Grades were given to students in sections 3 and 4

Please check HAC to see how your student is doing.  Interims are Friday.

Sections 3 and 4 have pages 117, 118, and 119 for homework tonight.

I did not see section 1 due to DCAS testing.

What do I need to complete by the end of the school year?

-->

What do I need to complete by the end of the school year?

Sections 3 and 4:

Mr. Bosler

___ AR 1^st test was due April 30 (50 points)

___ AR 2^nd test due May 24^th (50 points)

___ Unit 11 Vocab and Quiz May 3 (25 points)

___ Unit 12 Vocab and Quiz May 10 (25 points)

___ Unit 13 Vocab and Quiz May 17 (25 points)

___ Unit 14 Vocab and Quiz May 24 (25 points)

-->

Starting May 2

___ Anne Frank story map, relationship map, conflict map, and Test (100 points)

Mrs. Jamison

___ Complete research book & outline due May 6 (25 points)

___ Research Paper due May 17 (100 points)

___ Win your debate starting May 20^th (50 points?)

Section 1:

___ AR 1^st test was due April 30 (50 points)

___ AR 2^nd test due May 24^th (50 points)

___ Units 14 & 15 Vocab and Quizzes May 3 (25 points)

___ Units 16 & 17 Vocab and Quizzes May 10 (25 points)

___ Units 18 & 19 Vocab and Quizzes May 17 (25 points)

___ Unit 20 Vocab and Quiz May 24 (25 points)

This is all I know for section 1.  We have been disrupted by DCAS testing, the band trip, and the chorus trip.  The rest of the school also has DCAS testing, so computer and lab time is sporadic.

We will continue reading stories from the literature book.  Poe will be next!

Vocab quizzes tomorrow

Section 1:
Lessons 12 and 13

Sections 3 and 4:
Lesson 10 with 17 for extra credit.  We did three pages of 17 in class today.  All pages of 17 must be done for the opportunity to get extra credit.  Students must score a 7/10 on the 17 quiz for extra.)

DCAS Round III and choir trip Friday

Now things get interesting.

For Wednesday and Thursday, the first period will be dedicated to testing for all 8th grade teachers.  Groups have been made, and the students have been informed.  This means that I will not see section 1 until Friday.



Section 1
Homework: Complete units 12 and 13.  Quiz on Friday.

Sections 3 and 4
Homework: Pages 109 and 110 which will be scored on the responders.

Homework- (Let's try that again)

Section 1:
Vocab pages 127, 128, 145, and 146
Finish conflict and relationship chart. (See below.)
How are those conflicts resolved?
Here is a link to the play online.

Sections 3 and 4:
Vocabulary pages 107 and 108


In section 1 we are studying The Diary of Anne Frank.  I am exploring the ideas from this essay on the controversy of studying the Diary of Anne Frank.  The gist is simply studying the journal or the play alone is not enough.  The story should be used as a stepping stone to studying the Holocaust.  The play, especially, does not contain enough depth about the true horror of what happened to the Jews and others.  For that reason, we are studying other sources.  Today we read an excerpt from story told by a girl who knew Anne in the concentration camp. Today's story focused on the concentration camp aspect of Anne's story that is not in the diary.  We have also begun watching the Masterpiece Theatre version of the Anne Frank story.  It is a BBC production with a great web page!  Read are reading the interview with the screenwriter bit by bit.  There are some interesting production notes.  Today we read how this production was one of the few that has the endorsement of the foundation representing the diary.  The TV story is different in many ways from the play. The notes say that this productions is the truest portrayal of Anne yet.  The video is online.

Videos

Masterpiece Theatre Anne Frank

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGNRXZpZe8g&list=PLD87EE2A8BC9D71B7

Dear Kitty

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmAa2eN7wFY

Play

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQLhyQZNGEU

 This is the relationship chart and conflict chart.  A diary is a series of narrative.  You can't simply act them out and call it a play.  The same goes for a TV movie.  There needs to be a story with characters.  There needs to be tension with a rising action.  We will be discussing the conflicts between characters.  What decisions did the playwrights and the screenwriter make as they created their versions of the story?

Sections 3 and 4 have an essay due Monday

The students have been learning citations and organization for a short research project.  By Monday they should have written a 500 word piece comparing one character from the movie Gettysburg to the real man whom they researched in class using the computers.  The paper does not have to be comprehensive.  The lessons learned during this assignment will be applied to a research project they will start next week. 

Vocab homework

Section 1:
111, 113, 121, and 123
Quizzes Friday

Sections 3 and 4:
Pages 97 and 99
Quiz Friday

Section 3 parents...

I graded the long answer pieces handed in before break.  Please look at HAC to see how your child is doing so far this MP.

Vocab Homework

Section 1:
Pages 109, 110, 119, 120

Sections 3 and 4:
Pages 95 and 96

The grades for the Human Spirit essay are on HAC (Section 1)

Section 1
There are five students who have not given me the essay yet.  I am getting tired if the excuse, "I sent it.  You didn't get it?"  If I got it, why would I be asking for the essay?  I have even asked some students three days in a row for the late work.  The assignment is late at this point.

(I will weight the grades as the MP goes on.  For now, just look at the percentages please.)

Homework: Vocab and AR

(Sorry.  I hit enter.)

Section 1:
pages 107, 108, 117, 118

Sections 3 and 4:
pages 93 and 94

In section 1 we looked up the prefixes, root, and suffixes that our words are composed of.  Here is what we found.  We looked at how the suffix can change the part of speech of the word.

Lesson 10

E limin ate:  eliminare, from e- (variant of ex-)‘out’ + limen, limin- ‘threshold.’

Ap parel: ORIGIN Middle English (as a verb in the sense ‘make ready or fit’; as a noun ‘furnishings, equipment’): from Old French apareillier, based on Latin ad- ‘to’ (expressing change) + par ‘equal.’

Stifle: ORIGIN late Middle English: perhaps from a frequentative of Old French estouffer ‘smother, stifle.’

Negat ive: ORIGIN late Middle English: from late Latin negativus, from negare ‘deny’ (see negate) .

Dura tion: ORIGIN late Middle English: via Old French from medieval Latin duratio(n-), from durare ‘to last,’ from durus ‘hard.’

Re ject ed: ORIGIN late Middle English: from Latin reject- ‘thrown back,’ from the verb reicere, from re- ‘back’ + jacere ‘to throw.’

Feeble: ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French fieble, earlier fleible, from Latin flebilis ‘lamentable,’ from flere ‘weep.’

Intrinsic ally: ORIGIN late 15th cent. (in the general sense ‘interior, inner’): from French intrinsèque, from late Latin intrinsecus, from the earlier adverb intrinsecus ‘inwardly, inward.’

Positive: from posit- ‘placed,’ from the verb ponere. The original sense referred to laws as being formally ‘laid down,’ which gave rise to the sense ‘explicitly laid down and admitting no question,’ hence ‘very sure, convinced.’

Se cure: (in the sense ‘feeling no apprehension’): from Latin securus, from se- ‘without’ + cura ‘care.’ Insecure= not without care

Lesson 11

Ex clu sion ary: Latin excludere, from ex- ‘out’ + claudere ‘to shut.’

Pre clude: from Latin praecludere, from prae ‘before’ + claudere ‘to shut.’

Pro gress: ORIGIN late Middle English (as a noun): from Latin progressus ‘an advance,’ from the verb progredi, from pro- ‘forward’ + gradi ‘to walk.’ regress, digress,

In clude: from Latin includere, from in- ‘into’ + claudere ‘to shut.’

Con clude: from Latin concludere, from con- ‘completely’ + claudere ‘to shut.’

Stereotype: from French stéréotype (adjective).

Ex ploit: ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French esploit (noun), based on Latin explicare ‘unfold’ (see explicate). Latin explicat- ‘unfolded,’ from the verb explicare, from ex- ‘out’ + plicare ‘to fold.’ ??????

Crisis: Greek krisis ‘decision,

In sight ful: related to Swedish insikt,Danish indsigt,Dutch inzicht, and German Einsicht .

At tainable: from Latin attingere, from ad- ‘at, to’ + tangere ‘to touch.’

The vocabulary grade for the week was entered.

Each week, there are three activities per unit that can be scored using the responders.  This means that I can take a quick grade on their homework effort, and we can check where students might have had problems.  With plenty of time and the book, students should get good scores on those three activities. 

The test on Friday is the fourth activity for vocab that can be scored using the responder.  That means that there are four grades that can easily be averaged to produce a vocab score for the week.

(Section 1 has two units per week.  Yes, they feel lucky!)

Right now I am using the 100 point score, but that will be weighted as the marking period goes on.  I don't think I want 700 points of vocabulary balanced against essays and such.  Maybe I will.  I have to see.  I feel that vocab should count for around 30% of the MP grade.  Essays and projects should make up the majority.

Just know that I am always fair when it comes to grading.  I try to make the grades accurately reflect the students' efforts and performance relative to the importance of the task.

This post is long, but it tells you about the units we are studying.

Section 1:
Finish all pages for units 8 and 9.
Be ready to take the two quizzes.

Right now we are studying The Diary of Anne Frank.  We are reading the play and watching a documentary called Dear Kitty, which is an interview with Miep, one of the people who helped hide Anne and the others.  The goal is to think like a playwright and a director.  How does one transfer lessons from the Holocaust?  There are so many mediums?  We will start with a play and a documentary.  We will be doing more later.

Sections 3 and 4:
Finish all pages for unit 8.
Be ready for the quiz.
Don't forget the students can earn 3 extra credit points for doing unit 15 and getting a 75% or better on the quiz.

Right now we are watching the movie Gettysburg.  The purpose of the movie is threefold.  First, the information about the battle and the Civil War is cross-curricular. When the students study the unit in Social Studies, they will have great background knowledge.  Secondly, we are preparing for a research project.  Mrs. Jamison is having the students pick a character from the movie to research.  The students will then write a brief paper using proper citations and bibliography.  Third, I want to look at the movie as a piece of historical fiction.  We will discuss plot elements along with characterization.  The movie is based on the book The Killer Angels.  The book was created from detailed research.  However, the movie is not a documentary.  The events of the battle are presented in story format.  Like the movie Titanic, not everything in the movie is meant to be accurate because, again, the movie is not a documentary.

The movie is long- four hours!  The movie is tedious at times.  The plot moves along slowly.  It reminds me of Lord of the Rings in a way, but it's not that good.  :) 

The movie does have battle scenes, and it is rated PG, but I assure you that the battle scenes are tame in comparison to the realism available today.  The battles are recreated by Civil War reenactors.  There is little blood and no gore.  Men who are shot merely fall down.  The emphasis of the movie was on what happened, not to show the true horror of war in the way Saving Private Ryan did.  The movie looks like it was created so that everyone could know what happened on those three important days in our country's history.

As a side note, Mrs. Jamison's dad worked on the production of the film.  He is a Civil War expert who helped make sure the sets and the battles were accurate.  Mrs. Jamison knows a lot about the battles because of her dad.  

Vocab Homework

Section 1: pages 85, 89, 95, 99
I am in the process of grading the Unit 3 projects handed in before break.  I regret that I did not start them over break.  Instead I took time preparing for the current unit on the Holocaust. 


Sections 3 and 4: pages 85 and 89
(Section 3 and 4 can do an extra credit quiz on unit 15.  All work due Friday.)

There is vocab homework tonight.

It's been quite a while since we did vocabulary; however, we are going to finish the book by the end of the marking period.

Section 1 will take two quizzes a week.  This Friday they will take units 8 and 9.  Tonight the students should be sure to complete pages 84, 86, 94, and 96.

Sections 3 and 4 will take one quiz a week.  This week they will take the quiz on unit 8.  The homework for tonight is to be done pages 83, 84, and 86.  There is extra credit available each week.  This week, students can take the quiz on unit 15 as well.  As long as the students complete all the book work and score above a 75% on the quiz, I will give them three extra credit points.  That could add up to 21 extra points!

We are back from break...

I have a plan through the end of the year, but it's not quite ready to be put down.

For now, students have vocab quizzes on Friday:
Section 1 has units 8 and 9
Sections 3 and 4 have unit 8 on Friday with an extra credit quiz on 15 (I will explain later)

AR is due April 30th

Lots more to come.