1. Ann Ortenzi Advocacy Team 6b
Welcome Parents!
Ann Ortenzi
Advocacy
Team 6b

2. GVMS Vision of Advocacy
Empower students toward self-advocacy
Enable students to build strong relationships with each other and their advocate
Guide students to become mentors of each other
Provide an adult who becomes an expert on the students and celebrates how they are special
Provide an intermediary for students with other adults
Provide an adult to support academic and personal development

3. Goal of AdvocacY
To promote students’ academic, social, and behavioral success by
Promoting a positive school climate
Providing an atmosphere of security
Recognizing and embracing differences

4. GVMS Patriot Pride Meet 1 or 2 times per month 36 minute periods
Beginning in September

5. Welcome Parents!
Ann Ortenzi
ELA
Team 6B

6. Language Arts Curriculum
Language Arts Curriculum Revision
Common Core Aligned
Focused on the student and the process each student uses to achieve success in language arts
Increased focus on informational text skills to be utilized across content areas
Flexibility to incorporate differentiated & tiered instruction

7. Pennsylvania Standards
1.2 Reading Informational Text
Students read, understand, and respond to informational text—with an emphasis on comprehension, vocabulary acquisition, and making connections among ideas and between texts with focus on textual evidence
1.3 Reading Literature
Students read and respond to works of literature—with an emphasis on comprehension, vocabulary acquisition, and making connections among ideas and between texts with a focus on textual evidence.
1.4 Writing
Students write for different purposes and audiences. Students write clear and focused text to convey a well-defined perspective and appropriate content.
1.5 Speaking and Listening
Students present appropriately in formal speaking situations, listen critically, and respond intelligently as individuals or in group discussions.

8. Reading

9. Reading Units Being an Independent and Metacognitive Reader
Article of the Week
Analyzing Literary Elements in Short Stories, Informational Text, and Poetry
Reading Informational Text
Understanding Elements of Fiction (two novel units)

10. Concepts taught include:
Figurative Language
Character Development
Active Reading Strategies
Plot Development
Conflict
Literary Elements
Literary Analysis
Making Connections In and Among Texts
Citing Textual Evidence
Informational Reading Strategies
Vocabulary and Word Study
Metacognition

11. Why we recommend at least 30 minutes of reading at least 5 nights a week
% Rank on READING TESTS
MINUTES spent reading per day
NUMBER of words read per year 98
90.7
4,733,000 90
40.4
2,357,000 70
21.7
1,168,000 50
12.9
601,000 20
3.1
134,000 10
1.6
51,000
(Source: Anderson, Wilson, and Fielding 1988)

12. CHIRP - Children’s Independent Reading Practice
Creating “skilled, passionate, habitual, critical readers”
Two days per cycle (1 day in library)
We will read BOOKS for at least 30 minutes
“Reading Log” and “Someday List” kept in class
Mini lessons and book talks given as part of the workshop
Teacher/student conferences about reading
PCR books available through the classroom and school libraries
Donations to the classroom library
are greatly appreciated!

13. Writing

14. Focus Correction Areas (FCA)
Specific skills that we use to evaluate student writing

15. Writing Units Being an Independent & Metacognitive Writer
Response to Literature - Text Dependent Analysis (TDA)
Writing an Informational Essay
Writing an Argumentative Essay
Writing a Narrative Essay

16. Grammar Grammar lessons will be embedded into the writing units.
Formative assessments will be scored according to FCA’s to provide specific feedback on grammar concepts.

17. Concepts taught include
Topic and Concluding Sentences
Expanded Paragraph Structure
Organization and Construction of a Multi-paragraph Essay
Domains of Writing (focus, content, organization, style, and conventions/mechanics of Writing)
Embedded Grammar (related to specific modes of writing)
Responding to Literature with Literary Analysis
Using Text Evidence to Support Claims and Ideas
Self-editing Strategies
Effective Strategies for Pre-writing and How to Construct a Graphic Organizer
Improving Style (through the use of enriched vocabulary, word choice, varied sentence structure, sensory details, and figurative language)

18. Grades All Language Arts grades are based on a weighted scale:
55% Summative Assessments
40% Formative Assessments
5% Homework/Classwork
Qualities of a Learner
(COM, S, NI, U)

19. My Website Go to the GVMS homepage Click on Directory
Search for “Ortenzi”
Contact information:
The best way to contact me is through
I am also available at x71202