Hi there! Just wanted to ask if any 5th grade teachers would be so kind to share with me how you decorate your room as far as bulletin boards, themes, etc. Do you have jobs? Do you do monthly “star students” or anything like that? I’m moving from 3rd to 5th and want to be sure my “decor” is age appropriate and not too babyish! Thanks!
When I taught 5th, I decorated with an American history decor, kind of Americana. Yes, I had a jobs chart and I did a daily extensive calendar (Math Counts).
To be honest, I’ve been so busy getting my stuff moved and my new room set up, I haven’t tackled any planning just yet! I plan to do that over the weekend. I will only be teaching ILA and social studies. The other teacher is doing the rest. I have to look at the books to see what’s covered. I am trying to figure out how to incorporate a few novels to maybe read as a class. I’m also trying to figure out WHAT to do with the stories in our text. I used to introduce each one, connect it with other subjects if possible, then have groups make lists of clues and wonderings to have them practice inferencing, etc, read the story and then refer back to the list. Finally, they’d answer comprehension questions and write a personal response. Of course each one ended with a test. I’m thinking to follow a similar approach but make it more age appropriate. How about you? Any input from anyone else would be most appreciated!
I combined the short stories with novels, also. I also added in a unit on WWII and took a lot of time on the conditions in the U.S. as well as Europe at that time. We read Number the Stars and Lily's Crossing (set in the U.S. during the war) and studied them extensively. I expanded on the era of civil rights, too, and included lots of poetry and photography. The kids were shocked, of course, that this was the reality of the country they grew up in. They were also shocked to hear that the draft was ever in use here. Oh, the innocence of fifth graders ..... You are so lucky to be teaching those two subjects. Enjoy them.
That sounds awesome, Daisy! I’ll have to see what stories are in our readers and do something similar as far as novels. What you did would be something great for me Bc you integrated social studies too. So cool! It’s a little daunting Bc it’s an older grade level and I was never crazy about teaching ILA (I’m more of a math person) but as time approaches, I’m getting excited!
I loved combining the two subjects. And I preferred math to social studies, myself, though I've always loved teaching language arts. Fifth grade is the first year that the kids really can appreciate many topics in social studies, in my opinion, so I enjoyed that. My program really didn't feature enough geography or map skills, so I added them in, too. Luckily, I had a lot of leeway in planning. If you have any questions along the way, feel free to ask.
Thanks so much, Daisy! I will do that! Yes- I’m excited about that aspect...that they’re older and will “get” things on a different level and their amount of interest will be different as well. Luckily I have a lot of flexibility too so I’m looking to incorporate a lot of different things. I truly am looking forward to the year with them! Thanks again!