MRS. MEROW
(847) 540-2762
ing Connection
LZMSS Reading Connection
newsletter...
V O L U M E
SARA.MEROW@LZ95.ORG
The LZMSS Read-
-Provides class information
-Offers resources
and ideas to support your child at
home
-Information on
different reading
strategies
-is published 1-2
times per month
INSIDE THIS
ISSUE:
Literacy Terms 2
Defined
7 Focus
Reading
Strategies
2
What will we
be doing in
class?
2
Book
Suggestions
3
Mrs. Merow’s
Favorites
3
Resources/
Links
3
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I S S U E
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O C T O B E R
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Welcome!
Parent communication is an important part of a student‟s education. With this newsletter I
hope to establish a regular line of
communication to inform you of
what is going on in my classroom. It is my intention to publish a newsletter 1-2 times per
month, though you are always
welcome to email or call if you
have any questions regarding
your child or classroom instruction.
The purpose the this class is to
provide support in reading and
writing. We will be working on
understanding and applying reading strategies, improving written
expression, and striving to become strong readers at the middle school level. Along with high
-interest current events articles
and novels, we will be working
with non-fiction text (i.e. textbooks and informational articles).
Did you know…
The MSS library has a lot of
good books for every level
and interest? Check it out!
I am in regular contact with the
classroom teachers in order to
align my lessons with what is
going on in the curriculum. The
support provided in my classroom is layered with the core
classrooms to help students gain
a deeper understanding of the
material.
There will be no traditional
homework assigned with my
class. I will be asking students to
read every day for at least 30
minutes. As they read I will be
asking them to use and apply
certain reading strategies. I will
also assign „application‟ each
week. Students will be asked to
provide evidence showing that
they are practicing the strategies/
skills we are working on in their
core classes.
Setting goals
As I begin working with your
child I will be assessing their
level of reading comprehension, knowledge of reading
strategies, and working with
them to set appropriate
goals.
A copy of the goals that we
generate together will be sent
home. Please take the time
to review the individualized
goals with your child; read
through them together and
ask questions.
If you have additional ques-
tions about how to support
our goals, I can provide support/resource materials for at
-home use.
We will continually update
our goals once students have
progressed and achieved mastery.
PAGE
2
Literacy Terms Defined
Accuracy: reading words in
text without errors.
Automaticity: reading without conscious effort of attention to decoding.
Background knowledge:
forming connections between
the text and the information
and experiences of the reader.
Read: (reed) verb
To look at and comprehend the meaning
of written and
Comprehension: understanding what one is reading.
printed matter.
“The more you
read, the more
things you will
know. The more
that you learn, the
more places you’ll
go.”
~Dr. Seuss
Decoding: the ability to
translate a word from print to
speech.
Fluency: ability to read text
quickly, accurately, and with
proper expression. Fluency
provides a bridge between
word recognition and comprehension.
Metacognition: the process
of consciously thinking about
one‟s learning or reading while
actually being engaged in learning or reading.
Progress Monitoring: assessments that measure progress towards reading goals.
Reading Response Logs: a
log of written response to
text. They will be used in class
to document feelings about
text, questions, details, and
reflections.
7 Focus Reading Strategies
Monitor comprehension
and meaning. Keep track of
one‟s own comprehension
and understanding.
about the text before, during, and after reading.
Make connections:
Activate prior knowledge in
order to relate to the text
and build understanding.
Draw inferences and
make predictions:
Combine background
knowledge and textual information to draw conclusions and interpret facts,
Ask questions:
Wondering and inquiring
Visualize:
Creating pictures or movies
in your mind as you read.
Determine importance:
Identify themes and big
ideas.
Synthesize:
Combine new information
from the text with existing
knowledge in order to
form new ideas.
What will we be doing in class?
Reading!
With reading we will be
working on our 7 focus
reading strategies, reflecting,
and responding to text.
Most importantly, I will be
asking students to apply the
reading strategies in their
core classes.
Writing!
Part of the class will also be
spent improving our knowledge of the different types
of writing, written expression, and working together
to apply the 6-Traits of
writing.
Collaborating!
Sometimes we will be
LZMSS
READING
CONNECTION
working together, sometimes in small-group, and
sometimes individually.
Students will have individualized goals, therefore not
all students need to work
on the same things. I will
be differentiating instruction to meet the needs of
each student. Classes are
small with a maximum of
only 6 students!
VOLUME
1,
ISSUE
1
PAGE
Book Suggestions
Peak by Roland Smith
When fourteen-year-old Peak
Marcello's long-lost father presents
the opportunity for them to summit
Everest together, Peak doesn't even
consider saying no--even though he
suspects there are a few strings
attached. And if he makes it to the
top before his birthday, he'll be the
youngest person ever to stand
above 29,000 feet.
Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick
Ben and Rose secretly wish their
lives were different. Ben longs for
the father he has never known.
Rose dreams of a mysterious actress whose life she chronicles in a
scrapbook. When Ben discovers a
puzzling clue in his mother‟s room
and Rose reads an enticing headline
in the newspaper, both children set
out alone on desperate quests to
find what they are missing.
Divergent by Veronica Roth
Beatris “Tris” Prior has reached the
fateful age of sixteen, the stage at
which teenagers in Roth‟s dystopian
Chicago must select which of 5
factions to join for life. Tris chooses
Dauntless, the path of courage.
Her choice exposes her to the
demanding, violent initiation rights
of this group, but also threatens to
expose a personal secret that could
place her in mortal danger.
“It is our
choices, Harry,
that show what
we truly are,
Mrs. Merow’s Favorites!
I have many favorite books, but the
Harry Potter series ranks among
my most favorite! I love the story
J.K. Rowling tells about a boy, lost
and forgotten in a world without
parents growing into “the chosen
one” and defeating the most powerful dark wizard, Lord Voldemort.
far more than
our abilities.”
Albus
tried it out and loved it! The point?
Always read things that are new
and different, but mostly just KEEP
READING!
-The Twilight Series by Stephanie
Meyer
Other favorites include:
-Books related to Chicago history
-The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins
-Biographies of interesting people
-Historical fiction surrounding the
time period of Tudor England
Dumbledore to
Harry Potter
I never thought I would like stories
with wizards and fantasy elements,
but at the urging of my students I
Resources/Links
http://www.scholastic.com
Resources for parents and students,
including interactive activities.
www.readwritethink.org
Graphic organizers, supplemental
material, activities for students to
support reading and writing.
http://www.readingrockets.org
A wealth of information and resources on teaching young kids to
read. Funded by the U.S. Department of Education.
LZ MSS Library
http://destiny.lz95.org/vopac/
servlet/presentsearchform.do?
site=104
www.bookspot.com
List of book sorted by grade level,
award winners, etc.
The beginning of the series, one of
seven Harry Potter books
authored by J.K. Rowling.
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