1. Grade 8 Mrs. Pace Room 224 Team Senators
ELA
Grade 8
Mrs. Pace
Room 224
Team Senators

2. Grade 8 Mr. Russo Room 224 Team Senators and Icon
ELA
Grade 8
Mr. Russo
Room 224
Team Senators and Icon

3. COMMUNICATION Email: susan.pace@Monroe.k12.nj.us732)
Genesis – parent and child
Google Classroom - Long Term and Writing Assignments

4. CREATING A READING LIFE
Connecting the child with the right book
Giving time to read
Students have choice in what they read
Building stamina
Allowing students to share love of literature
Students set personal reading goals
Reading mentors in teachers and parents
Parental/Guardian involvement in children's choice of literature
Creating lifelong readers

5. UNITS OF STUDY: Launch/Writing for Reading
Nonfiction/Paragraph Writing
Realistic Fiction/Literary Analysis
Historical Fiction/Narrative
Social Issues/Argumentative
Movie Books/Choice Writing

6. WORKSHOP STRUCTURE Mini-Lesson
Direct teaching of skills for minutes. Skills grow out of analysis of student work & conferences
Skills practice
Read Aloud
Book Talk (model fluency/engagement or model thinking/get students interested in books)
Work Time
Independent reading or writing (Approximately 30 minutes while teacher confers with individuals or small groups of students)
Share
Sharing of work between peers or as a full class
A celebration!

7. READING WORKSHOP
Mini-lessons: study of literary elements and devices and reading comprehension strategies, book discussions, individual and small group conferences with teacher, book clubs, and independent reading.
Read Aloud: Orbiting Jupiter by Gary D. Schmidt, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne; various mentor texts
Reader’s Notebook
Launch: Procedures and expectations
Reading strategies
Writing about reading
Expectations
Book Talks (encourage others)
Nightly reading= 20 minutes (building up our stamina)
Reading Log
Suggestion: Goodreads, Audible, Overdrive = Library Card

8. WRITING WORKSHOP Format
Same format as reading workshop-Mini-Lesson/Read Aloud, Independent work/conferring, Sharing
Reading is still happening/expected
Writing pieces
Literary analysis, narrative, argumentative essay fed by research
Writer’s Notebook
Lists and seeds – ideas for writing
Writing mini-lessons
Connecting reading and writing
Writing strategies and the writing process
Reflection of their own writing
Google Classroom

9. GRADING 40% Summative Assessments 30% Formative Assessments
Book Talks
One Pager
Constructed response
Writing Pieces (narrative, analysis, and argumentative)
Skill-based assessments
Debates, Philosophical Chairs, Socratic Seminars
30% Formative Assessments
Reader's Response Journal
Post-it Checks (based on mini-lesson)
Informal teacher observation and conferencing
Entrance/Exit Tickets
Drafts
Quizzes
One-Pager
20% Practice
Reader’s Response Journal
Skills Practice
Do Nows
Graphic organizers
Writing drafts
10% Habits of Mind
Preparedness
Workshop behaviors- Positive Collaboration
Independent reading (logs/graphic organizers)
Adhering to class norms