Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Come check out our WW2 museum exhibits Thursday from 8:30-10:00. We will be in all 6 middle school classrooms. They're pretty impressive!

Next Monday, May 22, is JA in the classroom. Junior Achievement is a financial literacy program. Their volunteers offer wonderful lessons tailored to each grade level. This will las most of the day and should be great!

Wednesday, May 24th at 10:00--8th grade promotion at the Fallon Convention Center

Thursday, May 25th Field Day and the last day of school. Pick up is at 2:00 that day.


Monday, May 8, 2017

Monday, May 8, 2017

7th grade tudents finish testing tomorrow! Yippee!!! 8th graders, you only have ONE MORE test--the science test on May 17. You're almost there!!!

This week in a snapshot:

Projects: Students working hard to finish content and 3D exhibit for our display. Teachers are spending time conferencing with students and helping them come up with creative ideas.

7th Grade Reading: Students are finishing book club books and response journals. They have done a great job with these.

8th Grade Reading: We will finish Night this week and do some activities with it in the days to come. This has been a difficult book to read and discuss. It cuts to the core of our emotions. However, the kids have done well with it and I'm anxious to hear their thoughts when we are finished.

Writing: Students will work on the content piece of their social studies project during writing block. I will be conferencing with each group and making sure they have nailed the comprehension piece of what they are studying.

Thursday, May 18 from 8:30-10:00 Parents are invited to come to the middle school classrooms and view projects.

Wednesday, May 24 at 10:00 am--Middle school promotion ceremony at the Fallon Convention Center

Thursday, May 25--Field Day and last day of school


Monday, May 1, 2017

Monday, May 1, 2017

We are smack dab in the middle of testing, but here are some important things for you to know and remember:

Projects: Students will work on World War 2 museum exhibits this week and next. We will present our exhibits to parents on May 18th--I believe in the afternoon, but will check on that!

7th Grade Reading:  We are loving our WW2 book clubs! Students are doing a great job on responses, and are coming to their groups prepared and ready for discussion!

8th Grade Reading: Students are reading Night, by Elie Weisel. This book is prompting a lot of discussion, and the serious nature of this book is really making students think about life and human nature.

Writing: Students have been practicing writing tasks for Smarter Balanced, IXL skills, and writing stamina to prepare for our SBAC this week!

Dates to remember:

Tuesday, May 2-7th grade Smarter Balanced ELA test, part 1
Wednesday, May 3--7th Grade Smarter Balance ELA test, part 2
Wednesday, May 3--8th Grade ELA EOC
Friday, May 12--End of year dance for middle school (Hawaiian theme)
Wednesday, May 17--8th Grade Science SBAC
Thursday, May 18--Parents invited to view WW2 exhibits (Time TBD)
Wednesday, May 24--8th Grade promotion--Convention Center at 10:00
Thursday, May 25--Last day of school and field day!

No homework this week due to testing---students will be graded on book club assignments done in class. 

Monday, April 17, 2017

Monday, April 17, 2017

Projects: Students are working in their groups to figure out their museum exhibit plan for World War 2. Also, my students will learn about several major battles this week. Ask them about Pearl Harbor, Battle of Midway, Battle of Stalingrad, and DDay!

7th Grade Reading: This week we will focus on our book club novels and how students use Habits of Discussion and Format Matters to move their discussions along. Reading responses are due every Tuesday and Thursday for these, and I'm expecting them to be lengthy and detailed. Students must show effort of going deep on these and using evidence, evidence, evidence!!

8th Grade Reading: Students will read Night in their book clubs and use Habits of  Discussion and Format Matters to make their points. I will take grades for this every day they meet, so students need to make sure they come prepared!

Writing: We will continue with grammar skills review, small responses to articles (backed up with evidence), and also do some SBAC practice. It's almost testing time!!

Auction this Thursday----Please send goodies in if possible. :)  We will at least one more after this.


Homework this week:

7th Grade: Book Club responses due Tuesday and Thursday; read for 20/write responses

8th Grade: Book Club reading every night; come prepared for a possible quiz on Thursday!

Monday, April 10, 2017

Monday, April 10, 2017

Projects: We went over our final project for this year today--a World War 2 museum exhibit! This is going to be so much fun. Students can choose partners from other middle school classes. We will choose topics and partners tomorrow.  This week we will spend our time learning about the Jewish Holocaust and the Chinesse Holocaust. Next week we will focus on battles and other important events.

7th Grade Reading: Today was Flocabulary! We read and discussed important happenings. The students always have such intelligent input! We will delve into book clubs, reading responses, and poetry for the rest of the week.

8th Grade Reading: Students finished Paideia Seminar today (3 days....they had a lot to say!). Tomorrow we will focus on Flocabulary, and Wednesday will be poetry. Thursday students will get into reading groups for our final book of the year: Night, by Elie Weisel. This book is extremely powerful. It is a memoir of Elie Weisel and the time he spent at Auschwitz Concentration Camp. I'm hoping the students appreciate if for what it is and are as moved by it as I was when I read it. We will read, discuss, write responses, look at supporting videos, etc. as we move through this book. Students will be in reading groups, but we will all be reading the same book.

Writing: This week we will focus on writing World War 2 poetry, IXL skills (simple/compound sentences), Flocabulary instructional videos, and lots and lots of journal writing. I am grading journals a few times a week now, and making sure that students are really delving into the daily prompts!

Homework:
7th--IXL N.1 (subject/predicate), read for 20, fill out logs
8th--Read for 20, fill out logs

Tuesday, April 4, 2017

Tuesday, April 4, 2017

Projects: Yesterday we had a fabulous guest speaker! Mr. Slonecker joined us and gave a fascinating presentation on his visit to Germany and what he knows about that country during World War 2 under the Hitler Regime. We will continue to learn about Hitler and his life this week, and apply what we learn to events that occurred under his regime.

7th Grade Reading:  Students were put into book clubs today. They will read a book that is set in WW2, complete weekly responses, take quizzes, have group discussions, and complete a final project on their book. I'm so excited for this, as students take independent responsibility for their reading during this time.

8th Grade Reading: Students prepared for Paideia Seminar yesterday and today. Tomorrow and Thursday they will have their Paideia discussion and give responses to 10 open ended questions that they have spent time collecting evidence for. Please help remind students to get their reading logs signed each week. We are starting to have an issue with kids simply not doing it, which is resulting in lower grades each week.

Writing: This week students will review IXL skills, write in journals, and complete written responses that compare 2 different texts. We are practicing specific skills in order to review and prepare for our writing assessment later this month.

Homework this week:

7th Grade: IXL SS.1, SS.2, read for 20 minutes/fill out log
8th Grade: Paideia preparation, read for 20 minutes (when finished with Paideia)/fill out log.

Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Monday, March 27, 2017

Student-led conferences are this Friday. Please stop by with your child at any time between 8 am and 4 pm. 

Projects: We started studying World War 2 today. Students will frontload vocabulary terms and learn the causes of WW2 this week.

7th Grade Reading: This week we will review figurative language terms with Flocabulary and IXL, read our independent reading books, write lengthy reading responses, annotate poetry, and read and summarize nonfiction text with "The Week in Rap."

8th Grade Reading: Students watched To Kill a Mockingbird  today, and will spend the next 5-6 reading blocks preparing their responses for our Paideia Seminar.

Writing: This week students will learn to evaluate and judge by reading reviews of some of their favorite movies, books, games, etc. Using the book Write Like This as a mentor text, we will rate products, then write formal reviews for them.


Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Monday, March 13, 2017

This is the final week that students can improve IXL scores for this quarter. Students need to let me know if they go in and improve their scores on graded IXL work. 

Projects: Websites on the Great Depression are due at the end of the projects block on Tuesday. We will present them Wednesday and Thursday of this week. The kids have work so hard on these and I'm seeing great work.

7th Grade Reading: This week we will focus on CAFE strategies and Daily 3 (read to self, work on writing through reading response, and word work). Students are begging for more time to read their books of choice, so I will be allowing a little more time for that this week. They did a great job on their Paideia Semina, which took a lot of preparation. I will enjoy giving them time to relax a bit with their books. I will use the time to conference with individual students and do fluency checks.

8th Grade Reading: We will finish To Kill a Mockingbird this week and move into Paideia Seminar preparation. Students will have more questions than last year to collect evidence on and will participate in the seminar the second week we return from spring break. We will watch the movie version on Monday, April 27th. If you don't want your child to see this film, please let me know asap and I will plan an alternative but equitable assignment for him or her.

Writing: Phew!!!! We have been working on collaborative argumentative essays. Students are getting in groups, writing introductions, coming together as a class to discuss/provide feedback, and then doing the same thing with their body paragraphs and conclusions. Tuesday and Wednesday students will write one on their own (unassisted). This piece of writing will be counted as a 4th quarter grade. I am so impressed with all of the progress these kids have made in writing this year.

Homework:
7th: Read for 20 minutes each night and complete reading log
8th: Read for 20 minutes (Mockingbird reading both Tuesday and Wednesday nights); complete reading log

Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Monday, March 7, 2016

Projects: Students will continue building websites on the Great Depression using  videos and reading passages that we watch and read together.

7th Grade Reading: Wednesday is our Paideia Seminar, so students are working ro prepare comments and evidence in response to questions. This is a great exercise and I'm so excited to hear what students have to say.

8th Grade Reading: We will spend most of our week reading and discussing To Kill a Mockingbird. The plan is to finish the book before spring break and participate in Paideia Seminar when we return. We will also watch the movie starring Gregory Peck----he does a great job as Atticus Finch!

Writing: We are working through another collaborative writing assignment. This time is argumentative and students are writing their essays in groups of 5. I am loving this because the kids are really getting into discussing the resources they have to use and having conversations about what evidence to use, transitions, etc. Next week they will write an unassisted argumentative piece.

Homework:

7th Grade: Read for 20 minutes, fill out logs (working on Paideia is fine)
8th Grade: Read for 20 minutes; to chapter 24 by Tuesday and to chapter 26 by Wednesday. Stay tuned for Wednesday night reading (depends on how far we get Wednesday during our block)


Monday, February 27, 2017

Monday, February 27, 2017

Projects: This week we will learn about FDR and the New Deal, and work on those websites. They are coming along!

7th Grade Reading: Students are preparing for our Paideia Seminar on The Outsiders. They will collect evidence during class to respond to 4 questions that I will pose to them next week. I love this assignment. The students always do well, and their academic discussions are so impressive!

8th Grade Reading: Students will continue to read and discuss To Kill a Mockingbird. They are doing a great job thinking critically about race relations, literacy, and justice with this novel. Today we discussed current events with "Week in Rap." As usual, we had some very interesting conversations. I always love conversations with this bunch.

Writing: This week we are taking a break from our state writing prompts and focusing on stamina through journal writing, IXL skills, and sentence diagramming to learn sentence parts. We will do our last unassisted prompt in 2 weeks, beginning with a collaborative prompt next week. It will be argumentative! Students, please check IXL grades on Infinite Campus. You can improve scores and fix zeroes!

Homework:
7th--Read and watch "Week in Rap" on Flocabulary and be ready for a quiz on Wednesday.
8th--20 minutes of reading. Flocabulary quiz Wednesday

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Tomorrow we will watch the movie The Outsiders in order to compare it to the novel. The movie is rated PG. Please let me know if you do NOT want your child to watch it. I will find an alternate activity for him/her. 

Projects: Students will work on Great Depression websites and continue learning about through class discussion, reading passages, videos and webquests. This Thursday we will watch a video on the Dust Bowl (thank you, Mrs. Mori, for loaning it). Make sure you ask your student about daily life, government, and causes of the Great Depression!

7th Grade Reading: Students will begin preparing for their reading final after watching the movie. Our final will be in the form of a Paideia Seminar. Students will be required to research several
open-ended questions, find evidence to support answers, and articulate their opinions through discussion. Students will use formal discussion methods, including techniques we've used in class like Format Matters and Habits of Discussion. They will be graded only on what they say (quality of verbal responses). I love this assignment because it give the students a lot of control over their grade and how they want to respond to literature.

8th Grade Reading: We will continue To Kill a Mockingbird. We are starting to read the trial scene, and students seem so engaged. Students will continue to take quizzes, write responses that require text evidence, and practice reading out loud fluently and with expression. I am LOVING our discussions on this novel.

Writing: This week we will finish our collaborative informative newspaper article, and students will write an unassisted writing sample in the form of an informative essay.

Homework this week:
7th: Read and watch "Week in Rap" for this week and be prepared for a quiz on Thursday. Fill out logs.
8th: Watch/read "Week in Rap" for this week and be prepared for a quiz on Thursday. Fill out logs.

Monday, February 13, 2017

Monday, February 13, 2017

Tomorrow students may bring Valentines to pass out to the class. We will do this around 2:30-2:45 as the kids have art at 3:15. 

Projects: Students are working on their Great Depression websites. Also, we are learning about causes, daily life, government role, Dust Bowl, and economics during the Great Depression.

7th Grade Reading: We are having great discussions during our Monday Flocabulary lessons! Students are really making intelligent connections to current events and have strong opinions on topics! We will continue reading The Outsiders week and will likely finish it. When we do finish, students will begin preparing for our Paideia Seminar on the novel, which will be our final exam.

8th Grade Reading: We will continue to read To Kill a Mockingbird and use Close Reading strategies to look deeply at certain parts. We are enjoying learning more about the characters and making predictions about Boo Radley and Tom Robinson.

Writing: This week we will work together on an informative/explanatory writing piece. We did this a couple of weeks ago with narratives, and we will work on an unassisted piece after we write one together. These prompts are coming off of the state website and are good examples of what the students may be facing during testing this spring.

Homework:

7th Grade--IXL AA.1, read for 20 minutes
8th Grade--Finish Flocabulary "Week in Rap" links from today; read for 20 minutes and be on chapter 12 of To Kill a Mockingbird on Tuesday. 

Monday, February 6, 2017

Monday, February 6, 2017

Projects: Students will learn about the Great Depression and build a website that demonstrates what they know.

7th Grade Reading: This week students will continue reading The Outsiders, taking short quizzes on it, and building their reading stamina.

Writing: Students will complete an unassisted writing assignment Tuesday and Thursday of this week. We have worked long and hard together on narrative techniques, and now they are ready to show what they can do on their own!

8th Grade Reading: We will continue reding To Kill a Mockingbird and having discussions around it. Students should always come to class prepared for a short quiz that covers their most recent reading. We will also continue poetry and Flocabulary as usual.

Homework:
7th grade--read for 20 minutes and do any IXL assigned
8th grade--read for 20 minutes (reading logs checked every Monday)

Candy Grams are on sale all week for .75 each. Proceeds benefit the k-8 student council. We are raising money to try to purchase something for the school (item TBD).

Auction this Thursday at 3:00

Monday, January 30, 2017

Monday, January 30, 2017

Projects test is moved from tomorrow to Wednesday.

Projects: Students finished their magazines on the Roaring '20's and will review for their vocabulary and essay test now scheduled for Wednesday.

7th Grade Reading: We will continue to read The Outsiders. The students are LOVING this book and we are having wonderful discussions. I am always impressed with these kids and the depth of their comments and questions. We will read annotate poetry on Wednesday, and today we watched and discussed the "Week in Rap" and took a quiz.

8th Grade Reading: We will read annotate poetry on Wednesday, and today we watched and discussed the "Week in Rap" and took a quiz. Tuesday and Thursday we will read and discuss To Kill a Mockingbird. The students are doing a great job with this book. They are asking questions and making intelligent comments about the events of the novel.

Writing: This week students will, with guidance, complete a narrative writing task put out by the state. After walking them through one, I will have kids do an unassisted task next week. We will focus on using a few different resources to write narratives, and focus on narrative writing techniques.

Homework:
7th--IXL XX.3, read for 20
8th--Read for 20, poetry annotations on "Hoods"

Please send auction items in if you are able. Thank you so much to those of you who have done so this year. 

Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Projects: Students are researching and writing magazine articles that explain what made the 1920s "roaring". We will finish these up next week, then move into the Great Depression.

7th Grade Reading: This week we will read several chapters of The Outsiders, stopping to discuss narrative elements and take quick comprehension quizzes. We will also annotate the poem "Hoods," which connects to our novel.

8th Grade Reading: Students will continue to read To Kill a Mockingbird. We will have whole class discussions, take quizzes, and respons in our reading journals about the book. For homework, students need to read chapter 5 at home and be ready for a quiz on Thursday.

Writing: We are finishing up our "Favorite Mistake" papers and will move into writing a fully unassisted narrative. I know these are always harder for the kids (no conferencing, no peer review, etc.), but the unassisted writing samples give me a GREAT idea of where each student is overall in writing.

Homework:
7th--IXL U.2; read for 20 if finished
8th--Read chapter 5 of TKAMB by Thursday


Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Tuesday, January 17, 2016

Projects: Students will use the next couple of weeks to research and complete their article for their group's magazine on the "Roaring 20's."

7th Grade Reading: We are on chapter 2 of The Outsiders and students are working hard on their character posters. Posters will be visual representations and have quotes/evidence from the book around their drawing to give the viewer an accurate picture of the full character.

8th Grade Reading: We are in the middle of chapter 2 in To Kill a Mockingbird. Students will have quizzes frequently on this novel. I am enjoying the discussions and reactions to the narrator's comments thus far.

Writing: We will contnue writing our "Favorite Mistake" stories this week and into next week. Also, students are enjoying their new Twitter page and 6 word memoirs.

Homework:

7th--Tuesday: Read Week in Rap links (quiz Thursday)
        Wednesday--Continue studying links and complete IXL U.2

8th--Tuesday: Poetry annotations on "Friends in the Klan" due Wednesday
        Wednesday: Study Week in Rap links (read passages) and be ready for quiz Thursday

Monday, January 9, 2017

Monday, January 9, 2017

Happy New Year to my awesome students and families!!!!

I hope you all had a wonderful 2 weeks off. Now that it's time to get back to work, here's a look at this week:

Projects: We are starting our unit on the 1920's (The Roaring Twenties); we will begin by reading, completing webquests and watching videos related to this time period before starting our final project.

7th Grade Reading: This week we will start reading one of my VERY FAVORITES:  The Outsiders, by S.E. Hinton. This book consistently captures and engages my 7th graders and I can't wait to share it with them. We will begin with a small author study and some prereading exercises before moving into chapter 1 and some character analyses this week!

Writing: Students will write another narrative. This one will be called "My Favorite Mistake" and it follows a template laid out by Kelly Gallagher, the author of a great writing resource book called Write Like This. The students will focus on expression and reflection skills in this paper. I was so impressed with their "Day in the Life" narratives. I'm hanging them up outside the classroom, so be sure to come by and read them. They are great!

8th Grade Reading: This week my 8th graders and I will start reading To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. This book is a powerful, wonderful story about race relations (among other things) in the deep south during the Great Depression and is, perhaps, my all time favorite book. We will read about Harper Lee and learn some facts about the Great Depression, Jim Crow, and segregation before starting the novel on Thursday.

Homework:

7th--Read for 20 minutes and record on reading log; IXL U.1 Vague Pronoun References

8th--Finish reading stories from "Week in Rap" on Monday; read for 20 and fill out reading logs.