1. Welcome to The Phoenix Team
Christine Drance
Language Arts
Phoenix – A person or thing of surpassing beauty or quality; the paragon of excellence, the ideal standard.

2. Contact Information
Most efficient method of contact
Ext
Planning is from 1:05 – 2:30
Web page connected to OMS website

3. A Bit About Me Personal Professional
From Cortland, New York (Central NYS)
Married 38 years and have 3 grown children who all went through Boone County Schools including OMS.
Hobbies include genealogy, hiking, reading, travel, singing, & playing guitar
Professional
Graduate of SUNY Brockport – Interpersonal communications & public relations
Worked in NYC with 2 Fortune 100 companies before moving to Northern KY where I had my own business for a time.
Began substitute teaching in 1998 and became a full time teacher in 2003.
Earned Masters of Arts in Teaching from Northern Kentucky University 2004
Currently OMS Language Arts Department Chairperson

4. Supplies
Text book – distributed after students and parents sign agreement (please cover)
1 to 1 ½ inch wide 3 ring binder dedicated to ELA
5 divider tabs
Hole reinforcers
Pencils, eraser, sharpener, Loose leaf notebook paper
Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech (Novel read in 2nd semester as a class)

5. Language Arts Class In class – Using Springboard & Literature text
Grammar -  - needed mechanics to understand text & create meaningful communication
Writing
– examining various genre through exemplars,
practicing & refining skills, learning the tools that writers use to communicate effectively
Embedded assessments within Springboard Units
On demand practice
Reading
In class – Using Springboard & Literature text
Out-of-class assignments include book reports and book logs
3 book per semester requirement (one every 3 weeks)

6. Study of independent reading done in 1987 by Nagy & Herman at U
Study of independent reading done in 1987 by Nagy & Herman at U. of Illinois
Massive vocabulary expansion comes from seeing words used in context more so than direct instruction.
Cannot teach the amount of vocabulary learned by reading 20 minutes per night.
Easy to accomplish, but cannot be done in school alone. Need partnership with parents.

7. Language Arts Class Homework
– Important practice to build skill mastery
– Reading is homework – 20 min. minimum every night
– Many writing assignments build so they must be done
Grades – Point system
– In class grade each week for preparation, participation, and being on-task
– Grades will be taken for homework, some classwork, quizzes/tests, and projects
– “Bonus” credit is offered at the time an assignment is given, rarely after the fact, and almost never to make up missing or subpar effort.

8. Late Work Policy
Before Christmas Break
Points taken off every day an assignment is late up to one week.
After one week, the best grade possible is 70% (passing) for the next 2 weeks.
After those 3 weeks, the assignment remains zero.
Since many writing assignments build on one another, that work might still have to be completed to create the base for other assignments, though the zero stands.
After Christmas Break
3 week deadline changes to one week.

9. Most Important for 6th Graders
Get organized
Meet your responsibilities
Choose friends wisely

10. The overall theme for the year is change
The overall theme for the year is change. Students come to understand how change can be significant in shaping their lives and in crafting and analyzing text.
Throughout the year, and taught simultaneously with the units outlined below, grammar skills will be covered and practiced which develop student’s understanding of the proper usage and conventions of English.
Unit 1 – Goals of the unit:
To analyze key ideas and details in addition to craft and structure in print and non-print texts
To understand narrator’s point of view and analyze its use in writing and reading.
To use narrative techniques such as sequencing, dialogue, and descriptive language
To write well-structured paragraphs.
To write narratives to develop real or imagined events. (personal narrative &/or short story)
To understand and practice correctly using ­ parts of speech, and the conventions of punctuating dialogue.
Unit 2 – During this unit, students will read a class novel
Goals of the unit:
To develop strategies and skills needed to analyze literary elements
To apply a variety of reading strategies to fiction and nonfiction texts
To collaborate and communicate effectively
To write an expository essay
To develop and practice using the conventions of English grammar and create sentence variety.
Unit 3 – Goals of the unit:
To develop strategies for analyzing informational text
To practice nonfiction reading strategies
To support a claim with reasons and evidence
To write effective and clear responses to on demand prompts.
To engage effectively in a variety of collaborative discussions
To write an argumentative letter
To develop and practice using the conventions of English grammar.
To understand and use simple, compound, and complex sentence structures
Unit 4 – Goals of the Unit:
To analyze and understand the relationship between setting, characterization, conflict, and plot
To research a drama from a different time period (Shakespeare)
To rehearse and present an engaging performance of a drama
To revise for effective sentence variety