Morning Tasks - no brainer list
important fyi
As we go through the year, we will learn a LOT about English grammar. But it is a journey. We will learn new things slowly, step by step.
There are 3 categories that affect how the Morning Task is graded.
FREEBIE:
Something might be new. The Morning Task gives us time to discuss and practice new things. If something is new, the only thing I ask is that the students at least TRY to do it. But it will NEVER drop their grade. I usually write "freebie" right beside it so that you know.
WE KNOW ABOUT THIS BUT WE'RE PRACTICING AND IMPROVING:
These are concepts that we have learned and are continuing to practice. It is normal to still make mistakes here and there. But they will be held accountable.
NO BRAINERS:
These are concepts that we have repeated so, so, so many times that at this point there is no excuse to keep making mistakes on them. They will be held accountable. We may want to meet in order to figure out how to support the student if s/he is continuing to have a lot of difficulty with these concepts.
the list will grow
As we go through the year, I will add to the No Brainer list. For example, at the beginning of the year we were learning how to write the date on the letter correctly. But 4 weeks later this should be easy. Then it moves into the No Brainer category. When you look at graded Morning Tasks that go home, the most important thing to check are these things. It is normal to make mistakes, but No Brainers are something we have done so much, it should be automatic to do correctly. So, if you see a lot of these mistakes, it is important to go over them with your child. We all make mistakes, but we should be showing growth.
no brainers:
1. Capital letters at beginning of sentences.
2. Periods/end marks at the end of all sentences.
3. Spelling: All hard words will ALWAYS be spelled correctly. So all they need to do is copy the words. Any misspelled words are from the current No Excuse Words assigned throughout the year. Or, they are considered easy words that the students learned in primary grades.
4. Write the date correctly. Example: Oct. 22, 2025
5. Write the opening correctly. Examples: Dear Students, or Dear Class,
6. Write the closing correctly. Examples: Sincerely, or Yours truly,
7. Drop my name so it is under the "Sincerely" part, and of course it should be capitalized correctly.
8. Indent at the beginning of the letter.
9. Proper nouns are capitalized.
10. If it is a question, it needs a question mark, not a period.