5th Grade Newsletter

5th Grade News to Know

🚫 Drinks & Food Reminder

Please, no outside food or drinks in the cafeteria, and only water bottles are allowed in classrooms (i.e., no Starbucks, Dunkin drinks, fast food drinks, or energy drinks). We’ve had several spills recently, which not only create sticky messes but also attract ants into our huts. Water bottles with secure lids are the best way to stay hydrated and keep our learning spaces clean and pest-free. Thank you for your cooperation!

Thank you for your patience as we have worked through some logistical challenges with Infinite Campus. As we continue working to improve how grades are reflected in Infinite Campus, please note that grades for 5th grade students will are not being stored in IC for the remainder of this quarter. Instead, we are recording student progress in classroom spreadsheets, and those grades will be used to calculate the first nine weeks' report card. The end of quarter one is October 17th. After the 17th no late or missing work will be accepted. Report cards will go home on October 28th.

Beginning with the second quarter, all grades will once again be stored in Infinite Campus and accessible through the Parent Portal.

Your child should have brought home an important permission slip for the upcoming 5th-grade field trip. Please review the details below and return the signed forms as soon as possible to ensure your child can attend.

2️⃣ Island & Sound Exploration Program with Carolina Ocean Studies

📅 Date: Friday, October 17th (Brinkley, McVetta, & Vickers), and Wednesday, October 22nd (Bowles & Fabbie)

🚌 Departure from TMS: 8:00 AM-DROP OFF IN BACK PARKING LOT OF TMS

Field trip buses will depart promptly at 8:15 a.m. If you anticipate any difficulty getting your child here by 8:00, please reach out to their homeroom teacher so we can help make arrangements.

Because some of our trips are a bit farther away, you may notice that we occasionally have to leave earlier than usual or return a little after regular dismissal. We appreciate your flexibility and support in making these experiences possible for students. Thank you again for helping us ensure the day runs smoothly!

🏫 Return to TMS: 2:30 PM

💰 Cost: $41.00 per student due by Wednesday, October 15th

⚠️ Action Required: Please sign and return the permission slip ASAP so we can start our student list for attendance. If your child did not bring home a field trip permission slip last week, please click the links to access the forms. These must be completed for your child to attend. Here is the information to pay online for the field trip.

Additionally, please use the provided link to find detailed information about our upcoming field trip. The information includes what students should wear, bring, and other important details to ensure they are prepared. Thank you for your support in making these enriching experiences possible for our students! If you have any questions, please reach out to your child’s homeroom teacher.

Stay Connected!

While there may still be an occasional bump in the road, moving forward, parents can now log in to the PCS app and message their child’s teachers directly without needing a magic code.
The process is simple:

Download or update the PCS app.
Tap Rooms.
Enter your phone number.
Type in the verification code you receive by text.

📌 Transportation Reminders
For any changes to your child’s transportation, please email the designated transportation email address or call the school office directly. Teachers are not always able to check email or the Rooms app during the school day. To ensure your child receives accurate reminders or updates about their transportation, all changes must go through the office. The office staff will notify your child’s teacher directly. (Email: tms@pender.k12.nc.us School Phone #: 910-270-2612)

Dress Code Reminder

As a reminder, Pender County Schools’ Student Dress Code (Policy 4316) asks that students come to school dressed in a way that supports learning and positive interaction with others. Clothing should not be disruptive, provocative, unsafe, or otherwise interfere with the school day. One concern we’ve noticed is when shirts are too short—if a student raises their arms, their stomach should not be showing. Please check that your child’s tops provide appropriate coverage throughout normal movement at school. If a student is out of compliance with the dress code, they will first be allowed to make adjustments before any consequences are assigned. Thank you for helping us maintain a respectful and distraction-free learning environment.

Here are a few things to note for this upcoming week-

Important Reminder: Earphones Needed for Learning Programs-Each day, students use online learning programs such as I-Ready and Studies Weekly to engage with new skills, reinforce what they’ve learned, and enrich their understanding. These programs offer read-aloud features to support comprehension, making earphones an essential tool for success in our classroom.To ensure students can fully benefit from each lesson without distractions, please make sure your child has a working set of earphones at school. Thank you for your support in helping all students get the most out of their learning!
We encourage your child daily to check Infinite Campus for any missing, incomplete, or graded work. Our goal is to help them develop responsibility for their work, grades, and time management. We also encourage them to advocate for themselves as learners in the classroom.
Please check your child's agenda each night as it's an important tool for communication between home and school. You can use it to stay informed about daily assignments, upcoming events, and to send notes directly to the teacher. Please sign it to verify that you've read it.
Students are bringing home their Chromebooks daily. Please remind your child to bring their Chromebook to school every day, as they are used regularly in our 5th-grade classrooms and some Encore classes. Additionally, ensure the Chromebook is charged each night. Since daily assignments and assessments are completed on them, it's essential that your child also brings their charger to school, as teachers do not have extra chargers available.
To ensure the safety of all our students, please remember that we are a peanut-free school. This means that no peanut products should be brought to school for snacks or lunches. We kindly ask that you double-check any food items to ensure they do not contain peanuts. Thank you for helping us keep our school a safe environment for everyone!
Submit absence notes within 3 days to avoid unexcused absences. TMS allows 5 parent notes; after that, a doctor’s note is required. Email notes and transportation changes to tms@pender.k12.nc.us.
Fifth grade will have a snack time daily. Please make sure to provide your child with a healthy snack each day to help keep them energized and focused throughout the school day.
Students are welcome to bring a water bottle to class. Please ensure that the bottle has a secure, closable lid to prevent spills on desks, materials, or the classroom floor.
According to board policy, cell phones and smartwatches must be completely turned off and kept in your child's backpack from 8:10 AM to 3:35 PM. Wireless earbuds are also not allowed.
Fifth-grade students have ENCORE every day from 9:15-10:00. You can see the 5th-grade Encore Schedule HERE
Fifth-grade Lunch is at 12:31-12:56 and Recess is from 12:58-1:23.
Please have your child bring a book from home to read when they finish classwork. Our first library day will be in September.

Student Use of Wireless Communication Devices (Policy 4318)

We want to make you aware of a recent update to Policy 4318, which covers student use of wireless communication devices such as cell phones, smartwatches, earbuds, and other personal electronics on school campuses.

While the changes to the policy are minor, the expectations for student device use remain the same. Pender County Schools has consistently enforced this policy to support a focused and safe learning environment, and we will continue to do so in the 2025–26 school year.

What’s New?

The policy title now refers to “wireless communication devices” to reflect a broader range of modern devices.
A new definition section outlines the types of devices included.
Instructional use is now more clearly limited to teacher approval, accommodations in an IEP or 504 Plan, or documented medical needs.

What Hasn’t Changed?

Students may bring personal devices to school, but are not permitted to use, display, or have them turned on during instructional time unless authorized.
Disciplinary consequences for misuse remain the same:
- 1st offense: Warning
- 2nd offense: Device held in the office; student retrieves at end of day
- 3rd+ offense: Device held in the office; parent must retrieve
- Students who misuse devices for academic dishonesty, bullying, or inappropriate content may face more serious disciplinary consequences.

Thank you for partnering with us to help students stay focused and engaged throughout the school day. If you have any questions, we encourage you to contact your child’s school.

SAIL Matrix

Curriculum Spotlight

ELA

Wit & Wisdom® is our English curriculum. It builds knowledge of key topics in history, science, and literature through the study of excellent texts. By reading and responding to stories and nonfiction texts, the students will build knowledge of the following topic in Module 1: Cultures in Conflict. Wit and Wisdom Tips for Family can be found here.
In the upcoming weeks, we will be embarking on an exciting journey in our classroom. Soon, we will be diving into our first classroom novel in the Wit and Wisdom curriculum. We will be reading Thunder Rolling in the Mountains, a historical fiction book by Scott O'Dell and Elizabeth Hall. This powerful story recounts the Nez Perce people's defeat by the United States Army in 1877. Throughout our study, students will make connections between the narrative and their prior knowledge of the conflict between Native Americans in the West and European-American settlers.
We're excited to announce that our library visits will be twice a month on Mondays. Your child will have the opportunity to bring home books to enjoy both in the classroom and at home. Research suggests that reading for at least 15 minutes each day can significantly boost reading skills, with even greater gains observed when reading for over 30 minutes. We kindly ask that you encourage your child to read each night and ensure they bring their library books back to school everyday. This will allow them to return their current books and check out new ones if needed, keeping their reading experience fresh and engaging. Your support in nurturing a love for reading is invaluable!

Math

This week in mathematics we will begin Module 2 Topic B in which students learn to add and subtract fractions with different units, or different denominators such as thirds and sixths. They use models and equations to find a common unit before adding or subtracting.
Family Math Letter

Science

Our students will begin exploring the forces that affect motion! They will learn how gravity, friction, and mass influence the way objects move, and how changes in variables can affect that motion. Using math skills and computational thinking, students will make inferences and graph the movement of different objects. They’ll also practice plotting and labeling graphs to show an object’s position, direction, and speed.
*Extra Credit Opportunity: Please chat with your student about the extra credit opportunity being offered by their science teacher. This is a great way to boost any low summative grades in science from our Matter Unit. The assignment can be found in Google Classroom.

Social Studies

Students will continue working on Week 4 in Studies Weekly. Expect a test towards the end of the week. Check the agenda for more information.

DARE Program

We are excited to share that the 10 week DARE program has started in our 5th-grade classrooms. This program helps students make safe and responsible choices.

Volunteer Tracker