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Language Arts

The Language Arts team at Wellington Middle School believes that reading, writing, and communicating is an essential skill that every student can master.  We embrace the workshop model that gives students a choice in what they read and write.  We strongly believe that in giving students choice in what they read and write, we help to instill a passion for reading that grows as they grow.

Our Beliefs on Writing and Reading
  • Writing needs to be taught like any other basic skill, with explicit instruction and ample opportunity for practice. 

  • Students deserve to write for real, to write the kinds of texts that they see in the world--nonfiction, chapter books, persuasive letters, stories, lab reports, reviews, poems--and to write for an audience of readers, not just for the teacher's red pen.

  • Writers write to put meaning onto the page. Young people will especially invest themselves in their writing if they write about subjects that are important to them. 

  • Children deserve to be explicitly taught how to write.  Instruction matters, and this includes instruction in spelling and conventions, as well as in the qualities and strategies of good writing.

  • Students deserve the opportunity and instruction necessary for them to cycle through the writing process as they write: rehearsing, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing their writing.

  • Writers read. For children to write well, they need opportunities to read and hear texts read, and to read as insiders, studying what other authors have done that they, too, could try.

  • Students deserve clear goals and frequent feedback. They need to hear ways their writing is getting better and to know what their next steps might be.

-Units of Study, Essentials of Writing Instruction 

Courses
  • All students will take English 6, 7, and 8.  Each level has a PreAP option.  PreAP is embedded at the 6th and 7th grade levels and is a separate class in 8th grade.

  • Many elective options that include:

    • Drama

    • Creative Writing

    • TV Production/Mass Media

    • Yearbook

    • Reading Intervention

    • English Language Development

We LOVE to Read!
Teacher Favorite Book(s) in Middle School
Mr. Todd Genson Watership Down
Ms. Sasha Gore Harry Potter Series
Mr. Luke Hughes Pendragon Series
Ms. Molly Walker Diary of Anne Frank & To Kill a Mockingbird
Ms. Nicole Orswell Island of Blue DolphinsWhere the Red Fern Grows, anything by Judy Blume, Little House on the Prairie Series, and The Outsiders
Ms. Wendy White Any and all Choose Your Own Adventure Books
Ms. Kate Zittergruen Where the Red Fern Grows

 

PSD does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, veteran status, age or disability in access or admission to, or treatment or employment in, its programs or activities. A lack of English speaking skills will not be a barrier to admission or participation.