- They can work in small groups, for 40 minutes, with no major hitches. They can work together to complete at least a full page of written instructions.
- They are already readers and writers.
- They have a lot of self-awareness. They know what kind of books they like and what kind of writing pieces they prefer to work on.
- Most of them know all of their basic math facts.
- They're brave. They've already shared things during our Community Circle time that fourth graders would never share until December (specific fears and hopes).
- They have "good student" habits, like returning homework and studying their spelling words.
- They're very compliant and easy to manage. Nobody's had to go to another class for "think time" yet and minus a couple of small ADD issues, there are very few interruptions related to poor behavior/choices.
I've been scrambling a bit to find enough new choice reading books for all the students who I had as fifth graders. That will be my fun, on-going challenge this year.