CURRICULUM

Daily in the Coffee corner

Each day there are a lot of learning adventures for every Coffee Corner student. Please check out below to see our overall plans, homework, and grades.

No Homework to help Develop the love of reading:

My goal when it comes to reading has always been three-fold. First, I want them to enjoy reading. Second, I want them to build their vocabulary. Lastly, I want them to dig deeper into books as opposed to surface level reading. 

I want to address all three of my goals, and how our reading system will address all of them...

Goal 1: Enjoy Reading

No one enjoys things when they are forced to do it. I do not as an adult, and I am sure you will agree. I am not requiring students to read at home. They will read a minimum of 30 minutes each day in class, if they want to read at home, great, but I will no longer be making them. I want them to read outside of school because they want to read.

Goal 2: Build Vocabulary

A section of our class novel and author study time is Mugnificent Vocabulary. We find vocabulary words in our class novel and author study books, then work on what they mean and how to use them. We are now learning a strategy on how to tackle hard words. Students are incentivized to find vocabulary words in their own books as well. Organic conversations happen about hard words, it is amazing to watch.

Goal 3: Dig Deeper in Books

We will go slower, and dig deeper into our class novel books. We may only get through 2-3 class novels each nine weeks. By digging deeper we are inferring, analyzing, and applying what the author is writing, and not explicitly saying to give the reader the full picture. We are also going to be getting a reading partner to do these deep conversations with, someone who reads similarly to themselves.

The second portion of this, is that everyone will create a personal goal for themselves. This is a monthly goal. Some may want to continue a book total/word count goal, some want to read a book they enjoy, some want to read for 30 minutes each day in class. Each goal is individualized and created by the student. They will be rewarded at the end of each month if they reach their goal.

What do you need to do at home?

Ask your child how they are coming along on their goal. Are they on track to meet it? Celebrate whatever their goal is, and encourage them to continue reading to meet their individual goals.

Occasionally, we will have a culminating project for our book club books. These will be done primarily at home, but students will have time work on it in class.

Our weekly newsletter will have a section called Car Ride Questions, these will focus on things we are working on in class or at school to help students share about their week with you.

Grades

Please know that "learning" is my focus, not collecting a bunch of worksheets or grades. Your child will be graded based on the important work & projects in class. I will not be adding in grades each day or every week. Growth and learning are the center of what I do every day.  

A 90-100

B 80-89 

C 70-79 

D 60-69 

F 0-59 

Behavior

Behavior in class is just as important as academics, and high ability kids have a lot of things to work through in order to learn and be as successful as they possibly can academically. 

I run my classroom like a home, there are procedures and expectations, but fun and laughter as well. I don't have kids of my own, but I honestly and genuinely love your student like they were my own. We will have awesome days and challenging days, just like at home, but with that being said, we will adjust as we go along.

Your support is essential, as I think it is important you and I work as a team for your child's success. I will rarely email you. If I do, it is serious and important, and I need your help. In my world, no news is good news. If you have any concerns, please let me know immediately, letting things fester usually turns mole hills into mountains. I like to be proactive and solve problems as soon as they arise.