The Reading and Writing Connection

in ELA in Mrs. Lane’s Class

Our classes have completed Unit I and are currently enjoying the reading selections in Unit II. All of our readings encompass balance literacy lessons.  At the beginning of the year, students were given a lesson on theme to help with understanding our unit themes.  Once the themes of each unit are applied to the reading selections, students then take the theme and connect it to a personal experience. Unit One’s theme:  Time of My Life – We sometimes find memorable experiences in unexpected places.  Students expressed this creatively by writing poems. In addition, they understand how to use rich vocabulary and figurative language such as similes, metaphors, hyperboles, and personification.  Some of the memorable experiences included family vacations to Hershey Park, Greece, Florida, Lake George, Disney World, Kentucky, and Long Beach Island. Other memorable experiences included: white water rafting, seeing a sibling, spraining an ankle, cave tubing, eating mangoes under a tree, climbing a tree, quad racing, an incredible basketball win, a Broadway show, diving for the first time, and seeing a Lamborghini for the first time.

These memories are just the seeds as students embark upon our Memoir Unit. They will stretch their minds to write a meaningful story about a time in their life.

In Social Studies, students completed a Veterans Day assignment. They had to interview a veteran and find a memorial in their local town as well as reflect upon why we celebrate Veterans Day. The projects were phenomenal; many students interviewed family members and friends. Students connected this project to the theme of being thankful by understanding that all veterans deserve our thanks for the tremendous sacrifices they made and are continually making so we can have freedom.