Mrs. Needle - Norwell Public Schools

WELCOME TO
SEVENTH GRADE
ENGLISH

CONTACT INFORMATION
• EMAIL: julie.needle@norwellschools.org
• SCHOOL WEBSITE:
www.norwellschools.org
• Find teacher pages and click. The team
websites are there under team pages.
• AR WEBSITE:
www.hosted147/renlearn.com/8473
• You can check AR titles, student quiz
scores, and print quiz grade reports here.
• AR BOOK FINDER:
www.arbookfind.com
You can read summaries, search by genre,
and choose your novels here.
• ROOM: 216
• PHONE: 781-659-8814 ext. 4216
• LATE NIGHT: WEDNESDAY
• BEST WAY TO CONTACT ME: EMAIL

Additional Information
• An AR letter went home today explaining
the procedures for outside reading. Please
read this and email any further questions.
• This presentation can be downloaded and
printed from your home computer through
the school’s website on my webpage.

x2
• This year I am going to open my x2 grades.
• It is important that you read my grading policy so
you understand and are aware of my system. Most
of you have signed this policy already.
• I have 100 students so items will not be posted right
away. I will post about every 2 weeks.
• If you have questions on a grade, speak with your
student first, then contact the teacher.

GRADES
Students will be graded on homework (20%), classwork, participation, and
cooperation(10%), Independent Reading quizzes (5%), grammar (20%), vocabulary
(10%), literature/reading comprehension (10%), projects (15%), writing (20%).
These will be averaged together for a final grade. Students may ask about missing
or low work at any time. There are occasional opportunities for extra credit.

HOMEWORK
I assign homework Monday-Thursday, I try not to assign homework on
weekends. I view the weekend as a chance for students to catch up on
Accelerated Reader novels, work on long term projects and writing
assignments, and to make up any missing work.
The students are expected to bring their agendas everyday. I spend 5-7
minutes explaining homework and allowing students time to copy
homework into the agenda. Students may use the homework board, the
running agenda I keep on my shelf, and the homework webpage. Many of
this year’s activities can be printed directly from the website if needed.
Homework is expected to be done efficiently, neatly, and to the best of the
student’s ability.
When absent, students may use the LOG FOLDERS to check missing work.
The students ask questions of the log keeper first, then the teacher if
clarification is needed.
I will keep a YOU OWE ME WALL for the month September, starting
October 1, 2011 I will use homework slip EMAILS (a one day grace period),
and starting after Thanksgiving (November 28, 2011), students must have
their homework the day it is due or it can be turned in one day late for some
credit. After one day late all homework will be a zero. Exceptions can be
made if there is a family situation or other issue preventing a student from
completing an assignment. Please make aware of any issues via EMAIL.

MCAS
• MCAS will be scheduled between March 20th and April
2, 2012.
• Tests include Long Composition (March 20, 2012) where
students will write a five paragraph essay on a given
prompt.
• Tests also include Language and Literature taken over
three days. Students will read short selections and
answer multiple choice questions and short answer
questions.
• We will work on these skills throughout the year.
• Check www.doe.mass.edu for examples to practice.

Curriculum
READING
Short Stories:
• “Miss Awful” Arthur Cavanaugh
• “After Twenty Years” O. Henry
“Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” Rudyard Kipling

MORE CURRICULUM
• Plays:
• “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” Mark Twain
• “The Monkey’s Paw” W.W. Jacobs
• “The Necklace” Guy de Maupassant
• “The Tell-Tale Heart” Edgar Allan Poe
• “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” Washington Irving
• Novels:
• The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Mark Twain
• The Contender
Robert Lipsyte
• Poetry:
• Various selections and creative writing

WRITING GRAMMAR VOCABULARY
VOCABULARY:
Assigned on Mondays, practiced
throughout the week, quizzes
online on Fridays
Practice games are linked to
teacher pages on the school
website.
WRITING:
This year’s main focus. Writing on
the computer using word
processing is best for
assignments. Always use 12
font, times new roman, double
spacing. Our main focus will be
five paragraph essays based on
MCAS writing prompts.
GRAMMAR:
The main focus this year is
learning the usage of all parts
of speech. Other topics will be
taken the frameworks and
includes the study of
mechanics, usage, and
sentence structure.

FUN FACTS
• Every term there will be a “MCASH” raffle. Students will earn raffle
tickets by doing their homework and receiving stamps for the
assignments. I will draw between 5 and 10 raffle tickets each term and
small increment giftcard prizes will be awarded at lunch.
• If you would like to donate to the raffle,
please let me know.
• Chi Chi and Charlie are my chihuahuas and the mascots of the
classroom. Each day, as a classroom opener “the dogs” ask the
students to perform a task. It is a fun and creative way to get class
started and make students’ transition from class to class a smooth and
stress free experience.