Wednesday, December 16

Today we finished A Christmas Carol.

Tomorrow you will have your final essay. You will have one period to write it in class. Here are the directions you will receive tomorrow. I've included a planning guide to help you organize your ideas.

You may use your book, your notes, the Passages Leading to Theme document and your Christmas Carol assignment to help you.

Here are the essay frames for each passage:

* Each Person has the Power to do the Right Thing
* It is Both a Privilege and a Duty to Make the World a Better Place
* Love is More Important than Financial Success
* Money Can't Buy Happiness
* Not Caring About Others Can Ruin Your Life
* Society's Evils Are Largely the Work of Humans

Good luck tomorrow.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Periods 1, 3, 6

Your DoNow video is due on Friday.
You must upload the video to the KQED Dropbox folder at this link: http://bit.ly/1Os2ptu

Good luck and have fun.

Monday, December 14

Today we will finish reading Stave III. Any of the stave that we do not finish in class will be homework along with the questions for Stave III. You can also begin reading Stave IV. Stave IV should be finished on Wednesday when we come to class. You will have a quiz on Staves III and IV on Wed.

Week at a Glance:

Monday- HW: Finish Stave III and questions - Due Tuesday
                Stave IV should be completed by Wednesday
Tuesday -Watch Stave III and IV
                HW: Finish reading Stave IV and complete the questions and vocabulary - Due Wednesday
Wednesday-Quiz on Staves III & IV
                Read Stave V and answer questions
                Essay on Thursday in class
Thursday - In-class essay

Christmas card and Descriptive Book

 Turn in
        Thursday or Friday 12/17 or 12/18 for 10 bonus points
        Tuesday 1/5 for 5 bonus points
        Friday 1/8 for full credit
        (We will not work on this in class after this week)
     
           

Wednesday, Dec. 9

We are watching Stave I. You may begin reading Stave II. It should be finished by Friday. We will have a quiz on Friday.

Don't forget to tag passages as you read.

Tuesday, December 8

A Christmas Carol

We are beginning the novel today.

In Class:
Read Stave I

HW: 

• Finish Stave I
• Answer questions that are located on the Christmas Carol Assignment Sheet.

Remember that you should be looking for:

• passages that describe setting, character, or mood and emotion, depending on your number
• passages that describe your theme
• and passages that could be used in a Christmas card.

The audio is available here if you would like to continue to follow along with the reading.

Friday, December 4

Happy Friday!
We are doing an Article of the Week this week. You will NOT be putting this on your journal. You do need to turn it in. If you did not complete it in class, it is homework.

December 3

We are wrapping up the Christmas Carol Adventure today. If you have not finished, it is homework tonight.

Tuesday, December 1

Today we started the Christmas Carol Adventure in groups. This is due on Friday when you come to class.

Monday, November 30

Welcome back!!!

I hope you all had a relaxing vacation.

Congratulations! Today is the last day for NaNoWriMo. Hopefully you found this a fun and worthwhile experience.

In class, you will choose one short excerpt from your novel to revise to perfection and turn in for a grade. Details coming soon. In the meantime, even though we've finished writing, feel free to continue to write on your own. I will give you some options on how to get published.

Here is what you need to do to wrap up NaNoWriMo:

• Fill out this form. Do forget to "mark as done" in Google Classroom. This is due by 8:30 tomorrow (Tuesday) morning.
• Turn in the Conflict Chart to Google Classroom TONIGHT by 10:00 pm
• Turn in the Character Questionnaires to Google Classroom TONIGHT by 10:00 pm

Optional:

You may sign up for NaNoWrimo to officially enter into the competition. You have until 11:59 pm tonight to enter your word count and verify word counts with a copy of your novel. Details available online.

Today's Agenda

• Please copy the contents of this document to your journal. Select All, copy, paste to journal.
• Combine the sentences for Monday only.
• Final day to write for NaNoWrimo.

Tuesday, November 17

We are now a little over half way finished with NaNoWriMo. Hopefully you are happy with your progress so far. Continue to write. The last day of writing will be Monday, November 30. At that time, you should be at your word count goal. Good luck.

Thursday, November 12

Today we will do our last 8 pARTS practice before our quiz on Friday. After you finish your chart you can write until everyone is finished.

Today we will talk about falling action and resolution. 

Tomorrow we will have our 8pArts quiz

Tuesday, November 10

Reality Check

How is your book coming along? We are nearly half-way through the month. If you have a goal of 8000 words, you should be at around 3-4000 words by now.

In other news, we will have another 8pARTS grammar test on Friday.  Have a great Wednesday off. Don't come to school. No one will be here.

Tuesday, November 3

Today we worked on conflict. Once you have filled out the form for internal and external conflict, you have the rest of the period to write. I will share the spreadsheet with all of you tonight so you can see what other students are doing for their conflict.

Be sure to mark as done when you finish.

Tomorrow we will work on plot.

Monday, November 2

We are officially into day 2 of NaNoWriMo. Have you begun. Remember you have your first milestone tomorrow.

Tomorrow we will talk about conflict. In order to discuss and work on conflict, you need to know all about your protagonist and antagonist. Please have your character questionnaire for both ready to go tomorrow, so we can move on.

Wednesday October 28

Friendly reminder: Your story is due today. You must submit it to get credit. If it is not turned in by tonight, it is late.

Please bring your favorite novel to school with you tomorrow.

You must have an independent reading book by Monday.

Monday Oct 26

1st period essays due tomorrow. All other classes are due on Wed.

Friday, October 23

Take your 8 parts test. After that you will work on your group revisions. We are shooting for Tuesday turn in of the 6 Second Story. Regardless, you will have a day to finish any revisions before turning in your paper. We will go over MLA format and the way I want you to turn in the final copy on Monday.

Have a great weekend.

Tuesday, October 20

After we finish 8 pARTS, you will have time to work on your 6-Second Stories. You should have a draft revised, edited and ready to go tomorrow. We will do peer editing tomorrow and Thursday if we need more time.

Homework:

Wed. - Revised and edited story for peer review
Thursday - final draft is due on Friday. Details will be given in class.
Friday - Quiz on 8 pARTS. Final story due. MLA format. You will turn in the whole assignment to Google Classroom + your editing checklist.

Tech Tip of the Week: 

SAS Writing Advisor is a free Google Add-on that helps with sentence structure. It is a great tool to use after you are all finished editing and revising, yet before you turn it in.

Journal Entries

Here are the journal entries we've done so far through 10/16.

Monday, October 19

Today we begin the 8 pARTS of speech practice. We will practice with warm-ups all week and you will have an assessment (quiz) on Friday. If you practice thoroughly all week, then the quiz will be easy. The forms are available in Google Classroom, please open for the appropriate day.

Wednesday: Peer Editing. Come with your edited, ready to turn in 6 second story. We will peer edit in groups.

Homework: 

Edit and revise 6 second draft - Due Wednesday. 

Final Due Friday.

Friday, October 16

Today we continue to write. You should be finished with your draft, but you will have most of the period to write some more. We will go over the editing checklist. The editing checklist should be used once you've edited and revised as much as you can on your own.
Tuesday we will revise in class.

Final Six-Second Story is due on Wednesday.

Crazy PSAT Day

6 sec story drafts are due tomorrow. But remember, this is just a draft so they don't need to be perfect, just complete.

Wed. October 14

Today, after we look at some examples in class, you will have the period to write. Drafts are due Friday. Tomorrow you will have the entire period to write, however, I will not see some of you because of the PSAT.

Homework:

Continue to work on your story. You should write for at least 15 uninterrupted minutes tonight. Continue to write tomorrow as well.

Draft Due Friday

Tuesday, October 13

Warm-Up:
Socrative Challenge
Open up Socrative and complete the challenge assignment.


Six-Second Story
Today we start writing our six-second story. Before we write, will look carefully at the rubric and pay particular attention to the beginning. Be prepared to share opening on Wed.

Draft is Due Friday
Editing Friday
Peer Editing - Monday
Final Story Due Wednesday. 10/20

Homework:

15 minutes (or more) of uninterrupted writing tonight.

Monday, Oct. 12

You have an article of the week this week.

Read NASA says Future Astronauts Will Likely Have Drinking Water There by The Washington Post.

Paragraph 1:

In the article "___(Article Title)___", The Washington Post (author) argues/claims/contends that ______(Main Idea)____. According to the article, ____(Evidence 1)________. This shows/explains/___ because/I think ______(how/why does evidence support the claim)__________. In addition, The Washington Post ___(Author)_____ states/claims/discusses/suggests __(Evidence 2)___.  This shows/explains/___ because/I think ______(how/why does evidence support the claim)__________. Also, ___The Washington Post (Author)_____  claims/suggests/states/discusses ______(Evidence 3)____. This shows/explains/___because/I think ______(how/why does evidence support the claim)__________. 

Paragraph 2:
Write a paragraph on your thoughts and feelings about the article. You should use evidence from the article to support your ideas.

When you finish, please complete your book review (on the group book club document, under your name) and your book club reflection in your journal (the book club reflection comes before AoW #5).

Homework:

Finish whatever is not finished in class.

Friday, October 9

Today is the big book club discussion.

After you discussion you have three things to complete:

1. Group Summary - Written on the group book club doc.

Somebody
Wanted
But
So
Then


2. Under your name in the group book club doc, write a book recommendation for this book.

3. In your writing journal,
Title: 10/9 - Book Club Summary

Summarize your book club conversation.
What did you learn? What did your group do well? What do they need to work on?
What did you personally do well?  What do you personally want to work on?

Overall, what did you like best about the book club? What would you like to see change?

Please finish and have ready to turn in on Monday. We are moving on.

Thursday, October 8

Today we are going to take a walk....a photo walk. We will be posting to Twitter at  #nicholsla. Write your very best, descriptive show, don't tell sentence.

No homework except to get ready for your book discussion tomorrow.

Tuesday, Oct. 7

Today we will look at thoughtshots. You will have some time to brainstorm ideas and then you will have the period to create an open mind of your character's thoughts. You can also work on your discussion questions for you book or you can read.

HW:
Finish your book club book
Write two discussion questions for you book club
Work on your open mind
Read

Tuesday, October 6

Today we begin our first major writing assignment - The Six Second Story.
This is my favorite writing assignment of the year. You will be writing a story that describes six seconds in time.

There are several pre-writing assignments we will do to get ready.

Today we are going to talk about the requirements, that are available on Google Classroom. I will show you several examples and talk about possibilities. Then we will talk about internal monologue.

So get those wheels turning. I can't wait to read your stories.

Tech Tip of the Week:

Read and Write for Google

Monday, October 5

Happy Monday!

Today we are reading the Article of the Week #4. Exercise May Help the Body, but the Brain May Benefit the Most by Julie Deardorff.

You will read the article, highlight words in red that are words that you don't know or words that you think someone else in class may not know. Complete the "write" assignment and take the quiz.

When you are finished, your will write two paragraphs in your journal.

The first paragraph is a fill in the blanks.

Paragraph 1:

In her article "___(Article Title)___", the author, ____(Author)_____argues/claims/contends that ______(Main Idea)____. According to the article, ____(Evidence 1)________. This shows/explains/___ because/I think ______(how/why does evidence support the claim)__________. In addition, ___(Author's Last Name)_____ states/claims/discusses/suggests __(Evidence 2)___.  This shows/explains/___ because/I think ______(how/why does evidence support the claim)__________. Also, ___(Author's Last Name)_____  claims/suggests/states/discusses ______(Evidence 3)____. This shows/explains/___because/I think ______(how/why does evidence support the claim)__________. 


Paragraph 2:

Write a paragraph on your thoughts and feelings about the article. You should use evidence from the article to support your ideas.

Due Tuesday

Discussion Board on superpowers also due tomorrow.

Thursday, Oct. 1

Happy Thursday!

After our warm-up, please turn it in to Classroom. We have a new discussion question up and due on Tuesday.

Today, after discussing what your groups did for descriptions of setting, you will work to make up your own setting that reveals character. There will be fabulous prizes for the best passages.

HW:
Catch up on any work you haven't completed in class this week.
Discussion Board

Here are your journal entries so far. Please make sure you are caught up come Monday. There will be no more free passes for late work beginning next week.

Martian Screening is tentatively scheduled for next Sat. 10/10 around 4 pm. Details will be given in class.

Poetry Night RSVP due Tuesday

Wed. Sept. 30

New discussion question today.

We will continue working on setting.

After our warm-up we will continue to work on ways that setting reveals character.

After going over yesterday's work you will make another chart in your journal that looks exactly the one you did yesterday. Then you will find three passages that describe setting and explain how those settings describe character.

Tuesday, Sept. 29

Warm-Up

We will start by completing Day 1 of the Inference Warm-Ups.


We've been talking about how we can use inference to understand characters. Now we will look at ways in which setting can describe character.

A descriptive setting can give the reader a lot of information about a character. We will analyze a setting description together, you will look at your own book for samples of setting and what they reveal about character. Finally, you will write your own setting that will reveal something about a character.

For now you will need to have two tabs open.

1. This blog
2. Your Writing Journal


Read this description:
Miss Havisham is an incredibly rich and ancient (old) woman who was left at the altar on her wedding day many many years ago. She is still bitter, angry, and unable to let go of the memories from that terrible day. 


In your writing journal, create a table that looks like this:



Now read, highlight, and comment on the passage from Great Expectations by Charles Dickens found in Google Classroom, that describes Ms. Havisham's home.

Monday, Sept. 28

Please sign in to Newsela and read the article, Young Migrants Make Perilous Trek to Europe Without Parents by Laura King.

When you finish reading, do the "write" assignment and take the quiz.  Your writing assignment will be completed in your journal.

For the "Write" assignment, instead of writing a complete article, because I want that written in your writing journal, please just write the main idea using your own words.

Please write two paragraphs in your writing journal about the article. The first paragraph should follow the following pattern:


Paragraph 1:

In her article "___(Article Title)___", the author, ____(Author)_____argues/claims/contends that ______(Main Idea)____. According to the article, ____(Supporting Detail 1)________. In addition, ___(Author's Last Name)_____ states/claims/discusses/suggests __(Supporting Detail 2)___.  Also, ___(Author's Last Name)_____ claims/suggests/states/discusses 
______(Supporting Detail 3)____.


Paragraph 2:

Write a paragraph on your thoughts and feelings about the article. You should use evidence from the article to support your ideas.

If you need more time to complete this assignment, it is homework.
3 Truths and a Lie also needs to be completed tomorrow.

Writing Journal

This is what you should have in your writing journal so far. Remember, the top assignment should be the top page in your journal.

Wednesday, Sept. 23

Discuss homework from yesterday. Turn it in when finished.

Journal Assignment: Character Inference

* Choose one passage from the book you are reading that describes character.
* Write the passage in your journal. Be sure to cite the title of the book, author and page number.
* Explain what you can infer about the character from that passage.

Discussion Board:
Three truths and a lie.
Write three things that are true about you and one thing that is untrue.
Respond to five of your classmates by writing which you think is the lie and why. Make sure that everyone gets at least two responses.

Read.

Tuesday, Sept. 22

Today we are going to look at character descriptions and what we can learn about characters from their descriptions.

First you will need to pull up the assignment on Google Classroom. We will talk about the first example together, then you will work in groups to complete the rest. You can talk about the passages in groups, but you will have to answer the questions on your own.



After you finish looking closely at the character descriptions above.
1. Go back to your own book and look at what you've read so far. Find passages that describe a character. 
2. Pick one passage and type that passage into your Writer's Notebook.
3. Explain what that passage says about the character. What can you infer from that passage?

Whatever you don't finish in class will be due on Wednesday.

Monday, Sept. 21

Article of the Week #2

Begin by going to the Newsela website and signing up for the correct class.

Period 1: NYEZR3

Period 3: PT65EV

Period 6: 6KR6R7

Period 7: H5KCDY

Once you are enrolled, please read the article, First Female Graduates of Ranger School Earn Elite Tab.
Complete the "write" assignment and then take the quiz.

Next, open your journal and write two paragraphs. 
* First paragraph - Summarize the article
* Second paragraph - Write your thoughts and feelings about the article.

A paragraph is 5-8 sentences.

Remember that your journal entry should go on top of your other entries.
Due Tuesday
First female graduates of Ranger School earn elite tab

Thursday, Sept. 17

We made writing journals today in class. Tomorrow you will have your first entry.

User Guides are due tomorrow. After tomorrow they will be late.
Also, be sure to answer the discussion board by tomorrow. Then you can respond to each other.


If you are waiting for a portfolio template, that is fine, don't worry about giving me the link yet, otherwise, be sure to fill out the form to attach the link.

Wed. September 16

Book Clubs should finish their book by Friday, October 9. We will have the final group discussion on that day so you will need to be prepapred.

Today was catch up day. Here is what you should be working on this week:
* With book clubs, divide your book into three weeks of reading.
* Finish your Curriculet paragraph if you have not
* Discussion Board Question - Your response to the question is due Friday, your two responses to classmates is due Tuesday.
* User Guide Due Friday
* Portfolios - Please fill out the form with the link to your portfolio.

Bring your book club book. We read tomorrow.

Monday, September 14, 2015

Article of the Week:

Today we are reading our first Article of the Week. Each week you will read an article and complete activities related to the article.

Steps to Completing this week's AoW:

1. Please sign up for your class in Curriculet. Class codes and links are provided on Google Classroom.
2. Once you are signed up, you can read the article that was assigned for today, Center for Sept. 11 Flight 93 memorial dedicated in PA. - USA TODAY. 
3. Please read the story and answer the quiz questions.
4. Reread the article and highlight what you think are the top 6 most important details.

Once everyone has finished we will have group discussions. In the meantime, go ahead and work on your User Guides.

Do not turn in the assignment or mark as done as we will be using it again tomorrow.

Homework: If you have finished reading, answering the questions, and highlighting the main ideas for the Article of the Week, that is homework, otherwise, you only need to work on your User Guide (due Friday).

Thurs September 10

Finish the Learning Styles Worksheet. You may also start working on your Users Manual. 

6th period, you do not need to finish the worksheet because I haven't given you the results of the personality test yet.

Tuesday, Sept. 8

Welcome back from the long weekend. Today we will begin looking at learning styles and personalities to determine what you need to do your best learning.

We'll start by taking the Learning Style Quiz.  When you are finished, please fill out the 1st box of the Learning Styles worksheet located in Google Classroom. If you finish early, you can complete the 9 Questions in the lower right corner.

Tomorrow we will talk about introverts and extroverts.

No Homework.

Wednesday, September 2

Today we finished the library.  Books are ready to go.  Please bring a reading book tomorrow.  After we do the Gates-McGinnite testing, you will have time to read. Yay!!!

We also started working on our digital portfolios (Per. 1, 3, 6).  You can continue to play with it on your own.  I will show you more fun stuff over the next week.

HW:
Bring a book and continue to work on your porfolio.

Tuesday, September 1

No homework tonight if you've turned in your hyper doc assignment.  Go out and play.

Monday, Aug. 31

Today we will finish up the presentations and the first assignment. Students who have completed their assignment will start a new activity. Tomorrow, Hyperdoc is due.

Thursday, Aug. 27

Today I am going over your assignment and answer any questions you have.  We will also sign up for Remind.  Parents are also welcome to sign up also. The codes and directions are below.

Presentations will begin tomorrow.  Hyperdoc is due on Tuesday.  You will turn in all assignments on Tuesday, even if you give your presentation on Friday.

Remind Codes w/attached instructions:

Period 1 - @e32f1

Period 3 - @e32f1a

Period 6 - @laper6

Period 7 - @e32f1aa8d

Journalism - @e32f1aa

Yearbook - @e32f1aa8

Video Tutorials

I've made a few videos to help you as you learn your way around Google Classroom and Google Docs.  If you have any requests for videos, please let me know and I will be happy to make one for you.

Today's video on failure and perseverance.

1st Day

Welcome back!!!

I can't wait to start the year with you all.  Details will be revealed over the next few days.  For today, FUN.

Your first assignment is available on Google Classroom.  Please see me for directions on how to enroll.

Enjoy the day.