Mrs. Combs' Reading Class

Moving Right Along....

2009-04-08T16:30:00.004-04:00

This month Read 180 will be examining identities, solving crimes and using those reading strategies.

Our 8th grade has been busy learning all about the forensic sciences in our Workshop 4: Crime Lab Science. Check out the links below to test your detective skills.

http://sciencespot.net

Read 180 6th graders are learning about identities and how we perceive ourselves in
Workshop 3 Identity Crisis. One of the authors in this workshop is Shirley Jackson check out her wikipedia entry and poems by Emily Dickinson, who is also a poet who's poem,"I'm Nobody, Who are you" are included in this workshop.

Shirley Jackson: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirley_Jackson

Emily Dickinson: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emily_Dickinson

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/155

Tip for reading this month: Try visualizing what you are reading. Draw out a few scenes as you see them in your head. This will help you see what is going on in your book or short story.

Happy February!

2009-02-11T15:58:00.004-05:00

Whew! It has been a busy week. With FCAT on its way I thought I'd post some test-taking strategies for students to remember. These can be applied to any test you are taking not just THE BIG ONE.

1. Get a good nights rest and eat a good breakfast.

2. Take a deep breath before the exam, test or quiz.

3. When reading a difficult passage mark the text with reflection points (if you can write on the test) such as a small box, a hollow heart shape or anything you can make check mark after that paragraph to reward yourself and keep moving through the passage.

4. Underline important information, inspirational sayings or words you're not familiar with.

5. Use the process of elimination to get your answers, if you aren't sure what a word means look at your choices and recognize those words that you know are not correct first.

These can be helpful when you aren't sure what to expect. Always remember the "old faithful" reading strategies of visualizing, relating to it through your own experiences and using context clues.

Here are some links that wrap up our Workshop 3 in Read 180 for the 8th grade:

President Obama's Inaugural speech:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090120/ap_on_go_pr_wh/inauguration_obama_text

Nelson Mandela's 1994 Inaugrual Speech:

http://www.anc.org.za/ancdocs/history/mandela/1994/inaugct.html

The 8th grade Read 180 class looked at excerpts from the above speeches for themes and repetition during our Workshop 3- Journey to Justice

This week in Reading...

2009-01-14T11:26:00.003-05:00

Students have been busily working in their reading classes this week. We've had many things going on from reading about Alien Invader species to what happened in Africa during the reign of Apartheid in Read 180.

I've attached a few links to check out some things that may be of interest and connect to the stories we are reading about this week. Click on the links below to fill your brain with knowledge!

8th Grade Read 180

This week we will be focusing on Workshop 3- Long Journey to Justice. Our first reading is titled “Diamond Land” that is a fictitious story written by Rita Williams-Garcia who is famous for the twists and turns she adds to her writing. The story follows a young African boy who goes to work in the Diamond Mines of South Africa during apartheid.
Here are a couple of links that give you some idea of what life was like in South Africa during apartheid. Try looking it up on your own to see what you can find. I’ve also added a link to the author’s homepage.

http://www.ritawg.com/

http://www.south-africa-tours-and-travel.com/apartheid.html#THE%20HOMELAND%20POLICY

http://www.un.org/av/photo/subjects/apartheid.htm

6th Grade Read 180

We are learning all about Alien Invaders and just how dangerous these unnatural plants and animals can be when they are taken out of their home environments. Check out these websites to see some of the animals we've been learning about.

Chinese Snakehead Fish:

http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/snakeheadinfosheet.html

Brown Tree Snake:

http://www.fort.usgs.gov/Resources/Education/BTS/

http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/animals/bts_child.shtml

Happy New Year!

2009-01-05T15:58:00.002-05:00

I hope everyone's holdiay was filled with relaxation and lots of food! It good to be back in the saddle and running full speed ahead into 2009. We are taking the first part of this week to get familiar with our next Workshops in READ 180 and my READ 1 class is gearing up for another story to dissect.

Regarding READ 180 classes there will be an exam on Wednesday, January 7th that will consist of several parts, one them being the Mulitple choice exam. I distributed study guides today and hope that everyone will be studying diligently. Along with preparing for our exam we have to stay up to date with our reading logs.

In my last blog I described the Predicting and Questioning strategy for readers. Today I'd like to introduce Context Clues for your arsenal of comprehension strategies.

CONTEXT CLUES

Context clues come in handy especially when you don't understand the meaning of a word.

How to use this strategy:

Use this strategy during your reading.
Use the words and sentences around the word you don't understand to guide you to the meaning of the unfamiliar word. If you can understand the context in which the word is used it will help to understand the meaning.

Context Clues help:
- To understand a vocabulary term or idea in a text
- To clarify or expand a meaning
- To increase comprehension

HAVE FUN!!!

Winter Break is on it's way!

2008-12-12T14:53:00.003-05:00

The winter break is fast approaching. The students have been working hard completing Workshop 2, practicing their Sequence of Events skills, and completing those reading logs. Reading strategies should always be a part of our routine when reading. After all, an active reader is a smart reader. Try this one out this week:

PREDICTING AND QUESTIONING

Use this strategy before, during and after your reading.

How to use this strategy:

When reading fiction
When making connections to what you are reading (predicting, relating to the characters, and questioning the author)
To develop a purpose for reading
When testing yourself for comprehension

With this strategy you'll find that understanding what you are reading is as simple as asking a question.

HAVE FUN!!!

Welcome to my Blog!

2008-10-27T14:48:00.001-04:00

Welcome to my Blog!

I just recently joined the Julia Landon College Preparatory team by way of Jefferson Davis Middle School where I also taught Read 180.

I teach Read 180 which is an intensive, highly engaging reading program that combines instructional computer software, student independent reading, and small group instruction to help students attain growth in their reading and test taking strategies.

This week we will be finishing up Workshop 1 and flying into Workshop 2 where students will be reading about Tsunamis and how destructive they can be. It should be very eye-opening!