Welcome to our New School Year

Good morning Grade Fives and Sixes,

I will use our class Blog to let you know about the Work on Writing for the week. Be sure to check it the first time you go to the lab at the beginning of the week.

You will write the Learning Intention, Criteria and rough assignment on the left-hand side of your Reading log.

Next week's Work on Writing Assignment:

Inquiry Topic: Government

Learning Intention: I can identify the main idea and write three supporting details.

Criteria: 1) main idea
              2) three details (short, accurate notes)

1) view Government and Democracy

2) record the main idea and three supporting details, in short key words

3) you may need to view the video a couple of times until you have the information recorded that you want


 

Love, Mrs. French

Good morning Grade Five and Sixes!

This week you are going to explore a few sites. Some of you may have visited them before.


                                                                   Monday 

                        http://www.childrensuniversity.manchester.ac.uk/

                                                                 Tuesday

                                                http://www.childrenslibrary.org/ 


                                                              Wednesday

                                       http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/
               

                                                               Thursday

                                http://www.get-to-know.org/hikes

 
                                          Monday June 15

                                   http://ngexplorer.cengage.com/ngyoungexplorer/readstory.html

Tuesday June 16

http://studyjams.scholastic.com/studyjams/index.htm

Wednesday June 17

http://htwins.net/scale2/?bordercolor=white

Monday June 22

http://wonderopolis.org/

 

 

Tuesday June 23

http://a-z-animals.com/

 

 

 

Literature Circles

Good morning and welcome back!

 

This week we will begin our LiteratureCircles. We will discuss this in greater detail as a class. Until then, the following is information you need to know (Grade 6s, you are familiar with this unit):

1)     Daily Five: is now built around Literature Circles’ assignments (reading & writing). There is a lot of reading and you are expected to make time for completing it, expect homework!

2)     You will be reading the same book as 4-5 other students

3)     You will meet these students once a week to discuss the novel and your assignments

4)     You are expected to come prepared each week: all pages read and all assignments completed

5)     Some of you, who read a great deal, may choose to be part of two literature circle groups. One of these groups may be as an oral participant only (e.g. no written work required)

This is one of my favorite units. I hope you will enjoy working with your peers.

 

Love, Mrs. French

 

Editing Your Second Story

Good morning Grade Fives and Sixes,

This week you will edit you second story. As you are aware, editing is not easy and requires time and thought. Please go through your story several times (scanning it in a methodical way), looking for specific items each time. I have listed the sequence below.

1.  sentences look like sentences (start with a capital, end with punctuation)
2. each sentence is one complete thought....unless otherwise intentionally written
3. known spelling words are correct
4. names of people and places have start with a capital
5. sentences begin with a variety of words, not repeated words e.g. Then
6. there are a variety of sentences e.g. long, short
7. juice words are add to provide 'sound', 'feeling', 'taste', 'smell', 'emotion' 
8. check out 'Story Writing Checklist

* one suggestion is to have someone read your story aloud (or use the text-to-speech) to ensure that your story makes sense (has all the needed punctuation)

As before, your story will be edited twice: 1) by you, using your spelling notebook, and 2) by a peer (the same gender is fine). Please copy the following Learning Intention and Criteria in your notebook on the back of your last rough copy page.

Note #1: Expect to take at least 10 minutes for editing shorter stories and 15-20 minutes for longer ones. 

A few more essentials:

• make all proper nouns bold (choose Home, highlight your word and choose B for bold) e.g. Sinkutview 
• underline all juicy words added to your story e.g. the gigantic bear 

Learning Intention: I can use my spelling and punctuation skills to accurately edit my story.

Criteria: 1) correct spelling, 2) correct punctuation, 3) juicy words added 4) no sentence begins with repeated words e.g. 'Then', 'And', Also, 'or 'So'

I know this takes hard work. I also know that you have the skills to do it.

Love, Mrs. French

 

 

 

 

 

 

              

Writing Your Rough Draft for Story #2

Good morning,

You will not be recording your Learning Intentions and Criteria this week because writing your story is an extension of last week's. However, below is a short list of reminders:

1) When writing your rough draft, do not worry about spelling. This will be addressed next week when you edit your story.


2) Run off just one copy of your rough draft and put it into your notebook just after your brainstorming.


3) Please use a plain font, double spaced, and no less than a size 14 font. If you do not know how to do this, please ask for help.


4) Your story must be no longer than two typed pages. That provides you with plenty of space to thoroughly develop an outstanding story.


This will be the last story you write this year, enjoy the process.

Love, Mrs. French

Writing Your Second Original Story

Good morning,

This week, for your Work on Writing, you will be planning your second original story. As before, this planning stage will have two parts: 1) Independent Brainstorming and 2) Peer Conferring. Please record the Learning Intentions and Criteria in your Reading Log notebook (the back of your last good copy).

Notes:
1) for this story, all character names and personalities must be original (no peer names)
2) the storyline must be significantly different from your first story

Learning Intention: I can plan a story that contains original, interesting characters, setting(s) and problem.

Criteria: 1) details about character traits
              2) details about the setting(s), and
              3) details about the story problem and resolution 

Strong Recommendation: Use the brainstorming as a powerful tool to plan out your story. When you are finished brainstorming, you should know your characters very well and be excited about developing their problem. 

1) Below your Learning Intention and Criteria, brainstorm your story ideas. If you like, here are some brainstorming ideas (story writing). In addition, here is a site to help you come up with ideas, from Scholastic.

2) Peer Conferring: (for this story, you may do this with a peer of the same gender). Share your brainstormed ideas with your peer. Your peer is to ask questions and give suggestions to help you brainstorm more details.

Here is the rubric I will be using to mark your brainstorming assignment.

	1	2    Minimally Meeting	3    Fully Meeting	4    Working towards
Notes	very few notes or phrases very difficult to follow	a few notes or phrases might be difficult to follow	brief notes on all areas easily followed	many concise notes storyline very easy to follow
Setting/ Time Period	·   no setting identified	·   setting & time period identified	·   clear setting and time period	·   details about setting & time period
Characters	·   no description or names	·   names and/or ages of characters	·   well described e.g. appearance	·   unique, very well described (appearance and personality)
Story problem	·   predictable, no details	·   stated but few detail	·   some interesting details about problem	·   many details about problem ·   development
Resolution	·   no clear notes about how the problem is solved	·   some clear ideas about how the problem is solved	·   clear and details about how the problem is solved	·   many details about how the problem is solved

I am looking forward to reading some more very exciting story ideas!

Love, Mrs. French

Editing Your Story

Good morning Grade Fives and Sixes,

This week, your story will be edited twice: 1) by you, using your spelling notebook, and 2) by a peer. (If you are a girl, a boy will edit your story. If you are a boy, a girl will edit your story.) Please copy the following Learning Intention and Criteria in your notebook on the back of your last rough copy page.

Note #1: Expect to take at least 5 minutes for editing shorter stories and 15-20 minutes for longer ones. 

Note #2: The criteria includes the need to edit your sentences so that they do not begin with the following words: 'Then', 'And', 'So'

Some tips:

• try to use a variety of sentence lengths (short, long, joined with an 'and')
• try to use some juicy words to help your reader 'hear', 'see', 'feel', 'smell' your story
• check out 'Story Writing Checklist' for more specific information
• make all proper nouns bold (choose Home, highlight your word and choose B for bold) e.g. Sinkutview
• please underline all juice words added to your story e.g. the gigantic bear 

Learning Intention: I can use my spelling and punctuation skills to accurately edit my story.

Criteria: 1) correct spelling, 2) correct punctuation, 3) peer edited 4) no sentence begins with repeated words e.g. 'Then', 'And', Also, 'or 'So'

This is your first original story that you have written as an assignment this year. I am very excited about reading your edited versions.

Love, Mrs. French

Writing Your Story

Good morning Grade 5s and 6s,

Last week you planned your story. This week, you will write your story, the rough copy only. You may write your story on paper or type it on the computer. If you type it, be sure to run off the rough draft that you complete.

There is no Learning Intention this week.

At this time, please do not discuss your story with a peer. During this stage, I want you to follow your own ideas.

I hope you enjoy writing your stories. I know that I am looking forward to reading them.

Love, Mrs. French

Planning Your Story

Good morning,

This week, for your Work on Writing, you will be planning your own original story. This planning stage will have two parts: 1) Brainstorming and 2) Peer Conferring. Please record the Learning Intentions and Criteria in your Reading Log notebook (the back of your last good copy).

Learning Intention: I can plan a story that contains interesting characters, setting(s) and problem.

Criteria: 1) details about character traits
              2) details about the setting(s), and
              3) details about the story problem and resolution 

1) Below your Learning Intention and Criteria, brainstorm your story ideas. If you like, here are some brainstorming ideas (story writing). In addition, here is a site to help you come up with ideas, from Scholastic.

2) Peer Conferring: (If you are a boy, you will confer with a girl. If you are a girl, you will confer with a boy). Share your brainstormed ideas with your peer. Your peer is to ask questions and give suggestions to help you brainstorm more details.

I am looking forward to reading some very exciting story ideas!

Love, Mrs. French

The Bridge

 

Please view the following animation. You will complete the assignment in note-form in your Reading Log. Record the notes below your Learning Intentions.

 

The Bridge

 

 

Learning Intention: I can watch an animation and describe the storyline.

Criteria: (in note form) 1) description of the main characters; 2) description of the story setting; 3) description of the story problem





 

What Makes a Story?

Good morning Grade Fives and Sixes!

We are beginning a unit on story writing. As a starting point, you will listen to a short story in order to see examples of some story features: main character, setting, problem.

A) Please go to Storyline on Line and listen to "My Rotten Redheaded Older Brother".

B) Listen to the story again, however, this time, in your Reading Log (under your Learning Intentions), record details about the following:


 

1.     main character: (everything you can find)

2.     setting: (where the story takes place)

3.     problem: (stories usually have a problem that needs to be solved)

I am very excited about reading your notes!

Love, Mrs. French

Your Christmas Holidays!

Hello Grade Fives and Sixes!

I would like you to write about your Christmas holidays (e.g. what you did, what you enjoyed the most, or any focus you choose)

Your response should be one paragraph containing:

a) topic (promise) sentence: what you promise to tell the reader about

b) at least three support sentences: specific examples or details about your topic

c) concluding sentence: where you remind the reader what you promised to tell the reader

Remember to reread your post before submitting it, checking your spelling and punctuation.

If you have never responded to our Blog, please ask a grade six student for assistance. Also, check the list of help topics to this right of this Blog e.g. Posting Comments

I am looking forward to reading your responses!

Love, Mrs. French

Choosing Your Letter

Dear Grade Five and Sixes!

We are continuing with choosing the stories from soldiers and families. This week you must finalize which letter you will be using for your assignment. With help if needed, copy your letter onto a word document and save it in your documents. Grade fives, please ask grade sixes to help if you need it.

 This week, we will begin preparations for our Remembrance Day assembly. Our class will share some thoughts from our Canadian Soldiers and families. You will be asked to share part of one of their stories. You will do this in teams or groups.

This week I would like you to read through (or listen to) some of the stories you will find in the booklet “Thoughts of our Canadian Soldiers at War”. Please go to the link and begin your journey, which will sometimes be a hard one.

Love, Mrs. French