English

The final stretch for our 6th graders involved writing their own mystery moment. This entailed constructing the part of a larger mystery where the lead detective tries to make sense of the "scene of the crime." As writers, students had a chance to take what we've learned this year and apply it to a story of their making; we included snapshots, thoughtshots, clues, and sentence patterns. Again, we also worked through the writing process--brainstorming, planning, studying mentor texts, using templates, and revising. I encourage you to check out what your child was able to imagine! :)

Seventh graders ended the year by completing a genre study of the world of fantasy. Reading The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud gave us a terrific mentor, and from there we worked to craft our own original "Fantastical Moments." As always, we worked through the writing process from early brainstorming to mentors to templates to a revising and editing playlist. As far as specific writing moves, students had a chance to show off their knowledge of story signposts (which we studied all year), exploded moments (a craft move that good writers are able to employ), and sentence patterns. Each story is filled with so much imagination; I urge you to read what your child wrote! :)

In 8th grade, we rounded out our year with a study of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Our goals were simple: immerse ourselves in Shakespeare's language, learn how to "translate" it into modern day language, make sense of the larger themes in the play, and have a good deal of fun. On all counts, I think we succeeded. Each day, folks volunteered to read with gusto, and it was really great to witness everyone's confidence grow in making sense of the words. Because we framed the entire play as it would have been experienced--namely as an engaging soap opera filled with lots of dramatic irony--we were able to keep our reading positive and light-hearted. Please ask your child how they feel about tackling Shakespeare in the future; my hope is that they feel more confident now than they did when we began! :)