The Ingredients of our English Language Arts Class
Same great recipe, but now bigger and better! This year, students will have ELA for 85 minutes each day. Each class period will include many of the ingredients listed below. Students will attend ELA and other academic classes with their homeroom.
Reading |
Book Clubs: Students discuss their reading and receive differentiated instruction in a small-group setting during book club meetings. Areas of focus for these meetings include reading comprehension, close reading strategies, and vocabulary/word work. To prepare for these meetings, students complete reading assignments and accompanying written work.
Book Talks: All students present 2+ multimedia presentations per trimester on books they've read and enjoyed. Presenting book talks gives students an opportunity to practice public speaking, and helps the audience of readers build their Reading Wish Lists. Mini-lessons: These quick, whole-class lessons use familiar mentor texts and help guide students by coaching them on reading habits and strategies. Read Aloud: Through listening to books shared aloud, students can access and interact with complex texts. They participate in frequent whole-class and small-group discussions around shared texts, and occasionally respond in writing. Read alouds also serve as mentor texts to study authors' craft. Our first read aloud will be Love That Dog by Sharon Creech. Other books students are likely to hear include:
Independent Reading: One of my favorite authors, Jack Gantos, says, "Read a lot or your brain will rot!" Fifth graders feed their brains by reading for 20+ minutes, 6 days per week. Through teacher conferences, peer recommendations, and visits to our Conners Emerson Library, students are aided in the selection of high-interest, "just right" books from a variety of literary genres. |
Writing |
For our writing workshop, we use units and assessment materials created by Lucy Calkins and the The Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University's Teachers College. Fifth grade writing workshop focuses on four units of study:
Throughout the year, we will have writing celebrations to share our work. We also encourage students to submit to Conners Emerson's literary magazine. |
Word Work |
Students receive guided phonics, spelling, and vocabulary instruction through word sorts and accompanying activities from Word Journeys by Kathy Ganske. Word sorts are tailored to each student's readiness level.
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