Monday, November 17, 2025

We have just one week left until Thanksgiving break. Essays have been graded and put in HAC, and interim grades are due today. Please check HAC so you know where your child stands academically.

Today, I will send out emails to all parents whose students have a D-F. We have less than a month to get grades up before the end of the first semester. Please talk to your students and find out why they are struggling. It could be independent reading, or maybe they didn't turn in the last essay, but something needs to change quickly so we can finish off the first semester strong.

Reminders that grades from the previous week are posted by Monday afternoon each week, and I am available for extra help before and after school every day.

Let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Monday, November 10, 2025

I pushed back the due date for informational essays to today. Students who do not have this completed by 3:15 today will be marked late. Each day late will result in a five-point deduction.

Tuesday (tomorrow), we will begin a short unit on argumentative writing. Students will choose a claim, support it with three reasons, and also have a counterclaim. This will be a short writing assignment next week, before we dismiss for Thanksgiving Break.

Independent reading continues. Today is a reading check #2, the next one will be Thursday, November 20th, and the final reading check will be Monday, December 15th. Students are expected to FINISH the novel by December 15th and turn it back in to me before winter break.

As always, please reach out if you have any questions or concerns. Thanks for caring enough to check here. :)

Homework update: Monday, November 3rd

Many did not do it, and are now behind schedule.

*I am available before/after school and during lunch for support or extra time.

Friday, October 31, 2025

Happy Halloween! It's been a scary week with Red Ribbon and dress-ups every day. It's fun, but it's a little crazy.

Reminder that independent reading has started again with the 2nd quarter. The next reading check will be on Monday, November 10th, and written summaries/notes are required for each chapter read. Assigned chapters are posted on Google Classroom.

We started working on "informational essays" today. Students were to choose a thesis statement and find 3 quotes from articles/films from our lessons over the last few weeks. Many did not finish, I suspect this from because of the Halloween excitement. That is now homework. All resources and details are on Google Classroom. Parents, please help me by making sure this gets done. I just need them to choose a thesis (two are provided) and what 3 sentences (quotes) they are using in their body paragraphs. Two quotes should be from their workbook, and one from an informational film. THEY DO NOT HAVE TO WRITE THEIR ESSAY, just 3 quotes. Again, all resources are on Google Classroom.

Students will have three full class periods next week to work on essays. I realize it's testing next week, but students only test for an hour a day. They are expected to do their schoolwork after lunch.

Have a wonderful weekend, and please reach out if you have any questions!

Monday, October 13, 2025

Just a few important items this week:

1st quarter report cards have been published; Students are not given a paper copy.

Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday this week, I have conferences scheduled. If you want a conference and couldn't get a spot, please email me, and I will schedule you for the week after fall break.

The 2nd quarter began last week, and students were given a new independent reading book. This is homework each week. They had five novels from which to choose. Chapters have been assigned, and those are on Google Classroom. They are also hung in two different places in my room. Students are required to fill out a log and summarize what happens in each chapter. This will be part of their grade. Their first "reading check" will be on Wednesday, October 29.

Thanks for your time. I hope you all have a wonderful fall break!

Friday, October 3rd, 2025

This week, we began Unit 2 of our curriculum. The focus of this unit is how advertising affects teenagers. Students have had a lot of fun with this in the past, analyzing commercials and ads. In a few weeks, students will write an information essay on the topic as their embedded assessment.

We have a busy couple of weeks coming up:

Friday, October 10, is our 6-7 dance; our theme this year is Ghoul's Night Out. Tickets are sold ONLINE ONLY through this Thursday. The link to purchase a ticket has been emailed to all parents, and it's also on Facebook.

*Tickets will NOT be available for purchase on the day of the dance OR in the office.

Thank you to those who signed up to bring water or cookies. Please drop those at the front office during school hours on Thursday or Friday.

Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences are the following week: Tuesday-Thursday, October 14-16. This year, conferences will be "student-led," so students need to come and bring their ELA binders. We will be practicing presentations before conferences.

Please check my signup genius if you could not get in. Several generous parents canceled their slots to make room for others.

Fall Break follows conference week, and I know we are all ready for that.

Grades are current on HAC. Please check that weekly so you know where your child stands academically. As always, please email me with any questions or concerns. Thanks for your time.

Friday, September 26, 2025

Good FriYAY afternoon!

We spent 3 spooktacular days working on the scary idiom story. I'm very excited to read/grade these over the weekend.

Thursday and today, we went back to fables and read several short ones discussing the themes and the moral/lessons of the stories. Grades are current except for the idiom story; I hope to have those graded by Monday.

Please read last Friday's post (below) for the important dates and announcements! Nothing has changed, so I'm just going to ask you to read those again (or for the first time).

Thanks for checking in, and have a great weekend.

Friday, September 19. 2025

Another week has passed, and the first quarter is winding down. This week, we continued myths with Icarus and Daedalus. We discussed the expression/theme "Don't fly too close to the sun." Then we moved on to Arachne, a myth about a talented weaver who disrespected Athene and was turned into a spider. The students have enjoyed these tales.

Next week, we are going to write scary idiom stories using the idiom "Shaking in my boots." Teachers are going to choose stories to be read each morning in October during the announcements. We are also going to put some on FB and have parents vote for their favorite. It will be a spooktacular way to move through October.

Important dates coming up:

End of the first quarter is October 8th.

Ghouls Night Out (6-7 dance) is on Friday, October 10, from 6-8 pm in the cafeteria. This is a Halloween-themed dance, and we will have a costume contest with prizes. Please let me know if you have any questions. Tickets are available ONLINE only, and tickets will not be available on the day of the event.

Parent/Teacher conferences will be on Tuesday, October 14, and Thursday, October 16. 6-7 conferences will be student-led, so please bring your student with you to the conference! Sign-ups will be sent out soon.

Grades are current on HAC. Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns.

Friday, September 12, 2025

Even though we had an unusual week, we still managed to get some things done.

-Students organized their binders into four sections: Goals, Resources, Reading, and Writing

-ELA binders will be the star of the show at Student-led conferences in about a month (Conferences are October 14 and 16th, more info will come out shortly)

-Please check their Writing section for a printed copy of their embedded assessment/personal narratives. Behind their printed copy is a page or more of writing feedback. Please read that over with your child so they will continue to grow and get better in preparation for the next embedded assessment in just a few weeks.

-We began a new unit about Myths and Folklore. Students learned about Pheathon and how his arrogance was his downfall. We discussed the theme "Pride comes before the fall."

-Students were assigned the last few chapters of their independent reading novel, The Outsiders. There will be a final assessment on that on Thursday. We will begin another novel for the 2nd quarter in a couple of weeks.

Emails went out this week if your child has a failing grade in ELA.

Reminder that I am available every morning from 7-7:45 for tutoring or if your child needs extra time on an assignment, or if they have been absent and have makeup work.

As always, please email me if you have any questions or concerns. Thanks for your time.

Friday, September 5, 2025

Happy Friday!

Students have completed their first embedded assessment for the year! We spent this week working our way through the writing process with narratives due today. Students had access to a "revision room" on Google Classroom for the first time. It allowed them to copy/paste their personal narratives into the room, and AI told them what was good and where corrections needed to be made. They could make corrections, then copy/paste again for more corrections or suggestions to make their writing better.

I reminded students that "Raina" (the robot) was a tool and did not GRADE it; however, she was aware of some details of the assignment. I think it worked quite well, and students who took her advice will definitely get a better grade. I also provided support, a checklist, cheatsheets, and a grading rubric to help them remember requirements.

I plan to grade writing assignments this weekend and have them in HAC by 4:15 on Monday.

As a reminder, graded assignments must be completed at school. If your child was absent a day last week, they will get additional time to complete the writing assignment. However, they must come in before or after school to complete this within a few days. They do not get additional CLASS TIME; we will begin a new unit of study on Monday: Myths and Folklore. It's super fun.

Thanks for your time. I'm available each morning at 7 am if your child needs extra time or help with an assignment. Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns. Have a good weekend.

Friday, August 29, 2025

Happy 3-day weekend!

If you didn't read last week's entry, please do so. The narrative writing assignment that I discussed last week will begin on Tuesday when we return from the long weekend. It will be due on Friday, Sept 5th, and is worth double the points of a regular assignment. Please check Google Classroom next week for details. This is a writing assessment and must be completed at school. Students are welcome to come in before school every day of the week if they need extra help or extra time to work on it. I arrive by 7:00 am, and the kids come into the room at 7:45.

Tips for independent reading (homework):

1. Highlight main events and character traits as you read. I give paper packets every Monday, and students can highlight them.

2. Graphic organizers are provided for students who want to take handwritten notes as they read. Handwritten notes can be used during the quizzes.

3. Audio recordings are fabulous, but students MUST follow along with the text as they listen. Listening is not reading. :)

4. Re-reading IS a strategy; some students need to read twice.

5. No distractions, including music, phone, TV, or pestering siblings.

As always, please reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns. I'm here to help.

Sunday, August 24th, 2025

Good afternoon, all!

Looks like they finally got our websites up and running. This is my first entry, and we are about to begin the 4th week of school! My weekly updates will be on Fridays, discussing what we did the previous week. If you are looking for details on a specific assignment, please check Google Classroom. Students can get you on this; there is no password. Just go to their GC and click on whatever class you want to look at.

There is reading homework every week, and students are given the pages to be read if they don't have a copy of the actual novel. Pages are also posted on GC. Students are given a week to complete the reading. I love audio recordings; however, they MUST follow along with the novel pages. Listening is not reading. This week, students will read chapters 6-7 of The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton.

The past couple of weeks, we have been studying personal narratives in preparation for students writing their own. Their narrative has a very specific topic: Writing about a time they made a choice, and that choice had a consequence. Then they are to reflect on the choice and the lesson that was learned. It can be a positive or negative choice/consequence.

Writing assignments are like "tests" in ELA. They are worth twice the points as a "regular" assignment, and are worked on IN CLASS. Graded assessments cannot be worked on as homework. We work on essays over 3-4 days, chunking them into manageable steps. For example, for their personal narrative, students will work on the "beginning" the first day, focusing on setting details, characters, and setting up their "incident." Students need to be here. If they miss a day, they need to come in and let me help them. Again, it's not homework.

Please talk to their child about their personal narrative. Many were struggling to come up with an event that had a choice/consequence. Maybe you could give them some ideas. Thanks for checking in on my website.

As always, please email me with any questions or concerns. I'm here to help.

(Last year)

Friday, May 2, 2025

Clearly, it's been a busy month of April with both ATLAS and NWEA testing. We only have two weeks of school left and there are lots of activities coming up:

Tuesday, May 6: Incentive Day for students who earned points during testing

Friday, May 9: Staff/Student basketball game

Monday, May 12: Spring Awards

Tuesday, May 13: Field Day and Band concert (at MCHS 5:30)

Friday, May 16: Last day of school

I'm so grateful to have had this time with your students. They are a super group and we will miss them so. Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you as we finish off the year.

***Don't forget about SUMMER READING. It is REQUIRED for all Maumelle Charter students and is worth 20% of the first quarter grade. Don't let your child start the year with an F. It takes weeks to dig out of that hole.

Have a great summer.

Friday, March 7th, 2025

Today is the last day of 3rd quarter. Parent/Teacher conferences are next week, Tuesday and Thursday from 3:30-7:30. My schedule is now full. If you would like to meet with me, please email me and I will schedule you on Wednesday after school if that works.

Literary Analysis Essays were due today. These take some time to grade so this grade will be the first one for 4th quarter. I cautioned students that failing this essay would be similar to not doing summer reading. They will start the quarter with an F, and then have to dig out of it. Hopefully that is not the case.

We will begin a new Unit on Monday and students will learn about President Nelson Mandela of South Africa. At the end of this unit, students will choose a leader who had a positive impact on society. (with approval)

I'm super excited about 4th quarter. This part of the curriculum is one of my favorites.

Please email me with any questions or comment. Hope to see you next week at conferences.

Friday, February 28th, 2025

Hello parents!

We lost a week of learning with the snow days, which is fun of course, but it does put us behind in our curriculum.

Interim testing this week did not go as well as I had hoped. Especially since this group did so well last year. Bottom line: 52% of our 7th graders are where they should be academically; the other 48% are either level 1 or 2 which are both below average. Level 1 meaning they are in dire need of support which is about 13% of 7th graders.

I can tell you that half of my students are not doing their homework. This is a weekly article (Black History articles in February) and students show me every week that they cannot make time to read an article. I can't tell you WHY they can't find 15 minutes over a week's time...but they are not helping their grades by ignoring these assignments.

Conferences are coming up in a couple of weeks. (March 11 & 13)

I sent out my conference link today to parents whose students have either a D or an F to give you a chance to sign up first. Everyone will get the link on Monday.

We will finish our 3rd quarter novel, Tangerine by Edward Bloor, on Monday, and then begin a literary analysis essay beginning Tuesday. Essays will be due on Friday, March 7th which is the last day of 3rd quarter. Since we lost a week due to snow, essay grades will not make the next report card. It will be the first grade in 4th quarter.

A rubric and resources to help them write will be posted on Google Classroom on Monday. Grades are updated on HAC. There will be 2-3 more grades next week so students have a chance to bump up their numbers before the end of quarter.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Let's finish strong!

Friday, February 7, 2025

Hello parents!

Next week will be a test over parts 1 & 2 of our novel Tangerine by Edward Bloor. This is an excellent opportunity to raise grades; the PDF is on Google Classroom.

Independent reading is continuing with an article a week which is also on Google Classroom.

Please remember that all graded assignments must be completed AT SCHOOL. This is before/after school or during lunch. Graded assignments may not be completed as homework.

As always, please check HAC on Mondays after 4:00 so you know where your child stands academically. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Friday, January 24th, 2025

Parents,

Students who are absent need to look at Google Classroom and see what they missed. I have an average of 20 students absent every day. I am not chasing them down. They are responsible and accountable for any missing assignments.

I put their name on the board and verbally tell them to come in if they have missed a graded assignment.

If they miss on a reading day... (We are reading a novel IN CLASS THIS QUARTER) ...they are expected to catch up on reading.

Students are not checking GC and they are not reading. This is a big problem; students cannot complete the lesson/assignment/quiz unless the reading is complete. Please help your child stay caught up.

Thanks for your time! It takes a village!

Friday, January 17th, 2025

It's been an exciting start to 2nd semester! We've had a couple snow days and ready to go into our first 3 day weekend. Thank you MLK Jr. for being a great leader that had a positive impact on society.

Science Fair is behind us; Unless your child moved on to the next round. The written report was graded by me and is a Language Arts grade worth 30 points. The 100 point Science board will be Mr. Plantes' grade.

We are about 60 pages into our 3rd quarter novel, Tangerine, by Edward Bloor. Remember if your child is absent they need to check Google Classroom to see what pages were read and then catch up on reading.

Daily agendas and assignments are posted each day on Google Classroom. There is also a PDF of our novel posted.

Independent reading for 3rd quarter is a weekly article from ReadWorks. These are posted on Mondays and students will be quizzed over these articles the following Monday. These are also on Google Classroom.

Grades are updated. Please check HAC each week so you know where your child stands academically. If they did not turn in a written report, their grade is going to look ugly. Written reports were due last week.

Please help your child stay organized. It takes a village. Thanks for your time and reading my updates. Please email me with any questions or concerns.

Thursday, December 19, 2024

Already we are halfway through our school year! I hope everyone has the best winter break! I look forward to 2nd semester/3rd quarter. I'm very excited to begin our new unit which includes a novel read in the classroom. It will be very important for absent students to keep up with reading during this unit. The PDF for the novel will be posted on Google Classroom along with our daily agenda and other resources. If you would like to purchase a copy for your child, the novel is called Tangerine by Edward Bloor. It's excellent and would make a fine stocking stuffer. :)

Look for my curriculum letter the week we return with important information about 3rd quarter. For example, independent reading (nonfiction articles about inspirational leaders) will be on Google Classroom each week during 3rd quarter, this is new. Paper copies are available; reading is expected to be completed by Monday each week.

As always, email me with any questions or concerns. Second quarter grades will be finalized and published after we return from break. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

Friday, December 6, 2024

Tonight is our winter dance themed "A Hollywood Holiday!" We are super excited to see the kids dressed up and having fun.

Argumentative essays were due today, the last writing assignment for first semester. That was our 4th essay written this year and each one has been different. Practice makes perfect.

We also finished our 2nd quarter novel and tested over that the day we returned from Thanksgiving Break. Students will receive their 3rd novel for this year once we return from winter break. Again, practice makes perfect.

With just 2 weeks left until break we are going to focus on 2 short stories that are Christmas related. Next week we will read together Charles Dickens' " A Christmas Carol." Students will read the "play/drama" version and we usually have lots of fun with this. I tell them to bring their British accents because the story takes place in London.

The last 4 day week will begin with Disney's A Christmas Carol movie. I've been promising it and it will be time after reading the story. The last 2 days before break will be spent on a short story called "The Greatest Gift." This short story was the inspiration for the classic movie "It's A Wonderful Life." *Extra credit goes to any student who watches the movie over break and then writes me a paragraph comparing the story with the film.

As always, please check HAC each week so you know where your child stands academically. Email me with any questions or concerns.

Friday, November 22nd, 2024

I have nothing to add to last weeks' announcements other than have a wonderful Thanksgiving. I wrote on my board today to "put their phones down and enjoy their families over break." Of course many just saw the word phones and thought I was going to let everybody get on them. LOL. I really do love this group. Big hugs to all.

(Please read last weeks' announcements BELOW as there are important deadlines coming up when we return)

Friday, November 15, 2024

Good morning parents and students,

We have begun the 2nd half of unit 2 (2nd quarter) and are learning about argumentative writing, focusing on a strategy called CER: Claim, evidence, and reasoning. Students will write an argumentative essay using this strategy. They will choose a "cause" that is important to them and write about it. We have already begun exploring causes such as orca whales in captivity, cosmetic animal testing, trees, turtles, elephants...but not just animals! We are also looking at St. Jude's Hospital, The Shriner Organization, and other worthy causes.

This essay will be written once we return from Thanksgiving break.

Quick reminder that independent novels should be completed by the time we return from break. Students were not assigned ANY reading over Thanksgiving, but don't be surprised if they have some pages left.

Final test over independent novels will be Monday, December 2nd.

Grades are updated and current unless your student has been absent. Please check HAC weekly so you know where your child stands academically. Our last essays hurt some grades, mostly due to not following directions.

Absences continue to hinder learning. Students must come in at lunch or before/after school to make up graded assignments.

Reminder: Daily agendas and resources are posted on Google Classroom every day at 8am. If your student is absent, I expect them to know what they missed by looking at GC. Weekly reading assignments are posted each Monday and the assessment is the following Monday. I should not be getting emails on Sunday mornings. I got a dozen last Sunday.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. I am available every day at 7:00am for tutoring. Thanks for your time.

Friday, October 18, 2024

Good morning parents and students,

We are now two weeks into Unit 2 and have completed lessons/activities 2.5 & 2.6 in our workbooks this week. I have graded Focus on the Sentence (2.5) and entered those into HAC. I have not finished grading paragraphs about celebrity endorsements in advertising (2.6) and I'm afraid I will be working on those over break. Please check HAC Monday, October 28th, when we return, for those updated grades.

Students received their 2nd independent reading novel (for 2nd quarter) today. They had three choices: The Outsiders, Unplugged, or The Borrowers. There is NOT a reading assignment over break, but the students have it if they want to get a head start. This 2nd novel should be completed by Monday, December 2, no exceptions.

I hope you saw my email about last springs' Atlas scores. We are so proud of them. Please look for that if you haven't seen it. As always, please email me with any questions or concerns.

Friday, October 11, 2024

Good morning parents and students,

We are one week into 2nd quarter and it has been fun and busy with conferences. We began Unit 2 called "What Influences My Choices?" This unit is about advertising and how it affects teenagers. They are learning that they are a targeted demo and about the different techniques advertisers use in ads and commercials to "get them!" In a few short weeks, they will write an informational essay about this topic.

Please check Google Classroom for daily agendas and resources. There is an electronic version of our workbook posted on the first day of school, so you just scroll back to the beginning. Also, please check HAC each Monday to see where your child stands academically.

Please email me with any questions or concerns. Let's finish first semester strong!

Reminder: Fall Break October 21-25 :)

Tuesday, September 3rd, 2024

I think I may have figured out this new website! Thanks for your patience!

Independent reading begins this week! Students know what they are supposed to do...if not, please have them go to Google Classroom for details. The daily agenda is on Google Classroom every day. This is where students will go for resources (vocabulary words, rubrics, checklists, independent reading assignments, etc.) Parents, use your child's school email and sign-on for Google Classroom, that way nothing is blocked due to being out of network. Same with students, don't sign on with personal emails.

If students are absent, they are expected to go to my Google Classroom, see what they missed, and come to me with any questions. Names are put on my board (in the classroom) if they have a graded assignment that they missed.

Grades are updated each Monday by 4:00. Many times I have this done by Friday at 4:00, just depends on whether it is a writing assignment or not. They take longer and part of my weekend. For example, personal narratives will not be graded and entered until NEXT Monday.

Please check HAC regularly so you know where your student is academically. Email me with any questions or concerns. Thanks for your time.