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.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
