| *These guidelines are presented to parents on the evening of Open House.
Materials: agenda book, books, pencils, pens, notebook, free reading book,
highlighter
Behavior: in accordance with school policy
LANGUAGE ARTS
1. Prentice Hall Literature: Please become familiar with this book. There
is a wide variety of wonderful reading material in this text. When we are
using the text in class, a vocabulary and comprehension test will accompany
the selection read. With the comprehension test is an essay question that
is often assigned the day before and due in class the day the test is
given. In this way your child will have ample opportunity to do the best
job he/she can do on his/her writing piece. We also use Elements of Writing
for grammar, mechanics, usage, etc.
2. Trade books and Activities (i.e. Literature Circles) - May be chosen as
an interdisciplinary unit
3. Other reading materials - newspapers, digests, magazines, poetry, etc.
4. Book Review Box - A file box will be assigned for each 6th grade class.
For each book read, an index card will be filled out with the student's name
and the title of the book. Your child may choose to conference a book, take
an accelerated reader test, a Great Book test, do a TFJ (That's a Fact,
Jack!) competiton, or pass in a brief plot summary of the book. Students
should always have a book to read in class and are required to read 2 books
per term. (See Literature)
5. D.O.L. (Daily Oral Language) - Students will be given ten sentences to
correct that contain errors in grammar, usage, mechanics, etc. We will go
over the corrections on the Smart Board, and students will have a test on
three or four of these sentences.
6. Technology - Smart Board, Power Point, Inspiration, etc.
7. Writing - Using the Wachusett Middle School Writing Standards and state
MCAS standards as guides, students will be required to do a variety of
writing pieces throughout the year. These will include narratives,journals,
persuasives, letter writing, etc. Your child will be given written
guidelines or rubrics to follow and a peer editing sheet and
parent sign off sheet with ample time to obtain signatures. No piece of
writing will be accepted/graded until a parent signature is obtained by the
student. In this way parents are aware of what is being done in class.
Pieces of their writing will be put into their portfolios which stay in
school until the end of the acedemic year. Certain pieces of sixth grade
writing will be passed on to seventh grade teachers for preview.
(Also, a letter was sent home earlier in the year explaining the different
methods of writing we will using in class: Type One, Type Two, etc.)
8. Spelling and vocabulary (Word-A-Day) are ongoing; homophones, etc.
HOMEWORK
1. Done on standard notebook paper.
2. Neat, complete, and in on time.
3. Your child should have a "homework buddy" that he/she can call in case of
absence. Students can also get homework from the this website.
4. Homework does not always have to be written in nature. Reading and
studying are considered homework.
TESTS and QUIZZES
1. Given weekly and most often with more than a 24 hour notice.
2. Spot checks (Type One or Type Two writing) on specific material,
announced or unannounced.
3. Tests or quizzes are expected to be made up within a reasonable amount
of time after your child returns from an absence. He/she may have to stay
after school in order to complete some assignments.
EXTRA HELP
1. Arrangements will be made if your child needs help in a specific area.
TUESDAY is the day set aside for this type of help.
OTHER
1. Every effort will be made to reach the individual needs and interests of
your child. COMPACTING, a contract-like technique that allows a student to
do work independently or in small group with emphasis on interests and
ability, will be implemented whenever possible.
Any questions or concerns, please call or email me. Thanks, as always, for
your continued support! (:
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