Daily Routines

As educators, we all know how important it is for students to have daily routines. Over the course of the past two years, I have taught on a 4x4 80 minute block. Each block used the same daily structure:

Warm Up
Word Study (Vocabulary)
Read Aloud (Literacy Strategy Implementation)
Classroom Discussion/Socratic Seminar
Daily Lesson (As it applied to literature: Symbolism, theme, character, plot, etc)
Classwork (This would alternate between independent coursework and group work)
Closing (I have tried to use the closing as a time for students to leave questions in an exit slip, and review the homework assignment for the day)

This year, I will be working on a Modified Block. Because this schedule will take some adjusting for me, I have tried to come up with a schedule that is conducive to success for all 5 of my classes. The (mental) schedule that I've come up with for this year is as follows:

Monday: Monday is the only day of the week that I will see all five of my classes; therefore, I plan to use Mondays as a vocabulary day. I will introduce the vocabulary lesson for the week on Mondays; in addition, I will give students an overview of what will be taught during the week -- they will get an introductory lesson to the information that will be taught more in-depth as the week continues.

The routine for my Even/Odd Day classes will include a schedule similar to the one of last year's. Because my block classes will be between 96 and 110 minutes, I will use a similar class setup.

Warm Up
Introduction to Daily Reading (Pre-reading activities, reviews, literacy strategies, etc)
Reading Block (Read Aloud, Literature Circles)
Socratic Seminar/Discussion
Lesson Reinforcement and Activity
Classwork/Small group work
Closing (to include vocabulary reviews, homework assignments, questions/comments, student recognition, etc)

I am hopeful that this schedule/set-up will work well, but if it does not, I will come up with another section to add, or a way to rearrange the day so that I can find a method that helps move things along smoothly.

Touching Spirit Bear

Touching Spirit Bear will be the first novel that is taught to my students during the school year. I have already read the novel and have created an anticipation guide for my students, which includes activities centered on the introduction of the novel, and each chapter in Part I of the novel. Because the curriculum uses only Part I, I decided that my final project for the novel will include each of my students creating their own version of the ending of Touching Spirit Bear: Will Cole go back to the island (anyone who's read the novel knows that he does), Will he be reformed, Will he interact with the Spirit Bear again? Students will be able to pose their own questions and answer them in the form of a story.

I plan to use this tactic as a way to introduce (formal) writing into the course. The writing process can easily be used throughout this exercise, as can the active writing guide used by my school.

I will try to update this by providing information on how the students work with Touching Spirit Bear and all of the assignments detailed in the unit.

2008-2009 School Year

As last year progressed, I found myself falling behind in my posts. I am hoping that with my new position, I will be able to find new energy to continually blog my efforts to reinforce literacy strategies in my English Language Arts classes. This year, I am transitioning to a seventh grade classroom in the Fairfax County Public Schools district. I am hoping that my efforts in the D.C. Public Schools system were not fruitless, and will lead me to make as much of an impact with my students this year.

Last year, I was able to complete almost the full Elements of Literature text book, in addition with the three novels: The Pearl, Things Fall Apart, To Kill a Mockingbird, and one play: Romeo and Juliet. I made a 50-page anticipation guide for R&J; and, it helped the students work their way through the play by combining Sustained Silent Reading (SSR) with Read Alouds and process drama routines made through group-oriented projects. I plan on using the tactics used last year, which took my students from teacher-centered readings (The Pearl) to the aforementioned lessons used during our Shakespeare unit.

Teaching middle school will bring a new list of challenges, I'm sure, but I am looking forward to working with a new staff and a new group of students!