All About Our ELA & Science Class
ELA Class Information:
This class will be using the Unique Learning System as a major resource for our curriculum. The curriculum is aligned with the current state Essential Elements and Common Core.
- Under the ELA Tab you will find weekly updates on our current unit and focus as well as spelling words and any homework updates for that week or unit.
- During this class we will be focusing on weekly units as well as: sight word recognition, phonemic awareness and sound blending skills, writing with supports, speaking, listening and spelling.
Here are a list of activities that we will be doing on a weekly basis.
- Word Work: Every Monday your child will be assigned a list of spelling words in which he or she will need to learn and will be tested on every Friday. Every child will get an individualized list of words based on his or her reading level. Please ensure that your child is practicing spelling his/her words at home. Students will work on spelling, writing, using, and defining their words in class on Mondays. We also look for the use of our spelling words in what we read in class. However, besides Mondays we do not focus on spelling words – some time needs to be spend on them at home.
- Writing: Students will write journal entries at least once a week. Writing prompts will be given to start students off and from there they write until time is up. For students who have difficulty writing they copy what they can and adults scribe sentences students give verbally. Assistive technology such as Alpha Smarts and iPads are available to those who need them. Editing our journal entries will happen on occasion as we review and discuss topics such as using capitalization, punctuation, appropriate spelling, etc.
- Reading: News-2-You (apart of the Unique Learning Systems – our program’s adapted curriculum) provides a weekly article that students will read about current events and interesting topics. Students read through the article either individually or in small groups and answer comprehension questions after reading. News-2-You pairs pictures with every word in the article to further comprehension and help students identify difficult words. Our weekly spelling words come from the News-2-You articles. When reading News-2-You students are able to practice reading to themselves, to others, and to an adult. The articles often prompt future writing topics, projects, and book report themes.
- Reading Groups: At least once a week each class will be working on reading with their reading partners. They will work on reading developmentally appropriate books by: reading the pictures and reading the words. During this time I will be working with pairs of students on individuals reading goals.
Science Class
We will be using the Unique Learning System as a resource for our curriculum. This curriculum will be aligned with the current state extended grade level content expectations (eglce’s).
- Under the Weekly Units tab you will find a weekly break down of the curriculum the focus that it will have for that week. The current week will always be at the top.
- This curriculum is divided into 3 different levels which allows me to address the needs of all the students in the classroom. It is appropriate for students who are grade level readers and are able to answer questions with no support. It is also appropriate for students who are readers, but may need minimal support. Finally, it is appropriate and supports students who struggle with reading by providing picture supports for each word, including questions and answers.
Here are a current list of supplies that are needed for our Science class. If you could please send in these items with your child, it would be greatly appreciated
- Markers
- Poster Boards (Science Display Boards)
- Paper Plates and Cups (to organize experiment materials)
I will update the supply list as the year goes on. Thanks.