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Ms. Calder, Language Arts, 6th

Posts

May 26-29

Happy last week of school!
Tuesday and Wednesday we will have regular ELA and we will celebrate all of the great things that have been happening this year!
 
I hope that you all have an amazing Summer and thank you for sharing your child with me this year! 

May 18-22

This week in ELA the students will complete their final Module 10 Assessment and finish their Opinion Letter.  The students brought home their HMH book on Friday to share with you their learning for the second semester. 
 
For the later part of the week the students will pick a free reading book, fiction or nonfiction, to escape and enjoy the love of reading.  The students will take notes each day about their reading to encourage comprehension, and when they are finished reading the book the students will create an end of the book activity. 
 
Redwall group:
The students will finish creating their newspaper end of the book activity and will also take the Module 10 Assessment. 

May 18-22

This week we will spend time on Monday showcasing our Service-Learning reflection to the 3rd and 4th graders during Advocacy, and the 7th and 8th graders will share their experience of Service-Learning with us.  What a great way to share the service at Westgate which is building community within our school and surrounding community. 
 
For the rest of the week, we will be focusing on self-care and wellness strategies!
 
 
Reminders:
May 27 – Continuation 2:15-3:15 
May 28 - Half Day dismissal at 11:30, Carnival in the afternoon
May 29 - Hald Day dismissal at 11:30, Last Day of School
 
 
Our Spring Carnival is coming up on May 28th, and one of the most anticipated highlights is our themed classroom baskets for the silent auction! These baskets are a major part of our fundraising efforts, and we’d love your help in making them truly special.
This year, our basket themes are Brunch and A Taste of Italy.
Contributing is easy! We’ve created Amazon and Target registries (links are below) so you can simply click and purchase items. Even better—your items can be shipped directly to the school. If you prefer, you’re also welcome to shop on your own and drop off donations in the lobby during normal school hours.
Short on time? You can donate through the payment portal (please be sure to note which grade your donation is for), and we’ll take care of the shopping for you.
Please ensure all donations are received by Friday, May 22nd.
Thank you for helping us make this event a success!

May 11-15

HMH:
This week on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday we will finish Module 10 with the story "Why Vote".  
For writing the students will finish writing their Opinion Letter. 
 
Redwall group:
The students will continue working on their end of the book project by creating a newspaper showcasing their learning over the book.  
 

May 4-8

Module 10, week 2
This week the students will read, "Turning 15 on The Road to Freedom" with focus on the reading strategy of asking and answering questions as well as critical vocabulary words.  The students will also be adding to their knowledge map after reading the first story. 
 
Writing:
The students will conduct research to support their topic of their opinion writing and then begin drafting their rough draft of their letter. 
 
Redwall group:
The students have finished reading the book and will begin constructing the end of the book project which they have decided to write a newspaper to show their understanding of the overall book. 

April 27-May 1

HELLO, FAMILY!
Over the next three weeks, our class will build their knowledge about 
the history and current practice of voting in the United States by reading book excerpts, magazines, and listening to and reading a speech. They will learn about historical figures, such as Susan B. Anthony, Lynda Blackmon Lowery, and our 36th President, Lyndon Baines Johnson. 

 
BRING IT HOME! Learning fun for the whole family!
Discuss the Topic
Set aside time daily for your child to share with you what he or she is learning. Use these ideas to help build your child’s knowledge about the topic: 
• Talk about the ideas your child has added to the Knowledge Map each week.
• Ask about the texts your child is reading and what he or she has learned from them.
• Share with your child your own questions about the topic, and work together to find the answers.
 
Explore the Genre
The genre focus in this module is opinion text. Discuss with your child the characteristics of this genre. 
Ask your child to read to you each day and make time to read together. 
Look for texts that
• spark your child’s curiosity
• tie to the module topic
• present interesting ideas and opinions about why voting matters
• help readers connect to social studies
 
Build Vocabulary
Use these ideas to help your child build a rich vocabulary. 

The Big Idea Reinforce the topic words eligible, suffrage, naturalized, 
and prohibits in everyday conversations with your child. Use prompts like these: Explain if you plan to vote or not, once you are eligible to do so. What sorts of 
activities are prohibited at school?
 
What Does It Mean? Have your child keep a growing list of the Critical Vocabulary words. Quiz each other on their meanings.Word Hunt Look for words with the roots electr, civ, man, duc, reg, scrib/scribe, graph and prefixes ex–, con– in books, magazines, online texts, and environmental print.
 
Redwall group:
This week the students will finish reading "The Warrior" and then work on a culminating activity to represent their understanding of the entire book.  
 
Both groups will start a new writing prompt of writing an opinion letter using background knowledge and evidence to support their writing. 
 
REMINDER:
We will be taking the reading MAPS assessment on Tuesday, April 28 starting at 9:15. 

April 20-24

HMH group:
We started Module 9, week 3, "You Have to Stop This"; however, due to CMAS and the half day on Friday we were interrupted. This week we will read the story and work on retelling, synthesizing and critical vocabulary. 
 
For writing the students will finish their science fiction narrative, and next the students will begin writing their personal narrative. 
 
Redwall group:
Students will read Chapters 9-13 and complete the comprehension questions and vocabulary words. 

April 13-17

This week in ELA we will be following this schedule
Monday - regular class
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday - Reading CMAS testing
Friday - regular class
 
HMH group:
Students will be reading the third story in Module 9, "You Have to Stop This", and the skills we will be working on are retelling, synthesizing, and critical vocabulary words. 
 
Redwall group:
The students will read Chapter 9-13 in "The Warrior" section, complete vocabulary words, and answer the comprehension questions. 
 
Writing:
Students will continue working on their narrative story.

April 6-9

This week in ELA our schedule looks a little different due to CMAS. 
 
Monday and Friday will be regular days, and Tuesday through Thursday we will have ELA from 11:15 to 11:45 due to CMAS testing. 
 
We will be in Module 9, week 2 reading about King Tut: The Hidden Tomb. The reading skills that we will focus on are Monitor and Clarify, Critical Vocabulary and the Text Structure, Problem/Solutions. 
 
Redwall group:
The students will continue reading Chapter 5-8 in the section of the Warrier working on comprehension skills and they will continue writing a narrative essay of their choice. 

March 30 - April 3

HELLO, FAMILY!
 
We will start Module 9, Mummies and Bones.

Over the next three weeks, our class will build their knowledge about 
archaeology, with a focus on the narrative text genre. We will read 
nonfiction book excerpts, and magazine and newspaper articles 
about human remains and objects that teach us about history, and 
we will finish with a novel excerpt that injects humor into this serious 
topic by way of a mystery. 

Discuss the Topic
Set aside time daily for your child to share with you what he or she is 
 learning. Use these ideas to help build your child’s knowledge about 
the topic: 
• Talk about the ideas your child has added to the Knowledge Map each week.
• Ask about the texts your child is reading and what he or she has learned from them.
• Share with your child your own questions about the topic and work together to find the answers.
 
Explore the Genre
The genre focus in this module is narrative text. Discuss with your child the characteristics of this genre. 
Ask your child to read to you each day and make time to read together. 
Look for texts that
• spark your child’s curiosity
• tie to the module topic
• have a clear text structure (e.g., cause and effect)
• help readers connect to science
 
Build Vocabulary
Use these ideas to help your child build a rich vocabulary. 
The Big Idea Reinforce the topic words alarmed, remains, relics, and archaeologist in everyday conversations with your child. Use prompts like these: Describe the last time you were alarmed. What in our home do you think would be an interesting relic for someone from the future to find?
What Does It Mean? Have your child keep a growing list of the Critical Vocabulary words. Quiz each other on their meanings.
Word Hunt Look for words with the roots pyro, archaeo, civ; the prefix 
ex–; and suffixes –full/–less, –ence in books, magazines, online texts, 
and environmental print.
 
Redwall group:
This week the students will begin the last section in the book, "The Warrior".  The goal is to continue reading, answering comprehension questions, learning new vocabulary, and having a discussion over the reading. 
 
They will continue working on the Summary poster for the last section "The Quest"

March 9-11

This week in ELA we will wrap up our Module 8 by taking the Module assessment and in writing the students will complete their "What makes a Champion" and their Hero paper. 
 
Redwall group:
This week the students will finish reading the section "The Quest" and complete the comprehension questions and vocabulary words. They will also be working on the collaborative poster showcasing the big events for this section. 

March 2-6

For ELA this week we will be reading two selections; one on Sports Poetry and the other story "Who Gets a Trophy".  The reading skills will be focusing on Poetry elements and Asking and Answering questions.  
 
For writing the students will continue working on their writing piece, "What makes a Champion"
 
Redwall group:
The students will continue reading all the chapters for "The Quest" and answer comprehension questions and vocabulary.  They will create a summary poster of the key events and characters for the section over the Quest. 
 
For writing the student can choose a genre of choice making sure to follow the story elements into a five paragraph essay. 

February 23-27

Monday the students will finish the Module 7 Assessment and their research paper about their Ocean topic. 
 
Tuesday we will begin Module 8, Champions of the Game
 
Over the next three weeks, our class will build their knowledge about 
sports and competition, with a focus on the opinion text genre. We 
will read nonfiction book excerpts and essays that discuss the variety 
of sports that we pursue, the personal qualities of great athletes, and 
what it means to be a good sport. There is an additional feature on 
sports poetry.
 
Discuss the Topic
Set aside time daily for your child to share with you what he or she is 
learning. Use these ideas to help build your child’s knowledge about the topic: 
• Talk about the ideas your child has added to the Knowledge Map each week.
• Ask about the texts your child is reading and what he or she has learned from them.
• Share with your child your own questions about the topic, and work together to find the answers.
 
Explore the Genre
The genre focus in this module is persuasive text. Discuss with your child the characteristics of this genre. 
Ask your child to read to you each day and make time to read together. 
Look for texts that
• spark your child’s curiosity
• tie to the module topic
• present interesting ideas about how sports test an athlete’s character
• help readers connect to health and fitness
 
Build Vocabulary
Use these ideas to help your child build a rich vocabulary. 
The Big Idea Reinforce the topic words attributes, rivals, leagues, and statistics in everyday conversations with your child. Use prompts like these:
Describe the attributes of a great athlete. Who might be a challenging rival for you in something you love to compete for?

What Does It Mean?
Have your child keep a growing list of the Critical Vocabulary words. Quiz each other on their meanings.
Word Hunt
Look for words with the roots scrib/scribe, man; prefixes uni–, pro–, multi– in books, magazines, online texts, and environmental print.
 

February 17-20

This week in ELA class we will finish the third story for Module 7, "Safeguarding the California Coast" and we will be focusing on Ask and Answer Questions and well as the text structure, comparing and contrasting. 
 
For writing, the students will continue working on the research paper on the sea and the ocean topic of their choice making sure that the essay has five paragraphs and includes sited sources and research. 
 
Redwall group:
The students will continue reading through "The Quest" section reading Chapters 11-20, and they will start a new writing assignment this week. 
 
 

February 9-13

Module 7, week 2 Into the Deep
 
We will read "Poetry of the Sea" and "Ocean Careers" this week focusing on the elements of Poetry, Visualization and Monitoring and Clarifying. We will learn vocabulary words, decoding using prefixes, and grammar using conjunctions. 
 
For writing the students pick a topic under the theme the sea and the ocean.  Next, they create two questions that they would like to research and then began researching. 
 
Redwall group:
The students read up to Chapter 6 in "the Quest" section.  We will continue reading, answering comprehension questions and looking at key vocabulary in each chapter.  For writing the students need to finish their argumentative research essay. The summary poster that the students created for "The Wall" section was an incredible recap.