Mrs. Melody Griffith

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Welcome to Curriculum Night!

• Mrs. Melody Griffith
• 8th Grade Language Arts

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Course Overview

• Students will be reading for both enjoyment and
  for analysis during guided class instruction.
• Students will learn how successful readers think
  and visualize when they read, interact with, and
  examine text. We will explore language and
  literature through a variety of approaches
  including music, drama, film, presentations,
  projects, and written assignments.

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Educational Philosophy

• Authentic learning occurs in a community where
  children are encouraged to seek, explore, and
  care about ideas.
• Students need to understand the connection
  between concepts taught in the classroom and how
  they can help them to be successful in the world
  outside of school.
• Active engagement, cooperative learning, and a
  challenging curriculum are essential components
  of my classroom instruction.

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English Department Mission Statement

• The mission of the language arts department it to
  equip students with effective reading and
  communication skills through creative,
  challenging and engaging lessons.

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Novel Studies

• 1st Quarter The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton
• 2nd Quarter Nonfiction Thematic Unit
• 3rd Quarter Night by Elie Wiesel
• 4th Quarter And Then There Were None by Agatha
  Christie

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• Writing
• In writing our primary focus will be on
  constructing summaries and responses to
  literature as well as narrative, expository,
  argumentative/persuasive essays.
• Additionally, we will learn how to cite text
  references and effectively use MLA formatting on
  all papers.

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The Reading Challenge

• Philosophy The philosophy behind the outside
  reading requirement is quite simple
• The more students read, the more they know.
• Reading is fun, especially if students choose
  what they read.
• Students need to choose their own books whenever
  possible, guided by their level, interests and
  needs at the time.
• The more students read, the better their
  vocabulary, the higher their test scores, the
  better they think in all their classes and
  situations.

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Reminders

• Students should be reading from their O.R.R.
  novels every day/night an average of 30 minutes.
• Reflective responses and quarterly book projects
  must be completed thoroughly as assigned by the
  classroom teacher. These will be evaluated using
  a 5 point rubric.
• A reading log located in the Interactive Notebook
  is used to log progress toward reading goal. A
  parent signature is required when a student
  begins and finishes his or her novel.

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Key Points

• If your child does not meet the 20 or 30 book
  (accelerated) goal, his/her grade will not be
  lowered.
• What will negatively impact your childs grade is
  inconsistency with completing reflective
  responses and/or poor quality work on the
  quarterly projects.
• If your child is reading a larger novel then it
  will be counted as two books.

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• Homework
• Homework load may vary at times based on student
  progress toward completion of long-term
  assignments and class work.  Homework assignments
  are for enrichment, exercise, practice, and
  review. I allot time during each class period to
  have students copy the assignments and to review
  the directions and expectations.
• Homework is regularly updated on my teacher
  webpage.

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• Grading /Weighting Scale
• Assessments 60 (Tests/
  Projects/Essays/Quizzes)
  
• Assignments 20
• (Homework/Activities/Interactive Notebook)
• Final Exam/Benchmarks 20
• Grades will be updated and available online using
  the Synergy gradebook system. It is recommended
  that parents and students check grades weekly.
• 
  

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Communication Information

• melody.griffith_at_husd.org
• Please visit my teacher webpage for regular
  updates.
• Thank you for taking an active role in your
  childs education!