READING CLASSROOM
About the Instructor
My name is Jaclyn (Jackie) Freeman and I am the new Reading teacher for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade. I am a certified teacher who graduated from Alma College in Alma, Michigan. I have a major in History and minors in Sociology and American studies. Alma College is a small liberal arts college focused on creating an interconnected curriculum. My hometown is North Branch, Michigan; which is a small farming community of about 1,000. I have a deep passion for teaching and learning and look forward to partnering with you this year to provide the best education possible for the students.
My teaching mission statement is:
I will empower students with knowledge to build respect and understanding of both themselves and their worlds.
I am very excited to be working here at Red Cloud and have already learned quite a lot from this experience. Please feel free to contact me with any questions. My email is: jfreeman@redcloudschool.org; you may also contact me through the Middle School.
Curriculum
For the Middle School students, Reading Class makes up half of the Language Arts Curriculum. Students work on reading books both as a class and in small groups, working on comprehension which including increasing background knowledge, making predictions, questioning, visualizing and increasing vocabulary.
The classes are beginning with a review of literary elements, so that they understand setting, character and plot. Some of the books the students will be reading this year are different from the past.
Book Recommendations
| BOOK TITLE |
AUTHOR |
| A Series of Unfortunate Events (series) |
Lemony Snicket |
| Abarat |
Clive Barker |
| Because of Winn-Dixie |
Kate DiCamillo |
| Brian's Winter |
Gary Paulson |
| Bud not Buddy |
Christopher Paul Curtis |
| Captain Underpants (series) |
Dave Pilkey |
| Charlie Bone Books |
Jenny Nimmo |
| Eleven |
Patricia Reilly Giff |
| Gimme a Kiss |
Christopher Pike |
| Goosebumps |
R. L. Stine |
| Hades |
Adele Richardson |
| Hank the Cowdog |
John R. Erickson |
| Harry Potter (series) |
J.K. Rowling |
| Holes |
Louis Sachar |
| Jelly Belly |
Robert Kimmel Smith |
| Lilly's Crossing |
Patricia Reilly Giff |
| Locked in Time |
Lois Duncan |
| Lord of the Rings Trilogy |
J.R.R. Tolkein |
| Michael Jordan |
Richard Brenner |
| Number the Stars |
Lois Lowery |
| Ransom |
Lois Duncan |
| Rumble Fish |
S.E. Hinton |
| Shiloh Phyllis |
Reynolds Naylor |
| Soldier Boys |
Dean Hughes |
| Spiderwick Chronicles (series) |
Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi |
| Tangerine |
Edward Bloor |
| The BFG |
Roald Dahl |
| The Black Stallion |
Walter Farley |
| The Boxer |
Charlotte Wilcox |
| The Contender |
Robert Lipsyte |
| The Golden Compass |
Philip Pullman |
| The Heartland Series |
Lauren Brooke |
| The Hobbit |
J.R.R. Tolkein |
| The Killer Angels |
Michael Shaara |
| The Chronicles of Narnia |
C.S. Lewis |
| The Mississippi Bridge |
Mildred D. Taylor |
| The Other Side of Dark |
Joan Lowery Nixon |
| The Watsons go to Birmingham |
Christopher Paul Curtis |
| Wait till Helen Comes |
Mary Downing Hahn |
| Where the Sidewalk Ends |
Shel Silverstein |
| Joan Lowery Nixon books |
|
| Lois Duncan books |
|
| John Belairs books |
|
