home

=Welcome to Mrs. Overmyer's 6th grade Literacy Wiki!=

contact information:


 * (website): http://erwin6.wikispaces.com/**


 * e-mail:holly.overmyer@thompsonschools.org**


 * voice mail: 970 (613-7664)**

Welcome to Holly Overmyer's wikispace! I hope that everyone had an enjoyable, restful summer! I am truly excited to kick off the new school year! Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns that you may have. The easiest, most efficient way to get a hold of me is by e-mail.

I enjoy reading and writing (surprise :), playing electric violin, yoga, hiking, and traveling.
 * About me:** I studied at Colorado State University, where I earned a BA in vocal / violin performance, a BA in English Literature, a secondary teaching certificate for Language Arts, and a MA in English Literature. I am originally from Berkeley Heights, New Jersey (a great place to be **from :),** and I love being in Colorado!


 * Why Language Arts is important (illustrated by the signs below). Oops!**




 * Classroom expectations for students:**

1) Please be **prompt** and **prepared** for class. Students should bring the following materials to Literacy everyday:


 * loose leaf paper
 * pencil
 * pen
 * eraser
 * pencil bag
 * flash drive
 * agenda
 * free reading material (no comic / picture books, appropriate magazines, newspapers, books of students' choice. Reading material should be challenging so that students can increase their reading skills).

Erwin Middle School's behavior expectations motto is PRIDE:


 * P**ositive
 * R**espect
 * I**ntegrity
 * D**iscipline
 * E**xcellence


 * Binders** for core classes will be kept in each classroom. Students are responsible for removing any homework materials from the binder and bringing them home in their homework folder.

If students need to bring other items to class, there will be a sign posted outside my classroom door (ex: colored pencils, glue stick, scissors, etc).

2) At the **beginning of class**, students should be working quietly in their assigned seat. The class period begins with a //**"do now" (warm-up excercise),**// which is posted on the board. I ask that students give detailed, thoughtful answers for "do now," and answers should be in complete, detailed sentences.

3) I also post the learning **"target**" for the day, which explains the goal or objective for the class period.

4) The **daily question** gives more specific focus for the learning target.

5) Class **activities** are also listed on the board daily.

6) **Homework** is posted on the board daily.


 * It is the responsibility of students to write down the target, question, activities, and homework **in their agenda daily** (they can abbreviate or summarize as needed). The agenda is a crucial organization piece and a tool for communication to parents as to what is covered in class.

7) __Absences:__ if a student is absent, I ask them to follow the "3 before me" rule: look in the make up work folder by the window (organized by date), and check in with two other students who were in class that day. The make up folder contains hand-outs and important information from each day's class period. Then, if students have specific questions for me about work missed, they can ask me either before or after class.

8) __Grading policy:__

80% of total grade consists of common assessments, tests, quizzes, reports, essays, culminating projects 20 % of total grade consists of homework (anything related to practice and enrichment), anything done mostly away from school, effort, collaboration, practice.


 * Please see the LEMS website for further information.

9) __Consequences:__ Students may receive a **refocus** form or office referral for not following the policies.

10) __Friday quizzes__: every Friday, there will be a quiz. We will rotate between spelling, vocabulary, grammar (DLI), and other material reviewed in class that week. Materials for Friday quizzes are handed out Monday or Tuesday so that students can look over them throughout the week.

Coursework to date (8/31):
Students have completed a **Biography Poem** in which they give some background information on themselves. They created a rough draft (which should be kept in their class binder), and final drafts are displayed on all sixth grade student lockers. We had a great variety of artistic and creative effort on these :)

We are also completing a **Literacy textbook scavenger hunt**, where students explore the organization and content of the textbook we will be using this year.


 * Organize Literacy binder (3-ring binder, at least 1/2 inch, 5 tab dividers: Table of Contents, Do Now, Notes, Important Papers). Binders will be kept in the Literacy classroom, and students are responsible for removing homework items and bringing them home to study).


 * Tuesday, Sept. 4**

1) Finish Lit. textbook scavenger hunt and hand in.

2) Hand out this week's quiz material: there will be quiz over **18 spelling words** given to students in class today. They also need to be familiar with the word definitions (also reviewed in class) and complete the spelling packet as homework for Friday. Students should choose a few words to review each night (instead of trying to "cram in all in" Thursday night!).


 * Wednesday, Sept. 5**

1) Introduce the **Object Collection Presentation.** Students will choose one important item that symbolizes each year of their life. These items may include photos, mementos, awards, etc.


 * We will be completing **two-column notes for each item** (see the hand-out given today in class). Of these items in the two-column notes, **students will choose** __three__ that are the most important to them and present these items to the class. I will be giving a brief sample presentation in class).


 * Please do not bring anything that is alive, fragile, or expensive to class! Please bring items home at the end of your presentation day.


 * Presentations will begin **Monday, Sept. 10.** Starting today, students will sign up for a presentation date (they are responsible for being ready to present on that day, along with their 3 objects and their two-column notes).

2) We will begin reading the short story "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros in our __Elements of Literature__ textbook.

3) We discussed good speaking techniques in class (good volume, pacing, eye contact, posture, being prepared and organized). Students should practice their presentation with others several times before presenting to the class.


 * Monday, Sept. 10th**

1) Hand out **DLI packet** and do page one for "do now" 2) Begin **Object Collection Presentations**: students need to hand in their final draft of their two-column notes after their presentations. 3) Go to **library** for **orientation** / book check-out

Homework:

1) Prepare for Object Collection Presentations: practice at home! 2) DLI Quiz Friday 3) DLI packet due Friday


 * Object Collection Presentation= 40 points, 80 % category
 * Object Collection Two-Column Notes= 50 points, 20% category


 * Students needed to score a 70% (C-) or above on the Spelling Quiz on Friday, Sept. 7.
 * The only date / time to re-take the spelling quiz is during lunch in my room on Thursday, Sept. 13. If students choose not to show up at that time, they receive the original grade for the quiz. Students who were absent last Friday should also make up the quiz on 9/13. Thank you :)

__Friday, Sept. 14th__

Students handed in their **DLI packet (practice on common and proper nouns), and we took the DLI quiz.**

We continued our Object Collection Presentations.

We read the short story "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros in __Elements of Literature.__


 * Monday, Sept. 17th**

We went over the Colorado Language Arts standards so that students understand what they are and how we will be assessing them on the standards this year. I gave out a paper copy in class, but there is also a link to them on this site (below).

We started reviewing the **Elements of Fiction (plot, exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution, conflict, person vs. person conflict, person vs. nature / fate). Students took notes in class, and they should study these during the week for the quiz.**

There will be a __quiz on Friday, Sept. 21st,__ over the Elements of Fiction.

__Tuesday, Sept. 18th__

Students viewed a short power point and video on Elements of Fiction and took notes. We also discussed specific examples of these elements in novels or movies so that students could form a "real life" connection with these terms.

We continued Object Collection Presentations.

__Wednesday, Sept. 19th / Thursday, Sept. 20th__

We read the short story "Just Once" in the Elements of Literature book. It is a story that illustrates the uses of the elements of fiction, and we discussed the themes of determination and "be careful what you wish for."

We continued Object Collection Presentations.

__Friday, Sept. 21st__

__Elements of Fiction__ Quiz

Review activity with Elements of Fiction (groups)

__Monday, Sept. 24th__

All classes went to the **library for book check-out and media lesson** presented by Mrs. Leach.

//Periods 3, 4, and 6:// Students got **Spelling Packet #2.** Students should know the definitions of and the correct spelling of each of the 18 words for a quiz on Friday, Sept 28th. They should also complete the spelling packet for homework, due on Friday, Sept. 28th.

//Period 5:// Students were given a **vocabulary worksheet for the Latin roots "gress" and "grad."** They should complete the worksheet and study these roots for a quiz on Friday. In addition to the roots, students should know the words (and parts of speech) for all words in the worksheet using the roots (ex: "progression, regress, etc.") They should also be able to indentify the root, prefix, and suffix in each word.

__Here are helpful strategies for learning new vocabulary words / word parts:__

Create flashcards, using pictures and definitions on one side of the card and the word / root on the opposite side.

Use the words in a sentence in several different ways. Try changing the part of speech (verb to a noun, noun to a verb, adverb to an adjective, etc) in a sentence. Practice changing the word ending (suffix) in a sentence.

__Here are helpful strategies for learning new spelling words:__

Copy the word several times, using the correct spelling.

Have someone at home read the word aloud in context (in a sentence), and practice writing the word / sentence correctly.

Use the spelling words in original sentences. Try changing the part of speech (verb to a noun, noun to a verb, adverb to an adjective, etc) in a sentence. Practice changing the word ending (suffix) in a sentence.


 * Monday, Oct. 1- Thursday, Oct. 4th:**

Students are working on their **narrative writing common assessment.** Students are writing from the perspective of a character in one of the short stories that we studied in class this quarter. Students need to use **elements of fiction** to create a quality **narrative paragraph** for the assessment. Assessment schedule is as follows:

first class period: plan your narrative paragraph using a graphic organizer second class period: edit and revise rough draft for errors in CUPS (capitalization, usage, punctuation, and spelling). Make changes to create a well-written final draft. All work will be completed in class.


 * Students have //class notes, a Narrative Rubric, and other hand-outs// to help them understand the expectations for this assessment.


 * We will be doing many more types of writing for different audiences this year: narrative, persuasive, creative (poetry / short stories, etc.), and expository that will require involve several paragraphs / pages. We need to begin the year with a strong foundation of quality paragraph writing so that we can move on and explore new and more challenging writing tasks.


 * There will be **no Friday quiz this week** because we are focusing our time on the common assessment :)


 * Friday, Oct. 5th**

Read the short story "Dragon, Dragon" in Elements of Literature. Students will reflect on the theme of the story, as well as other literary elements used in the story.


 * Monday, Oct. 8th**

Students will receive their next //DLI packet, which focus on sentence structure (subject / predicate).// There will be a **DLI quiz on Friday,** and **DLI packets are** **homework for Friday).**

Students will go to the library for book check-out time today.


 * Tuesday, Wed, Thursday: Oct. 9-11**

We will review and practice the DLI material in class to prepare for Friday's quiz.

Students will be watching the film "How to Tame Your Dragon" to review their understanding of elements of fiction.


 * Friday, Oct. 12**

There will be independent reading time in class.
 * DLI packets** are due today.
 * DLI quiz** will be taken today.


 * Students are expected to have selected a **fiction book** (novel) of any genre to use as independent reading. The book should be interesting, yet challenging for students. Regular reading practice will cement reading skills and increase reading comprehension. Students are encouraged to read every evening for at least **20 minutes,** and they encouraged to discuss their reading with parents / family / friends.

A good "rule of thumb" to gauge a book's difficulty: if there are 5 or more words per page that are unknown by the student, the book is most likely too challenging.


 * Monday, Oct. 15**

In general, students did very nice work on the Narrative Common Assessments. They will be returned to students this week :)

Periods 3, 4, and 6: Spelling Packet 3 will be due on Friday, and the quiz will also be on Friday. Students were given the packets today in class.

Period 5: Latin roots practice sheet was given in class today (mob, mot, mov): quiz will be Friday. They should complete the worksheet and study these roots for a quiz on Friday. In addition to the roots, students should know the words (and parts of speech) for all words in the worksheet using the roots. They should also be able to indentify the root, prefix, and suffix in each word. Students began making flash cards for the vocabulary words in class today.


 * Tuesday, Oct. 16**

We will be doing a **brief editing / proof-reading practice** so that students remember to apply this skill to everything they write.

We will go over the basic philosophy of **Erwin's IB program.** Students will do some reading and writing activities that will give them an introduction to IB. For more information on Erwin's IB (International Baccalauerate) Program, visit the following website:

[]

We will also do a **dictionary reference practice,** where students are familiar with and can locate the following: //entry word, plural form, guide words, pronunciation, part of speech, definition, page number, and word origin.//


 * Monday 10/22- Friday 10/26**

We studied **subject / verb agreement** and singular possessive nouns in our DLI packet for the week. //Packets are due on Friday,// 10/26, and there will also be a **quiz on this material Friday.**

__Periods 3, 4, and 6:__ We began our study of the historical fiction novel by Christopher Paul Curtis, The Watsons Go To Birmingham. It is set in 1963 first in Flint, Michigan, and then Birmingham, Alabama. We discussed the historical background of the novel: the Civil Rights Movement, the struggle of African Americans to be treated as equal citizens, and the oppression that they had to undergo. We watched the iconic speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., "I Have a Dream," and we discussed his speaking techniques and his main messages: freedom, equality, the need to the United States to live up to its expectations that were outlined in our Constitution. It is very powerful, and it is available on you tube. If you have not watched the speech, I would recommend that you watch it....you will be inspired!

__Period 5:__ students all selected a non-fiction book to read for small book groups. This year, my goal is to challenge student by giving them more autonomy, and therefore, more responsibility! Yesterday, each group set norms and a reading schedule. Students have a hand-out of the book list, group expectations, and a reading calendar. The goal is for all books to completed by November 29th. I am really looking forward to this unit; students are stepping up and taking responsibility, and it's great to see!!! :)


 * Monday, Nov. 5- Friday, Nov. 9**

Per 3, 4, 6: We are continuing our study of __The Watsons Go To Birmingham.__ Students have active reading questions to keep them engaged in the book while we are reading. They should be completing the questions as we read. We are also discussing the Civil Rights Movement and the decade of the 1960's and examining its impact on our modern society. There is a spelling packet for students to complete as homework, and there is a spelling quiz on Friday, Nov. 9th.

Per 5: Book groups are going very well! Students are enthusiastic and really getting into their books. For every group book meeting (Tuesdays and Thursdays), students should be prepared with a high-level discussion question. They get 5 points for having a high-level questions. They also receive 5 points per book study day for participation and whether or not they are prepared for the discussion. Students need to make sure they are keeping up with the reading for each book group meeting.


 * Monday, Nov. 12- Friday, Nov. 16**


 * Literacy periods 3, 4, and 6:** We are getting ready to conclude our novel study of __The Watsons Go to Birmingham.__ Students are completing reading comprehension questions during the reading. The questions should be answered in complete sentences, and they will be collected after Thanksgiving break. We are working on comma / punctuation review this week. There is a DLI packet on punctuation that is due on Friday, Nov. 16, and there will be a quiz over this material tomorrow. We will begin our second common assessment on Dec. 5, and it will be completed in class Dec. 5, 6, and 7. Students will be reading three articles on the Civil Rights Movement that focus on significant people, groups, events, and places of the movement. They will be doing a critical reading of these articles and then writing a five-paragraph expository essay that includes their findings. Students will be answering assigned questions on the articles and creating their essay to answer the question(s). They will have time to create a rough draft, edit their rough draft, and create a quality final draft. Students will be given a rubric and an explanation of the assignment after Thanksgiving break. This assessment will be done entirely in class.

There is a DLI packet on punctuation that is due on Friday, Nov. 16, and there will be a quiz over this material tomorrow. We will begin our second common assessment on Dec. 5, and it will be completed in class Dec. 5, 6, and 7. Students will be reading three articles on the Civil Rights Movement that focus on significant people, groups, events, and places of the movement. They will be doing a critical reading of these articles and then writing a five-paragraph expository essay that includes their findings. Students will be answering assigned questions on the articles and creating their essay to answer the question(s). They will have time to create a rough draft, edit their rough draft, and create a quality final draft. Students will be given a rubric and an explanation of the assignment after Thanksgiving break. This assessment will be done entirely in class.
 * Accelerated Literacy (period 5):** We have continued with our book groups, and students have been continuing to formulate high-level, creative questions to bring to their group discussions (every Tuesday and Thursday). The deadline for finishing their book study book is December 4.


 * Monday, Nov. 26- Friday, Nov. 30th**

We are finishing __The Watsons Go To Birmingham.__ Students, in general, really enjoyed reading the novel, and we discussed many of the **themes (life lessons)** that the novel teaches: "Anyone can be a hero to somebody (even Byron). Focus on the positive aspects of life, and don't let yourself be pulled down by the negative. Another theme was "don't be afraid to be believe in people; sometimes, people surprise you in a powerful, positive way!" We had an excellent discussion about this in every class :)
 * Periods 3, 4, and 6:** On Monday, students too the DLI quiz on comma usage and plural nouns. We discussed the importance of correct grammar in writing. Students were also given the new spelling packet to study for the spelling quiz on Friday. There will be no bonus words this week, due to time.


 * Where we are heading:** We will be doing the second quarter common assessment next week in class (**on Wed, Dec. 5, Thurs, Dec. 6, and Friday, Dec. 7).** It will involve writing an **expository (descriptive) 5 paragraph essay.** __The prompt will be: How does the past shape who we are today?__ Students will come up their own unique answer to this question, and they will support their answer with **three supporting details** from three non-fiction articles about the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. Students will complete a graphic organizer to plan their essay, and then they will write the final draft. The assessment will be worth 100 points, and it will be in the 80% grading category, "checks for understanding."


 * Important: to prepare for the in-class essay writing, students should review the hand-outs that they will receive on Friday, Nov. 30th. The hand-outs will include essay directions, the prompt, a graphic organizer for the essay, and a grading rubric. Please go over these with your student(s) so that you can help them prepare for this.

Thank you :)


 * Period 5 (Accelerated Literacy):** we are concluding our group non-fiction book study next Thursday, Dec. 6th. Students should have completed their books by Dec. 6th. The groups have been great, and kids are really excited about their reading! They have done an excellent job of writing reflective, high-level questions relating to the text, and their discussions have been amazing!


 * Where we are heading:** We will be doing the second quarter common assessment next week in class **(on Wed, Dec. 5, Thurs, Dec. 6, and Friday, Dec. 7)**. It will involve writing an **expository (descriptive) 5 paragraph essay.** __The prompt will be: How does the past shape who we are today?__ Students will come up their own unique answer to this question, and they will support their answer with **three supporting details** from three non-fiction articles about the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. Students will complete a graphic organizer to plan their essay, and then they will write the final draft. The assessment will be worth 100 points, and it will be in the 80% grading category, "checks for understanding."


 * Important: to prepare for the in-class essay writing, students should review the hand-outs that they will receive on Friday, Nov. 30th. The hand-outs will include essay directions, the prompt, a graphic organizer for the essay, and a grading rubric. Please go over these with your student(s) so that you can help them prepare for this.


 * Citing Sources:**


 * [|http://www.brainpop.com/english/writing/citingsources/preview.weml]**


 * PRIDE class: we are reading and studying __Woodsong__ by Gary Paulsen.**
 * STUDENTS: please visit the link below, and write down 15 interesting facts you discovered about Alaska, the setting of __Woodsong.__ Also, check out this website that has intersting information about The Iditaord:**


 * [] **

__Tuesday, January 8-Friday, Jan. 11:__ We will begin our study of persuasive strategies. We will look at effective ways of persuasion in advertising and in persuasive writing. We will begin with a powerpoint that introduces the main persuasive strategies (students will take notes on the powerpoint and will be responsible for knowing these terms).


 * This week, we will be starting READING LOGS, which will be due every Monday (starting next Monday, Jan. 14). Students should read at least one hour per week, and logs require a parent signature for full credit.

Quiz Friday: DLI Quiz over the homophones it's and its, as well as verb tenses.


 * Sixth Grade Literacy Standards (click below):**

Citing Sources:

http://www.brainpop.com/english/writing/citingsources/preview.weml

Other helpful links for grammar / spelling / vocabulary / writing practice:
[]

[]

[]


 * Monday, January 28- Friday, February 1st**


 * Students were reminded that there is a quiz over persuasive strategies on Wednesday and Thursday. They should look over their persuasive strategies power point notes from class to prepare for the quiz. **Strategies that will be quizzed are: testimonial, bandwagon, emotional appeal, appeal to logic / reason, appeal to excellence, snob appeal, name calling, repetition, and slogan.**

Students turned in reading logs.

We did the written Acuity C responses today.


 * Reading logs are due every Monday (the next one is due on Monday, February 4th). Students need to read a minimum of 60 minutes (one hour) per week. They should read fiction material that is challenging for them. They need to include comments on their reading (responses, connections). All reading logs must have these items, plus a weekly parent signature, to receive full credit. Reading logs are worth 30 points and go into the 20% grading category.

We are continuing our study of persuasive writing, analyzing advertisements, and propaganda to identify and analyze the use of persuasive strategies. We are also reading and discussing a variety of non-fiction articles.

The 3rd quarter common assessment will be a persuasive letter focused on an issue students are passionate about. Students should focus on a school-related (something that would cause positive change at LEMS) issue and, using persuasive strategies, provide evidence for their argument. The letter will be 5 paragraphs long and written in business letter format.

TCAP testing: TCAP testing will occur during the week of March 11 and March 18. During these weeks, there will be no homework assigned :) Rock it out and do your best !!!!!!!!!! The next reading log

Today, we will hand out and go over poetry terms (poetic devices) that we will be focusing on. There will be quiz over these poetry terms after Spring Break. It's coming up soon :) It is the first week of April!
 * Monday, March 18**: This week, we will begin our study of **poetry and creative writing,** which will be our focus for fourth quarter.

This week, we will also be working __on DLI week 15: singular possessives / plural possessives.__ **There will be NO QUIZZES THIS WEEK, but there will be a DLI quiz over week 15 next Friday, March 29th.**

Students will be exploring and writing a variety of poetic forms: season poem, color poem, noun poem, haiku, acrostic poem, diamonte poem, blazon, cinquain, imagery poem, etc.

The final project for fourth quarter will include poetry / short story pieces put together in a portfolio (more information on this to follow). //Poetry terms that will be tested after break: alliteration, stanza, simile, metaphor, personification, imagery, onomatopoeia, meter, tone, haiku, extended metaphor.//

The flash cards link is helpful for students when they are going over poetry terms. Click on the power point link below, and it will take you to the poetry terms powerpoint that we will go over in class this week. The last link is a Prezi presentation about poetry that was shown during class, also. []media type="custom" key="22494570"

[|http://prezi.com/yyii6xcudqya/poetry/]

The link below is a fun resource for creating Acrostic poems:

[]

This link is a great resource for exploring famous poets and a variety of poetic forms and styles:

[]

For concrete (form) poems, tagxedo is a fun, easy resource for creating concrete (picture) poems:

[]

Poets.org (link below) is an excellent resource for students to explore a variety of poets and poetic styles:

[]

Monday, April 8- Friday, April 12 We did imagery poems the week before Spring Break. Students chose a favorite place and described in an imagery poem. They described the place using vivid imagery (the five senses). ALL POEMS will have a rough and final draft to put into your poetry portfolio, which will be due in May. This portfolio will be at least 100 points, and it will be in the 80% category. Students will share two of their favorite poems from their portfolio with the class.

DLI quiz on Friday, April 12th, week 20. Students started working on the DLI packet in class today. We also finished working on the haiku (students needed to write five haiku total. The first two haiku MUST use the syllable pattern 5 7 5 and they must be about nature or seasons. The other three haiku can be about any topic, and they can be any syllable pattern you want. Haiku are are all 3 lines long. We also started on the color poem.