Please return Frightful's Mountain, or replace it ($8.00).
Brett S; Finn B; Jayden M, Kayla J* Books from Mr. T's classroom library - please return or replace: Holden E (Walk Two Moons); Tahkizen R (Daniel X and The False Prince) Please return or pay for WMS Library books: Makari B, Sebastian C, Natalie H, Khai H, Lorin P, Brett S, Kyon S, Vanna S, Gabriel V, Logan W |
Please return The Lightning Thief, or replace it ($5.50).
Ken S, Tahkizen R; Kendrix M Please return World Without Fish, or replace it ($8.50).
Tahkizen R; Kayla J, Kyon S, Kendrix M Please return Flush, or replace it ($5.25).
Ken S; Kendrix M |
June 6, Thurs.
1) Bring device and earbuds / headphones? If you group didn't finish listening to all of your songs today, you may need to bring your device again tomorrow.
June 5, Wed.
1) Bring device and earbuds / headphones. Tomorrow all groups should have time to begin their research in order to evaluate their theme songs.
June 4, Tues.
1) Bring device and earbuds / headphones on Wed. and Thurs.
2) Return/Replace/Pay for missing books by Friday!
June 3, Mon.
1) Find at least 5 parallels on back of #238. In class we discussed the value of having a broad English vocabulary. Knowing a variety of words can sometimes help you translate words from another language. We practiced this in class by listening to a Spanish version of Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" and deducing the parallel English words. Use this same skill tonight to find parallels between the English and French translation of the first stanza of "The Star-Spangled Banner."
May 28, Tues.
1) Return missing books? Mr. T distributed overdue book notices from the WMS library today. All library books are due by June 6. If you need to return an EL book to Mr. T, please do so immediately; if you need to pay for a lost or damaged EL book, please take the exact amount to Mrs. Brown in the library.
May 24, Fri.
1) Review / Practice #227 for quiz on Tues. One good way to prepare for Tuesday's quiz would be to read a short story (at least 5-6 pages) and try to identify some of these literary terms and techniques. For example: Do any characters have a conflict? Is any of the dialogue written in dialect? How does your story fit the five stages of plot?
May 23, Thurs.
1) Complete #229.
2) Study #227 for quiz. As practice for this quiz, students chose an animal-related short story and looked for examples of some of the key literary terms: conflict, dialect, dialogue, figurative language, flashbacks, motives, plot, and theme.
May 22, Wed.
1) #227: How many can you complete? Quiz on Tues. Similar to #224, this list has a word bank to help; we will review the answers tomorrow. Today's 10-question EOG-review quiz was the first of three we will take this week and next. Together, these will add up to one quiz grade in PowerSchool. Do you best!
2) Poster "corrections" due tomorrow. (See Tuesday's homework for details.)
May 21, Tues.
1) Review #224 for quiz tomorrow. Many students had the opportunity to review these terms during class. Mr. T provided two poems and suggested students look for examples of key poetry techniques used in them: alliteration, onomatopoeia, hyperbole, simile, metaphor, personification, sensory language, and rhyme scheme. For further practice, do this at home with any poem (or song) that you choose. This would be the most realistic review for tomorrow's quiz.
2) Test corrections due Thursday? (Mr. T has been able to grade many of the Cascading Consequences posters while students presented, but not all of them. He plans on returning graded rubrics on Thursday. Because this poster counts as our 4th Quarter benchmark -- and a test -- students who score below 70% may do corrections. Now that you've seen other students' posters and heard their claims and evidence, if you anticipate that your score may be lower than 70%, you may wish to go ahead and answer the grade-recovery questions Mr. T has in his room. You may also answer them in class on Thursday after seeing your rubric, but will only have the ~45 minutes of class time to complete them. These questions relate to an article in our workbooks that students did not read earlier.)
May 20, Mon.
1) #224: How many can you answer? Quiz on Wed. This TOC covers ~20 poetry-related terms that students may see on our June 3 Reading EOG. Students learned many of these terms in elementary school (simile, metaphor, onomatopoeia, etc.) and we covered many more during 2nd Quarter (personification, sensory language, speaker, etc.). A few of these may be new: hyperbole, meter, rhyme scheme, etc. Tomorrow we will review the answers.
May 17, Fri.
1) Prepare / Practice presenting. See yesterday's homework for details.
2) Finalize poster? If you decided to take your poster home this weekend, be very careful with it and be sure to bring it back to school on Monday. This project counts as a test grade!
3) Return Frightful's Mountain! (Do you still need to return / pay for any of this year's novels? Check the lists above to be sure!)
May 16, Thur.
1) Prepare / Practice cards for poster presentations on Mon. Next week, students will present their research posters to their classmates. While you present, you will not be able to read your poster. Instead, have your argument, claims, and evidence (with sources) written on cards. The good news is that you already have these! They are the pink or yellow pieces of paper you've used this week to format your poster. You may need to add a card with your argument, as well the titles and authors.
2) Finish #222. Students answered #1-10 of this EOG worksheet last night, then worked on #11-20 in class. (Some students even got to #21-30.) Any sections you did not finish, or were not checked as complete, should be finished tonight.
May 15, Wed.
1) #222: Answer #1-10. It's that time of year again -- time to begin reviewing for our Reading EOG on June 3. Match up these first ten EOG terms to their meanings on the right. We'll review these answers tomorrow.
2) Are Pigs and Journals up-to-date? You know that Piggy Check-up #8 is coming soon. Are you ready?
May 14, Tues.
1) #221: Produce illustration for poster project. Think about the argument you're making for your Cascading Consequences poster project. Who or what is your stakeholder? If you are a better artist than Mr. T and want to draw, feel free. If you would rather print a picture that you find online, make sure that it is free to use (not copyrighted) and that you cite its source.
2) Bring poster board tomorrow (with name on it!).
May 13, Mon.
1) #218: Create 4 claims for one stakeholder. In class we took notes on four ways to write a claim: Claims of fact or definition; claims of cause and effect; claims of value; and claims about solutions or policies. For your poster project, you will need to have two separate claims showing how DDT use helps or harms (not both!) one stakeholder: birds of prey, farmers, people in malaria-infested areas, etc. Practice writing these claims tonight. For example, you might try writing the same one as a claim of value ("Banning the use of DDT is the only viable way to prevent it getting into waterways") and as a claim about solution or policy ("Spraying DDT inside homes is a better method than exterior spraying if we want to prevent DDT from getting into local waterways").
2) Bring poster board on Wed. We will work on these posters during class on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. If you can't get a piece of poster board, please let Mr. T know tomorrow.
May 10, Fri.
1) Conduct interview and compose Journal #24. Since this is our third journal since Piggy Check-up #7, you know that PCU #8 will be coming soon. It will cover our work on restrictive and non-restrictive appositives, and our recent work on hyphenation.
2) Review Frightful's Mountain. (We have taken four reading checks about FM; the average of these checks counts as a test grade in PowerSchool. If this score is below 70% you may earn points back by taking a book test next week.)
May 9, Thurs.
1) Prepare / Practice #217 for tomorrow. Tomorrow we will hold a mock trial for DDT. Each child has a role. Many will be playing the role of a stakeholder, someone or something involved in or affected by the use of DDT. If you are a stakeholder, think about what you will say when you're called to testify. How were you affected by DDT? (Remember to tell us in 1st person!) Also, be prepared to share the evidence you found in your workbook research today, with its source. Make sure that your evidence and your testimony directly support the claim you wrote on #217. Each group also has one lawyer. If that is you, your job tonight is to consider which stakeholders will best support each claim on #217. Tomorrow you will present one claim, then call each witness to the front to present their testimony and evidence.
2) Late #216! (Mr. T checked Perils of Peregrines -- Tuesday night's homework -- for a grade today.)
May 8, Wed.
No class - Mudcats field trip!
May 7, Tue.
1) Use FM (Frightful's Mountain) to complete #216. Peregrine falcons face many dangers in real life. Find text evidence from the given pages on #216 of how these fictional falcons face similar threats. The quotes you find regarding DDT will be very helpful later!
May 6, Mon.
1) Complete back of #215. This page outlines the 7 Traits of Successful People, as written about in Paul Tough's book How Children Succeed. In class students read a short biographical excerpt about Jackie Robinson and scored him on his display of these traits. Tonight, show how an adult you know well -- parent, coach, grandparent, neighbor -- displays them, as well as yourself.
May 3, Fri.
1) Read ch. 19 and Afterword; complete #214. These chapters finish Frightful's Mountain! You'll discover Frightful's full life story and her call to home.
2) Compose Journal #23. This journal makes a nice tie-in to this week's Positivity Project trait: Purpose. Unlike most journals, this topic may require some research.
May 2, Thur.
1) Read ch. 18 ; answer #213 with at least 2 inferences.
2) Get interim signed!
3) Bring Book Fair money? (We'll make a quick trip to our school Book Fair during class tomorrow. Posters, books, erasers, and gifts are available. Most books are sold for the cover price -- anywhere from $1 and up. This is an excellent chance for students to build their own home libraries!)
May 1, Wed ~ No School
Apr. 30, Tues.
1) Read ch. 17; finish #209.
2) Finish #211? Review #210 and #211 on Wednesday. We'll have a quiz covering these two articles on Thursday. The paper portion of the quiz will be very similar to the claims/evidence charts we've completed this week. You will be allowed to use #210 during the quiz.
3) Book Fair on Friday!
Apr. 29, Mon.
1) Read ch. 16; complete front of #209 with at least two relationships.
Apr. 26, Fri.
1) Read ch 15; answer #206.
2) Compose Journal #22. As always, make sure this response is a full page long in your composition book.
Apr. 25, Thurs.
1) Read ch. 14; answer #204.
Apr. 24, Wed.
1) Read ch. 13; answer back of #202.
2) Test corrections due by tomorrow! (See yesterday's homework for closer notes.)
Apr. 23, Tues.
1) Read ch. 12; answer front of #202.
2) Test corrections by Thursday? Students got to see TOC #192 today -- the Argument, Claims, & Evidence test about "Rachel Carson: Sounding the Alarm on Pollution" and the Amoeba Sisters' "Biogmagnification and the Infamous DDT." If you scored below 70%, answer the cream-colored "ecosystems" article found in the back of Mr. T's room by Thursday.
Apr. 12, Fri.
1) Read ch. 11 and answer #199 (if you didn't do this last night).
Apr. 11, Thur.
1) Finish / Clean up #198? Students will use this Cascading Consequences Chart during tomorrow's fishbowl discussion about the benefits and harms of DDT use. If your copy is messy and you want to have a neater one, feel free to reproduce it on a new sheet of paper. You should have 2-3 claims, with 2-3 pieces of evidence to support each claim. Remember that each bit of evidence must have a source (the title of the article, video, or chart/graph where you learned it). The more evidence you have, the more you'll be able so share tomorrow without repetition.
2) Read ch. 11; answer back of #199. If you need to spend your homework time working on #198, this reading could wait until Spring Break.
Apr. 10, Wed.
1) Compose Journal #21. Are #19 and #20 complete? This would be a good time to look over your Daily Pigs about adjectives/adverbs, as well as appositives!
Apr. 9, Tues.
1) Read ch. 10; answer front of #199. Remember the bridge work that was foreshadowed in chapter 7? Now we see what happens!
2) Return library books! Core 1, 2, and 4 will have quick library visits tomorrow. (Core 3 will not because we'll be enjoying our presentation by Carolina Raptor Center.)
Apr. 8, Mon.
1) Read ch. 9; answer #196. This chapter is a bit longer than usual, so allow yourself enough time to read 20 pages.
2) Piggy Check-up #7 this week? If you've been absent recently, or sometimes forget your composition book, this would be a good time to compare your answers to those on the website. PCU #7 will cover our lessons of adjectives and adverbs, as well as our first lessons on restrictive and non-restrictive appositives.
Apr. 5, Fri.
1) Read ch. 7 & 8; answer #193. Students picked up this double-sided TOC after finishing today's test.
Apr. 4, Thur.
1) Read #190 to prepare for tomorrow's test on argument, claims, and evidence. Half of tomorrow's test will focus on this magazine article about Rachel Carson, the author of Silent Spring. Take some time tonight to read the article, define any unfamiliar words, and/or write notes in the margins about the author's argument, claim, and evidence. (You will be allowed to use this paper during the test!) The other half of the test will focus on a video that we watch during class time. (See yesterday's homework note for more details.)
Apr. 3, Wed.
1) Read ch. 6; answer #188. TOC #188 was torn from our workbooks. This chapter is much shorter than previous ones!
2) Compose Journal #20. Our Positivity Project trait this year has been humor. Exercise your sense of humor in this journal. As always, be sure to fill the page!
** Note: This week we have been practicing finding an author's argument (a person's position on an idea; your side), claim (a statement that may be questioned; a fact?), and evidence. We will have a test on these skills this Friday, Apr. 5. **
Apr. 2, Tue.
1) Read ch. 5; answer back of #185.
Apr. 1, Mon.
1) Finish #184 and front of #185? Students got to see their graded brochures during class today and calculated their scores. Anyone who scored below 70% earned points back by answering questions about our fish depletion research articles. Afterwards students watched a news video by John Stossel (see Links for Students) and completed TOC #184, which students tore out of their workbooks last week. If you didn't finish this video, watch it at home and complete #184. Students also picked up TOC #185, where they should take notes from chapter 4 from the weekend's reading.
2) Late #178! (Mr. T checked these Bird Cam Notes -- distributed on Monday, March 25 -- for a homework grade today.)
Mar. 28, Thur.
1) Read ch. 3 & 4; answer #183. This page torn from our workbooks (TOC #183) only concerns ch. 3. Mr. T will distribute a notes page for ch. 4 on Monday,.
2) Watch bird cam -- #178 due Mon. Remember that you should have five days' worth of notes about the raptors' nest you're watching. If you have been watching this nest in the late afternoons, take advantage of your free time this weekend to take notes during the morning or early afternoon. Perhaps you'll see something different!
3) Return World Without Fish! (If your name is listed above, please return or replace your school-owned copy of this book. If you cannot find it, or it's damaged, please replace it. If you must pay for it, please bring thing exact amount.)
Mar. 27, Wed.
1) Finish ch. 1; read ch. 2. Complete #180 & #181. Today we began reading our final novel: Frightful's Mountain, by Jean C. George. We read the first half of chapter 1 in class. Tonight, finish this chapter and also read chapter 2. (This is several pages of reading. This might be an appropriate night not to spend 10 minutes watching one of the bird cams, #178.) After you read, answer the focus questions on TOC #180-181 (pages 1-2 from our new workbooks).
2) Return World?
Mar. 26, Tues.
1) Continue #179 - due Monday, April 1.
2) Return World? Mr. T collected the school-owned copies of World Without Fish in class today. If you still have your copy, please return it tomorrow.
Mar. 25, Mon.
1) Use notes and resources (workbook, World, #176, etc.) to draft project parts? Tomorrow is our final day to work on our informative consumer guides! If you are afraid that you have more than 30 minutes' worth of work left, Mr. T encourages you to write out your paragraphs at home so you don't have to compose them during class tomorrow.
2) Begin #178 – due Mon, Apr. 1. As an introduction to Frightful's Mountain, choose one of the four web cams from #178 which are recording nests of raptors (birds that catch other animals to eat). Observe this nest over 5 days, for at least 10 minutes per visit. Record your observations on #178.
3) Return World? Mr. T began collecting school-owned copies of World Without Fish today and will finish tomorrow. If you plan on using quotes from this book in your project, be sure to record these quotes in your notes or rough draft.
Mar. 22, Fri. (Sorry if you've waited for this posting! Mr. T updated it on Friday but it must not have saved.)
1) Compose Journal #19. As always, be sure to write the date, journal number, and prompt at the top of your page, then fill the page with your response.
2) Draft paragraphs for brochure? We will be working in the computer lab again on Monday and Tuesday of next week, finishing our informative consumer guides (brochures). Since we're creating these using Microsoft Word, they are saved on the school's intranet, which means you cannot work on them at home. If you're afraid you may not finish this brochure in two more class periods, you may want to compose the three paragraphs at home (introductory, focus problem, and case study) then type them in class.
Mar. 21, Thur.
1) Are your quote sandwiches ready to use (workbook p. 88-90 and #174)? Students spent much of last week reading nonfiction articles about fish depletion and taking notes. This week, they evaluated these notes and reviewed using "quote sandwiches" to compose paragraphs. (Remember: We used these "quote sandwiches" during our medieval adversity unit back in November.) Students should have quote sandwiches prepared for the three paragraphs that will be part of our project: the introductory paragraph about fish depletion; a focus problem paragraph about one specific reason for fish depletion (such as overfishing, by-catch, destructive fishing practices, etc.); and a case study about one particular fish that has been over-hunted (such as the orange roughy, bluefin tuna, or a fish from the Seafoodwatch videos we investigated). There are three blank pages in our workbooks (p. 88-90) that students could use to write these sandwiches.
2) Bring workbook and World. Students took their third quarter workbooks home today to use in their final research and note-taking. Bring these, as well as World Without Fish, to class every day so you can use them on our in-class project.
Mar. 20, Wed.
1) #175: Plan brochure on separate paper. (Cut and paste 10 boxes.) We'll begin typing our final project (the Informative Consumer Guide) in the computer lab tomorrow. This ICG will be in the form of a tri-fold brochure. Tonight, students are planning the lay-out of their individual brochures. Fold a sheet of notebook paper into thirds, as if you were going to mail it in an envelope. Cut out the 10 boxes from the two sheets you received in class today and glue them onto your folded paper in the order you think your brochure should be arranged. This way you'll know where to type each paragraph in your document tomorrow!
Mar. 14, Thur.
1) #171: Use World to complete parts 1-5.
Mar. 13, Wed.
1) Read World ch. 10; answer question on #164.
Mar. 12, Tue.
1) Read World p. 128-134; answer question on #164.
Mar. 11, Mon.
1) Read World p. 117-127; answer question on #164.
Mar. 8, Fri.
1) Read ch. 11 (p. 143-171); answer question on #164. Notice that this chapter is a good bit longer than most. Make sure you allot sufficient time!
2) Do you need to turn in #169 for a late grade on Monday?
Mar. 7, Thur.
1) Use #168 to finish #169? TOC #168 is page 55 of our in-class workbooks, torn out and hole-punched. It is a model of an in-class project we will begin working on next week. Read it closely (Sorry that it's so difficult to read in parts!) and answer the countdown questions on #169, which students picked up after today's Piggy Check-up.
2) Read ch. 8; answer question on #164. Some students finished #168-169 in enough time to do this reading in class.
Mar. 6, Wed.
1) Read World p. 98-106; answer question #164. These pages are the second half of ch. 7. Be sure to pay attention to the graphic novel of Kram and Ailat. Do they seem different?
Mar. 5, Tue.
1) Are your Pigs and Journals current and correct? Piggy Check-up #6 is coming sometime this week! Questions will cover the case, person, and number of pronouns, as well as the proper use of apostrophes. Mr. T will circulate to see Journals #16-18; make sure each has its date, number, prompt, and a full-page written response (including Journal #18).
Mar. 4, Mon.
1) Finish #163 and Journal #18? Students had ~20 minutes to work on each of these assignments during class today. TOC #163 was done as a table group. If you are finishing yours individually, here are two hints: the conflict of Flush occurs when Paine sank the Coral Queen; the climax of the story happens when Noah, Abbey, and Shelly complete Operation Royal Flush. For Journal #18, students designed a new cover for Flush and drew it in their composition books. Remember that this picture does not count as the journal. Instead, Mr. T recommends writing two paragraphs on the opposite page: one descriptive paragraph describing what your cover looks like, and a second argumentative paragraph defending why this is a good illustration for the cover of this novel.
2) Read World p. 87-97; answer question on #164. Students turned in their school-owned copies of Flush today and we move back into World Without Fish. (Please re-start bringing this book to class every day.) Mr. T neglected to hand out #164 to Core 4 -- thank you to the students who came back and picked one up!
3) Return Flush! (If you still have a school-owned copy of Flush, please return it tomorrow. If Mr. T put a sticker on the back of your book, please pay the listed amount or (even better) buy a replacement book. Thank you!
Mar. 1, Fri.
1) Finish ch. 18-21 of Flush. Bring book Mon. There are no assigned questions for these chapters. This is your chance to see how the story ends! Mr. T will collect school-owned copies on Monday.
2) Bring World Without Fish on Monday. (If you are using your own copy of World, please start bringing it to class. If you were using a school-owned copy, Mr. T will re-distribute them on Monday.)
Feb. 28, Thur.
1) Finish ch. 15-17 and #157.
2) Finish / Redo #161? TOC #161 counts as part of tomorrow's test on point-of-view. We know Hiassen's perspective of Florida from #160: He thinks its nature, animals, water, and environment are beautiful and he hates the development, pollution, and exploitation of natural resources that he sees. In the uppermost box of #161, copy a scene from Flush where we can hear Hiaasen's perspective in his writing. (You might try p. 28-29, p. 67, p. 103, or p. 141.) In the middle box, draw a color illustration of the image that Hiaasen describes in that scene. In the lowest box, explain how this scene shows us Hiaasen's perspective (See the sentence starters to help you.) This paper is 1/4 of tomorrow's test grade, so do your best!
3) Flush point-of-view test tomorrow! This will not be a test about the plot of the book. Instead, you will be assigned new pages from Flush and asked to show how we can see Hiaasen's perspective of Florida in them. TOC #160 is a good way to practice for this test.
Feb. 27, Wed.
1) Read ch. 15-17 by Friday; finish #157. These three chapters add up to quite a bit of reading -- don't wait till the last minute!
2) Bring library books!
Feb. 26, Tues.
1) Read ch. 13 & 14; answer question on #157.
2) Compose Journal #17. Be sure you focus your entire journal on one innovation. You might write about why it is better than the other options, but only nominate one.
Feb. 25, Mon.
1) Read ch. 11 & 12; answer question on #157. You'll see that each question asks how its chapters "contribute to the plot development." By this point in the book, we are not meeting many new characters (with one important exception). Instead, think about how the characters' actions build up the story. Is there building conflict or tension between characters? Does any conflict or tension get resolved?
Feb. 22, Fri.
1) Read ch. 9 & 10; answer their question on #157. TOC #157 is a new set of homework questions covering chapters 9-17.
2) Compose Journal #16. As always, make sure this journal fills at least one page of your composition book.
Feb. 21, Thurs.
1) Closely read ch. 8 for POV (point of view) assessment; finish #148. As you read chapter 8, pause every page or two to consider Noah's point-of-view. Think about his father's TV interview, Mr. Shine's reaction to Noah's questions, Lice Peeking's disappearance, Paine's escape, etc.
2) Get interim signed! This progress report is on a half-sheet of green paper. Some students have zeroes for homework assignments -- unfortunately, it is too late to turn these in now because we've already taken the test on that unit.
Feb. 20, Wed.
1) Read ch. 6 & 7; answer question on #148.
Feb. 19, Tue.
1) Finish reading ch. 4 & 5; answer question on #148. The pace of our at-home reading picks up a bit now, with many nights' task being to read two chapters (20-24 pages). No class had time to begin reading chapter 4 today, so students will have to read both chapters on their own. The question associated with these chapters is on the back of TOC #148, which students received on Feb. 12.
Feb. 15, Fri.
1) #153: Use evidence from ch. 2. What is Noah Underwood's point of view of Lice Peeking? What does he think of him as a person? Use evidence from ch. 2: Noah's words, thoughts, and his actions.
Feb. 14, Thurs.
1) Review ch. 2 and read ch. 3. Answer their question on #148. We reviewed last night's reading a bit in class, but it would certainly behoove students to look over it again.
Feb. 13, Wed.
1) Finish #150? Many students began this TOC after finishing their Piggy Check-ups. Remember that "literal" means exactly what the words say; "figurative" means what the speaker actually meant.
2) Read Flush, ch. 2. You won't be able to answer the second question of TOC #148 yet. That will wait until reading ch. 3 tomorrow.
Feb. 12, Tues.
1) Finish Flush, ch. 1; answer its question on #148. TOC #148 includes questions for chapters 1-8. Tonight, only answer the first question. Notice that the directions suggest you add at least three sticky notes while you read that help you answer the question.
2) Use ch. 1 to redo #138? Mr. T returned #138 today. Many students did well, but many did not practice our skills. Each answer must be a complete sentence that reflects its question, incorporates a quote, and cites the page number. If an answer is missing any of these, it is incorrect. If you scored below 70%, you may get a third chance by answering the questions that Mr. T had in the back of the room. These answers are due tomorrow.
Feb. 11, Mon.
1) Finish Journal #15? Are Pigs and journals current and correct? As always, make sure this journal includes its prompt, date, number, and a full-page response. Since PCU #4, you should have 23 Pigs and 3 journals.
Feb. 8, Fri.
1) Fill the boxes of #143. Use it to write a "summary" of Flush (#144). TOC #143 provides a list of character names, setting locations, and possible motives from our next novel: Carl Hiaasen's Flush. Use these terms to predict what you think might happen in the book. This should not involve any research! Simply use your logic and creativity to write what could be a summary of this novel. If you have read the book, just write from your memory.
2) Bring World and Flush on Monday? Mr. T will collect school-owned copies of World Without Fish on Monday, then return them when we use them again in March. He will also assign copies of Flush. If you have your own copy of Flush, please bring it.
Feb. 7, Thur.
1) Use ch. 5 to complete #141. Review p. 70-75 for test. In class today we practiced finding Mark Kurlansky's point of view in chapter 5. If you did not finish workbook pages 21-22, continue practicing tonight. C: What is his point of view about the people of Iceland? Can you find a quote on p. 68 that supports your claim? Does Kurlansky show his point of view directly or indirectly? D: What is his point of view of how the British treated the Icelanders? Can you find a quote on p. 69 that supports your claim? Does Kurlansky show his point of view directly or indirectly?
*** Parents: We will start reading Flush on Monday, Feb. 11. If you would still like to buy your own, you may want to order it now.***
Feb. 6, Wed.
1) Add ch. 5 and p. 76 to #130/#131. Students read chapter 5 during class today and took an online reading check. Add notes from this reading, plus part 6 of the "Kram and Ailat" graphic novel onto TOC #130/#131. These are the final pages we'll add to this worksheet.
Feb. 5, Tues.
1) Add ch. 4 and p. 62 (part 5 of the graphic novel) to #130 and #131. We have added to this front-and-back paper last week. Remember that the focus is on how Kurlansky makes his point that humans are killing off the world's fish populations. Does he use dramatic language and lots of bold text, like in the Introduction? Does he focus on cause and effect and quote historic sources, as he did in Ch. 1? Does he write a chronological history, like ch. 2? Does he focus on one specific fish as an example for what could happen to others, as with the orange roughy in ch. 3? Don't forget to add part 5 of "Kram and Ailat" on the back (#131).
2) Many students decided their homework was not ready to turn in today. Check yours against yesterday's homework description, and be sure to turn it in for a late grade tomorrow!
Feb. 4, Mon.
1) Use notes in ch. 4 to answer #138. This TOC is a p. 15 from our workbooks. As you answer these text-based questions, remember to
Feb. 1, Fri.
1) Use ch. 3 to finish #137. On each listed page, find a word that uses the given root, prefix, or suffix. In the larger box, show how that word's meaning connects with the meaning of the root or affix. For example, "phyto-" means "having to do with plants." Phytoplankton are microscopic floating plants in the sea.
2) Deliver report card!
Jan. 31, Thur.
1) Compose Journal #14.
2) Answer #5 of #136.
Jan. 30, Wed.
1) Finish ch. 2, adding at least 4 sticky notes. Answer #5 of #128. We'll have our mid-unit assessment tomorrow. It will involve reading a new piece of text and answering questions about main idea, key details, text evidence, context clues, inferences, and other skills we've been practicing.
Jan. 29, Tues.
1) #133: Use #132 as a model for two new words. During class today, we practiced using dictionaries and context clues to determine words' meaning.s. Each person divided a piece of paper (#132) into four quadrants. In the upper-left, we copied a sentence from ch. 1 that uses a given word. In the upper-right, we copied the dictionary definition of this word. In the lower-right, we paraphrased the definition, shortening it and putting it into our own words. In the lower-left, we rewrote the original sentence, substituting our synonym/short definition in place of the word. Tonight, repeat this using two of the Ch,. 1 words you added to your word-catcher at the beginning of class. If you were absent, or didn't write down your words, choose two of these: "exposition," (p. 1) "cataclysm" (p. 2), "primitive" (p. 8), or "predicament" (p. 19).
Jan. 28, Mon.
1) Finish reading ch. 1; add at least 4 more notes.
2) #128: Answer #4.
Jan. 25, Fri.
1) Read p. xviii - xxiv and add 6 notes. These pages finish the Introduction, and include the first page of the graphic novel (comics) that are spread throughout our book. Mr. T suggests adding 6 notes because you'll read 6 pages of text -- where you decide to put the notes, and what you take away from the reading, is up to you.
2) #128: Answer #3. Finish #129 (10-12 sentences). Question #3 on the back of TOC #128 focuses on that first graphic novel page. How does Kurlansky use this style of text to prove his point? Students have worked on #129 since Wednesday night. In total, this summary should be roughly 10-12 sentences -- it shouldn't be fewer than 10 nor more than 15.
Jan. 24, Thur.
1) Continue #128 and #129 using p. xii - xvii. Both of these TOC's were started yesterday. On #128, answer question #2. (Remember our discussion from class -- the question isn't about what Kurlansky says, but how he says it. Think about his tone and his text features: lettering, diagrams, quotes, etc.) On #129, use your sticky notes to add 3-5 more sentences to your summary. Don't just copy what's on your notes -- blend them with transition words and ideas that make the sentences flow together.
Jan. 23, Wed.
1) #128: Answer #1. This question covers pages x - xii of World Without Fish, which we read in class today. Notice that it asks how the author introduces the idea of fish depletion (decrease, running out). What sort of tone does he use? How does he show his feelings about the problem? Hint: He chooses his specific words very carefully. He also has made certain words look different, so they are more noticeable.
2) #129: Use notes to write a summary of p. x - xii. As we read, we added 4 sticky notes with gist statements from pages x - xii. Use these notes to write a 2-4 sentence summary of these pages. We will add to this summary as we read the rest of the Introduction.
Jan. 22, Tues.
1) #127: Find and highlight vocab words in article. You may recall hearing about the Pacific Garbage Patch or the attempted Ocean Cleanup in recent news. This October 2018 article was written before its launch. First, read the article. Next, review the list of "power words" at the end. Go back through the article and highlight (or circle) them. (If they are used multiple times, just highlight the first use.) Some power words are missing; use the context of the article to deduce these six words, add them to the list, and draw stars by them in the article.
2) Bring World Without Fish ! (We will begin reading our next book, Mark Kurlansky's World Without Fish tomorrow. If you plan on using your own copy, you'll need it every day for the next few weeks. If you don't have a copy, Mr. T will lend you one tomorrow.)
Jan. 18, Fri.
1) Compose Journal #13. If you have Journal #1, Mr. T encourages you to read it first. You might discover that you laugh out loud at the things that used to be stressful!
Jan. 17, Thur.
1) #126: Write a half-page review of 2Q (2nd Quarter) using at least 6-10 terms from #100. Write about what we've read, what you've written, what you enjoyed, what you disliked, etc. As you write, incorporate at least 6-10 of the terms we taught each other on TOC #100 -- circle, highlight, or mark the words so you know which ones you've used.
2) Any more missing assignments? Tomorrow is the final day of 2nd Quarter. If you have any missing work, please turn it in!
Jan. 16, Wed.
1) Use #118-#124 to finish final concrete poem (#125). Practice sharing aloud. This is it: the final copy of our adversity poems. Students reviewed their rough drafts during class today, asking partners to see how they measure up to the checklist on the back of each rubric. Use this feedback, the rubric on the front, and your planning sheets to finish your final copy. (Students had 15-20 minutes in class to start, using Mr. T's markers and colored pencils.) Remember that this final product must be on unlined paper and have no pencil -- instead use ballpoint pen, markers, and/or colored pencils.
Jan. 15, Tue.
1) #124: Use #118, #121, and #122 to draft concrete poem on notebook paper. This month, we've read several concrete poems about the adversities faced by Jessie and Robert. Now it's time to write your own! Use your planning pages (#118 and #121) to compose this poem. Use the checklist on the back of today's blue rubric to make sure you include all of the key elements, including sensory details (see #122), dialogue (someone must speak or think), a modern adversity, first person pronouns, etc. Think about what shape is most appropriate for your poem. To help, you may want to read the first example here or watch this short video.
Jan. 14, Mon.
1) Use #118 to complete #121. Students read Cynthia Rylant's short story "Stray" today and imagined how Doris, the main character, might have filled out an adversity planning sheet (like #118) and graphic organizer to write about her experience. Use this model to fill out your own graphic organizer (#121) to tell the story of your chosen adversity (#118).
Jan. 11, Fri.
1) Complete #118 to plan your concrete poem. We have spent considerable time recently reading fictional poems that relate their narrators' daily adversities. Now it's your turn! Next week, we will create our own autobiographical concrete poems, relating adversities that we face. Fill out #118 with as much detail as you can remember. These are the ideas you'll use to create your poem.
Jan. 10, Thurs.
1) Check your understanding of the six poems we've been reading. We have read "Advanced English," "Tyrannosaur-bus Rex," "Point A to Point B," "My Sister Is Crazy," "Bad Hair Day," and "Angels." It would be a good idea to re-read these poems, as well as review #104: our chart of their adversities.
Jan. 9, Wed.
1) On #111, compare "Angels" to any other concrete poem (from our unit). This chart is on the back of last night's homework. Tomorrow's mid-unit assessment will be very similar to this task. Mr. T will give you a poem to read and a related magazine article; you will compare them.
2) Make up ____ zeroes. Mr. T circulated to let students know whether or not they have any missing assignments. (This did not include our "Pask" mid-unit assessment, Piggy Check-up #4, or Journals #10-12.
Jan. 8, Tues.
1) Read #108 and #109 to complete #110 (with evidence). Many students had time to start (or even finish) this reading after today's Piggy Check-up. Text #1 is a concrete poem; text #2 is a news article. Use the guiding questions in the center column of the compare/contrast chart.
Jan. 7, Mon.
1) Read #105 to complete #106. Tonight's concrete poem is titled "My Sister Is Crazy." What adversity do you see the two siblings facing? Can you relate to it?
2) Are Pigs & Journals up-to-date? Piggy Check-up #4 is coming soon! Make sure that Journals #10, 11, and 12 are complete (number, date, prompt, and full-page response written in your composition book), and that you have all of our Pigs since Piggy Check-up #3 are complete and correct.
Jan. 4, Fri.
1) Use #101 to complete #102. TOC #101 is the concrete poem "Tyrannosaur-bus Rex." What adversity do you see someone facing? (Hint: It isn't the bus.) Support your idea with quotes from the poem, then explain how they connect in the "Infer" column. Does this sound like your regular bus ride to school? Write a 2-3 sentence paragraph at the bottom of the page. You don't need to do anything yet with #103, "Point A to Point B."
2) Compose Journal #12. This is our only journal that does not have to be a full page long. Use at least 22 letters of the alphabet for you ideas; if you're able to do more than 22, go for it!
Jan. 3, Thurs.
1) Complete #97 and #99. Each student received a slip today with a term, its part of speech, and its definition, which they then wrote onto #97. As you're completing this word web tonight, remember that your "synonym" and "antonym" answers may be more than one-word answers. For #99, read the concrete poem "Advanced English," then complete the chart. What adversity do you see, what quotes support this idea, and how do these quotes made you infer this adversity? Write 2-3 sentences at the bottom, showing how you may have seen the adversity in "Advanced English" play out in real life.
2) Return Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! (If you still have a school-owned copy, please return it to Mr. T as soon as possible.)
Dec. 21, Fri.
1) Read something good over Winter Break!
Dec. 20, Thurs.
1) Compose Journal #11. This journal asks for two letters (or lists). Make each about half a page long.
2) Can you family solve Mr. T's puzzle? This assignment is just for fun, not a grade. If family visits over the break, see how well they can do. Here's a hint: Read the story aloud. It's called "Sounds of the Season" for a reason!
3) Meet in Think Lab tomorrow. You don't need to bring any supplies because there will be nowhere to put them.
Dec. 19, Wed.
1) Read "Drogo." Add him to #85 and #92.
2) Continue #94 with at least 8 connections. Think about the connections between all of the GMSL characters whose monologues we've read. How do they connect to one another? Are any in the same family? Which of them are friends, or enemies? Which of them have encountered similar hardships in their lives?
Dec. 18, Tues.
1) Read "Nelly." Add her to #85 and #92. Nelly is a sniggler. Have you ever sniggled? Read her monologue to find out!
Dec. 17, Mon.
1) Read "Isobel." Complete her chart on #92 and add her to #85. Remember Isobel? She was the other girl in Barbary's monologue, on the receiving end of the mud-slinging. Here's our chance to hear her side of the story!
Dec. 14, Fri.
1) Annotate #90 for quiz Monday. We have a quiz on Monday that covers that skills we've practiced this week: reading a text to identify the adversities, finding supporting evidence within the text, identifying figurative language, analyzing the impact of figurative language on the text, etc. Mr. T provided a copy of the text today (the monologue of "Pask") which you may use during the quiz. You may want to look underline key sentences, circle figurative language, define new words, etc.
2) Compose Journal #10. As always, make sure your response is a full page long in your composition book.
3) Meet in rm. 507 on Monday! We will hold class in the school's computer lab Monday through Thursday of next week.. Rom 507 is in the back of the building, between Mrs. Delaney's room and the door leading to the trailers.
Dec. 13, Thurs.
1) Read p. 34-37 and complete back of #87. This reading includes the monologue of Simon, the Knight's Son, as well as a nonfiction article about the Crusades. Each of these has an adversity chart on the back of TOC #87.
Dec. 12, Wed.
1) Read assigned monologue and complete #89. During today's quiz, students were assigned one of these monologues: "Constance," "Lowdy," "Otho," or "Will." You should have torn that monologue's page out of your workbook; it is now TOC #89.
2) Late #86! (Even if a parent hasn't signed your Action Plan, turn it in!)
Dec. 11, Tues. ~ Snow day
Dec. 10, Mon.
1) Read p. 50-59; complete front of #87. Oops! First period didn't get this worksheet from Friday's substitute teacher. On a piece of notebook paper, repeat the questions you had on TOC #82. This time, focus on the adversities faced by Jacob and Petronella, in two separate charts.
Dec. 7, Fri.
1) Read "Mogg" and "Jack"; finish #82. Notice: These two characters are brother and sister.
2) Study #83 for quiz. We'll have this quiz on Monday (or whatever day we're back in school!).
Dec. 6, Thurs
1) Review #86 w/ parent ; get interim signed. On the back of TOC #86, students did some honest reflection of their school habits. The habits you already do regularly are good -- keep them up! Those that scored less regularly may be habits you want to initiate in order to be more successful in school. On the front of #86, design a plan that you can follow that will help you improve on some of these habits. Also, ask a parent to sign your green interim and return it tomorrow.
2) Study #83 for quiz Mon. Students already know many of these figurative and literal language terms from elementary school: simile, metaphor, alliteration, stanza. Others may be new: adversity, monologue, idiom, etc. Review these terms so that you know their definitions and/or could recognize them in use. Make flashcards, create a Quizlet review, have someone quiz you, look at how these techniques are used in the monologues we've read, etc. If we don't have school on Monday due to winter weather, we'll take this quiz on our first day back.
Dec. 5, Wed.
1) Read "Thomas" and complete his notes (#82). This adversity chart for "Thomas" is just like last night's chart for Giles (and each one we'll do in the future). What adversity do you see Thomas and his father face? Copy evidence (quotes) from the monologue to prove your point. How do people today still face this adversity?
2) Review "Barbary," "Hugo," and "Giles." Now that we're doing more reading, you may want to check your understanding of these monologues before class tomorrow.
Dec. 4, Tues.
1) Read "Giles" aloud. Complete his chart on #82. In class today, we discussed how an author hints the reader when to stop (periods, question marks, and exclamation points), when to pause (commas, dashes, semicolons, and parentheses), and when to keep going (no punctuation). We even color-coded a copy of "Hugo" to practice. Practice again at home by reading the monologue of "Giles" out loud to someone: your family, a parent, your dog, someone! If you have your own copy of the book, you might even color-code it like we did in class. After reading, complete the first chart on TOC #82. Name at least one adversity Giles faces, and copy at least one quote from the text that supports your idea. Do modern people still face this adversity? Explain who and how.
Dec. 3, Mon.
1) #80: Read predicted monologue from GMSL. Compare to your prediction. Over the weekend, you should have made a prediction about one of the characters in our new book, Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Tonight, read this character's monologue from the book you received today (or your own copy). On TOC #80, compare how close you were in your prediction. Did any parts of their story come true? What was different? Were you surprised?
Important: Mr. T cannot give you a copy of Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! if you still need to return/replace The Lightning Thief!
Nov. 30, Fri.
1) #80: Follow directions on #79. Look over this photocopy of the Table of Contents to Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!. Choose 4 of the characters. Follow the directions at the bottom of the page, completing these 4 tasks (one task per character). Answers go on notebook paper: #80.
2) Bring GMSL on Monday!
Nov. 29, Thurs.
1) Use #69 to draft opening and closing paragraphs on #75. Look at our model essay about townspeople. Notice how the opening paragraph begins with general information about the Middle Ages, then gives a bit of information about townspeople, and finally tells us about their social status. Use this as a model to outline an opening paragraph about your medieval group (lords & ladies or serfs & peasants). Repeat this with the closing paragraph.
2) New book starts Monday! If you plan to use your own copy of Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! please start bringing it to class every day on Monday. Mr. T can also provide you with a school-owned copy, if you need.
Nov. 28, Wed.
1) Use #73 & #74 to craft body paragraph #2 on outline (#75). In class today we discussed how an essay's body paragraph is similar to a sandwich: It introduces the adversity (like the top slice of bread), it focuses on text evidence about the adversity (like the meat & cheese), then it explains the effects of the adversity (like the bottom slice in bread). We even practiced this model using a sandwich graphic on TOC #74. We then expanded on these ideas using an outline (TOC #75). Practice this again tonight using the sandwich graphic on the back of #74, then complete Body Paragraph #2 on the back of your outline. (You don't need to write out these paragraphs on paper yet, or outline your opening or closing paragraphs -- these will come later this week.)
2) Also, many students need to correct last night's homework and submit it for a late grade tomorrow. Remember that your three quotes must come from the three different texts in #72. Each one also needs its citation: the author, title, and source.
Nov. 27, Tues.
1) #73: Select 1-2 best quotes for each adversity. Use all 3 sources from #72. We've spent a lot of time recently completing pages 18-21 of our workbooks, finding supporting quotes from three articles that are also in our workbooks. Today we tore p. 18-21 out of our notebooks; they became TOC #72. Tonight, identify three adversities that your medieval people faced (either serfs & peasants or lords & ladies). Next, copy 1-2 quotes from your notes (TOC #72) that support each adversity. (Look for quotes that really show how bad the adversity was, or explain its causes or effects.) Be sure to use each source from TOC #72 at least once.
Nov. 26, Mon.
1) Use #69 to complete #70. Complete this Countdown using the model essay we read during class today.
2) PCU #3 this week! If you were absent last week, make sure you've caught up on your Daily Pigs and Journals, including #9.
Nov. 20, Tues.
1) Read something good!
2) Are Journals #7-9 complete? (We took a few minutes in class today to confirm that Journals #7-9 are ready for next week's Piggy Check-up. If not, clean them up this weekend!)
Nov. 19, Mon.
1) Compose Journal #9. PCU #3 next week! As always, make sure your journal is at least one page long. We'll take Piggy Check-up #3 next week, when Mr. T will check Journals #7-9.
Nov. 16, Fri.
1) Finish #68 (at least 8-10 facts) ? Imagine that people in the Middle Ages had iPhones. Record a text conversation between two medieval people from different social classes: a serf and a lady's wife, a monk and a knight, a woman and a lord, etc. Have these two people compare the adversities they face, each trying to outdo the other.
2) Mr. T forgot to tell students -- We will be going to the library on Monday. Bring your library books to return or renew!
Nov. 15, Thur.
1) Pre-read and annotate #66 for tomorrow's quiz. Read this article about the Black Plague, a horrible sickness that overwhelmed medieval Europe. Take some time using context clues to define new words, underline key details, marking supporting details, writing gist statements in the margins, summarizing the article at the end, etc. You will need to have this text during tomorrow's assessment, so be sure to bring it with you.
Nov. 14, Wed.
1) Use #60 to write #64 (5-sentence paragraph). On the back of #60, students took notes about the adversities faced by medieval merchants and clergy. Use these notes to write a summary of the article you read. Mr. T suggests this summary be 5 sentences: topic sentence (main idea of article), 2 sentences about merchants' adversities, and 2 sentences about clergy's adversities. Remember: No quotes in your summary!
2) Finish #60 & #63? Mr. T saw the front of #60 for a homework grade today. Was yours complete?
Nov. 13, Tue.
1) Use #60 to finish #62? Today we practiced writing a summary, finding key details to support one main idea. If your class did not finish this summary of "Middle Ages" Excerpt I (#58), use the notes you took on TOC #60 to write your final sentences.
2) Compose Journal #8. Remember that you have a choice for this journal. If you would like to deliver your letter, just show it to Mr. T so he can put a check in your composition book. This way you'll get credit for the journal on the next Piggy Check-up.
Nov. 9, Fri.
1) Review #58 and complete #61. Use the Middle Ages article we discussed in class to find answers to this "Middle Ages" Countdown.
2) Finish #60? Mr. T's substitute says many students did not finish this Medieval Adversities Chart. The four groups of people for the left column are lords/barons, lords' wives, women, and serfs. In the center column, name the adversities (challenges, difficulties) these people face in your own words. In the right column, copy evidence from the text (quotes from #58) that support at least one adversity of each group of people.
3) First pd: Deliver report card to your parents!
Nov. 8, Thur.
1) #59: Read #58. Repeat yesterday's directions with 10 marked words. Yesterday, students used context clues and dictionary resources to deduce the meanings of 2-4 bold words from Tuesday's quotes. Tonight, read "Middle Ages" Excerpt 1, then use context clues to deduce the meanings of the 7 bold words and 3 underlined words (not subheading titles). Afterwards, use a dictionary or other resource to check your answers. (Example: " Serfs: I think 'serfs" were ... . My dictionary says they were ... .")
Nov. 7, Wed.
1) #57: Use context to define bold words, then look up definitions. This assignment is referring to the bold words in the sentences from last night's homework. On a sheet of notebook paper, write each bold word, then use the context of the sentence to deduce its meaning ( "Atone: I think 'atone' means ..." ). Next, look up each word in a dictionary or on another resource and write its definition ( "Dictionary.com says 'atone' means ... ").
2) Late #56? (Remember: You should only write a quote once in each column. Choose the primary topic, time, and tone of each quote. If you cannot erase your answers on your original #56, simply redraw the chart on a new sheet of paper.)
Nov. 6, Tue.
1) Use agenda slips to complete #56. In class, each student stapled two text quotes into their agendas. Consider the topic, time, and tone of quote and copy them into the appropriate boxes. (As the instructions say, you'll write each quote three times.) If you can't fit both quotes on the front of #56, just redraw the tic-tac-toe board on the back of the paper. If you lost your text quotes, use two of these:
Nov. 5, Mon.
1) Compose Journal #7. As always, make sure you include the date, the journal number, the prompt, and a response that's at least a full page long.
2) Clean #3-54 out of binder. Take home workbook? Now that we've finished 1st Quarter, it's a good time to clean out your binder. Keep your Tables of Contents, as well as TOC #1 & 2 in your binder. Mr. T suggests that you take everything else out and store it somewhere out-of-the-way at home for two reasons: 1) In case there's any discrepancy in your grades, and 2) when you're older, it can be fun to look back at what you did when you were a kid.
Nov. 2, Fri.
1) Share final narrative with Mr. T by 6:00 pm today! (Don't open it afterwards!) We had our last day with classroom computers today. Students had time to have a peer proofread their paper, then make edits or keep working. If you didn't share your Google doc with Mr. T yesterday, be sure to click on "Share" and select him. (Make sure it's the Mr. Tharrington at Wakefield Middle, not his brother at the high school!) Don't re-open your document after 6:00 or over the weekend because, when you do, it will re-submit and be late.
Nov. 1, Thurs.
1) #53: Read left column. How do the quotes on the right match up? In the left column, Mr. T has described what makes a good conclusion to a narrative. On the right, he copied four quotes from "The Golden Key," the heroic narrative we read in class. In the center, copy/write an aspect of good concluding paragraphs (from the left column) that each quote exemplifies.
2) Narrative due by 6pm Friday! We've had 30 minutes in class each day to work, as well as any time at home students have spent. Students shared these Google docs/slides with Mr. T in class today. We'll get 30 minutes more tomorrow; if that isn't enough time, finish at home on Friday afternoon. Don't open your Google doc over the weekend, or after 6pm on Friday, or it will look as though you turned the work in late!
Oct. 31, Wed.
1) Use #51 & #52 to work on heroic narrative? Students spent some time during class today exploring the use of sensory details, action verbs, and dialogue verbs to make writing more interesting. Use these styles, as well as transition words, in your own writing!
Oct. 30, Tues.
1) Categorize #51. This page includes 20 transition words that can help your writing be smoother. Categorize them into the 5 boxes on the right. (Notice that each box tells you how many words should be there.)
2) Work on your heroic narrative? Mr. T's goal is to provide ~30 minutes in class each day this week for students to work on their heroic narratives (our final project) using school technology. To help yourself keep pace, try to complete two stages of the Hero's Journey each day. If you can't get that much done during class, work on them at home too.
Oct. 29, Mon.
1) #49: How is each "said" word unique? Look back at our Daily Pigs from Oct. 15-23. Notice how Mr. T used a variety of synonyms for "said" throughout this conversation between Shelby, Shawn, and Jerry. What makes each of these "said" words different? Write your answers in the form of "word problems." For example, "whispered" = "said" + softly; "wondered" = "said" + question + in your head. (Use these and other "said" synonyms in your heroic narrative this week!)
2) #50: Illustrate 4 key scenes in your narrative. Do you remember the very first myth we read, and our assignment with it? (Way back on Sept. 4, you read the myth of "Perseus" and illustrated four important scenes.) Repeat this with the hero's narrative you're working on now, using your plan from TOC #45. As always, stick figures are fine; the purpose of these pictures is to help you "see" what you want to write.
Oct. 26, Fri.
1) Fill right-hand column of #45 with narrative ideas. Students received instructions today for their first quarter final project. We have read and written many narratives this quarter -- now each student will create their own original hero and compose the narrative of their hero's journey. As we discussed in class, and brainstormed on #47, your hero should exemplify (be a good example) of one of your top four Positivity Project traits. (See #42 for your ranking and Journal #6 for your personal reflection.) TOC #46 has fuller details on this project which students will work on at home and in school next week.
2) Bring library books?
Oct. 25, Thurs.
1) Fill middle column of #45. How does Percy follow the steps of The Hero's Journey throughout The Lightning Thief?
2) Bring library books on Mon.
Oct. 24, Wed.
1) #43: Defend Percy's top 3 and last P2 traits (2-3 sent. each). You've written about your top Positivity Project traits (see Journal #6) and we discussed Marney's top traits (from today's story). What would Percy Jackson's top 3 Positivity traits be, as well as his lowest? Defend your answers using evidence from The Lightning Thief. Mr. T suggests folding a sheet of notebook paper into fourths to write your answers.
2) TLT test corrections due by Friday (If you scored below 70% on yesterday's Lightning Thief test, you should have picked up corrections sheet from the tall table in Mr. T's room. If you didn't get one, pick one up tomorrow!)
Oct. 23, Tues.
1) Are Journals #4-6 complete? PCU #2 this week! Many students had time to begin Journal #6 after the test today. If you cannot find or remember the results from your Positivity Project survey, look for them this way: Go to www.viacharacter.org , sign in using your school email address ([email protected]), and use the password Silver6. As always, this journal should be at least one full composition-book page
2) Remove notes from TLT? If you borrowed a school-owned copy of The Lightning Thief, Mr. T will collect them soon. Please remove any sticky notes or bookmarks inside. If your copy is damaged or badly worn, please pay $5.50 or buy a replacement copy soon.
Oct. 22, Mon.
1) TLT novel test tomorrow! Review #40 and RC's. Be sure to bring your copy of The Lightning Thief with you to class tomorrow. See Printable Pages if you need another copy of the study guide.
2) Missing grades due by Wed. If your Table of Contents has a check next to an assignment but no grade recorded, that may mean you did not turn it in. (The exception to this is #36, the "Prometheus" mini-essay that Mr. T is still grading.) Also, check PowerSchool for any zeroes or missing grades. All students reviewed how to access PowerSchool during Social Studies one day last week.
3) Piggy Check-up #2 this week! This PCU will cover subjects/predicates and quotation marks, and all of the Daily Pigs we've covered since PCU #1 on Sept. 21.
Oct. 19, Fri.
1) Finish TLT! Use #40 and RC's (reading checks) to prepare for Tues. test. See Printable Pages if you need another copy of this study guide.
2) Missing grades due by Wed.! Review your Table of Contents and/or PowerSchool to see if you have any missing grades since Sept. 25.
Oct. 18, Thur.
1) Read ch. 20, then read and answer #39. The questions for this chapter that come with our curriculum are full of spoilers! Mr. T had each person pull a folded slip with 1-2 questions on it, and tuck it into their books at the end of the chapter. After you finish reading ch. 20, then answer these questions on notebook paper (#39).
2) Finish #38? In class, students determined potential themes to myths we'd read:
Oct. 17, Wed.
1) Read and annotate ch. 19. Use your blue bookmark. There are only 22 chapters in The Lightning Thief, so we're almost finished!
2) Book test next week! On Monday or Tuesday of next week, we'll have a test covering all of The Lightning Thief. The questions will generally not be as specific as those on reading checks, but will make sure you've grasped the main concepts of the book.
Oct. 16, Tue.
1) Finish annotating ch. 17 & 18? Use your blue bookmark for your guiding questions. Be sure to add at least four sticky notes.
2) Compose Journal #5? Most students who wrote their essays last night had time to begin (or even complete) these journals during class. As always, make sure your response is a full composition-book page long.
Oct. 15, Mon.
1) Finish #33. Use it to type/write essay? We finished about 90% of these essay outlines (TOC #33) in class today using notes from last week's homework assignments, especially #31 and #34. Students will use these outlines to write a 4-paragraph essay about the myth "Prometheus" -- see TOC #29 for the text. Tonight, students have a choice to make: You may either:
2) Read ch. 17 & 18 by Wednesday. If you choose to write your essay at home tonight, you may use tomorrow's class time to do this reading. If you choose to write your essay during class, you should probably begin this reading tonight. Use your bookmark for guiding questions as you annotate (sticky note) these chapters.
Oct. 11-12: Out of school for Tropical Storm Michael
Oct. 10, Wed.
1) Use myth to complete #34. Each student was assigned one of three thematic statements, which they then wrote on #34. Tonight, define what this theme means (in your own words), explain how it applies to the myth of "Prometheus," and copy two quotes from the myth that support this theme. If you didn't finish your Key Elements notes on your mini-essay outline (#33) you may want to, but you don't need to do any more than that. We'll use this outline to write our final essays.
Oct. 9, Tues.
1) Use myth to finish #31? During class, students tore pages 60-67 out of their workbooks; they are now TOC #29: "Prometheus" Packet. Students also had time to read this myth during class and begin #31. On #31, students identified the five Key Elements of Mythology. For each Key Element, they copied a quote from the myth that demonstrates this element and wrote 1-2 sentences explaining how this quote matches the element. (If you've forgotten the 5 Key Elements of Mythology and didn't write them down, they are A Struggle for Power, Explanation of the Origins of Life and the Natural World, Fate and Prophecy, Supernatural or Non-human Characters, and A Quest or Completion of a Task.)
2) Read and complete #32.
3) #19 test corrections due by Friday.
Oct. 8, Mon.
1) Complete right column of #27 using TLT. Use the terms from your Word Web Glossary (TOC #28): archetype, fate, natural origin, prophecy ("a prediction of something to come"), quest, struggle for power, supernatural, and theme. In the library today, we worked on finding examples of each of these in the myth of "Cronus" from our workbooks. At home tonight, find examples of them from ch. 1-16 of The Lightning Thief.
Oct. 5, Fri.
1) Read and annotate ch. 16.
Oct. 4, Thurs.
1) Read and annotate ch. 15.
2) Finish Journal #4 (full page)?
Oct. 3, Wed.
1) Read and annotate ch. 14.
2) Finish Key Term word web?
Oct. 2, Tues.
1) Read and annotate ch. 13.
Oct. 1, Mon.
1) Read and annotate ch. 12.
Sept. 28, Fri.
1) Read ch. 11 and complete allusion chart.
Sept. 27, Thur.
1) Read and annotate ch. 10.
Sept. 26, Wed.
1) Read and annotate (add sticky notes) ch. 9. Check your blue bookmark for this chapter's focus question.
2) Return signed interim!
Sept. 25, Tues.
1) Return signed interim! Be sure to get this green progress report signed by a parent, and return it to school tomorrow. If you have any zeroes or missing grades, they must be made up by tomorrow since that's the end of our unit. Mr. T say, "Report cards are like stop signs; it's too late to change those grades. Progress reports are like street signs; if you don't like where you're going, perhaps it's time to turn around."
2) Review ch. 8 for text evidence for test? Students began work on this test today, finding evidence from p. 107-112 (The Lightning Thief, ch. 8) to show that Percy fits their chosen stage of "The Hero's Journey." If you had trouble choosing text evidence that you could copy into your paragraph tomorrow, spend some time reviewing p. 107-112 tonight. This paragraph will be very similar to the one you practiced today (TOC #18).
Sept. 24, Mon.
1) Read and note ch. 8. See your new blue bookmark for each chapter's focus questions.
2) Do PCU corrections? If you scored below 70% on your Piggy Check-up, write correct answers next to your original ones (don't erase them). Turn this pink paper back in tomorrow.
Sept. 21, Fri.
1) Read ch. 6 and 7. How does Percy match "THJ"? This is more reading that we usually do, but Hurricane Florence has gotten us a bit behind. As you read, think about how Percy's journey matches up with the steps of "The Hero's Journey" (TOC #13).
2) Finish #16? This is pages 26 & 27 from your workbook, torn out. Most students had time to start after the PCU.
Sept. 20, Thur.
1) Read ch. 5; note at least 4 inferences about Percy. Notice how Percy reacts to his new surroundings and the things he learns. What can you infer about him from these reactions?
2) Are 10 Pigs and 3 journals ready? Tomorrow everyone will take our first test: Piggy Check-up #1. (See your Practice Piggy Check-up for a model.) We have had ten Pigs so far this year - each should be carefully written in your composition book (not notebook paper, not a spiral notebook). Some of the questions on the PCU will ask you to copy exact answers or instructions from your composition book; others will test your knowledge of new nouns we haven't discussed in class. While you take this test, Mr. T will circulate to read Journals #1-3, checking that each has its date, journal number, prompt (title), and a full-page response.
Sept. 19 -- No School
Sept. 18, Tue.
1) Compose J#3 (Journal #3). Use composition book for #14. Real PCU test on Fri. On Friday, we'll take Piggy Check-up #1. On this test you'll be allowed to use your composition book to find past answers ("On Sept. 18, copy #30.") and answer new questions ("Is 'time' concrete or abstract?"). Mr. T will circulate to read Journals #1, 2, and 3, checking that each has its date, number, prompt, and a full-page response.
2) Late #12! (This is last Wednesday's homework, which Mr. T would have seen on Thursday. If yours was incomplete or missing, be sure to finish and turn it in this Thursday for a late grade.)
Sept. 13-17: Out for Hurricane Florence
Sept. 12, Wed.
1) Use TLT to finish #12. (Quote text & 1-2 sent. response) Students copied these four questions today. To answer, cite the text (copy exact quotes from chapter 3 that go with this question) and write 1-2 sentences of your own response. Notice that this assignment will be checked for a homework grade!
*** If you'd like to be a step ahead, see the Daily Pig page for the journal Mr. T would have assigned tomorrow! ***
Sept. 11, Tue.
1) Use #10 and TLT to complete #11. These numbers are Table of Contents numbers, not page numbers. We tore pages 14 and 15 out of our classroom workbooks, and these became TOC #10 (Prefix List) and #11 (Using Prefixes for Meaning).
Sept. 10, Mon.
1) Read TLT ch. 4; add at least 4 sticky notes. What challenges does Percy face in this chapter? How does he respond to them? When you see either of these happen, describe it on a sticky note and stick it on the page where it happens. **Quiz tomorrow! This will not be a quick reading check like TOC #8. This quiz will see how well you can analyze what you read and focus entirely on chapter 4. You will be allowed to use your book and tonight's sticky notes.
Sept. 7, Fri.
1) Read TLT ch. 3; add at least 4 sticky notes. What can we learn about Percy from his inner thoughts? Be sure you're reading carefully because you never know when we'll have a quiz (hint, hint)!
Sept. 6, Thurs.
1) Read TLT ch. 2; add at least 4 sticky notes. What challenges does Percy face in this chapter? How does he respond to them? When you see either of these happen, describe it on a sticky note and stick it on the page where it happens. Be sure you're reading carefully because you never know when we'll have a quiz (hint, hint)!
2) Deliver EL letter. Parents: This is a letter about our EL (Expeditionary Learning) curriculum. It is also available on the school website, as well as a video.
3) Redo/Return BYOD form? Check that this form is complete, with signatures at the bottom and initials in every box down the side. (The office won't accept them if they aren't just right!)
Sept. 5, Wed.
1) Finish Journal #2? (Remember that your response should fill at least one page in your composition book. Most students had enough time to finish this journal during class.)
2) Read TLT chap. 1. (Mr. T distributed school-owned copies of The Lightning Thief during class today. Thank-you to everyone who is using their own copy! Some students could not get a school copy because they still need to return the yellow parent contract. Please return these ASAP; you can print both sides from Printable Pages on this site.)
3) Late / Redo TOC #6. (Thank-you to the number of students who had last night's homework assignment ready today -- this was a good first impression to make! If you did not have it ready, or it was not your best work, be prepared to turn your work in tomorrow for a late grade [-5 pts.].)
4) Return BYOD form!
Sept. 4, Tue.
1) Return signed BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) form. Parents: Signing this form means you allow you child to use their own wireless device (phone, tablet, or laptop) at school for instructional purposes and understand the consequences. We will not use our devices very often in English class; when we do need technology, we'll use our classroom laptops. This form is good for 6-8 grades, so even your child doesn't bring a device to school now, they may start later. Students: Signing this form means you agree to follow the WMS rules for devices and you accept the consequences if any rules are broken.
2) Read TOC #5 ("Shrouded in Myth"). Illustrate four important scenes. Before we went to the library today, students divided a blank sheet of paper into four quadrants and labeled them: Paragraphs 1&2, Paragraph 3, Paragraph 4, and Paragraphs 5&6. After reading the myth of Perseus that Mr. T distributed at the beginning of class, draw a picture of what you would consider the most important event that happened in each of those sections. If you think someone would have trouble knowing what you drew, feel free to write a sentence in each box telling what's happening.
3) Return signed parent contract! (If you did not return this yellow form on Friday or today, please return it tomorrow. You may not get a school-owned copy of any of our books without it!)
Aug. 31, Fri.
1) Return completed yellow parent form? If you've lost this form, print another one from the Printable Pages on this website.
2) Homeroom: Ask parent to complete __________ . (Many students in Mr. T's homeroom have returned the mandatory forms from our first day packet, but several still need to ask their parents to complete our team's Google form for parent contacts . See the lists above for names!)
*** Parents: Mr. T and Mrs. Levey need gallon-sized zipper bags (think Ziploc) by Wednesday, Sept. 5. If you're able to help by sending in a box of 20 (or more!) bags on Tuesday, we would appreciate it very much. Thank you!
Aug. 30, Thurs
1) Have parents complete both sides of yellow form. Parents: Please take a moment to complete the contact information in case Mr. T needs to reach you. Also, please sign the EL book contract on the back (even if you plan on buying all of these books). Both sides of this form are available under Printable Pages if you need: Parent contact form & Parent book contract.
2) Complete Journal #1? Students wrote this journal yesterday and we reviewed them in class today. Every journal must have its date, journal number, and prompt written at the top, then should fill at least one full page of your (non-spiral) composition book.
Aug. 29, Wed.
1) Review for tomorrow's quiz. How well did you do during the classtime review? This quiz will not be fill-in-the-blank like What Do I Do If ... . Instead, it might describe a scenario and ask what you should do. For example, "Rosemarie was absent yesterday. Where should she look for the work she missed?"
2) Finish Journal #1? (at least one full page) Today's journal should fill the first page of your composition book (not a spiral-bound notebook, but a 100-page tape-bound composition book). If you missed the prompt or need a reminder of some topics, click on the Daily Pig link on this website.
Aug. 28, Tues.
1) Review green letter and WDIDI for quiz Thurs. In class today, groups began teaching each other some of the procedures of Mr. T's classroom on What Do I Do If ... . We'll finish these notes tomorrow. Review today's notes as well as the green letter Mr T distributed at the end of class.
2) Bring class supplies tomorrow.
Aug. 27, Mon.
1) Answer both sides of "The Big Day." Our first day of sixth grade is finished! Take a few minutes to answer these ten questions. Be sure to read the instructions carefully.
2) Have class supplies by Wednesday. (Remember: You need a 1-inch binder, a 100-sheet college-ruled composition book, loose leaf paper, pencils, pens, and 3-inch sticky notes. You may want to order your own copy of The Lightning Thief but we won't begin reading it for a couple of weeks.)
1) Bring device and earbuds / headphones? If you group didn't finish listening to all of your songs today, you may need to bring your device again tomorrow.
June 5, Wed.
1) Bring device and earbuds / headphones. Tomorrow all groups should have time to begin their research in order to evaluate their theme songs.
June 4, Tues.
1) Bring device and earbuds / headphones on Wed. and Thurs.
2) Return/Replace/Pay for missing books by Friday!
June 3, Mon.
1) Find at least 5 parallels on back of #238. In class we discussed the value of having a broad English vocabulary. Knowing a variety of words can sometimes help you translate words from another language. We practiced this in class by listening to a Spanish version of Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" and deducing the parallel English words. Use this same skill tonight to find parallels between the English and French translation of the first stanza of "The Star-Spangled Banner."
May 28, Tues.
1) Return missing books? Mr. T distributed overdue book notices from the WMS library today. All library books are due by June 6. If you need to return an EL book to Mr. T, please do so immediately; if you need to pay for a lost or damaged EL book, please take the exact amount to Mrs. Brown in the library.
May 24, Fri.
1) Review / Practice #227 for quiz on Tues. One good way to prepare for Tuesday's quiz would be to read a short story (at least 5-6 pages) and try to identify some of these literary terms and techniques. For example: Do any characters have a conflict? Is any of the dialogue written in dialect? How does your story fit the five stages of plot?
May 23, Thurs.
1) Complete #229.
2) Study #227 for quiz. As practice for this quiz, students chose an animal-related short story and looked for examples of some of the key literary terms: conflict, dialect, dialogue, figurative language, flashbacks, motives, plot, and theme.
May 22, Wed.
1) #227: How many can you complete? Quiz on Tues. Similar to #224, this list has a word bank to help; we will review the answers tomorrow. Today's 10-question EOG-review quiz was the first of three we will take this week and next. Together, these will add up to one quiz grade in PowerSchool. Do you best!
2) Poster "corrections" due tomorrow. (See Tuesday's homework for details.)
May 21, Tues.
1) Review #224 for quiz tomorrow. Many students had the opportunity to review these terms during class. Mr. T provided two poems and suggested students look for examples of key poetry techniques used in them: alliteration, onomatopoeia, hyperbole, simile, metaphor, personification, sensory language, and rhyme scheme. For further practice, do this at home with any poem (or song) that you choose. This would be the most realistic review for tomorrow's quiz.
2) Test corrections due Thursday? (Mr. T has been able to grade many of the Cascading Consequences posters while students presented, but not all of them. He plans on returning graded rubrics on Thursday. Because this poster counts as our 4th Quarter benchmark -- and a test -- students who score below 70% may do corrections. Now that you've seen other students' posters and heard their claims and evidence, if you anticipate that your score may be lower than 70%, you may wish to go ahead and answer the grade-recovery questions Mr. T has in his room. You may also answer them in class on Thursday after seeing your rubric, but will only have the ~45 minutes of class time to complete them. These questions relate to an article in our workbooks that students did not read earlier.)
May 20, Mon.
1) #224: How many can you answer? Quiz on Wed. This TOC covers ~20 poetry-related terms that students may see on our June 3 Reading EOG. Students learned many of these terms in elementary school (simile, metaphor, onomatopoeia, etc.) and we covered many more during 2nd Quarter (personification, sensory language, speaker, etc.). A few of these may be new: hyperbole, meter, rhyme scheme, etc. Tomorrow we will review the answers.
May 17, Fri.
1) Prepare / Practice presenting. See yesterday's homework for details.
2) Finalize poster? If you decided to take your poster home this weekend, be very careful with it and be sure to bring it back to school on Monday. This project counts as a test grade!
3) Return Frightful's Mountain! (Do you still need to return / pay for any of this year's novels? Check the lists above to be sure!)
May 16, Thur.
1) Prepare / Practice cards for poster presentations on Mon. Next week, students will present their research posters to their classmates. While you present, you will not be able to read your poster. Instead, have your argument, claims, and evidence (with sources) written on cards. The good news is that you already have these! They are the pink or yellow pieces of paper you've used this week to format your poster. You may need to add a card with your argument, as well the titles and authors.
2) Finish #222. Students answered #1-10 of this EOG worksheet last night, then worked on #11-20 in class. (Some students even got to #21-30.) Any sections you did not finish, or were not checked as complete, should be finished tonight.
May 15, Wed.
1) #222: Answer #1-10. It's that time of year again -- time to begin reviewing for our Reading EOG on June 3. Match up these first ten EOG terms to their meanings on the right. We'll review these answers tomorrow.
2) Are Pigs and Journals up-to-date? You know that Piggy Check-up #8 is coming soon. Are you ready?
May 14, Tues.
1) #221: Produce illustration for poster project. Think about the argument you're making for your Cascading Consequences poster project. Who or what is your stakeholder? If you are a better artist than Mr. T and want to draw, feel free. If you would rather print a picture that you find online, make sure that it is free to use (not copyrighted) and that you cite its source.
2) Bring poster board tomorrow (with name on it!).
May 13, Mon.
1) #218: Create 4 claims for one stakeholder. In class we took notes on four ways to write a claim: Claims of fact or definition; claims of cause and effect; claims of value; and claims about solutions or policies. For your poster project, you will need to have two separate claims showing how DDT use helps or harms (not both!) one stakeholder: birds of prey, farmers, people in malaria-infested areas, etc. Practice writing these claims tonight. For example, you might try writing the same one as a claim of value ("Banning the use of DDT is the only viable way to prevent it getting into waterways") and as a claim about solution or policy ("Spraying DDT inside homes is a better method than exterior spraying if we want to prevent DDT from getting into local waterways").
2) Bring poster board on Wed. We will work on these posters during class on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. If you can't get a piece of poster board, please let Mr. T know tomorrow.
May 10, Fri.
1) Conduct interview and compose Journal #24. Since this is our third journal since Piggy Check-up #7, you know that PCU #8 will be coming soon. It will cover our work on restrictive and non-restrictive appositives, and our recent work on hyphenation.
2) Review Frightful's Mountain. (We have taken four reading checks about FM; the average of these checks counts as a test grade in PowerSchool. If this score is below 70% you may earn points back by taking a book test next week.)
May 9, Thurs.
1) Prepare / Practice #217 for tomorrow. Tomorrow we will hold a mock trial for DDT. Each child has a role. Many will be playing the role of a stakeholder, someone or something involved in or affected by the use of DDT. If you are a stakeholder, think about what you will say when you're called to testify. How were you affected by DDT? (Remember to tell us in 1st person!) Also, be prepared to share the evidence you found in your workbook research today, with its source. Make sure that your evidence and your testimony directly support the claim you wrote on #217. Each group also has one lawyer. If that is you, your job tonight is to consider which stakeholders will best support each claim on #217. Tomorrow you will present one claim, then call each witness to the front to present their testimony and evidence.
2) Late #216! (Mr. T checked Perils of Peregrines -- Tuesday night's homework -- for a grade today.)
May 8, Wed.
No class - Mudcats field trip!
May 7, Tue.
1) Use FM (Frightful's Mountain) to complete #216. Peregrine falcons face many dangers in real life. Find text evidence from the given pages on #216 of how these fictional falcons face similar threats. The quotes you find regarding DDT will be very helpful later!
May 6, Mon.
1) Complete back of #215. This page outlines the 7 Traits of Successful People, as written about in Paul Tough's book How Children Succeed. In class students read a short biographical excerpt about Jackie Robinson and scored him on his display of these traits. Tonight, show how an adult you know well -- parent, coach, grandparent, neighbor -- displays them, as well as yourself.
May 3, Fri.
1) Read ch. 19 and Afterword; complete #214. These chapters finish Frightful's Mountain! You'll discover Frightful's full life story and her call to home.
2) Compose Journal #23. This journal makes a nice tie-in to this week's Positivity Project trait: Purpose. Unlike most journals, this topic may require some research.
May 2, Thur.
1) Read ch. 18 ; answer #213 with at least 2 inferences.
2) Get interim signed!
3) Bring Book Fair money? (We'll make a quick trip to our school Book Fair during class tomorrow. Posters, books, erasers, and gifts are available. Most books are sold for the cover price -- anywhere from $1 and up. This is an excellent chance for students to build their own home libraries!)
May 1, Wed ~ No School
Apr. 30, Tues.
1) Read ch. 17; finish #209.
2) Finish #211? Review #210 and #211 on Wednesday. We'll have a quiz covering these two articles on Thursday. The paper portion of the quiz will be very similar to the claims/evidence charts we've completed this week. You will be allowed to use #210 during the quiz.
3) Book Fair on Friday!
Apr. 29, Mon.
1) Read ch. 16; complete front of #209 with at least two relationships.
Apr. 26, Fri.
1) Read ch 15; answer #206.
2) Compose Journal #22. As always, make sure this response is a full page long in your composition book.
Apr. 25, Thurs.
1) Read ch. 14; answer #204.
Apr. 24, Wed.
1) Read ch. 13; answer back of #202.
2) Test corrections due by tomorrow! (See yesterday's homework for closer notes.)
Apr. 23, Tues.
1) Read ch. 12; answer front of #202.
2) Test corrections by Thursday? Students got to see TOC #192 today -- the Argument, Claims, & Evidence test about "Rachel Carson: Sounding the Alarm on Pollution" and the Amoeba Sisters' "Biogmagnification and the Infamous DDT." If you scored below 70%, answer the cream-colored "ecosystems" article found in the back of Mr. T's room by Thursday.
Apr. 12, Fri.
1) Read ch. 11 and answer #199 (if you didn't do this last night).
Apr. 11, Thur.
1) Finish / Clean up #198? Students will use this Cascading Consequences Chart during tomorrow's fishbowl discussion about the benefits and harms of DDT use. If your copy is messy and you want to have a neater one, feel free to reproduce it on a new sheet of paper. You should have 2-3 claims, with 2-3 pieces of evidence to support each claim. Remember that each bit of evidence must have a source (the title of the article, video, or chart/graph where you learned it). The more evidence you have, the more you'll be able so share tomorrow without repetition.
2) Read ch. 11; answer back of #199. If you need to spend your homework time working on #198, this reading could wait until Spring Break.
Apr. 10, Wed.
1) Compose Journal #21. Are #19 and #20 complete? This would be a good time to look over your Daily Pigs about adjectives/adverbs, as well as appositives!
Apr. 9, Tues.
1) Read ch. 10; answer front of #199. Remember the bridge work that was foreshadowed in chapter 7? Now we see what happens!
2) Return library books! Core 1, 2, and 4 will have quick library visits tomorrow. (Core 3 will not because we'll be enjoying our presentation by Carolina Raptor Center.)
Apr. 8, Mon.
1) Read ch. 9; answer #196. This chapter is a bit longer than usual, so allow yourself enough time to read 20 pages.
2) Piggy Check-up #7 this week? If you've been absent recently, or sometimes forget your composition book, this would be a good time to compare your answers to those on the website. PCU #7 will cover our lessons of adjectives and adverbs, as well as our first lessons on restrictive and non-restrictive appositives.
Apr. 5, Fri.
1) Read ch. 7 & 8; answer #193. Students picked up this double-sided TOC after finishing today's test.
Apr. 4, Thur.
1) Read #190 to prepare for tomorrow's test on argument, claims, and evidence. Half of tomorrow's test will focus on this magazine article about Rachel Carson, the author of Silent Spring. Take some time tonight to read the article, define any unfamiliar words, and/or write notes in the margins about the author's argument, claim, and evidence. (You will be allowed to use this paper during the test!) The other half of the test will focus on a video that we watch during class time. (See yesterday's homework note for more details.)
Apr. 3, Wed.
1) Read ch. 6; answer #188. TOC #188 was torn from our workbooks. This chapter is much shorter than previous ones!
2) Compose Journal #20. Our Positivity Project trait this year has been humor. Exercise your sense of humor in this journal. As always, be sure to fill the page!
** Note: This week we have been practicing finding an author's argument (a person's position on an idea; your side), claim (a statement that may be questioned; a fact?), and evidence. We will have a test on these skills this Friday, Apr. 5. **
Apr. 2, Tue.
1) Read ch. 5; answer back of #185.
Apr. 1, Mon.
1) Finish #184 and front of #185? Students got to see their graded brochures during class today and calculated their scores. Anyone who scored below 70% earned points back by answering questions about our fish depletion research articles. Afterwards students watched a news video by John Stossel (see Links for Students) and completed TOC #184, which students tore out of their workbooks last week. If you didn't finish this video, watch it at home and complete #184. Students also picked up TOC #185, where they should take notes from chapter 4 from the weekend's reading.
2) Late #178! (Mr. T checked these Bird Cam Notes -- distributed on Monday, March 25 -- for a homework grade today.)
Mar. 28, Thur.
1) Read ch. 3 & 4; answer #183. This page torn from our workbooks (TOC #183) only concerns ch. 3. Mr. T will distribute a notes page for ch. 4 on Monday,.
2) Watch bird cam -- #178 due Mon. Remember that you should have five days' worth of notes about the raptors' nest you're watching. If you have been watching this nest in the late afternoons, take advantage of your free time this weekend to take notes during the morning or early afternoon. Perhaps you'll see something different!
3) Return World Without Fish! (If your name is listed above, please return or replace your school-owned copy of this book. If you cannot find it, or it's damaged, please replace it. If you must pay for it, please bring thing exact amount.)
Mar. 27, Wed.
1) Finish ch. 1; read ch. 2. Complete #180 & #181. Today we began reading our final novel: Frightful's Mountain, by Jean C. George. We read the first half of chapter 1 in class. Tonight, finish this chapter and also read chapter 2. (This is several pages of reading. This might be an appropriate night not to spend 10 minutes watching one of the bird cams, #178.) After you read, answer the focus questions on TOC #180-181 (pages 1-2 from our new workbooks).
2) Return World?
Mar. 26, Tues.
1) Continue #179 - due Monday, April 1.
2) Return World? Mr. T collected the school-owned copies of World Without Fish in class today. If you still have your copy, please return it tomorrow.
Mar. 25, Mon.
1) Use notes and resources (workbook, World, #176, etc.) to draft project parts? Tomorrow is our final day to work on our informative consumer guides! If you are afraid that you have more than 30 minutes' worth of work left, Mr. T encourages you to write out your paragraphs at home so you don't have to compose them during class tomorrow.
2) Begin #178 – due Mon, Apr. 1. As an introduction to Frightful's Mountain, choose one of the four web cams from #178 which are recording nests of raptors (birds that catch other animals to eat). Observe this nest over 5 days, for at least 10 minutes per visit. Record your observations on #178.
3) Return World? Mr. T began collecting school-owned copies of World Without Fish today and will finish tomorrow. If you plan on using quotes from this book in your project, be sure to record these quotes in your notes or rough draft.
Mar. 22, Fri. (Sorry if you've waited for this posting! Mr. T updated it on Friday but it must not have saved.)
1) Compose Journal #19. As always, be sure to write the date, journal number, and prompt at the top of your page, then fill the page with your response.
2) Draft paragraphs for brochure? We will be working in the computer lab again on Monday and Tuesday of next week, finishing our informative consumer guides (brochures). Since we're creating these using Microsoft Word, they are saved on the school's intranet, which means you cannot work on them at home. If you're afraid you may not finish this brochure in two more class periods, you may want to compose the three paragraphs at home (introductory, focus problem, and case study) then type them in class.
Mar. 21, Thur.
1) Are your quote sandwiches ready to use (workbook p. 88-90 and #174)? Students spent much of last week reading nonfiction articles about fish depletion and taking notes. This week, they evaluated these notes and reviewed using "quote sandwiches" to compose paragraphs. (Remember: We used these "quote sandwiches" during our medieval adversity unit back in November.) Students should have quote sandwiches prepared for the three paragraphs that will be part of our project: the introductory paragraph about fish depletion; a focus problem paragraph about one specific reason for fish depletion (such as overfishing, by-catch, destructive fishing practices, etc.); and a case study about one particular fish that has been over-hunted (such as the orange roughy, bluefin tuna, or a fish from the Seafoodwatch videos we investigated). There are three blank pages in our workbooks (p. 88-90) that students could use to write these sandwiches.
2) Bring workbook and World. Students took their third quarter workbooks home today to use in their final research and note-taking. Bring these, as well as World Without Fish, to class every day so you can use them on our in-class project.
Mar. 20, Wed.
1) #175: Plan brochure on separate paper. (Cut and paste 10 boxes.) We'll begin typing our final project (the Informative Consumer Guide) in the computer lab tomorrow. This ICG will be in the form of a tri-fold brochure. Tonight, students are planning the lay-out of their individual brochures. Fold a sheet of notebook paper into thirds, as if you were going to mail it in an envelope. Cut out the 10 boxes from the two sheets you received in class today and glue them onto your folded paper in the order you think your brochure should be arranged. This way you'll know where to type each paragraph in your document tomorrow!
Mar. 14, Thur.
1) #171: Use World to complete parts 1-5.
Mar. 13, Wed.
1) Read World ch. 10; answer question on #164.
Mar. 12, Tue.
1) Read World p. 128-134; answer question on #164.
Mar. 11, Mon.
1) Read World p. 117-127; answer question on #164.
Mar. 8, Fri.
1) Read ch. 11 (p. 143-171); answer question on #164. Notice that this chapter is a good bit longer than most. Make sure you allot sufficient time!
2) Do you need to turn in #169 for a late grade on Monday?
Mar. 7, Thur.
1) Use #168 to finish #169? TOC #168 is page 55 of our in-class workbooks, torn out and hole-punched. It is a model of an in-class project we will begin working on next week. Read it closely (Sorry that it's so difficult to read in parts!) and answer the countdown questions on #169, which students picked up after today's Piggy Check-up.
2) Read ch. 8; answer question on #164. Some students finished #168-169 in enough time to do this reading in class.
Mar. 6, Wed.
1) Read World p. 98-106; answer question #164. These pages are the second half of ch. 7. Be sure to pay attention to the graphic novel of Kram and Ailat. Do they seem different?
Mar. 5, Tue.
1) Are your Pigs and Journals current and correct? Piggy Check-up #6 is coming sometime this week! Questions will cover the case, person, and number of pronouns, as well as the proper use of apostrophes. Mr. T will circulate to see Journals #16-18; make sure each has its date, number, prompt, and a full-page written response (including Journal #18).
Mar. 4, Mon.
1) Finish #163 and Journal #18? Students had ~20 minutes to work on each of these assignments during class today. TOC #163 was done as a table group. If you are finishing yours individually, here are two hints: the conflict of Flush occurs when Paine sank the Coral Queen; the climax of the story happens when Noah, Abbey, and Shelly complete Operation Royal Flush. For Journal #18, students designed a new cover for Flush and drew it in their composition books. Remember that this picture does not count as the journal. Instead, Mr. T recommends writing two paragraphs on the opposite page: one descriptive paragraph describing what your cover looks like, and a second argumentative paragraph defending why this is a good illustration for the cover of this novel.
2) Read World p. 87-97; answer question on #164. Students turned in their school-owned copies of Flush today and we move back into World Without Fish. (Please re-start bringing this book to class every day.) Mr. T neglected to hand out #164 to Core 4 -- thank you to the students who came back and picked one up!
3) Return Flush! (If you still have a school-owned copy of Flush, please return it tomorrow. If Mr. T put a sticker on the back of your book, please pay the listed amount or (even better) buy a replacement book. Thank you!
Mar. 1, Fri.
1) Finish ch. 18-21 of Flush. Bring book Mon. There are no assigned questions for these chapters. This is your chance to see how the story ends! Mr. T will collect school-owned copies on Monday.
2) Bring World Without Fish on Monday. (If you are using your own copy of World, please start bringing it to class. If you were using a school-owned copy, Mr. T will re-distribute them on Monday.)
Feb. 28, Thur.
1) Finish ch. 15-17 and #157.
2) Finish / Redo #161? TOC #161 counts as part of tomorrow's test on point-of-view. We know Hiassen's perspective of Florida from #160: He thinks its nature, animals, water, and environment are beautiful and he hates the development, pollution, and exploitation of natural resources that he sees. In the uppermost box of #161, copy a scene from Flush where we can hear Hiaasen's perspective in his writing. (You might try p. 28-29, p. 67, p. 103, or p. 141.) In the middle box, draw a color illustration of the image that Hiaasen describes in that scene. In the lowest box, explain how this scene shows us Hiaasen's perspective (See the sentence starters to help you.) This paper is 1/4 of tomorrow's test grade, so do your best!
3) Flush point-of-view test tomorrow! This will not be a test about the plot of the book. Instead, you will be assigned new pages from Flush and asked to show how we can see Hiaasen's perspective of Florida in them. TOC #160 is a good way to practice for this test.
Feb. 27, Wed.
1) Read ch. 15-17 by Friday; finish #157. These three chapters add up to quite a bit of reading -- don't wait till the last minute!
2) Bring library books!
Feb. 26, Tues.
1) Read ch. 13 & 14; answer question on #157.
2) Compose Journal #17. Be sure you focus your entire journal on one innovation. You might write about why it is better than the other options, but only nominate one.
Feb. 25, Mon.
1) Read ch. 11 & 12; answer question on #157. You'll see that each question asks how its chapters "contribute to the plot development." By this point in the book, we are not meeting many new characters (with one important exception). Instead, think about how the characters' actions build up the story. Is there building conflict or tension between characters? Does any conflict or tension get resolved?
Feb. 22, Fri.
1) Read ch. 9 & 10; answer their question on #157. TOC #157 is a new set of homework questions covering chapters 9-17.
2) Compose Journal #16. As always, make sure this journal fills at least one page of your composition book.
Feb. 21, Thurs.
1) Closely read ch. 8 for POV (point of view) assessment; finish #148. As you read chapter 8, pause every page or two to consider Noah's point-of-view. Think about his father's TV interview, Mr. Shine's reaction to Noah's questions, Lice Peeking's disappearance, Paine's escape, etc.
2) Get interim signed! This progress report is on a half-sheet of green paper. Some students have zeroes for homework assignments -- unfortunately, it is too late to turn these in now because we've already taken the test on that unit.
Feb. 20, Wed.
1) Read ch. 6 & 7; answer question on #148.
Feb. 19, Tue.
1) Finish reading ch. 4 & 5; answer question on #148. The pace of our at-home reading picks up a bit now, with many nights' task being to read two chapters (20-24 pages). No class had time to begin reading chapter 4 today, so students will have to read both chapters on their own. The question associated with these chapters is on the back of TOC #148, which students received on Feb. 12.
Feb. 15, Fri.
1) #153: Use evidence from ch. 2. What is Noah Underwood's point of view of Lice Peeking? What does he think of him as a person? Use evidence from ch. 2: Noah's words, thoughts, and his actions.
Feb. 14, Thurs.
1) Review ch. 2 and read ch. 3. Answer their question on #148. We reviewed last night's reading a bit in class, but it would certainly behoove students to look over it again.
Feb. 13, Wed.
1) Finish #150? Many students began this TOC after finishing their Piggy Check-ups. Remember that "literal" means exactly what the words say; "figurative" means what the speaker actually meant.
2) Read Flush, ch. 2. You won't be able to answer the second question of TOC #148 yet. That will wait until reading ch. 3 tomorrow.
Feb. 12, Tues.
1) Finish Flush, ch. 1; answer its question on #148. TOC #148 includes questions for chapters 1-8. Tonight, only answer the first question. Notice that the directions suggest you add at least three sticky notes while you read that help you answer the question.
2) Use ch. 1 to redo #138? Mr. T returned #138 today. Many students did well, but many did not practice our skills. Each answer must be a complete sentence that reflects its question, incorporates a quote, and cites the page number. If an answer is missing any of these, it is incorrect. If you scored below 70%, you may get a third chance by answering the questions that Mr. T had in the back of the room. These answers are due tomorrow.
Feb. 11, Mon.
1) Finish Journal #15? Are Pigs and journals current and correct? As always, make sure this journal includes its prompt, date, number, and a full-page response. Since PCU #4, you should have 23 Pigs and 3 journals.
Feb. 8, Fri.
1) Fill the boxes of #143. Use it to write a "summary" of Flush (#144). TOC #143 provides a list of character names, setting locations, and possible motives from our next novel: Carl Hiaasen's Flush. Use these terms to predict what you think might happen in the book. This should not involve any research! Simply use your logic and creativity to write what could be a summary of this novel. If you have read the book, just write from your memory.
2) Bring World and Flush on Monday? Mr. T will collect school-owned copies of World Without Fish on Monday, then return them when we use them again in March. He will also assign copies of Flush. If you have your own copy of Flush, please bring it.
Feb. 7, Thur.
1) Use ch. 5 to complete #141. Review p. 70-75 for test. In class today we practiced finding Mark Kurlansky's point of view in chapter 5. If you did not finish workbook pages 21-22, continue practicing tonight. C: What is his point of view about the people of Iceland? Can you find a quote on p. 68 that supports your claim? Does Kurlansky show his point of view directly or indirectly? D: What is his point of view of how the British treated the Icelanders? Can you find a quote on p. 69 that supports your claim? Does Kurlansky show his point of view directly or indirectly?
*** Parents: We will start reading Flush on Monday, Feb. 11. If you would still like to buy your own, you may want to order it now.***
Feb. 6, Wed.
1) Add ch. 5 and p. 76 to #130/#131. Students read chapter 5 during class today and took an online reading check. Add notes from this reading, plus part 6 of the "Kram and Ailat" graphic novel onto TOC #130/#131. These are the final pages we'll add to this worksheet.
Feb. 5, Tues.
1) Add ch. 4 and p. 62 (part 5 of the graphic novel) to #130 and #131. We have added to this front-and-back paper last week. Remember that the focus is on how Kurlansky makes his point that humans are killing off the world's fish populations. Does he use dramatic language and lots of bold text, like in the Introduction? Does he focus on cause and effect and quote historic sources, as he did in Ch. 1? Does he write a chronological history, like ch. 2? Does he focus on one specific fish as an example for what could happen to others, as with the orange roughy in ch. 3? Don't forget to add part 5 of "Kram and Ailat" on the back (#131).
2) Many students decided their homework was not ready to turn in today. Check yours against yesterday's homework description, and be sure to turn it in for a late grade tomorrow!
Feb. 4, Mon.
1) Use notes in ch. 4 to answer #138. This TOC is a p. 15 from our workbooks. As you answer these text-based questions, remember to
- Reflect the question (Write so that someone reading your answer would know what the question was),
- Cite the page number (Either at the beginning of your answer, such as "According to p. 53," or at the end, written within parentheses), and
- Incorporate evidence (Your answer shouldn't be a quote from the text, but should include a quote.)
Feb. 1, Fri.
1) Use ch. 3 to finish #137. On each listed page, find a word that uses the given root, prefix, or suffix. In the larger box, show how that word's meaning connects with the meaning of the root or affix. For example, "phyto-" means "having to do with plants." Phytoplankton are microscopic floating plants in the sea.
2) Deliver report card!
Jan. 31, Thur.
1) Compose Journal #14.
2) Answer #5 of #136.
Jan. 30, Wed.
1) Finish ch. 2, adding at least 4 sticky notes. Answer #5 of #128. We'll have our mid-unit assessment tomorrow. It will involve reading a new piece of text and answering questions about main idea, key details, text evidence, context clues, inferences, and other skills we've been practicing.
Jan. 29, Tues.
1) #133: Use #132 as a model for two new words. During class today, we practiced using dictionaries and context clues to determine words' meaning.s. Each person divided a piece of paper (#132) into four quadrants. In the upper-left, we copied a sentence from ch. 1 that uses a given word. In the upper-right, we copied the dictionary definition of this word. In the lower-right, we paraphrased the definition, shortening it and putting it into our own words. In the lower-left, we rewrote the original sentence, substituting our synonym/short definition in place of the word. Tonight, repeat this using two of the Ch,. 1 words you added to your word-catcher at the beginning of class. If you were absent, or didn't write down your words, choose two of these: "exposition," (p. 1) "cataclysm" (p. 2), "primitive" (p. 8), or "predicament" (p. 19).
Jan. 28, Mon.
1) Finish reading ch. 1; add at least 4 more notes.
2) #128: Answer #4.
Jan. 25, Fri.
1) Read p. xviii - xxiv and add 6 notes. These pages finish the Introduction, and include the first page of the graphic novel (comics) that are spread throughout our book. Mr. T suggests adding 6 notes because you'll read 6 pages of text -- where you decide to put the notes, and what you take away from the reading, is up to you.
2) #128: Answer #3. Finish #129 (10-12 sentences). Question #3 on the back of TOC #128 focuses on that first graphic novel page. How does Kurlansky use this style of text to prove his point? Students have worked on #129 since Wednesday night. In total, this summary should be roughly 10-12 sentences -- it shouldn't be fewer than 10 nor more than 15.
Jan. 24, Thur.
1) Continue #128 and #129 using p. xii - xvii. Both of these TOC's were started yesterday. On #128, answer question #2. (Remember our discussion from class -- the question isn't about what Kurlansky says, but how he says it. Think about his tone and his text features: lettering, diagrams, quotes, etc.) On #129, use your sticky notes to add 3-5 more sentences to your summary. Don't just copy what's on your notes -- blend them with transition words and ideas that make the sentences flow together.
Jan. 23, Wed.
1) #128: Answer #1. This question covers pages x - xii of World Without Fish, which we read in class today. Notice that it asks how the author introduces the idea of fish depletion (decrease, running out). What sort of tone does he use? How does he show his feelings about the problem? Hint: He chooses his specific words very carefully. He also has made certain words look different, so they are more noticeable.
2) #129: Use notes to write a summary of p. x - xii. As we read, we added 4 sticky notes with gist statements from pages x - xii. Use these notes to write a 2-4 sentence summary of these pages. We will add to this summary as we read the rest of the Introduction.
Jan. 22, Tues.
1) #127: Find and highlight vocab words in article. You may recall hearing about the Pacific Garbage Patch or the attempted Ocean Cleanup in recent news. This October 2018 article was written before its launch. First, read the article. Next, review the list of "power words" at the end. Go back through the article and highlight (or circle) them. (If they are used multiple times, just highlight the first use.) Some power words are missing; use the context of the article to deduce these six words, add them to the list, and draw stars by them in the article.
2) Bring World Without Fish ! (We will begin reading our next book, Mark Kurlansky's World Without Fish tomorrow. If you plan on using your own copy, you'll need it every day for the next few weeks. If you don't have a copy, Mr. T will lend you one tomorrow.)
Jan. 18, Fri.
1) Compose Journal #13. If you have Journal #1, Mr. T encourages you to read it first. You might discover that you laugh out loud at the things that used to be stressful!
Jan. 17, Thur.
1) #126: Write a half-page review of 2Q (2nd Quarter) using at least 6-10 terms from #100. Write about what we've read, what you've written, what you enjoyed, what you disliked, etc. As you write, incorporate at least 6-10 of the terms we taught each other on TOC #100 -- circle, highlight, or mark the words so you know which ones you've used.
2) Any more missing assignments? Tomorrow is the final day of 2nd Quarter. If you have any missing work, please turn it in!
Jan. 16, Wed.
1) Use #118-#124 to finish final concrete poem (#125). Practice sharing aloud. This is it: the final copy of our adversity poems. Students reviewed their rough drafts during class today, asking partners to see how they measure up to the checklist on the back of each rubric. Use this feedback, the rubric on the front, and your planning sheets to finish your final copy. (Students had 15-20 minutes in class to start, using Mr. T's markers and colored pencils.) Remember that this final product must be on unlined paper and have no pencil -- instead use ballpoint pen, markers, and/or colored pencils.
Jan. 15, Tue.
1) #124: Use #118, #121, and #122 to draft concrete poem on notebook paper. This month, we've read several concrete poems about the adversities faced by Jessie and Robert. Now it's time to write your own! Use your planning pages (#118 and #121) to compose this poem. Use the checklist on the back of today's blue rubric to make sure you include all of the key elements, including sensory details (see #122), dialogue (someone must speak or think), a modern adversity, first person pronouns, etc. Think about what shape is most appropriate for your poem. To help, you may want to read the first example here or watch this short video.
Jan. 14, Mon.
1) Use #118 to complete #121. Students read Cynthia Rylant's short story "Stray" today and imagined how Doris, the main character, might have filled out an adversity planning sheet (like #118) and graphic organizer to write about her experience. Use this model to fill out your own graphic organizer (#121) to tell the story of your chosen adversity (#118).
Jan. 11, Fri.
1) Complete #118 to plan your concrete poem. We have spent considerable time recently reading fictional poems that relate their narrators' daily adversities. Now it's your turn! Next week, we will create our own autobiographical concrete poems, relating adversities that we face. Fill out #118 with as much detail as you can remember. These are the ideas you'll use to create your poem.
Jan. 10, Thurs.
1) Check your understanding of the six poems we've been reading. We have read "Advanced English," "Tyrannosaur-bus Rex," "Point A to Point B," "My Sister Is Crazy," "Bad Hair Day," and "Angels." It would be a good idea to re-read these poems, as well as review #104: our chart of their adversities.
Jan. 9, Wed.
1) On #111, compare "Angels" to any other concrete poem (from our unit). This chart is on the back of last night's homework. Tomorrow's mid-unit assessment will be very similar to this task. Mr. T will give you a poem to read and a related magazine article; you will compare them.
2) Make up ____ zeroes. Mr. T circulated to let students know whether or not they have any missing assignments. (This did not include our "Pask" mid-unit assessment, Piggy Check-up #4, or Journals #10-12.
Jan. 8, Tues.
1) Read #108 and #109 to complete #110 (with evidence). Many students had time to start (or even finish) this reading after today's Piggy Check-up. Text #1 is a concrete poem; text #2 is a news article. Use the guiding questions in the center column of the compare/contrast chart.
Jan. 7, Mon.
1) Read #105 to complete #106. Tonight's concrete poem is titled "My Sister Is Crazy." What adversity do you see the two siblings facing? Can you relate to it?
2) Are Pigs & Journals up-to-date? Piggy Check-up #4 is coming soon! Make sure that Journals #10, 11, and 12 are complete (number, date, prompt, and full-page response written in your composition book), and that you have all of our Pigs since Piggy Check-up #3 are complete and correct.
Jan. 4, Fri.
1) Use #101 to complete #102. TOC #101 is the concrete poem "Tyrannosaur-bus Rex." What adversity do you see someone facing? (Hint: It isn't the bus.) Support your idea with quotes from the poem, then explain how they connect in the "Infer" column. Does this sound like your regular bus ride to school? Write a 2-3 sentence paragraph at the bottom of the page. You don't need to do anything yet with #103, "Point A to Point B."
2) Compose Journal #12. This is our only journal that does not have to be a full page long. Use at least 22 letters of the alphabet for you ideas; if you're able to do more than 22, go for it!
Jan. 3, Thurs.
1) Complete #97 and #99. Each student received a slip today with a term, its part of speech, and its definition, which they then wrote onto #97. As you're completing this word web tonight, remember that your "synonym" and "antonym" answers may be more than one-word answers. For #99, read the concrete poem "Advanced English," then complete the chart. What adversity do you see, what quotes support this idea, and how do these quotes made you infer this adversity? Write 2-3 sentences at the bottom, showing how you may have seen the adversity in "Advanced English" play out in real life.
2) Return Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! (If you still have a school-owned copy, please return it to Mr. T as soon as possible.)
Dec. 21, Fri.
1) Read something good over Winter Break!
Dec. 20, Thurs.
1) Compose Journal #11. This journal asks for two letters (or lists). Make each about half a page long.
2) Can you family solve Mr. T's puzzle? This assignment is just for fun, not a grade. If family visits over the break, see how well they can do. Here's a hint: Read the story aloud. It's called "Sounds of the Season" for a reason!
3) Meet in Think Lab tomorrow. You don't need to bring any supplies because there will be nowhere to put them.
Dec. 19, Wed.
1) Read "Drogo." Add him to #85 and #92.
2) Continue #94 with at least 8 connections. Think about the connections between all of the GMSL characters whose monologues we've read. How do they connect to one another? Are any in the same family? Which of them are friends, or enemies? Which of them have encountered similar hardships in their lives?
Dec. 18, Tues.
1) Read "Nelly." Add her to #85 and #92. Nelly is a sniggler. Have you ever sniggled? Read her monologue to find out!
Dec. 17, Mon.
1) Read "Isobel." Complete her chart on #92 and add her to #85. Remember Isobel? She was the other girl in Barbary's monologue, on the receiving end of the mud-slinging. Here's our chance to hear her side of the story!
Dec. 14, Fri.
1) Annotate #90 for quiz Monday. We have a quiz on Monday that covers that skills we've practiced this week: reading a text to identify the adversities, finding supporting evidence within the text, identifying figurative language, analyzing the impact of figurative language on the text, etc. Mr. T provided a copy of the text today (the monologue of "Pask") which you may use during the quiz. You may want to look underline key sentences, circle figurative language, define new words, etc.
2) Compose Journal #10. As always, make sure your response is a full page long in your composition book.
3) Meet in rm. 507 on Monday! We will hold class in the school's computer lab Monday through Thursday of next week.. Rom 507 is in the back of the building, between Mrs. Delaney's room and the door leading to the trailers.
Dec. 13, Thurs.
1) Read p. 34-37 and complete back of #87. This reading includes the monologue of Simon, the Knight's Son, as well as a nonfiction article about the Crusades. Each of these has an adversity chart on the back of TOC #87.
Dec. 12, Wed.
1) Read assigned monologue and complete #89. During today's quiz, students were assigned one of these monologues: "Constance," "Lowdy," "Otho," or "Will." You should have torn that monologue's page out of your workbook; it is now TOC #89.
2) Late #86! (Even if a parent hasn't signed your Action Plan, turn it in!)
Dec. 11, Tues. ~ Snow day
Dec. 10, Mon.
1) Read p. 50-59; complete front of #87. Oops! First period didn't get this worksheet from Friday's substitute teacher. On a piece of notebook paper, repeat the questions you had on TOC #82. This time, focus on the adversities faced by Jacob and Petronella, in two separate charts.
Dec. 7, Fri.
1) Read "Mogg" and "Jack"; finish #82. Notice: These two characters are brother and sister.
2) Study #83 for quiz. We'll have this quiz on Monday (or whatever day we're back in school!).
Dec. 6, Thurs
1) Review #86 w/ parent ; get interim signed. On the back of TOC #86, students did some honest reflection of their school habits. The habits you already do regularly are good -- keep them up! Those that scored less regularly may be habits you want to initiate in order to be more successful in school. On the front of #86, design a plan that you can follow that will help you improve on some of these habits. Also, ask a parent to sign your green interim and return it tomorrow.
2) Study #83 for quiz Mon. Students already know many of these figurative and literal language terms from elementary school: simile, metaphor, alliteration, stanza. Others may be new: adversity, monologue, idiom, etc. Review these terms so that you know their definitions and/or could recognize them in use. Make flashcards, create a Quizlet review, have someone quiz you, look at how these techniques are used in the monologues we've read, etc. If we don't have school on Monday due to winter weather, we'll take this quiz on our first day back.
Dec. 5, Wed.
1) Read "Thomas" and complete his notes (#82). This adversity chart for "Thomas" is just like last night's chart for Giles (and each one we'll do in the future). What adversity do you see Thomas and his father face? Copy evidence (quotes) from the monologue to prove your point. How do people today still face this adversity?
2) Review "Barbary," "Hugo," and "Giles." Now that we're doing more reading, you may want to check your understanding of these monologues before class tomorrow.
Dec. 4, Tues.
1) Read "Giles" aloud. Complete his chart on #82. In class today, we discussed how an author hints the reader when to stop (periods, question marks, and exclamation points), when to pause (commas, dashes, semicolons, and parentheses), and when to keep going (no punctuation). We even color-coded a copy of "Hugo" to practice. Practice again at home by reading the monologue of "Giles" out loud to someone: your family, a parent, your dog, someone! If you have your own copy of the book, you might even color-code it like we did in class. After reading, complete the first chart on TOC #82. Name at least one adversity Giles faces, and copy at least one quote from the text that supports your idea. Do modern people still face this adversity? Explain who and how.
Dec. 3, Mon.
1) #80: Read predicted monologue from GMSL. Compare to your prediction. Over the weekend, you should have made a prediction about one of the characters in our new book, Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Tonight, read this character's monologue from the book you received today (or your own copy). On TOC #80, compare how close you were in your prediction. Did any parts of their story come true? What was different? Were you surprised?
Important: Mr. T cannot give you a copy of Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! if you still need to return/replace The Lightning Thief!
Nov. 30, Fri.
1) #80: Follow directions on #79. Look over this photocopy of the Table of Contents to Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!. Choose 4 of the characters. Follow the directions at the bottom of the page, completing these 4 tasks (one task per character). Answers go on notebook paper: #80.
2) Bring GMSL on Monday!
Nov. 29, Thurs.
1) Use #69 to draft opening and closing paragraphs on #75. Look at our model essay about townspeople. Notice how the opening paragraph begins with general information about the Middle Ages, then gives a bit of information about townspeople, and finally tells us about their social status. Use this as a model to outline an opening paragraph about your medieval group (lords & ladies or serfs & peasants). Repeat this with the closing paragraph.
2) New book starts Monday! If you plan to use your own copy of Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! please start bringing it to class every day on Monday. Mr. T can also provide you with a school-owned copy, if you need.
Nov. 28, Wed.
1) Use #73 & #74 to craft body paragraph #2 on outline (#75). In class today we discussed how an essay's body paragraph is similar to a sandwich: It introduces the adversity (like the top slice of bread), it focuses on text evidence about the adversity (like the meat & cheese), then it explains the effects of the adversity (like the bottom slice in bread). We even practiced this model using a sandwich graphic on TOC #74. We then expanded on these ideas using an outline (TOC #75). Practice this again tonight using the sandwich graphic on the back of #74, then complete Body Paragraph #2 on the back of your outline. (You don't need to write out these paragraphs on paper yet, or outline your opening or closing paragraphs -- these will come later this week.)
2) Also, many students need to correct last night's homework and submit it for a late grade tomorrow. Remember that your three quotes must come from the three different texts in #72. Each one also needs its citation: the author, title, and source.
Nov. 27, Tues.
1) #73: Select 1-2 best quotes for each adversity. Use all 3 sources from #72. We've spent a lot of time recently completing pages 18-21 of our workbooks, finding supporting quotes from three articles that are also in our workbooks. Today we tore p. 18-21 out of our notebooks; they became TOC #72. Tonight, identify three adversities that your medieval people faced (either serfs & peasants or lords & ladies). Next, copy 1-2 quotes from your notes (TOC #72) that support each adversity. (Look for quotes that really show how bad the adversity was, or explain its causes or effects.) Be sure to use each source from TOC #72 at least once.
Nov. 26, Mon.
1) Use #69 to complete #70. Complete this Countdown using the model essay we read during class today.
2) PCU #3 this week! If you were absent last week, make sure you've caught up on your Daily Pigs and Journals, including #9.
Nov. 20, Tues.
1) Read something good!
2) Are Journals #7-9 complete? (We took a few minutes in class today to confirm that Journals #7-9 are ready for next week's Piggy Check-up. If not, clean them up this weekend!)
Nov. 19, Mon.
1) Compose Journal #9. PCU #3 next week! As always, make sure your journal is at least one page long. We'll take Piggy Check-up #3 next week, when Mr. T will check Journals #7-9.
Nov. 16, Fri.
1) Finish #68 (at least 8-10 facts) ? Imagine that people in the Middle Ages had iPhones. Record a text conversation between two medieval people from different social classes: a serf and a lady's wife, a monk and a knight, a woman and a lord, etc. Have these two people compare the adversities they face, each trying to outdo the other.
2) Mr. T forgot to tell students -- We will be going to the library on Monday. Bring your library books to return or renew!
Nov. 15, Thur.
1) Pre-read and annotate #66 for tomorrow's quiz. Read this article about the Black Plague, a horrible sickness that overwhelmed medieval Europe. Take some time using context clues to define new words, underline key details, marking supporting details, writing gist statements in the margins, summarizing the article at the end, etc. You will need to have this text during tomorrow's assessment, so be sure to bring it with you.
Nov. 14, Wed.
1) Use #60 to write #64 (5-sentence paragraph). On the back of #60, students took notes about the adversities faced by medieval merchants and clergy. Use these notes to write a summary of the article you read. Mr. T suggests this summary be 5 sentences: topic sentence (main idea of article), 2 sentences about merchants' adversities, and 2 sentences about clergy's adversities. Remember: No quotes in your summary!
2) Finish #60 & #63? Mr. T saw the front of #60 for a homework grade today. Was yours complete?
Nov. 13, Tue.
1) Use #60 to finish #62? Today we practiced writing a summary, finding key details to support one main idea. If your class did not finish this summary of "Middle Ages" Excerpt I (#58), use the notes you took on TOC #60 to write your final sentences.
2) Compose Journal #8. Remember that you have a choice for this journal. If you would like to deliver your letter, just show it to Mr. T so he can put a check in your composition book. This way you'll get credit for the journal on the next Piggy Check-up.
Nov. 9, Fri.
1) Review #58 and complete #61. Use the Middle Ages article we discussed in class to find answers to this "Middle Ages" Countdown.
2) Finish #60? Mr. T's substitute says many students did not finish this Medieval Adversities Chart. The four groups of people for the left column are lords/barons, lords' wives, women, and serfs. In the center column, name the adversities (challenges, difficulties) these people face in your own words. In the right column, copy evidence from the text (quotes from #58) that support at least one adversity of each group of people.
3) First pd: Deliver report card to your parents!
Nov. 8, Thur.
1) #59: Read #58. Repeat yesterday's directions with 10 marked words. Yesterday, students used context clues and dictionary resources to deduce the meanings of 2-4 bold words from Tuesday's quotes. Tonight, read "Middle Ages" Excerpt 1, then use context clues to deduce the meanings of the 7 bold words and 3 underlined words (not subheading titles). Afterwards, use a dictionary or other resource to check your answers. (Example: " Serfs: I think 'serfs" were ... . My dictionary says they were ... .")
Nov. 7, Wed.
1) #57: Use context to define bold words, then look up definitions. This assignment is referring to the bold words in the sentences from last night's homework. On a sheet of notebook paper, write each bold word, then use the context of the sentence to deduce its meaning ( "Atone: I think 'atone' means ..." ). Next, look up each word in a dictionary or on another resource and write its definition ( "Dictionary.com says 'atone' means ... ").
2) Late #56? (Remember: You should only write a quote once in each column. Choose the primary topic, time, and tone of each quote. If you cannot erase your answers on your original #56, simply redraw the chart on a new sheet of paper.)
Nov. 6, Tue.
1) Use agenda slips to complete #56. In class, each student stapled two text quotes into their agendas. Consider the topic, time, and tone of quote and copy them into the appropriate boxes. (As the instructions say, you'll write each quote three times.) If you can't fit both quotes on the front of #56, just redraw the tic-tac-toe board on the back of the paper. If you lost your text quotes, use two of these:
- "In this time ... travelers were a hardy bunch and sometimes walked hundreds of miles to atone for a sin or pray for a miracle."
- "In this time ... 30,000 to 40,000 children from France and Germany set off on a crusade to Palestine, believing that God would favor their [war] because of their faith, love, and poverty."
- "In this time ... many women perished in childbirth, so it was not unusual for a man to marry three or four times."
- "In this time ... falconry, or hawking, was one of the most popular sports."
Nov. 5, Mon.
1) Compose Journal #7. As always, make sure you include the date, the journal number, the prompt, and a response that's at least a full page long.
2) Clean #3-54 out of binder. Take home workbook? Now that we've finished 1st Quarter, it's a good time to clean out your binder. Keep your Tables of Contents, as well as TOC #1 & 2 in your binder. Mr. T suggests that you take everything else out and store it somewhere out-of-the-way at home for two reasons: 1) In case there's any discrepancy in your grades, and 2) when you're older, it can be fun to look back at what you did when you were a kid.
Nov. 2, Fri.
1) Share final narrative with Mr. T by 6:00 pm today! (Don't open it afterwards!) We had our last day with classroom computers today. Students had time to have a peer proofread their paper, then make edits or keep working. If you didn't share your Google doc with Mr. T yesterday, be sure to click on "Share" and select him. (Make sure it's the Mr. Tharrington at Wakefield Middle, not his brother at the high school!) Don't re-open your document after 6:00 or over the weekend because, when you do, it will re-submit and be late.
Nov. 1, Thurs.
1) #53: Read left column. How do the quotes on the right match up? In the left column, Mr. T has described what makes a good conclusion to a narrative. On the right, he copied four quotes from "The Golden Key," the heroic narrative we read in class. In the center, copy/write an aspect of good concluding paragraphs (from the left column) that each quote exemplifies.
2) Narrative due by 6pm Friday! We've had 30 minutes in class each day to work, as well as any time at home students have spent. Students shared these Google docs/slides with Mr. T in class today. We'll get 30 minutes more tomorrow; if that isn't enough time, finish at home on Friday afternoon. Don't open your Google doc over the weekend, or after 6pm on Friday, or it will look as though you turned the work in late!
Oct. 31, Wed.
1) Use #51 & #52 to work on heroic narrative? Students spent some time during class today exploring the use of sensory details, action verbs, and dialogue verbs to make writing more interesting. Use these styles, as well as transition words, in your own writing!
Oct. 30, Tues.
1) Categorize #51. This page includes 20 transition words that can help your writing be smoother. Categorize them into the 5 boxes on the right. (Notice that each box tells you how many words should be there.)
2) Work on your heroic narrative? Mr. T's goal is to provide ~30 minutes in class each day this week for students to work on their heroic narratives (our final project) using school technology. To help yourself keep pace, try to complete two stages of the Hero's Journey each day. If you can't get that much done during class, work on them at home too.
Oct. 29, Mon.
1) #49: How is each "said" word unique? Look back at our Daily Pigs from Oct. 15-23. Notice how Mr. T used a variety of synonyms for "said" throughout this conversation between Shelby, Shawn, and Jerry. What makes each of these "said" words different? Write your answers in the form of "word problems." For example, "whispered" = "said" + softly; "wondered" = "said" + question + in your head. (Use these and other "said" synonyms in your heroic narrative this week!)
2) #50: Illustrate 4 key scenes in your narrative. Do you remember the very first myth we read, and our assignment with it? (Way back on Sept. 4, you read the myth of "Perseus" and illustrated four important scenes.) Repeat this with the hero's narrative you're working on now, using your plan from TOC #45. As always, stick figures are fine; the purpose of these pictures is to help you "see" what you want to write.
Oct. 26, Fri.
1) Fill right-hand column of #45 with narrative ideas. Students received instructions today for their first quarter final project. We have read and written many narratives this quarter -- now each student will create their own original hero and compose the narrative of their hero's journey. As we discussed in class, and brainstormed on #47, your hero should exemplify (be a good example) of one of your top four Positivity Project traits. (See #42 for your ranking and Journal #6 for your personal reflection.) TOC #46 has fuller details on this project which students will work on at home and in school next week.
2) Bring library books?
Oct. 25, Thurs.
1) Fill middle column of #45. How does Percy follow the steps of The Hero's Journey throughout The Lightning Thief?
2) Bring library books on Mon.
Oct. 24, Wed.
1) #43: Defend Percy's top 3 and last P2 traits (2-3 sent. each). You've written about your top Positivity Project traits (see Journal #6) and we discussed Marney's top traits (from today's story). What would Percy Jackson's top 3 Positivity traits be, as well as his lowest? Defend your answers using evidence from The Lightning Thief. Mr. T suggests folding a sheet of notebook paper into fourths to write your answers.
2) TLT test corrections due by Friday (If you scored below 70% on yesterday's Lightning Thief test, you should have picked up corrections sheet from the tall table in Mr. T's room. If you didn't get one, pick one up tomorrow!)
Oct. 23, Tues.
1) Are Journals #4-6 complete? PCU #2 this week! Many students had time to begin Journal #6 after the test today. If you cannot find or remember the results from your Positivity Project survey, look for them this way: Go to www.viacharacter.org , sign in using your school email address ([email protected]), and use the password Silver6. As always, this journal should be at least one full composition-book page
2) Remove notes from TLT? If you borrowed a school-owned copy of The Lightning Thief, Mr. T will collect them soon. Please remove any sticky notes or bookmarks inside. If your copy is damaged or badly worn, please pay $5.50 or buy a replacement copy soon.
Oct. 22, Mon.
1) TLT novel test tomorrow! Review #40 and RC's. Be sure to bring your copy of The Lightning Thief with you to class tomorrow. See Printable Pages if you need another copy of the study guide.
2) Missing grades due by Wed. If your Table of Contents has a check next to an assignment but no grade recorded, that may mean you did not turn it in. (The exception to this is #36, the "Prometheus" mini-essay that Mr. T is still grading.) Also, check PowerSchool for any zeroes or missing grades. All students reviewed how to access PowerSchool during Social Studies one day last week.
3) Piggy Check-up #2 this week! This PCU will cover subjects/predicates and quotation marks, and all of the Daily Pigs we've covered since PCU #1 on Sept. 21.
Oct. 19, Fri.
1) Finish TLT! Use #40 and RC's (reading checks) to prepare for Tues. test. See Printable Pages if you need another copy of this study guide.
2) Missing grades due by Wed.! Review your Table of Contents and/or PowerSchool to see if you have any missing grades since Sept. 25.
Oct. 18, Thur.
1) Read ch. 20, then read and answer #39. The questions for this chapter that come with our curriculum are full of spoilers! Mr. T had each person pull a folded slip with 1-2 questions on it, and tuck it into their books at the end of the chapter. After you finish reading ch. 20, then answer these questions on notebook paper (#39).
2) Finish #38? In class, students determined potential themes to myths we'd read:
- You cannot avoid your fate.
- Outer beauty isn't everything.
- Too much pride can have negative results.
Oct. 17, Wed.
1) Read and annotate ch. 19. Use your blue bookmark. There are only 22 chapters in The Lightning Thief, so we're almost finished!
2) Book test next week! On Monday or Tuesday of next week, we'll have a test covering all of The Lightning Thief. The questions will generally not be as specific as those on reading checks, but will make sure you've grasped the main concepts of the book.
Oct. 16, Tue.
1) Finish annotating ch. 17 & 18? Use your blue bookmark for your guiding questions. Be sure to add at least four sticky notes.
2) Compose Journal #5? Most students who wrote their essays last night had time to begin (or even complete) these journals during class. As always, make sure your response is a full composition-book page long.
Oct. 15, Mon.
1) Finish #33. Use it to type/write essay? We finished about 90% of these essay outlines (TOC #33) in class today using notes from last week's homework assignments, especially #31 and #34. Students will use these outlines to write a 4-paragraph essay about the myth "Prometheus" -- see TOC #29 for the text. Tonight, students have a choice to make: You may either:
- Type or hand-write this essay at home tonight and hand it to Mr. T tomorrow, or
- Hand-write the essay during class time tomorrow.
2) Read ch. 17 & 18 by Wednesday. If you choose to write your essay at home tonight, you may use tomorrow's class time to do this reading. If you choose to write your essay during class, you should probably begin this reading tonight. Use your bookmark for guiding questions as you annotate (sticky note) these chapters.
Oct. 11-12: Out of school for Tropical Storm Michael
Oct. 10, Wed.
1) Use myth to complete #34. Each student was assigned one of three thematic statements, which they then wrote on #34. Tonight, define what this theme means (in your own words), explain how it applies to the myth of "Prometheus," and copy two quotes from the myth that support this theme. If you didn't finish your Key Elements notes on your mini-essay outline (#33) you may want to, but you don't need to do any more than that. We'll use this outline to write our final essays.
Oct. 9, Tues.
1) Use myth to finish #31? During class, students tore pages 60-67 out of their workbooks; they are now TOC #29: "Prometheus" Packet. Students also had time to read this myth during class and begin #31. On #31, students identified the five Key Elements of Mythology. For each Key Element, they copied a quote from the myth that demonstrates this element and wrote 1-2 sentences explaining how this quote matches the element. (If you've forgotten the 5 Key Elements of Mythology and didn't write them down, they are A Struggle for Power, Explanation of the Origins of Life and the Natural World, Fate and Prophecy, Supernatural or Non-human Characters, and A Quest or Completion of a Task.)
2) Read and complete #32.
3) #19 test corrections due by Friday.
Oct. 8, Mon.
1) Complete right column of #27 using TLT. Use the terms from your Word Web Glossary (TOC #28): archetype, fate, natural origin, prophecy ("a prediction of something to come"), quest, struggle for power, supernatural, and theme. In the library today, we worked on finding examples of each of these in the myth of "Cronus" from our workbooks. At home tonight, find examples of them from ch. 1-16 of The Lightning Thief.
Oct. 5, Fri.
1) Read and annotate ch. 16.
Oct. 4, Thurs.
1) Read and annotate ch. 15.
2) Finish Journal #4 (full page)?
Oct. 3, Wed.
1) Read and annotate ch. 14.
2) Finish Key Term word web?
Oct. 2, Tues.
1) Read and annotate ch. 13.
Oct. 1, Mon.
1) Read and annotate ch. 12.
Sept. 28, Fri.
1) Read ch. 11 and complete allusion chart.
Sept. 27, Thur.
1) Read and annotate ch. 10.
Sept. 26, Wed.
1) Read and annotate (add sticky notes) ch. 9. Check your blue bookmark for this chapter's focus question.
2) Return signed interim!
Sept. 25, Tues.
1) Return signed interim! Be sure to get this green progress report signed by a parent, and return it to school tomorrow. If you have any zeroes or missing grades, they must be made up by tomorrow since that's the end of our unit. Mr. T say, "Report cards are like stop signs; it's too late to change those grades. Progress reports are like street signs; if you don't like where you're going, perhaps it's time to turn around."
2) Review ch. 8 for text evidence for test? Students began work on this test today, finding evidence from p. 107-112 (The Lightning Thief, ch. 8) to show that Percy fits their chosen stage of "The Hero's Journey." If you had trouble choosing text evidence that you could copy into your paragraph tomorrow, spend some time reviewing p. 107-112 tonight. This paragraph will be very similar to the one you practiced today (TOC #18).
Sept. 24, Mon.
1) Read and note ch. 8. See your new blue bookmark for each chapter's focus questions.
2) Do PCU corrections? If you scored below 70% on your Piggy Check-up, write correct answers next to your original ones (don't erase them). Turn this pink paper back in tomorrow.
Sept. 21, Fri.
1) Read ch. 6 and 7. How does Percy match "THJ"? This is more reading that we usually do, but Hurricane Florence has gotten us a bit behind. As you read, think about how Percy's journey matches up with the steps of "The Hero's Journey" (TOC #13).
2) Finish #16? This is pages 26 & 27 from your workbook, torn out. Most students had time to start after the PCU.
Sept. 20, Thur.
1) Read ch. 5; note at least 4 inferences about Percy. Notice how Percy reacts to his new surroundings and the things he learns. What can you infer about him from these reactions?
2) Are 10 Pigs and 3 journals ready? Tomorrow everyone will take our first test: Piggy Check-up #1. (See your Practice Piggy Check-up for a model.) We have had ten Pigs so far this year - each should be carefully written in your composition book (not notebook paper, not a spiral notebook). Some of the questions on the PCU will ask you to copy exact answers or instructions from your composition book; others will test your knowledge of new nouns we haven't discussed in class. While you take this test, Mr. T will circulate to read Journals #1-3, checking that each has its date, journal number, prompt (title), and a full-page response.
Sept. 19 -- No School
Sept. 18, Tue.
1) Compose J#3 (Journal #3). Use composition book for #14. Real PCU test on Fri. On Friday, we'll take Piggy Check-up #1. On this test you'll be allowed to use your composition book to find past answers ("On Sept. 18, copy #30.") and answer new questions ("Is 'time' concrete or abstract?"). Mr. T will circulate to read Journals #1, 2, and 3, checking that each has its date, number, prompt, and a full-page response.
2) Late #12! (This is last Wednesday's homework, which Mr. T would have seen on Thursday. If yours was incomplete or missing, be sure to finish and turn it in this Thursday for a late grade.)
Sept. 13-17: Out for Hurricane Florence
Sept. 12, Wed.
1) Use TLT to finish #12. (Quote text & 1-2 sent. response) Students copied these four questions today. To answer, cite the text (copy exact quotes from chapter 3 that go with this question) and write 1-2 sentences of your own response. Notice that this assignment will be checked for a homework grade!
*** If you'd like to be a step ahead, see the Daily Pig page for the journal Mr. T would have assigned tomorrow! ***
Sept. 11, Tue.
1) Use #10 and TLT to complete #11. These numbers are Table of Contents numbers, not page numbers. We tore pages 14 and 15 out of our classroom workbooks, and these became TOC #10 (Prefix List) and #11 (Using Prefixes for Meaning).
Sept. 10, Mon.
1) Read TLT ch. 4; add at least 4 sticky notes. What challenges does Percy face in this chapter? How does he respond to them? When you see either of these happen, describe it on a sticky note and stick it on the page where it happens. **Quiz tomorrow! This will not be a quick reading check like TOC #8. This quiz will see how well you can analyze what you read and focus entirely on chapter 4. You will be allowed to use your book and tonight's sticky notes.
Sept. 7, Fri.
1) Read TLT ch. 3; add at least 4 sticky notes. What can we learn about Percy from his inner thoughts? Be sure you're reading carefully because you never know when we'll have a quiz (hint, hint)!
Sept. 6, Thurs.
1) Read TLT ch. 2; add at least 4 sticky notes. What challenges does Percy face in this chapter? How does he respond to them? When you see either of these happen, describe it on a sticky note and stick it on the page where it happens. Be sure you're reading carefully because you never know when we'll have a quiz (hint, hint)!
2) Deliver EL letter. Parents: This is a letter about our EL (Expeditionary Learning) curriculum. It is also available on the school website, as well as a video.
3) Redo/Return BYOD form? Check that this form is complete, with signatures at the bottom and initials in every box down the side. (The office won't accept them if they aren't just right!)
Sept. 5, Wed.
1) Finish Journal #2? (Remember that your response should fill at least one page in your composition book. Most students had enough time to finish this journal during class.)
2) Read TLT chap. 1. (Mr. T distributed school-owned copies of The Lightning Thief during class today. Thank-you to everyone who is using their own copy! Some students could not get a school copy because they still need to return the yellow parent contract. Please return these ASAP; you can print both sides from Printable Pages on this site.)
3) Late / Redo TOC #6. (Thank-you to the number of students who had last night's homework assignment ready today -- this was a good first impression to make! If you did not have it ready, or it was not your best work, be prepared to turn your work in tomorrow for a late grade [-5 pts.].)
4) Return BYOD form!
Sept. 4, Tue.
1) Return signed BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) form. Parents: Signing this form means you allow you child to use their own wireless device (phone, tablet, or laptop) at school for instructional purposes and understand the consequences. We will not use our devices very often in English class; when we do need technology, we'll use our classroom laptops. This form is good for 6-8 grades, so even your child doesn't bring a device to school now, they may start later. Students: Signing this form means you agree to follow the WMS rules for devices and you accept the consequences if any rules are broken.
2) Read TOC #5 ("Shrouded in Myth"). Illustrate four important scenes. Before we went to the library today, students divided a blank sheet of paper into four quadrants and labeled them: Paragraphs 1&2, Paragraph 3, Paragraph 4, and Paragraphs 5&6. After reading the myth of Perseus that Mr. T distributed at the beginning of class, draw a picture of what you would consider the most important event that happened in each of those sections. If you think someone would have trouble knowing what you drew, feel free to write a sentence in each box telling what's happening.
3) Return signed parent contract! (If you did not return this yellow form on Friday or today, please return it tomorrow. You may not get a school-owned copy of any of our books without it!)
Aug. 31, Fri.
1) Return completed yellow parent form? If you've lost this form, print another one from the Printable Pages on this website.
2) Homeroom: Ask parent to complete __________ . (Many students in Mr. T's homeroom have returned the mandatory forms from our first day packet, but several still need to ask their parents to complete our team's Google form for parent contacts . See the lists above for names!)
*** Parents: Mr. T and Mrs. Levey need gallon-sized zipper bags (think Ziploc) by Wednesday, Sept. 5. If you're able to help by sending in a box of 20 (or more!) bags on Tuesday, we would appreciate it very much. Thank you!
Aug. 30, Thurs
1) Have parents complete both sides of yellow form. Parents: Please take a moment to complete the contact information in case Mr. T needs to reach you. Also, please sign the EL book contract on the back (even if you plan on buying all of these books). Both sides of this form are available under Printable Pages if you need: Parent contact form & Parent book contract.
2) Complete Journal #1? Students wrote this journal yesterday and we reviewed them in class today. Every journal must have its date, journal number, and prompt written at the top, then should fill at least one full page of your (non-spiral) composition book.
Aug. 29, Wed.
1) Review for tomorrow's quiz. How well did you do during the classtime review? This quiz will not be fill-in-the-blank like What Do I Do If ... . Instead, it might describe a scenario and ask what you should do. For example, "Rosemarie was absent yesterday. Where should she look for the work she missed?"
2) Finish Journal #1? (at least one full page) Today's journal should fill the first page of your composition book (not a spiral-bound notebook, but a 100-page tape-bound composition book). If you missed the prompt or need a reminder of some topics, click on the Daily Pig link on this website.
Aug. 28, Tues.
1) Review green letter and WDIDI for quiz Thurs. In class today, groups began teaching each other some of the procedures of Mr. T's classroom on What Do I Do If ... . We'll finish these notes tomorrow. Review today's notes as well as the green letter Mr T distributed at the end of class.
2) Bring class supplies tomorrow.
Aug. 27, Mon.
1) Answer both sides of "The Big Day." Our first day of sixth grade is finished! Take a few minutes to answer these ten questions. Be sure to read the instructions carefully.
2) Have class supplies by Wednesday. (Remember: You need a 1-inch binder, a 100-sheet college-ruled composition book, loose leaf paper, pencils, pens, and 3-inch sticky notes. You may want to order your own copy of The Lightning Thief but we won't begin reading it for a couple of weeks.)