Please read the following with your parents and have them sign the parent
signature page and return to me by Monday, September 21sth.
(It would be a good idea to keep a copy of this booklet at home, as well as in
the folder in your binder, so you can refer to it for assignments and
instructions. Please note that some things have changed from last year, so
please read through all of the criteria.)
Things I Should Know
About 6th Grade
in
Miss Bentzinger’s
Class
RESPECT
This is very important in my class!
a. Please enter the classroom quietly and begin working on daily proofing or other
assignment.
b. If someone else is talking (teacher or student), we need to be respectful and listen.
c. We always use soft voices when working in groups.
d. We wait until someone else is finished talking before raising our hands.
e. We take care of our supplies (books, class supplies, desks, classroom.) This is our
second home while we are here.
f. Be kind to others, respecting one another’s ideas and answers without giggling or
getting annoyed. We want everyone to feel welcome and comfortable.
g. Always be safe.
h. Manners matter.
i. Eyes on me when I’m talking. This shows me that you are ready to learn.
j. Only one boy or girl at a time may go to the bathroom, and only leave if it is a true
emergency.
k. Please stay in your seats while I am teaching. If you think you will need tissues, take
a handful and keep them at your seat. You may throw out garbage at the end of the
class. It is very distracting and disrespectful for students to get up out of their seats
while I am teaching or someone else is reading or presenting.
l. Uniforms should be tucked neatly into pants. Uniform will be checked every day.
DEMERITS
Sixth graders are expected to behave more responsibly and maturely. As fifth graders, students
were given more warnings in order to allow for possible misunderstandings of the rules. As
sixth graders, all students are expected to know and understand the rules of proper classroom
behavior, and after one warning, demerits will be given if this expectation is not met. This
means raising hands and not calling out, listening and not talking when someone else is talking,
paying attention during class, being safe in the halls and classrooms, being prepared for class
(with homework, books, pen grips, and pens), as well as other reasons (see the Student
Handbook for the full list of demerits.) However, I am confident that with your effort and hard
work this will not be an issue.
HOMEWORK
Homework that is done in a workbook should be open to that page so I can check it when
students first come into class. If homework is not completed, the student will receive a
demerit. For every day that an assignment is late, another demerit will be given. For the first
month of school, I will ask for homework that is due. After this, it is the student’s
responsibility to bring me any assignments that are owed. Homework assignments should
be copied into the agenda book each day. If a student is absent, their homework buddy should
write the assignment down for them. Long-term assignments will be listed with due dates on
the website. Repetitious assignments are always due at the same time (last day of the month for
Author of the Month**; every Tuesday for Vocabulary definition pages, etc. Fridays are always
Vocabulary and Spelling test days. These days only change if we have a shortened week, a
Friday off, a special event that takes place during class time on Friday, or if we are working on
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a novel and are not doing vocabulary from the book. In this case, a vocabulary sheet will be
given out with due dates and assignments listed per day.
GRADES
LANGUAGE ARTS – includes grammar and writing; listening and speaking,
research skills, and spelling
Quizzes – 20%
Tests – 40%
Writing assignments – 40%
READING/LITERATURE – includes vocab., oral reading, comprehension
Quizzes/Author of the Month – 20%
Tests – 40% (AR average will count as a test grade)
Projects – 40%
EXPLANATION OF AR (Accelerated/Advanced Reader)
Your child goes to the library once a week (half the class goes to the library and half stays in
class for 20 minutes, and then we switch.)
Books that qualify for AR are marked with a yellow sticker showing the reading level. Sixth
graders are expected to read books that are higher than 4.5 with a cut-off of 6.5 due to possible
content issues. However, if a child would like to read a book that is on a higher level, it needs
to be approved by Mrs. Kearney or by me.
Each book is worth a certain amount of points. More difficult books are worth more points.
Students have a point goal, which they must reach each marking period. For the beginning of
the year, sixth graders will begin with a goal of 15 points. By the end of the year, sixth graders
will have an 18-point goal. (Points increase by one for each marking period.)
After a child reads a book, he/she will take an AR quiz, either in class or in the library.
(Students should not ask to take AR tests during note-taking or other important class time.)
Students who don’t meet their point goals will lose two points from their AR average. Students
who meet their point goals will have two points added to their AR average. AR grades will then
be averaged and that average will count as one test grade for Reading. (Tests count 4 times.)
Grade reports will go home approximately every other week in the Friday grade packet, should
be reviewed and signed by a parent, and should be returned on Monday in the Friday folder.
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DAILY PROOFING
Students will work on a Daily Proofing as they come into class. We will go over these and
correct them together. When we correct any work, students should use their red pens so they
can see where they’ve made their mistakes. Making a mistake on homework is absolutely fine,
but when I give the correct answer in class, the mistake should be corrected. (See explanation
further down.)
NOTEBOOKS
Notebooks must be in order, complete with all notes given, and neat. Notebooks will be
checked randomly, so make sure that they are in order at all times.
PROPER HEADING
All work handed in will have the following heading:
#___
Name
St. Joseph School
Date
Grade
Subject
If there is more than one page, this heading should be on the first page, and all pages should be
stapled (not clipped) together. Papers without a heading lose 2 points!
OTHER ASSIGNMENTS
Long-term assignments will either be done at home or in school depending on the assignment.
Instructions for each long-term assignment, as well as due dates, will be sent home. Students
are expected to check due dates and adhere to them. If a parent or child has a question, please
feel free to Email or call me. Late assignments receive a grade minus 5 points for every day
that the assignment is late, and demerits may be given, as well. It is the student’s responsibility
to make sure that they hand in their assignments on time.
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WHEN DONE WITH WORK
Whenever you are done with your work and are unsure what you should do, please refer to your
flyer, “What to Do When I’m Done with My Work” for some ideas.
To sum everything up, if you work hard and follow the rules, you will do very
well in my class! Welcome to Sixth Grade Language Arts!
Author of the Month Instructions – Grade 6
At the beginning of each month, I will announce the author of the month (see the
list below.) Each child will be responsible for choosing a question or a book title
for that month. If a child is absent, he/she will have to look at the sign up sheet
to see which book or question is not taken.
If a student has chosen a question, they must answer it in a complete sentence
on a 3 x 5 index card using a dark marker so it can be seen on the bulletin board.
If a student has chosen a book, they must draw a picture of the book cover on a 3
x 5 index card. There are enough questions and book titles so every student can
answer one question or draw one book cover. Please be neat about your work! I
have extra 3 x 5 cards if anyone needs them. Rotate your choices so that one
month you choose a question and the next month you choose a book.
These are to be handed in by the last day of the month (that we are in school) so
that we may decorate our bulletin board with our author for the following month.
Our authors and due dates will be as follows:
Wednesday, September 30th – Gary Paulsen
Friday, October 30th – Lois Lawry
Monday, Nov. 30th – Louis Sachar
Monday, Dec. 21st – Eleanor Estes (Notice the date)
Friday, Jan.29th – Jean Craighead George
Monday, Feb. 29th – Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
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Thursday, March 31st – Gordon Korman
Frida, April 29th – Favorite author
Questions:
1. What is the author’s real, full name? Does he/she use a pseudonym?
2. Where and when was he/she born?
3. How old is he/she now?
4. What was his/her first book?
5. What publishing company published it?
6. In what genre does he/she write?
7. How many books has he/she written?
8. Is the author married?
9. Does he/she have any children? How many?
10. Where does he/she live now?
11. – 15. Find out some other interesting fact about the author.
Author of the Month will be graded on the following:
Neatness
Author’s name is spelled correctly
All words written are spelled correctly
Student wrote in complete sentences
Student heading includes name, number and grade
Assignment is handed in on time
Directions were followed (3 x 5 card, dark marker, etc.)
The rubric for the assignment will look like this: (Please notice the change in
rubric and criteria.)
Presentation could be neater
Author’s name is spelled incorrectly
Words spelled incorrectly; incorrect grammar
Student heading missing name, number, or grade
Student heading missing two of the criteria
Student heading missing name, number and grade
Information not written in complete sentences
Directions were not followed
Handed in late
-5
-5
-5
-3
-4
-5
-5
-5
-5 x each day late
This is an easy 100 if you follow the directions and hand the assignment in on
time.
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For the final month (favorite author), students must do a question and a book,
each on a separate index card. This will count as two grades.
DAILY PROOFING (Explanation)
As students come into class, they will begin working on the daily proofing that is
on the board. A sentence will be written incorrectly. In the “Daily Proofing”
section of the notebook, students will write the incorrect sentence in blue or
black ink. Once this is copied, the student will use their red pen to correct any
errors that appear. Below this, they will rewrite the sentence correctly in blue or
black ink. When going over the corrections, if a student finds any that they
missed, they will need to make those corrections on the second sentence with
their red pen. This way they can see how many errors they found in the first
sentence and how many they still need to correct after that. An example of how a
daily proofing might look would be:
He and me sawed the movie at the mall on saterday
The student would read the sentence and make the following corrections:
He and me sawed the movie at the mall on saterday.
Then the student would write the sentence correctly so it looked like this:
He and I saw the movie at the mall on Saturday.
When a student sees where they’ve missed an error, they will need to correct
that with their red pen on the second sentence (the one that they thought they
wrote correctly.)
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NOTEBOOKS
One orange marbled notebook – On the front write your Name, #,
Grade 6, and “Journal.”
On the outside of your large Language Arts binder, put your name, #,
Grade 6 and the title “Language Arts.” Inside will be five sections
labeled in the following order:
Daily Proofing
Vocabulary
Grammar
Reading
Writing
This notebook will be checked at random times for the following:
neatness, completeness, order.
- It is important that you keep your notebook in order and keep all
pages intact. If you are absent, get the notes from a reliable friend.
- Keeping a supply of reinforcements (in case a page tears at the threehole punch and comes loose) is a wise idea.
-Always copy the daily proofing as you come into class.
- Always keep a supply of paper in each section of your notebook.
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*All writing done in class will be kept in a folder in the box under
the table on the side of the room.
*You must bring your binder and journal to each Language Arts
class unless told otherwise.
Gr. 6 What to Do When I’m Done with My Work
When you are done with all of your work, make sure that you have followed
all the directions and that all of your answers are correct and neat. Once
you have done this, if you are still waiting for the rest of the class to finish
or for the next direction, it is important that you wait quietly. If you find
that you will be waiting more than five minutes and need some work to do,
choose one of the following:
1. Check your assignment book to be sure you have all assignments
written down correctly.
2. Read your AR, or quietly choose another book or reading material and
read silently.
3. Work on your Author of the Month question or book cover
illustration.
4. Study for an upcoming Language Arts test.
5. Write in your journal.
6. Rewrite and edit a journal entry.
7. Work on a piece of writing that is in progress.
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ADDITIONAL PROCEDURES:
LANGUAGE ARTS PROCEDURE
Please enter on time and quietly and do the following:
1. Daily proofing.
2. Take out vocab. homework..
3. Have AR or class novel with you at all times, marked with the page where you left off.
Thank you!
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Parent Signature Page
I have read the information in Things I Should Know About 6th Grade in Miss
Bentzinger’s Class, as well as the attached information sheets, and I understand what is
expected of my child.
____________________________________________
Parent Signature
_________________________
Date
____________________________________________
Parent Name (Printed)
____________________________________________
Child’s Name
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