Read first 15 minutes of class. Edit and turn in your memoir for grading. You should include the following: Editing Checklist, Revised and Edited draft (your best one), early drafts and leads, Peer Conference forms. Homework: Read. Choose five words for Weekly Word Study.
Tuesday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Go to the Knowing Poe Thinkport. (If the link doesn’t work, go to google and do a search for “Knowing Poe Thinkport” and click on the link from the search results.) Click on “Poe the Writer” on the left side. The scroll down and click on “My Tell-Tale Heart.” Read the directions and click on the image in the right corner. Use the symbols to record your thinking while you read. You should use each symbol at least once. Print out your annotations when you are done! Homework: Read. Complete Weekly Word Study.
Wednesday
Read first 15 minutes of class. What do these literary terms mean: irony, symbolism, literal, and figurative? Go back to the interactive version of “My Tell-Tale Heart” and use the symbols to identify Poe’s use of irony, symbolism and literal and figurative meanings. Print out your annotations when you are done! Homework: Read. Complete Weekly Word Study.
Thursday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Use your notes from the last two days to discuss “The Tell-Tale Heart” in your groups. If you want to refer to the story, you can find it on page 536 of the literature book. Homework: Read. Weekly Word Study due.
Friday
LIBRARY! How can reading improve your vocabulary? See if you can figure out the meanings of some new words just by reading. As you are reading during the next week, be on the look out for new words. Homework: Read.
Read first 15 minutes of class. Look over the questions from your peer conference last week. Answer the questions with sensory details. You can use the examples from the handout I give you in class for ideas if you’re stuck. Homework: Read. Choose five words for Weekly Word Study.
Tuesday
Read first 15 minutes of class. The Rule of Thoughts and feelings. Read my memoir, “Backing Up,” and highlight the thoughts and feelings I include. How would my story be different with no thoughts and feelings. Homework: Read. Complete Weekly Word Study.
Wednesday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Peer conference. Complete a second peer conference with someone different. This time focus on thoughts and feelings. Where do you wonder what the writer was thinking and feeling? Mark those spots. Then revise by adding your thoughts and feeligns in those spots. Homework: Read. Complete Weekly Word Study.
Thursday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Complete partner quiz for weekly word study. Bring your flash drive to class today, so you can add your revisions to your file. Homework: Read. Weekly Word Study due.
Friday
LIBRARY! How can reading improve your vocabulary? See if you can figure out the meanings of some new words just by reading. As you are reading during the next week, be on the look out for new words. Homework: Read.
Here’s the deal. You can order great books through Scholastic. Sometimes they even give you a great deal. (Always check out the $1 book on the front page.) An even better deal, the more books you order, the more free books I can get for our classroom library. There are two ways to order:
1) Fill out the paper form and bring it with your money (checks made out to Scholastic) by Friday, November 4.
2) Order online at Scholastic (for parents only). On the parent page, click the “REGISTER” button under “First time here,” then register for your own user name and password. When prompted, enter the one-time activation code code (GPBPV). This code ensures that your orders are sent to me. Select the books you want from over 500 titles. Take advantage of on-line only discounts and specials. SEND your order to me on-line. I will deliver the books in class.
Here are some of my top picks from the November flyer:
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens – don’t miss the original classic for the holidays
Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein – don’t miss this inspirational story told through the eyes of a dog
Wonderstruck and The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick – discover just what you can do with a story told through words and pictures
The Chronicles of Vladimir Todd by Heather Brewer – learn how a half vampire/half human bow can survive bullies, stalkers, and a deadly prophecy
The Slayer Chronicles by Heather Brewer – new series from Joss’s point of view
Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper – just who is the girl trapped inside a body suffering from cerebral palsy
Matched by Ally Condie – I heard nothing but good about this title on my TBR list
Lawn Boy Returns by Gary Paulsen – what happens when a summer job turns into a multi-million dollar business?
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney – How will the Heffley’s survive being trapped at home in a snow storm?
Heist Society and Gallagher Girls by Ally Carter – Enter the worlds of high end theives and daring spies
The Underdogs,The Big Field, Million Dollar Throw by Mike Lupica – lots of sports action on and off the field
Dawn of the Dreadfuls by Stephen Hockensmith and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith – zombies definitely improve this English classic
Son of Neptune – Will Percy recover his memor and succeed at his next impossible quest with new heroes Hazel and Frank?
The Missing Pack (Found, Sent, Sabatoged, Torn) by Margaret Peterson Haddix – cliffhanger endings will leave you wanting more as Jonah and his friends travel through time
Bruiser by Neal Shusterman – another book I want to read by a favorite author
The Maze Runner and The Scorch Trials by James Dashner- a disturbing dystopian series that so far leaves more questions that answers
The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins – don’t miss out on this top-selling dystopian series
What books from this book order would you like to see added to our classroom library?
If you missed Survivor Book Club after school on Thursday, you missed out. Never fear, it’s not too late to join us on December 8. Here are the great books we presented. Here are the trailers to tempt you to read one or more.
Here is the infamous parrot. Can you make it come to life with vivid description? Leave a comment with your best sentences describing this parrot flying around my classroom. There will be prizes (one for each class–your choice from my book box) involved. This competition is open to my students in any class.
I know, you’ve sat through countless Internet safety talks. You’ve heard the stories about the girl who went with a guy she met online. You know how the story ends–not well for anyone. You’ve seen To Catch a Predator on television, and you know it couldn’t happen to you. After all, you only talk online to people you know in real life. The grownups just worry too much.
That’s what Abby thought, too. What would make a straight-A student fall for Luke, guy she met in an online chatroom? What makes her send pictures and accept gifts? What makes her go to private chat rooms and ultimately skip school to meet him? Why didn’t any of her friends and family see it coming?
Sarah Darer Littman tells a convincing, heart-wrenching story of just how easy it is to fall prey to an online predator in Want to Go Private? Abby seems to have it all, but as she enters high school, she is not sure how to handle the changes. Her best friend since second grade, Faith, is excited about making new friends and joining new activities, but Abby wants life to stay the same. The only person who listens to her and gets her is Luke, known as BlueSkyBoi at ChezTeen. He listens to her fears and frustrations and even tells her she is beautiful. As Abby depends more and more on Luke, she withdraws from her friends and even lets her grades slip.
The first half of the book is told through Abby’s eyes and voice. Often as I read, I wanted to scream at Abby or to shake her: Don’t do it! But I can see how easy it was for her to grow to depend on Luke, especially with the flattery he gave. The second half of the book alternates between several points of view: Lily, Abby’s younger sister; Faith, the still best friend; Billy, Abby’s lab partner and potential boyfriend; and Abby herself. The hardest part for me (besides worrying about Abby) was seeing the devastating effects her disappearnce had on those she left behind. Each of them blamed themselves and searched for what they could have done differently.
This was a scary book for me to read. I’m sure it will scare many parents, especially if they are not too sure about social networking already. I don’t think the answer is to ban all social networking because it does have benefits, but parents–and students–need to be aware of the potential dangers. Sarah Darer Littman does an excellent job of bringing the problems to life with a character who seems so real.
What do you think? What is the best way to protect teens from the dangers of the Internet while still allowing them to enjoy the benefits?
Disclosure: I participate in the Amazon Associates Program. If you decide to make a purchase by clicking on the affiliate links, including in the linked picture above. Amazon will pay me a commission. This commission doesn’t cost you any extra. All opinions are my own.
I’m not a big graphic novel fan, but I’ve started reading them because some of my students love them. Bad Island by Doug TenNapel caught my eye in the last book order as well as those of many students. I have a long list of readers waiting for me to release this title into my classroom. They won’t be disappointed.
Reese can think of nothing worse than being stuck on a sailboat with his family for vacation, but his parents insist that he go even if he is old enough to stay by himself. Younger sister Janie goes nowhere without Pickles, her pet green snake, even after he dies. Mom and Dad just want time to relax.
But a violent storm and shipwreck leave little time of relaxing. The island they crash on is filled with strange plant life and hostile creatures. The island holds a secret that stretches to another world. Can Reese and his family figure out who can be trusted before it’s too late?
How have you done in meeting your goal for reading over fall break? Homework: Read. Choose five words for Weekly Word Study.
Tuesday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Sentence sense. How can choosing a different kind of sentence affect the meaning of your writing? What makes a group of words a sentence? How do you puncuate different kinds of sentences? Complete the worksheet on sentence fragments. Then apply what you’ve learned to your own writing in your memoir. Homework: Read. Complete Weekly Word Study.
Wednesday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Digging deep for details. Sensory details make a piece of writing come to life., but you have to dig deep to get to the best details. We will practice digging deep for details with a prop in class. Brainstorm descriptive words, then brainstorm some more. Write a sentence that captures this object and brings it to life. Homework: Read. Complete Weekly Word Study.
Thursday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Complete partner quiz for weekly word study. Complete a peer conference on your memoir. Look for one or more spots that the right details could bring to life. Ask your partner questions to help them dig for details. Homework: Read. Weekly Word Study due.
Friday
LIBRARY! How can reading improve your vocabulary? See if you can figure out the meanings of some new words just by reading. As you are reading during the next week, be on the look out for new words. Homework: Read.
How have you done in meeting your goal for reading over fall break? Homework: Read. Choose five words for Weekly Word Study.
Tuesday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Sentence sense. How can choosing a different kind of sentence affect the meaning of your writing? What makes a group of words a sentence? How do you puncuate different kinds of sentences? Complete the worksheet on sentence fragments. Then apply what you’ve learned to your own writing in your memoir. Homework: Read. Complete Weekly Word Study.
Wednesday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Complete a second peer conference on your memoir. After getting feedback, revise your memoir by adding details, changing words, or deleting extra words. Homework: Read. Complete Weekly Word Study.
Thursday
Read first 15 minutes of class. Complete partner quiz for weekly word study. It’s time to make your corrections to your draft that you saved. Print out the new draft. Then use your editing checksheet to proofread carefully. Write corrections on your draft using a colored pen or pencil. Memoirs are due tomorrow! Homework: Read. Weekly Word Study due.
Friday
LIBRARY! How can reading improve your vocabulary? See if you can figure out the meanings of some new words just by reading. As you are reading during the next week, be on the look out for new words. Homework: Read.
I know, you’ve sat through countless Internet safety talks. You’ve heard the stories about the girl who went with a guy she met online. You know how the story ends–not well for anyone. You’ve seen To Catch a Predator on television, and you know it couldn’t happen to you. After all, you only talk online to people you know in real life. The grownups just worry too much.