I am happy to say we are FINALLY done with our pre-testing for Language Arts!

Today in class the students set goals for themselves for Language Arts based on their reading abilities. We documented these goals in our interactive notebooks and created a digital portfolio called My Learning Plan to keep track of our goals too. You can ask your child to see their plan today!

With the remainder of class time, we defined what a good fit book is and how we know if a book is a good fit for us.

At this point, the only graded assignment we have completed is the All About Me One-Pager. I have posted grades on Parent/Student Connect for you to view. Now that we are done with testing, we will start having more to do in class and therefore, more grades will be added.

I have also attached my homework slide from the Open House Presentation because I know many families had asked to see it.

Have a great weekend!

Homework:

1. Book Talk due Monday, September 23rd

For the next three days the students will be taking the Reading and Language NWEA test in Language Arts. When they finish, they will be given time to work on their All About Me One-Pager and their Book Talk. Since this is what we will be doing for the next three days, I will not be posting to the blog tomorrow or Wednesday.

Don’t forget Wednesday is Open House from 6:00 to 7:30. I look forward to meeting all of you!

Homework:

1. All About Me One-Pager due Wednesday
2. Book Talk due Monday, September 30th

In Language Arts today the students were given time to finish their Moby Max: Language and Read Theory pre-tests. They also finished setting up both of their interactive notebooks.

Then, they were given more class time to work on their All About Me One-Pager and their Book Talk.

We ended the class period by going to the library to learn how to check out books.

Have a great weekend!

Homework:

1. All About Me One-Pager due Wednesday
2. Book Talk due Monday, September 30th

In Language Arts today the students finished setting up their reading and writing interactive notebooks. If they did not finish in class, they were required to do this as homework.

They were also given time in class to work on their Book Talk from their Summer Learning Assignment. This is due Monday, September 30th.

Lastly, the students were given their first assignment that will be graded in Language Arts. This assignment is an All About Me One-Pager. Directions for this assignment have been added to this blog post. The students will be given time in class to work on this each day. It is due next Wednesday, September 11th.

Have a great evening!

Homework:

1. Finish setting up your reading and writing interactive notebooks
2. Finish your pre-test for Moby Max: Language and Read Theory
3. All About Me One-Pager due Wednesday, September 11th
4. . Finish your Summer Learning Book Talk due Friday, September 30th

In Language Arts today the students took their pre-tests on Moby Max: Language and Read Theory. These are NOT graded assessments. They are used to determine the abilities of the students for the practice they will be doing online.

The students also spent time in class setting up their Reading Interactive Notebooks. We will finish this in class tomorrow. If the students did not finishing numbering the pages, they must finish tonight for homework.

Many students did not bring in classroom tissue to donate to our class. While this IS NOT required, the school does not provide us with tissue boxes. When we run out, all we can do is take paper towel from the bathroom which does not feel so great on a nose. If you have any tissue at home that you would be willing to part with, it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you to those who have been able to donate to our classroom.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Homework:

1. Team Syllabus signature due TOMORROW
2. Movie Permission Slip due TOMORROW
3. Finish numbering your interactive notebook pages

In Language Arts today the students finished signing up for the technology we will be using in class this year. At this point, the students should be signed up for the class blog, Google Classroom, Quizlet, iLearn, Moby Max, and Read Theory. If students had an electronic device with them, they signed up for Remind as well. All students were given directions for Remind and encouraged to sign up their electronic device at home as well as have an adult who helps them with school sign up too. Remind is an app (the students do not need to download this for it to work) that allows me to send text messages to students about what is going on in class. Fake numbers are created through Remind. I do not have the students’ cell phone numbers and they do not have mine. I encourage each family to sign up for this as well. If your student forgot to bring home the directions today, I will have them available at Open House next Wednesday but I will not be posting them to the blog for privacy purposes.

The students also spent time in class learning what the word advocate means and how they can advocate for themselves in class. At Bryant, we work really hard to help the kids learn to be responsible for their needs and their own learning. This can be a challenging transition for sixth graders. If your child has a question or a concern about something at school, I encourage all of my families to have the students email or talk to the teacher first. They learn to be more responsible and organized when they do the problem solving themselves as opposed to having someone else do it for them. Of course, if it is not working, then we encourage families to get involved. Together this year, I am confident we can help them take responsibility and ownership when they have a need in the classroom!

We spent the remainder of class time discussing what our classroom rules will be. I will be taking the students’ ideas and making them in to a poster for everyone to sign tomorrow.

Have a great night!

In Language Arts today the students played a team building game where they had to line themselves up from oldest to youngest without talking. During the activity, we discussed how to work as a team, how to communicate with others, and what it means to be a leader in class.

The students also spent time going over our team syllabus. This syllabus is used in all four core classes (Math, Language Arts, Science, and Global Studies). All families are required to read over the syllabus together to help with the transition to middle school. The students were asked to return a slip of paper stating the syllabus was read by an adult family member. This is due NEXT Thursday. When students turn this in, they will receive their first Eagle Etiquette from me! If a student has lost the syllabus, I have attached a copy to this blog post.

The students were also given their suggested school supply list. We will be starting to use these supplies on Tuesday. Please make sure you come to class prepared!

Additionally, students were given a movie permission slips. There are times when students are allowed to watch a movie at school as a PBIS reward or as it relates to the curriculum we are learning in class. Some of these movies may have a PG rating. For this reason, we must have a permission slip on file in order for the students to be able to watch. If a student forgets to get the permission slip signed or families do not want students to watch movies, an alternate activity for those children will be planned.

Lastly, we spent the remainder of our class time discussing what it means to be a great classmate. We talked about what great classmates do, what they are, and what they say. We also discussed things a great classmate would not do. These ideas are going to be put together and hang on a poster in our classroom.

Tomorrow is team building day which means we will be spending a lot of time participating in activities outside. Please make sure to dress accordingly!

Homework:

1. Syllabus Signature due NEXT Thursday
2. Movie Permission Slip due NEXT Thursday
3. Summer Learning Presentations on Monday, September 30th

In Language Arts today the students were given a tour of our classroom. We also took a tour of the school so we could learn where everything is located as well as school procedures.

The students also spent time learning how to open a locker and practicing opening their own. We are encouraging students to start keeping their materials in their locker so they can practice getting them in and out.

Then, the students played a get-to-know-you game. We tossed a ball around the classroom that had questions about the kids on it. Each time a student caught the ball, they had to answer a question about themselves.

Lastly, we reviewed the homework for summer learning they should have received from their fifth grade teacher at the end of the year. We understand that not all students went to Dearborn Public Schools last year and may have been unaware of the assignment. For this reason, the work from summer is not due until Monday, September 30th. I have attached the requirements to this blog post for families who may not have seen them. Copies were sent home with students during class today too.

Congratulations on making it through your first full day of middle school, Bryant Eagles!

Welcome to ELA with Mrs. Bailey! It was so exciting to meet all of my new students today. I am so excited to be working with each and every family! I will be using this blog to keep families informed about what is going on in our classroom on a daily basis.

Today during Language Arts the students played a game called “Me Too”. They were asked to state their name, where they went to elementary school, and one thing they did over the summer. If there were commonalities among students, the students who went to the same school or did the same activity replied to the speaker by saying, “me too”.

I look forward to working with everyone this year!

I had a wonderful time working with all of my students and their families this year! I hope everyone has a fun, safe, and relaxing summer with your friends and family! If you will be at Bryant next year, don’t hesitate to stop in my room or wave through the window!

I have attached the Summer Learning assignment for the 2019-2020 6th grade students.

Bryant_-Recommended-Summer-Book-List-for-Incoming-6th-Graders-2019

Summer Learning Book Talk Directions 2019