Welcome, parents and friends, to Ms. V'Marie's Language Arts class!  This website feature students at Flagstaff Middle School in Flagstaff, Arizona.  All the work displayed on this site was completed in and out of our fourth period class between January and May 2006.

We're part of the NASA/TELC team, where we have small classes, the same two core teachers, and stick together through eighth grade, too.  We have a strong focus on math and science and try to incorporate technology whenever we can.  We like to look at the big picture and integrate all subject areas into our units.

Posted on this website are pieces each student feels proud of and had choice in selecting it to represent their work throughout the semester. 

Bottle Rockets are being launched FRIDAY April 21.  Come and cheer on the egg astronauts!

For those students who were interested in the G.R.E.A.T summer camp program, I got this information from the city of Flagstaff website (http://www.flagstaff.az.gov/index.asp?NID=530).

GREAT Summer Component

• The GREAT summer camp component is a collaborative effort involving the police department, Citizens Against Substance Abuse, the Arizona National Guard Drug Demand Reduction Program and the United States Department of Justice.  It is intended to serve as a follow-up for the nine week GREAT curriculum offered in the seventh grade.  The ten day camp is designed to offer students opportunities to enhance their social skills, make students aware of positive alternatives to gang involvement, and add fun and structure to the participant’s summer vacations.
• Two camps of 30 students each were conducted in 2004.  Various classroom and outdoor activities were combined to offer a fun and educational environment.  Students learned team building concepts, confidence building and community awareness.  Some of the outdoor field trips included the NAU High Ropes Challenge Course, a two day, one-night stay at the NAU Centennial Forest, a full day of rafting on the Colorado River, a field trip to the Phoenix Science Center, and a full day at a Phoenix water park as a reward for successfully completing the program.

GREAT Parenting Component

• A workshop was held for the parents of the GREAT summer camp students and parents of children who were involved or at risk of becoming involved with criminal or gang activity.  Public service announcements on local television and radio stations and in the newspaper helped advertise the workshop.  More than 90 parents of GREAT campers and other community members attended this highly successful seminar.  The presenter was motivational speaker Calvin Tyrell, representing a Phoenix-based company called Social Centric.  He conducted a group exercise designed to break down barriers, a segment on the awareness and appreciation of cultural diversity, setting your child up for construction or destruction, and a visualization exercise.  Mr. Tyrell’s instructional blocks were followed by a lunch hosted by the Flagstaff Police Department, after which parents were allowed to register their students for a GREAT summer camp.

Hello!

I am going to be teaching your student through April (at least).  I am required by NAU Secondary English Education department to be in the classroom for 16 weeks.  I spent 100+ hours last semester getting to know the kids, and I've started teaching everything in English class since January 2.  Grades have been updated every week, so your student should have a very clear idea of how well s/he is doing!

NAU prepared me to teach by requiring several important English classes.  I've taken: Shakespeare, British Literature, American Literature, American Short Stories, The Story of English, Native American Literature, Composition 1, Creative Fiction Writing, Creative Non-Fiction Writing, Poetry Writing, and Grammar and Usage.

I've also taken quite a few methods classes: How to Teach Middle School English, How to Teach High School English, How to Teach Secondary School English, How to Teach Writing, and How to Teach Poetry and Reading.

I was part of an integrated Education program that included classes reguarding curriculum, assessment, special needs, and literacy.  I also took Educational Psychology.

I feel that I am coming into this classroom very well prepared and have high hopes for your student!  We are going to touch on units about Projecting Voice, Censorship (Fahrenheit 451), Historical Fiction, Poetry, Literature Circles, and Writing Workshops.  I will be sending newsletters out before every unit letting you know what we're going to be talking about, and giving you the option to read along with us!

Please contact me with any questions: mistystarvmarie@hotmail.com or at school: 773-8192.