All the Latest News on What is Happening in Mrs. Earl's 7th Grade English Language Arts Class
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Letter Writing Unit
Students began a letter writing unit yesterday by investigating the five most common types of written correspondence. Students learned about:
-emails
-memos
-notes
-friendly letters
-business letters
Students also talked about how emailing and texting have made some written correspondence obsolete.
Students further discussed the proper format for friendly letters and began writing these types of letters today in class. The friendly letters are to the sixth grade class advising them about the transition to the middle school. After a peer editing workshop tomorrow, students will revise and publish their letters before sending them off to the sixth graders.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
HALF DAY!!!
Starting a New Unit
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Acuity Testing
Final Literature Circle Quiz
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
HW Smith in the News
USDA considers getting rid of chocolate milk at school lunch
Local students upset over letter from President Obama
Looking Ahead
To continue with our twenty-five book assignment, the next installment of summaries are due on Thursday, April 1st, 2010. Students will need to read and summarize seven books by this time.
Summaries should include the following information and be no fewer than five sentences:
*the title of the book
*its author
*a short description of the book
* a recommendation if other students should read the book and why
End of the Marking Period
Friday, January 8, 2010
Students of the Week
1st Period - James
3rd Period - Asmae
5th Period - Amal
6th Period - Draquan
Keep working hard!
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Only One Week Left
Staying Safe on the Internet
On Tuesday, January 19, Kathleen Deck from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children will be at HWS to make a presentation on internet safety to all students in grades five through eight. This is a great opportunity for our tech-savvy students to learn how to be safe while they are online.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Literature Circle Final Project - Due 1/22/10
REQUIRED MATERIALS: alphabet planner chart
book pages
markers, colored pencils, or crayons
illustrations (hand-drawn, computer-generated, or from magazines
and newspapers)
PROCEDURE: Students will brainstorm words for each letter of the alphabet that represent something important from the Literature Circle novel. The words can be
Ø names of important characters
Ø parts of the setting
Ø description of events
Ø adjectives used to describe characters, events, etc.
Students will then explain the word’s significance in a short paragraph of at least three sentences. Students will also provide a related picture. Pictures can be hand-drawn, computer generated, and/or cut out of newspapers and magazines.
Students will then combine this information into a creative ABC book that showcases the highlights of the novel. The ABC book can be typed or handwritten, but should be neat and pleasing to the eye.
***Please note that the ABC book should represent the entire novel. Points will be deducted from projects that do not include information from the book as a whole. Students who do not finish reading their Literature Circle book will likely do poorly on this project because they may not know all the events of the story.
Students will not receive the pages to create their book until they have submitted an alphabet planning chart to Ms. Short.
Rubric for
ABC Book Project
CATEGORY | 20 | 15 | 10 | 5 |
Words | Every letter contains a word that is meaningful and directly related to the assigned literature circle novel. | Every letter contains a word that is directly related to the assigned literature circle novel, but one or two are less meaningful. | Most letters contain a word that is meaningful and directly related to the assigned literature circle novel, but at least three letters are missing related words. | Most letters contain a word that is meaningful and directly related to the assigned literature circle novel, but more than three letters are missing related words. |
Graphics/ Pictures | Every letter is assigned a graphic or picture that goes well with the text. | Every letter is assigned a graphic or picture, but at least one does not seem to go well with the text. | Most letters are assigned a graphic or picture, but at least two are missing. | Some letters are assigned a graphic or picture, but more than five are missing. |
Related Paragraphs | Every letter has a complete paragraph that clearly explains the word and its significance. | Most letters have a complete paragraph that clearly explains the word and its significance, but at least one paragraph is does not clearly explain the word’s significance. | Some letters have a complete paragraph that clearly explains the word and its significance, but at least two paragraphs do not clearly explain the word’s significance. | Although some letters have related paragraph, most do not explain the word's significance AND/OR more than three paragraphs are missing. |
Facts Included | The project contains many specific facts and demonstrates a thorough knowledge of the entire book. | The project contains many specific facts, but only demonstrates a thorough knowledge of parts of the book. | The project contains some specific facts, but only demonstrates a basic knowledge of the book. | The project contains few specific facts and only demonstrates a very basic knowledge of parts of the book. |
Spelling and Grammar | The project is completely free of errors in spelling and/or grammar in all parts of the ABC book. | The project is nearly free of errors in spelling and/or grammar, but one to three errors remain. | The project contains four to five errors in spelling and/or grammar. | The project contains six errors or more errors in spelling and/or grammar. |
Overall Score _________ out of 100 points = ____________