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The focus this year will be to develop an understanding of reading and to hone skills in critical thinking about material read. Assessment will be primarily through written assessment. Only a student's best work should be submitted. A student will get out of this course what he or she puts into it. It should be a great year with successful learning experiences for all!

Students will improve comprehension in informational and literary texts. Skills will include vocabulary development, research, structural analysis of various kinds of text, and organizational strategies for reading and writing.

It is the STUDENT"S RESPONSIBILITY to make up missed work. Assignments are due the day a child returns to class if present when assigned. Otherwise, a date will be assigned for submission. Missed tests must be arranged with the teacher and made up by an agreed-upon date.

Grades will be based on tests (70%); classwork (20%); and homework (10%). Quarterly grade charts will be given to each student to be maintained by the student, and checked by parents and teacher. Grades will also be posted on Teacherease periodically.

Homework is an opportunity to practice skills taught in class or to prepare for continued instruction. Although 10% for homework is a seemingly small portion of the overall grade, it is essential to the development of good reading skills; most assignments are graded for accuracy. Quality work is expected with attention given to penmanship and the mechanics of written language. Reading should be a daily habit; generally an assignment is given at the beginning of the week and collected at the end of the week. Late assignments will be accepted for partial credit before a test, but not after, and must be signed by a parent or guardian. Exceptions will be made for illness or family emergency.

Work that is not done correctly or tests with low grades may be redone according to designated guidelines for the first two quarters of the year. Redone work should be submitted on the date given in class.

Some assignments are to be hand written in legible penmanship with the designated pens or pencils. Essays and some other assignments must be done on word processor. Spelling, grammar, and punctuation always count!

PARENTS: Please check your student's grade chart located in the policies section of the binder; every returned graded assignment should be recorded there. Grades will be posted to Teacherease but may take a few days after assignments have been given back to students.

No homework for the week of 11/9. Students tok the first quarterly assessment in reading and then began to watch the movie version of The Outsiders.

Homework 11/16: Students will write a comparison of the book and movie versions of The Outsiders. They will complete a graphic organizer in class worth 20 points. From this organizer, students will complete a 4-paragraph essay worth 80 points for a total of 100 points for a test grade. Detailed directions will be given in class. The essay will be 2 pages max, 14 font, Times Roman or similar font style, double spaced. It will also include a bibliography and a cover page.

Due 11/19, periods 6 and 8; due 11/20, periods 1, 2, and 9. Students should start writing as of 11/13; I will check introductory paragraphs for all students who bring them in prior to 11/18. Approximate time to finish: 20 minutes per day when started 11/13. Please do not email essays. If students do not have access to a computer, notify me by 11/16 and I will make arrangements for the student to write it at school.