Students told their stories through their personal playlists. Now, we begin reading stories from others. 

We discussed why we tell stories, including to entertain, inform, persuade, and share morals/lessons of a culture. 

Seventh and eighth grade began our literature unit with an excerpt titled “Learning to Read and Write” from Frederick Douglass’ autobiography with the goal of gaining appreciation for and of our own literacy while sixth grade jumped into our short story unit with a fun story about a boy named Laurie starting kindergarten. (If you have a sixth grader, ask them about the plot twist at the end of the story!) 

Eighth-grade read and discussed connections to a story about an eighth-grade girl’s dilemma in earning her scholarship jacket; all middle schoolers will finish the week dissecting a story about a girl who navigates moving around the globe for her dad’s work. 

With these stories, we’re practicing our summarizing skills, expanding our vocabulary, and diving deeper into the various elements of fiction writing.