Fifth Grade Curriculum Guide

The Catholic School is a unique faith-centered community, which integrates thinking and believing in ways that encourage intellectual growth, nurture faith, and inspire action.

The commitment to academic excellence, which fosters the intellectual development of all students, is an integral part of the mission of our school.

Religion

Your child will learn about:

  • The Seven Sacraments
  • The Liturgical Year
  • Parts of the liturgy
  • Study of scripture
  • Ways to pray
  • Family life

Writing

Your child will learn to:

  • Write in narrative, descriptive, expository, and persuasive forms
  • Utilize the six traits of writing: content, organization, word choice, fluency, conventions, and presentation
  • Use the writing process: prewrite, draft, edit, revise, an publish
  • Write coherent paragraphs using complete sentences
  • Apply correct capitalization and punctuation in writing

P.E.

Students are scheduled for two 45 minute P.E. classes each week.  Students will be required to change into P.E. clothes (health and hygiene purposes).  Students will be expected to participate at their current skill level, show growth in their skills, and show appropriate sportsmanship behavior in class.

Reading

Your child will learn to:

  • Read fluently using decoding skills, vocabulary development, and context clues
  • Participate in self-selected reading
  • Use strategies for comprehension such as:  identify purpose for reading,  infer main idea, theme, predict, develop a summary, determine cause/effect, analyze character, and setting, and interpret diagrams/charts in text
  • Read and respond to various literary genres (fiction, nonfiction, biography, poetry, etc.) for enrichment, recreation, and lifelong learning
  • Locate information using traditional and electronic text

Spelling

Your child will learn to:

  • Spell a list of words selected by the teacher which focuses on a new spelling pattern each week

Math

Your child will learn to:

  • Understand place value using decimals and commas
  • Multiply whole numbers up to four digits
  • Divide whole numbers by a two digit divisor, with or without a remainder
  • Add, subtract, multiply, and divide decimals
  • Determine factors and multiples of numbers
  • Identify equivalent fractions
  • Add and subtract fractions and mixed numbers
  • Understand basic geometry skills
  • Solve one variable expressions
  • Develop and interpret graphs, charts, and tables from data
  • Compute mean, median, and mode
  • Apply problem solving strategies to word problems and other applications

Science

Your child will:

  • Use the scientific method to solve problems
  • Identify the various stages in the life cycle of salmon
  • Explore space, ecosystems, and motion & design using inquiry based activities

Social Studies

Your child will learn to:

  • Understand the reasons for studying history and an awareness of how we learn from the past
  • Develop directional skills and mapping
  • Complete several informational state  reports
  • Develop an understanding of the causes of the Revolutionary War and the       government created as a result of the conflict
  • To become familiar with the early explorers of North America and their impact on the development of the United States

Activities

  • Field trips are planned for various curriculum enrichment activities including    science, social studies, and art
  • Attend a salmon bake at Tillicum Village near Seattle
  • Run the Junior Achievement Big Town
  • Raise and release salmon each spring in conjunction with field trips to view salmon spawning and a visit to a fish hatchery
  • Peace partners
  • Beginning Band/Strings
  • Kostka Club

Computer Technology

Your child will learn to:

  • Use a word processer
  • Give presentations to classmates using Power Point
  • Develop skills in the use of Internet for project research

Art

The elements and principles of art are integrated into the classroom curriculum through one hour of art instruction each week with our school;s art teacher.  Your child will create projects related to:

  • Landscape painting
  • Native American and colonial life
  • Graphic design

Your child will also study Van Gogh and the expressionist movement in art history.

Your child will learn skills involved in:

  • Color Analysis and theory
  • Art History
  • Coil Pottery
  • Watercolor
  • Papier maché sculpture
  • Tempera paint
  • Impasto technique with acrylic paint
  • Drawing and shading
  • Candlemaking
MUSIC

Students will participate in music 2 times a week for 40 minutes.  Students will review learned concepts, as well as, continue moderate folk, sacred and secular pieces to     explore:

  • Rhythm – meter/time signatures, dotted notes (syncopation),
  • Melody – sharp, flat, natural, chords,   major/minor
  • Form – 12 bar blues, unequal phrase lengths
  • Texture/expression – chord function I IV V, ensembles (recorders)

Students will also experiment with pitched and unpitched percussion.  Students will have the opportunity to continue band or strings.