The last year of elementary school will be a good time for you and your 5th grader to look ahead and look back. Your 5th grader should have a solid grasp of basic academics by the time she is ready to transition to middle school. If she isn’t reading at 5th grade level or doesn’t have a firm grip on 5th grade science or math, for instance, now is the time for intervention.
As your 5th grade student gets ready to make the big leap to middle school, tougher academic requirements will have to compete with increasing distractions such as socializing with friends and surging hormones. And since kids today are more tech-savvy than ever, video chatting with friends, texting, emailing and IMing will be something parents need to keep an eye on and limit as much as possible.
Fifth grade curriculums vary by state and district. But in general, your 5th grader will:
Fifth Grade Social Skills:
- Be more attuned to what peers are wearing, the music they’re listening to, etc.
- Spend more time socializing with friends, texting, video chatting, etc.
- Face more time constraints as schoolwork becomes harder and they have to juggle friends and extracurricular activities.
Fifth Grade Reading and Writing:
- Be able to offer detailed analyses of characters and plot of books.
- Work on phases of writing -- outline, draft, revise, edit.
- Read newspapers, magazines and write opinions about news and events.
- Research and write reports of several pages in length on various topics; give oral presentations.
- Plow through reading lists faster than ever before.
- Continue to increase vocabulary words.
- Handle more challenging spelling tests.
Fifth Grade Math:
- Become familiar with improper fractions and equivalent fractions.
- Learn about prime numbers.
- Become familiar with aspects of data such as mean, median, range, etc.).
- Learn different types of triangles (isosceles, etc.).
- Calculate perimeters and areas of triangles, rectangles, etc.
- Add, subtract and multiply fractions.
- Become more skilled at doing math “mentally,” without writing down problems on paper.
Fifth Grade Science, Social Studies and Tech:
- Learn about early American history, including the Constitution, Bill of Rights, etc.
- Understand the different branches of government and how they work.
- Identify important landmarks around the world.
- Study how living organisms work, including photosynthesis and digestion.
- Learn more about the human body, including cardiovascular and skeletal systems. May also cover sex education, though many districts require parental consent.
- Begin basic chemistry and physics.
- Continue to learn about the solar system and our planet (oceans, weather, landforms, etc.).
- Learn about the environment and our effect on it.
