Here are today's and yesterday's posts.

Let's begin with Friday.

• Today in Math class, we had an exam. When we walked in, Ms. Reodica let us study our notes for a few minutes. There were 14 questions on the exam. It was about whole number patterns. After you were done with your exam, you worked on your worksheets. :-) Gizel Valenzuela  :-)
• Today in Science class, we were seeing if mold grew on our "Mold Terrariums." On our strawberry, we had white lines coming up. In the control group, the strawberry just melted down. On loose-leaf, we are going to write down any predictions or observations. :) John Rafacz :)
• Today in Reading class, we read read three chapters of ...Mr. Terupt. We read chapters with close reading signposts (Memory Moments) and read a few excerpts from Hope Was Here. We did an excerpt worksheet on Hope Was Here. :-) Dakota Silva :-)
• Today in Social Studies class, we did "Taking a Poll" and "What's the Issue?" on the elections. In "Taking a Poll," we have to vote on the most important election issue. Our only homework is the CNN Response and "What's the Issue?" :) Ethan Skol :)
• Today in Ms. Reodica's Writing class, we went over our personal narratives and learned how to make our title page. We did this so we could create our final papers. We need to rewrite our narrative. They will be due on October 31st or November 1st. :-) Abigail Sliva :-)
  
• Today in Mr. Maynard's Writing class, we did two D.O.L.s because we have tests on them. We learned how to fix sentences and find the simple subject and simple predicate. Then we wrote the D.O.L.s in our writing notebook. Also it gets our brains pumping for the rest of the day. :) Esteban Wheeler :)
  

As for Thursday, here we go.

• Today in Math class, we worked in our Prime Time book. We did about 10 questions. At the beginning of math, we did our Homework Check-In. In the Prime Time book, we were doing place value charts. We had to write them out. :) Sam Smierciak :)
• Today in Science class, we prevented mold from getting on our food. We test it everyday to see if our food is fine. We looked at the control group and compared what happened each day. :-) Mikey Torres :-)
• Today in Reading class, we learned about our fifth close reading signpost; Again and Again. We connected it to two books: Because of Mr. Terupt and Hatchet. We also did reader's theatre of Mr. Terupt and read Hatchet together. :-) Dylan Sartore :-)
• Today in Social Studies class, we are learning about the elections, "The Race Is On." We did it so we can learn about elections and how they work. We were learning about the Republican and the Democratic convention. Next after reading, we're going to our next paper, but we have to answer the questions first. :) George Seimo :)
• Today in Ms. Reodica's writing class, we worked on and peer edited our personal narratives. We did it to learn about our friends. We need to write our final draft next. :-) Lizzy Shultz :-)
• Today in Mr. Maynard's writing class, we did our D.O.L.s and then worked on a worksheet. It was on complex and compound sentences. The last thing we did in writing class is work on our second draft for our personal narratives. :) Nathan Troncoso :)

Here's what happened today in fifth grade. I will include Tuesday's entry below.

• In Science class, we were seeing mold grow. We worked on a worksheet and saw if the fruit had mold on it. :-) Adan Santamaria (201) :-)
• In Reading class, we learned about Words of the Wiser and how they teach us a lesson. We learned about themes like "being yourself" and "not letting anyone control you" in Pam Munoz Ryan's Riding Freedom. We also did a ...Terupt read aloud. :) Ryan Ryes :) (203)
  
• In Social Studies class, we watched CNN and did a worksheet about Presidents and how long they served in the United States. :-) Giovanni Rocha :-) (203)
• In Writing class, we did our word ladder and D.O.L. We did this to help us with our grammar and spelling. We worked on the second draft of our "Origins" section. We took notes on improving our "Origins." :) Luke Sizer :) (201)

Here is Tuesday's entry.

• Today in Math class, we did an activity to get us ready for our math lesson. We learned about algorithms. This means that when you do a multiplication problem, you estimate and then solve the problem. We did many problems as a class. Next we have to do our homework, which is related to our lesson we learned. The homework is due Thursday. :-) Gianna Ponce de Leon (201) :-)
• Today in Science class, we learned that if we keep food out it will mold. If the food is in the fridge, it will not mold. If you salt food, it will not mold. Each group got a food plate. Our groups will decide what we will do to stop it from molding or make it mold. We will now wait to see our results. :) John Rafacz (201) :)
• Today in Reading class, we read three chapters of Because of Mr. Terupt. After, we wrote our responses and wrote our questions on the whiteboards. Next we read some of A Long Walk to Water and had to write two tough questions. We worked with our shoulder partners and wrote down what our partner wondered. :-) by Danny Midona (203) :-)
• Today in Social Studies class, we did a couple of TFK articles on the election. We read the passages about the two main parties and their symbols, and answered questions. We have to finish the "Party Animals" response/questions. We learned how they had party animals to symbolize political parties years ago. :) Brooklyn Prendkowski (201) :)
• Today in Ms. Reodica's Writing class, we did a test on independent and dependent clauses. We did it to improve our sentences. We learned that an independent clause is a clause that makes sense on its own; and a dependent clause is a clause that doesn't make sense by itself. Next we need to study notes and do 10 book reports. That's what we did today in writing class. :-) Weronika Ptaszek (203) :-)
• Today in Mr. Maynard's Writing class, we did our D.O.L.s., looked at our feedback from our first drafts and started rewriting the Origins sections. :) Cassandra Reyes (201) :)

• Today in Math class, we learned that a square is a rectangle by the four equal sides. We had a debate that who agrees that a square is a rectangle or who disagrees. :-) Giovany Matias-Gomez :-)
• Today in Science class, we did an extra period of math. We learned about patterns, and questions about if a square is a rectangle. We also learned about if a rectangle was a square. :) Victoria Medellin :)
• Today in Reading class, we went over our vocab corrections to learn from our mistakes. Also we read three chapters of Because of Mr. Terupt. We learned about Mr. Terupt and his coma. We also had a debate about who's fault it is for Mr. Terupt's coma. For homework today, it's optional to fix vocab corrections. Also, we have to work on our project. Have a great day!!! :-) Delaney Gade :-)
  
• Today in Social Studies class, we read an article about Trump during the debate not saying if we would accept an election loss. We circled unknown words and highlighted main ideas. We labeled the lede and caption. We are going over these parts because we are going to have an exam on the article. We learned about the debate. We learned about new words and what they mean. Next we did CNN and we wrote our answers on whiteboards. We then moved around the room to see the other answers. Next we packed up and went to our homeroom. :) Jolene Haran :)
  
• Today in Ms. Reodica's Writing class, we went over our homework about independent and dependent clauses so we could learn from their mistakes. Independent clauses mean a group of words that can stand by itself. Dependent clauses are a group of words that cannot stand by itself. :-) Natalia Holguin :-)
  
• Today in Mr. Maynard's Writing class, we did two D.O.L.s (Daily Oral Language). We do these everyday. Then we corrected our independent and dependent quiz from yesterday. We also did our D.O.L. quiz. After our quiz, we did a Word Ladder. We lastly did riddles. My group has the least. :) Emilia Niemiec :) 
  

Nice job by all - have a great weekend. :-) Mr. Maynard :-)

Here's what happened today in fifth grade. Thank you to the students above for writing. 

• Today in Math class, we did a computation quiz and some estimations. Then we transferred our estimations into science. We also checked our homework. There is no homework tonight. :) Fabian Gandara :-)
• Today in Science class, we first shared our homework/journal response. We also did a new journal. We shared our responses to compare and listen to each other. We learned about where all the leaves go after fall/autumn. Then we watched a video and figured out where all the leaves go. Tonight we need to study for tomorrow's quiz. :-) Chris Heubaum :-) 
• Today in Reading class, we read Because of Mr. Terupt and did a response about the story. We learned what an "Aha Moment" was. We read the story "Crash" and needed to write "Aha Moments" that we found in the story. We discussed these Aha Moments. Now we have to finish our Aha Moment log for the last part of the story. P.S. Mr. Maynard's class is fun. ;) Roberto Celudo ;)
• Today in Social Studies class, we did "Mapping Out a Win" to learn about the election and the electoral college. Next we did CNN Student News to know about what is happening in the real world with the pyramid in Egypt and the water frogs in Peru. Tonight we need to do our CNN response and finish our "Return of the Grizzlies" book report. :-) Jafet Cerritos :-)
• Today in Ms. Reodica's Writing class, we did our morning D.O.L., and we checked our independent and dependent clauses, which should have been really easy. Our D.O.L. was funny and interesting. After we checked our homework we got ready for reading and gym. :) Devin Chadwell :) 
• Today in Mr. Maynard's Writing class, we did a word ladder and our two D.O.L.s. We then did a test prep on dependent and independent clauses. We also did some more literacy riddles that will carry out until the end of the week. Tonight we need to study for tomorrow's quiz on clauses. :-) Tasi Koustis :-) 

Today was the 30th day of the school year, and our second full day with the students doing the "Daily Diary" post. Here is what the kiddos had to say about today! 

• Today in Math class, we learned about prime numbers. We learned about prime numbers because we want to be ready for the next grade. Tomorrow we are in our groups figuring out shapes out of 12 squares. For homework, we have to work on a sheet and study. :) Michael Bielski :) (201) 
• Today in Science class, we all went over the questions we had for homework if we didn't finish them in class. We did this because we have a test on the questions tomorrow, October 19th. We also talked about what we are doing for our lab. Also, we did a science response that is like a CNN response, but for science. It was about baseball, and the author explained how science is related to baseball. Tomorrow we are going to explain what we are doing in our lab, and we are going to plan the experiment. We are going to start the lab this week or next week. We have to review our notes for our test tomorrow. Also, we have to do our science response in our science journal. Have a great day! :-) Nailani Deaton (201) :-) 
• Today in Reading class, we did a Because of Mr. Terupt read aloud. Also we had a vocab quiz/test. We did our vocab quiz so that Mr. Maynard knows we are studying and taking notes in class. We did the ...Terupt read aloud so that we can continue learning about Mr. T's classroom. What we need to do next is find a vicious vocab word with the four steps. :) Josiah Benavides (203) :)
• Today in Social Studies class, we did our CNN test. Some people still need to finish the test. Most people finished though. We watched CNN and learned how ISIS is trying to win a city in Iraq and how China might send up a space ship in 2020-2023. Tonight we need to do our "Map Out the Election" worksheet and CNN response. :-) Kenny Bischoff (203) :-) 
• Today in Ms. Reodica's Writing class, we learned how to write complex sentences. We learned how independent and dependent clauses work. We learned rules for independent and dependent clauses. We also learned what a clause is. :) Ariana Canela (203) :)
• Today in Mr. Maynard's Writing class, we did our D.O.L.s and practice on independent and dependent clauses. We do the D.O.L.s to learn correct grammar. We did the independent and dependent clauses to learn how to make the right sentences. Today, our class learned some riddles. Next we need to prepare for our Thursday quiz on independent and dependent clauses. :-) Husam El Muhtaseb (201) :-)

Awesome diary entries by everyone. I couldn't have done them any better. :-)  

Thanks to the above fifth graders for doing our first full "Daily Diary" post. Here's what they had to say about the day. All in all, they did a great job.

• Today in Reading class, we talked about the "Identity" and "Election" project that is due on the 28th. Then we read more from Because of Mr. Terupt. Next we reviewed our vocab with whiteboards, and we need to study for our vocab quiz tomorrow. - Jeremiah Aparicio (203)
• Today in Social Studies class, we passed out some book reports that were incomplete at the start of class. In CNN, we learned about aquatic animals and drug smuggling. We learned about stressed coral (The Great Barrier Reef in Australia), smuggling heroin and coral, and the new ways to find these drugs like literally ripping the cars (at the border) apart. - Cruz Batista (203)
• Today in Math class, we were introduced to a the math skill of the week, which is a variety of problems we do every beginning of the week. We also re-learned estimation and took some notes on estimation. We were also assigned a math strip that we until Wednesday to finish. - Michelle Batzaya (201)
  
• Today in Science class, we worked on our science questions and reviewed them if you finished your questions. We did this because we didn't have time to finish it last week. We learned about science words and science methods. We need to finish our science questions if they are not finished. - Emily Belcik (201)
  
• Today in Ms. Reodica's Writing class, we did Mad Libs and our D.O.L. quiz. We learned about how to do Mad Libs, how they can have more than nouns, verbs and adjectives. We have no homework; just to study. - Mary Baxter (203)
• Today in Mr. Maynard's Writing class, we did Mad Libs. We did it because it was a fun activity for Literacy Week. We learned about independent and dependent clauses. We did a silly Mad Libs about a Monday morning in Mr. Maynard's classroom, which was fun. We have to finish the Mad Libs (if necessary) and bring in a riddle tomorrow.
  

Great job fifth graders!

Tomorrow's post will be written by Michael Bielski (Math), Nailani Deaton (Science), Josiah Benevides (Reading), Kenny Bischoff (Social Studies), Ariana Canela (Ms. Reodica's Writing) and Husam El Muhtaseb (Mr. Maynard's Writing).

by Mr. Maynard ([email protected])

and the end of Game Three of the Cubs-Giants at 1:40 a.m. With all that said, here's a quick snapshot of the week. 

• In Writing, students did a great job peer editing their classmates' first drafts of their personal narratives, providing "Praises, Questions, and Suggestions" (PQS) for all five sections. I look forward to reading these first drafts in the next week or so. On the grammar side of things, we continued doing our Daily D.O.L.s and started learning about the difference between independent and dependent clauses. 
• In Reading, we continued reading from Because of Mr. Terupt, finding examples of foreshadowing that previewed the bigger conflict later in the story, learning about flat vs. round characters, and examining the mood, or feeling, of the month of "December" in this novel. We also began our next unit on the Close Reading Signposts for Fiction, beginning with the first (and possibly my favorite) signpost: Contrasts and Contradictions (when a character acts opposite of what the reader would expect). We explored this signpost in Langston Hughes' brilliant short story "Thank You Ma'm," during which a young boy tries to rob an old woman who will tolerate no such behavior. We also reviewed our week five vocabulary words with a vocabulary word sort today. We will have our next vocabulary quiz on Tuesday and continue with the "Close Reading Signposts" next week.
• In Social Studies, we stayed up to date with the latest current events happening in the world, including Hurricane Matthew's devastating effects on Haiti and the southeastern United States, the second presidential debate, and chilly relations between the United States and Russia. More importantly, we continued our exploration of the U.S. election process, examining a bar graph about voting trends from 1984 to the current day and learning about the electoral college, or as Homer Simpson likes to call it, the electrical college. :-)