What's Happening in Ms. Mathis' Class!
Mathis Minutes
2nd Quintet “At A Glance”
Reading
The Reading skills we will focus on for this Quintet :Figurative Language:
Imagery and Sequential/Chronological Order, Main Idea and Supporting
Details,Analyzing Character Relationships and Conflicts.
I usually use the Voices Reading Theme book to introduce the concept for the
week. Then we read stories and complete activities from the theme to
reinforce the skill focus for the week.
Guided Reading
The skills are reintroduced during their Literature Circle (LC) group guided
reading time. I use this time to meet with each group to discuss and assess
important points of comprehension. We will also be using these skills while
reading their Literature Circle Book. Also during this time, I dictate
passages from the text, and we identify grammar, spelling and vocabulary used
to help enhance their understanding of the novel.
What are Literature Circles?
The idea for the Literature Circle (LC)novel is that it not only exposes the
student to rich authentic literature but it also provides them with a real
world connection and allows them to practice good reading habits with an
actual book on their level. Students are able to choose from reading books on
their reading level
What does the Literature Circle time look like in class?
During Literature Circle (LC) time in class, the students are assigned a
portion of the book to read and are also given a reading comprehension
activity or job (no more than 2 assignments) to complete for their LC group.
Activities include: Discussion Leader, Summarizer, Real-Life Connector, Story-
Connector, Illustrator, and Word Wizard. Each group assigns these activities
at the beginning of the week. By the end of the week, the LC group members
should have their assignments complete. The LC groups meet to “discuss the
book” for the week using their activities as a guideline for the discussion.
Using Literature Circles Novels outside of the classroom/home:
Reflections and Connections:
Student Literature Circle information is stored in their “Literature Circle
Office” (A plastic bag which contains: a literature circle novel, Literature
Circle group Activities, comprehension question(s) connected to the skill(s)
for the week (this could be in the form of a BCR), post-it notes (students
are encouraged to write down any words that may be unfamiliar to them while
they are reading), and their Connections Journal.
Book Reports
The students will be using their Literature Circles books for the book
reports for this Quintet. We will be learning about organizing our writing
and this report is the perfect assignment for them to practice these skills.
*Some groups may read more than one novel in a Quintet. The students are
expected to use the first LC novel assigned during the Quintet for the report.
Please see the Curriculum Projects section for additional information on Book
Reports.
Spelling
The Spelling this Quintet will focus on: Suffixes, Prefixes, Homophones, and
Contractions.
Writing
Organization:
We will focus on using time and sequence words as an organizational tool in
our writing.
I am using the story “ The Mud Pony” retold by Caron Lee Cohen as an
authentic example to help connect the authors organizational writing
technique with our own.
Math
The focus for Math is “Describing the Shape of the Data”. Our main
objectives are to understand how to :
Represent data
Describe, summarize, and compare data
Analyze and interpret data
Design and carry out a data investigation
Describe the probability of an event
