Dear parents,
Hello, I am Jennifer Shulman and I would like to introduce myself as the new Language Arts teacher at Greenwood for grades 4th-8th. I began working at the school last spring as a substitute and occasional English block teacher. This year I will be teaching two periods a week for each grade and continuing their education within the Language Arts and poetry curriculum.
During the year we will cover many elements of English, including reading and comprehension, literary analysis (upper grades), discussion, anecdotal and critical writing, topic sentence/thesis statement, spelling, grammar, vocabulary, elements of poetry, and oral presentations. The individual units will be thematic, concentrating on various central ideas, and will hopefully lead the students towards a larger conceptual understanding of literature, language, and themselves.
I have detailed the thematic units and a sampling of materials below. Obviously, there is a great deal of material and specifics that are not included here, so please feel free to contact me anytime with questions or concerns. I am always available to discuss your child’s progress throughout the year and look forward to connecting with all of you at some point soon.
Sincerely, Jennifer
jennifer@greenwoodschool.org
Grade 4
Unit: The Fairy Tale
Themes: Good vs. Evil, Essential Human Truths, Jealousy, Happiness, Class Systems, Transformation
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
The Fairy Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley
Grimm’s Fairy Tales
Unit: Life with Animals
Themes: Loyalty, Unconditional Love, Animal Integrity, Unique Friendships, Compassion, Varying Perspectives
Charlotte’s Web by EB White
The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden
Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Unit: Family Life & ME
Themes: Identity, Overcoming Obstacles, Autonomy, Unity, Personal Growth
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor
Esperanza Rising by Pam Munoz Ryan
Enrichment & Skills:
Grammar (commas, verb agreement, possessives, punctuation, compound sentence writing, dialogue)
Vocabulary (contextual)
Spelling (regular testing)
Poetry (writing, reading, comprehension)
Poetry Enrichment:
Elementary
Reflection on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle
Truth and Lies: An Anthology of Poems
