Our goal is to help each child reach their full potential. Fifth grade teachers are committed to challenging all students to connect background knowledge and new knowledge to applications in their daily lives.  We believe that what we teach matters, and we strive to instill in our students a sense of responsibility to use their knowledge to make their lives and our communities better.  We hope to instill in each child a love for learning and skills that will help them beyond fifth grade as we prepare each child for middle school.  We want you to be assured that we will do our best to make this a great year full of challenges and rewards that your child will be proud of.  We look forward to your support and involvement in helping to make this year a memorable one.

In fifth grade, students are expected to develop more independence and to develop a responsibility for their own learning and work.  Students are required to know about and keep up with their assignments, homework, and upcoming tests.  They are given planners to help them with this.  Students must copy assignments, homework, and upcoming tests into their planner as directed by their teacher.

In most subjects, students will create an interactive notebook.  Students should use the interactive notebooks to help them with assignments, homework and when preparing for tests.  These notebooks can and should be brought home regularly but must be brought back to school daily as we use and add to them during the school day.      

We make every effort to prepare every student to be problem solvers, to demonstrate more responsibility, to work independently, to follow directions the first time they are given, to be great listeners and speakers, to be resilient when facing minor setbacks, and to be goal setters and achievers! 

Fifth grade is a wonderful year filled with achievements and milestones.  We strive to equip every child with skills that prepare them for a successful future.

A summary of what each subject teaches is below:

In Language Arts this year, students will begin to think of themselves as writers. Students are expected to communicate their thinking and ideas both written and orally.  Students will learn to build good solid sentences and develop more complex sentence structures.  Students will build on previously learned skills along with learning to use punctuation and grammar correctly.  Students will also improve handwriting including letter formation and neatness. 

In Reading, fifth graders will comprehend at levels that allow them to interact and critically analyze text through connections, discussions, and questioning.  Students will read and understand a variety of genres. Students will also write about their thinking while reading.  Students will also develop and use research skills.

In Science this year, students will understand science vocabulary.  Our teachers will prepare fun interactive experiments and hands on labs for the students.   Students will also understand the science behind the activities we do and make connections between science concepts and real-life situations. 

In Math, fifth graders will learn basic multiplication facts which is fundamental to nearly every math skill learned this year.  Students will gain an understanding of whole numbers, decimals, and fractions and solve problems that will require them to add, subtract, multiply and divide.  In our geometry unit, students will identify the key attributes of two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional figures.  They will also describe key attributes of a coordinate plane.  Students will begin to develop algebraic reasoning and will solve problems following the order of operations, solve equations with variables, as well as identifying numerical patterns.  Students will analyze and interpret a variety of graphs.  Students will also learn skills that will help them with their personal finances throughout their lifetime.  Throughout all these units, students will learn and use strategies for understanding and solving word problems in everyday life situations.

In Social Studies, fifth graders will learn about U.S. Geography, the Colonization of North America, the Creation of the U.S., Building the Government of the U.S., Expanding the U.S., A Divided U.S. (this section includes learning about Fort Bend County following the Reconstruction), Growth and Changes in the U.S., and Challenges at Home and Abroad for the U.S.