Throughout the entire year, Mr. Rodgers is focused on student organization. Over several years students have needed extra support in the areas of organization, and Mr. Rodgers has always been there.
Students are highly encouraged to advocate for their success by Mr. Rodgers. Many students are very successful personal advocates, but other students are encouraged to have a friend with them to help them advocate if they feel nervous about being a self advocate. It is an essential step to maturity that students address their issues. Of course parents should be involved, but maybe as coaches in the beginning in order to allow students to build confidence in dealing with school issues.
In the event that students have sustained difficulties, or fail to do their best in class, Mr. Rodgers will contact parents readily, and parents are also encouraged to contact Mr. Rodgers if they feel that their son or daughter is not doing their best. At times, our Counselor, Julie Auslander, will also be involved, especially if a students is having issues in other classes, or has continued difficulties from sixth grade or throughout the seventh grade year.
Below is a list of how organization is supported, as well as some of the key guidelines for staying organized and doing well in class.
1. The use of the LASS7 notebook reinforces labelling each entry with title, date, and entering entries in the Table of Contents - Notebooks are checked about every three weeks, besides constant teacher monitoring of correct format during writing activities.
1a. Students must print their first and last name, the title of the assignment, the due date, and the class the assignments is for at the top of each assignment that is turned in.
2. The class website is shown in class at least 3 days each week. The website is the OXYGEN for all assignments, supplies, and due dates. Students must review the website in class several times each week. Students must ALWAYS use the class website in order to review important information.
3. Google Classroom will be used only when assignments are required to be typed. Most assignments will be completed in the Notebook, or on binder paper.
3a. OXYGEN PLUS - Unless specified, students must bring the handwritten or printed page to class when the assignment is due. Assignments left un-printed on a home computer, or in the student's Google Drive will be considered late until they are printed. If students want to use a computer to do homework, then they MUST make sure the home printer is working before they start their work. All assignments that students elects to do on a computer must be printed at home. The Library printer is often not reliable and should be counted on to print assignments (it is merely provided as a convenience).
4. Email is the best way to reach Mr. Rodgers. Usually, Mr. Rodgers will not respond to emails after 7:30 pm at night. Emails sent after this time will typically be answered in class, either with the students, or in class as a whole, since many emails pose great questions that can help the entire class.
4a. Emails from parents about student progress are very important
4b. Emails will also be sent to students and parents on a regular basis (More OXYGEN). Students must check email every day in order to get class reminders and helpful suggestions. Email will also be sent to individual students to schedule meetings during recess, lunch, or Advisory as reminders for missing or late assignments, as well as suggestions for improvement.
4c. Parents are encouraged to email Mr. Rodgers with questions about communications, emails, and student progress. I am happy to return your email.
In the subject line - type your son or daughter's full name and your question or concern in the first line of the text.
5. Advisory Classes (Major OXYGEN boost) will be held once a week on Thursdays for 56 minutes. Advisory is the best time for students to meet and have in depth conversations with Mr. Rodgers to deal with missing work, or to go over assignments in order to understand how an assignment was assessed and the grade was earned. Students may also schedule shorter meetings during before school, recess, lunch, and immediately after school, barring other duties or responsibilities.
5a. Organization clinic during Advisory. When students are having issues getting in work, Mr. Rodgers will engage in a student binder cleaning with the students. This search usually yields completed, yet missing assignments (the most common place I find "lost" work), as well as partially completed work. After an Organization clinic, parents will be contacted about work that was found, and what needs to do to get back on track.
Monday, September 4, 2017
Saturday, August 26, 2017
Overview of Courses and how to use the website.
If you would like to read an overview of both classes in Languages Arts and Social Studies, then please read the Course Description HERE.
I hope that you have had a chance to look at the LASS7 Rodgers class website. I will regularly display and read from the website most days in class. Please view it HERE. Here you can find a number of resources that can help students with assignment details, grading rubrics, category descriptions for grading, course and assignment resources, as well as links to other Hall resources.
I have developed a useful and timesaving links page for students HERE. Each link has vital information, including the district school calendar, the Hall Informer, and a quick links table to all of the teachers in the seventh grade. I highly encourage parents and students to put a link to this document in their Bookmark Bar for easy access. It is important that student read the Hall Informer periodically to stay ahead of school wide events and activities.
The class website has several resources that are being redeveloped from my previous website. Within the next couple of weeks, most of these resources should be available. The class website is intended to offer multiple pathways for students to find the information they need, typically accessible from a universal menubar as well as within each page.
Social Studies 7
I am writing the web overviews about our first couple of units in both LA7 and SS7 currently. We will start with World Geography and a one week review of basic concepts from 6th grade, with a special emphasis on Ancient Greece, which is fundamental to understanding the Roman World, our first full scale Civilization that we will cover. Students will have opportunities to use 2D art skills, public speaking, as well as demonstrate critical thinking in short writing pieces and within group activities.
Language Arts 7
Writing. We will focus on an very successful, intensive writing program that we adopted last year. The focus of this program for Trimester One is Narrative Writing. We will use our notebooks extensively to explore ideas, brainstorm, organize ideas, and develop details before attempting to write formal pieces of writing. Most pieces of writing will cover personal stories, which will then lead into short story writing.
Reading. Each week will read shorter pieces of fiction and non-fiction in class in order to build fluency, developing strategies for comprehending the ideas and structure of sample readings. By week three we will start to read our first Novel, Stargirl, which looks into themes about individuality, dealing with personal conflicts, and helping others. The Good Deeds project that serves as a capstone for our first novel, gets students to give to the community and reflect on how it feels to help others.
I hope that you have had a chance to look at the LASS7 Rodgers class website. I will regularly display and read from the website most days in class. Please view it HERE. Here you can find a number of resources that can help students with assignment details, grading rubrics, category descriptions for grading, course and assignment resources, as well as links to other Hall resources.
I have developed a useful and timesaving links page for students HERE. Each link has vital information, including the district school calendar, the Hall Informer, and a quick links table to all of the teachers in the seventh grade. I highly encourage parents and students to put a link to this document in their Bookmark Bar for easy access. It is important that student read the Hall Informer periodically to stay ahead of school wide events and activities.
The class website has several resources that are being redeveloped from my previous website. Within the next couple of weeks, most of these resources should be available. The class website is intended to offer multiple pathways for students to find the information they need, typically accessible from a universal menubar as well as within each page.
Social Studies 7
I am writing the web overviews about our first couple of units in both LA7 and SS7 currently. We will start with World Geography and a one week review of basic concepts from 6th grade, with a special emphasis on Ancient Greece, which is fundamental to understanding the Roman World, our first full scale Civilization that we will cover. Students will have opportunities to use 2D art skills, public speaking, as well as demonstrate critical thinking in short writing pieces and within group activities.
Language Arts 7
Writing. We will focus on an very successful, intensive writing program that we adopted last year. The focus of this program for Trimester One is Narrative Writing. We will use our notebooks extensively to explore ideas, brainstorm, organize ideas, and develop details before attempting to write formal pieces of writing. Most pieces of writing will cover personal stories, which will then lead into short story writing.
Reading. Each week will read shorter pieces of fiction and non-fiction in class in order to build fluency, developing strategies for comprehending the ideas and structure of sample readings. By week three we will start to read our first Novel, Stargirl, which looks into themes about individuality, dealing with personal conflicts, and helping others. The Good Deeds project that serves as a capstone for our first novel, gets students to give to the community and reflect on how it feels to help others.
Review of First Week
First Week School Wide Workshops - Let's say that the first week was simply great. We started back on Tuesday, and the staff for each grade level guilt in Introductory, Back to School Workshops and Assemblies. 7th Grade students learned about the special and unique traits of the 7th grade staff the first day, followed up by a digital footprint presentation by Mr. Montes. During Wednesday and Thursday, the entire 7th grade was divided up into four groups. Each day students participated in a total of four half hour workshops about various topics to help students 1. get organized, 2. deal with stress, 3. understand how their personality affects their learning, and 4. understand how to work together in groups. On Friday, 7th graders met with their Advisory Teacher to pair up, have a discussion about various aspects of starting back to school this year, closing with writing a letter to their June 2018 future self about goals, meeting expectations about school, friends, and outside interests as well.
First Week of Instruction in LASS7.
To accommodate the first week of workshops, Each class met for a brief 26 minutes introduction the first round of classes, followed by two 45 minutes periods of instruction the rest of the week.
Social Studies 7 -
This week we participated in a set of compare and contrast activities about Summer vs. School, before writing a two paragraph writing sample for the classroom teacher to use as an informal assessment tool to see where each class is as writers to better help me teach appropriate lessons for each student.
We also examined different theories of history, using a list generated by the students. Then students were to then to ponder a hypothetical big bang type beginning of time that supposedly took place in 1963. Students used the notes on different theories, and some asked their parents in drafting a 5 point response. On the day of the "debate" with Mr. Rodgers defending the position, the entire class for each period was engaged in a debate with the teacher about the theory, using evidence to debunk the 1963 Big Bang theory with their own evidence and arguments.
Language Arts 7 - Since the Summer vs School paragraphs was one writing piece for all of my students, students in Language Arts were introduced to Journal Guidelines to be completed in their notebooks. Students wrote a journal in their Notebook for 12 minutes about Summer. Students next harvested 5 key parts of the piece that they liked or thought was most meaningful.
First Week of Instruction in LASS7.
To accommodate the first week of workshops, Each class met for a brief 26 minutes introduction the first round of classes, followed by two 45 minutes periods of instruction the rest of the week.
Social Studies 7 -
This week we participated in a set of compare and contrast activities about Summer vs. School, before writing a two paragraph writing sample for the classroom teacher to use as an informal assessment tool to see where each class is as writers to better help me teach appropriate lessons for each student.
We also examined different theories of history, using a list generated by the students. Then students were to then to ponder a hypothetical big bang type beginning of time that supposedly took place in 1963. Students used the notes on different theories, and some asked their parents in drafting a 5 point response. On the day of the "debate" with Mr. Rodgers defending the position, the entire class for each period was engaged in a debate with the teacher about the theory, using evidence to debunk the 1963 Big Bang theory with their own evidence and arguments.
Language Arts 7 - Since the Summer vs School paragraphs was one writing piece for all of my students, students in Language Arts were introduced to Journal Guidelines to be completed in their notebooks. Students wrote a journal in their Notebook for 12 minutes about Summer. Students next harvested 5 key parts of the piece that they liked or thought was most meaningful.
Monday, August 21, 2017
Welcome Back, August 22, 2017
Week 1, 082217 -
Welcome back. Summer was just yesterday for all of us: Sleeping in, vacations, endless amounts of time, hanging out, open schedules, and personal projects. I hope everyone adjusts to the new sleep schedule, makes some time for relaxation and personal endeavors, so that we all can ease back into the school year.
This year we will do many things, learn several strategies and skills, work together in groups, focus on personal goals, combine art and graphics, and perform in front of the class throughout the year.
We will read, poetry, short story and essay, as well as three novels in Language Arts. We will write using a variety of strategies. We will keep a writer’s notebook, create several booklets, and use a process that engages students in the writing of personal narrative and short fiction, argumentative essay and controversial topic research, as well the expository and personal essay. Besides writing, we will work on our Oral Presentation skills throughout most of the year.
In Social Studies we will continue the historical survey about the time period known as the Medieval Time Period which includes the study of Late Roman Empire to the Age of Enlightenment in Europe, Islamic Civilization, China and Japan, West Africa, and MesoAmerica. We regularly make connections with the modern world, and examine how recent history helps us understand history in a personal way. We will ask big questions about history and discuss Cause versus Correlation, Historical models, controversial topics, put into context cultures and time periods that are different from our own.
Thursday, February 11, 2016
Controversial Topic Research (Isearch) in progress... Concepts and Contributions of Islam
Isearch research is in progress - student have taken about 20 notes so far from a wide variety of sources. Students are working on position papers on topics ranging from steroids in sports, animal testing for cosmetics, to reproductive rights. Currently we have written leads, problem and thesis paragraphs, and have just finished developing three paragraphs that examine the best first argument in depth. Student will start workshopping their writing so far. In order to back up major ideas, most students will continue to do more research as we continue to write the paper's supporting and counter arguments.
We have been studying Islamic Civilization and Current Events and issues since the return of Winter Break. We have examined modern issues across the Islamic world - women's rights, the rise of ISIS, the differences between Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims today. We have examined the early beginning of Islam.
Starting with an examination of Hinduism and Buddhism in 6th grade, in 7th we have continued with a conversation of the rise of the Catholic Church, and currently the rise of Islamic principles. This examination helps students understand the thinking and beliefs of Islam not just as a religion, but more importantly as it relates to culture and politics with the goal of a better understanding of our relationship with peoples that live in the Islamic nations of the world.
We have been studying Islamic Civilization and Current Events and issues since the return of Winter Break. We have examined modern issues across the Islamic world - women's rights, the rise of ISIS, the differences between Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims today. We have examined the early beginning of Islam.
Starting with an examination of Hinduism and Buddhism in 6th grade, in 7th we have continued with a conversation of the rise of the Catholic Church, and currently the rise of Islamic principles. This examination helps students understand the thinking and beliefs of Islam not just as a religion, but more importantly as it relates to culture and politics with the goal of a better understanding of our relationship with peoples that live in the Islamic nations of the world.
Monday, January 4, 2016
January, 2016 in LASS7
This month we will start our Islam Unit in SS7. There is much to understand about Islam besides what makes it into the news about ISIS, the Middle East, and the Arabic Spring and its aftermath.
1. If you wanted to send your children to the best schools in the world where the pursuit of scientific thought was considered the highest form of learning - then Islamic schools from Spain to Baghdad would offer your children courses in chemistry, botany, Greek and Roman philosophers, as well as legal systems from around the world, just to start.
2. If you had the money and wanted the most advanced medical care, or to live in cities with modern hospitals, libraries, museums, schools, and universities, then Medieval Islamic civilization between the 800 - 1200s was the apex of civilization that offered the highest standard of living in contrast to other areas of the world at the time.
3. There is much to unravel as we study Islamic Civilization, as well as try to understand the rise of modern Islamic nationalism, fundamentalism, and for a very minute part of the Islamic world population, the radicalism that seems to flood our headlines.
In Language Arts 7 we will start to compile our writing portfolio and use this process to create student centered work throughout the rest of the year.
We will continue on to our next novel, The Outsiders, which examines the mid 60s in Oklahoma through the eyes of the hero who lives with his older brothers after his parents died in an accident.
As part of our writing portfolio we will pursue two different avenues this month:
1. Examine poetic forms through a packet that I use that offers a variety of forms and perspectives on theme and voice.
2. Start to build the persuasive essay through research into the I-search/We-search project.
1. If you wanted to send your children to the best schools in the world where the pursuit of scientific thought was considered the highest form of learning - then Islamic schools from Spain to Baghdad would offer your children courses in chemistry, botany, Greek and Roman philosophers, as well as legal systems from around the world, just to start.
2. If you had the money and wanted the most advanced medical care, or to live in cities with modern hospitals, libraries, museums, schools, and universities, then Medieval Islamic civilization between the 800 - 1200s was the apex of civilization that offered the highest standard of living in contrast to other areas of the world at the time.
3. There is much to unravel as we study Islamic Civilization, as well as try to understand the rise of modern Islamic nationalism, fundamentalism, and for a very minute part of the Islamic world population, the radicalism that seems to flood our headlines.
In Language Arts 7 we will start to compile our writing portfolio and use this process to create student centered work throughout the rest of the year.
We will continue on to our next novel, The Outsiders, which examines the mid 60s in Oklahoma through the eyes of the hero who lives with his older brothers after his parents died in an accident.
As part of our writing portfolio we will pursue two different avenues this month:
1. Examine poetic forms through a packet that I use that offers a variety of forms and perspectives on theme and voice.
2. Start to build the persuasive essay through research into the I-search/We-search project.
- Develop research and note taking strategies
- Build a complex argument in support of one side of a controversial topic
- Write a research paper
- Learn to speak extemporaneously about this topic
- Optional - work with a partner to create a presentation to demonstrate in depth understanding of the topic through the efforts of two students
3. In grammar we will start to focus on paragraph building strategies.
Monday, June 22, 2015
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)