How did it get so late so soon? Its night before its afternoon. December is here before its June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?

Week of December 1-5:

1st Block and 2nd Block:
NUMBER THE STARS
Vocabulary for the week- test on Thursday
1.     typhus
2.     surge
3.     mourning
4.     staccato
5.     stricken
6.     tantalize
7.     sprawling
8.     donned
9.     exasperated
10.   warily
11.    deprivation
12.   anthem
13.   concealed
14.   permeated
15.   contempt

We will either finish (or be dangerously close to finishing) the novel this week.  Students will continue having open book/notebook quizzes.  They will also have a final exam upon completion of the novel.

Along with the novel, we will continue grammar lessons.  Next week, we will have a writing workshop.  Students will get their short story rough drafts back and work on making revisions.

PLEASE remember, all students are required to read 10 books each nine weeks.  Encourage your student to read each night.  Students should read each night for 30 minutes and write a 3 sentence summary.  I will not provide actual reading logs this week but I will go over the directions with the students so they know what is expected.  These reading logs will still need signed by parent/guardian.

4th block will continue reading Ashes of Roses.  They have a handout that must be completed.  They also have 2 projects due.  Please ask your student to see the handouts.  There is a rubric for each project.

Week of November 17th...

On Monday, all 6th grade students will take a Diagnostic Test in both Language Arts and Math on our new program Moby Max.

1st and 2nd Block have started the novel Number the Stars by Lois Lowry.
Vocabulary Words for this week:
1.  occupation/occupy
2.  ration
3.  swastika
4.  rabbi
5.  hazy
6.  submerge
7.  torment                                                                   
8.  distorted
9.  imprint
10. rueful

I have enough books for each student during class but not to take home. You may want to download or obtain a copy from your local library if your child feels like they are falling behind.

4th Block is reading Ashes of Roses by Mary Jane Auch.  They do not have a vocabulary test this week.  However, there will be vocabulary in their packet for the week.  The packet will cover chapters 6-13 and is due Friday.

4th Block also has 2 current Ashes of Roses projects with a third on the way.  Please ask your child to see the handouts for these projects (complete with rubrics).

 

"November's sky is chill and drear...

Wow, where does the time go...

November is going to be hectic...we only have 1 full week of school this entire month!
What shall we do, What shall we do?

I know, how about a short unit on IMMIGRATION? 

New vocabulary words will be given Monday.  Test will be on Thursday.

PROGRESS REPORTS NEED SIGNED AND RETURNED BY TUESDAY.

1.            Ethnic group

2.            Push/Pull factors

3.            Tenement          

4.            Ghetto

5.            Emigrate             

6.            Immigrate          

7.            Melting Pot       

8.            Culture

9.            Barrio -

10.          Citizen

11.          Immigrant –

12.          Immigration Station –

13.          Naturalization -

14.          Steerage -

15.          Descendent -

16.          Ancestor -

 

 

 

Week of October 10/27

Ok, let's try this again.  I posted earlier but it didn't save for some reason.

It's already the last week of OCTOBER!!

Report cards will be here before we know it.  Sooooo, please make sure you have your 10 books read and documented before Wednesday, November 5th.




I will print new progress reports sometime this week.  I will send out an email to let you know when to expect them.

Personification Poems are due Tuesday 10/28!  They need to be on plain white paper with an illustration.

Students will have another quiz on Short Story Elements/Vocabulary this week.  Their notes should be in their 3 ring binders.

Please check for Take Home Folders on Monday.  I haven't finished grading the HOW TO speeches yet but there will be other papers requiring your initials.

Students will have Reading Logs this week.  We didn't have them last week due to fieldtrip and no school on Friday.

We will finish the month of October with one more short story- "The Monkey's Paw".

Week of 10/13

There are still several students who did not complete the essay portion of their Freak the Mighty Final Exam.  Those students will finish Monday.  Anyone who is unhappy with the score they received on the essay portion of the test will be able to redo/revise their essay on a loose leaf sheet of notebook paper and resubmit it (with original test) by Friday of this week.

We are still working on Short Story Elements.  There will be a quiz this week on PLOTLINE but no Vocabulary Test again this week.

This information should be in student notebook.
 

Rough Draft of HOW TO Speeches are due this week-depending on what day they have me for 'Skinny'.

How to Speech

Outline

 

I. Introduction

            a.  Attention Getter

            b.  Thesis- “I’m going to show you how to...”

            c.  Speaker Credibility- I have experience...

            d.  Audience Motivation- Why should the audience listen?

                                                          How will it benefit them?

II.  Body

            a.         Step1

            b.        Step 2

            c.         Step 3

 

 

III.  Conclusion

            a.  Summarize your main points again

            b.  End with a final thought and a thank you

MUST HAVE A VISUAL AID!!!!

We will continue working on October Book this week with mini-lessons on Personification and Concrete Poems.

Welcome October....

Overview of the week  October 6th-10th

I am not posting Vocabulary Words today.  I have handouts for the students and I want to go over each word with them and give several examples of each.  The words we get on October 6th will be studied for 2 weeks before we test.  So, the test on the next list of words will be OCTOBER 16TH.  There will be no Vocabulary Test on Oct. 9th.

We will begin studying the elements of Short Stories this week.

Students will have homework every night this week.  Please look for a Reading Log.  Each child will receive one on Monday.  Please check to see if your child is behind on their reading (10 books for this 9 weeks). 
WHAT IS DUE THIS WEEK???




SIGNED PROGRESS REPORTS, SIGNED ITEMS FROM TAKE HOME FOLDERS, UPDATED 40 BOOK CHALLENGE CHART, READING LOG EACH DAY

Week of September 29th...

Please make sure you sign your child's permission slip to watch "The Mighty".

  If you do not want your child to watch the movie, that's fine.  They will have an alternate assignment during that time.  However, I still need the permission slip.

 

We will finish Freak the Mighty this week.  Every student should have entire Study Guide complete and ready to use on their final exam.  The Study Guide will also be a grade.

 

The last group of Freak the Mighty vocabulary is as follows:

TEST on Thursday!!

 

1.     abduction

2.     obnoxious

3.     puny

4.     manifestation

5.     facilitate

6.     aberration

7.     accommodations

8.     wring

9.     marvel

10.     slag

September Book is due on the last day of September (9/30). 
FREAK THE MIGHTY Mini-Projects will be worked on in class and are due October 3rd.

I AM poems are due ASAP, please.

In October, we will begin our study of the short story.  We will review the parts of a plot line, read some stories and even create a few of our own.

 

Week 3

WE NEED YOUR OLD MAGAZINES!! 

Take Home Folders will come home on Monday.  Please make sure to initial all the papers in the folder and return to school on Tuesday.

We will continue to read Freak the Mighty.  Please make sure your child is filling out the Study Guide that goes along with the book.  It counts as a grade and helps with quizzes.


Vocabulary List #2

1.      steed
2.      pledge
3.      gruel
4.     tenement
5.     Holy Grail
6.     injustice
7.     urgency
8.     trussed
9.     sought
10.   smirk

Rising 6th graders...

If you were required to get tutoring- please make sure you are completing those hours.

PLEASE  read the entire blog.

 

 

 

EVERYONE NEEDS TO PURCHASE THE NOVEL FREAK THE MIGHTY

BY RODMAN PHILBRICK.

You may download the novel or purchase electronic version if you prefer.

 

You will need this book the first week of school.  DO NOT read the book.

 

WHAT TO EXPECT IN 6TH GRADE LANGUAGE ARTS

In 6th grade, students apply skills they learned in earlier grades to make sense of longer,

more challenging books and articles. That includes learning about how authors try to

influence readers and find reasons to support their ideas. Focusing on how authors

make their points and support their arguments with evidence and reasoning helps 6th

grade students sharpen their ability to write and speak with more clarity and coherence.

Students also will expand their vocabularies and use new words in their stories, reports,

and essays. To meet these literacy goals, students must devote significant attention to

precise details in their reading and when writing.

■

Analyzing how chapters of a book, scenes of

a play, or stanzas of a poem fit into the overall

structure of the piece and contribute to the

development of ideas or themes

■

Gaining knowledge from materials that make

extensive use of elaborate diagrams and data to

convey information and illustrate concepts

■

Evaluating the argument and specific claims in

written materials or a speech, and distinguishing

claims that are supported by reasons and

evidence from claims that are not

■

Presenting claims and findings to others orally,

sequencing ideas logically, and accentuating main

ideas or themes

■

Writing arguments that provide clear reasons and

relevant evidence, using credible sources

■

Writing brief reports that examine a topic, have

a clear focus, and include relevant facts, details,

and quotations

■

Conducting short research projects to answer

a question, drawing on several sources and

sharpening the focus based on the research

findings

■

Reviewing and paraphrasing key ideas and

multiple perspectives of a speaker

■

Recognizing variations from standard English in his

or her own and others’ writing and speaking, and

using this knowledge to improve language use

■

Determining the correct meaning of a word based

on the context in which it is used (e.g., the rest of

the sentence or paragraph; a word’s position or

function in a sentence)



SOURCE:http://www.pta.org/files/6th_Grade__BW.pdf

 

 

Please visit this website and others to see what you can do with your child to keep Language Arts skills from slipping over Summer Break.


http://simplekids.net/5-ideas-for-language-skills-2/

 

Make sure to have all school supplies.  We do several projects in Language Arts.  Our first projects will be in connection to Freak the Mighty the first few weeks of school.


We hit the ground running and never look back.