Week of December 15th

We will be "performing" the Christmas Carol this week and comparing it across genres.  I cannot wait to hear everyone's acting voices ;)

Week of December 8th!

We worked on various reasons we could argue that seeing is or is NOT believing today.   For tonight (12/8/14)  I would like students to finish their outlines so tomorrow we can start on our rough drafts. We will be holding conferences soon, so it is important that they follow the deadlines that will be given as we progress on this assignment.



What do you think?

Does "seeing" lead to "believing"?

First week of December!

I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving!  This week we will be discussing the purpose of public art and the methods of Julian Beever!

Click HERE to view the slideshow of work from Julian Beever that we viewed in class today!

Click HERE to see a video of the master at work!

Click HERE to see the artist's blog!

Week of Nov. 24th

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

The only homework this week is for Monday:

Complete the Practice and Apply section on p.88; read the information on Adverb Clauses for help.

Week of Nov. 17th

Homework for this week:

Tuesday:  Use "Magic and the Brain" Vocab words in sentences.

Wednesday: Close Reader- Read and complete ALL activities for "Saving the Lost" p 31-34

Thursday: Vocab Quiz

Friday: Story Test

Week of Nov. 10th!

Homework for the week:

Monday:  p.70 in Collections Text book

Tuesday:  Read and do activities in Close Reader p.25-27; study for tomorrow's vocab quiz

Wednesday: Read and do activities in Close Reader p.28-30;  Vocab Quiz today

Thursday:  Story Test for The People Could Fly

First week of November!

I hope everyone had a lovely Halloween! The only homework this week is to finish you're scary stories on MyAccess!  Lot's of sixes were earned this week!

If you missed today!

Annotated "The Raven" 
Click words for images, videos, definitions: 
 http://lit.genius.com/Edgar-allan-poe-the-raven-annotated#note-1113728

Vincent Price's reading of  "The Raven"
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPmpDD3MGas

The Simpson's version of "The Raven"
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002TIS8RS/ref=avod_yvl_watch_now

Last Week of October

This week we will be writing scary stories in MyAccess.  Students are to use techniques that we've discussed that help build an eerie mood and suspense in their stories.  No homework this week, but students are welcome to work on these stories at home!

NJASK Individual Student Reports

These were distributed during our Back to School Night.  For parents that didn't attend, copies were sent home.  If you haven't received your child's report, please don't hesitate to contact the main office and they will get a copy to you as soon as they are able!  Thank you!

Week of Oct. 20th, 2014

This week students will be creating oral commentaries about their opinions on the risks and rewards of bold actions.

Tuesday:
Finish Commentary  Intro Paragraph, Body Paragraph #1, and Body Paragraph #2 in outline

Wednesday:
Finish Rough Draft

Thursday:
Finish Final Draft

No Homework tonight

I forgot to distribute the grammar practice homework amidst all the craziness today.

Consider it your lucky day!

Scholastic Reading Club -- click here

When you get to this site click "First Time Here? Parents" and enter the class activation code:

MXDXV

You may order books through this site; the more our class orders the more offers we get!

Week of Oct. 13th

This week we will be wrapping up our narratives on MyAccess (click the link to reach this site!).  Students are welcome to continue their stories at home if they do not think they'll finish them in time.  I'm aiming for final drafts to be completed by Thursday.

Homework for the week:

Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday-- there will be some grammar practice sent home that will refresh students' memories on fixing run-ons and creating more complex sentences.

This Week in ELA

This week student will be continuing their narrative stories as well as reading the myth of Arachne and learning about Women in Aviation.

Monday:  Close Reader:  Arachne, read p17-19; complete all activities and questions in blue and vocab words

Tuesday: Close Reader:  Arachne, read p20-22; complete all activities and questions in blue and vocab words

Wednesday: Vocab quiz; Story Test

October soon, already!?

Hey there, folks.  This week we will be reading about myths and discussing The Flight of Icarus.

Listen to Iron Maiden's "Flight of Icarus"!




Plans for the week:

Thursday:  Study for tomorrow's Vocab Quiz (anxiety, prowess, moderate, frantic, myth)
Wednesday:  Open Book Story Test and Vocab Quiz; Grammar HW
Thursday:  Brainstorm a list of ideas for your narrative
         

Online student E-book can be found here: http://my.hrw.com/
All students are already registered, they just need to type in the log-ins and passwords that were handed out during Back to School Night.  If you need your student login and password, please contact me at cdean@oxfordcentral.org.   The entire Collections text book is online.

Change of Plans

Students have been working so hard on these argument posters that I've decided to allow them more time and to give them more credit.  These posters will be students' first writing grade!  That being said, we will not have the brainstorming homework tonight.  That will be postponed until next week.

Thanks everyone!

Media Coverage

This week we will be focusing on two things.  First, we will be analyzing different types of media coverage on the same event -- the controversial voyage of the young Amy Sunderland.  We will be discussing students' opinions on what bold actions are worth the associated risks.  These lessons will provide a precursor to argument writing.

Second, later in the week we will also work on getting started with our narrative that will be due at the conclusion of this unit.  Students will be continuing the theme of Bold Actions in their narratives.

Homework:  Thursday students will be asked to brainstorm a list of ideas for their narratives.  What bold action will their main character be deciding to act on?  Students are to brainstorm ideas at home and bring  them back to class Friday.

A New Week

I will be introducing students to the companion site for our new Collections series.  They will be getting their log ins so they may work on assignments through the Student Ebook in the future.


Homework/Assessments this week:

Wednesday -- Students are to finish their four paragraph movie outlines of Rogue Wave.  This was started in class.  They must have:

1. A description of the opening scene that establishes the characters, setting, and conflict.
2. A description of each important scene in the plot.
3. Suggestions for how to shoot each scene to convey the suspense

Thursday --  Students are to read assigned pages in their Close Reader and answer the accompanying questions for Big Things.

1st Week!

Everyone did really well this week!  I was so impressed by students' abilities in gathering textual evidence.  Also, every single student participated in class discussions and provided thoughtful answers to some challenging questions!  All that despite their summer-time-mash-potato-brains! ;)

Welcome Back!!!

I hope everyone had a lovely summer!  I'm currently in the process of moving closer to Oxford, so it's been an exciting few months for me.

I have been enjoying the first few days of school as it has provided me the opportunity to get to know the Class of 2016.  They are a stellar group and I can already tell it's going to be a fun year.  There are a lot of talented, motivated learners and each person has an interesting story to tell. 

Here's to a new year with brand new books and brand new faces!

The Giver Movie!!!

Hey there, folks!  I hope all the new 8th graders are ready to go see the new Giver movie!  I have both some good news and bad news.  First, the bad -- I will not be able to make the movies this week.  But... but, but, but BUT, the reason why is the good news.  I am in the middle of moving closer to Oxford!  It's been a hectic summer for me, but I hope you all enjoy the movie and the rest of your summer!

Week 4 of The Giver

Writing:  Students are working on their children's stories featuring coral reef animals.

Reading:  Students will be finishing The Giver this week.  They will start working with their groups to build a utopia.  The Utopia Project is due June 12th.  The project is described below.

Create Your Own Utopia

- Assignment Guidelines

ALL TASKS MUST BE COMPLETED BY THE END OF THE DAY on the below due date:

 Due: June 12^th

¡ I want you to not only use the information you’ve learned about the idea of a Utopia in class but to use your creativity in creating this “ideal” society, while keeping in mind the positives and negatives of the community in The Giver.                       

¡ This assignment must be colorful – you have the necessary materials. You can also use cut outs from magazines and COLOR pictures printed from home as well.

¡ The format of the assignment is up to your group.  It could be mounted on a poster board, printed out as a packet, created through a Powerpoint, displayed as a web page (like in Glogster).

¡ Neatness and effort will be included in the final grade as will spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.  So take pride in your group’s work and proof read each other’s writing.

 

Group Responsibilities:

                        ¡ Make sure EVERYONE in the group has duties and tasks that they are assigned to complete each day. (whether that be writing, coloring, organizing, editing).

                        ¡ Before making a final decision about each task make sure that the WHOLE group agrees with the decision .

                        ¡ If you have group mates absent for the day – YOU ARE STILL EXPECTED TO DO THE WORK AND HAVE THE ASSIGNMENT COMPLETED BY THE DUE DATE.

                        ¡ You will not only receive a grade for the final product but you will also be graded on the amount of work done each day. I will be closely monitoring your progress throughout the week.

                        ¡ You will be graded on your effort as a group member.   If I have to speak to you about your efforts more than once, it will come out of YOUR grade.

 

Assignment Guidelines: Your final product must include ALL of the following components:

                        1. Name of your Utopian society – Choose a creative and appropriate name to represent your new society. Write a meaningful statement that tells why your group chose this name.

                        2. Declaration of Independence – Write an explanation describing the reason why you formed your utopian society. In this statement you must answer the following questions – 1.) What don’t you like about your current society? 2.) How has the current society broken your trust? 3.) Why do you feel the need to form a more perfect society? 4.) How will your society be different? 5.) Does your society have some of the same characteristics as your current society? Describe what is similar if so.   

                        3. Utopian Motto and Seal – Create a slogan or motto that citizens of your society will follow, and draw a utopian seal. Write a brief description that explains the meaning of the motto and seal that you chose.

                        4. List of Rules – Develop a list of 10 rules that all community members must follow. Provide an explanation for each rule.

                        5. Governing Body – How will the government of this Utopian be structured? Will you have a democracy, anarchy, a monarchy, a republic, a dictatorship, or will you have a mixed government (combines elements of all types of government)? How will your government make decisions? Please give an explanation for your choices.

                        6. Holidays and Celebrations – Create 3 or more unique holidays and celebrations that your society will have throughout the year. For each make sure you include a date and a reason why you chose these dates.

                        7. Map – Create a map of your society’s city, village, or country.  Include any important buildings (this may depend on your government you choose).  Think about places people shop (if they shop), go for learning, or where you put those that break the rules.  If you handle these situations differently in your society, do you call your buildings different names?  Or do you not have these buildings at all?

                        8. Advertisement – Develop a written advertisement or flyer for your community. This ad should be complete with pictures that are representative of life in your society. Think of the advertisement techniques we’ve learned over the year

The Giver and M.A.R.E.

The Giver Reading Schedule for Week 3

Tuesday-- Reviewing last week's reading; In Class Chp 14-15; Homework-- Chp 16

 Wednesday-- Review Chp. 14-16; Read Chp 17; Homework- Finish questions in packet up to p.7 (answer all questions for chapters 14-17; much of this was finished in class already)

  Thursday--  Read and discuss Chp. 18 in class

   Friday-- Read and discuss Chp 19 in class

Writing Research Paper Updates

Students will be working with partners this week to create a children's story about their Coral Reef Animal.

The Giver Reading Schedule for Week 2

Monday -- Reviewing last week's reading; If  time, read Chp 7; Homework-- Chp 8

 Tuesday -- Review Chp. 8; Read Chp 9 (start in class, finish for Homework)

Wednesday --  Review Chp. 9; Read Chp 10 in class; Homework Chp 11

Thursday -- Review HW; Discuss images

 Friday -- Read Chp 12; Review Chp 7-12

Writing Research Paper Updates

This week students will be completing an outline and papers this week (the paper is very short -- only 4 paragraphs).  Students are receiving 2 grades.  One grade is for completing all the research process (finding 3 articles, taking notes on notecards, completing an outline, and properly formatting the research paper itself with page #s, a heading, etc.).  The other grade is for the actual paper (the organization, details, information, etc.).  After their trip next week, students will be using their knowledge gained about their coral reef animal to write a children's story.

The Giver Reading Schedule for the Week

Today we will be starting our trek into the world of The Giver.  Unfortunately there is a lot going on this week and some students will be out today as well as Thursday and Friday.  In an effort to keep everyone on the same page (sorry, I couldn't resist!), I wanted to post what we will read and when.

Tuesday (today) -- Chapter 1 in class

Wednesday -- Chapter 2 and 3 in class ; Homework -- Read up to p. 33 (finish Chp 4)
    There will be a brief Reading Check Quiz Thursday on any reading homework.

Thursday -- Chp 5-6 in class

Friday -- Review and compare our society to the one within The Giver

M.A.R.E. and The Giver

Reading: 

We will be starting The Giver this week.  We will continue to discuss dystopian societies and what it is that they truly lack.  Occasionally students will need to bring home their books and their journals for HW.  I will provide them with a folder to hold these items.  Students are expected to keep these items in good condition -- the books are quite small and easily crushed, but they need to last.

Writing:

We will be starting our M.A.R.E. project this week.  This is a two part project that involves a brief research paper, and then a collaborative partner project.  Students will research a specific animal found in coral reefs.  Then, the partner project involves two students developing a creative children's story in which their two animals meet.  The story should have a moral about friendship/diversity/open mindedness etc. as well as teach children a little about the animals featured in the story.


I'm looking forward to starting both these activities with the students! 

Below are some sites students can use to look up and research particular coral reef animals.

http://www.greatbarrierreef.com.au/animals/fish/
http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/about-the-reef/animals
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbwwGUi4uyE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EueBzS3kPe8

NJASK Week

Everyone -- KEEP CALM and TEST ON!  You will all do wonderfully.  Just do your best!  Good luck, my little Deanslavians! ;)

Preparing for Testing Next Week

This week will be practicing a little for the NJASK.  There will not be any tests or homework this week or next.  Stop by and check out the beautiful mural the students made in honor of all the stories we've read throughout this year.

Projects

There hasn't been any homework this week.  Students have been working hard on culminating projects all week!

April is Poetry Month!!!

Two websites to begin your search for your favorite poems!

http://www.poetryfoundation.org/learning/article/178700

http://www.poetrysoup.com/poems/middle_school

http://www.poetrysoup.com/poems/best/concrete 

Some wonderful poets you can look up!

Ogden Nash
Jack Prelutsky
Billy Collins
Michael Rosen
Shel Silverstein
Kenn Nesbitt
Jon Scieszka
Roald Dahl
Paul Janeczko
Marilyn Singer
Sharon Creech
Allan Ahlberg
Barry Louis Polisar

 

Listen to historic poems here:  http://www.poets.org/audio.php/prmAlpha/

Find local poets and others from around the country using this map: http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/382

And use this idea generator to develop a poem on your own!

http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/poetry/poetry_engine.htm

And once you finish a poem, here's a place to publish it!

http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/poetry/jack_form.asp

Pasta Dinner Reminder

If possible, students' donations of penne pasta and soda would be greatly appreciated!  Donations can be brought in and left in Ms. Stocker's room.

 

Thanks for your help!

HW for the week of

Reading:

• Monday --

• Tuesday --  Vocab Practice

• Wednesday --Vocab Quiz

• Thursday -- Story Test:  Amigo Brothers

• Friday -- 

 

Writing:

 

•  Monday -- 7-8 Flash Cards

• Tuesday --    7-8 Flash Cards

• Wednesday --  Study

• Thursday -- Study

• Friday -- Vocab Test 10

Pasta Dinner Reminder

If possible, students' donations of penne pasta and soda would be greatly appreciated!  Donations can be brought in and left in Ms. Stocker's room.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

HW for the week of 3/17/14

Reading:

• Monday -- 10c

• Tuesday --  10d

• Wednesday --10e

• Thursday -- Study

• Friday -- Vocab Test 9

 

Writing:

 

•  Monday -- 10c

• Tuesday --    10d

• Wednesday --  10e

• Thursday -- Study

• Friday -- Vocab Test 9

HW for the week of March 10th

Reading:

• Monday --

• Tuesday --  10a

• Wednesday --10b

• Thursday -- 

• Friday -- 

 

Writing:

 

•  Monday --

• Tuesday --    

• Wednesday --  

• Thursday -- Pg.2 on Theme notes

• Friday -- SSR

Vocab Tests Returned

Students got back their Vocab Lesson 9 Tests today!  There are lots of stellar grades in that batch.  I can see that many students put a little more study time in for this test.  I'm liking this demonstration of true effort!  I hope these students - you know who you are! - are proud of themselves and keep up the fantastic work!

HW for the 1st Week of March

Reading:

• Monday -- 9e

• Tuesday --  9d

• Wednesday --Study

• Thursday --  Study

• Friday -- 

 

Writing:

 

•  Monday --

• Tuesday --    

• Wednesday --  New Term Practice

• Thursday -- 

• Friday -- Quiz on New terms

HW and Tests for the Week of Feb. 24th

Reading:

• Monday -- 9a

• Tuesday --  9b

• Wednesday --9c

• Thursday --  

• Friday -- 

 

Writing:

 

•  Monday --

• Tuesday --    Vocab Practice

• Wednesday --  

• Thursday -- SSR

• Friday -- Story Test : Dirk the Protector

Work for the week of Feb. 17th, 2014

Reading:

• Tuesday --  Story Test "A Retrieved Reformation"

• Wednesday --

• Thursday --  

• Friday -- 

 

Writing:

• Tuesday --    8e is due and 

• Wednesday --  Vocab Test 8

• Thursday -- 

• Friday --

HW for the Week of Feb. 10th, 1014

A note about our recent bevy of snow days and delays:

Hey there, folks.  It's been a crazy winter so far!  A lot of missed time and, unfortunately, deadlines are still approaching fast.  That being said, what time we have in school must be used to really clamp down on work (more so than usual).  Homework and tests, since they have been  (and will continue to be) announced ahead of time, will be due regardless of snow days and delays and I will suggest to students to take home materials  in case there is a storm approaching and there is potential for a snow day.  In other words, if there is a test planned for a Thursday and we are snowed out that day, then we will be taking the test as soon as we get back, so it would be helpful if students bring their materials home ahead of time (this way they can be prepared).  I will, of course, make exceptions for extenuating circumstances, but so far we've been lucky enough to know ahead of time about storm potential, so I will do my best to remind students to bring home materials to help prepare them.

 

 

Reading: 

• Monday --

• Tuesday --  Grammar Work Sheet

• Wednesday --

• Thursday --  Story Tests "A Retrieved Reformation"

• Friday -- Snow Date for Test

 

Writing:

• Monday -- 8a

• Tuesday --    8b 8c

• Wednesday --  8e

• Thursday -- Study Vocab

• Friday -- Vocab Test 8

Winter Week of 2/4/2014

Reading: 

• Monday --

• Tuesday --  

• Wednesday --

• Thursday -- 

• Friday -- Vocab Quiz

 

Writing:

• Monday --

• Tuesday --    

• Wednesday -- 

• Thursday -- Flash Cards for Lesson 8 (7 flash cards)

• Friday --

HW and Tests for the week of Jan. 27th, 2014

Reading: 

• Monday --

• Tuesday --  

• Wednesday --

• Thursday --  Bring SSR book

• Friday -- Bring SSR book

 

Writing:

• Monday -- 7a in Wordly Wise

• Tuesday --    7b and 7c in Wordly Wise

• Wednesday --  7d in Wordly Wise

• Thursday -- Study Vocab

• Friday -- Vocab Test 7

What a week!!!

Hope everyone managed to stay safe and warm!  We will not be having a vocabulary test this Friday.  We WILL, however, be discussing topics that we can connect with No Name Calling week as well as Martin Luther King Day.  No homework, and hopefully next week we'll have a more solid, consistent week of study!

HW for the week of Jan. 14th, 2014

Reading: 

• Monday --

• Tuesday --  

• Wednesday -- Bring SSR book

• Thursday --  Bring SSR book

• Friday --

 

Writing:

• Monday --

• Tuesday --    Create 5 Flash cards for Lesson 7 Words

• Wednesday --  Create 5 Flash cards for Lesson 7 Words

• Thursday -- Create 5 Flash cards for Lesson 7 Words

• Friday --

Welcome Back!!! HW for the week of Jan. 6th, 2014

Well here it goes, the first set of HW assignments for the new year!



Reading: 

• Monday -- Copy the definitions of The Scholarship Jacket's 6 vocab words: agile, despair, dismay, eavesdrop, falsify, vile

• Tuesday --  What do you think is going on in Gpa's head?  Write a paragraph.

• Wednesday -- Finish the Reading Check for The Scholarship Jacket; Vocab Quiz

• Thursday --  Story Test

• Friday --

 

Writing:

• Monday -- Write a paragraph using the first 5 vocab words from Wordly Wise lesson 6: addict, aspire, bias, blatant, candid

• Tuesday --    Draw pictures to illustrate the meanings of the next 5 words: confront, debut, enroll, fluster, impunity

• Wednesday --  Create 5 of your own test questions (fill in the blank or multiple choice) where the answer to each will be one of the last 5 words: intensify, intimidate, obnoxious, retort

• Thursday -- Study Words

• Friday -- Vocab Test 6