ELA Week of 3/9-3/13

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Today we read an argument (see below) to use as a mentor text for writing our arguments. Students looked closely at the introductory paragraph.
• HOMEWORK: Finish writing your introductory paragraph. Remember to include a HOOK, a BRIDGE, and your CLAIM. Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• We looked at one student's finished intro paragraph and noted how he included the hook, the bridge, and the claim. We then analyzed the body paragraph and students began writing theirs.
• HOMEWORK: Finish writing your body paragraphs. Remember to include the TOPIC SENTENCE (this is your reason), EVIDENCE, and an EXPLANATION of how your evidence supports your reason. Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Students finished highlighting the elements of their argument essay and submitted them to Google Classroom.
• HOMEWORK: Finish writing essay and submit to Google Classroom. Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today we began reading various "Views on Zoos" and answering the prompts in our Close Readers.
• HOMEWORK: Finish the rough draft of your argument essay. Make sure you include an introduction, body paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph. Submit to Google Classroom. Read 20 minutes.

ELA Week of 3/2-3/6

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Students reviewed what loaded language means and identified loaded language in the arguments.
• HOMEWORK: Get Reading-Writing Log signed to turn in one day late. Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Students will decided which argument they thought was the strongest and articulated why they thought that.
• HOMEWORK: Finish reflection in Google Classroom. Get Reading-Writing Log signed to turn in two days late. Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Today students chose a wild animal that they would like to have as a pet. They began researching food needs their animal would have, the safety measures that would need to be take to protect both their pet and themselves, and the care their animal would need to be comfortable and healthy. This is in preparation for the essay they will be writing about their animal and the debate in which they will be engaging.
• HOMEWORK: Get Reading-Writing Log signed to turn in three days late. Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today students continued to research the wild animal that they would like to have as a pet. Research included food needs, the safety measures that would need to be take to protect both their pet and themselves, and the care their animal would need to be comfortable and healthy. This is in preparation for the essay they will be writing about their animal and the debate in which they will be engaging.
• HOMEWORK: Finish research; includes getting graphic organizer filled in. Get Reading-Writing Log signed to turn in four days late. TOMORROW IS THE LAST DAY I AM ACCEPTING THESE. Read 20 minutes.

Friday

• Students had reading and writing workshop. Students who hadn't finished researching their animal used the time to do so.
• HOMEWORK: Finish research; includes getting graphic organizer filled in. Write 30 minutes. Read 20 minutes.

ELA Week of 2/24-2/28

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Students finished reading the commentary "Let People Own Exotic Animals." They identified the claim of the commentary.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Students traced the argument in "Let People Own Exotic Animals." They found out that to trace simply means to identify the claim, the reasons, and the evidence. They completed the graphic organizer that accompanied this lesson.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Today students learned how to evaluate an argument. They also learned about loaded language and found loaded language within the texts. They decided which argument they thought was the strongest and articulated why they thought that.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today students chose a wild animal that they would like to have as a pet. They began researching the kind of food (and amount) their animal would need, the safety measures that would need to be take to protect both their pet and themselves, and the habitat their animal would need to be comfortable and happy. This is in preparation for the essay they will be writing about their animal and the debate they will be engaging in next week.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

Friday

• Students continued to research the wild animal they would like to have as a pet. They researched the kind of food (and amount) their animal would need, the safety measures that would need to be take to protect both their pet and themselves, and the habitat their animal would need to be comfortable and happy. This is in preparation for the essay they will be writing about their animal and the debate they will be engaging in next week.
• HOMEWORK: FEBRUARY READING-WRITING LOGS DUE MONDAY!! Finish researching your animal and taking notes. This counts toward your weekend reading and writing.

ELA Week of 2/17-2/21

Schedule & Homework

Monday - No School (Presidents' Day)

Tuesday

• Students completed a body biography graphic organizer.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Students thought about what making a claim and supporting it means by answering some Would You Rather questions. Then they thought about two questions and chose their claim: Do you believe exotic animals should be kept as pets? and Do you believe zoos should remain in existence? They will be reading articles about both issues and analyzing claims, supporting reasoning, and supporting evidence.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Students set up a graphic organizer that will help them record the claims, reasoning, and evidence of the articles we will be reading. They then read aloud the editorial "Wild Animals Aren't Pets." Next, they worked with a partner to fill in their organizer for that article.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

ELA Week of 2/10-2/14

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Students presented their metaphorical graphic organizers.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Today I introduced the students to Cornell note taking. They set up Cornell notes and took notes on character types. We got through protagonists and antagonists.
• HOMEWORK: Identify the protagonist and antagonist in the book you are reading at home for pleasure. Write your answer on a sheet of paper. Include the title and author of your novel. Continue to read 20 minutes each night.

Wednesday

• We will continue taking notes today on round and flat characters, dynamic and static, and archetypes.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes.

Thursday - Half Day

• Students debated whether characters are protagonists, antagonists, round, flat, dynamic, and static.
• HOMEWORK: Write 30 minutes; read 20 minutes.

Friday - No School

ELA Week of 2/3-2/7

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Students listened to the final chapter of The Dark Is Rising!
• HOMEWORK: Get Reading-Writing Accountability Logs completed and signed for late turn-in. Read 20 minutes.

ELA Week of 1/27-1/31

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Students took their Point of View Test and then the chapter 12 quiz. Half the group went with Ms. Emily Hoch to polish their skits and half stayed with me to discuss Venn diagrams.
• HOMEWORK: Since we didn't get to finish our lesson on Venn diagrams, NO VENN DIAGRAM HOMEWORK. Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Students either worked on polishing their POV skits or they worked on Venn diagrams.
• HOMEWORK: Since we didn't get to finish our lesson on Venn diagrams, NO VENN DIAGRAM HOMEWORK. Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Today students worked on making comparisons and contrasts of the mythological Herne the Hunter and the Herne the Hunter in The Dark Is Rising. They used Venn diagrams to organize their thinking and then turned their thoughts into paragraph form.
• HOMEWORK: Finish writing your paragraph that compares and contrasts Herne the Hunter. Attach to the Google Classroom assignment. Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today students began reading the final chapter of The Dark Is Rising in small groups.
• HOMEWORK: Read for pleasure 20 minutes.

Friday

• Students finished reading The Dark Is Rising!
• HOMEWORK: Write for 30 minutes. Read for pleasure 20 minutes. READING AND WRITING ACCOUNTABILITY LOGS ARE DUE MONDAY!!!

ELA Week of 1/20-1/24

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• No school

Tuesday

• Students continued working on their POV skits. Two groups performed! Great job.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Students continued working on their POV skits. Another two groups performed! (These skits, by the way, will be performed at this month's Celebration of Learning.)
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Students presented their last POV skits. (These skits, by the way, will be performed at this month's Celebration of Learning.) Then students who didn't turn in their weekend homework on time took the chapter 11 quiz.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Friday

• Booktalk, Author's Chair, Listening to Audio of Chapter 12.
• Homework: Review the 5 POV for Monday’s quiz. Finish reading Chapter 12. Quiz on Monday for all. Write 30 minutes.

ELA Week of 1/13-1/17

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• We continued to discuss point of view by recording definitions and examples into our interactive notes
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Students finished recording definitions for POV and began working on identifying the point of view in excerpts from author Susan Cooper's other novels.
• Homework: Finish identifying POV of excerpts (see below). Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Students graded and revised their practice sheets that had them identifying the point of view in excerpts from author Susan Cooper's other novels. They then began creating skits in small groups that reflect one of the five types of POV.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today students continued working on their POV skits.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Friday

• Reading and Writing Workshop.
• HOMEWORK: Read Chapter 11 – things begin to change! Take double-entry notes for your weekend writing.

ELA Week of 1/6-1/10

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• No school for students.

Tuesday

• Today students continued working in groups on their metaphorical plot diagrams.
• Homework: Complete and get signature on Reading and Writing Accountability Log!!! Due tomorrow. Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Today students continued working in groups on their metaphorical plot diagrams.
• Homework: Complete and get signature on Reading and Writing Accountability Log!!! Late logs still being accepted through Monday. Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today began thinking about how point of view alters a story by rotating through stations at which they read various versions of the fable "The Lion and the Mouse" told through different points of view.
• Homework: Complete and get signature on Reading and Writing Accountability Log!!! Late logs still being accepted through Monday. Read 20 minutes.

Friday

• Today had Reading and Writing Workshop, along with Booktalk and Author's Chair.
• Homework:
  • Read all of chapter 10; quiz over it on Monday.
  • Complete and get reading/writing accountability log signed. Monday IS THE LAST DAY I will accept December logs.
  • Write for 30 minutes.

ELA Homework over Break...

Continue reading over break. I am only requiring 80 minutes of reading over the entire break, and no writing.

ELA Week of 12/9-12/13

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Today students took their Comprehensive Latin test and then work on their new Latin Lesson 11: struct.
• Homework: Complete Latin lesson. Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Today students reflected on their behavior with the substitute teacher on Friday and Monday. They wrote diary entries from the perspective of Mr. Montoro or Miss Lynn, and then from their own perspective of what occurred in the classroom.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Students listened to the dramatic reading of Chapter 8 and took an in-class quiz over the content.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Since many students were absent for a field trip with Emily Hoch, we finished reading Edgar Allen Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart." We also discussed the printing press =)
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Friday

• Today we began our unit on plot elements and plot diagramming. Students took notes and then watched the Pixar short "Presto." On Monday, we will rewatch the short and begin plotting its story elements on the diagram.
• Homework: Read ALL of chapter 9 and make Double-Entry Journal notes (see below).

ELA Week of 12/2-12/6

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Today students completed GLUP and then played Four Corners as a way to review figurative language techniques.
• Homework: Complete and get reading/writing accountability log signed; due tomorrow for full credit. Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Today was a short day because of MAP testing, so we reviewed figurative language by playing Kahoot!
• Homework: Complete figurative language packet (see below); due tomorrow. Complete and get reading/writing accountability log signed; due tomorrow for partial credit. Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Today we graded and revised the figurative language practice sheets the students had for homework. They self-evaluated how confident they feel with these concepts. Most students said they feel prepared for tomorrow's test over figurative language techniques!
• Homework: Review simile, metaphor, and personification for tomorrow's test. Complete and get reading/writing accountability log signed; due tomorrow for partial credit. Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today students took their figurative language techniques test. Afterward, they learned how to create entries in a double-entry journal in preparation for the weekend's homework. Finally, they worked for a short time in their reading groups to make more progress through chapter 6.
• Homework: Finish reading Chapter 6; quiz over it tomorrow. Complete and get reading/writing accountability log signed; due tomorrow for partial credit. Read 20 minutes.

Friday

• Today had Reading and Writing Workshop, along with Booktalk and Author's Chair.
• Homework:
  • Read all of chapter 7 and create at least THREE double-entry journal entries for it. Remember, on the left side of your double-entry journal you chose a quote from the beginning, from the middle, and from the end of the chapter that stands out to your or that you think is important. Include the page number! On the left side of your journal write down your thoughts about that quote. Why is it important? Why does it stand out to you? You can comment, ask questions, make connections, etc.
  • Complete and get reading/writing accountability log signed. Monday IS THE LAST DAY I will accept November logs.

ELA Week of 11/18-11/22

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Today students had Author's Chair and then Reading-Writing Workshop.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Today students were introduced to the concept of figurative language. They categorized images and text into literal and figurative categories.
• Homework: On a sheet of paper that can be turned in, students need to come up with one simile, one metaphor, and one personification about the things around them in their homes. Read 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Today students created tableaus in small groups that were literal interpretations of their figurative language homework.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

ELA Week of 11/11-11/15

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Veterans Day; no school

Tuesday

• Today students listened to a Booktalk and Author's Chair, and then reviewed their answers to their Great Short Answer to inferential question #2.
• Homework: Read for 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Today students listened to a read aloud of Chapter 5 and created artwork during the reading that represented what they were hearing.
• Homework: Read for 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today students listened to a read aloud of Chapter 5 and created artwork during the reading that represented what they were hearing.
• Homework: Finish reading chapter 5, pages 107-108. Quiz over chapter 5 tomorrow. Read for 20 minutes.

Friday

• So much to do today! Students completed their GLUP and then took their chapter 5 quiz. Next, they had Booktalk and Author's Chair, and then it was time to go.
• Homework: Write 30 minutes over the weekend. Read for 20 minutes.

ELA Week of 11/4-11/8

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Today was a catch-up and review day. We first reviewed iReady data and discussed why it is important to take it seriously and complete minutes each week. Students turned in their Reading and Writing Accountability Logs, took missing quizzes or retook quizzes on which they had scored poorly, and then we reviewed how to complete their Word Scrolls. Students were given new 6th grade vocabulary terms.
• Homework: Word Scrolls for the terms eddy, apprehensively, and improvised. Get Reading-Writing Accountability Log signed, if not done. Read for 20 minutes.

Tuesday

• Today students completed their GLUP and then summarized Chapter 4.
• Homework: Word Scrolls for the terms eddy, apprehensively, and improvised. Get Reading-Writing Accountability Log signed, if not done. Read for 20 minutes.

Wednesday

• Today students completed their GLUP and then students shared their Say Somethings for Chapter 4. Confusing places were cleared up, and students made connections between the book and themselves, other texts, and the world.
• Homework: Get Reading-Writing Accountability Log signed, if not done. Read for 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today students learned how to use a graphic organizer to answer inferential questions as Great Short Answers.
• Homework: Answer question 2 and 3 for homework (see model of how to complete homework below). Get Reading-Writing Accountability Log signed, if not done. Read for 20 minutes.

Friday

• Fridays are Reading and Writing Workshop days! Students read whatever they want for pleasure and write whatever they want for pleasure.
• HOMEWORK: Continue reading 20 minutes and writing 30 minutes over the weekend. Track your minutes on the log sheet. Stories, essays, poems, songs, journal entries, diary entries, comics, graphic novels, letters, character charts and sketches, setting drawings, plot outlines, etc. count as writing!

ELA Week of 10/28-11/1

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• No school.

Tuesday

• Very few students showed up to school due to snow, so we scrapped planned instruction and began reading the short story "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell. (On Google Classroom as a resource if students want to finish reading the story.)
• Homework: Read 20 minutes. Log minutes.

Wednesday

• 2-hour delay due to weather meant I didn't meet with sixth grade today.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• We will read Edgar Allen Poe's "The Tell Tale Heart."
• Homework: Read 20 minutes. Write 30 minutes. Reading and Writing Accountability Logs are due Monday, November 4!

Friday

• No school.

ELA Week of 10/21-10/25

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Students considered literal level 1 questions and inferential level 2 questions when analyzing two different photographs today. They then finished revising a fact versus inference assignment. Finally, they received instructions on the tableaus they will be creating tomorrow during class.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes, log minutes.

Tuesday

• Today we completed GLUP, reviewed literal versus inferential questions, and then got into groups to create tableaus that summarize chapter 3.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes. Log minutes.

Wednesday

• Today students completed a quiz on literal versus inferential and then performed their tableaus.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Thursday

• Today students finished performing their tableaus and wrote a reflection about it.
• Homework: Read 20 minutes.

Friday

• Today students did a great job of engaging in Reading and Writing Workshop.
• Homework: Read all of Chapter 4. Log those minutes. No writing this weekend. Quiz over chapter 4 on Tuesday.

ELA Week of 10/14-10/18

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• No School

Tuesday

• No School

Wednesday

• FOCUS: Students began learning the difference between a literal question (level1) and an inferential question (level 2) and practiced answering both kinds of questions. They then reviewed inference and worked in small groups to identify fact statements and inferential statements.
• HOMEWORK: Finish reading first half of Chapter 3 (p 39-53) and fill in Individual Say Something (this counts toward 20 minutes of reading tonight).

ELA Week of 10/7-10/11

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• FOCUS: Students got into their assigned reading groups and practiced using the Say Something strategy to comprehend the novel.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes.

Tuesday

• FOCUS: Today I introduced the concept of textual implications to the students. Students tried to solve a logic problem (all the information is there, but one must piece the clues together to find the solution).
• HOMEWORK: Complete the two word scrolls for chapter two's words. Read 20 minute and log minutes.

Wednesday

• FOCUS: Students did GLUP and then began taking notes on textual implications (see below).
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minute and log minutes.
• 
  

ELA Week of 9/30-10/4

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• FOCUS: Today students took their The Dark Is Rising test over chapter one and sequencing techniques.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes. Get reading and writing log signed to turn in tomorrow!

Tuesday

• FOCUS: Today students learned how to do Say Something, the activity they will engage in while in small reading groups, by watching Miss Lynn and Mrs. Hosek model it. We began chapter two.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes. Get reading and writing log signed to turn in tomorrow (minus 10 points for one day late).

Wednesday

• FOCUS: Students went on the field trip to the Denver Art Museum.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes. Get reading and writing log signed to turn in tomorrow (minus 20 points for two days late).

Thursday

• FOCUS: We reviewed what a Say Something is and how to do one. Then we engaged in Say Something for Chapter 2 with the entire class, filling in the Say Something form as we went.
• HOMEWORK: Complete reading Chapter 2 and log your minutes. (It may take you longer than 20 minutes, so be prepared for that.) Note places you get confused. Get reading and writing log signed to turn in tomorrow (minus 30 points for three days late).

Friday

• FOCUS: Fridays are Reading and Writing Workshop days! Students read whatever they want for pleasure and write whatever they want for pleasure.
• HOMEWORK: Continue reading 20 minutes and writing 30 minutes over the weekend. Track your minutes on the log sheet. Stories, essays, poems, songs, journal entries, diary entries, comics, graphic novels, letters, character charts and sketches, setting drawings, plot outlines, etc. count as writing!

ELA Week of 9/23-9/27

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• FOCUS: Today students did GLUP, listened to a peer booktalk, figured out how to log into Google Classroom, and answered two questions pertaining to sequencing techniques in The Dark Is Rising.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes.

Tuesday

• FOCUS: Today students did GLUP, then we discussed what textual evidence is, how it differs from one's own words, and how it is necessary for proving what one says.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes.

Wednesday

• FOCUS: Today students did GLUP, then we created flipbooks on how to write Great Short Answers using A.C.E.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes.

Thursday

• FOCUS: Today students did GLUP, then we figured out how to get onto and use Google Classroom. We were going to start completing Great Short Answers using our A.C.E. . flipbooks, but students figuring out Google Classroom took up most of our time.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO COMPLETE THE QUESTIONS ON GOOGLE CLASSROOM AS HOMEWORK. WE WILL DO THESE TOGETHER ON MONDAY.

Friday

• FOCUS: Fridays are Reading and Writing Workshop days! Students read whatever they want for pleasure and write whatever they want for pleasure.
• HOMEWORK:
  1. Study for Monday's Dark Is Rising Test! Be able to:
     • identify characters (who they are, how they know one another)
     • recall events that occur in the chapter and place them in the order they occur
     • define sequencing techniques: foreshadowing, flashback, chronological order, logical order
     • identify what sequencing techniques are used in examples
  2. Continue reading 20 minutes and writing 30 minutes over the weekend. Track your minutes on the log sheet. Stories, essays, poems, songs, journal entries, diary entries, comics, graphic novels, letters, character charts and sketches, setting drawings, plot outlines, etc. count as writing!
  3. READING AND WRITING LOGS DUE NEXT TUESDAY!!!!

ELA Week of 9/16-9/20

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• FOCUS: Since students were out all last week, we reviewed sequencing techniques by playing Kahoot!
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes.

Tuesday

• FOCUS: We began reading Chapter 1 of The Dark Is Rising, gaining an understanding of who the protagonist is and what the setting is.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes and log minutes.

Wednesday

• FOCUS: We continued reading and commenting on Chapter 1 of The Dark Is Rising.
• HOMEWORK: Finish reading Chapter 1. Be read for short quiz over it tomorrow. Log your minutes.

Thursday

• FOCUS: Students finished reading Chapter 1 of The Dark Is Rising and took a short quiz over it. They then tried to answer a question using textual evidence to support their answers. CHALLENGE FOR MONDAY - Have the correct age order of Will and his siblings, from oldest to youngest.
• HOMEWORK: Complete the handout (see below if you left it at school or lost it) about where and how Susan Cooper uses foreshadowing in the book. This counts for your writing minutes this weekend. Read 20 minutes. Log your minutes.

Friday - no school

ELA Week of 9/9-9/13

Schedule & Homework

Tuesday

• FOCUS: Students are at Outdoor Lab.
• HOMEWORK: N/A

Wednesday

• FOCUS: Students are at Outdoor Lab.
• HOMEWORK: N/A

Thursday

• FOCUS: Students are at Outdoor Lab.
• HOMEWORK: N/A

Friday

• FOCUS: Students are at Outdoor Lab.
• HOMEWORK: N/A

ELA Week of 9/3-9/6

Schedule & Homework

Tuesday

• FOCUS: Students began daily G.L.U.P. (Grammar and Language Usage Practice), and sequencing techniques were introduced.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes, and keep track of reading on the log sheet.

Wednesday

• FOCUS: Students continued with G.L.U.P. and took notes on the sequencing techniques of flashback, foreshadowing, chronological order, and logical order.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes, keep track of reading on the log sheet

Thursday

• FOCUS: Students engaged in an activity that required them to go to stations set up around the classroom and identify whether the text at each station was an example of foreshadowing, flashback, chronological order, or logical order.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes, keep track of reading on the log sheet

Friday

• FOCUS: Fridays are Reading and Writing Workshop days! Students read whatever they want for pleasure and write whatever they want for pleasure.
• HOMEWORK: Continue reading 20 minutes and writing 30 minutes over the weekend. Track your minutes on the log sheet. Stories, essays, poems, songs, journal entries, diary entries, comics, graphic novels, letters, character charts and sketches, setting drawings, plot outlines, etc. count as writing!

Week of 8/26-8/30

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• FOCUS: Students shared their Six-Word Memoirs with the class.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes, and keep track of reading on the log sheet.

Tuesday

• FOCUS: The Dark Is Rising novel by Susan Cooper was passed out to students today. They completed a book walk, recording noticings and making predictions about the book/story. They began creating an artistic title page for the book based on their noticings and predictions. The title page should include the novel's title, the author's name, and artwork that incorporates their noticings and predictions.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes, keep track of reading on the log sheet, finish creating title page

Wednesday

• FOCUS: Students spent the first half of class watching the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Company perform. Excellent! When they came to class, students took a gallery walk, walking around the classroom looking at one another's artistic title pages in which they predicted what The Dark Is Rising will be about.
• HOMEWORK: Read 20 minutes, keep track of reading on the log sheet

Thursday

• FOCUS: Students organized their ELA binders in preparation for their study of The Dark Is Rising. They then received two vocabulary words to make Word Scrolls for. I modeled how to complete a Word Scroll.
• HOMEWORK: Complete Word Scroll for the word "commotion"; read 20 minutes; keep track of reading on the log sheet

Friday

• FOCUS: Fridays are Reading and Writing Workshop days! Students read whatever they want for pleasure and write whatever they want for pleasure.
• HOMEWORK: READING AND WRITING ACCOUNTABILITY LOGS ARE DUE TUESDAY!!! Continue reading 20 minutes and writing 30 minutes over the weekend. Track your minutes on the log sheet. Stories, essays, poems, songs, journal entries, diary entries, comics, graphic novels, letters, character charts and sketches, setting drawings, plot outlines, etc. count as writing!

Week of 8/12-8/16

Schedule & Homework

Monday

• Focus was on re-establishing relationships and understanding classroom policies
• HOMEWORK: read and sign technology policy form (iPads won't be issued until this is signed and returned to school)

Tuesday

• Focus was on re-establishing relationships and understanding classroom policies
• HOMEWORK: read and sign ELA syllabus; due Thursday

Wednesday

• Today we attempted - sometimes successfully - to connect to Remind 101, we reviewed the Middle School Scoop website and I introduced the concept of a 6-word memoir.
• HOMEWORK: Get set up on Remind 101

Thursday

• Today we learned about Six-Word Memoirs and begin creating our own.
• HOMEWORK: Finish creating Six-Word Memoir; read for 20 minutes; bring reading book tomorrow.

Friday

• Today we went over the Reading and Writing Workshop expectations and engaged in reading or writing for pleasure!
• HOMEWORK: Read for 20 minutes; write for 30 minutes; log your minutes on your Reading and Writing Accountability sheet. Remember, stories, essays, poems, songs, journal entries, diary entries, comics, graphic novels, letters, character charts and sketches, setting drawings, plot outlines, etc. count as writing!