One way I grade journals/notebooks is every two weeks on a Friday we have a spelling test that moves into a vocabulary test. It takes all 50 minutes after announcements and bell work. I give them the 20 words aloud to spell, (they have had 2 weeks to learn them in our Wordskills workbook from McDougal Littel), then they spend the rest of the hour matching vocab. meanings and writing them in complete sentences using excellent word choice. Then they silently read or silently write. If there is time we grade the spelling and vocab meanings aloud. I grade the sentences later.
I found this a good time to take 1/3 to 1/2 of class journals and grade them. I have them open to the last page we did and compare it to my journal that I keep to mirror what was due. I look for neatness, completeness, following directions, & respect of the notebook that I ordered for them. I try to give them feedback in the journal in several pages. I have my laptop open and record the grades online as I write them in their journals. I have them refile them in the hanging files in the room before the hour is done. My goal is to grade their journals in the beginning of the quarter and before the end. This gives them a participation in class grade that so many need. We find homework is not always consistently done so many lose out on points. But this is a way to give some who have no parent help or ability outside of the class to showcase their effort. Amazingly, some still produce next to nothing but I have a great document to show parents when we have meetings about their 6th or 7th grader's class effort. It is not perfect but if the journal MUST be in the room, they can not complain that they left it at home. Everyone is to be busy. I will do it again next year. Lucinda ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, March 04, 2007 5:21 PM Subject: Re: [LIT] Management Details In a message dated 3/3/07 11:42:52 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > Do the students keep the composition books with them or do you file them > somehow in the room? > Nope, I don't have sufficient room to keep 125-130 notebooks. The kids carry their notebooks back and forth. In fact, that is one of the reasons I don't collect all notebooks at once. I'm not sure where I'd put them to grade!! I made that mistake early last year and by the day's mid-point, I started telling the kids that I knew I said I'd collect the notebooks, but changed my mind and I'd let them know when I was ready to collect them-LOL. If I did that I'd have to get rid of at least one of my classroom library bookshelves. I actually proposed that towards the end of our 1st quarter (as some of the kids were getting lazy and kept "forgetting" their notebooks at home). They used positive peer pressure to convince the lazy ones and called and reminded the truly forgetful kids. End of problem. They really enjoy the books that I spend entirely too much money on (although ordering through Scholastic magazines and putting all my points into books has been a boon). Someone, Kim maybe?, said that they collect 1/2 a class at a time. How and when do you let the kids know you are collecting notebooks? That sounds like something that might work for me. Pam Tempest Team Neon-6th Gr. ELA Hudson Middle School http://nlcommunities.com/communities/tempest "The important thing is not so much that every child should be taught, as that every child should be given the wish to learn." John Lubbock ************************************** AOL now offers free email to everyone. Find out more about what's free from AOL at http://www.aol.com. _______________________________________________ The Literacy Workshop ListServ http://www.literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/lit_literacyworkshop.org. Search the LIT archives at http://snipurl.com/LITArchive -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.413 / Virus Database: 268.18.7/710 - Release Date: 3/4/2007 _______________________________________________ The Literacy Workshop ListServ http://www.literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/lit_literacyworkshop.org. Search the LIT archives at http://snipurl.com/LITArchive
