Week 7: September 22-26 Happy Midterm!

It's mid-term already!  Grades are up-to-date and I'm so proud of the hard work that the students have accomplished.  If your student's grade is a little low. Chances are it's because of our Sentence Assessment or the iRead program (5 books required so far).  Good news!  Monday will be reteaching and students can retake the Sentence Assessment if needed. As far as books, for every book they finish, I'll be boosting their grade.  I'm also offering extra help before/after school as well as Flex time and I'm confident grades will continue to rise.  Please make sure your student is reading at home so they can keep up on their reading.

This week, we completed Argumentation 101--students are well-versed on the language and structure of argumentation.  Just give it a try, let them politely debate with using argumentation techniques (view both sides of the issue, then choose one side to defend with facts).  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised and have a great conversation!

I'm beyond excited to dive into novels next week!  In Honors, we'll be reading Wednesday Wars and the regular LA classes will read Out of the Dust.  Both are excellent novels that are historically rich and show how teens overcome hard times.  Look for students to master plot structure, setting, characterization, and theme, as well as close reading and text comparison analysis.

As always, I welcome hearing from parents and students and I'm eager to resolve any concerns and answer questions. I can be reached at rachel.robins@washk12.org or at school (435) 652-4742.

Nation-in-the-News

to present Friday, September 26h

2nd Period:   Rebekah, Kyler, David, Lucy

3rd Period:  Ellie, Chanel, Ryan

4th Period:  Cazia, Jayden, Brandon

5th:  *Kenneth, Emilie L., Lemon, Colton

6th:  Ryder, Tanner, John

Monday, September 22

10 minutes free reading
Sign-up for Library Scholastic Book Fair
Reteaching (make-up Sentence Assessment)/Homework Hall

Tuesday, September 23

10 minutes free reading
Novel Web-quest  

Wednesday, September 24
10 minutes free reading
Random Student

Novel Pre-test
Begin Novel Reading

Thursday, September 25

Scope Magazine Debate:  Do Sports Fans go too Far
Library Day

Friday, September 26

Finish Scope Magazine Debate: T-Chart

Free Reading

Week 6: September 15-19

We finished up our Basic Skills unit with sentence types (simple, compound, complex) and paragraphs.  As a LA 7 team, we will be looking at students who scored low and doing a reteaching session.  I was pleased with how hard students worked and how they mastered the Whole Brain teaching gestures. The next unit is Argumentation 101 where students will be introduced to argumentative writing and gain a foundation so we can take it to the next level later in the year.

Please make sure your student is reading at home, 30 mins. at least 5 days a week.  I'm excited to see the great progress students are making with reading and trying different genres of books.  I've been evaluating test score and will begin some reading intensives during FLEX time.  I'll be emailing you if your student will be invited to join for some extra help.  Here's an interesting survey of middle school students worth looking at.  Start a dialogue about reading in your family!

As always, please email or call with any questions or concerns.  Remember to keep an eye on PowerSchool as midterm is rapidly approaching.  Students are required to have 5 books read by midterm.  If you miss a day of school, remember to check the whiteboard, blog, your student buddy and missing work crate, to see what you missed--then come talk to me!  I'm also totally willing for students to re-do any assignment for more points.

I'm looking forward to a fun week of learning with my amazing students!  

Nation-in-the-News

to present Friday, September 20th

2nd Period:  Baylee*, Ellie Stark, Ellie Sandstrom, Alaina, Katie

3rd Period:  Kyla, Kaden, Jose

4th Period:  Luis, Mady S., Ty

5th: Tony, Kenneth, Abby   

6th:  Treson, Angela, Camden

Monday, September 15

Short PLC Day, school out at 11:45am

10 mins. independent reading
Career Connection: Why LA Matters

Tuesday, September 16

*10 minutes independent reading
Genre-of-the-Week: Science Fiction
Argumentation Pre-Test
Introduction to Argumentation 101
Read Scope Magazine Soda Debate

Wednesday, September 17

 *10 minutes independent reading
Argumentation Vocabulary & Structure
Begin Scope Magazine Soda Debate Activity

Thursday, September 18
 *10 minutes independent reading
Finish Soda Debate Activity

2nd period Honors: Article Identification Activity
Newspaper Work Day

Friday, September 19

Random Student
Nation-in-the-News
Argumentation Essay Identification Activity
Midterm

Week 5: September 8-September 12

We've had a great week tackling sentence types.  I've been incorporating Whole Brain teaching with gestures to help students have more of a fun, hands-on learning experience.  I'm delighted with the good reading I'm seeing happening.  The benefits of reading are so powerful and positively influence all areas of a student's life.  Remember to encourage home reading (at least 30 mins, 5 days a week) and I'll monitor progress and provide encouragement and incentives here at school.

I know I sound like a broken record, but this group of students is fantastic!  I love how they rally to help each other, are game to try anything in class and just really bring sunshine to the classroom every day.  Thanks for raising such amazing kids!

Here is the schedule for this week.  As always, please email me at rachel.robins@washk12.org or call 435-652-4742 if you have any questions or concerns.

Nation-in-the-News

to present Friday, September 12th

2nd Period: Luke, Sophia, Braden, Baylee

3rd Period:  Sage, Dylan, Monte

4th Period:  Joshua, Bailey, Kaden

5th:   Alexis, Christine, McKena

6th:  Chris, Seth, Mike

Monday, September 8

*10 minutes independent reading

Paragraph Instruction: Topic Sentence, Details

2nd Period Honors:

All About Paragraphs

Tuesday, September 9

*10 minutes independent reading
Paragraph Instruction: Sequence, Transitions, Conclusions

2nd Period Honors: 
Journalism Mini-Lesson
Newspaper Day 

Wednesday, September 10

 *10 minutes independent reading
Random-Student-of-the-Week
Flyswatter Sentence/Paragraph Review Game

Thursday, September 11

Scope Magazine: "Dear Future"
Library Day

Friday, September 12

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences

Genre-of-the-Week: Science Fiction
Nation-in-the-News

Sentences/Paragraph Final Assessment 

Why Access to Books Really Matters!!

Week 4: September 2-5

I am so enjoying this group of students.  Each student is full of enthusiasm and so willing to work hard.  It just makes every day really great!  Benchmark testing results are posted in PowerSchool.  They do not effect your student's grade, but they are there to see.  Now that I have data, I can begin to formulate a plan for your student to help improve their reading.  I'll look forward to discussing it with you at next month's SEP conferences. I am happy to discuss your student ahead of time if you would like. I will be starting up my Weekly Reading Club soon, look for more information to come home soon.  We will be doing a writing benchmark test as well when Utah Write is up and running.

Please make sure your student is reading at home.  The requirement is 30 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week.  Talk to your students about "Edge Reading"--a way to squeeze in 5-10 mins. throughout the day. For many students, this makes home reading less intimidating and leads to success.  I'll begin Reader's Conferences this week as well as Status Reports (tracking their daily page progress).  If I don't see progression in a week, I'll be calling home with your student to talk about home reading and solutions.

Looking ahead: Book Orders Due on September 2nd.  Purchasing books through Scholastic is a easy and inexpensive way to build your home library.  You can either send in a check to Scholastic or order online.  If you order online, our class receives a free book: which is awesome!  Please click on the link on the left of the blog to order.

Here is the schedule for this week.  As always, please email me at rachel.robins@washk12.org or call 435-652-4742 if you have any questions or concerns.

Nation-in-the-News

to present Friday, September 5th

2nd Period: Taylor Hatch, Ethan Hunt, Shade Joines, Locklin Hammett

3rd Period:  Jackie Loera, Avery Macfarlane, Leslie Ochoa

4th Period:  Matt McDonald, Conner McInnes, Jose Molina

5th:  April Jones, Kyli Jones, Keean Kirkland

6th:  Chyanne LaFountaine, Taylor Holt, James Holt 

Monday, September 1

Labor Day: No School

Tuesday, September 2

*10 minutes independent reading
Conjunctions: FANBOYS
Compound Sentence Instruction and Practice

Wednesday, September 3

 *10 minutes independent reading
Simple & Compound Sentence Instruction & Practice

Thursday, September 4

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences
Coordinating Conjunctions 
Complex Sentence Instruction & Practice 

2nd Period Honors:
Mini-Lesson: News Article Writing
Section Breakouts

Friday, September 5

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences
Random Student
Nation-in-the-News
Sentence Stations

Week 3: August 25-29

It's been another fantastic week in Language Arts!  Thank you to all of those who were able to make it to Back-to-School Night. I so enjoyed meeting everyone and appreciate your attendance.  If you were unable to attend, your student should have brought two papers home: one about text blast subscription and one about the iRead program/class expectations & responsibilities.  If you need one, please let me know.

100% of students were prepared for this week's Nation-in-the-News assignment, which is spectacular!  I so appreciate their dedication and enthusiasm.  We held a Reading Party today to celebrate 2 weeks of hard work from students--these kids are fantastic and I am so proud of them!

Please make sure your student is reading at home.  The requirement is 30 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week.  Talk to your students about "Edge Reading"--a way to squeeze in 5-10 mins. throughout the day. For many students, this makes home reading less intimidating and leads to success.

Looking ahead: Book Orders Due on September 2nd.  Purchasing books through Scholastic is a easy and inexpensive way to build your home library.  I'll send Book Orders home with students on Monday.  You can either send in a check to Scholastic or order online.  If you order online, our class receives a free book: which is awesome!  Please click on the link on the left of the blog to order.

Here is the schedule for this week.  As always, please email me at rachel.robins@washk12.org or call 435-652-4742 if you have any questions or concerns.

Nation-in-the-News

to present Friday, August 29th

2nd Period: Halli VanLehn, Matt Van Gils, Brinley Sullivan, Gia Stinson

3rd Period: Mackenzie Wright, Clint Wright, Melody Tomer

4th Period: Atreyu West, Dakoda Warren, Andy Vazquez

5th: Destinee Arvizo, Kayla Berumen, Brennon Brown

6th:  Sirenidy Arvizo, Kohl Bowler, Hunter Burchinal

Monday, August 25

*Motivational Monday: Word Crimes
Writing Mini-Lesson: Parts of Speech Crash Course
Book Orders Coming Home Today
Library Day! 

Tuesday, August 26

BENCHMARK TESTING IN D-LAB

Wednesday, August 27

BENCHMARK TESTING IN D-LAB

Thursday, August 28

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences
*Introduce Basic Skills Unit
*Sentence Activity: 2 truths, 1 lie
2nd Period Honors: Newspaper Section Breakouts
*Brainstorm ideas/organize individual sections

Friday, August 29

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences

*Nation-in-the-News Presentations

*Simple Sentences Instruction & Activities
*Sentence Foldable

Week 2: August 18-22

This is my third year teaching, and despite the LONG week, it's been my favorite first week yet!  The students have been amazing--so hard working, fun and come every day with great attitudes. I've left every day with a smile on my face and I am confident that it will be a fantastic school year.

Students learned about Multiple Intelligence today.  It's a theory that everyone is smart, just in different ways. Please ask your students to talk about their individual intelligence.

A few important things to remember:

1. Students need to read at home 30 mins. a day, 5 days a week.  I am tracking their reading at school, rather than home reading logs, but please help remind them to read.  They have a white tracking sheet where they will record every book they began reading.  The tracking sheet is in their binder.
2. Back-to-School Night is August 20th at 6:30pm. I sent home a paper that said 6pm earlier, but 6:30pm is the correct time. I'd love to meet you!  Please come if you are able to.
3. Students should have brought home a paper to subscribe to text blasts.  This is a great way for me to get information to you, please subscribe if you can.  There is a link on my blog as well.
4. Benchmark Testing will be August 26-27th.  Please make sure your student is in school these days.
5. Friday, August 22nd will be the first week that Nation-in-the-News is assigned.  Students will present once a trimester.  They will bring home a peach paper with directions on it.  I am asking students to read (and print-out/cut-out) a news story, summarize it (on the peach paper) and present to the class.  This will help their reading, research and speaking skills.  See below for who will present.

Here is the schedule for this week.  As always, please email me at rachel.robins@washk12.org or call 435-652-4742 if you have any questions or concerns.

Nation-in-the-News

to present Friday, August 22nd

2nd Period: Aspen Allred, Annie Baker, Ryan Bethers, Emily Blair

3rd Period: Keegan Atkinson, Araceli Cazares, Sofia Cuara

4th Period: Josey Adams, Nancy Aguilar, Keegan Avery

5th: Dax Wood, Elizabeth Veltcamp, Franklin Urias

6th: Sam Zohner, Max Tholen, Torrance Wall

Monday, August 18

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences

*Fill out Random Student Spotlight Form

*Genre-of-the-Week: Fantasy

*Nation-in-the-News: modeling/how to do it
*Music Mix-Pair-Share

Tuesday, August 19

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences
*Organize Writer's Notebooks

Wednesday, August 20

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences
*Fun with Language: Emoji Sentence Fun
*Music Mix-Pair-Share

Thursday, August 21

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences
*Scope Magazine Activity
*Sentence Activity
*Class-building games

2nd Period Honors
* Newspaper Organization (sections/groups)

Friday, August 22

*10 minutes independent reading/reading conferences
*Nation-in-the-News Presentations
*Introduce "Great to be 13"/Basic Skills Unit
*Student Survey

Welcome to School: Week 1, August 11-August 15

I've got a fun week planned as we begin the 2014-2015 school year.  I am so excited to meet my students and look forward to great things from them all year.

Every Friday I will update my blog with important information about the upcoming week. I encourage students and parents/guardians to get in the habit of checking each week to keep updated.  Always feel free to email me (anytime) with questions/concerns at rachel.robins@washk12.org or call during school hours at 435-652-4742.  I'm really good about returning emails/phone calls and want to keep in touch with you.

Class and school disclosures are coming home this week and need to be returned by Wednesday, August 13.  The class that has the highest percentage of returned disclosures by Wednesday will earn doughnuts on Thursday!  The schedule this week is basic, we will also be playing class building games and learning several specific procedures each day.  This week, both Honors and regular classes are combined.  I'll have seperate schedules in the future.

Expect a year of fun and learning.  I love what I do and I'm really looking forward to working with students this year.

Enjoy your weekend,
Mrs. Robins

Monday, August 11

*Seating/Roll

*Faction Activity

*Meet Mrs. Robins

*Expectations

*Procedures

*Disclosures to be sent home

Tuesday, August 12

 *Hand-out Reading/Writing

*Procedures

*iRead program

*Book Frenzy

*Student Survey

Wednesday, August 13

 *Disclosures Due (the first class to get them all in earns a doughnut party!)

*Procedures

*Blog

*Label Notebooks

Thursday, August 14

*Multiple Intelligence Quiz & Activity

*Procedures

*Honors Newspaper Introduction

Friday, August 15

 *Random Student

*Nation in the News

*Penny Group Activity

Assembly Schedule