5th

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Weekly Recap:

Language Arts

• Completed our independent reading books and submitted our book reports
• Putting the finishing touches on our Promotion speeches  (Let it be a total surprise. Please don’t edit or preread your child’s speech! Bring tissues).

Math: 

• Learned about angles and how to create and measure them with a protractor 
• Discussed various polygons and their traits 

History

• Civil War Unit Test on Wednesday, May 14
• Students have been given a study guide that they need to have completed by Monday 
• Major emphasis on learning how to use their notes and resources to succinctly summarize historical events, and learning how to ask questions to study facts on their own or with peers 

Art: 

Our 5th graders are back at the pottery wheel, continuing to build their skills with clay. They’re focusing on technique, patience, and getting a feel for the process as they refine their work from last year.

Drama:

In drama, our students are working with Mr. Alex to prepare their promotion speeches, focusing on clear delivery and confident presence. They’re learning how public speaking differs from acting—shifting from performing a character to speaking as themselves with purpose and poise.

Our Internships were back in action on Friday afternoon. Our students were hard at work all over campus completing various chores for our faculty, staff, and students.

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Weekly Recap: 

A big thank you to the amazing students from West Liberty University’s Zoo Science program! On Monday, they set up six interactive stations for our 1st–5th graders in celebration of Earth Day. Our students learned all about pollution, seed planting, taking care of the earth, and more! We even planted some flowers this week to keep the Earth Day spirit growing. We’re so grateful for the time and energy the WLU students shared with us!

Language Arts:

• Finished our poetry notebooks and turned in for a grade
• Began our 5th grade promotion speeches!  (Let it be a total surprise. Don’t edit or pre read your child’s speech! Bring tissues).

Math:

• Finished our unit on Customary Measurement Conversions 
• Took a test on the subject on Thursday
• Beginning Geometry unit!

Weather Balloon:

Our PR team is continuing with interviews of classmates to soon be published to YouTube. Some of our groups have been preparing for their ‘day of’ activities to present to the rest of the student body. We’ve also been working on preparing the cameras, GPS’, and payload. We are only a few weeks away from launch and are getting more excited as the days go on! 

Social Studies:

This week, students explored two pivotal moments in American history—the Emancipation Proclamation and the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Through discussions and readings, students examined the significance of Lincoln’s actions and how they shaped the course of the Civil War and the future of the nation. Looking ahead, students will receive their Civil War Unit study guides next week to begin preparing for their test on Wednesday, May 14th. They are encouraged to compile their study guides using class handouts, notes, and completed homework assignments to ensure they’re fully prepared. We will be learning how to create study guides and notecards to enhance their study skills before Middle School.

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Please enjoy the video of our Poetry Slam! 

Weekly Recap: 

Language Arts:

• Poetry Slam was a huge success! 
• Began our final novel. Students got to choose from several sets of great class novels to read in small groups. See the reading calendar in their yellow folder for nightly reading assignments

Math: 

• Learning about units of capacity
• Converting various units of capacity
• Continuing to work on the construction of our 3D buildings to complete our areas of Wheeling

Weather Balloon: 

• Teams are working to gather donations and sponsorships for the JoJo XI 
• Tracking weather patterns and atmospheric details as we approach a new month 
• Building and installing the cameras and GPS trackers that will be sent with our balloon 

A huge thank you to Madame MacAteer for coordinating this year’s amazing International Day and helping to bring the world to our students! With presentations from twelve different countries—including Chile, Thailand, Italy, India, Croatia, and more—our students had a wonderful opportunity to learn about cultures from around the globe. We are so grateful for her hard work in organizing this enriching experience!

Prior to our Poetry Slam on Friday, we had the pleasure of welcoming five students from Linsly, who graciously shared their own Declamation poems with our class. Their performances were inspiring, and afterward, they spent time working in small groups with our fifth graders, offering guidance on inflection, pacing, and building confidence with public speaking. It was a meaningful and collaborative experience that helped our students grow as performers. We are so grateful to the Linsly students for joining us—it truly added something special to the day and made it even more memorable for everyone involved.

On Tuesday, our fifth graders took a field trip to Downtown Wheeling to visit West Virginia Independence Hall, the historic site that once served as the capital of our state. This trip perfectly aligned with our current unit on the Civil War and gave students a firsthand look at an important piece of our local and national history. We were especially excited to be welcomed by Harrison Gamble, an 8th grader from our school, who is completing his internship at the Hall. Harrison helped coordinate an engaging tour and even led a Civil War trivia game that our students absolutely loved. It was a fun and educational day full of connection, history, and local pride!

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Upcoming Dates:

On Tuesday, our class will be making a trip to Downtown Wheeling to visit Independence Hall. Our WCDS 8th grader, Harrison Gamble, is doing his internship there and has planned a tour, trivia, and lunch to enhance our unit on the Civil War. It is a delayed start day, but we will be transporting the students by van after 10:00 am drop off. Students may pack a lunch or one will be provided at Independence Hall. We will return to main campus for our afternoon classes. Pick up will be as normal. 

On Thursday, April 24, we will be hosting a POETRY SLAM COFFEE HOUSE in the community room from 2:00-3:00. All 5th graders will be reciting and presenting their original poems. We invite you and your family to come and listen to their work. 

Shout out to our entire class for spending various parts of their week stuffing and counting eggs for our school-wide Spring Egg Hunt! On Thursday, we spent the morning assisting our younger students, speaking to their classes, and working together to effectively coordinate four separate egg hunts, and we are so proud of their leadership and work ethic during this whole experience. 

Weekly Recap: 

Language Arts:

• Continuing our poetry unit by exploring poetry with feelings and deep meaning
• Reading, writing, and listening to poems
• Finalizing our poetry notebook for a grade 

Math: 

• Continued working on our blueprints and began the construction of our 3D buildings 
• Practicing using formulas to find the dimensions of various shapes for the buildings

Weather Balloon: 

• Teams are working to gather donations and sponsorships for the JoJo XI 
• Tracking weather patterns and atmospheric details as we approach a new month 
• Building and installing the cameras and GPS trackers that will be sent with our balloon 

Social Studies: 

• Read primary sources to learn more about different people’s perspectives and experiences regarding the Civil War
• Discussed the timeline of significant events and battles of the war, and the casualties on both sides 

Farewell, Miss Lindsey! Thursday was the last day for our student teacher, who has been with us for the whole school year. We loved getting to know her and guiding her through her teaching experience. Our students loved getting to know her, and we wish her the best of luck in grad school and her final year of college basketball!

Have a wonderful Spring Long Weekend!

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Check out the link above (and your email from Brittney Taylor) for details on Student Appreciation Week next week!  

April 17th, Thursday, is our last day with Miss Lindsey, our student teacher! We are encouraging students to write her a letter, note, or something to show their appreciation and wish her well on her teaching career in the future!

Our fifth-grade class is hosting the school-wide Spring Egg Hunt on April 17th. We have countless actual plastic eggs from years of hosting this event, but we are asking the whole school to provide us with donations of items to stuff in the eggs. If you would be willing, we ask that you send in any small toys, trinkets, stickers, or candy by Monday, April 14th. 

Weekly Recap:

Language Arts: 

• Continuing our poetry unit by exploring “Slam Poetry” style
• Reading, writing, and listening to poems
• Working on a final “Poetry Slam” performance!  Stay tuned for dates and details. 

Math: 

• Calculating the surface area and volume of a 3-D shape using algebraic formulas 
• Finishing the blueprint of our 3-D village and about to begin construction in Art class 

Social Studies:

• Evaluated primary sources from the 1860’s and learned to translate them into modern-day language
• Researching key people in the Civil War and taking notes to learn about their lives and accomplishments

Weather Balloon: 

• “Why do we have to wear gloves to touch the balloon?” This curious question sparked a science lesson on the natural oils on our hands. A model using an orange rind to pop a balloon definitely grabbed everyone’s attention!
• Student groups have been hard at work. Our PR team captured progress from each group, which will be featured in an upcoming video update.

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Important Dates:

• April 7th – Music Field Trip During the Day – In School Uniform 
• April 11 – Spring Campus Clean Up – Parent Volunteers Wanted
• April 17th – 11:30 Dismissal and Spring Long Weekend
  • Also Spring Egg Hunt – Donations Needed – Details Below 
  • Ms. Lindsey’s last day! (Our student teacher).
• April 22nd – Back to School – 10:00 Start 

Our fifth-grade class is hosting the school-wide Spring Egg Hunt on April 17th. We have countless actual plastic eggs from years and years of hosting this event, but we are asking the whole school to provide us with donations of items to stuff in the eggs. If you would be willing, we ask that you send in any small toys, trinkets, stickers, or candy by Monday, April 14th. 

Towngate Theater came to WCDS on Thursday to perform their rendition of Aesop’s Fables for the student body. Allison, Isabelle, Preston, and Caleb were selected to help the actors in the show. Great job, kiddos! 

Weekly Recap:

Language Arts: 

• Continuing our poetry unit by exploring different styles of poetry
• Reading and listening to the work of various poets 
• Putting the final drafts into our Poetry Books

Math: 

• Continuing our study of 3-dimensional shapes and how to view and identify the parts and angles
• Finalizing our blueprints to prepare for the construction of our buildings that we will handbuild in Art class over the coming weeks as we get really hands-on in our learning about measurements, volume, and surface area of 3D objects. 

Social Studies: 

• We’re continuing to practice and review our states, capitals, and abbreviations to help us in understanding and referencing historical documents 
• Continuing with our study of the Civil War and wrote compare and contrast paragraphs about the Union and the Confederacy

Weather Balloon: 

• Group assignments were launched, and each team set up a Google Doc to track their learning and progress. 
• The weather team shared their first task of researching the Jet Stream with the class, and PR was busy drafting a letter to potential sponsors. 
• We further explored the layers of the atmosphere, continuing to make connections between air temperature, altitude, and their impact on air pressure. 

Drama: 

The premier is here! Our fifth-grade class wrote a song and performed in a music video all about their favorite place – Wheeling Country Day School! Clipped together and edited by Mr. Alex, it is an absolute joy to see. You can watch it here, and you also will see it in this week’s Good News! We hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it 😃

Photos from the Week

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For an upcoming hands-on math project, we are looking for donations of tape! If you are willing to donate any rolls of primarily masking tape or scotch tape, we would greatly appreciate it! 

Weekly Recap:

Language Arts:

• Continuing our class novel and preparing our speeches for our upcoming mock “board meeting” where students will practice public speaking and plead their case to the class 
• Beginning to explore various forms of poetry and ways to use it to invoke emotion 
• Students are building their own poetry books – we can’t wait for you to see and hear them!

Math:

• Learned how to convert customary units of measurements 
• Embarked on a real-life scavenger hunt of measuring and adding various lengths 
• Beginning to explore area, perimeter, and circumference 
• Looking for donations for tape! If you are willing to send in any scotch tape or masking tape, we would greatly appreciate it! 

Social Studies:

We continued exploring the events leading up to the Civil War, including the Compromise of 1850, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, the Dred Scott decision, Bleeding Kansas, and John Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry. Students have been actively engaged in discussions, reading newspaper articles in groups, and taking turns summarizing key events to their classmates. Through these activities, they’ve been making connections between these pivotal moments and the growing tensions between the North and South. As we near the end of fifth grade and prepare for middle school, you will begin to see social studies homework start to come home in the evenings with tests and quizzes to come in the future. 

Weather Balloon: 

We kicked off the Weather Balloon project this week! This special 5th-grade tradition holds great significance for our school, as we honor Josiah, a beloved WCDS 5th grader who tragically passed away 11 years ago. In his memory, “JoJo XI” will be launched. 

Students eagerly submitted paragraphs explaining their team preferences, and with over 80% applying for the same team, selecting final placements was a challenge. After careful consideration, teams were announced for Launch, Recovery, Research & Design, Weather, Public Relations, and Safety. We look forward to an exciting and meaningful journey ahead!

Music & Drama:

Our fifth graders have been hard at work writing their own original song and are now in the process of filming their very own music video! They also created homemade musical instruments and had the opportunity to showcase their ideas to the fourth graders. It’s amazing to see their passion for music and creativity shine!

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Our 4th and 5th grade classes are planning a musical field trip to see the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra as they host the annual Young People’s Concert, held at Wheeling Park High School on April 7th, 9:30-10:30 am. We are excited for the students to experience hearing and seeing these musicians from our community make music! We will depart WCDS at 9:10 am and return before lunch. 

Weekly Recap

Language Arts:

• Begun our new book “Because of Mr. Terupt” 
• Students will have chapters to read and worksheets for homework over the next few weeks
• Worked on our descriptive writing skills as we wrote about our Spring Breaks!

Math: 

• Finished our fraction unit with a quiz on multiplying fractions 
• Moving on to measurements and conversions next week 

Lego Robotics:

This week marked the exciting finale of our Lego Robotics class with the much-anticipated championship! After a trimester of learning about computer programming, problem-solving, and teamwork, students put their robots to the test in a thrilling competition. The championship was nerve-racking and exciting, with everyone holding their breath as the robots navigated challenges and completed tasks. No matter the outcome, each student walked away with new skills, great memories, and a deeper understanding of how coding and robotics work. A huge thank you to Mr. McDonald and Mr. Burke for their help, teaching, judging, and expertise throughout the year—we couldn’t have done it without them! It was an amazing experience, and we’re so proud of all the creativity and hard work that went into this trimester’s robotics adventures. The winning team was the 5 Star Legos which consisted of Julian, Bo, Parker, and Caleb. Congrats, boys! Next up, Weather Balloon! 

Social Studies:

This week in history, we kicked off our Civil War unit by exploring what life was like in the mid-1800s. We talked about how the North and South were different—one was more focused on industry and factories, while the other relied on farming, especially cotton, and slavery. To help understand these differences, students watched videos, read picture books, and even got hands-on by locating and researching an assigned state on a map and figuring out whether it was part of the North or South. This has been a great introduction to the big themes we’ll be digging into next trimester as we learn more about the Civil War and its impact on our country.

Drama and Music:

Students have been working on a few projects in the music and theater world they are excited about! With Miss Dena, students have been creating their own instruments and will be showing them off with the other grades who also invented their own instruments. With Mr. Alex in drama, students have worked to write and produce their own song that they will be performing soon! 

Internships:

We have begun our fifth-grade Internships! Every Friday from 12:45 to 1:30, students report to their assigned job location and work to provide service to the school and our staff. They are placed in various parts of the school, including grade-level classrooms, building and grounds, security, main office, and specials classes. The students are so excited to begin this process and we can’t wait to see what valuable lessons they learn along the way.