The Common Core standards for fifth-grade language arts cover skills in the areas of language, communication, writing, research, logic, informational text, media and literature. Performance standards include knowledge of the parts of speech and the ability to properly name and use them; the ability to compare and contrast two items in writing, and to respond in writing to literature in exercises, such as journaling; and the ability to distinguish between fact and opinion.
An example of a language skill that a fifth-grader is expected to master is the ability to name and spell irregular plurals of nouns such as person, wolf and foot (people, wolves and feet).
Fifth-graders develop their math skills in the areas of numbers and operations, algebra, geometry, and measurement and data, statistics and probability. Common Core standards include the ability to calculate the area of a triangle; create and analyze line and bar graphs; and design data collection methods and determine the effect of the collection method upon the outcome of the investigation.
Studies in life, Earth and physical sciences are undertaken by fifth-graders, as well as explorations of embedded technology and engineering. In the life sciences, students learn to identify and label the parts of animal and plant cells. An Earth science assignment may require them to design and graph ecosystem models showing the interrelationships between species and the environment. Through reading assignments, they gain an understanding of the way inventions and technological innovations affect human, animal and plant life.
Common Core social studies encompass the study of culture, economics, geography, governance and civics, history, and sociology. Students learn about cultural holidays and become familiar with the ways that cultures change and evolve due to factors such as industrialization and technology. Their geography skills should be up to the task of locating a city on a map by using longitude and latitude coordinates, and they should be able to identify the 50 states on a map showing only their outlines. A fifth-grader should be able to recognize prominent past and present U.S. military and non-military leaders and should be able to conceptualize a timeline of major events in American history from the Civil War to the present.
New Standards skills in the area of applied learning include problem-solving, communication tools and techniques, information tools and techniques, learning, and self-management tools and techniques for working with others. At the fifth-grade level, a student would be evaluated on her demonstration of the ability to prioritize tasks to meet deadlines and to divide responsibilities for team projects among team members.