In fifth grade, you will investigate the five main uses for art – religious/ceremonial, functional, documentary/realism, ornamental, and expressive. You will also focus on drawing by working in a sketchbook throughout the year.

Reading Comprehension: The core resource for comprehension instruction is Units of Study for Teaching Reading Grade 5.

The Making Meaning units of study in 5th Grade include:

• Interpretation Book Clubs: Analyzing Themes
• Tackling Complexity: Moving up Levels of Nonfiction
• Fantasy Book Clubs: The Magic of Themes and Symbols

Guided Reading and Small Group Instruction: The purpose of guided reading is for students to have time to read and apply strategies and skills that were demonstrated by the teacher during read aloud and shared reading instruction. 
 

Writing: Written language instruction is based on Units of Study in Opinion, Information, and Narrative Writing, Grade 5. 

Units of study in 5th Grade include:

• Writing Informational Essays
• Narrative Craft
• Lens of History: Research Reports
• Argument Essays (Text Dependent Analysis Essays)
• Shaping Texts: From Essay and Narrative to Memoir

Word Study: Instruction of spelling patterns and word part meanings is based on Words Their Way.

Numbers and Operations

• multiplying and dividing by powers of ten
• multiplying and dividing large whole numbers in columns
• rectangular arrays
• add and subtract fractions with unlike denominators
• multiply fractions by fractions and / or whole numbers
• divide fractions by whole numbers
• reading, writing and comparing decimals
• add, subtract, multiply and divide decimals
• use of parentheses in expressions
• word problems involving fractions and decimals
• exponents and powers of ten
• Analyze patterns and relationships using two rules

Geometry

• rectangular prisms
• volumes of 3 dimensional shapes 
• Graph first quadrant of coordinate planes
• categorizing 2D shapes by various attributes

Measurement

• convert measurements between different types of units (metric and customary)
• multi-step word problems in measurement

Data Analysis

• create line plots to display data
• solve real world word problems by referring to line plots

Band

The Rose Tree Media school band program begins in the fourth grade and continues through high school. Elementary band instruments that are offered include flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, baritone, French horn and percussion.

Lessons occur approximately once every six school days. Young instrumentalists learn how to read musical notation and produce the indicated sounds on their respective instruments. They perform alone and in groups. Musical objectives are aligned with Pennsylvania Core Standards for the Arts.

The bands perform concerts as a large ensemble in addition to their regularly scheduled lessons. Fifth grade musicians practice with students from other schools to prepare for winter and spring-time concerts.

Participation in the band program is optional and fun! Students will get a taste of the opportunities available for them to join in the middle school and high school jazz, concert and marching bands.

Strings (Orchestra)

In the Rose Tree Media School District, students in grades 4 through 12 are eligible and encouraged to participate in the Elementary and Secondary Strings program.  Thousands of students have enrolled in the Strings Program over the last 30+ years.

Instrumentation includes violins, violas, cellos, and double basses. Strings instruction in the program includes small group lessons, small ensemble rehearsals, large ensemble rehearsals, and the ability to audition for the select groups at the secondary level.

Students perform in the concerts and events held throughout the year which are open to their families, peers and the community. The strings program offers students the opportunity to gain a sense of accomplishment and connection to their school and community.

Elementary general music curriculum in Rose Tree Media begins in first grade and aligns with the Pennsylvania Core Standards for the Arts.  As the students progress in their musicianship, they are given opportunities to create, perform, and respond to music of a variety of styles, genres, and cultures.  Students are introduced to music through singing, dancing, playing classroom instruments with a focus on music literacy and ear training.   

In fourth and fifth grade, students are given more opportunities to join various performance ensembles.

The Nature of Science:

• Make predictions about the outcome of a controlled experiment
• Make predictions based on patterns in natural systems (For example: weather, phases of the moon)

Biological Sciences:

• Compare and contrast the different parts of a cell
• Differentiate between inherited and acquired traits
• Identify changes in the environment that affect the survival of plants and animals
• Compare and contrast renewable and nonrenewable resources
• Identify relationships among living things in an ecosystem

Physical Sciences:

• Compare and contrast chemical and physical changes
• Describe observable characteristics of matter
• Determine how energy is transferred from one form to another
• Identify characteristics of electrical current and magnets

Earth and Space Sciences:

• Identify geological processes (for example: erosion, earthquakes, etc.)
• Differentiate between weather and climate
• Identify characteristics of the planets, sun, and moon

Topics of study include:

The Land and People Before Columbus

• Geography of the United States
• American Indians and Their Land
• American Indian Cultural Regions 
• How and Why Europeans Came to the New World
• Routes of Exploration to the New World 
• Early English Settlements
• Comparing the Colonies
• Slavery in the Americas
• Life in Colonial Williamsburg