The students will use the Voyages in English text as a basis for their study of grammar, punctuation, and writing skills. Skills will be introduced or reviewed independently and then practiced through a variety of Writers' Workshop activities. Often times, these activities will be planned in conjunction with other curricular areas. For example, our first Writers' Workshop projects will be outgrowths of David Wisniewski's visit to our campus and our reading of the novel Dar and the SpearThrower . Check our WebPages for more detailed information as the year progresses.
Literature explores new ground, uncovers new ideas, and presents new skills in reading.
The children will be reading a variety of short stories, essays, and poems from our text, The Elements of Literature . We will also read a number of novels, beginning with Dar and the SpearThrower by Marjorie Crowley. We will also work to entice our young readers to independently explore a variety of genre by requiring 60 minutes of outside reading per week in a book of their choosing. Every Monday, the children will be asked to turn in a signed record of this independent reading. Grammar is studied as a natural out-growth of the writing process and writing is reinforced through the Writer's Workshop process.