We're making it!

Well, now that we have all been here for a little while, it is time to reconnect and evaluate our progress so far.

Students have been practicing a wide range of reading comprehension strategies and learning a variety of literary skills. They have read and analyzed several fictional stories, as well as evaluated the validity of information included in nonfiction works. They participated in literature circles to converse about what they understood from a text, and they have taken everything they have learned about the short story genre to create stories of their own. (I hope to post links to some exceptional student stories soon; check back to see if yours made it!)

Overall, our progress has been positive and remarkable. Many students stand out because they consistently engage the concepts we cover in class as well as challenge themselves to develop their own reading fluency. Their mastery of our performance benchmarks demonstrates that they are motivated to do well for themselves. See the links to the side of this page to see who earned a place on the Honor Roll.

Students who did not make the honor roll last quarter can definitely do so this quarter. Please support the efforts your child's teachers are making at school by checking to be sure he or she is completing the necessary practice at home, and check the Grade Portal to view how he or she performed on assignments.

I cannot express enough the importance of students reading EVERY day. Teens read more—and with greater comprehension—when they are reading material that interests them. The skills and strategies that we model and learn in class can only become part of students' reading habits if they make it a habit to read.

Every night, students' homework is the same: to read for thirty minutes and to write a response in their Homework Reading Logs (the yellow paper in their homework binders). This homework is essential toward meeting the goal of becoming more fluent, more capable readers. Good readers are also better writers, as their recent original short stories prove.
 

--Plus, if students all meet the "25-book goal," their teachers have promised to have a "crazy dress-up day," for which students may vote on features of our appearances, like Ms. Watkins' hair color. :) We, as the teachers, are also excited about the prospect of such a fun day, so please encourage reading habits at home. 
 

Thank you so much, and I am glad to continue working with you!

Jessica Watkins

Team 7B Language Arts

watkinsj2@duvalschools.org