Transitioning to Google Classroom

In order to streamline the communication process, I will be retiring this blog and continuing to provide updates through my Google Classroom (GC).  Any and all assignments, classroom objectives, and announcements will be made through GC.  Parents/guardians have been invited to their respective child's GC; if you would like to be invited and haven't yet, please contact me via email at cdean@oxfordcentral.org

Thank you!

Week of Nov. 6th

We are collecting Instant Oatmeal to Support our Soldiers this Month!  Please bring in some boxes of oatmeal to share. 

This week Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday are 1/2 days.  Conferences follow.

Tuesday is Spirit Day.  Remember to wear school colors OR red, white, and blue.

Week of Oct. 30th, 2017

Parent/Teacher Conference Schedule notices have been released!  If you requested a conference and did not receive an email or letter home, please email your homeroom teacher immediately.  Either your child never handed in your request or they have misplaced your schedule letter.  Thanks for your time!

Oct. 24th Homework

Complete the "Written Response" in Finding Your Own Everest.  This article is found in the paper back Close Reader workbook.  Please be sure to answer using R.A.C.E. -- a complete answer should have at least 5 sentences.

Parents!!!!

Please remember to bring in conference forms before the 25th! If your child hasn't brought a form home and you want a conference please let us know with either a note or email.  Teachers' schedules are filling up quickly.  Thank you!

Week of October 16th

Square 1 Art drawings are due on Halloween!  Remember that the money made during the Art 1 fundraiser goes right to our school's technology costs! So if you enjoy the chromebooks and getting plenty of visual aids in the classroom, be sure to sell some of those awesome items!

More information can be found here: https://www.square1art.com/

Week of Oct. 9th

See any missed work posted on Google Classroom.

Homework for Tuesday -- 2 sentences each for the vocab words of Flight of Icarus; make sure sentences have context clues.

Week of Oct. 2nd

This week we are going to be reading about some teens taking bold actions in both the fiction and nonfiction world.

Tuesday:   Finish the pre-during-after questions for "Big Things Come in Small Packages" in the Close Reader workbook           **Wear a vacation shirt or school colors!

Wednesday:  Presentation

Thursday:  **Wear Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness

Friday:  MyAccess assignment due:  The People of the Pedestrian

           

Week of Sept. 25th

7th Grade General info:

Friday: Yankee Candle fundraiser orders/money due in by Friday.  30% of money raised goes towards individual student's class trip funds.

Wear gold and bring in money to donate to cancer research.

7th Grade ELA info:

Tuesday: Rogue Wave Vocab Quiz

Wednesday: Rogue Wave Story Test

Week of Sept. 14th

Please sign, have your parents sign, and return the "Use of Internet" forms as soon as possible!

For Wednesday night -- write 2 sentences for each of "Rogue Wave" 's vocabulary words (5 words found in the margins of the story)

We will have a quiz on the words Friday.

Week of Sept. 11th

This Week: 

Make sure to have a book cover, your parent information handed (preferred emails and phone numbers), and the class contract signed.

This week we are starting to get back into the groove.  We're practicing putting our brains to good use with a close reading of Ray Bradbury's The Pedestrian.  

Homework:

For Thursday's homework I'd like students to reread the story and identify 3 similes or metaphors in the text.

Welcome Back!!!!!

I hope everyone had a lovely summer!  I can't wait to get to know this new group of students!

Homework this week:

By Friday:
   Cover Collections book
   Sign and have parents sign the back of the class contract
   Bring in Parent Contact info to homeroom teacher

Memories and M.A.R.E. Project

This week we will be working on capturing a memory that is worth saving for the future.  Much like the Giver, students will be sharing memories that they deem important for generations to come.

We will also be starting our M.A.R.E. project -- a small children's book about a coral reef animal of their choosing.  These books come out wonderful every year so I can't wait to see what students create!

Back to the Grind

After an amazing trip together, it's now time to get back to the grind stone.  We have a few more projects and writing assignments coming up before the end of the year.  I have added an extra credit assignment on MyAccess in which students can write about a day in the life of their utopia.  More projects to come!  Stay tuned.

Truman Show and Utopia Projects

This week we will finish watching the Truman Show and complete questions (including a short essay on the movie).  The Utopia projects are due Friday and we will begin a MyAccess narrtive this week as well.  Lots of work to do before we can enjoy our class trip next week!

Trip forms DUE

Monday the packet of class trip forms are due back to Mrs. Drechsel.  Only return papers that needed a signature.  The rest can be kept for your information.  The trip will be here before you know! I can't wait to spend a few days in LBI with all you students!  It's going to be a blast!

Post PARCC week!!!!

This will be a wrap up week for our Safety VS Freedom unit.  Students will be finishing up their Utopia projects, writing narratives to continue the ending of The Giver, and completing a character bio project.

PARCC

This week we will be taking the PARCC.  We will also get started on The Giver movie version.  We will be comparing the movie and the book to discuss which one is more effective in relaying the themes of this dystopian tale.

Thursday Missed Work

Last night (Wednesday), students should have finished reading Chapter 20 and answered the questions posted on GoogleClassroom.  Today, many students are out for Take Your Child to Work day.  They will need to finish The Giver on their own. Questions for the final three chapters will be posted in GoogleClassroom -- these will be answered tomorrow in-class for a quiz grade. You do NOT need to answer the questions for HW.  We also finished the Literary Analysis Essay practice for Bell Work, so that needs to be completed.

The Giver Homework

Tonight, please read Chapter 17 and answer the post-reading questions that will be posted in GoogleClassroom.

Wall-E

We will be watching and discussing the dystopian characteristics within the plot of Wall-E!   What types  of dystopian control are present?  What examples of dystopian protagonists can with find within the story?  We will explore these questions and find similarities between this movie and our novel, The Giver.

Vocab Test for The Giver Postponed

The vocab test will be held on Tuesday April 11th!

Homework for Week of April 2nd

Wednesday: 1 sentence for each vocab word  (10)
Thursday: 1 image for each vocab word (10)
Friday:  Vocab Test

Tricky Tray Donations

Just a reminder to the 7D homeroom students and parents!  Please, bring in donations to our Family Fun Night In/Out themed basket.  We have some dvds, popcorn treats, and board games so far, but we could use a little more.

The Giver

This week we will dive into the dystopian world of The Giver.  Wednesday students are to finish reading Chapter 4 and to complete the rest of the Chp 1-4 packet.

To students and parents of the 7D homeroom:
Remember to donate board games, dvds, snacks, restaurant gift cards and any other useful items for our theme -- Family Night Fun!

Freedom VS Safety

Over the next few weeks, we will be focusing on our Freedom VS Safety unit.  Here we will explore what makes up a "perfect society."  We will decide which is more important: freedom or safety?  How do we balance the two in one society?  We will be reading dystopian fiction by Ray Bradbury as well as reading the novel, The Giver.

Week of March 13th

Lot's of snowy fun this week!  We'll be wrapping up our Another Place, Another Time lessons.

Please remember to bring in donations for our Family Night basket that will go to the PTA's 2017 Tricky Tray.  Board Games, diner gift cards, snacks, movies (or AMC gift cards) are welcomed!

Thanks so much for your help, folks!

Week of March 6th, 2017

This week we will be reading Another Place, Another Time, a touching story about a young man's attempt at time travel.

Monday: 2 vocab sentences with context clues for each word
Tuesday: a picture for each vocab word
Wednesday:  Vocab quiz and Story Test

Week of February 27th

Students will be taking PARCC practice sessions, discussing testing strategies, and reading several short stories to analyze this week.

President's week!

This week we will be comparing a newer, modernized version of the Twilight Zone episode  The Monsters are Due on Maple Street with the original black and white version.  We'll also be working on our Narrative Writing via a Study Island assignment (Narrative Story Prep) which is due by the end of Friday as well as through a MyAccess assignment that revisits a narrative we began at the beginning of the year.

Monsters are Due on Maple Street

Students will be reading the screen play of the Twilight Zone classic episode:  The Monsters are Due on Maple Street this week.

Monday: Finish Close Reader work for Heartbeat
Tuesday:  Create sentences for the vocab of Monsters are Due on Maple Street
Wednesday:  Images/memes/drawings for vocab
Thursday: Monsters Vocab Quiz
Friday: Monsters Test

Magic and the Brain

Tuesday is our Magic and the Brain Test.  As always, it is open book.

Magic and the Brain Introduction Video

National Geographic Test Your Brain

Sorry, Wrong Number

Here are the two versions of the play that we will be comparing!

The youtube video of the senior drama club performance:    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKCpCr4QBT8

The radio play: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qO3GHNbTFk

Sorry, Wrong Number

Students will be reading the play Sorry, Wrong Number this week.   This noir genre will keep students in suspense until the very end!  Our story test will be held Thursday of this week!

Week of Jan. 9th, 2017

Tomorrow is the last day we will be working on the bold actions essays and slide shows in class.  Anything that isn't completed tomorrow is homework. We will be moving on to the next collection called Perception and Reality.

Final Drafts and GoogleSlides

Students are to finish their final drafts and prepare to present their commentaries Monday the 9th.  They should have completed their essay and a GoogleSlide show with at least 2 pictures per paragraph.  We will presenting these commentaries in class during the week of the 9th!