7th Grade ELA Week at a Glance

We will finish reading excerpts from The Prince and the Pauper this week. The following skills will be taught using this book: flat/round/static/dynamic characters, point of view/perspective, and compare/contrast history to fiction. In addition to these skills, students will practice analyzing speeches with their RWITD. Also, the King Henry VIII argument will be planned this week. Teachers will review the argument structure and counterclaim. Finally, on Tuesday, Cycle 9 vocab. qui z will be given and on Friday Cold Assessment 3.2 will be taken. 

Analyzing arguments and Mark Twain are the main focuses this week. Students will practice analyzing arguments with Pro/Con articles throughout the week. On Thursday, they will debate which side had the stronger argument. Then, on Friday, they will write their own argument. In addition to this, students will learn about the life of Mark Twain, his writing style, and terms associated with his stories such as dialect, monologue, and satire. They will read a few of his stories and use these to practice understanding characterization, theme and plot. Cycle 8 will be taken on Thursday .

We hope you enjoyed your MLK Jr. holiday! Last week was spent practicing skills that they must use to complete this week's assignments. Students will evalute an argument and write about it this week.  In addition to argument, they will take Mini Cold Assessment 3.1 on Wednesday and Cycle 7 vocab. quiz on Thursday . Chapters 13-16 of Hidden Figures will be read as well. Using these chapters, students will practice summary and multiple choice.

The week before Thanksgiving break has arrived! Teachers will be wrapping up lessons and reviewing standards based on the needs of specific classes. Therefore, each teacher's plans will be different this week. Cycle 5 Vocab. Quiz and Cold Quiz 2.4 will be taken in every class though. Assignments and lessons that might be covered this week include the following: sonnet structure lessons, practice with informational standards related to structure, short story assignments, central idea/theme/summary practice, author study, and analyzing poetry.

Poetry Week is here! OCTOBER Red and gold leaves fall, Crunchy as cornflakes beneath Feet on a crisp morn. NOVEMBER Frosty webs sparkle In the early morning sun Brightly bejeweled. Source:  https://www.familyfriendpoems.com/poem/haiku-year Students will learn about poetry structures and forms this week. Using these lessons, students will analyze how these impact a poem's meaning.  In addition to poetry, they will practice writing engaging introductions and conclusions for essays. On Friday, students will discuss thesis statements and plan out an essay that they will finish writing.  Students will take Cold Quiz 2.1 on Tuesday and Cycle 4 Vocab. Quiz on Thursday .

Students will take Cold Assessment 1.2 on Monday. The rest of the week will be spent learning about plays and terms like monologue and soliloquy. On Wednesday, students will take their Cycle 3 vocabulary quiz . On Friday, teachers will update the data for each student in their folder.

Students will read Chapters 2-4 of Call of the Wild this week. Using these chapters, students will learn about perspective/point of view, summary, conflict, and explicit vs. implicit.  They will continue reviewing and practicing identifying themes and central ideas as well.  Starting Tuesday, students will work on part three of the author study.  Students will take a cold quiz for a grade on Wednesday and the cycle one vocabulary quiz on Thursday . On Friday , students will take a quiz on Chapters 1-4 of Call of the Wild . Make sure to bring your personal book every day to class.

"Stay gold, Ponyboy." - Johnny Cade from The Outsiders Students will begin reading the classic novel, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton this week.  Using this book, students will practice skills related to narrative, vocabulary, and argument. While reading this novel, the students will keep a journal of their reactions and feelings about the events of the book. The first part of each day will be spent practicing targeted skills on the computer. On Wednesday, they will take the last cycle quiz of the year on Cycle 14 .

Our week will be spent reviewing skills and concepts related to the writing process, narrative, and poetry.  To start off the week, students will write an on-demand for a test grade on Monday . They will revise and edit this essay over the course of two days. In addition to this, we will review the most missed questions from the last cold assessment. On Thursday , students will take Cold Quiz 4.3. To wrap up the week, they will review poetry, narrative and then write two short narrative pieces. Cycle 13 Vocab. Quiz will be taken on Friday .

We will continue practicing skills we have learned all year. This week will focus on informational texts and skills such as main idea, text structures, and finding evidence. Students will complete informational stations on Tuesday. Then, on Wednesday ,  Mini-Assessment 4.1 will be taken. The students will write an on-demand essay on Thursda y and complete stations on Friday to revise their essays. Cycle 12 vocab. quiz will be taken as well.

We made it to the final week before Spring Break! This week will be project based with a few lessons on narrative. On Monday and Tuesday we will focus on dialogue and rewriting endings of narratives. Then, students will work on their Jack London Short Story Project . On Wednesday , they will take Cold Quiz 3.6 and work on their projects. On Thursday , students will  begin the day by taking the Cycle 11 Vocab. Quiz . Afterwards, they will present their projects. Friday will be a makeup day/ a time to compare visual versions to the written stories we've read.

Students will take a quiz on Chapters 5-7 of The Call of the Wild on Monday. The rest of the week will be a review of standards RI and RL 7.1-4 and RI 7.8. They will read excerpts and short stories to practice skills and review topics such as recognizing theme, character interactions, vocabulary, argument and summarizing.  On Wednesday, they will take a cold quiz . To end the week, students will take Cycle 10 Vocab Quiz and write an on-demand essay .

“He had been suddenly jerked from the heart of civilization and flung into the heart of things primordial.”  ―  Jack London,  The Call of the Wild We will read The Call of the Wild this week. Students will read the chapters and learn/practice skills associated with each chapter. They will learn about anthropomorphism and practice recognizing the impact of conflict and point of view. In addition to this book, they will learn about sonnets. There will be a cold quiz  on Wednesday , and they will take Cycle 9 Vocab Quiz on Friday .

NWEA testing will be conducted this week. Students will take the Reading test on Monday and Tuesday. Please make sure students are well rested and have had breakfast on those days. During the rest of the week students will present their Hidden Figures projects for an assessment grade . The final vocabulary quiz (Cycle 7)  of the term will be given on Friday .

Multiple perspectives and cause and effect will be our focus this week. Students will analyze multiple texts about World War II and other wars. They will determine the motivations of people and examine the cause and effect relationship of actions and events. Students will discuss and write about these topics to condense their ideas and conclusions. Students will take the Cycle 6 vocab. quiz on Friday .

"Give me liberty or give me death!" We are going to be reading about the Revolutionary War and our founding fathers over the next few weeks. Our anchor text will be The Duel . It is an account of  the parallel lives of Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. Using this text and more we will practice recognizing text structures, analysing differing perspectives and comparing/contrasting different accounts of the same event. On Thursday, we will take a cold quiz , and on Friday we will take our Cycle 5 vocabulary quiz. 

"Oh Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?" In week 7 we will be analyzing drama. We will learn about monologues, soliloquies, and the differences/similarities between the written word and drama. We will use Disney songs and Shakespearean classics to accomplish this. In addition to drama, we will finish Helen Keller's autobiography, The Story of my Life and the play version, The Miracle Worker . Writing and vocabulary will be a focus as well. On Thursday, we will take our Cycle 3 vocabulary quiz . Then, on Friday, we will take a cold quiz and write an on-demand essay.