Ms. Green's Classroom by Sara Green

A Block (Writing)

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:41 UTC

Collaborative norms, will be posted here

C Block (Writing)

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:41 UTC

Collaborative norms, will be posted here

D Block (Writing)

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:41 UTC

Collaborative norms, will be posted here

Bell Ringers

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:42 UTC

Each class starts with a 5-10 minute bell-ringer located in the back of the classroom. When you enter the classroom, quietly grab a bell ringer from the back cart. Additional directions will be spoken or written on the board. The bell ringer time is quiet time and meant to help you become ready for learning.

Pencil Garden/ Challenge

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:42 UTC

Imagine you are a middle school teacher, teaching writing for goodness sakes, and half the class approaches you at the start of class and says, "Can I have a pencil?" You would run out of pencils before you knew it, and you'd be very frustated! This is why Ms. Green has created the Pencil Garden. Take a scenic drive down the Italian countryside and find your very own pencil in it's case. You are given a pencil at the start of the school year. At the start of class you are to retrieve your pencil from the garden, and at the end of class you are to return it. Every day 6, Ms. Green will check who still has their original pencil, and the students who do will receive 1 GreenCoin.

GreenCoin

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:42 UTC

While Ms. Green does give out red tickets that can be redeemed at the school store, she also gives out Green tickets (GreenCoin). Green tickets can only be redeemed at the Green Store for special prizes that she has hand selected.

You cannot ask for GreenCoin. However, you will be given 5 GreenCoin if you are the Star Student. You will be given 1-2 GreenCoin for other postive demonstations of your class' norms.

GreenCoin cannot be taken away. Though, if you lose your earned GreenCoin, you will not be reimbursed. You can come by the Green Store at flex, but if Ms. Green is busy working with a student, you may be asked to come by at a later time.

CFAs

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:42 UTC

A CFA is a quick way to measure where each student is with their reading and writing progress. There are usually 3 per unit. They informal and not be stressed over! You might not know you are taking a CFA-- this is why it's important to always try your best!

Pre-Assessments

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:42 UTC

A Pre Assessment is taken at the beginning of the unit to see how much you know about upcoming ELA concepts before they are taught. They are not graded, but they are important information for your teacher-- especially so they can see your progress!

"Blink your chromebooks"

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:43 UTC

You’ll hear me say this all year. This means, shut your chromebook immediately for a temporary pause.

"Productive Struggle"

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:43 UTC

Productive Struggle is pushing past difficulties and challenges even when we feel some discomfort.

Productive Struggle can look like:

Deep breathing and grounding techniques
Reflecting on (even writing) what you are finding difficult
Brainstorming solutions or making a word web
Looking for clues: Are there recent class activities, films, or powerpoints you can review to help you with your work?
Breaking a task into small parts
And more!

Attention Getters

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:16:43 UTC

Raising of the hand (silent)
If Ms. Green is raising her hand, it means a transition is about to happen and she needs your attention. You must also end your side conversations and quietly raise your hands. It does not mean you are doing anything wrong. It just cues your attention.
"If you can hear me clap once...."
If you hear Ms. Green say this, she is trying to get your attention in a noisy classroom. Likely, she has already tried the hand motion. You must immediately stop what you're doing and follow directions without talking.

Post-Assessments/ Summatives

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:32:31 UTC

Summatives take place at the end of each unit. They are worth 30% of your grade on PowerSchool. If you work hard in class, complete your assignments, and ask for help when you need it, your summative won't come to you as a shock at all! (Ms. Green isn't evil-- She wants you to succeed!)

Binder Layout

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 22:50:02 UTC

Binders should be kept in the classroom in your mailbox!

Writing:

Folder: Current Writing (to be continued...)

Section 1: Writing Conference Materials

Section 2: Workbook (if applicable)

Section 3: Grammar

Section 4: Timeline (includes infographics, interactive journaling, group and returned work)

Reading:

Folder: Current Reading Work (to be continued...)

Section 1: Reading Conference Materials (Reading Responses)

Section 2: Workbook (if applicable)

Section 3: Timeline (includes infographics, interactive journaling, group and returned work)

The Great Paradox of Writing is...

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 23:01:32 UTC

"The Great Paradox of Writing is that the more specific someting is, the more universal it becomes."

Need to Know Terms:

Paradox: a statement or situation that contradicts itself or seems illogical, yet upon closer examination, may reveal a deeper truth

Universal: of, affecting, or done by all people or things in the world

Oh, this may be my FAVORITE of the writing rules yet. You would think that a simple statement such as “High School was really difficult for me” would affect everyone because it’s general and the most amount of people can relate to something the broader it is. NOT true in creative writing! If someone says

“I ate lunch every day in the nurse’s office” or, “I faked Hay Fever just to miss a week of High School” even if you never had these experiences, they evoke more in the you than the blanket statement.

Are you thinking “That can’t be true. That was a magic trick.” ? Okay, here’s another. “I loved her so much it hurt.” Seems like something everyone can relate to, so why wouldn’t that be effective in creative writing more so than a specific story? Well, look:

“I loved her so much I knew the longitude and latitude of each of her freckles. I could pinpoint her beauty marks from space” or

“I rode my bike past her house every day and hoped she’d be outside doing anything. Watering flowers, picking up the newspaper.”

SEE? The more specific, the more universal. Really astounding. So BE SPECIFIC. Get down to the nitty-gritty with those gorgeous details, writers! You own the details of your life. No one else can use them but you. Don’t waste your writing on the ordinary. Never ever be vague.

F Block (Reading)

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 23:05:15 UTC

Collaborative norms, will be posted here

G Block (Reading)

sgreen321 — 2025-08-11 23:05:47 UTC

Collaborative norms, will be posted here