Thursday, May 15, 2008

Warmup: Look carefully at the cover of the book, "United Tates of America." Read the summary on the book jacket and then make a prediction about what you think will happen in the book.

Classwork:
Read/listen to chapters 1-6 in the book, "United Tates of America."
Complete squares on Narrative Elements dice:

  • protagonist/antagonist
  • title

Homework:
Write a summary of the changes that are happening in the life our protagonist, Tate Skate. There are 6 changes I am looking for you to talk about.

Interactive Whiteboard

skrbl now

Publishing

Publishing Sites

TeenInk.com.  This site publishes over 18,000 pages by teens annually.  Great place to take a look at writing by your peers as well!

 

Writing Contests!

Guidelines/helpful suggestions from Writing-World.com. Be sure to consider when a contest isn't a contest and vanity contests.

2007 Annual Sports Poetry Contest.  Due: October 15

The Writing Conference, Inc. Contest entries are due by January 8, 2008.

Georgia Council of Teachers of English.  Due Date:    February, 2008

Delacorte Random House Writing Contest for a first novel!

 

PennSound - poetry for your iPod

Monday, May 5, 2008

Classwork:

  1. Complete typing Narrative rough draft
  2. Self-assess using the rubric on p. 89, and then trade papers with 1-2 other students and score their narratives in kind
  3. Peer review (praise, question, suggest) with specific suggestions for improving their score

Homework:
Complete peer/self assessment using rough draft and rubric. Make sure evidence of your writing process is stapled the typed version of your rough draft.

Friday, May 2, 2008

Classwork:

  1. Begin typing rough drafts

Homework:
Be prepared to complete your typed version of the Narrative rough draft.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Warmup: Choose a story card and write the opening scene of the narrative you see in the image. Remember to include sensory detail, description of character, description of setting, conflict (internal and external).

Classwork:

  1. Warmup; share/discuss and evaluate (praise, question, suggest)
  2. Review Ch. 5 content--elements of the short story. Use this section of the textbook to continue writing, editing, and revising your rough draft of the BIG question narrative.
  3. Complete evaluating the model using rubric (p. 89)

Homework:
Be prepared to type your rough draft on Friday. You must show evidence of a complete draft (beginning, middle and end) as well as the peer review process in the form of written comments (praise, question, suggest).

Monday/Tuesday, April 28-29, 2008

Warmup (Show & Tell):

A. Think of an object or person you would like to bring to class to share. This might be someone close to you, an important photograph, piece of jewelry, etc. Using your mind's eye, write a brief yet detailed description that helps us to "see" your object just by listening to your writing.

B. Think about the BEST or WORST meal, present, dream. Using your mind's eye, write a brief yet detailed description that helps us to "see" your object just by listening to your writing.

Classwork:

  1. Read Ch. 5 in the Writing & Grammar textbook (p. 72-89)--Short Story
  2. Evaluate model using rubric (p. 89-92)
  3. Continue writing/revising your BIG Question Narrative using ch. 5 as a guide.

Homework:
Be ready to type your draft on Friday and show evidence of the peer review process, including--praise, questions, suggestions in the form of written comments/feedback.

Friday, April 25, 2008

Warmup: Choose one scene from your narrative and revise to include all six of the following details--sights, sounds, tastes, smells, touch (through the physical body), and emotion.

Classwork:

  1. Warmup; respond/discuss
  2. Check 4Square/TAP and rough draft
  3. Peer review; praise, question, suggest

Homework:

  1. Rest, refresh, revise rough draft for sensory detail.
  2. CRCT Science on Monday

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Warmup: Choose one of the scenarios that follows and add sensory details to make it come alive...

  • A young girl/boy is sitting in the park with his/her dog and waiting for the bus.
  • An elderly couple is sitting on the couch watching their favorite television show.
  • A father is working in his driveway, trying to fix a problem with his car.

Classwork:

  1. Warmup; respond/discuss
  2. Check for rough draft, TAP/4SquarePerspective
  3. Peer review: praise, question, suggest.
  4. Revise for sensory detail and complete a second peer review, including review from one adult.

Homework:
Rest; Math CRCT tomorrow

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Warmup:
A. Write one of each of the following sentence types...

  • Compound
  • Complex
  • Compound-complex

B. What is the difference between a verb, an adverb, and an adjective? Write a sentence that includes on of each.
C. Take your sentence and write a version that is the present, past, and future tense.

Classwork:

  1. Continue work on Narrative rough drafts.
  2. Peer review in the following format--praise, question, suggest.
  3. Teacher check for "Four Perspectives" and "TAP" planner (classwork/homework grade)

Homework:
Rest; Language Arts sections (grammar, punctuation, usage) tomorrow.

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