will build an understanding of the structure and function of the repsiratory system and the effect tobacco has on this system. They will explore the history of the tobacco industry, advertising geared toward youth, and the physiological effects of smoking. They will also learn decision making strategies concerning the topic. The study of the human reproductive system will focus primarily on structure and function of the system. We will trace the path of the egg and sperm from conception to birth. An introduction to sex education will deal with puberty and related issues of hygience. This introductory course is in preparation for a more intense study which will take place in the Middle School.

The students will be constructing a breathing machine, observing an eye dissection, and participating in a "tricks of the eye" lab.

Topic: Ecology
Subtopics: Ecosystems, Food Webs, Biomes, Wetlands, Water Studies, and Pollution

The students will plan and carry out various investigations that include collecting data, constructing explanations and conclusions. They will employ simple tools to gather data and extend their observation skills. Connections will be made between an organism's adaptation to its environment.

Hands-on work will include building a simulated woodland terrarium in the classroom tot help demonstrate the basic skills needed to collect data, make detailed observations, and chart and analyze results. In addition the boys will take several trips to the wooded area at the Shaker Campus studying the animal communities and their interactions. Finally we will travel to the Hunting Valley Campus to study pond and stream ecosystems.

Students will be involved in a research project on a biome during the unit. There will be several quizzes and a culminating test.

Art
Ms Brooke Biggar

Art is an integral part of our lives, culture and history. Cultures rich in the arts have long been the ones studied, revered and sought aftr. This is especially true of the Greeks, a culture we will study in art this year.

At University School, there is a long tradition of boys working with their hands and discovering the world around them through visual and kinetic means. During the fifth grade year in art, we strive to further develop their fine motor skills and to encourage their spatial abilities to grow. We also want to promote creativity and reward imagaination.

All boys in the Lower School Art Program will focus on four areas of learning: Art History, Aesthetics, Creation and the Language of Art, which includes the Elements of Art and Principles of Design. Through these areas, the boys will develop a deeper understanding of the world around them, as well as how they may contribute visually to our culture.

In fifth grade, the boys will focus heavily on drawing concepts and techniques. They bgegin the year learning about proportion, balance and space as they draw self-portraits. They will then go on to study contour drawings, one and two-point perspective techniques, shading and life drawing. They will also try to copy fthe Greeks as they discover more about pottery and mythological scences. As they study Mexico, they will learn about Diego Rivera, color, pattern, symbols, and create a papier-mache mask.

We strongly encourage each boy to express his emerging sense of self and unique identity.

Computer
Mrs Karin Marsh

Each fifth grade homeroom comes to the Primary Computer Lab twice a week for the first two trimesters. The boys will spend time in every class on Type to Learn 3 for touch typing practice. We will also incorporate some internet typing programs and miscellanceous programs like Mavis Beacon, Type Through Tiem, Garfield's Typing Pal, and Type for Fun for some variety. We will use Inspiration for organizing ideas and for taking notes. This year the boys will not only manipulate digital photos with Digital Image Pro, but will take them and downloand them from digiital cameras!

This year we are attempting to record and produce Fairy Tale "podcasts" for the first graders. We are using free software called Audacity. I would also like to do some informal "geocaching" (treasure hunting) with GPS units on the Shaker Campus.

Spanish
Maestra Chois

The Lower School Spanish Curriculum is being developed based on the National Standards for Foreign Language Learning. While these standards are not being practiced in most schools in the United States, they are the goal for the future. We are priviliged here at US to be able to put these standards into practice now.

The 5 C's of Foreign Language Education are:
Communication - communicate in languages other than English: The largest minority group in the US is Hispanics, and this group is not only growing quickly, it is also holding on to its language and culture. The ability to speak Spanish is becoming more important in our country each year, and we want our student to be prepared for the future.
Cultures - gain knowledge and understanding of other cultures: Our main focus is Mexico. Mexico has by far the largest population of any Spanish speaking country, is our neighbor to the south, and Mexicans make up the largest percentage of Hispanic immigrants.
Connections - connect with other disciplines and acquire information: We do this by matching the Spanish program to the themes studied at each grade level as much as is possible.
Comparisons - develop insight into the nature of language and cultures: We compare English and Spanish by talking about cognates and the ways words migrate from one country to another. We also compare our different cultural traidtions within each classroom, the school, our community, and within the Hispanic world.
Communities - participate in multilingual communities at home and around the world: Students have the opportunity to interview Hispanic people from the local community and are encouraged to use Spanish at home.

Our goal in teaching a foreign language is to leave students knowing "how, when, and why to say what to whom."

In fifth grade, students learn to conjugate regular verbs in the present tense, starting with -ar, then moving to -er and -ir. They learn to have simple conversations about their interests in the present tense. The historical focus is 1905-1925 and the Mexican Revolution (it is Mexico's Civil War). The boys will be familiar with important figures such as Emiliano Zapata, Pancho Villa, and General Diaz. They will also see how ancient traditions affected Mexico during the Revolution and continue to influence people's views of the world today.

Music
Ms Amanda Matthews, Mr Eric Dina, and Ms Mel Fucci

Fifth grade music is in two parts: choral and instrumental. Performances include the Winter Holiday and Spring Concerts along with other smaller performoances throughout the year. Other opportunities for musical participation include the Flying Mallets percussion group and the Recorder Ensemble.

Choral

Choral singing concentrates on producing a quality sound in unison, two and three part songs. Repertoire will include age-appropriate arrangements in a wide range of genres, including theme related material. The focus will be on enjoying singing, expressing oneself through voice and making a truly enriching ensemble experience for everyone.

Listening acuity is paramount and is expected throughout rehearsal. There will be movement and percussion/instrumental accompaniement. Reading and writing notation is very important ane every boy is expected to develop in this area. Rehearsals typically start with warm-up exercises, followed by singing and reading notation.

Instrumental

Boys in grade 5 are required to receive basic instruction on an instrument - Beginning Brass, Beginning Woodwinds and Strings II - along with their chorus requirement.

Brass I: Students will learn to hold, clean, maintain, and play their instruments. They will learn correct articulation, be able to play using whole, half, quarter and eighth notes, and play the B^b major scale and F major scale.

Woodwinds I: Students receive instruction in flute, clarinet or saxophone. They will learn to hold, clean, maintain and play their instruments. They will learn correct embouchure and playing position; be able to play using whole, half, quarter and eighth notes, and play the B^b major scale and F major scale.

Strings II: A second year of strings for boys who have experience learning a string instrument - violin, viola, cello, and string bass. Students will review the parts of their instrument and bow, how to correctly hold their instrument and bow, and correctly identify the names of each string. The boys will review how to play internationally known folk songs in the keys of D major and G major and learn how to play in B^b major, E^b major, F major, A minor and D minor. Violinists and violists will learn all notes playable in first position. The bass and cello players will shift and learn how to play notes in first, third, and possibly fifth position.

back to top

back to top