I'd like to welcome you and your child to 5th grade at North Bay. I am looking forward to a great year. Please make sure that you initial your child's planner nightly and check to make sure homework is being completed and read any other notes that might be in there from school. If you have any questions, you can email me at rise.edwards@biloxischools.net or call me at 435-6166 ext. 236 and I will get back in touch with you as soon as possible. Let's work together to have a fantastic year!!!!!!!
Upcoming Events
Grading follows the policies of Biloxi Public
Schools.A mid-term progress report and
a report card following the end of each term are issued. The student’s current grades are available via
Internet IOD. (http://iiod.ssts.com/Home.asp?state=MS)
Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework due the
following day unless otherwise specified; assignments not accepted late
except for absence from school.
CourseRequirements: Final grade will be broken down as follows:60% tests, 35% activities, and 5% common
term assessment
Reteaching and Retesting:PROCEDURE WHEN A STUDENT FAILS A
TEST
A student who fails a test
will be offered an opportunity for re-teaching and retesting within 10 days
by the classroom teacher.In that
instance the teacher will send home a written notice.Communication will take place between the
teacher and the parent as to the re-teaching times and the date of the
retest.The student must attend the
re-teaching sessions to be eligible to retest.The higher grade of the two tests will be
placed in the grading program in the computer.
PROCEDURE WHEN A STUDENT
DOES NOT FAIL A TEST BUT THE PARENT/STUDENT WOULD LIKE TO REQUEST A RETEST
In accordance with our BPS
District Re-teach/Re-test policy, a parent and/or student may initiate a
request to the teacher for any test to be retaken (failing or not
failing).The parent should write a
note to the teacher, preferably in the student planner or a note attached to
the student planner requesting that the specific test be given again to the
student.The teacher will then notify
the parent of the re-teaching assignment to be completed AT HOME by the
student under the direction and assistance of the parent, the date the
assignment is due to the teacher, and the date of the retest.The assignment will be reviewed by the
teacher prior to administering the retest to the student.
Re-testing requests must be
made within 10 days of receiving the test grade.
Additional Comments: Instant recall of Multiplication
facts is essential to each child’s success in multiple step-problem solving. Students
should continue to review facts daily to ensure that they meet the national
standard for recall at 3 seconds per fact.
Language
Arts
Objectives:
3. The
student will express, communicate, evaluate, or exchange ideas effectively.
3a.
The student will use and reflect on an appropriate composing process (e.g.,
planning, drafting, revising, editing, publishing) to express, communicate,
evaluate, or exchange ideas with a focus on text of increasing complexity
and length. [Note: Editing will be tested as a part of competency four.] (DOK
3)
1) Planning
• Plan for composing using a variety of strategies
(e.g., brainstorming, drawing, graphic organizers, peer discussion,
reading, viewing).
2) Drafting
• Draft with increasing fluency.
3) Revising
• Revise selected drafts by adding, elaborating,
deleting, and rearranging text based on feedback on teacher/peer feedback,
writer’s checklist, or rubric.
4) Editing
• Edit/proofread drafts to ensure standard usage,
mechanics, spelling, and varied sentence structure.
5) Publishing/Sharing
• Share writing with others formally and informally
using a variety of media.
3b.
The student will compose descriptive texts using specific details and vivid
language. (DOK 3)
3c.
The student will compose narrative text relating an event with a clear
beginning, middle, and end using specific details. (DOK 3)
1) Stories or retellings
2) Narrative poems
3) PowerPoint presentations
4) Plays
5) Biographies or autobiographies
6) Video narratives
3d. The student will compose informational text clearly
expressing a main idea with supporting details, including but not limited
to the following: texts containing chronological order; procedural; cause
and effect; comparison and contrast; order of importance;
problem/solution. (DOK 3)
1) Reports
2) Letters
3) Functional texts
4) Presentations
5) Poems
6) Essays
3e. The student will compose simple persuasive text
clearly expressing a main idea with supporting details for a specific
purpose and audience. (DOK 3)
1) Letters
2) Speeches
3) Advertisements
3f. The student will compose text of a variety of
modes based on inquiry and research. (DOK 3)
4b.
The student will apply Standard English mechanics to compose or edit. (DOK
1)
1) End punctuation (e.g., period, question mark,
exclamation point)
2) Periods in common abbreviations (e.g., titles of
address, days of the week, months of the year)
3) Commas (e.g., dates, series, addresses, greetings
and closings of friendly letters, quotations, introductory prepositional
phrases, nonessential appositive phrases, and interrupters)
4) Apostrophes (possessives; contractions)
5) Semicolons (compound sentences)
6) Quotation marks (e.g., quotations, titles of poems,
titles of songs, titles of short stories, titles of chapters, titles of
magazine articles)
7) Underlining/Italics (titles of books and movies)
8) Colons (e.g., time, before lists introduced by
independent clauses, business letters)
9) Capitalization (e.g., first word in a sentence,
proper nouns, days of the week, months of the year, holidays, titles,
initials, the pronoun “I,” first word in greetings and closings of friendly
letters, proper adjectives)
10) Spell words commonly found in fifth grade level
text.
11) Produce legible text.
4c.
The student will apply knowledge of sentence structure in composing or
editing. (DOK 2)
1)
Analyze the structure of sentences (e.g., simple sentences including those
with compound subjects and/or compound predicates; compound
sentences including those with compound subjects and/or compound
predicates; and complex sentences, including independent and dependent
clauses).
2) Compose simple sentences with compound subjects and/or
compound predicates; compound sentences including those with compound
subjects and/or compound predicates; and complex sentences, including
independent and dependent clauses.
3) Avoid sentence fragments, run-on sentences, and comma
splices.
4) Analyze sentences containing descriptive adjectives,
adverbs, prepositional phrases (functioning as adjectives or adverbs), and
appositive phrases.
5) Compose sentences containing descriptive adjectives,
adverbs, prepositional phrases (functioning as adjectives or adverbs), and
appositive phrases.
Assessments: Sentence
checks, skills tests, term tests, writing assignments, and spelling tests.
Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework due the
following day unless otherwise specified; assignments not accepted late
except for absence from school.
CourseRequirements: Final grade will be broken down as follows:45% English, 35% Writing, 15% Spelling, and
5% Common Term Assessment
Reteaching and Retesting:Same as above
Reading
Objectives:
1. The student will use word
recognition and vocabulary (word meaning) skills to communicate.
a. The
student will apply knowledge of roots and affixes (e.g., non-, trans-,
over-, anti-, inter-, super-, semi-, –tion, -or, -ion, -ity, -ment,
-ic, -ian, -ist, -ous, -eous, -ious) in multi-syllabic words.
(DOK 2)
b. The
student will develop and apply expansive knowledge of words and word
meanings to communicate. (DOK 1)
c. The
student will identify and produce grade level appropriate synonyms,
antonyms, and homonyms. (DOK 2)
d. The
student will use definitional, synonym, antonym, or example clues to
infer the meanings of unfamiliar words. (DOK 2)
e. The
student will apply knowledge of simple figurative language (e.g., simile,
metaphor, personification, hyperbole, idiom) to determine the
meaning of text and to communicate. (DOK 2)
f. The
student will select the appropriate reference materials (e.g., dictionary,
glossary, teacher or peer [as a resource], thesaurus, electronic
dictionary) to understand or gain information from text regarding the
meaning, pronunciation, syllabication, synonyms, antonyms, and parts of
speech for words. [Note: These reference materials are not available
during the administration of state tests.] (DOK 1)
g. The
student will communicate using vocabulary that is appropriate for the
context, purpose, and situation (e.g., formal and informal language). (DOK
2)
2. The student will apply strategies and skills to comprehend,
respond to, interpret, or evaluate a variety of texts of increasing of
length, difficulty, and complexity.
2a. The student will apply knowledge of text features, parts
of a book, text structures, and genres to understand, interpret, or analyze
text. (DOK 2)
1) Text features - titles,
headings, captions, illustrations, graphs, charts, diagrams, bold-faced
print, italics, headings, subheadings, numberings, captions,
illustrations, graphs, diagrams, maps, icons, pull down menus, key word
searches, etc.
2) Parts of a book - title page,
table of contents, glossary, index, appendix, footnotes, etc.
3) Text structures - sequential
order, description, simple cause and effect, procedure, compare/contrast,
order and importance,
problem/solution
4) Genres – Fiction, nonfiction,
poetry,
2b. The student will analyze text to understand, infer, draw
conclusions, or synthesize information. (DOK 2)
1) Identify and infer the main
idea or topic in literary text, literary nonfiction, and informational text
of increasing length and difficulty, citing text-based evidence.
2) Apply knowledge of transitions
and cue words to identify and sequence events in narrative text including
text containing flashbacks and events not in time order.
3) Identify and infer cause and
effect in texts.
4) Synthesize information stated in
the text with prior knowledge and experience to draw valid conclusions
with supporting evidence including text-based evidence.
5) Predict a logical outcome based
upon information stated in a text and confirm or revise based upon
subsequent text.
2c. The student will recognize or generate a summary or
paraphrase of the events or ideas in literary text, literary nonfiction,
and informational text of increasing length and difficulty, citing text
based evidence. (DOK 2)
2d. The student will respond to or interpret increasingly
complex literary text, literary nonfiction, and informational text to
compare and contrast information, citing text-based evidence. (DOK 3)
1) Story elements (e.g., setting,
characters, character traits, plot, resolution, point of view)
2e. The student will identify and interpret facts,
opinions, or tools of persuasion
in texts. (DOK 2)
1) Distinguish between fact and
opinion.
2) Identify tools of persuasion
(e.g. name calling, endorsement, repetition, air and rebut the other side’s
point of view, association, stereotypes, bandwagon).
Assessments: Selection
tests, Fresh Read tests, and application of objectives.
Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework
due the following day unless otherwise specified; assignments not accepted
late except for absence from school.
CourseRequirements: Final grade will be broken down as follows:60% tests, 35% activities, and 5% common
term assessment
Reteaching and Retesting:Same as above
Science
Objectives:
1 Develop
and demonstrate an understanding of scientific inquiry using process skills.
a Form a hypothesis, predict outcomes, and
conduct a fair investigation that includes
manipulating variables and using
experimental controls.
b Distinguish between observations and
inferences.
c Use precise measurement in conjunction
with simple tools and technology to perform
tests and collect data.
c1 Tools (English rulers [to the nearest
one-sixteenth of an inch], metric rulers [to the nearest
millimeter],
thermometers, scales, hand lenses, microscopes, balances, clocks,
c2 Types of data (height, mass, volume,
temperature, length, time, distance, volume,
perimeter, area)
d Organize and interpret data in tables
and graphs to construct explanations and draw
conclusions.
e Use drawings, tables, graphs, and
written and oral language to describe objects and
explain ideas and actions.
f Make and compare different proposals
when designing a solution or product.
g Evaluate results of different data (whether
trivial or significant).
h Infer and describe alternate explanations
and predictions.
3 Predict
characteristics, structures, life cycles, environments, evolution, and
diversity of organisms.
a2 Adaptations that increase an organism’s
chances to survive and reproduce in a particular
habitat (e.g., cacti needles/leaves,
fur/scales)
a3 Evidence of fossils as indicators of
how life and environmental conditions have changed
b2 Function of the major parts of body
systems (nervous, circulatory, respiratory, digestive,
skeletal, muscular) and the ways they
support one another
c Research and cite evidence of the work
of scientists (e.g., Pasteur, Fleming, Salk) as it
contributed to the discovery and
prevention of disease.
e Give examples of how consumers and
producers (carnivores, herbivores, omnivores, and
decomposers)
are related in food chains and food webs.
Assessments: Chapter
tests, labs, quizzes, and projects.
Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework due the
following day unless otherwise specified; assignments not accepted late
except for absence from school.
CourseRequirements: Final grade will be broken down as follows:60% Tests and 40% Activities
Reteaching and Retesting:Same as above
Additional Comments: A Mississippi Science State Assessment will be given
May 1st.
Social
Studies
Objectives:
2.Discover how democratic values were
established and have been exemplified by people, events, and symbols. (C, H)
a. Determine how democratic
principles developed (e.g., women’s suffrage, civil rights, etc.).
c. Research/analyze how
democratic events and symbols have evolved (e.g., flag, voting,
inaugurations, etc.).
3.Analyze spatial and ecological
relationships between people, places, and environments utilizing social
studies tools (e.g., timelines, mental
and physical maps, globes, resources, graphs, a compass rose,
political cartoons, charts, primary and
secondary sources, technology, and other geographical
representations). (C, H, G, E)
j.Identify continents and place the United States
appropriately.
k. Using social studies tools,
identify and compare the characteristics of the five regions of the
United States (e.g., soil,
landforms, vegetation, wildlife, climate, etc.).
5.Analyze the ideals, principles, and
practices of citizenship in a democratic society. (C, H)
a.Explain the meaning of American citizenship (e.g., change in
definition of citizen over time, the
process of becoming a
citizen, etc.).
Assessments: Participation, chapter tests, and
fresh reads.
Homework/Assignments/Projects: Homework due the
following day unless otherwise specified; assignments not accepted late
except for absence from school.
Course Requirements: Final grade will
be broken down as follows:60% Tests
and 40% Activities
Reteaching and Retesting:Same
as above.
Qualifications
I received my bachelor's degree in Elementary Education (K-8) from the University of Southern Mississippi. This is my fifteenth year of teaching. I have been at North Bay Elementary for eleven years and was at Howard II Elementary four years prior.
