Middle School English Language Arts (ELA) Unit 1: How We Change and Grow
This 9-week course will meet 2 times a week and cover all the essentials of reading, writing, and language use with a curriculum aligned to core standards that is interactive and interesting for learners- ending with essay writing. #academic
Misses Dee
Average rating:
4.9
Number of reviews:(229)
What's included
18 live meetings
13 hrs 30 mins in-class hoursHomework
1-2 hours per week. They will be some reading and writing tasks assigned as homework between classes. These tasks should not take more than an hour each. Reading tasks will be a few pages long. Writing tasks will be paragraphs for the first couple of assignments and then working on the final essay. There are no full-length books in this unit.Assessment
📝Students will have some baseline assessment tests and writing tasks. 📝There will be a vocabulary quiz. 📝There will be a grammar quiz. 📝There will be a discussion that will be graded according to a rubric. 📝There will be a final essay that will be graded according to a rubric.Grading
includedClass Experience
US Grade 5 - 8
This class is now available through Stone Bridges Academy here: https://outschool.com/classes/middle-school-english-language-arts-unit-1-how-we-change-and-grow-cF6u0BYy?usid=M5RV0QGD&signup=true&utm_campaign=share_activity_link In this unit, we will try to answer the essential question "How can relationships and life events change people?" To help us do this, we will explore informational text and short stories to extract the main ideas and key details, plot the storyline and characters, and search for a central idea. We will also practice expository and argumentive writing with proper punctuation and appropriate vocabulary. Classes are designed to be as interactive as possible and promote discussion between learners and with the teacher. We will have slide show presentations, google forms, interactive polls and activities, discussion and videos when appropriate to support our learning experience. Session 1 Introduction and Vocabulary List Session 2 Reading- "Do People Really Change?" by Jessica McBirney and Baseline Writing Task Session 3 Writing Lesson: Understanding Assignment and Vocabulary Activity Session 4 Reading- "Raymon's Run" by Toni Cade Bambara Session 5 Writing Lesson: Paragraphs Session 6 Vocabulary Activity and Reading- "The Medicine Bag" by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve Session 7 Vocabulary Activity and Writing Lesson: Evidence Session 8 Vocabulary Quiz and Grammar Activity Session 9 Media Exploring Session 10 Reading- "The Scholarship Jacket" by Marta Salinas and Grammar Activity Session 11 Grammar Activity and Narrative Essay Assignment Session 12 Grammar Activity and Discussion Presentation Session 13 Class Discussion and Recap Session 14 Grammar Quiz and Essay Parts Session 15 Essay Parts and Planning Session 16 Essay Drafting and Revising Session 17 Essay Drafting and Revising Session 18 Essay Sharing (optional) and Closure ✅ Students will increase their vocabulary with a set of words they will see, learn, and use throughout the unit. ✅ Writing lessons that will guide students to use the vocabulary, concepts, and correct (grade appropriate) mechanics, as well as in-text evidence to support their ideas and citations, will be completed during the course. Writing a good paragraph will also be included in the unit. Grammar mini-lessons will be included. We will also cover steps to successfully write an essay, from understanding the task, brainstorming, outlining, and the writing process. ✅ There will be several reading tasks executed in group guided reading, small group reading, or independent reading to help students explore different reading methods, as well as improve their reading ability and comprehension. ✅ We will have a discussion lesson that will help students learn and practice being part of an academic discussion. Standards covered: Reading: RL.6.1, RL.6.3, RI.6.1, RI.6.2 Writing: W.6.1, W.6.2 Language: L.6.2.A, L.6.6 Speaking and Listening: SL.6.1.A, SL.6.1.B
Learning Goals
🎯Students will be able to answer the essential question with detailed evidence from the texts they have read and examine their own lives to see how they have changed.
🎯Students will increase their vocabulary through repeated exposure and use of a set of words.
🎯Students will improve their pre-writing and writing skills by practicing throughout the unit and writing a full-length essay which will demonstrate their understanding of the essential question by comparing how a character changed to how the student changed.
Other Details
Parental Guidance
Please note that parents and students will not need to make accounts for CommonLit. As an educator, I am able to obtain, adapt, create, and share all the materials needed for the course and share it via the Outschool platform. Only a Google account will be needed to use interactive google docs, forms, slides ect. for classwork and homework. All these things will be shared during the live meeting as well as on the Outschool platform.
Supply List
A notebook dedicated to this class will be helpful. Students should have a Google account to assess some class materials and tasks.
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined August, 2020
4.9
229reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
Arizona Teaching Certificate in English to Speakers of Other Languages
2 Degrees
Bachelor's Degree in Education from University of Massachusetts Amherst
Associate's Degree from Fort Hayes State University
AA in Child Development
BA in Language Development
TESOL Certification
Teaching Certification
20+ years in education and curriculum planningReviews
Live Group Class
$265
for 18 classes2x per week, 9 weeks
45 min
Completed by 8 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 11-13
1-10 learners per class
