Welcome and Needed Supplies

Welcome to the Seventh Grade Reading class! 

See you at our Back-to-School Night on Monday, August 17 from 3:00 to 6:00 pm and on Seventh Grade Day -- Tuesday, August 18 -- (half-day). 

You will have three teachers for this class, rotating every nine weeks through the semester.  Those of you who begin with Ms. Dorsey will move on to Mrs. Fugal, then to Mr. Gillis.    Reading 7 Teachers

• With Ms. Dorsey you will focus on reading for research -- especially on the Internet, learning about identifying and using useful and reliable sources.  You may also work on ways to retain (remember) what you read and study. 
• With Mrs. Fugal you will focus on reading textbooks more effectively and efficiently.  (Don't tell, but she teaches you how to read the textbook without reading the textbook!)
• With Mr. Gillis you will learn how to read several different types of "texts" including photos, paintings, magazines, etc.  
• With all three you will learn strategies and practice skills to improve your reading.

In case you're reading this toward the end of summer vacation:  When the sales on school supplies are available, it's a good idea to stock up on the things you'll need later, but that will be much more expensive then!

 
Note: If your family cannot afford school supplies, please speak with a teacher or administrator.

Here are some required and suggested items.

For this reading class you will need these items each day:

• Bring your own pencils and pens every day. I will have some available to loan, but you should return them at the end of class, and should only rarely need to borrow.
• Bring lined paper. 
• A thumb drive  (flash drive) to be used  during the section of the class dealing with reading the Internet.  We are moving toward handing in all work on the Internet, but a thumb drive can be invaluable as a backup for saving and handing in work. 
• For every class, bring a book to read during  Independent Reading.  This will be something YOU want to read!  You'll receive more information about how to select books.   You could bring a book from home, check one out from the city library or the school library, or check one out from our classroom library or just borrow it to read during class.

In the past we have asked students to donate sticky notes and highlighters to be kept and used in the classroom.  This has been very helpful and very appreciated.  

Suggested (optional): (for this and other classes)

• Colored pencils may be needed for history class, and come in handy at times in other classes.
• A three-ring hole-punch that fits in your binder is very helpful if you receive handouts that haven't been punched.
• A small manual pencil sharpener
• A small pack of Kleenex -- We usually have facial tissues/Kleenex available in our classrooms, but they are not soft on a tender nose.
• Hand sanitizer -- Again, we have hand sanitizer in the classroom, but students may want their  own. 
• If you find a good deal, you might want to have on hand some poster board. Sometimes teachers will assign students to create posters, and it's nice not to have to run out to the store at 10 pm when the student remembers he or she has a poster due the next day.

Computers and Internet
Note to Parents: If you have a computer and printer, you will want to check to see that you have enough printer ink on hand so your student can print off homework when needed for any class. Please encourage your student to finish and hand-in assignments before the deadline, so any computer or printer problems don't make them late.

More about computers and Internet: It is very helpful to have the Internet available at home. Our English classes use a writing program called MYAccess for several assignments during the year. We access it at school, and students can write and revise their work from home or anywhere else they can use the Internet. That also allows parents to read their student's writing and watch their progress.
Students may also need to do research on the Internet for various classes.

During one segment of Seventh Grade Reading, we will be learning about reading the Internet, and will be doing research on the Internet.   In case your student does not finish the work during the times provided during class, he or she may need to finish some of the work during cave time, after school, or outside of school hours.    

By the way, we have not been successful at opening ODT files on our school computers.  Please use another format.  

If you do not have access at home, the student could use computers in our school media center, sometimes (such as during CaveTime) our computer labs are open to students who need extra time, and the Internet is available at the public library.

Parents will need to sign a release for the student to use the Internet at school, and the student will need to have his or her Internet card (student ID card) in hand to use the Internet on the media center computers and in the other computer labs.  The release form is included with registration materials.

Teacher Web Sites
Many of our teachers have web sites, blogs, and wikis where you can find much information about classes, requirements, etc. Take advantage of this resource.

If you're absent or looking for more information or maybe some extra credit, check this blog. You will most likely be required to use this blog at times.


For this segment of the Reading Class we may also have a class Edmodo (open to posting only by the teacher and classmates) where students will complete some assignments and collaborate with the teacher and other students.   Parents,  ask your student for the unique parent code attached to his or her account.  

Click here for Classroom Rules.

If you'd like to order Scholastic Books online, and benefit our classroom, go tohttps://orders.scholastic.com/GKLJW to register. Enter Activation Code GKLJW.
(revised and reposted in July  for the 2015-2016 school year.)