Happy Valley Middle School
Literacy Workshop Syllabus
Course Description:
Literacy Workshop provides support and opportunities for students to practice, develop and demonstrate their
reading, writing, speaking and listening skills. In Literacy Workshop, students will work to apply what they learn
to real-world literacy tasks. Literacy Workshop asks students to read and write in a community that honors
productivity, preparedness and respect for its members. The workshop concept is based on the idea that
choice, relevant tasks, and extended time to read and write will greatly increase a student's motivation to learn
and their capacity to succeed in school and beyond.
A typical day in Literacy Workshop might begin with a skills-based reading or writing lesson that can last
anywhere from 5-15 minutes. This is followed by an opportunity for students to practice the skill. Once
students have practiced the skill, they begin working on independent reading and writing for approximately 30
minutes. During this time, teachers confer with individual and small groups of students to guide their individual
practice. In the last 10 minutes of class, students have opportunities to share with each other some of their
reading or writing from that day. The topic and target from the day are often revisited during this time.
Topics Covered:
To promote growth in literacy, students will...
● maximize the number of minutes spent writing each and every day.
● read in a variety of genres, including both fiction and non-fiction.
● listen to the thoughts and ideas of others and provide appropriate feedback when necessary.
● discuss texts and writing with classmates and teacher.
Essential Questions:
● What is the connection between reading and writing?
● What habits do good readers and writers employ?
● How do I prepare to read and write in different text formats?
● How does the purpose of a writing task influence the format?
Instructional Text(s):
● Writer’s Notebook
● Informative Texts provided by teacher
● Choice Reading Material that connects to the writing purposes
Grading:
The purpose of grading is to communicate student progress toward learning targets, provide information
for students to self-evaluate their own progress, offer incentives for students to learn, and inform me as the
teacher about the effectiveness of my instruction.
A student’s overall grade will be based on a collection of formative and summative assessments. The
following criteria will be used to determine a student’s grade:
50% - Demonstration of Learning and Growth through Portfolio/Collection of Work
25% - Scored Student Work
15% - Student Self-Assessments and Goal Setting
10% - Literacy Behaviors (Prepared, Productive, Respectful--developed with students)
Formative Assessments:
Formative Assessments are check-ins to determine what a student has learned so far. They inform the
student and the teacher of specific areas that need to be retaught/relearned or addressed in a new format.
● Literacy Notebook
● On-going written responses to independent reading (8-10 books throughout the year)
● On-going writing tasks
● Student self-assessments and goal setting
● Examination of Literacy Behaviors (preparedness, productivity, respect for classroom community)
Summative Assessments:
The goal of summative assessments is to evaluate student competency after an instructional phase is
complete.
● Final written response to independent reading
● Reading Work Sample
● Writing Portfolio - 3-4 final writing pieces per quarter
● Writing Work Sample
● Student self-assessments and goal setting
● Examination of Literacy Behaviors (preparedness, productivity, respect for classroom community)
Writing and Reading by Quarter
WRITING
QUARTER
ONE
QUARTER
TWO
QUARTER
THREE
QUARTER
FOUR
Launching the
Workshop
Inform & Explain
Inquire & Explain
Take a Stand/
Propose a Solution
Evaluate & Judge
Analyze & Interpret
Express & Reflect
READING
*Work sample
Intentional
Independent
Reading
Intentional
Independent
Reading
Mentor Texts that
Connect to Writing
Purpose above
Mentor Texts that
Connect to Writing
Purpose above
Responding to
Texts
Responding to
Texts
*Work Sample
Literature Circles
-Character
Analysis
-Connection to text
Mentor Texts that
Connect to Writing
Purpose above
Responding to
Texts
Intentional
Independent
Reading
Mentor Texts that
Connect to Writing
Purpose above
Responding to
Texts
*Work sample