Fall greetings from the Middle School and High School Resource Room! This year we are blessed to have Mrs. Cathy Hampton join our team. She has wonderfully stepped in to help as Evangel’s Resource Center has grown. She is a special asset in assisting the international students in all classes.
As the year started students came with a great sense of expectation, positive attitudes and high goals. In Resource we are setting the groundwork for success first through prayer and second by covering the Building Blocks to School success. This includes but isn’t limited to study skills (SQ3R), reading skills (finding the main idea), Learning Styles Assessments (visual, tactile, auditory), how to take good notes and how to read the textbooks effectively.
It is a blessing to have students from all over the world at Evangel. Our international students represent interesting and varied countries of the world such as China, Indonesia, Korea, Peru, Philippines, Switzerland, Venezuela, and Viet Nam, and many more. Locating their home countries on our classroom map, gave all of the students a chance to discuss the distance to the United States. Becoming familiar with American Idioms has been challenging but it helps with both their conversation and written English skill building. As they discuss their assignments, we might say that some of the answers “are on the tip of your tongue” as a way to practice the use of idioms in conversation. There are many new things to teach and learn for everyone.
Mrs. Kemp
Students continued reading and working in their SRA Reading booklets. They used strategies such as reading the comprehension questions first before reading the story; they also used context clues to figure out word meanings. The goal was for each student to complete two stories at their personal, reading ability level. At the end of the week, students took a quiz on main idea and context clues.
Mrs. Foster
This week, students received a new set of ten, SAT vocabulary words and definitions. By using the context and definitions, students completed sentences with these ten words. Students also reviewed prepositional phrases and their use in context by completing a few pages in their “Easy Grammar” workbooks. Finally, students created a drawing and labeled it to show relationship most prepositions express toward a noun. Students will vote on the winners of the best drawings!
Mrs. Foster
This week, all middle school students learned how to use the SRA Reading Kits, which contain numerous short stories or articles categorized according to ability level. (There is a Kit for each grade.) Students had the opportunity to select a story/article of their choice. They read it and answered comprehension and word study questions. Finally, students used the answer key cards to self-grade. The goal was for each student to complete two stories at their personal, reading ability level.
Mrs. Foster
Eighth graders practiced using the 10 SAT Vocabulary words in their own sentences. Students also orally presented their “Shoebox Speeches.” Each student presented 10 items that were unlike them in some way. They had to explain why each item didn’t represent them. Students were graded on volume, clarity, eye contact, length of time (2-3 minutes), and content (explanations).
Mrs. Foster
This week’s Do Now focus was on Main Idea. Students read and wrote down a short paragraph and underlined the topic sentence. In the SRA booklets, students read a practice story called “Mother Jones” and answered comprehension and word study questions. They practiced self-grading and scoring as well. For homework in Taking the High Road, two stories with questions were completed. Mrs. Foster
This week, students were given their first set of ten SAT Vocabulary words and definitions. Students then completed sentences using the ten words correctly. “Shoebox Speech” guidelines and requirements were given out and explained. I also performed live my own speech as an example to the class. Students created a Speech Outline listing their own ten items and two reasons for each item. Finally, students completed the Procedures Test based on the expectations and routines in my classroom.
Mrs. Foster
Eighth graders reviewed and practiced usage of the SRA Reading Kits. They completed two, three-minute pre-tests to be placed at their personal, reading ability level. In addition, students completed the first story in the Taking the High Road workbook for a completion grade, and they were taught a new game called “Sparkle.”
Mrs. Foster
Students reviewed and practiced procedures, many of which were the same as last year. We passed out textbooks and shared some about our learning styles. Students completed a Daybook assignment and had the opportunity with Mrs. Candelier to take the pre-qualifier spelling test.
Mrs. Foster
This week Middle School is working on Pointillism. Pointillism is a technique of painting using dots of colors very close to one another (instead of mixed colors) allowing the eye to mix the colors for you.
Sixth and seventh grade are working on Partial Pointillism, where only half of their paintings will be in the pointillism technique, while eight grade is working on painting a picture entirely in the pointillism style.
Pointillism although created in the late 1800’s by unconventional artist who were mocked for this new style of painting, is still used today. Television sets, computer screens and even digital cameras use a form of pointillism. Ever look really close at a computer or television screen? You’ll notice that the picture you are seeing is made up of tiny little dots of unmixed colors, the most common (cyan, magenta, yellow). Today we call it pixels or mega pixels.
Just imagine… what would our world be like without the unconventional artist?
Ms. Arnau