New Month, New "Shelf"ie Update!

Keep up the fantastic reading, everyone! Our "Shelf"ie is filling up fast!

Our Class "Shelf"ie!

We did it! We filled the second shelf! This class is on their way to filling up the ENTIRE front wall (and maybe more!). Keep up the fabulous reading, everyone!

NEW Books and a "Shelf"ie Update!

This week was the NHE Book Fair! It was also the week our September Book Order finally came! Thanks to the generous donations of parents, Scholastic points (thanks to all who ordered and helped us get more points!), and FREE book packs, we are adding all of these brand NEW books to our classroom library! The students have been asking non-stop when the books will be added to the library and when they can start reading them. It's so fulfilling to see kids this excited about reading books!

We have a TON of different genres to add to the library!

Speaking of reading a ton of books ... check out our "Shelf"ie! Keep up the fantastic reading, everyone!

Workshop, a "Shelf"ie Update, and Band Day!

Happy Fall! It's been a great few weeks in ELA. We made it through one week of Workshop, and I think the general consensus is that it's a great time! We really enjoy the small-group lessons and choice time. We have been focusing on writing RACE responses to text and I am excited to see how much we continue to learn in Workshop this year!

When tasked to write a RACE response, students created their own mini-groups to work together to write a solid response. Proud teacher moment for sure!

Another small group writing a RACE response!

Our "Shelf"ie wall is filling rapidly! We have now filled the top shelf and are working on filling up the next shelf. (I must say ... I am looking forward to the day when I don't have to stand on a desk to staple these things to the wall ....!) Keep up the fantastic reading everyone!

I had the privilege of watching our band students perform at the Central York HS Football game last night! They did a fantastic job! So proud of you all!

Question of the Week: Use imagery to describe what you love most about Fall.

Kickball Rematch, Story Swaps, and a "Shelf"ie Update!

We officially made it through our first five-day week of sixth grade! To celebrate, Friday had some extra exciting elements.

Throughout the week, we practiced close reading with non-fiction and discussed the author's craft strategies. Next week we will be using these strategies in our own personal narratives.

On Friday, we had Fun-Write Friday where students spent time writing parts of a story that they then passed to the person next to them. Then, that person had to continue writing that story. It was fun to see how the stories turned! We also practiced using author's craft strategies to get ourselves in that mindset.

On Friday afternoon, we finally got that kickball re-match! Our plan was to have one tie-breaker inning, but that inning ended in a tie! So, we went into a second tie-breaker inning! Team Strickler won by one run ... it was a close one!

Finally, our "Shelf"ie continues to grow! We are on our way to filling all the shelves!

Question of the Week: We talked a lot about simile, metaphor, and personification this week. What is an example of one of these? Email me by Monday morning to win!

FUN FRIDAY (and more)!

On Friday, the class enjoyed our very first FUN FRIDAY! We worked hard all week and were able to enjoy a game of class verses class kickball. Team Strickler came out strong, but got a little too excited, leaving room for Team Goins to come up from behind. The game ended in a TIE! We will hopefully earn some extra time for a tie-breaker inning this week.

This week in ELA, students started spelling groups. In two weeks, we will be diving into reading groups, too. We are excited for Workshop to begin so we can start learning in ways that work best for us at a speed that helps us learn the most.

In writing, we are studying Saturday and Teacakes to learn different examples of author's craft so that when we write our personal narratives next week, they can be filled with powerful strategies!

We all are continuing to enjoy a solid block of time for class-wide independent reading and after a week of reading conferences, I think it's safe to say this is a successful addition to our class schedule.

Question of the Week: What reading strategy do you enjoy using the most? Why? Email me by Wednesday morning for a chance to win!

Our Class "Shelf"ie!

As students complete books, they fill out a book spine to add to our class "shelf"ie. The wall started out empty and our goal is to have it filled (maybe even overflowing!) by the end of the year. We are only five days into the school year and we already have books on our shelf! Keep up the fantastic reading everyone!

One Week Down!

It was a fantastic first week in 6th Grade! We spent time discussing how independent reading and free writing should look and sound so that our time spent in these moments are as engaging and successful as possible throughout the year.

Coming up this week ...

• We'll be talking about good strategies that readers use to stay engaged with their books.
• We'll chat about what makes a good letter and will be starting our own Letter Logs to keep in touch throughout the school year! (We'll be reading one of my favorite picture books to introduce this concept!)
• We'll start talking about different genres to help us decide what books we love the most ... and maybe even explore some new ones!
• Finally ... we'll have time for independent reading! So come ready to curl up with a good book!

Question of the Week: What picture book do you think we'll be reading? Email me an answer by Monday morning to win some candy!

HINT: The answer is somewhere else on this blog!

Welcome to Sixth Grade!

Hello Sixth Graders!

I hope you all enjoyed your summer! Our classroom is finally ready for us to kick off a great school year on Wednesday. Be on the lookout for a Skyward email blast that includes all the information you will need for the first day. We cannot wait to see you soon!

Check out a preview of our classroom below. See you on Wednesday!

Miss Strickler :)

Our Class "Shelf"ie!

Happy Summer!!! I hope everyone enjoys the sun, warm weather, and relaxation that comes with the break. Summer is a great time to catch up on some really good books, too!

Below is the final "Shelf"ie wall. We didn't quite fill the wall, but there was a lot of awesome reading that happened in 6th grade this year! Be proud!

Thanks for such a wonderful year! Good luck in Middle School!

6th Grade Event, Move the PRIDE, and More!

It is hard to believe that this is the last weekend of the school year...! We only have 1.5 days left of 6th grade! It was a busy final week, too.

On Wednesday, we had the 6th Grade Event. This was such a fun day filled with all kinds of activities! The day began with speeches from fellow sixth graders and a slideshow of all the different experiences we shared throughout the year. After lunch, we headed outside for stations like Capture the Flag, Minute to Win It Games, Bounce House, Human Hungry Hungry Hippos and more. The day ended with a Tug-of-War competition between homerooms. I don't mean to brag, but ... Strickler beat Wolfgang to take us to the final round! Kudos to Mrs. Koplitz's class for winning the championship game!

After the Event, we had Move the PRIDE. Our 6th graders took a trip to the Middle School to see what their year will look like next year. While everyone is a bit nervous (especially about getting lost), I know you will all do great! While the current students were visiting 7th grade, I met the 5th graders who are coming to team Strickler/Wolfgang next year!

Finally, to close our week, we wrote letters to our future selves. Students will get these letters before their next big transition ... middle school to high school!

Stay tuned for our final "Shelf"ie update and more!

Question of the Week: What has been your biggest takeaway from 6th grade?

Poetry Writing, Camp Read S'More, and the Track Meet!

It was a busy week at North Hills (and thankfully the weather cooperated!)! In writing, students have been studying different styles of poetry and creating their own poems. On Thursday, the weather was so nice we decided to go outside to share our favorite poems.

On Thursday night, teachers "camped" out (although, we didn't stay overnight because of the Track Meet) to celebrate our students getting so close to their school-wide reading goal. We are all so proud of the wonderful reading everyone has done this year. There are still 11 days of school left to reach 100%, so keep reading!

On Friday, we had our Track Meet! After getting rained out last week, we had the perfect day! The sun was shining, the rain never came, and there was a nice breeze. Students had a blast dancing to music, participating in the events, and just enjoying the fun times. It was a great day!

With only 11 days left in the school year (WOW!), we will be wrapping up our non-fiction units in Workshop. In Writing, students will have a chance to apply all the skills we have learned throughout the year in a project of their choice. Let's finish strong and make these last couple of weeks fantastic!

Question of the Week: What has been your favorite non-fiction unit so far? Why?

"Shelf"ie Update: Only 16 Days Left!

With only 16 days left in the school year, we have completely filled up the top three shelves! We are so close to filling the entire bookshelf, so keep reading!

A Quick "Shelf"ie Update

As we approach the end of the school year, I will try to post a weekly "Shelf"ie update. We are so close to completely filling up the third shelf! We only have 22 days left, so keep reading!

PAWS Meeting, Earth Day, and Camp Read S'More!

It was a busy four-day week in sixth grade! We were off on Monday and came back to two days of Math PSSAs. By Wednesday afternoon, PSSAs were finished (yay!) and we were back to having a more 'normal' schedule. This included a PAWS Meeting (where we got a Camp update) and an Earth Day Celebration.

In ELA, we are working hard to complete the final units of the semester. One group is doing a book study together and a few other groups are nearing the finish line, too. These groups will be completing a non-fiction study for the last few weeks. In Writing, we only have two units left: Figurative Language and Poetry. We are excited to explore these types of writing.

On Friday morning, we had a school-wide PAWS meeting. At this meeting, Mrs. Zimmerman gave us a Camp Read S'More update: we have completed 67% of our reading goal we set close to the beginning of the year. We only have three weeks left to reach 100% and send Mr. Youcheff to camp ... so keep reading! With this update, three more teachers were sent to camp, two from our Vertical Team. Mrs. Hummel and I have been sent to Camp...!! We also played a game at our PAWS meeting: pass the "Earth" safely through the line. This was a great game of teamwork!

We had our Earth Day celebration on Friday afternoon. Thanks to the great planning and organization from our wonderful room moms, it was a great time! We planted succulents, made slime, and enjoyed a delicious snack.

Question of the Week: Write a short paragraph using imagery (one of the figurative language devices we've talked about!) describing something you did over the weekend.

PSSAs and Other Updates!

Week 1 of PSSAs is complete! Students all worked very hard during the PSSAs and are all finished with the ELA portion. Next, they take the math PSSA ... then they're done! Just two days left of testing!

After having off on Monday, we will have PSSAs on Tuesday and Wednesday, a normal day on Thursday, and Friday is our Earth Day celebration! It will start with a PAWS Meeting in the morning and end with a party in the afternoon. Our room moms are planning a lot of great activities, so stay tuned!

In the spirit of looking ahead, we only have 30 more school days...! Included in that 30 days are a lot of fun events like the 6th-grade Event, Track Meet, and Move the Pride. It's going to go fast! We are still trying to fill the "Shelf"ie wall, so keep reading!

Question of the Week: What was the best part of your long weekend?

A Quick "Shelf"ie Update!

Our "Shelf"ie continues to grow ...! We are approaching the end of the school year (crazy ... I know!) and still have some shelves to fill, so keep reading!

Career Day, "Shelf"ie Progress, and More!

Our week started with Career Day, which was a great way to kick off the week! Students were able to listen to two presentations from the careers of their choice. Speakers talked about their journey to their current career and the importance of reading and writing in all careers (even ones you'd think it wouldn't be a big part of the job). My dad came in to share about maintaining the golf course at Manheim Township and other speakers included engineers, electricians, construction workers, and nurses. It was a great day! Mrs. Kessel did a spectacular job organizing these wonderful presentations.

In Workshop, students are moving through the non-fiction units. As we approach the end of the year, we are focusing on applying all the skills we've learned to authentic reading. Hopefully, many groups will be able to participate in a book study (or something similar) soon!

In Writing, we are working on our argumentative essays. Students are creating some good arguments! After these essays, we will be digging into figurative language and poetry.

To end our week, we had some last-minute schedule changes, so one class did a reader's theater together. This is always a fun way to practice our fluency! Especially when it is a Dr. Seuss book!

Our "Shelf"ie continues to fill up ... we only have about 2 months left to fill it, so keep reading!

Earth Day is April 22 and we will be celebrating on April 26! Please continue sending in 2-liter soda bottles for one of our stations.

Question of the Week: What is one thing you learned at career day?