Leap Day, Essays, and Playlists

We started this week in English class, with Leap Day.  To commemorate this day, we started by looking back at where we were four years ago and how far each student has come since the 5th or 6th grade.  Then we looked ahead to the next four years to make predictions of where we might be.  After that, we were ready to write to inquire and explore this topic.  Each student worked independently to consider what might be happening for them in four years and what may have already happened.  It's pretty exciting to think about!  We shared some plans and agreed that even if the plans change, having a plan is a really good way to have a direction in life.

In other class activities, the tenth graders worked on writing an interesting thesis statement and worked on their compare/contrast essays.  Those are due tomorrow and as always, I have loved seeing the depth of ideas evolve throughout the writing process for them.  We have some excellent writers in this class and I'm glad they are pushing themselves to improve!

In ninth grade, we started working on Protagonist Playlists today.  This was really a fun way to bring in character analysis, theme analysis, plot analysis, and comparing a text with a song, which is a form of poetry.  The students are each responsible to find three songs and then will put them in order of the events of the book with their group.  They will add a visual element tomorrow and be ready to share their work on Wednesday in class - a fun way to wrap up our reading on the theme of courage!

We are ending the third quarter, so make sure your child keeps reading and keeps working hard on these last few assignments of the quarter.  Everything counts!  Have a great week!  

Tests this Week

This week in English class, both 9th and 10th graders have tests on their books.  Actually, this is a big week for grades for all classes.  Especially as we are near the end of the third quarter, these grades are important.  All classes will have the February book report in class on Thursday, Feb. 25.  In ninth grade, we will have a figurative language quiz, a book club essay test, and the Book club comprehension test.   The essay test will be done largely in class, but can be completed at home.  The  tenth graders did a great job on their Animal Farm presentations to the eighth graders.  They presented to our class today and we had some time to play the games, which was  a nice review for their test on Wednesday.  They also have their Compare/Contrast essay due next
Monday on Feb. 29. So all in all, there are a lot of important grades coming from this week.  Please be ready for these assignments.  We have gone over the calendar of assignments in all classes, so hopefully no student will be surprised by these assignments.  Have a great week and make time to read!  

Book Projects

This week in English class we are working on tasks related to books we are reading.  In tenth grade, we finished Animal Farm and we selected group projects today.  We will work on these and share them with the middle school students next week.  Each group chose either a written, creative, or dramatic way to share information about a topic relating to the book.  Some of the topics are themes of leadership, literacy, rights and oppression, or historical information about the author, the elements of the plot, or how this book is an allegory for the Russian Revolution.  We generated questions before choosing topics and projects, so we have some real interest in the information we will gather this week.  We also had a great first day as a combined sophomore class, with 26 students.  It allows for many ideas to be shared and more variation in student groups.  I'm excited about working with this wonderful group of students all together!

In ninth grade, we practiced character analysis by writing bio poems for the protagonist of our book.  We actually started by writing them about ourselves, then moved into writing about the character.  It warmed my heart to watch every student in the 4th block class consult their book to find character traits as they wrote their poems!  This is the time of year when students exhibit growth, as I saw during this learning activity today.  Bio poems are due on Wednesday and we have a vocabulary quiz on Wednesday as well.  We will finish our books at the end of next week, then we will have some culminating activities before taking a final test on this book.

Upcoming Reading Assignments

This week in English the tenth graders finished reading Animal Farm.  They will read some different texts to compare to the book and begin a comparative writing assignment.  They will also select a project to extend their knowledge of the book.  We will have a test on this book after the writing and the project are complete.

The ninth graders continue to read The Red Badge of Courage or Iron Thunder.  We have focused on eight types of figurative language and we are searching for examples of each type in the book as we read.  These figurative language examples will be on their final test.  We are also selecting new vocabulary words for a quiz next week.

All classes will need to select their February book for their in class book report.  This will be on the last Thursday in February, Feb. 25.  Keep reading this week!