ELA Weekly:
September 21-September 25
Curriculum Manager Announcements
No Excuses Essay Rules
ELA Manager Observation Focus
- Unpacked Assessment Classroom Anchor Chart
- SpringBoard Consumables being used during classroom instruction
- Student responses in SpringBoard Consumables should be in complete sentences and follow all grammatical conventions
Make sure to open the SpringBoard Consumables and flip through two student samples at a time. This will allow you to see how multiple students are responding and identify areas where the expectation needs to be reset for students.
IDEA Authors: September
Course Specific
6th Grade ELA
SpringBoard: Teachers will continue with SpringBoard lesson 1.14, a key lesson in this bundle. SB 1.14 makes the deliberate shift from the personal narrative genre to the expository genre, and serves to emphasize the differences between the two genres that were discussed at length last week. As students are reading fictional texts this week, they are also engaging in literary responses and crafting expository paragraphs to explain key ideas from the text. This represents a gradual shift from narrative to expository. Students will receive explicit expository instruction in Quarter 2 as well.
Revising & Editing Do-Nows: This week's focus TEKS is 6.17(A). Students will use a variety of transitions in their writing in order to connect ideas, sentences, and paragraphs. All teachers should include the Do-Nows in their daily instruction. This is a high-leverage, direct-teach opportunity to cover Revising & Editing TEKS that contribute to coherent, well-developed student writing. While Do-Nows introduce a skill and provide students with specific skill practice, the expectation is that all students will be responsible for those skills in their daily writing activities once the skill is introduced and practiced in the Do-Now. We will have a session at Course Collaboration #2 devoted to deep understanding of the purpose of the Do-Nows, the alignment to BWAs/IAs/STAAR and a model exemplar Do-Now mini lesson.
Bi-Weekly Assessment: September 24, BWA #3
Archived Webinars: Please visit the links below to view previous webinars.
September 16th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8AMZ/ (SpringBoard 1.14/Expository Rubric and exemplars for EA 2)
7th Grade ELA
SpringBoard: Students will be reading myths this week, analyzing literary elements (characterization, theme, plot development, use of symbols, and imagery). All lessons this week are high-leverage lessons for understanding elements of fiction, which prepares students for high-stakes assessments (STAAR) and embedded assessments in SpringBoard. While each lesson has a specific literary element focus, teachers can spiral in previously-learned elements to provide students more exposure and practice identifying and analyzing all elements.
Revising & Editing Do-Nows: This week's focus TEKS is 7.17(A). Students will use a variety of transitions in their writing in order to connect ideas, sentences, and paragraphs. All teachers should include the Do-Nows in their daily instruction. This is a high-leverage, direct-teach opportunity to cover Revising & Editing TEKS that contribute to coherent, well-developed student writing. While Do-Nows introduce a skill and provide students with specific skill practice, the expectation is that all students will be responsible for those skills in their daily writing activities once the skill is introduced and practiced in the Do-Now. We will have a session at Course Collaboration #2 devoted to deep understanding of the purpose of the Do-Nows, the alignment to BWAs/IAs/STAAR and a model exemplar Do-Now mini lesson.
Bi-Weekly Assessment: September 24th BWA Reading #3
Archived Webinars: Please visit the links below to view previous webinars.
September 16th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8AN7/ (Strategies for teaching mythology)
September 2nd: https://bluejeans.com/s/8zrR/
August 19th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8zrU/
8th Grade ELA
- Unpacking the Assessment: Hold yourself accountable to creating your Unpacked Assessment Anchor Chart before you go home on Tuesday. Completing it that day will demonstrate the importance of the assessment to students and provide greater investment on their part.
- OER Single Story Introduced (Wednesday): The OER Single Story, or OER SS, is a STAAR EOC question that accounts for 9 points of a students overall score. The OER SS challenges students to respond to a question from a selection, and requires textual evidence in their response in order to receive a passing score.
The following strategy can serve as a foundation: APE
- Answer
- Proof
- Explanation
This strategy is outlined in detail at the end of the Unit Road Map under the Instructional Notes section.
Literary Device Review Day: All resources for the Literary Device Review are posted on the The Hub. Some steps that can be done to ensure student mastery include the following:
- Level 1 Identification questions on Exit Slips to assess student knowledge of the term.
- Entrance quizzes that challenge the students to identify definitions to multiple literary devices (this can vary in length and time).
- Flashcards that students create at home and practice to ensure a tool is given for student usage.
- Clearly outlining study time in the Assign Yourself and communicate to parents the importance of independent review.
Revising and Editing Do-Nows: The focus for this week is punctuation (8.20B). Ensure that students can articulate two key items in their response: 1) What is the mistake and 2) Why should this change be made.
- Sentence: I cannot wait for October to come
- Non-Example: Put a little dot at the end of the sentence.
- Example: In the statement above, insert a period after the word come because it is a declarative sentence.
All Do-Now slides for Q1 are posted on The Hub and are aligned to the SpringBoard Grammar Handbook, IAs, and focus on key grammar TEKS that students must master in order to be successful.
English I Pre-AP
- Modified Embedded Assessment: Please note that Embedded Assessment 2 is a modified assessment. Due to time constraints, adjustments have been made to allow students to master the embedded assessment, but do so independently instead of in groups. The modified assessment is posted on The Hub under the SpringBoard Resources tab. Please ensure that the correct assessment is unpacked.
- SpringBoard Lesson 1.18: SB Activity 1.18 is critical as this is the first time students are introduced to the rhetorical appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos. If students do not understand each of the concepts, they will not be able to successfully complete the modified embedded assessment. Ensure students can identify and explain these concepts.
SB 1.16 Graphic Organizer: The graphic organizer for SpringBoard Activity 1.16B can be found on The Hub under the SpringBoard Resources tab.
Literary Device Review Preparation: All resources for the Literary Device Review are posted on the The Hub. Some steps that can be done to ensure student mastery include the following:
- Level 1 Identification questions on Exit Slips to assess student knowledge of the term.
- Entrance quizzes that challenge the students to identify definitions to multiple literary devices (this can vary in length and time).
- Flashcards that students create at home and practice to ensure a tool is given for student usage.
- Clearly outlining study time in the Assign Yourself and communicate to parents the importance of independent review.
Revising and Editing Do-Nows: The focus for this week is punctuation (9.20B). Ensure that students can articulate two key items in their response: 1) What is the mistake and 2) Why should this change be made.
- Sentence: I cannot wait for October to come
- Non-Example: Put a little dot at the end of the sentence.
- Example: In the statement above, insert a period after the word come because it is a declarative sentence.
All Do-Now slides for Q1 are posted on The Hub and are aligned to the SpringBoard Grammar Handbook, IAs, and focus on key grammar TEKS that students must master in order to be successful.
Bi-Weekly Assessment 3: Students will complete BWA3 on Monday, September 21. It is a timed 30 minute multiple choice exam. Please ensure assessments are scanned by COB on Monday.
Archived Webinars: Please visit the links below to view previous webinars.
- September 16th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8Av6/
- September 2nd: https://bluejeans.com/s/8Av4/
English II Pre-AP
- Unpacking the Assessment: Hold yourself accountable to creating your Unpacked Assessment Anchor Chart before you go home on Tuesday. Completing it that day will demonstrate the importance of the assessment to students and provide greater investment on their part.
- SpringBoard Lesson 2.16: This lesson outlines the key components of the STAAR Persuasive Essay and will help take the Persuasive Essay Outline and put it into context for students. Make sure students are clearly making connections to the concept and connecting the idea to the text using purposeful and effective annotations to provide rationale.
Literary Device Review: All resources for the Literary Device Review are posted on the The Hub. Some steps that can be done to ensure student mastery include the following:
- Level 1 Identification questions on Exit Slips to assess student knowledge of the term.
- Entrance quizzes that challenge the students to identify definitions to multiple literary devices (this can vary in length and time).
- Flashcards that students create at home and practice to ensure a tool is given for student usage.
- Clearly outlining study time in the Assign Yourself and communicate to parents the importance of independent review.
Revising and Editing Do-Nows: The focus for this week is punctuation (10.20B). Ensure that students can articulate two key items in their response: 1) What is the mistake and 2) Why should this change be made.
- Sentence: I cannot wait for October to come
- Non-Example: Put a little dot at the end of the sentence.
- Example: In the statement above, insert a period after the word come because it is a declarative sentence.
All Do-Now slides for Q1 are posted on The Hub and are aligned to the SpringBoard Grammar Handbook, IAs, and focus on key grammar TEKS that students must master in order to be successful.
Archived Webinars: Please visit the links below to view previous webinars.
- September 16th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8Avc/
- September 2nd: https://bluejeans.com/s/8Avb/
Student Spotlight: The following is a student created visual from created by Aileen Perez and Ameli Garcia, 10th grade students at IDEA CP Mission! During an observation, the sketches were shown and their teacher, Mr. Samuel Moreno, shared the final product. Great way to push student work outside the classroom and challenge students to showcase student talent. If any of you have work that you would like to share, please send our way so that we can celebrate student creativity and hard work.
AP Language
SpringBoard: Teachers are stepping away from SpringBoard this week to focus specifically on the Synthesis essay, using a NMSI Deconstruction process. Students will deconstruct the prompt, evaluate written and visual sources, and understand how to use a Synthesis essay template to construct a well-developed essay. Students will use these skills the following week when they craft their synthesis essay for IA 1. The original date for the IA 1 FRQ was September 29th. Due to ACT testing that day, teachers may opt to administer the FRQ on Monday, September 28th or Wednesday, September 30.
AP Exam Preparation: We are moving away from TEKS for the standards for the AP Language course, and will be using the College Board Standards for College Success (CBSCS). You will see this shift beginning with the IA 1 Answer Key, as well as in all Bundle 3 documents. The CBSCS are a better representation of the work students do in Advanced Placement courses, offering higher-level expectations more in line with the tasks on the AP exam as well as in their future college courses. A publication of the ELA CBSCS can be found here, offering a thorough explanation of the standards: http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/about/association/academic/english-language-arts_cbscs.pdf
During the September 16th webinar, teachers worked together to norm the grading of the synthesis essay, which students will write on IA 1. This norming process is essential to the preparation for the AP exam, because it leads to teachers awarding more accurate score points on the FRQs, and helps teachers provide specific feedback to students in order to improve student writing.
Bi-Weekly Assessment: September 24th BWA 3
Archived Webinars: Please use the links below to view previous webinars:
September 16th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8ANu/ (Norming the Synthesis Essay for IA 1)
September 2nd: https://bluejeans.com/s/8zsh/
August 19th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8zsi/
AP Literature
SpringBoard: The focus genre for this Quarter is poetry, and teachers have spent the last several weeks analyzing poetry with students. This week, we see a shift to prose in the SpringBoard lessons. However, it is not time to abandon poetry! The September 16th webinar specifically addressed this topic, and teachers shared strategies for integrating poetry in prose-focused lessons. Since students will write a poetry analysis essay next week, it is essential that teachers continue to discuss and provide opportunities for students to analyze poetry throughout the remainder of Quarter 1. The original date for the IA 1 FRQ was September 29th. Due to ACT testing that day, teachers may opt to administer the poetry analysis FRQ on Monday, September 28th or Wednesday, September 30.
AP Exam Preparation: We are moving away from TEKS for the standards for the AP Language course, and will be using the College Board Standards for College Success (CBSCS). You will see this shift beginning with the IA 1 Answer Key, as well as in all Bundle 3 documents. The CBSCS are a better representation of the work students do in Advanced Placement courses, offering higher-level expectations more in line with the tasks on the AP exam as well as in their future college courses. A publication of the ELA CBSCS can be found here, offering a thorough explanation of the standards: http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/about/association/academic/english-language-arts_cbscs.pdf
Bi-Weekly Assessment: September 24th BWA 3
Archived Webinars: Please use the links below to view previous webinars:
September 16th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8ANI/ (Implementing timed writings in class/Integration of poetry during prose lessons)
September 2nd: https://bluejeans.com/s/8zsn/
August 19th: https://bluejeans.com/s/8zsm/