Conrady Junior High
School
September 2014
S w e i s s ’ C i r c l e
C l a s s r o o m N e w s l e t t e r
Snapshots from
Week of September
22 :
Block A:
Explicit Instruction on Central Idea vs. Theme vs. Summary
Practice with SALTYP to Analyze the development of
theme and/or central idea
throughout a text
Texts Read/Analyzed:
“Mother to Son”; “The Courage that My Mother Had”;
Informational Articles on
“Barbie,” “Marijuana,”
“Facebook,”
“Cyberbullying,” and
“Overcoming a Disability”
Block B and C:
Readings: Chapters 14-17 in To
Kill a Mockingbird (Discussion
and Short Answer)
Vocabulary Section 3 Quiz on
Monday; Section 4 Words introduced
All:
Presentation of Immigration Research Projects (Friday)
Words of the Week: studious,
afflict, alleviate, paramount,
lethargic, and tangible
Reminders:
 August/September Reading Log due Wednesday, October 1 (50 Points!!)
 Block B and C: Vocabulary Section 3 Quiz
Monday, September 29, 2014
 Quarter ends in TWO weeks!!!
Volume II, Issue 7
Happy Autumn Tidings,
Can you believe that we only have TWO weeks remaining in the quarter? And yet, there is a plethora of reading,
writing, and vocabulary that we have left to learn.
Block A: So, in my Block A (period 1-3) course, we have spent the entire week differentiating between the following terms: Central Idea, Theme, Summary, and Main Idea. I pulled various high-interest informational articles
to help students with Central Idea and how to determine the central idea. While students are getting better at
determining the central idea, we have much practice to do with explaining how the author conveys or develops the
central idea throughout a text. So, I developed a strategy to help students, and it seems to be working. Now, don’t
judge me...but the acronym that we will be using is SALTYP (Structure, Audience, Language, Tone, Year, Purpose).
It is very daunting to just ask kids, “Analyze the development of the central idea/theme” without some guidance.
So, this SALTYP strategy will allow students to complete a SALTYP Chart that lends itself to analyzing the central
idea and/or theme. It has been working wonderfully in class, though we had to get over the giggles in the beginning. This week, we will be reading Walt Whitman’s “I Hear America Singing” and analyzing it for theme, point of
view, and word choice.
Block B and C: In Blocks B and C (periods 5-6 and 7-8) we have spent much time reading and analyzing chapters 14-17 in To Kill a Mockingbird. Students continued asking good Depth of Knowledge (DOK) questions and we
even began the actual Trial of Tom Robinson. Bob Ewell’s testimony was most interesting and somewhat comical.
The courtroom scene truly develops the themes of social class, education, and racism. Next week, I will continue
reading the courtroom scene with the kids, but they will be on their own for the rest of the book. Students will read
chapters 23-31 on their own by next Friday. We will be reviewing central idea and theme in preparation for the
Quarter Assessment the following week.
On Friday, September 26, the kids presented the Immigration Projects. We went from “bell to bell” and still have
about half the class remaining to present. The PowerPoint looked great and the presentations were interesting!
Finally, the August/September Reading Log is due this upcoming Wednesday, October 1. I will be distributing a
new October Reading Log! The Reading Log is worth 50 Points and if students turn it in late, they will lost points.
Both classes will be reading Walt Whitman’s “I Hear America Singing” and analyzing the document for theme,
tone, perspective, and language. We will be analyzing the poem and comparing to Emma Lazarus’s poem “The
New Colossus” and finally ending with a discussion of worldviews of each author.
Busy, busy, busy and yet only two weeks remaining in the quarter. All students will have a second On-Demand
Informational prompt this upcoming week.
Sincerely,
Miss Sweiss
[email protected]
Classroom Website
Stellar Student Spotlight:
The Immigration Research Projects have been FABULOUS
and INTERESTING! The PowerPoint designs are creative,
consistent, and clean-cut; the delivery has been great as
well. Thank you to all parents, guardians, uncles, aunts,
grandparents, friends, neighbors, etc. who have allowed my
students to share your immigration story. We are rapt
listening to the presentations! We have heard stories from
across the globe, from Lithuania, Greece, Poland, Jordan,
Yemen, Palestine, the Netherlands, Sweden, Algeria, Germany, Ireland, India, and more! Thank you for this opportunity to learn about other cultural experiences.
Challenge Your Kid:
Block A:
Ask your child to differentiate
between pathos, ethos, and
logos.
Block B and C:
Ask your child to discuss the
Courtroom scene in To Kill a
Mockingbird, particularly the
testimony of Bob Ewell.