Grade 8 Advanced Reading and Writing Elective Ms. Stoller
EXPECTATIONS, PROCEDURES AND YEAR-LONG CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES
I. Materials you will need
a. A 2-pocket, 3 pronged plastic folder labeled Reading/Writing
Be sure to write the letter days you have this elective on your folder. These can be found at
Walmart for .89, or Staples, Office Max or CVS. Try to get the color folder that corresponds
with the color of this class.
b. A pleasure reading book of your choice
c. Your assignment notebook
d. A Pencil
e. A flash drive- These can be found for $14.99 at Office Max or Staples. A flash drive is
required for this class only and will be stored in the classroom.
f. A 100 page spiral notebook
These materials must be on your desk for the start of class.
II. Homework, Makeup Work, and Grading
· It is my intention that you have very little homework for this class. You may need to
read a certain number of pages and prepare for a discussion. You may need to work on a final
draft to meet a particular deadline. Plan on working at home when a deadline is due.
· If you miss class because of absence you need to go to the box for our class and pick up
any handouts you missed.
· This class is pass/fail.
III. Student Responsibilities
a. BRING YOUR MATERIALS TO CLASS DAILY. You will not be permitted to go to your locker for
any materials. Know the color of this class and go to the box to get what you need at the start
of class. Always bring a pleasure reading book and a pencil.
b. Once you get your materials from the box, read silently while you are waiting for class
to start.
c. Use the restroom, sharpen your pencil, take care of personal business before class or at
lunchtime. Do not ask to use the restroom once class starts.
d. Save all your written work on your flash drive. This is very important. You will not
be able to use the computer unless you have your flash drive.
e. Be an attentive listener during our daily read alouds. Be prepared to give an opinion
about what I read to you.
f. Class participation-This is critical to the success of our class. Be sure to raise your
hand and become an active member of our class.
g. Go to the box labeled “Really Hot Books” to get ideas for what to read. Maintain a
Future List for books you want to read. Go to Ms. Stoller’s website and click on the Reading
and Writing Link if you have a question about a project or assignment. Use this website to read
book reviews or get independent reading suggestions.
h. Write a book review for a book you want to share.
IV.What will class be like this year?
Almost every class will begin with a read alouds. We will read poetry, picture books, short
stories, memoir, and excerpts of novels.
Term 1 – Let’s Get it Started! Gathering our ideas! Celebrate Banned Books Week!!
· Let the Memory Linger, by Alexandra Daigle
· Expectations
· Class scavenger hunt
· Writing Territories, example - The Disappearing Irishman
· Heart Mapping - example "Why We Call It Pride and Passion"
Learning to Love, not Analyze Poetry
· Where Poetry Hides, Defining the Magic, My Little Blue Car and Clear
· 20 Actions to write about, What’s your idea of famous?
· The power of I in poetry
· New Eyes, stereotypes in poetry
· Punctuating poetry, The Little Boy
· Where I am From? Questionnaires to poetry
· The Rule of Write About a Pebble - examples: Picture Perfect or Is it?
Term 2 – The Memoir
· Read aloud – selections from The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Wells, and examples from Between the
Pages
· What is a memoir?
· Ineffective and effective memoirs
· Questions for memoirists
· The Rule of So What
· The Rule of Thoughts and Feelings
· Show and Don’t Tell
· Snappy Leads and Killer conclusions
· Write your own personal memoir
· Revise a memoir
· Read a memoir and conduct a book talk
Term 3 – The Crafts of Writing – Review of....
· Snappy leads and killer conclusions
· Magic three- writing a series
· Metaphors and similes and personification
· Extended moments
· Hyphenated modifiers
· Flashbacks
· Foreshadowing
· Writing good titles
· Vivid verbs
· Showing and not telling description
New Crafts..
· Techniques of Elaboration in writing
· Varying sentence beginnings
· Active vs. Passive voices in writing
Students will make choices about their own authentic writing. They will be able to work on
short stories, memoir, poetry, or exposition such as literary critiques or personal anecdotes.
· What is easy about writing bad fiction?
· What is hard about writing good fiction?
· The main character questionnaire, writing a character sketch
· Potential problems in fiction
· Conventions such as comma splices, capitalization, and writing numbers
· Review of punctuating dialogue
· Consistent verb tense
Term 4 – Socratic Circles, And Then There Were None, The Most Dangerous Game
Students will read these literary works, prepare for Socratic discussions, and view the film of
these two works.
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PAST NEWSLETTERS FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION...
May 10, 2007
Dear parent of Reading and Writing student,
It is with great pleasure and enthusiasm that I update you on the literacy experiences that have
occurred during fourth term. I finished reading aloud the riveting young adult novel, Stuck in
Neutral, to seventh graders. I hope to finish the companion to this book, Cruise Control by the
end of the year. In eighth grade, I finished reading Jack Gantos’s incredible memoir, A Hole in
My Life. Students were introduced to the legal system, and what can go wrong when a person
makes bad choices, even for good reasons.
It is all about personal writing at this point in the year! Seventh graders and eighth graders
are applying what they have learned about the crafts of writing. They have become authors by
self-selecting topics they want to write about. The computer lab in room 118 has come alive as
students draft their short stories, memoirs, poetry and news-articles. During this time, my
mini-lessons on writing great titles, using vivid verbs, and infusing writing with personal
thoughts and feelings have helped students hone their craft.
We are excited about the annual edition of Between the Pages, which should be going to
publication in a few weeks. Every student is in the process of deciding which writing piece/s
they want to submit. Seventh graders have book reviews, news articles, short stories, expanded
moments and flashback pieces. Eighth grades have memoirs, short stories, poetry and news-
articles. This magazine represents the hard work and commitment of all the authors in this
elective. Enjoy reading your complimentary copy.
All seventh graders are encouraged to think about enrolling in this elective next year.
Hopefully my eighth grade elective classes in 2007-2208 will be filled with some “alumni”
authors who can share what they know about the writing process.
Sincerely,
Susan Stoller
Reading and Writing News for March
It is all about the craft of writing for Ms. Stoller's readers and writers. Grade 7
students have learned to write like the pros. They are adept at writing magic three phrased and
clauses, hyphenated metaphors, extended moments, full circle endings, snappy leads, and
repetition for effect. They are now revising their personal flashback stories. Final drafts
will be due March 16th. Students will then let their creative juices flow as they apply all the
writing crafts to their personal short stories. We are currently reading Terry Trueman's
riveting novel, Stuck in Neutral. This book, with its fantastic character development and
strong voice, serves as a wonderful model for seventh graders.
Eighth graders are also being exposed to sophisticated writing crafts. Students are
learning to use noun absolutes and participial expressions in their personal writing. We are
currently reading author Jack Gantos's memoir, "Hole in my life." This serves as a wonderful
springboard for each student's personal writing.
Reading and Writing News for January and February
Seventh grade elective students can now call themselves journalists. They have learned
to write and conduct an interview, and to take interview notes and synthesize them into an
interesting and imaginative feature story. They are now taking the role of an author and
learning the "crafts of writing." It's been very entertaining listening to students share
their figurative language, expanded moments,hyphenated modifiers, repetition for effect, and
humor pieces. All can be found in your son/daughter's reading and writing journal. Next we
will write foreshadowing, flashbacks and cliffhangers.
Eighth graders have completed And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie. They are to
be commended for their excellent, student-led, Socratic discussions. They are viewing the movie
and contrasting it to the book. Next, students will review the writing crafts they learned last
year, and learn a variety of techniques to help them elaborate in writing and vary their
sentence beginnings.