Themes to Guide Us

     For the upcoming school year, I will be teaching grades 7 through 10 English Language Arts. Each grade level will be embarking on a journey of learning based on an overarching theme. Our greatest goal this year, however, will be to read and write every day. By using daily quick writes, responding to texts and challenging students to read daily, students will build their stamina and volume for both reading and writing, but also increase their vocabulary, specific reading and writing skills, and their confidence in LA. Reading and writing will involve conferencing with the teacher to check in, stay on track but also encourage students to keep moving forward. Students are asked to bring a notebook as part of their school supplies that is dedicated solely to LA, because the notebook stays in the assigned bin in the classroom so that it is always handy.
     Parents can use FreshGrade as a window into the classroom, as students will select works in progress to share using photos or video chats. While FreshGrade will be used as a platform to collect portfolios for student works in progress, final scores will be collected in PowerTeacherPro. We will primarily use chrome books to access FreshGrade, Kahoot, Blogger, Google Classroom and other tech tools as a part of our learning. There may be some instances where students will use personal devices, but these times will be restricted to educational purposes at the teacher's discretion.
     To access any of the theme documents, course outlines, or forms, a digital copy has been added to Google Classroom. Your students can log in with their school user name and password to access Google Classroom at any time. Please also consider signing up for Remind updates to receive notifications and reminders. The information to join Remind is posted in Google Classroom but was also on the brochure or infographic your students should have brought home along with FreshGrade forms and a text list to be signed.
    Email is usually best to reach me, although Remind also has a feature for texting if you have quick questions. Meeting face to face is often best and we can book a time to speak in person through Remind, email or by phone. I look forward to seeing where this year takes all of the students in LA!