Category Archive

We are off to a new semester and a fresh start. To begin the new year, each student in CORE was given a composition book to use for their Writer’s Notebook. Our first entry was to list our New Year’s Resolutions or to reflect on what changes we think the New Year will bring in light of a new president. The students were excited to receive their own book and were able to reflect and write their responses in their books. We also discussed and wrote down the expectations of the Writer’s Notebook. The students were able to understand the goal is to get the ideas down and not to get hung up on spelling and writing conventions. We will be using these notebooks everyday in order to become comfortable with writing. I write along with the students, share my own writing, and then open it up for the students to share. My hope is that this notebook will be a springboard for writing at a later date.

In addition to writing, all students have a new Accelerated Reader points goal. The homework continues to be reading nightly for at least 30 minutes. I have been reminding students daily that the AR points are based on their reading level and a formula based on reading 30 minutes five days a week. Reader’s Workshop will continue on Fridays along with mini-lessons on reading comprehension and read-alouds. GATE students are beginning work on their next Literacy Exploration project.

In History, students are finishing up their unit on Muslim contributions and the crusades to new Muslim empires before moving on to learn about the ancient societies of West Africa. Most students will be working on posters highlighting the Muslim contributions; GATE students are investigating literature with excerpts from The Rubaiyat by Omar Khayyam, a Sufi mystic who wrote poetry, and the Epic of Kings by Ferdowsi, a Persian nobleman and poet. They will create a product or response that will be posted to their Blogmeister space. Stay tuned!

Technology students from last fall have now moved on to Spanish with Ms. Krott and I have a fresh batch of students for the spring semester. We have begun our first unit of study, Internet Safety. At the end of this section, students create an Internet safety podcast based upon what they have learned. Stay tuned for this audio podcast. It will be posted on the Technology page.

Upon closing, I would like to point out that Challenge day will occur once again for a second year. I would like to say what a moving experience this was for me last year (see my post below) and I hope this will encourage more students to be the conduit that will make the change! Middle school can be a challenging place to get along with others but let’s try and make it the place we want to be. Find it in yourself to treat others respectfully and be supportive of your fellow classmates. We are all more alike than we are different. Let’s start this New Year on a clean slate both academically and socially!

As the school year comes to a close, students are taking the last of their Accelerated Reader quizzes and finishing up several projects. The deadline for AR points is Friday, June 6th. In addition, all books are due back at the school library on that same day.

Some students have told me they plan on reading over the summer to get a head start for next year. I highly recommend it! There are so many fabulous new books out for teens. Ms. Collins has put together a Recommended Reading List for the summer. There are several on the list that I have read or plan to this summer. I read first one on the list, The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, just this past Saturday. It was so good I couldn’t put it down. It is a book about a teenager who hopes for a better life while the lives of those around him seem destined for desolation. The main character, Arnold Spirit, seems an underdog but ends up being an incredibly strong character that refuses to give up, even when the worst befalls on him, his family, and community. It made me laugh out loud and cry out of empathy for Arnold.

Students have finished reading The Misfits, by James Howe, and are creating commercials, or Public Service Announcements, for anti-bullying. They are finding images, research, and creating a final message for their PSA. We are hoping to finish them in time for viewing on the last day. If you would like to come in or view your student’s video, please contact me by email so I can update you as to when we will be sharing.

The Technology/Exploratory class is ending out the year with a cooking unit. So far, the students learned how to make pasta sauce from scratch, without opening a jar! In addition, they made a tortilla casserole. The unit will end with Pigs in a Blanket, Currant Scones, and Seven Layer Cookies. Needless to say, the students are eagerly anticipating the cookies! I would like to give a huge thank you to the PTA for helping to fund the groceries for this unit. It has been a big hit so far and the students are having a great time in the kitchen. Also, I would like to thank all of the parents who donated items from their own kitchen that have allowed us to cook and bake. They have been put to good use.

In closing, I would like to say it has been a great year. I have enjoyed teaching all of your students and learning from them, also. Please, encourage them to read over the summer months. Share what you are reading with your students and ask them to share. Read a book together, as a family. On long trips, download audiobooks onto ipods or borrow audiobook CD’s from the library. The main Novato library has quite an extensive selection of teen books. I look forward to talking with the students in the fall about the novels they have read over the summer. Have a peaceful and relaxing summer.

As the month of March draws near, we have begun to anticipate the testing that will confront students in the coming months. The first California standardized test, which all seventh graders will be required to take, is the STAR writing standards test. In order to prepare the students, all seventh grade classes have been analyzing or are in the process of analyzing and practicing the different genres that students could possibly be confronted with on Tuesday, March 4th. The different genres are Persuasive, Summary, Response to Literature, and Narrative. In the process of preparing, we have been trying to help the students focus on the importance of organizing their writing and the key parts of each genre. While the students have many good ideas and much to say, if they do not have the organization or the elements which comprise each genre, their writing will not matter. Key terms we have been reviewing include thesis and topic sentences, introductions, blues/hook, projected plans, reasons and examples to support your topic, rebuttals, conclusions, varied sentences and more. We will continue to reinforce the terms already learned in the different genres and throughout the remainder of the year. In preparation for the test on Tuesday, we ask that you have all seventh graders to school on time, with a good night of rest and a healthy breakfast.

On another note, students are gearing up to memorize a two-minute speech to present to their classmates. The speeches were chosen from a variety of topics: book excerpts, persuasive speeches, short story, monologues, etc. (Students were also informed of links on my resources page to book experts) They are required to memorize their speech with, at most, an index card to serve as a prompt. If you are interested in coming in to observe your child present, please feel free to email me and I will do my best to accommodate the schedule for you. Those students who do an outstanding job may be asked to participate in the SJMS speech contest on March 18th and possibly move on to the San Domenico Speech contest later next month.

In addition to further test preparation practice, students will begin reading a short novel, The Pearl by John Steinbeck. In this unit of study we will be analyzing the many themes (good vs. evil, the poor oppressed by the rich, things aren’t always what they seem, etc.) and exploring the symbolism, while enjoying the rich language and descriptive characters.

In conclusion, I would like to encourage you and your children to read together in the evenings. Students are required to read for thirty minutes every night. What a better way to end the night by reading as a family and then sharing what you have read. Share with your child the process – what you think about, what you predict will happen, questions you have about why the author chose to portray the character in a certain light or write in a certain way. The more you can model your reading process the more experience they will gain. Ask them the same questions about their reading. I read to my children every night. As we read together, I will stop and ask them questions about what they think might happen next. Too often, students think they have to answer a right or wrong question that they can’t appreciate anticipation and the joy that reading can bring. They are used to reading and answering questions from a textbook and are unsure or hesitant about thinking for themselves. It is amazing how much modeling can help free them up in order to show them they are capable of critical thinking. This will also help them in their Reader’s Journal responses. You could even have them write their journal response letter to you. Wouldn’t it be fun to write a letter back to them?

I understand how life can keep us busy, but there is no greater gift you can give your child than modeling for them how a reader reads, responds and interacts with text. It can be reading the newspaper, a poem, novel or other informational text. The objective is to show the importance of reading and how we make sense of it. You are your child’s first teacher. With your support, we can work together to guide your student towards becoming a life-long learner.

Technology/Exploratory students have finished creating their iMovies and have moved on to exploring the elements of photography. So far, students have looked at light and shadows, camera angle, frame and scale, composition and story sequence. We have several other projects we hope to complete before moving on to the next unit of study which will be art.

In the art unit of study, we will be looking at several artists from different eras and with different styles. This will include artists from the Renaissance, to Post-renaissance, Cubists, Surrealists, to more current artists and styles (pop art, comics, etc.). If you have any experience or expertise with a certain style or artist and would like to come talk to the students – or even present a lesson – let me know. We would love to learn from you.

As the semester is coming to an end the seventh grade students are busy finishing up their short stories. We have spent the past several weeks working on strategies to enhance their writing. The students have looked at what makes good fiction, problems in fiction (conflict), created a main character through a questionnaire, conversed about what to consider when creating a character and how to develop a character. In addition, we spent some time perusing student written short stories while looking at story structure.

The students have been in the lab for two weeks typing their stories. Some of the mini-lessons we have covered in the lab have included “really bad words” to stay away from while writing/editing, how to use a Thesaurus to replace dull verbs, writing so a reader can “see it, hear it, feel it,” and how to slow down important parts in the story by creating a “movie” in your mind’s eye. It is exciting to see even the students who struggle inspired to put words on paper. I eagerly anticipate hearing their stories next week. My goal is to have every student read their stories aloud to their classmates the week of December 10th through the 14th. If you are available and would like to come in and listen to your student’s story, please send me an email letting me know when you are available and would like to come.

In addition to writing, we continue with our Friday Reader’s Workshop. Students were recently given a log to keep track of their reading time and pages covered (they are supposed to be reading 30 minutes every night). Students are able to choose their own novels to read and write to me, or another student, about what they are reading. I enjoy being able to write to each student. Please, feel free to ask your student to write to you in their Reader’s Journal about what they are reading. You might enjoy writing back with questions you have regarding what they have written and insights they have as a reader.

I have recently incorporated a new assessment program called Accelerated Reader. This program has just become available to the district this current year. I am the first to pilot this program at SJMS and have been learning about it in order to help other teachers transition more easily. You might be familiar with the program, as many of the elementary schools have been using it for several years. It allows students to take a reading test in order to find out what reading level they are at. In addition, it allows them to do their independent reading and then take comprehension tests. Teachers are then able to cross-reference their independent reading with their actual reading level in order to help students become more successful readers and to analyze student growth. The students earn points for each test they take and successfully pass. The points are based upon numerous factors: book level, pages, time spent reading. The goal for this quarter was set at 20 points. There are a few students who have reached and surpassed this goal but there are several others who have not. Please, encourage your students to read every night. Help them with their goal; encourage them and read to them or alongside of them. If they have reached their goal, encourage and persuade them to read at a higher level and/or a different genre.

I would like to suggest reading to your students and taking them to the public library to select books to read over the winter break. Please see my Accelerated Reader links page to search for AR books by book level and then you can search the Marin County Library database for books on my resources page. Also, with a library card you can place a hold on a book or, if you cannot find the book at the Novato library, you can request the book from another and they will send you a notice when it arrives. After students have finished a novel they can take a test on Accelerated Reader from home by accessing the link on my class page. This will help give them a head start on quarter points for the new semester.

Technology students have been busy collecting data and expressing it in different ways through spreadsheets, graphs, and databases. They have recently finished merging a mad libs story with a parts of speech database to create crazy, unique stories. It was a fun way for students to practice and review grammar! Next week they will be learning how to create greeting cards in Microsoft Word. Again, I would like to encourage fostering typing practice over the break. This is a skill that will help them greatly in the coming years. There are free sites for practicing on even though they are limited. If you would like suggestions on typing programs, please feel free to contact me for advice.

Lastly, I would like to wish all of you a peaceful and joyous holiday season. Your children are a gift and I enjoy each and everyone.

I just finished reading “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” by J.K. Rowling to my daughter. I understand why the author is one that so many children and adults can enjoy. In the novel there are many exciting parts; but there are also situations that allow us to relate and connect with the characters. She also conveys some important messages like the one on the last few pages of the book which reads…

“There are all kinds of courage…It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends.”

Challenge Day was an emotional roller coaster. So many walls came tumbling down to reveal what was inside of each child, each person. I was so proud of my “family.” What a fantastic group of children! They were able to look past the labels…you’re fat, skinny, ugly, pretty, black, white, slow, nerdy…to say “what does it matter?” We are all human and we are more alike than we are different. By putting a label on someone else it keeps us from knowing what each person has to offer as an individual. I hope these children will be able to stand up to their friends in the future when they see them place labels on others and judge people based on stereotypes.

When I share with people that I teach middle school they often look at me like I am crazy! I think a part of me was drawn to this age because it was such a difficult time in my own life. We all struggle at this age to fit in, be liked, loved and respected. We are in such a fragile state of being and feel like we are all awkward and alone. For some of us, not much changes throughout our lifetime.

I want to thank the P.T.A. for helping to bring Challenge Day to our school.  This experience has taught me that it doesn’t matter what age we are. We are all human and, whether we come from the same background or not, the most fundamental need and desire is to feel loved and have our feelings validated and respected. There were so many sad children who had bottled up their feelings but were able to open up today. I wanted to scoop up each and every child there and tell them they are loved and how special they are. I wanted to tell them they are not alone and I know how they feel.

We all have the power to change a life and make someone feel better about themselves through love and kind words. I was reading some poems to my children this evening and I came across two by Emily Dickinson which made me reflect on the day.

A word is dead

When it is said,

Some say.

I say it just

Begins to live

That day.

In this short life

That only lasts an hour,

How much, how little,

Is within our power!

And, another…

If I can stop one heart from breaking,

I shall not live in vain;

If I can ease one life the aching,

Or cool one pain,

Or help one fainting robin

Unto his nest again,

I shall not live in vain.

I hope to validate the feelings of everyone in my life more than I have in the past. I hope to never tell my children, again, not to cry or don’t cry like a baby. I want them to acknowledge their feelings and understand why they feel the way they do. I want them to know it is alright to have them and to let them out once in awhile. I also hope that I can contribute to mending those broken hearts and lightening the burdens that plague those we are surrounded by.

We could all use a little more love, empathy and compassion in our lives. I appreciate the love I have been given and those lives who I have been blessed to cross paths with. I am surrounded by incredible students who have so much to offer this world. And, I realize how similar we are no matter what age or background. It is our feelings that unite us and make us able to relate to each other as humans. If we embrace and connect to those feelings, we will find the love and respect we all deserve.

It is hard to believe six weeks have passed since the start of term. It has been fun getting to know all of the students. They are all special and have something unique to add to the class. I am learning just as much from them as, I hope, they are learning from me. I look forward to learning more about them through their personal memoirs.

The seventh grade students have had several mini-lessons based on writing memoirs. Last week, I shared some of my own personal memoirs and we looked at what made them effective or ineffective. The students were very responsive to the writing and they had much to say about what made a memoir effective. Next week we will have mini-lessons on “The Rule of SO WHAT?” and “Thoughts and Feelings.” Please ask your student what the rule means and what thoughts and feelings they have added into their memoir. Some students may find that their first draft of writing may have no meaning and they will need to abandon it and find a more meaningful event to write about. This is where they might need to return to their brainstorming on “Questions for Memoirists.”

When the seventh grade is not writing, we are reading short stories from our Readers or student chosen novels for Reader’s Workshop. Some stories we have read include Seventh Grade, by Gary Soto, and “Thank You, M’am,” by Langston Hughes. Again, please ask your student to share their Reader’s Journal with you. Encourage them to write you a letter about what they are reading and then write back to them. It is fun to hear what they have to say. Who knows, they might get you interested in reading some great fiction!

The technology students have been finishing up their first project on the computers in the mini-lab. They have been hard at work on creating posters with their images on it. It is fun to see what the students put on their posters to tell others what they want to be when they ‘grow-up.’ Some of the students are very creative! Next week they will begin a favorite project of mine, creating Kindness Cards. Everyone knows we can all use a little more kindness in our world! I collect a sample from each student in order to display on a bulletin board on the campus. Please, ask your student to share one thing they have learned about creating a Word document that they haven’t learned before. You might be surprised with their answer!

Progress reports will be out towards the end of next week. Please feel free to call or email me if you have any questions.

As I sit down to write this post before the start of the new school year, even though I am embarking on my eleventh year of teaching, I still anticipate getting a case of the jitters on the first day. It is usually preceded by a few nightmares which hark back to my own middle school years…forgetting a large assignment or a big test until the last minute, getting locked out of the house in pajamas, etc. While it might be an uncertain time not knowing what might transpire from this year, it is also a time of great hope.

I have been working closely with fellow colleague Ms. Meyers throughout the summer in order to come up with a comprehensive and thoughtful curriculum for the seventh grade. We will continue to work together, whenever possible, throughout the year with the hope that we will provide the most engaging curriculum and best education possible for your students.

While seventh grade can be a difficult year socially, emotionally, and academically, I hope it holds for your student the beginning of a successful educational path. Our goal is not only to help them find their strengths in reading and writing but also to enjoy the learning process.

The seventh graders are hard at work on their persuasive essays. The topics they had to choose from were children and cell phones, school uniforms, junk food in schools, music influence on children, year-round schooling, and children online. We spent the last week and a half brainstorming and researching sources in groups. Now, the students are beginning to write their essays on an individual basis. Please check in with your student and ask them their position on their chosen topic and what examples they came up with through their research to support their position.

The Technology Elective class has finished their unit on Internet safety by creating a podcast which highlights what they have learned. Please listen and comment. They are now beginning work on learning about the different parts of a computer where they will teach a lesson to the other students on what they have learned. I look forward to the final projects as the students have been working hard.

It is hard to believe the holidays are here and the New Year is just around the corner. In another three weeks the semester will be over.

We have begun reading “The Pearl” by John Steinbeck. It is a classic tale about a fisherman who found a priceless pearl and how his life changed as a result of it. Please ask your student to share their thoughts and feelings about the novel with you.

As an introduction to the unit, the students completed a webquest in the computer lab to learn about pearl diving and the author. They also had a chance to try out a new site, Yacapaca, which will allow the students to take tests online and receive immediate feedback. They seem to be enjoying the look and feel of it.

Technology students are learning all about the web 2.0 technologies. They created their own online bookmarks and have begun looking at news aggregators. This week we hope to be looking at photosharing and using the images to create iMovies based on a Robert Frost poem. In addition, we will be creating websites at Learnerblogs.org.

All of the students had a fun and energetic Halloween day!

After posing for the camera, the students completed a Halloween cryptogram and answered some trivia. Did your student share with you the meaning of samhainophobia? How about nyctophobia?

The remainder of the class period was spent viewing a documentary about the Titanic titled “Ghosts of the Abyss.” The film showed actual underwater video of the wreckage and overlayed it with imaging of what it might have looked like in the final hours before the boat sunk to its watery grave at the bottom of the Atlantic ocean.

I hope you all had an energetic and safe Halloween evening! 

I enjoyed reading the beginnings of your “Friend” essays. I am learning so much about each of you. Some of you are very thoughtful and some of you have a great sense of humor. I could see some of you provide many details with ease and others were struggling to get them down on paper. You all know a great deal more than you give yourselves credit for. We need to learn to how to let those ideas flow! Once I started asking questions, you all had more to write about.

Technology students have been working hard to teach about the inside and outside of the computer with the help of the website Kidsdomain.com. Each student was assigned to a group to cover different topics about the computer including: Outer Hardware, Hardware on the Inside, Bits & Bytes, Storage, Programs, Operating Systems, Files & Folders, The Mac & Windows Desktop, Knowing Your System, Computer Care & Safety. Groups were responsible for creating slides to show their topic and covering the worksheets provided for each lesson. They are all great teachers! Keep checking the technology page to view links to the slides for each topic.

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We completed our Internet Safety podcast today! Click here to listen.

It is fun getting to know each and every one of you. I had fun taking your pictures today. You all are so unique! I look forward to learning more about you and hearing about your findings from your ‘Back 2 School Interview’.

Technology is the largest class. I am so pleased you all are excited to be enrolled in it. I am confident we will have a fabulous semester. I know you are all anxious to be working in the computer lab, but I hope you are learning a great deal from the videos we are watching and the topics we are discussing. It is important for you to realize the implications of your actions while you are online. Remember “You Can’t Take it Back.”

Have a restful weekend and I look forward to seeing you on Monday!

Technorati Tags: 7th, 8th, interviews, Technology

What a great day! It was fun getting to know each and every one of you. Don’t forget about the course syllabus and course materials. These will be expected on Monday. Have a restful evening and get ready to write tomorrow!

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Welcome to Mrs. Fried’s blog.

This site will be used as a place for reflection and to establish a community of learners. I hope that students will feel comfortable contributing their thoughts and insights. I also encourage the families to be involved by posting their comments here.

I look forward to a successful and engaging year! Thank you for your participation.

Sincerely,

Mrs. Fried