Posted on January 24, 2012 by gham
Monday – Students were given an in-class reading/writing assessment. They were asked to read an article that presented opposing viewpoints on whether the rich should be taxed more and then needed to write a persuasive paragraph where they take a position of their own and use text from the article in support of their position. We will be practicing this as a skill over the course of the next two months in preparation for the state classroom-based assessment.
Tuesday – We made up our current events from the last week and then briefly revisited our reading on the French and Indian War. Students were asked, as homework, to write one paragraph on the costs of this war for the British, French, and the American colonists. While some of the costs were explicitly stated in the reading, I am looking to see if students can infer what some of the costs to each group might have been given other information presented.
Wednesday/Thursday – We will be looking at the growing conflict between the colonists and the British, which stems from the French and Indian War, and then make some connections between this conflict and the conflict that we see in several countries today.
Friday – Another current event day. There is a lot going on in the news this week: Florida GOP primary, President Obama’s State of the Union address, Supreme Court ruling on police use of GPS, consideration of gay marriage in Washington State Legislature, Romney releases tax statements.
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Posted on January 24, 2012 by gham
We are beginning our study of John Steinbeck’s novella The Pearl. On Monday we began to think about one of the central themes that will be presented in the book: what does it take to make one happy. Students wrote, discussed, and read pertinent quotes to prime their thinking on this theme.
Tuesday we began a study of the setting of Steinbeck’s novella: Baja Mexico. Students also began to explore how a pearl is formed. This information will help provide some context for the story.
Wednesday and Thursday, students will learn about Steinbeck himself. As one of America’s most famous authors, it is worth taking a little time to understand who he was, especially since his life travels influenced the characters and settings that he brings to life in his writing.
Students who were absent Tuesday-Thursday will need to pick up a webquest assignment when they return and complete on their own.
If we have a little time left on these days, we’ll revisit participial phrases and continue practicing including them in our writing.
Friday, we will begin reading The Pearl in class. We will be doing all of the reading in class. Students who are absent will need to check out a book for the night.
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Posted on January 11, 2012 by gham
Students worked on identifying themes from All Summer in a Day and discussed how the film adaptation could have different themes than the source material.
Additionally, students were introduced to participial phrases as a useful tool for their writer’s toolbox.
Students will have some class time on Wednesday and Thursday to finish their book club project and students will being to practice using participial phrases.
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Posted on January 10, 2012 by gham
Today we began to explore the reasons why people might choose to rebel against their government. I was really impressed with some of the reasons that students came up with, which included:
- Failure to respect human rights (freedom of speech)
- Failure to provide for basic needs (health care)
- Injustice
- Misuse of public funds (corruption)
- Forcing people to go to war
- Taking property
- Not allowing people to vote
These ideas about what a government should and should not do will serve as a framework as we begin studying the American Revolution and the establishment of our Constitution, and as we compare these historical events to those unfolding today.
We moved on from this brainstorm to look at a map of North America in 1750. Students used this map to develop an understanding of the political landscape that set the stage for the American Revolution.
There is no homework.
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Posted on January 9, 2012 by gham
Here is the rubric for this week’s book club. We practiced the four questions in class today with All Summer in a Day.
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