Week of January 11th

 

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

It has been so nice to have some sunshine this weekend; this seems like a winter of grey, rainy days.  Your scholars brighten each day, though!  I was excited to get back to them after break.  We are wrapping up quarter 2 this month.  It is a good time to check with your student to see what work, if any, needs to be completed before grades are due on January 27th.  You can find assignments by having your scholar open up their English (6th grade) or Reading (5th  grade) course in Schoology.  Click on grades in the left hand column menu.  All assignments will be listed a dash or an orange hexagon identifies work not completed.  Grades and feedback are listed for completed work.  If there are any excused assignments, they will be marked with a green hexagon.  Thank you for your support!!

This week we will be checking progress with iReady mid year assessments.  Please pay close attention to the schedule changes due to testing.  Remind scholars to be patient and read questions carefully as they test.  Again, thank you for your support!

5th Grade

This week 5th graders will be analyzing figurative language and character development in chapters 4-6 of The Phantom Tollbooth.  If you have not picked up your scholar's copy of the text from school, the text is available as a digital copy in the weekly lessons and in the Reading Course in Schoology.  The story is quite amusing; have your student share some of the events and word play with you.

5th Grade Planner

5th Grade Lessons Slide Show

6th Grade

This week scholars are continuing to study the monomyth or hero's journey as they read Gillian Cross' adaptation of The Odyssey.  We will be analyzing the sections titled Nausicaa and Odysseus the Beggar.  If you have not picked up your scholar's copy of The Odyssey from school, your scholar can access the text in their English course.  As we look at how Odysseus grows and changes through his journey, we are also analyzing the writer's craft.  After wrapping up this novel, scholars will be working on writing their own hero's journey narrative.

6th Grade Planner

6th Grade Lessons Slide Show

Week of January 4th - Happy New Year!

Week of January 4th

It is hard to believe that we are already in January.  Thank you for all of your support and for your thoughtful Christmas gifts and wishes.  I hope you were able to connect with family over the holiday; I really enjoyed seeing some of my family, but it was a much smaller gathering for sure!  Please keep on top of the FCPS information regarding hybrid instruction; with COVID metrics changing, the county is making changes to the hybrid plans that were in line to start quarter 3.

Special Reminder:  I have doctor's appointments on both Monday and Wednesday and have left Asynchronous plans for those days; scholars will need to check their planner in the Schoology English (6th grade) or Reading (5th grade) Course for assigned work.  I will be available both afternoons for small group instruction and for individual student needs.

5th Grade Instruction

Focus Standards for the Week:

• Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
• Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors and similes.
• Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.

This week we will continue with our novel, The Phantom Tollbooth.  Scholars will work on understanding and interpreting idioms.  They will also focus on the sensory details that the author uses to help engage the reader.  To demonstrate their understanding of sensory details, the scholars will practice using sensory details in a personal narrative writing piece of our own.  As we discuss the chapters this week, students need to continue to quote the text when explaining what is happening in the story or when sharing inferences or ideas they have developed about the story.  Please encourage your scholar to reference their text when you have discussions at home about their reading.   This is a fun read!  If you would like to read along, there is a digital copy here:   https://mrkingrocks.com/files/phantom.pdf

5th Grade Work Planner

5th Grade Lessons

6th Grade Instruction

Focus Standards for the Week:

• Describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.
• Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of a specific word choice on meaning and tone.

We are quickly making progress through Gillian Cross' adaptation of Homer's Odyssey.  As we move through the story, we are examining the monomyth genre - the hero's journey.  Scholars are reviewing the events in the story and comparing them to the typical story arch of the monomyth.  This week we will look at the difference between hubris and humility and examine the difference between disappointment and failure as well as we look closely at the character of Odysseus and discuss possible themes of the myth.  In addition, we will examine the roles of narration and dialogue to determine their importance in developing the narrative more fully.  If you are interested in reading along, there is a digital copy available in the Schoology Course.  

6th Grade Work Planner

6th Grade Lessons