English Language Arts (ELA): Ongoing Quests

In this ongoing course, we will quest together to learn and practice ELA (English Language Arts) concepts that include: reading fiction and non-fiction, answering questions about these texts for greater comprehension, basic and creative writing about our class theme, punctuation and capitalization rules and application, and grammar rules. 

This course is designed with a flexible format for my learners on the move, and students are welcome to join and leave the class as needed.

Knowing that each student has a different schedule and comes from a unique background -- that includes schooling history, regional standards, personality, online engagement, individual talents, (among other things) -- I will especially strive to connect with each learner in a personal way. 

I will also help each learner to connect with our classroom of peers in the way that feels comfortable. I do this by creating an open, attentive, and supportive classroom environment where each learner is welcome to choose to share and collaborate in his or her own way. 

Each class will cover the following:
-- Parts of Speech Warmup (5 min.): We will practice the parts of speech in a game as both an icebreaker and a skills review.
-- Reading (15 min.): Each week, learners will be given a short fiction or nonfiction passage to read in class. I will teach or review the relevant literary terms to help analyze the text. We will answer questions about the reading passage in a group discussion to learn and practice reading comprehension skills. 
-- Writing (10 min.): Learners will write a paragraph in every class to answer a question about the reading passage or to demonstrate understanding of the featured literary term. 
-- Grammar, Punctuation, Capitalization (15 min.): Each week will focus on learning or reviewing different language arts rules -- including grammar, punctuation and word usage -- and practice through group editorial exercises.

Class topics by week:
Week of June 12-18: Adverbs; Reading: figurative language; Writing: figurative language; Grammar practice.
Week of June 19-25: Nouns; Reading: story maps; Writing: story maps; Grammar practice.
Week of June 26-July 2: Verbs; Reading: poetry; Writing: poetry; Grammar practice.
Week of July 3-9: July 4th holiday **NO CLASS**
Week of July 10-16: Adjectives; Reading: character inferences; Writing: explicit and implicit character traits; Grammar: correct usage of nouns and pronouns.
Week of July 17-23: Adverbs; Reading: themes; Writing: story themes; Grammar: correct usage of adjectives and adverbs.