As well as the spelling program, the primary students are participating in guided reading at their instructional level. The spelling program and the guided reading go together in respect to teacher’s are doing their guided reading program with small group instruction daily to every second day, while the other students are engaged in spelling/comprehension activities. Students are assessed at what level they are working at instructionally, and placed in small groups. The students reading assessment is taken from CAP and/or from leveled PM Benchmarks.
Students will be continually assessed in spelling and reading.
The primary students are also actively engaged in a writing process to develop and enhance their writing skills. Over the course of the year, the students will learn, practice and develop an understanding of the 6 writing traits. The 6 traits are as follows with a brief description about what each trait means:
- Ideas – is clarity, focus, and details all working together to make the writer’s message clear.
- Organization – the overall design or structure of a piece of writing, including the lead, the flow of ideas, use of transitional words or phrases, and the conclusion.
- Voice – is the writer’s way of expressing ideas – the general sound and tone of the piece.
- Conventions – combination of spelling, punctuation, capitalization, paragraphing, and grammar working together to make the piece easy for the reader to process.
- Word Choice – the words and phrases the writer selects to get the message across.
- Sentence Fluency – the flow and rhythm of language, variety in sentences, and the degree to which text can be read with expression and intonation.
The primary students will be using the writing continuum as a tool to move them towards self-assessment and goal setting.
The Primary Teachers
