Silent Sustained Reading, Redux

Throughout the year in Wildcat we have taken many opportunities to emphasize reading. 

Reading buddies in Temescal

Whether in Silent Sustained Reading, Literature Circles, or Reading Buddies, the sixth graders have been encouraged to read, and to think about their reading.

In Language Arts today the students and I talked about how to strengthen the commitment they have been showing to reading, and we started a new program that will them stay on track, and help me assess their progress. The students have been given a folder which they will use as a reading packet. In this packet will be the letter that parents have been asked to sign, that outlines the SSR (silent sustained reading) program. There will also be a copy of your personal reading log, as well a copy of your reading response log, where you will record the letters you have sent and received. 

Homework:

Read for at least thirty minutes seven nights a week.
Cultural Studies homework due Tuesday, March 8th. Populating the Earth handout.
Cultural Studies homework due Wednesday, March 9th. Prepare for Cultural Studies test on Sections 1, 2,3.
Language Arts homework due Monday, March 7th. Write a list of Midsummer Night's Dream characters in the scenes we have read, and state, as specifically as possible, what they want.

Language Arts homework due Wednesday, March 9th. Weekly Word Quiz; Five sentences with spelling words.

Introduction to William Shakespeare

In Language Arts some of the students have turned in the first draft of their mystery short stories. Others are still working through their plots and selecting the details necessary to make their writing interesting and effective.

We started a short unit on Shakespeare by looking at a scene from A Midsummer Night's Dream. The students sat in a circle and read from act 1, scene 2. As they read they noted any words or expressions that they were unfamiliar with.


In Cultural Studies we have been following the early hominids journey to becoming hunters and gathers, and the establishment of social groups that were the precursors of the ancient civilizations to come.

Read for thirty minutes.

Cultural Studies Homework due Tuesday,February 15th. Complete all review questions for the handout on Hunters & Gathers. Use lined paper.

Language Arts homework due Wednesday, February 16th. Weekly Word Quiz; Five sentences with spelling words.

Becoming Human

In Cultural Studies the sixth graders are learning about the early hominids and their journey to becoming human. We have been watching and discussing, Becoming  Human, the  Nova video of the same name. Today we also discussed strategies to stay active as a learner, and the responsibility of each to student to use these strategies. The learning tool we used today was exit cards. Each student, at the end of class, wrote on an index card a comment or question that they had after watching the video. This activity helps the student stay alert and intellectually active during class.

In Language Arts the students continued giving presentations on their Literature Circle presentations.

Homework:

Read thirty minutes.

Language Arts homework due Monday, February 7th. Bring in Personal Spelling List with at least 20 words.

Language Arts homework due Wednesday, February 9th. Weekly Word Quiz; Five sentences with spelling words.
Language Arts homework due Thursday, February 10th. Finish 1st draft of Mystery short story.
Cultural Studies homework due Tuesday, February 8th. Complete C.S. handout.

It's A Mystery To Me

In Language Arts today the students worked on either their Literature Circle presentations, or their Mystery Packets.


The packets are part of a unit on writing a short mystery that the sixth graders are all working on. Writing a good mystery takes creating a working outline, having an eye for specific detail, and giving readers what they need to follow the story. These are actually qualities of effective writing in general.


In Cultural Studies the students watched the Nova video Becoming Human. In discussion the students noted the qualities exhibited by early humans that tied into our earlier study of Identity and Community. For instance when early humans gained control of fire that became a powerful component in creating community. It was something that was larger than any one individual that the group could gather around and value.

Homework:

Read thirty minutes.

Language Arts homework due tomorrow. Finish Mystery packet.

Language Arts homework due Monday, February 7th. Bring in Personal Spelling List with at least 20 words.

Language Arts homework due Wednesday, February 9th. Weekly Word Quiz; Five sentences with spelling words.