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Middle School Curriculum> Reading 6
TITLE
Reading 6
TEXTBOOKS
The BFG, Roald Dahl, 1982
The Dead Man in Indian Creek, Mary Downing Hahn, 1990
Dragon of the Lost Sea, Laurence Yep, 1982
The Egypt Game, Zilpha Keatley Snyder, 1967
The Endless Steppe, Esther Hautzig, 1968
The Brocaded Slipper
The House of Dies Drear, Virginia Hamilton, 1968
Maniac Magee, Jerry Spinelli, 1990
Woodsong, Gary Paulsen,
Sing Down the Moon, Scott O’Dell, 1970
Sounder, William H. Armstrong, 1969
Tom’s Midnight Garden, Philippa Pearce, 1958
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, Avi, 1990
DESCRIPTION
Sixth grade reading is a full-year required course which meets three times a
week for 68 minutes. Students are encouraged through discussions, written
assignments and book share activities to become involved in books. Reading
outside of class is required with all material being self-selected by the
student. Assignments and activities are designed to foster comprehension skills
and nurture an interest in and love for reading.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
1. Students will use phonics, word structure and context clues to identify words
and create
understanding. (8.1.1)
2. Students will memorize the spelling and meaning of the most commonly used
prefixes and suffixes. (8.1.1)
3. Students will explore and identify a story's plot, main characters, setting,
mood, themes, problems and solutions to construct meaning. (8.1.4)
4. Students will be provided an opportunity to listen to a variety of literature
being read aloud. (8.1.6)
5. Students will draw conclusions from what has been read to create predictions
about a story's outcome. (8.1.7)
6. Students will understand and follow written instructions. (8.1.1)
7. Students will develop the ability to identify through their features various
genres of literature. (8.1.3)
8. Students will differentiate between various reference materials and their
usefulness for completing a research project. (8.1.2)
9. Students will use reference materials such as a dictionary and thesaurus to
learn and understand the meaning of words. (8.1.2)
10. Students will acknowledge and appreciate an author’s use of figures of
speech such as alliteration, metaphor, and simile. (8.1.3)
11. Students will identify and use correctly antonyms, synonyms, homophones and
homographs. (8.1.3)
12. Students will find pleasure in reading self-selected books of interest at a
reading level appropriate for their ability. (8.1.1)
13. Students will keep a record of books they read throughout the year. (8.1.1)
14. Students will generate visual organizers to support comprehension. (8.1.5)
15. Students will depict through dramatic activities events from the book.
(8.3.2)
16. Students will demonstrate comprehension by responses to short answer
questions. (8.1.1)
17. Students will have an opportunity to share a book they have read with
classmates through book share activities. (8.1.1)
18. Students will identify that each individual approaches literature
differently and constructs their own unique understanding. (8.1.7)
WRITING ACTIVITIES
1. Students will answer comprehension questions.
2. Students will compose a written book share.
3. Students will write sentences using vocabulary words correctly.
4. Students will respond to what they are reading by writing various types of
poetry.
5. Students will formulate written summaries of books.
6. Students will research a topic and write a written report.
7. Students will journal about their reactions to what they have read.
8. Students will generate questions about what they are reading.
MULTICULTURE ACTIVITIES
1. Students will be required to research and write an interview of a well-known
abolitionist. (8.1.6)
2. Use The House of Dies Drear and Sounder to examine how years of slavery
contributed to current friction between races by creating wide variation in
levels of opportunity. (8.1.7)
3. Examine the role of music among African-Americans from slavery to today.
4. Investigate the role of European-Americans in stripping the Native-Americans
of their homelands while reading Sing Down the Moon. (8.1.7)
5. Through discussions consider which attitudes contribute to continued racial
disharmony and which lead to healing and understanding. (8.1.7)
