Fall is in the Air!
Hello, Cooper Family! As we move into the fall season, we are also falling into a routine here at The Cooper School! We have pushed past those first week jitters and are feeling comfortable with the school year and have adapted to the school year routines. With that being said, here are some quotes to help you stay motivated as we dive deeper into the different contents and challenges in the classroom:

“We can all dance when we find music that we love.”
“I think I can, I know I can.”
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
“Make each day your masterpiece.”
“No one is perfect – that’s why pencils have erasers.”

Let us take on the school year with positive energy and ready to take on challenges!

Here’s a look at what is happening in each of the classes:


What’s happening in Science?
Fifth Graders investigated landforms by using models this week. Using sand tables, they were able to visualize how rain creates canyons in mountains, leading to meandering streams, which can lead to deltas. They chemically weathered basalt, limestone, and marble using vinegar, then evaporated the solution to see what was deposited, witnessing sediment that was removed from bigger rocks. Fifth Graders also compared renewable and non-renewable resources, learning where fossil fuels come from and why they take thousands to millions of years to be made. They took a quiz at: https://www.footprintcalculator.org to see how large their carbon footprint is and considered ways they could improve their ecological impact.


What’s up in ELA?

This week in grammar, your Fifth Graders worked on identifying adjectives and who/which clauses. They also reviewed previous grammar skills concerning parts of speech, capitalization, and punctuation. In reading, they have reviewed textual evidence and interpretations of the text they have read. They have also completed their book project. Feedback on the book project will be sent home next Friday to be signed and returned.

What’s going on in Math?

Since the end of the first unit, the Fifth Graders have been learning about how to divide an object into equal pieces and equate that to division and fractions. (Fractions are just division, after all).
If 8 people are at a party and the cheap host only sprang for 3 sandwiches, how much would each person get? How would you represent that in a diagram? And would you ever go back there for a party if you’re only gonna get ⅜ of a sandwich? Division and fractions seem scary at first, and they tend to make students new to them pretty anxious. But we’re making some good analogies, and drawing pictures of what’s taking place is a good way to start taking the edge off. I think we all do better with division when we can make a picture of it in our mind. We’ll be moving into creating math expressions that describe scenarios taking place, and discover how fractions are another representation of division.

What’s happening in Social Studies?
This week the Fifth Grade was able to take a look into cultures as a whole and the different traditional religions that may come up as we begin to take a look into the different regions of the World. Students mastered the basic information about a religion then taught their peers! Be on the lookout during curriculum night for these masterpieces!

Next week the students are going to be looking at different governments and citizens’ roles in society. Students will then get the opportunity to put all of the information together in a studyguide to prepare for their assessment on Friday! This assessment will then allow us to begin looking into the different regions of the Western Hemisphere.

Important Dates:

September 21st: Middle School Curriculum Night (5:30-6:30)
September 29th: Parent Coffee (8:00am-8:45am)