Language Arts Newsletter 
Week of May 8th 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Team ELA Still Rises! 


Cycle 4B Instruction Week 2:



6th-grade focus standard(s):
  • 6.RL.4.1
The Big Idea:

  • Literature analysis


I Can Statement(s):


I can read different types and genres of literature and analyze the meaning within the text.

I can use information, after analyzing literature, to read with a more definite purpose.

I can use the skill of analyzing literature to become a better writer and oral communicator.

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7th-grade focus standards:

  • 7.RN.4.1

  • 7.ML.2.1

The Big Idea:

  • Argumentation review
  • Persuasion

I Can Statement(s):


I can evaluate the argument and claims in a text.

I can assess whether an author's reasoning is sound and whether she has enough evidence to support her claims. 



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8th-grade focus standards:

  • 8.RN.4.1

  • 8.ML.2.1

The Big Ideas:

  • Argumentation review

  • Persuasion

I Can Statement(s):


I can trace and evaluate the argument and claims in a text.

I can assess whether an author’s reasoning is sound and whether she has enough evidence to support the claims she’s asserting.


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"Learning is not a spectator sport."
 


6th Grade:  

  • NWEA and SRI testing information
  • End of the year housekeeping items
  • Looking forward to next year 

7th/8th Grades: 

  • No Friday Morning Meeting 
 
 
 
 
NWEA End of Year Testing 

 6th and 7th Grade:
  • Window opens May 8th and closes on May 17th

8th Grade:
  • Window opens May 15th and closes on May 24th

SRI End of Year Asessment 

6th, 7th, and 8th Grades:


  • Window opens May 8th and runs throughh May 26
 
 
 
 
 
 


Good Readers ask Questions
 
 
 
 
Good Readers Ask Questions

Readers ask themselves questions as they read to make sense of the text. When readers ask questions, they learn to seek, pursue, and search for answers and deepen their understanding.

The most important questions often asked don’t seem to have ready answers. But the questions themselves help readers gain a more profound understanding of the text when they share with others. When a question is easily answered, it is an invitation for the reader to stop thinking about something, to stop wondering. An unanswered question keeps the students reading and thinking, and involved in the story. 

Why students need this strategy: 

Readers who ask questions during reading are actively engaged and thus tend to remember important details and information. While asking questions, readers are monitoring their comprehension.

Secret to success:

Readers must be able to generate their own questions. Not all questions will be answered.

How we teach it:

When introducing this strategy in a whole-group format, we begin by explaining that asking questions during the reading process can help us focus on what we are reading, can give us a purpose for reading, and enables us to monitor our reading or check to see whether we are understanding what we are reading. 

We model this questioning process by stopping during our reading and stating the question we have in our minds. We model for a few days and then ask students to participate while we are reading aloud by turning and talking. Finally, we have students practice asking questions independently. 

Sample questions we may use while reading: 

  • “What does this mean?” 

  • “Is this important?” 

  • “How do I think this story will end?”

  •  “What will this selection be about?”

  •  “What does this word mean?” 

  • “What did I learn?”

  •  “Do I need to read this again?”

 How many more questions can you come up with? Let your imagination run wild! 
 
 
 
 
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