Week of October 3

The week of October 3 will be dedicated mostly to work on our fairy tales. After reading and discussing a range of fairy tales and fables from all over the world, students are working on an original fairy tale or a re-telling of an existing tale.

We expanded our list of common fairy tale elements and included common conflicts as well.

Students are completing a planning sheet over the weekend to help them decide which fairy tale elements they'll include, who their characters will be, and what conflict will occupy their characters. They'll make some plans about how their stories will unfold, and on Monday we'll start writing!

During the following week, we'll partner up for peer review and then revise our stories.

Final fairy tales will be due at the start of class on October 13.

On a different note, 5th-8th graders will travel on October 14 to Brattleboro for a special event with author David Macaulay. (Some of his books are: The New Way Things Work, The Way We Work, Castle, Cathedral, Mill, Mosque, Pyramid, and Ship.)

Weeks of September 19 and 26

This week we've read and discussed definitions for all fifteen Chapter 1 vocab words. The list is at right. We'll continue to do activities with these words over the next week or so, and then have a test. (I'll give plenty of notice before the test.)

My hope is that we'll use the words enough in class that the test itself won't be too strenuous, and we'll continue to use each chapter's words after each test to help get the words into long term memory. Once we have a test under our belts, we can talk about what strategies people use to learn the words, and I'm committed to figuring out a system that works for each student.

We've been discussing what kind of language helps to create the atmosphere in a story and how a plot unfolds. We've been drawing maps of how the action in a story develops. We also spent some time brainstorming common elements that we've seen in fables, myths, and fairytales (magical objects, people locked in towers, things happening in threes, etc.).

Next week, because of the Lake Champlain trip, I will see the 6th graders for only one English class, but we'll start by each reading and analyzing a fairy tale of our choice. This will lead up to writing our own original fairy tale or re-telling of an existing tale to give us a chance to practice using the literary elements from the writer's point of view.

Weeks of September 5 and 12

We spent the first meetings of 6th grade English setting goals for the year and establishing guidelines for how we'll work together to make the class successful.

We defined the literary elements of plot, character, atmosphere/setting, point of view, and theme, and will continue to review and use them as we begin reading from a variety of stories and fairy tales to start the fall.

We began the Roald Dahl story "The Hitchhiker" together and students are finishing it on their own this weekend. During the week of September 12, we'll continue with another Dahl story, begin work in our vocabulary book, Painless Vocabulary, and have a chance to write in our writing journals. The writing journals are kept in the classroom, and I'll give students a variety of writing prompts throughout the year. Prompts range from funny to serious and always include the option for students to write freely about whatever is on their minds. The journals are intended for experiencing the writing process without the pressure of a finished product.

In the post below you'll find my curriculum guide for 6th English for the year. It also appears on the TGS website and will be published in a hard copy curriculum guide that includes curricula for all grade levels.

2011-12 Curriculum Guide

The sixth grade English curriculum is focused on expanding skills in reading, writing, and speaking. The classroom is a supportive place for the exploration of ideas and students have daily opportunities for both collaborative and independent work.

            Students participate in the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award program by reading at least five books from this year’s selection and voting for their favorite titles.

            Students read from a variety of genres, examining not just what is said, but also how and why. In early fall, students read short fiction and fairy tales, becoming familiar with the literary elements of plot setting, characters, point of view, and theme. Students also read sections from memoirs, essays, and articles. Later literature selections include Witness and Counting on Grace, as well as literature connecting to the school wide global education unit and a cross disciplinary unit on Australian art. Poetry is integrated into regular readings and assignments, with a special focus during National Poetry Month in April.

            In-class writing exercises give students the chance to use the literary elements from the writer’s perspective. Each student keeps a writing journal for in-class work. Assignments are varied, allowing students to examine and practice expository, descriptive, narrative, and persuasive writing.  Students are encouraged to think broadly and stretch beyond their comfort zones in their writing. Students expand their spelling and grammar skills through revision of their own work, group proofreading exercises, and with additional material from Rules of the Game and Painless Grammar. Students gain new vocabulary from weekly lessons in Painless Vocabulary as well as vocabulary from the literature selections.

            Speaking and listening skills are practiced on a daily basis, with all students participating in class discussions.  With the expectation that all ideas are valuable, students are encouraged to share their thoughts with others in whole-class and small-group activities.

            In the spring, students complete independent research (I-Search) projects on topics of their choosing.  In a combined social studies/English unit, students research their topics, write an in-depth report (with multiple drafts), and make an oral and visual presentation to an audience.