A Complete Year of 6th/7th Grade Language Arts: Session 1
In this 8-week session, students will complete an informative essay, a literature unit using the book Me and Marvin Gardens, and a middle school level literary essay. Students will also learn how to use various sentence structures.
Amal J.
Average rating:
5.0
Number of reviews:(75)
What's included
16 live meetings
14 hrs 40 mins in-class hoursClass Experience
This session is part of a larger series titled, A Complete Year of Language Arts. Taken as a whole, this will offer a full year's worth of English Language Arts. This course is geared towards the 6th grade student, but 7th graders that need writing help or very advanced 5th graders are welcome . This session's focus: Informative Essay Writing Literature Unit: Me and Marvin Gardens by Amy Sarig King Literary Essay Writing (Book Report) Sentence Structure During this session we will engage in a literature study based on the book Me and Marvin Gardens by Amy Sarig King. Students will also learn to write an informative essay and a literary essay. Heavy focus will be paid to the pre-writing process. This includes: Putting together an outline packet Setting up and organizing your outline Understanding the purpose of each of the 5 paragraphs Selecting your overall subject Finding age appropriate resources to use for your research Selecting your 3 topics to focus on How to research and take notes on the 3 topics The elements of an introduction and a conclusion How to write a strong thesis statement How to write a topic sentence for your body paragraphs How to make sure your paragraph stays in line with your topic sentence How to write a clincher/ closing sentence How to edit your paper We will also focus on sentence structure and how to vary sentence structure to avoid a monotonous essay. I heavily scaffold students in their pre-writing process as I believe strong scaffolding in the younger years leads to a strong and confident writer in the later years. For literature study, we will read the book Me and Marvin Gardens and spend time each week discussing the novel and using it to learn the elements of literature and story structure. We will also draw lessons that can be applied to everyday life. Students will have a Reading Response Journal and will be assigned reflective prompts based on the reading. At the end of the session, students will present a project based on the book. When we have completed our informative essays and our novel, we will learn to write a literary essay while reviewing all the major points above regarding essay writing. Students will be guided through every step of this writing process. Based on time, we might get in a bit of creative writing through prompts, however, session 3 will be devoted entirely to creative writing. Students will be encouraged to turn in essays for me to correct and give feedback on. I will have 'office hours' in the form of 15-30 minute private sessions available for sign up on my teacher page for students who need special help. This would be beneficial if a paper is turned in with a significant number of corrections needed or if it is evident one on one help is needed. I highly recommend that students are able to type. This makes it easy for me to correct directly on their google share and it makes it easy for students to keep making corrections until the paper is to grade level without having to rewrite the entire paper. Many students begin as reluctant writers and I really find that with enough scaffolding and guidance during the prewriting process, this calms. Having step by step instructions and guidance can really take the stress out of writing. Week 1 Day 1: The purpose of an informative essay Overview of the structure of an informative essay Selecting our subjects How to find resources and what types of resources to use (Homework- bring 2-3 research resources to class the following week) Day 2: Introducing the book: Me and Marvin Gardens Discussing the genre and author "Before We Read" activity Intro to the main elements of literature (so students can identify them as we read) Intro to types of characters Week 2 Day 1: Creating our outline packet Discussing our subject selections and sharing resources Understanding why we outline topic paragraphs before the introduction and conclusion Selecting 3 subtopics to focus on Learning to take notes on one topic at a time New Sentence Structure: Beginning a Sentence with Paired Adjectives Day 2: Literature study Chapters 1-13 Discussion Reading Response Journal prompt Week 3 Day 1: Learning about the 3 major elements of an introduction and conclusion Writing an exciting attention grabber Writing a solid thesis sentence Outlining the Intro & Conclusion New Sentence Structure: Beginning a sentence with an ING word Day 2: Literature study Chapters 13-26 Discussion Reading Response Journal prompt Week 4 Day 1: Learning how to write effective topic sentences Learning how to make sure your paragraphs don't stray from the topic Writing a clincher/ closing sentence that mirrors the topic and closes the paragraph Topic sentence exercises to strengthen the skill of writing topic sentences Homework: Writing your report Day 2: Literature Study Chapters 26-36 Discussion Reading Response Journal prompt Week 5 Day 1: Essay editing workshop Editing for major corrections (missing capitals, punctuation, & misspellings) Discussion of sentence structure- examples of how to vary sentence structure Scan papers for overuse of one sentence structure Explore alternate sentence structures to make the paragraph flow Bibliography Turn in the essay Day 2: Chapters 36-47 Discussion Reading Response Journal Discussion of the book as a whole Tracing each major story element and identifying its representation in the story Identifying main themes Discussing the character development of the main character Week 6 Day 1: Introduction to the elements of a basic literary essay or book report and what topics we will focus on (characters, summary, theme) How to summarize a plot by making a list of major plot points Assemble outline packet Close look at the Introduction Day 2: Outline the Introduction Discuss the characters in the book and which characters are significant enough to be included Outline the 1st topic paragraph: Characters Week 7 Day 1: How to summarize a story Discuss what a summary is Outline the 2nd topic paragraph Day 2: What is a theme? Discuss the theme of the book and why it is important Discuss a specific example of the theme in the book and how this example can be used to prove the theme Outline the 3rd topic paragraph: Theme Conclusions- Outline the conclusion Homework- Write papers Week 8 Day 1: Editing Workshop Turn papers in Day 2: Presentations of book projects (Each student will present a project inspired by the book)More focus on sentence structure and how to vary our sentences Practice through creative writing prompts
Learning Goals
Student will improve their understanding of the process researching and outlining an essay, organizing information, writing, literature elements, and how to read a book and gain a deeper understanding of the story.
Other Details
Supply List
Book: Me and Marvin Gardens by Amy Sarig King A Composition Book for our Reading Response Journal (link below but any will work) https://www.amazon.com/Emraw-Black-Marble-Composition-Sheets/dp/B0731NLT2S/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=composition+book&qid=1622611663&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&smid=A32RLE08M2N1D1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyWkdXS0FHSUdBRDhPJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNTUwNjU2RTlSNko4VFdETVRYJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA3MDMzMjExMFdFSTk0NEE4RENUJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Teacher expertise and credentials
My sparks in life are studying and teaching writing, literature, and history.
For the past six years, I have taught classes such as World History, American History , Language Arts, and Creative Writing to upper elementary and middle grade students. In addition, I have also tutored high school students struggling with essay writing.
My love of history has been with me all my life. It is my understanding that we learn history not only to memorize events and dates, but also to reflect and learn from those who came before us. I enjoy bringing history to life through discussion, activity, and projects.
Language Arts is a subject I love teaching and I truly believe that language is indeed an art. I put just as much heart into essay writing as I do creative writing. I believe creative writing is a journey and it has been a great joy to take youth of all ages on that journey.
Other things you should know about me? I have been a voracious reader my entire life. My one and only obsessive collection is my book collection. I have travelled widely, studying the local history of various regions, working with local historians, and writing. I am involved in social justice and equity work in my local area. It is my feeling that we study, we read, and we accrue knowledge to gain a deeper understanding of our world and to expand our capacity for empathy for others.
One last note: I strongly believe in equity and inclusion, and therefore ALL are welcome in my classes, and that includes students with learning differences. All my classes have been created with the intention of being accessible to all. My classes will always have visuals and notes to follow to accompany my teaching.
As I am a new teacher on Outschool, it was recommended that I post reviews written by families I previously taught.
"Last year our tweens took Amal’s US History class. The boys loved it. Amal is unbelievably passionate about history, and is well prepared with materials and research - way beyond a typical middle school level class. Amal uses a variety of media … lectures, videos, pictures and discussions, is very funny, and knows how to engage the kids and get them hooked on history. We also liked her perspective on history. If history is written by the winners, Amal’s class goes the extra mile to include the lesser told story of the other side as well."
Eva - parent of 12 year old triplet boys
"I have been fortunate to have Amal Jamal as my daughter’s homeschool teacher for the past several years. I knew that Amal would be the perfect person to help my daughter find a love and appreciation for writing and history, which was previously lacking. No matter the subject matter Amal is teaching, whether it be history, language arts, civics, or poetry, she always comes to class extremely organized and prepared. Amal is very passionate about teaching. She puts a lot of effort into planning rich, engaging, meaningful, and fun lessons. She is very supportive, and has a unique ability to motivate students and nurture their intrinsic desire to learn. Over the years, Amal has consistently encouraged my daughter to do her best. She saw her potential and knew how to spark her passion. I am thankful that my daughter now loves to read and write and that she is thriving."
Teresa Walker - parent of 13 year old
Amal has been my teacher for about five years and I have enjoyed every moment of it. She finds a way to make learning fun, even if the subject is not my favorite. In the past, I did not enjoy language arts nearly as much as I do now. Amal manages to make more complex topics understandable. She has helped broaden my use of sentence openers, creative language, grammar, and more that has enhanced my writing. Before I had her classes, I never sat down and wrote, but now I find myself freely writing stories regularly. Amal has recently also become my history teacher. She adds creativity to even the darkest topics. We have completed slideshow presentations, photo essays, and dioramas. Covid has been a drastic change in everyone’s life, but Amal has managed to work around the quarantine and keep learning fun and interactive, even on zoom. I would recommend Amal to anyone who asked.
Kacia - 14 year old
"Amal is a truly gifted and passionate teacher with an excitement that is contagious. Her lesson plans are thoughtful, inclusive, and hands on. My daughter has had classes with Amal for many years and is always excited for any of her offerings. Amal's understanding of neurodiversity and inclusion is rare and she is attuned to the needs of the class and individuals, supporting both. I could not more highly recommend Amal's classes - anyone would be lucky to have her offerings for their child."
Cara- parent of 12 year oldReviews
Live Group Class
$275
for 16 classes2x per week, 8 weeks
55 min
Completed by 11 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 10-12
3-11 learners per class
