Classwork
and Homework Goals and Expectations for 7th and 8th Grade
Reading and Writing-- 2015-2016
In 7th and 8th
grade, students will gain a deeper understanding of the common core standards
through literacy. Our goal is for students to be able to read, respond to,
discuss, deeply question, and write about all forms of text. This goal will be
realized by improving their reading ability, their writing skills, and their
critical thinking and questioning skills. (Please see the Pennsylvania State
Standards on the reverse of this page).
How will we accomplish these goals?
· We will be reading/interacting with (questioning), writing
about and discussing many types of texts: fiction (short stories, plays,
novels), poetry, non-fiction (essays, news articles, biographies,
autobiographies).
· We will be writing, editing, and performing all types of
pieces: narrative, opinion, informational, fiction and poetry.
· Student voice: students will often have a choice of types of
assignments, which questions to respond to, and in guided reading—which books
to read. For projects, students will most often have a choice of project topic
and presentation type.
Classwork Expectations:
· Work done in class
is carefully planned to give students a supported opportunity to deeply engage
with the texts we are reading and interpreting. This is not just “busywork” –
the points possible are simply there to give the students a structure as they
work to understand and master the skills and content.
· Upon entering the classroom, students will immediately do a
short “grammar check” item (5 minutes) and then transition into a journal/quick
write prompt (10 minutes). Both items are checked and graded daily—students
receive either a ‘0’ or a ‘+’ for these two assignments.
· We will then move into our main work for the class period.
This may include shared reading (reading as a class), guided reading (reading
independently in small groups), vocabulary work, and various writing prompts
and assignments. All work is checked and graded for completion and mastery
of content daily. Students will be informed of the number points each
assignment is worth before they start. Point ranges for in-class assignments
are from 10 to 25 points. Students can only earn the highest number of
points by demonstrating that they have engaged with the work by analyzing,
synthesizing, critiquing, and/or applying concepts as they are asked.
· Our goal is to
have our students master skills,
concepts, and content-- not simply finish work in a haphazard manner.
Homework Expectations:
·
Homework assignments will support the concepts and skills
covered in class and will help the students gain mastery of the concepts.
·
All students are expected to do thirty minutes
of choice independent reading EVERY night (weekends included).
·
All other regular
homework assignments are given weekly. Homework is assigned each Friday and is
due to be handed in the following Friday.
Because this system gives students plenty of time to complete homework,
no late assignments are accepted. Each weekly homework assignment is worth 20
points. Even though homework is collected
weekly, students should be working on the homework a little bit each day.
·
In addition to
regular homework, students will usually be working on a long-term writing
assignment or project. When these are assigned, students will receive an
assignment explanation and timeline.
It is important that students keep up with these assignments as well as
the regular homework.
Pennsylvania Standards for Reading and Writing
To view and read about each standard
in detail, please visit the PA standards page at http://www.pdesas.org/Standard/VerticalStandard#25991
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