Journals: 9/9 Topic

Several times each week, students will write in their journals.
Here's the topic for Friday, 9/9: "What will you miss most about summer now that it's over?"
During the first quarter, students will be working on building up writing stamina and sharing their writing in small groups in class.
Effort counts and at the end of the marking period journals will be graded.

Day One

What an opening day!

Between the singing, dancing, Pokemon hunting and researching there was a lot of excitement at Saranac Lake Middle School.

The rest of this week in ELA class we'll spend launching independent reading and journal writing, as well as getting to know each other, classroom routines, etc.

'Twas the week before the night before...

In one week it'll be the night before the first day of the 2016-2017 school year.

This will be my 21st year as a teacher and, yes, I still get nervous about the opening of school. 

I'm getting ready by working on some new things for day one (a graphic syllabus and a word search puzzle with the titles of last year's most popular books in our library, for example.)

I'm also getting ready with title recommendations to launch this year's independent reading program (right now I'm really liking Towers Falling.

Just like the students, I'll experience a few more nervous days and nights, but ultimately just like them, I'll be ready.

In fact, together, we'll ALL be ready. 

Classwork: 4/5-4/8

As discussed in class, you will be making and writing about editorial cartoons.
Click here for a reminder about what student created editorial cartoons might look like.
Follow these steps to complete this assignment:

1). Choose any topic you wish, but you must A). find an article to read with background information, B). print it out, C). print and complete this worksheet based on it.
NOTE: here is a link to 200 topics you could use for this part of the assignment. You may wish to look in the middle school library for back issues of the Adirondack Daily Enterprise  or online at North Country Public Radio if you are interested in choosing a topic based on local interest.

2). Make a cartoon that persuades people about your opinion on the topic you selected. Here's an example of two cartoons which express an opinion about the long winter of 2014 and an article that explains the issue.

Your cartoon should: 

• be hand drawn or created digitally (with an animation program, photo editing program, etc.)
• clearly convey an opinion about the topic you selected
• use one or more illustrations with text to persuade the reader of your opinion on the topic

DUE DATES: cartoon, article, and 5 W's worksheet due Tuesday, April 12.

Update: 2/6/16

To mark Black History Month we read a dramatization of the life of Langston Hughes  called "Hold Fast to Dreams."
Next we'll compare what we can learn about Hughes' life from "Hold Fast to Dreams" to what we can learn about his life from the poem "Theme for English B" which Hughes wrote in 1949.

Class work: 1/13

Work independently or in a small group to write the script (using Google Docs) of a play based on a topic related to local history.

You may wish to use the topic from your prior work in Mrs. Jones' class as the basis of your play.

You might need to do some additional research to gather details to include in your script and this link will be helpful: https://localwiki.org/hsl/

Also, please look back at the sample script about "Christy Mathewson" for ideas about format, etc.

Remember, the script you write could become a final copy that you submit as part of Pendragon's Young Playwrights' Festival.

Update: 1/2/16

Winter vacation is winding down and it's time for a look ahead. But first, a look back...

In December, grade 7 students studied two pieces of literature featuring well-known "classic characters" and a similar setting. Works in which Sherlock Holmes and Ebeneezer Scrooge appeared had us dusting off our British accents.

Students continued to write in their journals about topics including:

• "The oldest person I know"
• What holiday gift would you give if money was no object?
• "Alphabetical advice"
• If you started your own business, what would it be?
• "2015 memories"

Students kept up their independent reading as well, and Mrs. Kennedy shared some titles during her monthly visit for book talks. Among her suggestions in December: Faceless, and Adrift .  

What's in store for January? Our first order of business in grade 7 ELA will be the annual Pendragon Theatre Young Playwright's Festival. You can read about last year's winners, including my former student Rosemary, here.