Our 7th graders wrote argument essays, and I am so proud of their results. The only way to become a better writer is to write, and these students are on their way. I want to announce to the world that our students CAN and DO write amazing stories, essays, and reports! I have proof!
I really really REALLY admire my Advisory students. I am lucky to have them as my Advisory Class for THREE years in a row. :)
Reciprocal teaching teaches students to work and teach each other. It helps all readers use the top four reading strategies and learn them for life: 1) making predictions, 2) asking questions about what is being read, 3) clarifying words or parts that are confusing, and 4) summarizing the text.
One of our first grade teachers, Ms. Johnson, brought her class to our room to show us their work on Elements of a Fairy Tale. We were so proud and impressed with the work they shared! Lucky us!
I'm going to stand up for my students! They are WRITERS! Good ones, too! I am reading short stories and myths that are SO full of dialogue, strong word choice, figurative language, unique transitions, and more!
Just like reading, our students are at different places in writing. Do they need to put in time and effort and rereading and revising to write a strong piece of writing? Of course! BUT, they all know how to move forward and get better and better. Each student has their own unique writing voice, and I am proud of every single one of them.
Believe it when I say this: Our students are prepared to write, and they can! My heart is full right now ...
Students use this flow chart each day to show what part of their short story they are writing. I REALLY like this because I can see at a glance where they are ...
This is part of a poster I made for my classes: "We are all authors! Believe it!"
Reyllan, Tasi, and Jericho reading a Greek myth from our SpringBoard book. They wanted to show me a dab before they began!!
Xoli and Joshua enjoying their books. I love seeing my students reading books, books, and more books!!!!
Students are sharing and talking about their books. Is there a better way to increase your vocabulary, comprehension, and writing skills than by reading a book of your choice? I don't think so!!!!
We've been writing, writing, and writing the second half of quarter one. This picture shows some writing tools for my students: Word lists to make their Word Choice stronger, check-off-sheets to make sure they have completed everything asked for in the assignment, and rubrics so students know EXACTLY what will be assessed. No secrets in this class!!! :)
Writing tip of the day: Revising our writing is the most important thing we can do to become a better writer. Most of us don't like to revise - at first, anyway - but when these tools and techniques sink in, they will become a habit and writing and revising won't seem so hard anymore.
I LOVE surprise notes like these!!!! I'm so thankful and lucky to be a teacherl
Students will be presenting a talk about one of the books they read this quarter. They chose one card from each category - remembering, knowledge, analyzing, applying, evaluating, and creating. We are all looking forward to this!!!
Book Talks = Inspiring Others to Read
P.S. Families and Students, thank you for the fantastic Scholastic book orders! Because of your generous orders, I will be ordering many many MANY new books for our classroom during fall break. MAHALO!
Sydney, Yasmine, and Davan are happy sixth graders! Middle school is an exciting step in the adventure of life. :)
Teva and William reading from our SpringBoard book. It's one of my favorite stories! (Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen)
During advisory class, Max and Brennan are reading to two students in Mrs. Mervin's kindergarten class. :)
