Yesterday, we started working on Unit 2. The theme of this unit is "The Truth". During the last Unit, we focused on short stories and fictional texts. Moving forward, we'll be looking at non-fictional texts such as speeches, biographies/autobiographies, and functional texts.
You can find the introductory powerpoint at this link:
http://docs.google.com/present/edit?id=0AS8VW6c1B17JZGZwa2pqYl8ybnFucjdkNA&hl=en
You can't view the videos in the powerpoint, but you can get an idea for what we're doing. We also worked through finding the main idea of 3 different passages, which can be found here:
http://docs.google.com/present/edit?id=0AS8VW6c1B17JZGZwa2pqYl83Zm41NG1wY3Y&hl=en
Students did well to find the main idea. Since main idea can be so similar to both topic and theme, we created the following formula for finding main idea:
Who/What is being talked about + What is being said about the who/what = 1 sentence Main Idea.
Try to encourage your child to use this formula while they read. Individual chapters and paragraphs can have their own main idea, so sometimes it's more beneficial to NOT look at the whole picture. This can be a particularly helpful exercise when helping your child study for History and Biology tests as these are information-intensive courses!
Supporting details are coming next.... stay tuned.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
READ READ READ!!!!!!!
Parents and Students,
The results of the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test (measuring vocabulary and comprehension) for my four classes show that on average, our students are four grade levels behind in Reading. While this is commonplace throughout the district and in other urban areas, we've never been common folk at Paul. We tend to go above and beyond as MERIT scholars. Four years is a sizable gap, but one that can certainly be closed with hard work and determination. The key ingredient here is encouraging independent reading at home. As a child's reading increases, so too will his or her vocabulary, fluency (rate at which the student reads), and comprehension.
Let's make sure that we're doing our best to read for at least 1 hour each day. This doesn't have to take place all at once. Read an article in the paper, 10-15 pages in a book, and then a movie review or a comic strip. Read for fun. Find something that interests you.... and when you've lost interest, put the book down and find another. Since your reading abilities depend on it, make sure to pick books that fit your own needs.
Let's show everyone that we are good, strong readers in the 9th grade academy!
The results of the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test (measuring vocabulary and comprehension) for my four classes show that on average, our students are four grade levels behind in Reading. While this is commonplace throughout the district and in other urban areas, we've never been common folk at Paul. We tend to go above and beyond as MERIT scholars. Four years is a sizable gap, but one that can certainly be closed with hard work and determination. The key ingredient here is encouraging independent reading at home. As a child's reading increases, so too will his or her vocabulary, fluency (rate at which the student reads), and comprehension.
Let's make sure that we're doing our best to read for at least 1 hour each day. This doesn't have to take place all at once. Read an article in the paper, 10-15 pages in a book, and then a movie review or a comic strip. Read for fun. Find something that interests you.... and when you've lost interest, put the book down and find another. Since your reading abilities depend on it, make sure to pick books that fit your own needs.
Let's show everyone that we are good, strong readers in the 9th grade academy!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
RELAUNCH
Things have been hectic and busy, but I'm planning on launching the blog in full force in the next few days. Stay tuned for the results of our test, kindle updates, and a tentative plan for unit 2. Parents, please come out for conferences from 12-7 this upcoming Friday! I'm looking forward to speaking with you about your student.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Updates
Two days down, many more to go (thankfully).
Students seem to be adjusting quite well to the rigors of the ninth-grade academy (as expected). As teachers, we're certainly thankful to have our students back. It's nice to have students who know what Paul is all about, and are aware of the expectations that we've set for them from the beginning. There's a newness in the air that brings an excitement for learning, forming new relationships, and going beyond all expectations for this year.
English and Reading classes have been great so far. The first two days have been spent mostly outlining expectations for the course, and refreshing the students and their memories about what the purpose of Language Arts/Reading truly is. We've spent a good deal of time talking about the importance of communication and literacy. Today, we talked about the importance of literacy, and read some alarming statistics about illiteracy in the United States. Some of the students were shocked to find out that 50% of US adults cannot read a book on an eighth grade level. Or, how about the fact that 46% of Americans can't read the label on their prescription medicines? Hopefully this serves as a good reminder and investment tool for students. It's important that they know what's really at stake academically--not only in relation to this class and our school, but also looking ahead to competition for jobs and career placement.
My goal is to wrap this week up with a review of grammar and the basics of writing. Today, we briefly discussed the importance of being investigative writers. I really want to inspire students to evaluate the importance of the pursuit of individual knowledge. It's unacceptable for us to go through life always wondering.... at some point we have to go out and find answers. We'll definitely hit this more when we have our unit on journalism-- but PLEASE encourage your student to be a curious thinker, reader, and writer this year. It will revolutionize their approach to academics and school.
That's all for now... check the videos for more updates.
Mr. DeShields
Students seem to be adjusting quite well to the rigors of the ninth-grade academy (as expected). As teachers, we're certainly thankful to have our students back. It's nice to have students who know what Paul is all about, and are aware of the expectations that we've set for them from the beginning. There's a newness in the air that brings an excitement for learning, forming new relationships, and going beyond all expectations for this year.
English and Reading classes have been great so far. The first two days have been spent mostly outlining expectations for the course, and refreshing the students and their memories about what the purpose of Language Arts/Reading truly is. We've spent a good deal of time talking about the importance of communication and literacy. Today, we talked about the importance of literacy, and read some alarming statistics about illiteracy in the United States. Some of the students were shocked to find out that 50% of US adults cannot read a book on an eighth grade level. Or, how about the fact that 46% of Americans can't read the label on their prescription medicines? Hopefully this serves as a good reminder and investment tool for students. It's important that they know what's really at stake academically--not only in relation to this class and our school, but also looking ahead to competition for jobs and career placement.
My goal is to wrap this week up with a review of grammar and the basics of writing. Today, we briefly discussed the importance of being investigative writers. I really want to inspire students to evaluate the importance of the pursuit of individual knowledge. It's unacceptable for us to go through life always wondering.... at some point we have to go out and find answers. We'll definitely hit this more when we have our unit on journalism-- but PLEASE encourage your student to be a curious thinker, reader, and writer this year. It will revolutionize their approach to academics and school.
That's all for now... check the videos for more updates.
Mr. DeShields
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