Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Incoming 5th Grade Required Summer Reading


REQUIRED
5th GRADE SUMMER READING:

Welcome to Fifth Grade! To get ready for an super awesome year, you will be required to read TWO books during the summer. Please select at least ONE book from the following list to read and the SECOND book can be either from this list as well, or one from your own choosing. Books can be borrowed from the Burlington Public Library either by visiting them in person or online. http://burlington.mvlc.org

In the fall, you will be completing an assignment that will involve your summer reading. You are REQUIRED to fill out the provided notes sheet as you read. This will help you keep track of important characters, sequence and events. Plus, you WILL be allowed to use your handwritten notes on the assignment.

We have listed five choices that we think you will enjoy. Three are based on Fairy Tales, One is written as a Fantasy and the last is Realistic Fiction about friendship. Each of the five books are part of the Massachusetts Children's Book Award nominee list. Please talk to your parents about your book selections if you chose a second book other than these listed below, look at online reviews to check their appropriate theme and level.

Have A Great Summer!


The Fifth Grade Teachers
Fortunately, the Milk 3-6 (680L)
A little boy and his little sister awake one morning, milkless. Their mother is away on business, their father is buried in the paper, and their Toastios are dry. What are young siblings to do? They impress upon their father that his tea is also without milk and sit back to watch their plan take effect. But something goes amiss, and their father doesn’t return and doesn’t return some more. When he does, finally, he has a story to tell, a story involving aliens; pirates; ponies; wumpires (not the handsome, brooding kind); and a stegosaurus professor who pilots a Floaty-Ball-Person-Carrier (which looks suspiciously like a hot-air balloon). There is time travel, treachery, and ample adventure, and, fortunately, the milk he has procured is rescued at every turn. Grades 3-6. --Thom Barthelmess

Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin 4-8 (660L)
Twelve-year-old Rump lives with his grandmother in a mountain village where he endures endless teasing about his name. When he discovers that he can spin straw into gold, he hopes to end their poverty and hunger. Unfortunately, the troublesome magic forces him to accept anything offered in trade for the gold: a sack of flour, a cheap ring, or a queen’s first born child. Rump leaves home to discover his true name. While on his quest, he finds the knowledge, insight, and courage he needs to understand his gift and claim his destiny. Grades 3-6. --Carolyn Phelan


The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell 4-6 (720L)
Gr 4-6-When Alex and Conner's father unexpectedly dies, the twins lose the person who always had the perfect story to cheer them up. Then, on their 12th birthday, their grandmother gives them the book of fairy tales he used to read to them. Suddenly it seems to come to life, and the youngsters find themselves falling into the Land of Stories, seemingly with no way to get out. Desperate, they follow instructions in a mysterious journal: if they gather eight items from various residents in the kingdoms of the Land of Stories, they can complete the Wishing Spell and have one wish granted. After scaling castle walls, diving deep into the home of mermaids, and meeting characters from all of the beloved fairy tales, they are stymied by the Evil Queen, who has escaped from Snow White's dungeon. With the hope of using the spell gone, the twins appear to have no way home until they meet Fairy Godmother, their own grandmother. In a way, they find comfort from their grief over their father's death when they realize that they have been following his journal and that he grew up in this land.
Clare A. Dombrowski, Amesbury Public Library, MA

Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy 4-6 (660L)
Ophelia is a grieving 11-year-old who only believes in things that science can explain. Following her beloved mother’s death, her father takes a job at an enormous museum in a city where it constantly snows. There Ophelia discovers the imprisoned Marvelous Boy, who discloses to her that in three days the Snow Queen will discharge her wretchedness upon mankind. He further reveals that he must save the world before that happens and that only Ophelia can help him. As the boy tells his story, Ophelia accepts the challenges required to release him from his three-hundred-year captivity. She faces magical snow leopards, child ghosts, a Spanish conquistador, and a monstrous misery bird—none of which, like the boy, can be scientifically explained. Nevertheless, Ophelia learns there are truths she never dreamed of and that courage is less about bravery than about the decision to help people in need. Loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen, this clever story-within-a-story reads easily yet offers deep lessons about trust, responsibility, and friendship. Grades 4-6. --Jeanne Fredriksen

The Nearly Calamitous Taming of PZ: A laboratory dog’s search for love 5-7
A mute, nameless foxhound has spent her life in a laboratory cage. She has never seen the sun. When she gets rescued, Dottie, a diva ladybug with a heart as big as her hat, helps the dog understand the world and find a home with Olivia, a restless, solitary girl seeking comfort that her new pet cannot supply.
The isolated dog and the hesitant girl must face their fear of connecting. They learn to tame each other, let go, survive adventures, and find the courage to trust as they search for their place in the sun.

Use the link below to print out your Summer Reading Notes Sheet

Summer Reading Notes Sheet








Friday, June 19, 2015

Memorial Elementary's InvestWrite Competition Winners

Today, the winners of the InvestWrite essay competition for Memorial Elementary were announced.
These students below had to write an essay with no more than 700 words to answer the following question.
A panel of industry experts as well as Mrs. Burns judged the essays based on three criteria: knowledge of the stock market, rationale- well thought out- and writing style. Congrats to the winners  Katie, Paul and Kyle below!

Essay Question:  Imagine good savers or investors are being threatened by an evil force that wants them to spend and squander their money. Create a superhero to protect them against this threat. What would your superhero be called and what powers would your superhero have?



Kakooma Champions

Today Mrs. Burns Math Class had a Kakooma-OFF to compete using the math app-Kakooma Multiplication to see who had the fastest time. The final two are shown below. Great job!


Math Olympiad Awards

Fourth and Fifth Graders received Math Olympiad Awards today for their competitions this year. Congrats to this talented group of math whizzes! Thanks for a great year!

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Kakooma Champions


Today Mrs. Burns Math Class had a Kakooma-OFF to compete using the math app-Kakooma Addition to see who had the fastest time. The final two were competing at an expert level. Great job!

Sunday, June 14, 2015

Spirit Week

Memorial School’s
Spirit Week!
June 15-19, 2015

Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Hat Day


Make a wacky hat or wear your favorite!
Sports Day


Have a favorite sports team or play on a team? Wear your favorite!
Wacky Wednesday

Wear your pj’s, clothes backwards, mismatched clothes, and/0r crazy hair
Neon Day


Show off with your neon colors!
Memorial
School Spirit Day

Wear Red, white or blue or your Memorial Gear!

    *Please note, this is not a contest - It is just for fun!

Monday, June 8, 2015

Cedardale Tomorrow


Image result for rain clip art

There will be some rain tomorrow- please prepare.

Please remember to bring:

-WEAR ORANGE SHIRT to school tomorrow
-Towel (maybe 2 - in case one gets wet)
-Change of dry clothing
-Sneakers and appropriate footwear for the pool
-Sunblock (please apply at home)
-Tennis racket/balls (optional)
-Whiffle balls/plastic bats (optional)
-Money for munches/snacks packed lunch not glass!!
-Deck of cards/small games to play in shade for down time (optional)

***Please label EVERYTHING.

DO NOT....bring- Cell phones, iPods, iPads, any hand held video games.

Friday, June 5, 2015

Great Job 232 Fireballs on Your Blizzard Bags



The 232 Fireballs in Mrs. Burns Class did a GREAT job in completing their Blizzard Bag Assignments. Fourteen out of Fifteen students completed their Blizzard Bag Assignments.
We had videos and writing about field trips, science inventions, social studies public service announcements, and a lot of great shape tessellations. The fireballs celebrated their achievement today with a Certificate of Completion. Great Job Fireballs!






Thursday, June 4, 2015

Long Division Song

Mrs. Burns' Math Class wrote and performed a song to help other students remember the steps to long division! Click the link below to watch: