• Welcome

    7th Grade English

    Class Overview for Ms. Davis

     Grading System:

    Each unit in our English classroom has identified priority standards that students must master. Any classwork and assessment can be revised as often as a student likes until grades are final. This means, if students put in the effort and extra work, all classwork and assessments could potentially reach the mastery of 100%. Assessments will always be tied to priority standards and are worth a higher portion of the overall grade because they reflect the skill level of the student. Daily classwork includes smaller assignments that connect to our unit supporting standards. Below is a breakdown and brief description of each grade category.

    • Assessments-90%
      • Skill/Mastery checks of priority standards
      • Includes essays, projects, brief writes, PowerPoints, speeches, visual work, etc.
    • Classwork-10%
      • Assignments done on supporting standards
      • Includes warm ups, learning maps, reading comprehension assignments, daily assignments, etc.

    Writing:

    Writing is a skill that any student can develop. One of the goals this year to change student mindset so that students understand writing is a skill that can be developed. Any person can be a clear, focused, organized author for any genre. A focus for writing in 7th grade is that students can create an effective introduction with a thesis statement/claim that is supported throughout the body paragraphs in a clear and cohesive manner. They will also need to be able to wrap up every essay with a powerful conclusion. Each essay must reflect organization, focus, meaning, and voice. Research will be an integral part of all writing, even narrative, so students are comfortable finding and sorting through information, summarizing, and writing citations. This year we will be writing argument, informative/explanatory, and narrative pieces. Students will create longer essays as part of a culminating project each quarter.

    Reading:

    Reading this year will include a variety of genres. Students will learn to use the skill of annotation to comprehend and analyze informational articles, arguments, narratives, poetry and other critical forms of literature. Annotation is a focus because this skill is applicable to all types of reading throughout any grade. Even college texts are easier to understand and engage with through the skill of annotating. Annotating will help students find and break down key details, make personal connections, ask questions, notice important or repeated words, and analyze the critical writing moves experienced authors are making. All our texts come from district approved novels as well as our textbook, My Perspectives. To help build background knowledge, informational articles from young adult sources, such as NewsELA, may supplement our learning. Students will learn to use what they have read to strengthen their writing. This will include learning to correctly and appropriately use text evidence in writing as well as class discussions.

     

    Write On!

    davis.janna@westada.org