Our Study of Narrative: Day One!!

Narrative is the way we share our lives with the world.  Whether you are a nerdy future-Bill Gates, a quiet wallflower, or a star athlete (or a mix of all 3!), your connection to the world and other people is through story.

Today we begin our work with narrative.  Specifically, we are focusing on genres that fall into this kind of writing:  realistic fiction (for 8th grade) and fantasy (for 7th grade).  We have some lofty goals, but I am positive we will reach them!  For 7th grade, our goal is to write a great fantasy story.  For 8th, great realistic fiction. 

A foundation we are working to lay here in Room 220 is the ability to view the world with the eyes of a writer. 

For some students, this is a very new way to see the events, conversations, decisions, sights, smells and perspectives that usually just pass them by.  For others, it's an opportunity to live the way they always have:  Collecting tidbits here and there in writer's notebooks that might later bloom into a story that hits a reader right in the heart.





To begin our life as writers, we are collecting ideas in our writers' notebooks.  We've looked to Suzanne Collins' inspiration for Hunger Games and John Green's inspiration for The Fault in Our Stars to think about: 

 

Students use this strategy to ground their story ideas with real life, and drift sometimes into the "what ifs" that imagination can take us to.

Students are working to gather a minimum of 10 fiction story ideas in their writers' notebooks. I can't wait to hear what stories they discover hidden in their lives.

How to Choose a Book . . . With a Twist!

Each year for ELA students are required to choose a book for independent reading.  Becoming a better reader is always a goal for our students, and the best way to do that is to read more!

By the time students reach 7th and 8th grade, they are well-versed in how to make the decision whether or not to choose a book to independently read.  Each year I ask the question, I get the canned responses:

• look the cover
• read the back 
• choose an author you like
• choose a series you like
• choose a genre you like

Students rattle off the list like prisoners reciting their numbers!  This year, students were asked to bump it up a notch and take responsibility for their own growth as readers:

Why do you think you might enjoy the book you chose?  

AND  

How will the book you chose make you a better reader?

Students' task today was to find a book that seemed not only interesting to read, but would grow their reading skills.  Our ideas about how to do this varied from class to class, but not by much.

Most students found books they feel will challenge them.  Next week, we start reading conferences in which we'll try out these books as catalysts for growth! 

Have a great weekend!

Narrative Assessment: Show What You Know

Today both 7th and 8th grade students completed a writing piece that assessed their knowledge of narrative writing.  The prompt was simple:  Write a personal narrative.

Students dig right in to this task, and each period I had students who wrote until the very last minute.  This assessment will help me understand two pieces of very important information about students as we prepare for our first unit of study:

1. What do they already know about writing narratives?  I don't want to create lessons about skills students already have.
2. What gaps do students have in their understanding of this kind of writing?  My lessons should be created from students' instructional needs.

I'll be using rubrics for narrative writing from the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project .  These rubrics assess the following writing traits for narrative writing:

• Overall:  the writing piece as a whole
•  Lead:  what the writer establishes at the beginning
• Transitions:  how the writer moves the reader through the story
• Ending:  how the writer creates a sense of closure
• Organization:  understanding of how narrative writing is structured
• Elaboration:  the development of story elements
• Craft:  the intertwining of the story elements
• Spelling
• Punctuation & Sentence Structure

Within the next couple of weeks, I'll be collecting much more information about the readers and writers in my classroom, and be planning for the first units of study!

First Day!

What a day! 

I've decided to hang this motto over my door this year to remind me about what's most important in my job.  I want it to be the first thought that occurs when I plan my lessons, and I think my first day reflects this.

As it usually goes, class today was spent taking surveys and doing getting-to-know-you activities.  I love that I already know some of my students from last year, but today I made sure I built in time to chat with each student one-to-one to ensure I begin communication on day one.

While I was chatting, students completed a technology survey and an "all about me" questionnaire.  I'll take a look at these tonight as I start to make plans for future lessons and class management.

We also worked on meeting in a circle.  Yes, we actually went out in the hall and practiced coming into the classroom, getting a chair and bringing it to the meeting area.  This is where we will start class every day. A few students immediately commented that this practice felt like rug time in kindergarten, but when I asked about the benefits of starting class in this way some great thinking emerged:

• it allows for good discussion because no one can "hide"
• it makes it easier to participate
• you can look at the person speaking
• you are forced to get to know your class

Speaking and Listening are ELA standards, and the ability to have a purposeful discussion (both the sharing ideas and listening to others') is an essential life skill.  We'll be practicing these skills every day.

For homework tonight I've asked students to have a permission letter signed.  The letter for 8th grade is here, and 7th grade is here.

Tomorrow we start with our initial assessment for narrative.  Students will be asked to write a personal narrative, and I'm not going to give much more direction than that!  Their performance will help me understand where to begin in our first unit of study.

This day has left me with anticipation for the year.  I'm tired, but excited!  Hoping students feel the same. 

Recharged and Ready to Go!

Welcome to our brand new school year!

I know, I know.  There are still 2 weeks left before school starts, but those back-to-school butterflies of excitement are already starting!

Although I am sending a letter home to all my 7th and 8th grade parents and guardians, I'd like to include some additional information about what ELA will look like this year.  Our department has been working hard over the summer to make some updates to our curriculum, and the results are very exciting!

The first few weeks of school will help me get to know my students.  We'll choose some books together, read together, and write together.  We'll establish the structures and rules of our classroom and the time we spend together daily.  We form a community of readers and writers who support each other.  Then, it's time to dig into to our serious ELA work!

Just as I hate it when my friends give away the ending of a great movie before I've seen it, I don't want to give away all the units planned for this year.  But, I will let you in on the first one.  For 7th graders, we will be studying the genre of Fantasy.  This includes reading fantasy stories and then writing them.  For 8th graders, the genre of choice is Realistic Fiction.  When this unit is over, all students will have the opportunity to be authors of fiction!

One last bit of news to be excited about:  when I visited my classroom yesterday, I walked into the middle of a new installation in my classroom.  A new 80-inch flatscreen!  Apple TV!  Although I still have some training to do, I'm already thinking about ways this piece of technology will enhance the learning we do this year.  Gosh, I love technology.

Finally, I'd like to include links to the letters home to parents/guardians.  Students will need these signed for the first week of school.  Just click the links below to access the documents.

ELA 8 Letter Home

ELA 7 Letter Home 


Looking forward to an amazing year!