Since we are studying the stories of some of the Lost Boys of Sudan, here are a few videos to give you some background information including a look at John Dau who settled right here in Syracuse.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
This Week's Vocabulary
This week we will be studying another piece of non-fiction in the form of a magazine article from Time For Kids. The article outlines the struggles of several Lost Boys of Sudan. The following is this week's vocabulary words to help us understand the article:
refugee - a person who leaves his or her country to find a better life in a new place, many times refugees cannot return to their home country
separated - to break apart, to split or divide
immigrant - a person who chooses to go to a new country and but return home if he or wishes
visa - official documentation that gives permission to enter a country
refugee - a person who leaves his or her country to find a better life in a new place, many times refugees cannot return to their home country
separated - to break apart, to split or divide
immigrant - a person who chooses to go to a new country and but return home if he or wishes
visa - official documentation that gives permission to enter a country
Saturday, September 27, 2008
A Video Biography
We have been studying elements of non-fiction including biographies and autobiographies. Take a look at the video. It is a combination of both biography and autobiography. Can you figure out why?
Students of the Week
Each week throughout the school year, I will be honoring one exemplary student in each of my sections of 7th grade English Language Arts as Student of the Week. The students chosen for this distinction have shown academic excellence and/or improvement, outstanding citizenship in our classroom, and are overall productive, insightful members of our learning community. I will announce the names of these students in class as well as on this blog. However, for safety reasons, I will only refer to the students online by their last name. This week's Students of the Week are:
Period One - Mr. Smajlovic
Period Four - Miss Smith
Period Five - Miss Robinson
Period Six - Mr. Bagiryan
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Book Ideas for 25-Book Assignment
If you are having a tough time figuring out what your child should read for the 25-book assignment, here are some links that might help.
http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/showarticle/1127
http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/yalsa/booklistsawards/booklistsbook.cfm
Non-Fiction Quiz Tomorrow
Just a reminder that tomorrow will be the first quiz of the marking period. We have spent the last few days reviewing elements of non-fiction as well as a variety of examples. Students are still struggling with the four purposes of non-fiction writing which are: identifying current events, instructing, informing, and entertaining. Students should continue to review their notes in preparation for the quiz.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
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