Our narrative essays are finished--or close to it! Yea! We worked on creating our final drafts today, and we compiled all of the prewriting activities and drafts we had done into one package. About half of the class finished during our class time; the other half needs to finish at home and bring the completed package to school on Wednesday.
Today during our reading time I asked the students to read exclusively--no RRJ--and to keep track of the number of pages they read in the 20 minutes we had. I ask students to read at home for 20 minutes a night, and I've been tracking each student's progress through books. My hope is that I will continue to see steady progress in reading, and by checking each student's individual capabilities I should be able to set individual expectations accordingly.
We all look forward to our Christmas celebration on Wednesday! We will participate in caroling in the morning, and our class will have a party together before heading out for bowling in the afternoon. A gift exchange game will be part of our day, so students should bring a wrapped $5 gift to school on Wednesday. Should be fun!
I hope that you have a wonderful Christmas! As we sang this morning, "O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord!"
Monday, December 19, 2011
Friday, December 16, 2011
December 16
We had a shorter day today because the students got to go to the Christmas Craft Shop during part of our morning. What fun it was to see the festive activities happening in the Christmas Shop! Students got to make crafts and put together gifts for family members, and I think they thoroughly enjoyed themselves! Be sure to say a big thank you to the moms and dads who helped organize this special day. It was a definite success!
We continued revision on our narrative essays today. Students will work on their final drafts on Monday, and the essays will be due on Wednesday before Christmas break. Some students may need to work on their essays at home in order to be ready for Wednesday.
We read and journaled today, and students checked to be sure they are on track with their RRJ entries. Some entries may need to be written at home, and the students are aware of what is required.
We look forward to the activities of next week--both the work and the celebrations! Have a wonderful weekend!
We continued revision on our narrative essays today. Students will work on their final drafts on Monday, and the essays will be due on Wednesday before Christmas break. Some students may need to work on their essays at home in order to be ready for Wednesday.
We read and journaled today, and students checked to be sure they are on track with their RRJ entries. Some entries may need to be written at home, and the students are aware of what is required.
We look forward to the activities of next week--both the work and the celebrations! Have a wonderful weekend!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
December 14
Today we really worked at revision on our narrative essays. I believe many students think that revision means "someone reads my paper and tells me what to correct." We talked about student ownership of revision and what it really is--that it means "I work on my writing to make it better."
Students received a checklist for narrative essay revision. It includes the strategies, techniques, and requirements we've talked about in class. We devoted some serious work time to revision today, and students worked on various parts of their essays, using the checklist as a guide. In conferencing with students as they worked, I was pleased to see students trying new things: one worked to add background information, another worked to condense a less-than-exciting part of his essay, another tried to add more of what he felt and experienced in order to create an "I was there" feeling for the reader, and several fine-tuned the language of their essays, working to choose clearer, stronger, more specific words. It was exciting to see progress being made! We'll continue to work on our essays on Friday, and hopefully we can get the final versions done before Christmas.
We did a bit more practice with dialogue today. Students worked with partners to correctly punctuate sentences using quotation marks.
Sharing good books and good authors is a natural part of what we do here in class, and today I introduced the students to Gary Schmidt, one of my favorite authors. He writes books intended for middle-schoolers, and he's won two Newbery Honor awards for his work. I shared some background information about Schmidt and his books with the class, and I read a couple pages from his latest book, Okay for Now, aloud. Together we appreciated the language and the story, and I hope some seeds of interest were sown!
Students need to continue to read at home. It's so exciting to see the progress many students are making through their books! Seeing and hearing students share questions, ideas, and opinions of books is also gratifying--even if it sometimes means I have to stop a conversation that's happening at the wrong time! :)
Students received a checklist for narrative essay revision. It includes the strategies, techniques, and requirements we've talked about in class. We devoted some serious work time to revision today, and students worked on various parts of their essays, using the checklist as a guide. In conferencing with students as they worked, I was pleased to see students trying new things: one worked to add background information, another worked to condense a less-than-exciting part of his essay, another tried to add more of what he felt and experienced in order to create an "I was there" feeling for the reader, and several fine-tuned the language of their essays, working to choose clearer, stronger, more specific words. It was exciting to see progress being made! We'll continue to work on our essays on Friday, and hopefully we can get the final versions done before Christmas.
We did a bit more practice with dialogue today. Students worked with partners to correctly punctuate sentences using quotation marks.
Sharing good books and good authors is a natural part of what we do here in class, and today I introduced the students to Gary Schmidt, one of my favorite authors. He writes books intended for middle-schoolers, and he's won two Newbery Honor awards for his work. I shared some background information about Schmidt and his books with the class, and I read a couple pages from his latest book, Okay for Now, aloud. Together we appreciated the language and the story, and I hope some seeds of interest were sown!
Students need to continue to read at home. It's so exciting to see the progress many students are making through their books! Seeing and hearing students share questions, ideas, and opinions of books is also gratifying--even if it sometimes means I have to stop a conversation that's happening at the wrong time! :)
December 12
Our week began with chapel this morning, and we were encouraged today to think about how it is that we "one-another". We heard from our speaker that we need to focus on others, and by helping and loving others, we will find ourselves taken care of, too.
We began our classroom time by writing about Christmas. Students thought about how they would focus their topic, spent a little time planning, and wrote at least 125 words on the topic. Having the students practice these skills helps to prepare them for written response questions which will come in classes and tests they will encounter in the future! A few students shared their responses with the class, and we recognized what a special time Christmas is for all of us!
We reviewed the work that we did last week in our Write Source books and talked about the various revision strategies we had learned. Students could see how these strategies proved effective in the examples in the book. It's challenging to effectively apply these strategies to our own writing, and that's what we'll work at this week.
We talked about the voice of the narrator in literature, and we learned the difference between first, second, and third person narration. We discovered that most of the books we're currently reading use a third person point of view, and a few use the first person. We learned that omniscient narrators can tell us everything!
We began our classroom time by writing about Christmas. Students thought about how they would focus their topic, spent a little time planning, and wrote at least 125 words on the topic. Having the students practice these skills helps to prepare them for written response questions which will come in classes and tests they will encounter in the future! A few students shared their responses with the class, and we recognized what a special time Christmas is for all of us!
We reviewed the work that we did last week in our Write Source books and talked about the various revision strategies we had learned. Students could see how these strategies proved effective in the examples in the book. It's challenging to effectively apply these strategies to our own writing, and that's what we'll work at this week.
We talked about the voice of the narrator in literature, and we learned the difference between first, second, and third person narration. We discovered that most of the books we're currently reading use a third person point of view, and a few use the first person. We learned that omniscient narrators can tell us everything!
Friday, December 9, 2011
December 9
We enjoyed snowflakes falling at recess today. What a beautiful reminder of our God's amazing power and creativity! And speaking of God's power and creativity... What a joy it is to look around at the faces of the seventh and eighth graders, to know them personally, and to see each one's unique God-given talents and abilities! It is a pleasure to work with this group of students. We work together, laugh together, question together, and learn together. I'm glad to be a part of this community of learners!
This morning we worked on writing dialogue, and we put into practice what we had learned about quotation marks. Students were given a set of comic strips, and they turned the characters' words into written dialogue. Students worked to write varied, interesting sentences, and they had good results.
We worked in groups today to learn about some of the things we can do when revising our writing. We consulted our Write Source books, read about techniques such as adding sensory details, writing longer sentences, and expressing feeling, and we worked with a partner to practice these skills. Next week we will apply what we learned to our narrative essays as we revise!
Of course, reading and journaling continues. It's always a pleasure to see students get "carried away" with their reading!
This morning we worked on writing dialogue, and we put into practice what we had learned about quotation marks. Students were given a set of comic strips, and they turned the characters' words into written dialogue. Students worked to write varied, interesting sentences, and they had good results.
We worked in groups today to learn about some of the things we can do when revising our writing. We consulted our Write Source books, read about techniques such as adding sensory details, writing longer sentences, and expressing feeling, and we worked with a partner to practice these skills. Next week we will apply what we learned to our narrative essays as we revise!
Of course, reading and journaling continues. It's always a pleasure to see students get "carried away" with their reading!
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
December 7
Our devotions this morning were based on Ephesians 4:2--"Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love." Sometimes these commands can be hard ones for middle-schoolers to put into practice! We know, though, that it's important to work at living according to God's commands, and it's exciting to see these students trying to put God's word into practice.
We got a chance to practice being humble and patient in our group work this morning. We read the story "Only One Woof" and were impressed by James Herriot's ability to tell a story well and by his command of the English language. The author used quite a few words that were unfamiliar to many of us, and today we took the opportunity to practice our dictionary skills. Students were given a list of vocabulary words from the story, and they worked in groups to alphabetize the words, look them up in the dictionary, and create definitions. It was a pleasure to see groups work well and efficiently together, and we all learned some new words in the process.
One requirement of our narrative essays is that they contain dialogue, and today we took time to go over some of the uses and rules of quotation marks. Students took notes on the various uses of quotation marks and wrote down examples of correct punctuation and capitalization when using quotation marks. They'll get a chance to practice their skills in writing dialogue on Friday!
We didn't have a lot of time for reading today, but we did squeeze in a few minutes with our books. For most students this is the most eagerly anticipated activity of our day! We enjoy immersing ourselves in our books, and it's encouraging to see students discussing books and recommending them to one another. We have a great reading community here in our classroom!
We got a chance to practice being humble and patient in our group work this morning. We read the story "Only One Woof" and were impressed by James Herriot's ability to tell a story well and by his command of the English language. The author used quite a few words that were unfamiliar to many of us, and today we took the opportunity to practice our dictionary skills. Students were given a list of vocabulary words from the story, and they worked in groups to alphabetize the words, look them up in the dictionary, and create definitions. It was a pleasure to see groups work well and efficiently together, and we all learned some new words in the process.
One requirement of our narrative essays is that they contain dialogue, and today we took time to go over some of the uses and rules of quotation marks. Students took notes on the various uses of quotation marks and wrote down examples of correct punctuation and capitalization when using quotation marks. They'll get a chance to practice their skills in writing dialogue on Friday!
We didn't have a lot of time for reading today, but we did squeeze in a few minutes with our books. For most students this is the most eagerly anticipated activity of our day! We enjoy immersing ourselves in our books, and it's encouraging to see students discussing books and recommending them to one another. We have a great reading community here in our classroom!
Monday, December 5, 2011
December 5
We began our day singing praises to God in chapel today. What a great start to our week!
Once we returned to our classroom, I asked students to reflect for a few minutes and write a response to the questions, "What is worship?" and "How do we worship?" We then discussed our answers. We talked about worship being our praise, devotion, and adoration of God, and we concluded that worship doesn't happen only in chapel or church, but that everything we do, if done for God, can be an act of worship!
We tried something new today: peer conferencing. Students brought their completed narrative drafts to class and met with at least one other student. Writers read their drafts to peers, and the peers responded by noting what worked well in the draft and mentioning the things that they would like to know more about. We discovered that it's really tough to offer solid, constructive feedback to our peers! Students worked at it, though, and many discussions regarding details and background could be heard in the classroom. Now the challenge is for students to take the suggestions of others and make improvements to their writing.
We continued with our reading and RR journals. Most students are making good progress through their books. Remember to encourage reading at home!
Once we returned to our classroom, I asked students to reflect for a few minutes and write a response to the questions, "What is worship?" and "How do we worship?" We then discussed our answers. We talked about worship being our praise, devotion, and adoration of God, and we concluded that worship doesn't happen only in chapel or church, but that everything we do, if done for God, can be an act of worship!
We tried something new today: peer conferencing. Students brought their completed narrative drafts to class and met with at least one other student. Writers read their drafts to peers, and the peers responded by noting what worked well in the draft and mentioning the things that they would like to know more about. We discovered that it's really tough to offer solid, constructive feedback to our peers! Students worked at it, though, and many discussions regarding details and background could be heard in the classroom. Now the challenge is for students to take the suggestions of others and make improvements to their writing.
We continued with our reading and RR journals. Most students are making good progress through their books. Remember to encourage reading at home!
Friday, December 2, 2011
December 2
Today we spent a large part of our morning drafting our narrative essays! We looked at some sample sentences of narratives and saw how they could be improved. We discussed the ways in which authors make their writing clear and interesting, and I encouraged students to include strong action words, sensory details, and dialogue in their drafts. Students worked hard to get their drafts completed, and most were successful. A few students didn't have quite enough time to finish, so they will need to complete their drafts over the weekend. Next week we'll be working on the revision process!
Our reading of books and writing in our RR journals continued, and many students wrote to fellow classmates today. It's encouraging to see journals being passed around the room as students share thoughts and ideas with one another.
We practiced using it's and its and had a short quiz.
And we wrapped up our day with reading James Herriot's "Only One Woof". This short story of Mr. Herriot's experience with a dog and its owner is an event that actually happened to the author, and it gave us a chance to see narrative writing in action. We also got a chance to learn some new vocabulary!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Students need to bring books to class next week (as always), need to have a RR journal entry completed (many done in class), and need to have their narrative drafts completed for Monday.
Our reading of books and writing in our RR journals continued, and many students wrote to fellow classmates today. It's encouraging to see journals being passed around the room as students share thoughts and ideas with one another.
We practiced using it's and its and had a short quiz.
And we wrapped up our day with reading James Herriot's "Only One Woof". This short story of Mr. Herriot's experience with a dog and its owner is an event that actually happened to the author, and it gave us a chance to see narrative writing in action. We also got a chance to learn some new vocabulary!
Have a wonderful weekend!
Students need to bring books to class next week (as always), need to have a RR journal entry completed (many done in class), and need to have their narrative drafts completed for Monday.
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