Seventh graders are learning about works cited and collecting sources. Right now we are amassing sources and creating source cards. Students will have 4 sources due tomorrow on source cards. Of the four sources, two must be print. The other two may be online. Today 7S worked on their source cards in class, and worked hard! We will work on the source cards and research paper tomorrow with both 7S and 7C.
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Seventh Graders discussed topics and format for their research paper we will be completing third into fourth quarter. Please download and read the guidelines in the homework blog and keep up with the weekly assignments. Right now 7th graders should be thinking of a topic over this weekend and come prepared Monday 2/13 to start searching for sources. All of 7S who were here today have chosen approved topics. 7C still needs to establish topics. The first due date is a week from today (2/17) when 4 source cards are due. Students will learn about source cards and note cards this week.
Thank you for your support. This will be a great project that will ultimately end up on their web pages! I was out Thursday and Friday for a trip to the south (evidenced in my sunburn. I guess you need sunscreen in February?) Mr. Woodard filled in for me nicely. Students continued to work on their Writing Prompt Cycles.
It is always nice to have substitutes that have that kind of rapport and skill that the kids do not miss a beat. Thanks again Chris! Seventh Graders are working on a story about a lost dog. The dog befriends a boy and protects him. Students will be creating a flier that has a description of the dog. In "Dirk the Protector" by Gary Paulsen, Dirk rises up to take care of a boy who is being bullied. Our seventh graders will print a flier as if they are Dirk's original owner. The description of Dirk will match that of the story but also allow for embellishment. We will post our fake fliers around St. Faith to thoroughly confuse our cohorts. 8th GradeEighth Grade research papers were tabled until third quarter due to the many interruptions during second quarter instruction. I was not prepared for the shadow days, retreats, and various other disruptions to the eighth grade schedule that we encounter during second quarter. If you checked out library books that needed to be returned or you returned them it will be fine. Students will have already taken notes form those sources and they have the source cards necessary to cite the work in their papers. We will begin work in earnest on the research papers Monday February 6. Guidelines for the paper are downloadable below:
7th GradeWe will begin our research Monday February 6. The Seventh Grade topic is place. They will choose somewhere in the world to research. I will be encouraging students to stay local. Local history and research is always interesting as it is relatable. I enjoyed the Glendale history the Mayor presented at the awards ceremony last week. Topics will be reviewed with students and it will ultimately be their choice.
Students were asked to review the painting My Back Porch by Gregg Spears, and write about the scene taking place. Our students made inferences based on the painting as to theme and setting. They tried to glean as much information as possible from the painting. Many guessed the setting as Louisiana or Alabama. Time period guesses were all over the place. My best guess is the painting's setting is a neighborhood in the artists hometown of Chicago called Bronzeville. Spears painted many works set in Bronzeville a the height of its power and activity. A diaspora of African Americans to this area ballooned population counts to around 300,000 between 1925- 1950. For more information about Bronzeville and its place in history, please click here
Seventh and Eighth Graders have been working on two short stories that deal with Vietnam and PTSD. Both stories are from the Language of Literature Textbook. The Seventh Graders read a story titled "Zebra". It is about a boy nicknamed Zebra who is injured and becomes depressed. He meets a Vietnam Vet who teaches the boy in an art class and helps him feel better about his situation. The Vietnam Vet was also enriched by his experience with Zebra. Eighth Graders read a story called "Stop the Sun" about a young man trying to understand his father's behavior. Once he learns his father's experiences in Vietnam, the young man changes his views about his dad from embarrassed to proud. We have studied the Vietnam War in class as background. We discussed the unpopularity of the war, causes, and outcome. I showed footage of the "Helicopter War" to students and played music of the times. We talked about the turbulent sixties and how the whole era changed the United States as a country. Students were prompted to write about each story and post to their blog. Make sure you check them out. |
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April 2017
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