Back to school night 2012.notebook

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October 01, 2012

Sep 17­9:20 AM

Welcome to 7B English

Mrs. Chirico

We should make time in our lives for what is 

important...

READING is important.

Sep 17­9:21 AM

• My counterparts are Mrs. Bakaj & Ms. Georgio

• My email is jchirico@chatham­nj.org

• Email is the BEST way to contact me

• Eighth year teaching at CMS

About Jackie ChiricoContact Information

Back to school night 2012.notebook

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October 01, 2012

Sep 17­9:23 AM

http://www.chatham-nj.org/sdoc/site/default.asp

Please visit my website for important information:

• grading procedures

• independent reading requirement details

**Please don't forget to check your child's progress on the Genesis Parent Portal!

• homework/quiz & test dates

• book recommendations

• other helpful links

Sep 20­11:44 AM

• Selection of short stories (fiction & non fiction)

• Literature Circles (A World in Conflict)• Author Study (Jordan Sonnenblick)• 2 core novels • Literary Analysis Writing• Genre study (non fiction autobiographies)

*writing pieces, grammar and poetry will be incorporated throughout the year

Units of Study

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October 01, 2012

Sep 21­11:50 AM

Exciting News!As a culture of readers, we believe it is important to allow students to hear what real published authors have to say about their work.

On October 11th, some classes will be able to participate in a virtual author visit with Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling via a LIVE webcast from Edinburgh, Scotland!

Sep 21­10:42 AM

Author Study

In December, Jordan Sonnenblick will be visiting CMS and talking to our students about reading and writing!

In preparation for his visit, we will be conducting an author study unit in November. As a class, we will read his first novel Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie!

Please encourage your child to read another book written by Mr. Sonnenblick. Mrs. Connelly has many available at the book fair.

Back to school night 2012.notebook

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October 01, 2012

Sep 24­8:16 AM

CMS Book Fairin the media center

We are enco

uraging t

he 

students 

to read ot

her titles 

by Jordan

 Sonnenbl

ick in 

preparat

ion for hi

s visit.

• After Ever After

• Zen and the Art of Faking it

• Notes from the Midnight Driver

• Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip

Sep 24­8:20 AM

FOCUS of 7th Grade English...

READINGThis year in English, your child is going to read more than he/she ever

has before!

We are dedicated to helping your children become a community of readers by fostering their love of reading and

honing their skills.

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October 01, 2012

Sep 24­8:28 AM

Why is this our focus?

• Reading is fun!

• Kids who read widely and often get better at it.

• Reading excercises our brains.

• Reading improves concentration.

• Reading teaches kids about the world around them.

• Reading improves a child's vocabulary, leads to more highly developed language skills and improves the child's ability to write well.

• Reading develops imagination.

• Reading helps kids develop a sense of empathy.

• Children who read do better at school.

Sep 24­8:24 AM

How will we accomplish this goal?• Students are expected to read 20 books

this school year (September - June)

• Students will be given AT LEAST 10 minutes EVERY CLASS to independently read...that's at least 50 per week!

• Homework each night consists of at least 10 minutes of independent reading...that's another 50 minutes!

• Students choose the books they read - they are invested in their choice and have the right to abandon if a book isn't working for them.

• Classes will go to the CMS library at least twice a month for a full period of independent reading...there's an additional 100 minutes per month!

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October 01, 2012

Sep 24­8:34 AM

20 books is possible! Take a look...Here's a list of titles my students have already finished since the beginning of school...just 16 school days ago!

• Al Capone Does My Shirts

• The Face on the Milk Carton

• My Life in Dog Years

• Maximum Ride

• The Maze Runner

• The Scorch Trials

• The Hunger Games

• Schooled

• Witch and Wizard

• Hope Was Here

• Uglies

• Star Girl

• The Lucky One

• Life As We Knew It

• Witch & Wizard: The Gift

• The People of the Sparks

• Fever 1793

• Throne of Fire

• 13 Reasons Why

• Escaping the Giant Wave

• His Majesty's Dragon

• The City of Ember

• How Angel Peterson Got His Name

• Catching Fire

• Ender's Shadow

• Ender's Game

• The Extraordinary Life of Alfred Fink

• Birthmarked

• The Carbon Diaries

• The Thief Lord

• Every Soul a Star

• The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle

• The Boy Who Dared

• Mockingjay

• Skeleton Key

• The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

• Love That Dog

• The Power of Six

• Last Shot

Sep 20­11:48 AM

I dreamed I stood in a studioAnd watched two sculptors there.

The clay they used was a young child’s mindAnd they fashioned it with care.

One was a teacher, the tools she usedWere books and music and art.

The other was a parent with a guiding hand and a gentle loving heart.Day after day, the teacher toiled with touch that was deft and sure.

While parent labored by her side And polished and smoothed it o’er.

And when at last their task was done,They were proud of what they had wrought.

For the things they had molded into the childCould never be sold or bought.

And each agree they would have failedIf each had worked alone.

For behind the parent stood the schoolAnd behind the teacher, the home.