Das Bloggenstein

Here are the totals by class. AR is not the best system but it does show me who is reading and comprehending and who is not.

Core 1:

• Goal: 25
• Average: 39
• Zero points: 0

Core 2:

• Goal: 12.5
• Average: 13.1
• Zero points: 8

Core 3:

• Goal: 12.5
• Average: 10.6
• Zero Points: 11

Overall Average: 20.9 points

I’ll talk more about this later but I’m seeing the so-called “Matthew Effect” (The rich get richer, the poor get poorer). The students who read, read more and those who don’t read are reading much less. I’m also seeing this surface in the DIBELS scores but more about that later.

Students have begun choosing their own writing topics and styles, or what they are going to write about and how they will write it. Some are still making up the narrative essay from last week and will get to embark on this new adventure when they turn that in.

In other news, on Thursday all students will remain in Core class so we can fill out a survey online in the computer lab. The survey is used to gauge student’s perceptions of the climate and safety of the building, among other things. Then on Friday we will visit the library and students will have an opportunity to take an AR test and get a new book.

In terms of my previous post on AR point totals I must say that I am happy to see fewer students with zero points although that didn’t always mean a higher class average. What it does mean is that more students are trying but not necessarily reaching the goal. I cannot reiterate this enough: It’s not about the points. Students should be reading 20-30 minutes a night, AR is simply a way to give students credit for what they should already be doing. Furthermore, I didn’t see any students frantically trying to get some points, any points at all, before they were due last Friday. This is in contrast to October when this practice was a little more rampant.

Today both AR points and Narrative Essay Final Drafts were due today. If your grade has gone down you can attribute it to one or both of those things! Missing essays have been entered as missing but it will take me a little bit of time to get through the ones turned in on time so be patient. Getting 80 essays at a time can be a bit daunting.

Here are the totals by core class.

• Core 1, 20 points due
  • Average: 21.16
  • # of students with 0 points: 3
• Core 2, 10 points due
  • Average: 5.68
  • # of students with 0 points: 10
• Core 3, 10 points due
  • Average: 6.37
  • # of students with 0 points: 5

Yesterday was a half day and I spent the day working on some projects elsewhere in the building so I had a substitute in the classroom. I am happy to say that overall things went well. In case you’re curious about what teachers do on half days I met with Mr. Holm and Mrs. Peters (the other 6th grade core teachers) and we mapped out what comprehension strategies we are going to teach and when, as well as discussed how the paragraph and essay writing was going and brainstormed what we could do to promote reading throughout the school.

In other news we will be finishing Raymond’s Run today by engaging in a discussion, or Socratic Seminar, and will move on to the next story on Monday. Of course we don’t have school on Tuesday since it is the 11th day of the 11th month so next week might prove interesting with the interruption midweek.

Finally, AR points are due on Friday, November 14th. Core 1 has 20 due and the other classes have 10 due. Please encourage your student to read a book they are actually interested in and they want to read. Too often over the years I see a student pick a book based on the number of AR points it’s worth, they aren’t enjoying the book or not understanding it and they put it back after 2-3 days. Then they never finish a book and their grade suffers. The point of AR is to give credit to students who are reading 20-30 minutes every day as research says that is the minimum. Reading is like a sport, how do you get better without practicing?

If you would like to know how you compared to the average AR point total for the last grading period (due on October 17th) here they are by core. Also, these are just the computer AR tests, if you wrote a test it is not included in the average.

1. Required: 20, Average: 21.7
2. Required: 10, Average: 4.0
3. Required: 10, Average: 9.1

Highest point getter by core:

1. 91 points
2. 31.4 points
3. 79 points

If you can’t tell by now, I love data but I’ll leave the conclusions to you.

Today we began more writing practice by writing on an expository prompt: Describe your ideal vacation. We are still working on crafting good paragraphs by staying on topic, thanks to a good topic sentence, and elaborating so we can tell the reader more.

In Reading the students are still in Core and working on Before, During, and After reading strategies while in Core 1 we have just finished reading Raymond’s Run for the first time.

Mark your calendars: November 14th, AR Points are due.

• Core 1: 20 points
• Core 2: 10 points
• Core 3: 10 points

Conferences are over. Thanks to everyone who stopped in either with or sans student. You all kept me busy for at least 2 1/2 hours and some were kind enough to buy some books for the classroom from the Book Fair, thank you very much!

Tomorrow, Friday, is the day for AR points. Core 1 needs 20 points and Cores 2,3 need 10. I will put the assignment in at the end of the day during 7th period and update Gradechecker before the weekend. Most students have taken this seriously and have met or exceeded the monthly goal. However, some have not and their Reading grade will be adversely effected because of this. Please remember, the point of all of this is to give you credit for reading at least 20-30 minutes a night.

In class we are beginning to work on crafting paragraphs and using elaboration in a more structured context. Cores 2,3 were asked to finish their two paragraphs tonight if they weren’t done in class today. In Reading Core 1 is moving on with Raymond’s Run in the Junior Great Books while the other classes are working on Before, During, and After Reading strategies while reading an excerpt from Hatchet.

This is just a friendly reminder that you all have AR points due next Friday, October 17th. Cores 2 & 3 have 10 points due and Core 1 has 20 points due. Remember, the purpose of taking AR tests is to give you credit for the books that you read and enjoyed this school year, not ones you read in the past.

Don’t forget conferences next week too! Wednesday night from 5-7 pm, students are welcome and the Book Fair will be there.