Dear Parents,
It’s time for a new school year to begin! I am looking forward to working with your student this year. Please help us to get off to a good start by reviewing the classroom procedures page (see tab above) with your son/daughter. I want to thank you for your cooperation. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me at [email protected].
Reading:
The goal of reading class in sixth grade is to improve reading skills and comprehension while fostering an interest in reading. Throughout the year, students will read short pieces of different types of literature from the McDougal-Littell’s Literature textbook and will read a variety of other sources such as novels, articles, and newspapers. We have class sets of our novels and textbooks. Therefore, none of these texts will be coming home. Thus, assignments attached to these texts will be completed during class time or study hall. I have additional paperback copies of the novels. Should you need one, see me in study hall to check one out to take home. Students will also be using Google Docs to complete some assignments.
In addition to class reading, students will be encouraged to read independently, and classes will have time scheduled to visit the school library. I also have a classroom library from which students may borrow books. You and your student should be aware that they are responsible for books that they have borrowed. Books lost or damaged will need to be replaced. On a related note, while I consider my library to contain high quality, age- appropriate books, you are ultimately responsible for deciding what is appropriate for your child. So, please make an effort to talk to your child about what he/she is choosing to read.
Ongoing Reading Assignment:
Students will be required to read for 90 minutes each week outside of class. You may read whatever you like, but you must keep a record of what you are reading and the times that you read. We will provide a reading log and ask that a parent/guardian, a responsible adult, or a school staff member sign the form to verify each reading session. Please do not use initials or I will return the form to be signed. This is a graded assignment that will be checked every Friday and is worth 5 points per week.
Language:
In this class, your student will explore many areas about our wonderful language. Technology is often integrated in language class, so to help your son or daughter be successful, please become familiar with some of the areas we will be using:
As the year begins, we will be focusing on grammar, which will be used all year long. During the transition to second quarter, the emphasis is placed more heavily on analyzing and creating sentence structure and paragraph organization. Near the end of second quarter, students will begin organizing paragraphs into a short compare/ contrast essay. In third quarter, students will be analyzing components of an argumentative essay, as well as completing their own. As the third quarter ends and the final quarter begins, students will be using dialogue to complete their own narrative essay, which will be concluded as the year comes to a close.
It’s time for a new school year to begin! I am looking forward to working with your student this year. Please help us to get off to a good start by reviewing the classroom procedures page (see tab above) with your son/daughter. I want to thank you for your cooperation. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me at [email protected].
Reading:
The goal of reading class in sixth grade is to improve reading skills and comprehension while fostering an interest in reading. Throughout the year, students will read short pieces of different types of literature from the McDougal-Littell’s Literature textbook and will read a variety of other sources such as novels, articles, and newspapers. We have class sets of our novels and textbooks. Therefore, none of these texts will be coming home. Thus, assignments attached to these texts will be completed during class time or study hall. I have additional paperback copies of the novels. Should you need one, see me in study hall to check one out to take home. Students will also be using Google Docs to complete some assignments.
In addition to class reading, students will be encouraged to read independently, and classes will have time scheduled to visit the school library. I also have a classroom library from which students may borrow books. You and your student should be aware that they are responsible for books that they have borrowed. Books lost or damaged will need to be replaced. On a related note, while I consider my library to contain high quality, age- appropriate books, you are ultimately responsible for deciding what is appropriate for your child. So, please make an effort to talk to your child about what he/she is choosing to read.
Ongoing Reading Assignment:
Students will be required to read for 90 minutes each week outside of class. You may read whatever you like, but you must keep a record of what you are reading and the times that you read. We will provide a reading log and ask that a parent/guardian, a responsible adult, or a school staff member sign the form to verify each reading session. Please do not use initials or I will return the form to be signed. This is a graded assignment that will be checked every Friday and is worth 5 points per week.
Language:
In this class, your student will explore many areas about our wonderful language. Technology is often integrated in language class, so to help your son or daughter be successful, please become familiar with some of the areas we will be using:
- Google Classroom (classroom.google.com)
- Google Drive (primarily Google Docs)
- Skyward.com (for current grades)
As the year begins, we will be focusing on grammar, which will be used all year long. During the transition to second quarter, the emphasis is placed more heavily on analyzing and creating sentence structure and paragraph organization. Near the end of second quarter, students will begin organizing paragraphs into a short compare/ contrast essay. In third quarter, students will be analyzing components of an argumentative essay, as well as completing their own. As the third quarter ends and the final quarter begins, students will be using dialogue to complete their own narrative essay, which will be concluded as the year comes to a close.