Engage! We continue pushing on.
This is a week of harsh reality. Many of the students have found themselves on academic probation for lack of not turning in their work. My turn-in policy is simple, assignments are due the next day with the exception of my writing classes this week. We had trouble printing in the lab, therefore assignments will be due Monday. All journals and notebooks are due on Fridays, so I can grade them over the weekend. I will restate this policy again this week.
Please also remember, I only send hard copy grades every other Monday and students are expected to be signed and returned. I had several students who chose not to return them. I do count those as a grade so get them back to me as soon as you can. You can access your child's grades on Skyward anytime and I would encourage you to do so. I tend to do most of my grading over the weekend, so Mondays are a good day to check.
Literature this week will continue to cover story elements with emphasize on conflict.
Writing classes will be peer editing their narrative stories and moving on to review of grammar.
Study Skills class have been completing local job applications. We will be continuing this progress this week. Friday, seventh period is our first pep assembly.
Congratulations to those kids participating in football, cross country, and volleyball. I was so proud of how well everyone played.
Have a wonderful week.
Mrs. Bowman
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Week of September 17-21
Up and Onward! My students are soaring upward and we are moving onward through the curriculum.
Please look for progress reports on Monday; they should be signed and returned by Tuesday. Also, remember you can login in and check your student's grades through skyward.
Something you may have noticed when I post curriculum assignments is that I post the Sunday before. It seems I over-plan because we haven't made it through a complete week yet, but I would rather have your child be over-prepared then under. Please continue to follow the assignments posted.
Literature this week will be covering story elements with emphasis on setting, plot, character development, and conflict. I will continue to meet with students and share their assessment results and monitor fluency and comprehension.
Writing classes have been working on personal narratives (true stories about themselves). My objective was creative writing with focus on introduction and organization. Students will be finishing their rough drafts and completing a published piece by the end of the week.
Study Skills will be going through the application process and continuing to prepare for job interviews.
Have a wonderful week.
Mrs. Bowman
Please look for progress reports on Monday; they should be signed and returned by Tuesday. Also, remember you can login in and check your student's grades through skyward.
Something you may have noticed when I post curriculum assignments is that I post the Sunday before. It seems I over-plan because we haven't made it through a complete week yet, but I would rather have your child be over-prepared then under. Please continue to follow the assignments posted.
Literature this week will be covering story elements with emphasis on setting, plot, character development, and conflict. I will continue to meet with students and share their assessment results and monitor fluency and comprehension.
Writing classes have been working on personal narratives (true stories about themselves). My objective was creative writing with focus on introduction and organization. Students will be finishing their rough drafts and completing a published piece by the end of the week.
Study Skills will be going through the application process and continuing to prepare for job interviews.
Have a wonderful week.
Mrs. Bowman
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Week of September 10-15
We are off and running. I'm hoping your kids are coming home excited about school (hopefully not too sore) and sharing their planners with you.
I'm sure some of you may be wondering why I choose to do 3-5 minutes of fitness everyday in my core classes. This is something I have done for years, not only is it highly motivating, it relieves stress/anxiety as well as gives me an opportunity to emphasize that importance of goals and we are all striving to be better. Unfortunately, some of your children may have me for more than one period and they may get a little sore. Believe or not in three minutes you can get an effective workout, especially if your body isn't accustomed to it. Encourage them to continue to stretch at home. I always promote safety in class, but often it the soreness doesn't come until the next day. I will be sending home a list of stretches that can be done home this week.
TECHNOLOGY UPDATE- We can finally access our class blog from school, but we are still experiencing some difficulty linking our class grades to it. I will keep you posted of any changes. Remember, this blog is constantly evolving, so please be patient.
In Literature this week, we will be covering story elements. Also, I will be introducing read- alouds (I read a variety of literature to the class) and the students will be expected to use HOT (Hierarchy of Talk) as a way to clarify the reading. In addition, students need to have a library book everyday. They will be independently reading (IR) on a regular basis while I conference with every student once a week. This is an opportunity for me to assess their fluency, readability level, and their reading strategies they rely on.
Writing classes will continue to work on strong opening paragraphs, with emphasize on their first sentence.
The Study Skills class will finish their resumes and look at preparing for an interview. I have several eigth grade students who are interested in getting a job so I will be bringing in actual applications from local businesses who are hiring.
Have a wonderful week and thank you to those parents who introduced themselves to me via email. I would love to hear from all of you.
I'm sure some of you may be wondering why I choose to do 3-5 minutes of fitness everyday in my core classes. This is something I have done for years, not only is it highly motivating, it relieves stress/anxiety as well as gives me an opportunity to emphasize that importance of goals and we are all striving to be better. Unfortunately, some of your children may have me for more than one period and they may get a little sore. Believe or not in three minutes you can get an effective workout, especially if your body isn't accustomed to it. Encourage them to continue to stretch at home. I always promote safety in class, but often it the soreness doesn't come until the next day. I will be sending home a list of stretches that can be done home this week.
TECHNOLOGY UPDATE- We can finally access our class blog from school, but we are still experiencing some difficulty linking our class grades to it. I will keep you posted of any changes. Remember, this blog is constantly evolving, so please be patient.
In Literature this week, we will be covering story elements. Also, I will be introducing read- alouds (I read a variety of literature to the class) and the students will be expected to use HOT (Hierarchy of Talk) as a way to clarify the reading. In addition, students need to have a library book everyday. They will be independently reading (IR) on a regular basis while I conference with every student once a week. This is an opportunity for me to assess their fluency, readability level, and their reading strategies they rely on.
Writing classes will continue to work on strong opening paragraphs, with emphasize on their first sentence.
The Study Skills class will finish their resumes and look at preparing for an interview. I have several eigth grade students who are interested in getting a job so I will be bringing in actual applications from local businesses who are hiring.
Have a wonderful week and thank you to those parents who introduced themselves to me via email. I would love to hear from all of you.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Week of September 4-7
YAH, week number one is finished and we are all alive. I have to say Friday came quicker than I had hoped. I guess time flies when you have such great kids.
We are continuing to have some technical difficulties with linking our blog to the school. At this point we are unable to even view or have any association of the blog at school. I have spoken to tech support and they have reassured me that things will be up and running by the end of the week.
Also this week we will be starting where we left off. Many of the kids needed two days to finish their assessments. So, this week we will be correcting and charting, then creating personal goal plans based on those scores.
In addition, literature classes will be taking their first trip to the library and will be checking out two books one for my class and one for home. I know schedules are busy, but if time permits encourage your child to read at home. Remember it doesn't matter what your child is reading as long as they are reading. At this stage in the game, a child who reads what they want will have a better chance of developing an intrinsic love for books.
Writing classes will be exploring expository text and rediscovering the importance of classroom resources.
The study skills class has taken a different direction than what was originally developed due to the number of 7th graders who are now enrolled. It was largely intended to prepare students for the Pearls Project. I have decided to move more towards a citizenship and career applications class. The theme of the course will be "The Choices We Choose to Make Today, Can and Will Effect our Future". Students will be exploring their future based on if they graduate from a university or for some the harsh reality of not even graduating from high school. Unfortunately, their educational future is determined by the roll of a dice. From here we will talk about available careers, creating resumes, interviewing, the importance of being a respected citizen/leader no matter what type of education you have chosen. Then finally tying in Pearls Project and what we can do now.
If you have any questions or concerns please don't hesitate to contact me.
Have a safe and wonderful week.
We are continuing to have some technical difficulties with linking our blog to the school. At this point we are unable to even view or have any association of the blog at school. I have spoken to tech support and they have reassured me that things will be up and running by the end of the week.
Also this week we will be starting where we left off. Many of the kids needed two days to finish their assessments. So, this week we will be correcting and charting, then creating personal goal plans based on those scores.
In addition, literature classes will be taking their first trip to the library and will be checking out two books one for my class and one for home. I know schedules are busy, but if time permits encourage your child to read at home. Remember it doesn't matter what your child is reading as long as they are reading. At this stage in the game, a child who reads what they want will have a better chance of developing an intrinsic love for books.
Writing classes will be exploring expository text and rediscovering the importance of classroom resources.
The study skills class has taken a different direction than what was originally developed due to the number of 7th graders who are now enrolled. It was largely intended to prepare students for the Pearls Project. I have decided to move more towards a citizenship and career applications class. The theme of the course will be "The Choices We Choose to Make Today, Can and Will Effect our Future". Students will be exploring their future based on if they graduate from a university or for some the harsh reality of not even graduating from high school. Unfortunately, their educational future is determined by the roll of a dice. From here we will talk about available careers, creating resumes, interviewing, the importance of being a respected citizen/leader no matter what type of education you have chosen. Then finally tying in Pearls Project and what we can do now.
If you have any questions or concerns please don't hesitate to contact me.
Have a safe and wonderful week.
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