Home Reading

Each student is expected to keep track of the amount of time he or she spends reading each day on a calendar found in the student planner.  At the end of the month, parents will sign the calendar indicating the number of minutes your child has read during the month.  You should be reading at least 30-40 minutes everyday.  I would hope that you don’t become a clock watcher and can just enjoy reading. The goal is to develop a love for reading and not to make it a burdensome task.

Spelling

Monday: Pretest & Spelling List for week with daily practice sheet  for home study. Homework contract due on Friday
Tuesday & Wednesday:  Independent Practice from textbook pages, worksheets, and home practice)
Thursday: Trial Test (100 % score and no test on Friday)
Friday:  Post Test

Writing 

Writing Workshop:  Students will also be involved in a variety of writing projects that will take them through the writing process to publication.  Some writing assignments will be teacher assigned, but most of them will come from a student’s self-selected topic.  Each student will choose one published writing to be graded each month.  A grade will be earned on a point basis.  For example, each month a writing project is worth 100 points:  rough draft - 25 points, final draft - 50 points, and grammar, usage, mechanics, and spelling is worth 25 points.

Skill Development:   Students will improve their abilities to write by learning specific skills in grammar, usage, mechanics, and spelling.  These skills will be applied in a variety of proofreading experiences.