Comprehensive Middle School Grammar, Usage, & Mechanics for Writing & Test Prep

DESCRIPTION
In my class, I strive to teach grammar thoroughly and analytically. Students will look at short paragraphs from famous literature, discussing some of the ways that grammar aids in making the writing clear and engaging, as well as looking at the ways words and phrases are connected. We will start each class with a warmup in which students identify various parts of speech, define a word using context clues, and fix mechanics or usage errors. This course is a complete grammar/mechanics/usage curriculum with vocabulary and writing mixed in.

This class is ideal for students looking to improve their understanding of English grammar and writing skills. I do also teach basic sentence diagramming and spelling strategies in the course. Through this course, students will gain a solid foundation in English grammar and the skills they need to communicate and write effectively. Whether students are looking to deepen their knowledge, improve their grades, prepare for a standardized test, or simply have fun learning in a supportive environment, this class will improve their skills.

PREREQUISITES
Students should have at least a beginning 6th-grade grammar knowledge and should ideally be mostly familiar with parts of speech. This is a fairly rigorous course, however, if many students seem to struggle with a specific topic, we will spend some more time reviewing the material before moving on.

REQUIRED MATERIALS
Students should have a notebook for this course as well as a writing utensil. 

CLASS STRUCTURE
1. Warmup (paragraph correction)
2. Intro to the lesson and notes on the topic
3. Practice Questions and application (sometimes this is a game)
4. Intro to homework assignment/quiz



Each class session may include group discussions, group activities, individual or group grammar support, and teacher-led lessons. This class is ongoing. Students can enter and leave at any point.

Participation: Cold-calling on students (calling without a student raising their hand) can be very anxiety-inducing. I do prefer if students answer verbally, but it is not required. I might ask a student what they think about something (i.e. do you have an idea on how to make the sentence better?), but they are welcome to politely decline. If you would prefer for me to cold call on your student, please let me know and I will make a note to do so. Students may choose to keep cameras on or off as long as they briefly verify themselves with me at the beginning of the class (per Outschool policy). I do expect participation (i.e. verbally or via chat) so that I can make sure that all students understand the material.

MISSED CLASSES
If your student misses a class, a recording will always be accessible on the classroom page. The PowerPoint lesson and notes are always available as well.

REFUND POLICY 
1. Ongoing "Cancel anytime. No refunds for past payments. Most recent payment can be refunded within 24 hours of purchase and prior to the first meeting of the payment period."

Note. If your student is not able to attend in person, refunds will not be issued. This is because the student can still access the materials, recordings, and receive grades for assignments. I do provide refunds for emergency situations.

GRADES
Exit tickets are graded via google forms. There are also optional quizzes at the end of each unit. If parents want to use this class for credit, I can send grades. I am a certified English educator, but some states have different requirements, so parents should make sure that the class fulfills all of the requirements for their specific school/homeschool program. 

CLASS SCHEDULE
2024 Semester Session

January 7: Parallelism
January 14: Homophones/ commonly confused words
January 21: Pronoun Agreement
January 28: Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers

February 4: Punctuating/Formatting Titles
February 11: MLA Formatting
February 24: Double Negatives

MECHANICS TOPICS
The i before e Spelling Rule
The Final y Spelling Rule
The Silent e Spelling Rule
The Double the Consonant Spelling Rule
The Ending “an” or “en” Spelling Rule
The “able” or “ible” Spelling Rule
The Ending “ion” Spelling Rule
Plurals Spelling Rules
Periods in Latin Expression
Periods in Names, Abbreviations, and Acronyms
Periods in Indirect Questions and Intentional Fragments
Periods in Decimal Outlines
Semicolons with Conjunctions
Apostrophes for Singular Possessive Nouns
Apostrophes for Plural Possessive Nouns
Apostrophes in Compound Possessive Nouns
Apostrophes in Contractions
Comma Misuse
Commas for Dates
Commas for Letters
Quotations within Quotations
Punctuation of Non-standard Usage
In-text Citations and Indirect Quotations
MLA Works Cited Page


PARTICIPATION: 
Students may choose to keep cameras on or off as long as they briefly verify themselves with me at the beginning of the class (per Outschool policy). I do expect participation in this class. We cover quite a bit of material and it is essential that students discuss and understand the material. Being active participants helps them do so. They may participate in the chat or by raising their hands and waiting to be called on.

MISSED CLASSES
If your student misses a class, a recording will always be accessible on the classroom page. The quiz or other class materials are always available as well.

REFUND POLICY 
If your student is not able to attend in person but stays enrolled, refunds will not be issued. This is because the student can still access the materials, recordings, and receive feedback for assignments. I do provide refunds for emergency situations.