English Language Arts
Reading
My students will receive their remote reading instruction from Professor Cote. When instruction transitions to the hybrid model, reading instruction will be delivered by me.
The WONDERS reading program is the only program on the market specifically designed to meet the challenges of the Common Core State Standards. I know Wonders is effective because it focuses on essential skill instruction in reading and language while offering the children exposure to high quality literature. The student anthology offers a rich selection of genres including realistic fiction, fairy tales, poetry, biographies, fables, fantasy, myths, legends, historical fiction, and informational articles. The Wonders Reading Program helps prepare children to be independent, self-motivated critical thinkers. The program provides unmatched support for
In addition to the WONDERS program, we will be using trade books from a variety of genres to further enrich the children’s experiences with text. This year, I'll be using The Daily Five and the Daily CAFE to help focus and differentiate my literacy instruction. This approach will help me to assess and instruct each child based on the skills and strategies that he or she needs. I'm pretty excited to begin!
We will also study specific authors like Jacqueline Davies, Kate DiCamillo, E.B. White, and Roald Dahl just to name a few. Students will be exposed to literature recommended in the Massachusetts English/Language Arts Frameworks.
We will also study poetry this year. Poetry selections will encompass contemporary and classic poems. We will highlight the following poets; John Ciardi, Rachel Field, David McCord, A. A. Milne, Robert Frost, Edward Lear, and Lewis Carroll.
Expected literacy outcomes include: an enhanced appreciation for good literature, effective communication and cooperation skills, improved “reading to learn” skills, effective use of language and its mechanics evidenced in oral and written communication, and enhanced creative expression.
To learn more about WONDERS visit:
http://mhreadingwonders.com/about/
To learn more about The Daily Five and The Daily CAFE
visit:
http://www.the2sisters.com/
To learn more about The Daily CAFE, visit my S'more. https://www.smore.com/r9q6
Reading at Home
When helping your child read at home, several strategies may be used to aid in decoding unknown words:
1. Tell your child to look for chunks in the word, such as and and
ing in standing.
2. Ask your child if the word looks like another word he/she knows.
3. Ask your child to go on and read to the end of the sentence. Often by reading the other words in context, the child can figure out the unknown word.
4. If your child says the wrong word while reading, ask questions like:
*Does it make sense?
*Does it sound right?
*Does it look right?
Please encourage your child to read nightly for 20 minutes. This will increase comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary development. Of course this is also a fun and relaxing way to pass time alone or as a family! Our ultimate goal as teachers is to create lifelong learners who want to read and enjoy reading!
Writing
I will deliver all writing instruction regardless of which model we're using.
Our district will draw from two writing programs this year. The first is the Empowering Writers program. In addition, the Wonders Reading Program also has a strong writing program embedded in it.
REAL writing is a process, therefore, I'll continue to use a process approach to writing. Preparation strategies such as graphic organizers, webs, and maps will aid students in developing and selecting ideas. Your fourth grader will collect and develop ideas in a Writer’s Notebook. This tool will be used to encourage students to write. Students will have many opportunities to use their imagination and creative writing skills in this notebook.
Through the writing process, students will be taught to revise (add, delete, expand, clarify where appropriate) and edit (correct structure, punctuation and spelling), so that they can produce a published piece of writing. Throughout the year, students will demonstrate improvement in organization, content, paragraph development, and detail in their compositions after completing the steps in the writing process.
To learn more about Empowering Writers click on the link below:
http://empoweringwriters.com/
Spelling
The rigor in the approach to teaching and learning to spell is in the daily writing of the students. Dictionaries and a classroom word wall are available in the classroom as the children are encouraged to consult a reference in aiding them to spell. The goal of the spelling program is help each student to become a better daily speller.
Our spelling program will also come from the Wonders Reading Program. As you know, our team of teachers has relied on the Words Their Way Spelling Program to guide our work. The author of this research based spelling program, Donald R. Bear, is one of the authors of the Wonders Reading Program. We're excited to be able to continue to offer his pattern focused, phonics rich, spelling instruction to our students.
Cursive Writing
This year, fourth grade students will be using the Zaner-Bloser program to practice the formation of all lower case and upper case letters in cursive. The students will practice cursive through a multi-sensory approach: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic stimuli. Instruction will encourage students develop a mental and motor image of the stroke, joining, letter, or word, before they attempt to write. The long-term goal is for fourth grade students to be able to complete much of their written work in cursive.
To check out the standards we will work to meet this year, please click on the link below:
MA English Language Arts and Literacy Curriculum Framework:
My students will receive their remote reading instruction from Professor Cote. When instruction transitions to the hybrid model, reading instruction will be delivered by me.
The WONDERS reading program is the only program on the market specifically designed to meet the challenges of the Common Core State Standards. I know Wonders is effective because it focuses on essential skill instruction in reading and language while offering the children exposure to high quality literature. The student anthology offers a rich selection of genres including realistic fiction, fairy tales, poetry, biographies, fables, fantasy, myths, legends, historical fiction, and informational articles. The Wonders Reading Program helps prepare children to be independent, self-motivated critical thinkers. The program provides unmatched support for
- Building a strong reading foundation
- Accessing complex text
- Finding and using text evidence
- Engaging in collaborative conversations
- Writing to sources
In addition to the WONDERS program, we will be using trade books from a variety of genres to further enrich the children’s experiences with text. This year, I'll be using The Daily Five and the Daily CAFE to help focus and differentiate my literacy instruction. This approach will help me to assess and instruct each child based on the skills and strategies that he or she needs. I'm pretty excited to begin!
We will also study specific authors like Jacqueline Davies, Kate DiCamillo, E.B. White, and Roald Dahl just to name a few. Students will be exposed to literature recommended in the Massachusetts English/Language Arts Frameworks.
We will also study poetry this year. Poetry selections will encompass contemporary and classic poems. We will highlight the following poets; John Ciardi, Rachel Field, David McCord, A. A. Milne, Robert Frost, Edward Lear, and Lewis Carroll.
Expected literacy outcomes include: an enhanced appreciation for good literature, effective communication and cooperation skills, improved “reading to learn” skills, effective use of language and its mechanics evidenced in oral and written communication, and enhanced creative expression.
To learn more about WONDERS visit:
http://mhreadingwonders.com/about/
To learn more about The Daily Five and The Daily CAFE
visit:
http://www.the2sisters.com/
To learn more about The Daily CAFE, visit my S'more. https://www.smore.com/r9q6
Reading at Home
When helping your child read at home, several strategies may be used to aid in decoding unknown words:
1. Tell your child to look for chunks in the word, such as and and
ing in standing.
2. Ask your child if the word looks like another word he/she knows.
3. Ask your child to go on and read to the end of the sentence. Often by reading the other words in context, the child can figure out the unknown word.
4. If your child says the wrong word while reading, ask questions like:
*Does it make sense?
*Does it sound right?
*Does it look right?
Please encourage your child to read nightly for 20 minutes. This will increase comprehension, fluency, and vocabulary development. Of course this is also a fun and relaxing way to pass time alone or as a family! Our ultimate goal as teachers is to create lifelong learners who want to read and enjoy reading!
Writing
I will deliver all writing instruction regardless of which model we're using.
Our district will draw from two writing programs this year. The first is the Empowering Writers program. In addition, the Wonders Reading Program also has a strong writing program embedded in it.
REAL writing is a process, therefore, I'll continue to use a process approach to writing. Preparation strategies such as graphic organizers, webs, and maps will aid students in developing and selecting ideas. Your fourth grader will collect and develop ideas in a Writer’s Notebook. This tool will be used to encourage students to write. Students will have many opportunities to use their imagination and creative writing skills in this notebook.
Through the writing process, students will be taught to revise (add, delete, expand, clarify where appropriate) and edit (correct structure, punctuation and spelling), so that they can produce a published piece of writing. Throughout the year, students will demonstrate improvement in organization, content, paragraph development, and detail in their compositions after completing the steps in the writing process.
To learn more about Empowering Writers click on the link below:
http://empoweringwriters.com/
Spelling
The rigor in the approach to teaching and learning to spell is in the daily writing of the students. Dictionaries and a classroom word wall are available in the classroom as the children are encouraged to consult a reference in aiding them to spell. The goal of the spelling program is help each student to become a better daily speller.
Our spelling program will also come from the Wonders Reading Program. As you know, our team of teachers has relied on the Words Their Way Spelling Program to guide our work. The author of this research based spelling program, Donald R. Bear, is one of the authors of the Wonders Reading Program. We're excited to be able to continue to offer his pattern focused, phonics rich, spelling instruction to our students.
Cursive Writing
This year, fourth grade students will be using the Zaner-Bloser program to practice the formation of all lower case and upper case letters in cursive. The students will practice cursive through a multi-sensory approach: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic stimuli. Instruction will encourage students develop a mental and motor image of the stroke, joining, letter, or word, before they attempt to write. The long-term goal is for fourth grade students to be able to complete much of their written work in cursive.
To check out the standards we will work to meet this year, please click on the link below:
MA English Language Arts and Literacy Curriculum Framework:
| english_language_arts_and_literacy.pdf |