Mrs. Schickler's Info Page

GENERAL INFORMATION

Another New Beginning!

Updated for 2007-2008

Welcome to Mrs. Schickler's Web Page and welcome back to school! I know that we all wish summer vacation were just a little longer, but remember that attitude is everything and that a Positive Mental Attitude (PMA) can make all the difference in the world when it comes to learning.

Keep in mind at all times that You Are Who You Choose To Be! Everything in life is a choice. It is the choices that we make that determine who we are – successes or failures, happy or sad, healthy or sickly, etc. Make the right choices and you’ll achieve your dreams! Our theme this year is setting goals and achieving them. I hope that a strong PMA will bring everyone a great year!

While it is up to you to choose who you want to be, there are still restrictions on our own personal choices, and that is because we have to consider the other people in our lives. Your family and friends have to have the right to choose as well, and part of our choices is considering the happiness and rights of others.

WHAT'S NEW FOR THIS YEAR?

While keeping in mind that idea of choice, you have to remember that you are choosing for your future. What you learn today will affect your whole life. As the knight told Indiana Jones, "Choose wisely!" Besides, learning is fun and subjects like reading can take you to new places and give you new experiences that you might otherwise never have! Harry Potter has taken me to a magical place and shown me things that I never imaged could exist! Real or not, it was fun to go to Hogwarts with Harry. Lots of books are like that. Math skills give you an advantage in a very competitive world. Knowledge of how the world works and the history of the world’s people will help you make those “wise” decisions that will move your life in the direction you want.

Remember that English and compositions grades have been combined into one grade. This means that failure to complete compositions or failure to do your best will result in a lower English grade. Please keep this in mind as you work this year. It will be equally important to complete compositions and to study the grammar lessons in order to earn a grade with which you will be happy. But also keep in mind that learning is what is important, not grades! If you are doing your best, that’s enough!

For those in seventh grade reading, we will be continuing our literature circles program along with our regular text work. Every month we will read a selection of novels (don't worry, one per person!) that are related by genre or theme. We should have a lot of fun discussing the books and discovering what they mean to us. We will work in small groups (4-6 people) for a one or two week period. You will have the opportunity to choose which book you will read, as well as the opportunity to try different approaches to working within the group. There will be more on this later. I am looking forward to seeing your creativity and hearing your opinions about the various titles and authors you’ll be reading. We will also be working in reading groups depending on your reading confidence. Those who find reading easy and can work on their own will be allowed to do so. Those who need a little help from the teacher will work in one group, and those who like a lot of help from the teacher will be in a third group. This will require a great deal of cooperation on your part. We will be reading and sharing a great deal this year and it will be fun!

For more information about what to expect in the seventh grade or sixth grade and eighth grade English, link to one of the following: