Mr. Clareen

Grade 8, E.L.A.

The students in Grade 8 are currently reading The Outsiders, written by S.E. Hinton.  

Please click on the following link to visit the Grade 8, E.L.A. Google Classroom.

Monday- Grade 8, E.L.A.
Tuesday-Grade 8, E.L.A.
Friday-Grade 8, E.L.A.

Requests to attend extra help must be made a day in advance with a signed permission slip. Please click on the following link to download the permission slip.

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future".

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.

Course Outline: The objectives of the English Language Arts courses at St. Martin of Tours School are to create independent thinkers, lifelong learners, engaged citizens, and responsible students. Through reading and engaging with various pieces of literature and informational texts, students will become proficient in the skills they need to be successful in this globally competitive community. Within this engagement, students will practice the skills of evaluating, analyzing, finding meaning, and making connections in complex texts, through different reading and writing activities. Students demonstrate a command of the conventions of English grammar and punctuation when writing or speaking during classroom discussions. As previously noted, there will be a focus on many components of the English language including vocabulary and spelling.

Literature and Novels: Developing as a reader is a life long journey which begins in the classroom, and having a deep desire to read is an objective that I have for our students this year. With each novel we work with there will be shorter articles, poems, etc. that will be examined and analyzed to help with the understanding of the main pieces of literature. Throughout the unit and book studies, you can expect open-ended classroom discussions, quizzes, homework and classroom assignments, as well as creative projects (both partner and individual), as well as a unit test. The books which are being read this year will be announced as the year progresses, with ample notice given to students in order for the books to be purchased.

Weekly Vocabulary Words: Every other Monday students will be given a set of vocabulary words from Mr. Clareen through their workbook. They will be responsible to complete the activities by Friday morning in preparation for their test on every other Friday. There will be various projects and assignments given for homework throughout the year to make sure students comprehend these words and key ideas.

Writer’s Workshop: In addition to developing an enthusiastic relationship with reading, the writing skills of our students will be also be a critical component of our curriculum this school year. Writing workshop is a student-centered framework for teaching writing that is based on the idea that students learn to write best when they write frequently, for extended periods of time, on topics of their own choosing. The four main components of writing workshop are the mini-lesson, status of the class, writing/conferring time, and sharing. There is not a prescribed time limit for each component, rather they are meant to be flexible and determined by students’ needs on any given day. These activities will occur often to hone our students’ ability to further their written expression skills.
 
Course Materials
•HMH, into Literature Workbook
•HMH, into Literature Grammar Practice Workbook
•Sadlier, Vocabulary Workshop- Tools for Excellence Workbook