Another week has come and gone in room 315. Last week, we reviewed and practiced our independent, self-directed learning with the use of our Google Classroom platform for completing and submitting assignments. Everyone is at a different level of understanding and independence, but I know that with practice we will all end up where we need to be. Last week, we got deeper into our novel study. I am so impressed with the depth of our conversations, connections, and understanding of the text. Students went through their first full vocabulary and grammar protocol for the week. We ended with an assessment in each subject on Friday. Please note that for this initial assessment, I am not scoring for accuracy. I believe that it's important for the students to become familiar with the process before assessing their understanding of the content. I wanted everyone to become familiar with the format of the assessment, as it may be different from what has been done in the past. With vocabulary in particular, it is important that students review their words throughout the week. I am teaching a different study skill each week to assist the students in understanding ways that you can effectively study. While students are given time to review their words in class, I encourage them to spend 5 minutes a day reviewing when they are away from school. This is a suggestion, not a requirement, but one that can help students develop good study habits. In math, most students completed their assignments for OA.1 (order of operations) and have begun work on OA.2 (expressions). I will continue to work in small group on extending or practicing these skills this week. Finally, students reached their first research checkpoint for their unit f inquiry. I am very pleased with how the students performed on their initial research. I am providing individual feedback to each student as we move into the next phase of research this week. This week, we will continue with our novel study. We will be focusing on using RACE-CE as a strategy for writing a response to literature. I will be teaching students the expectations and providing the rubric that will be used to assess their responses to the interpretive question each week. Additionally, we will be practicing using conversation moves during our Socratic Seminars. While the first half of the year, I will facilitate the Socratic Seminar for each reading group, my goal is to gradually release the students and empower them to facilitate their own conversations about the novel. It will take practice, but I know we will succeed! Students will be provided with a new vocabulary list for the week today. Additionally, our grammar focus for the week will be identifying nouns. Students should be working on their character analysis projects and narrative writing pieces for a few minutes each day, as well. Finally, our inquiry focus for the week will be synthesizing our research. Students will be sorting out their understanding of each conflict studied in order to identify any patterns or overarching concepts. The sorting out organizer will be due for feedback on Friday. In math, students will continue their investigation of order of operations and expression. Additionally, we will introduce multi-digit multiplication using a variety of strategies this week. I have reviewed and shared the rubric for our "Move On" which is the name of our class work time model with students. Everyone should be clear on the expectations for our math work time in class at this point. If there are any questions, please don't hesitate to let me know. REMINDERS/ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Friday, August 31 - Vocabulary Assessment Two Friday, August 31 - Grammar Assessment (Nouns) Friday, August 31 - Sorting Out - Research Check Point Friday, September 6 - Fictional Narrative Due Friday, September 14 - Character Analysis Project Due It's going to be another great week for teaching and learning in room 315!
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January 2019
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