2006 - 2007 Humanities
Ms. Arch
7th & 8th Grades

Dear Parents, Families, and Friends,

Hello! My name is Kate Arch and I am your child’s teacher for Humanities at Salt Lake Arts Academy. This letter is sent to inform you of the Humanities format for the current school year.

Writing - Writing is a very important form of communication. This year your student will have high writing expectations. We will write in all genres. Rough, revised and final drafts will be expected.  Editing will be stressed. You will see great growth in this area for your student. It is an exciting experience for them as they see themselves develop into writers.

Reading - Literature will cover all genres including but not limited to science fiction, historical fiction, non-fiction, fantasy, and primary sources.
          We will be reading the following books this year:
                   Stories by Jack London
                   The Outsiders
                   A Separate Peace (8th grade only)
                   To Kill a Mocking Bird (8th grade only)
                   Chocolate Wars
                   Canterbury Tales
                   Lord of the Flies
          *The reading list is subject to change depending on the needs and reading levels of   students. Students may receive an individualized reading list they are required to read.

Art - The Arts are layered throughout our curriculum. Your child will have many opportunities to experience the arts. Visual arts will be both creative and structured. Rubrics will be developed by the students to help facilitate their growth and learning (a rubric is education lingo for a tool to measure). Instruction will include elements and principles of art as well as many creative strategies.

History - This year our focus will be the three R's Renaissance, Reformation, and Revolution. We will be covering the time periods of 1300's through 1790's.  As with our school theme of “Pushing Past Barriers” our class will delve into the personal, cultural, physical, ideological, and political boundaries that existed during time period and the discoveries that were made there in.

A. FORMAT

The integration of Social Studies and Language Arts is met through the following:

          1. Tests: weekly conventions, vocabulary, and spelling.
         
          2. Daily Oral Language (D.O.L.) Conventions (rules of grammar) will be learned each day and kept in a spiral notebook, graded daily and applied to the course score.

          3. Novels: We will be reading about this year’s theme. Each student will focus on reading strategies. There is an activity that is corrected daily, kept in the same spiral as D.O.L., and applied to the course grade.

          4. Reading logs: due every Thursday. Students will be required to write or draw about what they  read. Reading logs should account for five hours of reading when turned in on Thursday.

          5. Portfolio: three ring binder containing writing pieces and work from course. This is graded by the student weekly.

          7. Writing pieces: students will be writing daily (i.e. poems, essays, short stories, and various literature genres. Writing will be kept in the student’s portfolio.

          8. Art projects and activities for Social Studies. As we learn about his year’s theme your child will take part in the human experience. This is done with the intent for your child to connect their world to the world of the past.

          9. Physical Education is also a part of our Humanities block this year. We will be focusing on learning about our physical fitness and needs as well as athletics.

          10.  Social skill: students will be learning one social skill each week. Students  will be participating in experiential learning during Physical Education to enhance the social skill we focus on each week.

B. SUPPLIES

Needed supplies:
          *one three ring binder with three or more dividers (portfolio)
          *one five subject spiral notebook (D.O.L., Reading, and Vocabulary)
          *one box of kleenex tissues OR one roll of paper towels
          *post-it notes medium size
          *college ruled lined paper
          *many, many pencils
          *one manilla folder (assignment calendar and homework)
          *one subject spiral (reading log)
Suggested supplies (Not required):
          *colored pencils
          *tape
          *markers
          *pens
          *water colors

C. WHAT TO EXPECT

Communication is vital to having a successful learning experience. Be expecting your child to share with you each Monday:
          *weekly newsletter
          *monthly newsletter (given the first week of a month)
          *weekly assignment calendar
          *weekly vocabulary list
          *weekly social skill worksheet (5/6th grades only)
(This info. is also displayed on our class web site, http://my.uen.org/97287.)

          1. Homework - your child will have homework every day, Monday through        Thursday.  Weekday homework consist of vocabulary, reading, spelling, and any class work not completed during the school day. Weekend homework consist of doing one reading log. If a student does not complete their class work, they will have writing and/or project homework to do over weekends.

          2. Grading - students are graded by percentages during the terms. Grades with details about assignments are posted in the classroom every Monday. Grading for term report cards will be based on the school’s one to five rubric as posted in the school handbook.

          3. Progress Updates - if a child is falling behind (five or more missing assignments) you will receive an e-mail. If your child is missing a large number of assignments, a progress report will be sent home and you will also receive an e-mail. Please note that grades will     be available on-line to students and parents. You will receive an e-mail with more details    the first term of school.

D. CLASSROOM DISCIPLINE

Classroom System -- 7/8th Grade - Students are responsible for their own behavior choices and if a one-on-one discussion is necessary, it will take place. This system, however, has a group responsibility and encourages peer support.

This classroom system is designed for the 7th and 8th grades only. As a class, the group begins each term with zero points. The goal is to NOT earn any points. If the group does not make appropriate behavior choices, they will receive one point. Points cannot be taken away. If the group remains under four points by the end of the term, they will earn a class party or outings. If the group receives four points by the end of the term, they will not receive a class party.

If some children chose to sabotage the classroom system, students will be put in level one of the school’s discipline plan as stated in the student handbook.

E. CORE OBJECTIVES

Students will meet or exceed the following objectives through out the school year. We will use many learning strategies and activities to meet the following:

Language Arts State Core
7th -& 8th Standard 1, Objectives 1 - 3: Determine word meaning through word parts, definitions, and context clues. Comprehend and evaluate informational text. Comprehend literature using elements of narrative and poetic text.
7th & 8th - Standard 2, Objectives 1 - 3: Retell or summarize and make connections to clarify thinking through writing. Write to identify and reflect on feelings to recreate experience. Revise and edit to strengthen ideas, organization, voice, word choice, sentence fluency and conventions.
7th - Standard 3, Objectives 1 - 3: Use the process of inquiry to formulate questions and engage in gathering information. Write information through the process of inquiry. Communicate ideas and information appropriately in classroom settings.
8th - Standard 1, Objectives 3: Comprehend literature by differentiating the uses of literary elements of narrative texts.
8th - Standard 2, Objectives 1: Evaluate information, interpret ideas, and demonstrate thinking through writing.
8th - Standard 3, Objectives 1 - 3: Use the process of inquiry to focus thinking toward understanding an idea or concept. Write to demonstrate understanding of an idea or concept. Participate in and report on small group learning activities.

Geography State Core
Standard 1, Objectives 1 - 3: Use maps and other geographic tools to acquire information from a spacial perspective. Explore the concept of mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments. Analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments on the Earth’s surface.
Standard 2, Objectives 1 - 3: Interpret place by its human and physical characteristics. Assess how people create regions to interpret the Earth’s surface. Evaluate how culture and experience influence the way people live in places and regions.
Standard 6, Objectives 1 - 2: Apply geographic concepts to interpret the past. Apply geographic concepts to interpret the present and plan for the future.

World Civilizations State Core
Standard 3, Objectives 1 - 3: Appraise the major characteristics of interregional contact that linked the people of Africa, Asia, and Europe. Assess the influence of advancing technology on the developing societies. Compare and contrast the founding and organization of Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires to northern European trading empires.
Standard 4, Objective 2: Investigate the role of revolution in the establishment of governmental systems.

Physical Education Core
7th & 8th - Standard 1: Students will demonstrate competency in motor skills and movement patterns needed to perform a variety of physical activities.
7th & 8th - Standard 2: Students will demonstrate understanding of movement concepts, principles, strategies, and tactics as they apply to the learning and performance of physical activities.
7th & 8th - Standard 3: Students will participate regularly in physical activity.
7th & 8th - Standard 4: Students will achieve and maintain health-enhancing levels of physical fitness.
7th & 8th - Standard 5: Students will exhibit responsible personal and social behaviors that show respect for themselves and others in physical activity settings.