I am asking students to email me introductions and outlines for review this weekend.

Mother Nature could provide us some extra work time!

I have taught the lessons.  It is now time for the students to apply what they have learned.  But I am still trying to assess their progress along the way.

I want students to send me their introduction and outline.  From these, I should be able to tell if they are on the right track. 

Students can also send me drafts to review. I will do the best I can to give some feedback.
bradford.bosler@redclay.k12.de.us

I have explained to the students that no one should get lower than a 70% as long as the following requirements are met:

• Rough draft handed in
• Final draft handed in
• The paper has an introduction with a hook, thesis, and 1, 2, 3
• The body explains their claim
• The body addresses the counter claim
• The paper ends with a conclusion
• "The Bet" is mentioned by name
• The National Geographic documentary on solitary is mention by name
• The NPR packet is mentioned by name
• The paper contains minimal grammar errors

There is extra credit for using sources outside of the ones provided.
I will explain how to use www.easybib.com next week.

So the grades start at a C.  Eighth grade students should be able to do what is listed above.  Those who do a better job will get the higher scores as determined by the rubric I provided earlier.

I cannot be responsible for students who do not do what I have asked them to do.  The lessons are taught and time has been provided.  

  

We do have paper. Quiz 9 Friday!

The rough draft is NOT due tomorrow. However...

Homework:
If we get paper today, we can have the quiz on vocab 9. 

• Not looking good, though.

All classes should have written an introduction and have a basic outline.

• Students have taken lots of notes and divided them.  That is fine.  But we watched an instructional video today that demonstrated what they need to do with those notes.  Students should have a basic outline or game plan.  Then they can use what they have already organized the other day.
• I feel like we actually have too much research.  That can be good.  However, it creates a challenge when organizing.  
• Which pieces of evidence do I leave out? 
• Do  I have six body paragraphs? 
• Which reasons can I put together into paragraphs?

Here is the site with instructional videos on argument.

Here are two sample introductions.  Below these pictures, you will see a list of hooks I found on the internet somewhere.

Want to Attract and Keep Readers? 52 Ways to Write Interesting Leads

Writing interesting leads will be less difficult with these helpful writing tips for “killer hooks”: 

1. the single most interesting point in your article or essay
2. a current research finding (eg, “Novice freelance writers have higher blood pressure than established freelance writers.”)
3. an interesting fact
4. a question
5. an element of fantasy (eg, “Imagine a time when earning a living as a writer could be as easy as eating double chocolate chip cookies.”)
6. a little-known event
7. a season of the year
8. an observation
9. a definition
10. a feeling, emotion, or mood
11. dangerous or harmful objects in everyday life
12. a place description
13. an annual holiday
14. a personal vacation
15. an intriguing question
16. a shocking statement (eg, “Writing interesting leads is the only part of a freelance writing career that makes someone want to tear their eyelashes out.”
17. good or bad advice
18. an opinion
19. a obituary
20. a verse from the Bible
21. a controversial idea
22. statistical information
23. a question
24. a belief held by most people (eg, “Earning a living as a writer isn’t possible.”)
25. a specific problem
26. a common problem
27. a declarative statement (eg, “Young freelance writers have it easy these days! Back in my day…”)
28. a childhood memory
29. received wisdom (eg, “Writing guru Anne Lamott once told me…”)
30. a writing quip
31. a shared trait or quality
32. a dramatic, unusual, or surprising phrase
33. a physical or mental condition
34. historical figures
35. statements of command
36. an amusing or amazing encounter
37. a how-to lead
38. a hobby
39. a current TV personality or celebrity’s actions
40. a current news story
41. a breakthrough secret revealed
42. a cliché or overused expression
43. a reference to astrology or zodiac signs
44. describe a nationalist idea or action
45. the effects of change
46. a special promise
47. an anecdote
48. a quotation from a movie star or celebrity
49. a dream or nightmare
50. a profession or career reference
51. common everyday objects
52. info about current and/or historical events

http://theadventurouswriter.com/blogwriting/52-ways-to-begin-your-articles-book-chapters-poems-or-essays/

Um.... I guess I did not look at the diagram closely in the last post!

Sorry about the crude comment in the argument hierarchy picture that was part of the last blog post.  I changed the picture on the blog, but I know it was e-mailed to you.  Name calling is the least effective way to argue a position, but the example was crude.  Please accept my apology for not double checking what I post.

Organizing the Argument Paper

(Rough draft cannot be due tomorrow.  We are still on outlining.)
 
There are a few ways the argument paper can be organized.  Students must decide what works best for them.  An argument paper is different from a persuasive paper.  If you look at this example, you will see the two side by side.  Argument papers must address the counterclaim.  If you look at this example, you will see that the counterclaim is addressed point by point.  Each paragraph takes a topic and addresses both sides.  But that is not the only way.  This is the outline I am giving the students.  I also pasted it below.

I have provided students with a lot of information.  The challenge now is to put it all together. 

Introduction Hook (interesting fact, question, a quote, a current news story, an anecdote) See my web page for a list of 52. Thesis (Claim) 1,2,3
Explain your main position (Claim) Reason:   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence: Reason:   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence: Reason:   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence:

Explain the counter claim and refute (explain why the counterclaim is wrong) Reason:   Evidence:   Refute: (transition word) Reason:   Evidence:   Refute: Reason:   Evidence:   Refute:

Conclusion    Restate your claim    Summarize your main points    Maybe have a call to action

Did you include information from all three sources? ____ “The Bet” ____ Documentary video ____ NPR Articles ____ Did you use transition words like however, but, yet, on the other hand?

Brainstorming and organizing for the argument essay

We did the Choosing the Right Word in class today.  I would like students to use tonight to fill in the sheet I posted on my blog yesterday.  I need to see how they are dividing up their reasons to support their claims and refute the counter claim.

The rough draft of the outline is not due tomorrow.  The students will take what they have written down and decide how they want to organize their pieces.  We will look at examples in class tomorrow.  We will explore the various ways students can arrange their essays to effectively communicate their message.

I felt like I needed to explain the themes in "The Bet" in a little more depth, so I took some time to write this.  The main goal of reading the story was to see the effects of solitary on a man, but I also wanted students to explore the themes. 

Themes in “The Bet”

Both the lawyer and the banker were arrogant in the beginning of the story.  They were young and made rash decisions.  The lawyer was willing to throw away years of his life to prove another man wrong to win two millions (what it is called in the story).  The banker was careless about his money believing he would always have plenty.  He also thought human life was something you could play with.

Throughout the story, the banker was intrigued by the behaviors of the lawyer in solitary, always believing that the lawyer was in it for the money. But time was cruel to both men.

The banker lost his money, and the lawyer lost his sanity and value for life. 

I believe that the writer, Anton Chekhov, wanted us to reflect on our lives.  He wanted us to compare our values to those of the banker and the lawyer. 

Through the banker, we question our own values about money.  Money can be evil and cause us to loose perspective on what is important in life.  The lawyer’s letter and act of not taking the money shows the banker that his values were wrong.

Through the lawyer, we are given a perspective on wisdom and the importance of human interactions. The 15 years left the lawyer a broken, bitter man.  The loneliness made him crazy.  Even though it might be argued that he learned more about life than most people ever would through reading books, the lesson he learned is not totally true. 

Not taking the money was noble.  Breaking the bet demonstrated the lawyer’s commitment to his stance that money is evil.  His actions showed the banker that there is more to life than money and possessions.

But the lawyer hasn’t experienced 15 years of life; he experienced books.  And while it is true that life is frail and delusive, as well as fleeting, that is what makes life so precious.  The lawyer’s view of the world was created out of his 15 years of solitude.  His wisdom is only part of the truth about life, but it is all he has.

So in the end, we see two characters that are broken by this bet.  They had to live through this ordeal and suffer.  We readers, on the other hand, can learn from their experiences.  We can look up from the end of the story and see the world around us with all the freedom we possess.  We can add their stories to our stories.  Their losses are our gains.  We have added a little more wisdom to our lives. 

In short

Watch out for your own arrogance.

Solitude crushes people and they go crazy.

Money distorts our values.

The source of the wisdom determines the value of that wisdom: perspective.

Plans for this week and explanations of the assignment

Vocab:
Pictionaries Unit 9 due Tuesday
Choosing the Right Word and Synonyms due Wednesday
Completing the Sentence Unit 9 due Thursday
Finish the unit and study for the quiz on Friday

Writing:
I am shooting for students having an outline done by Wednesday.  I really want to see if the students have researched both sides of the argument.  I want to see if students have chosen reasons that can be explained by evidence.  I don't want the reasons to be too narrow.

I don't see any reason why the final drafts can't be due Monday. 

I like this document because it discussed the basics of argument using Common Core standards and terminology.


I think I posted this before, but I am pasting it again.
(Note the chart below.)

Solitary Confinement Position Essay

Write an argument essay that does the following:

·      Takes a position on the use of solitary confinement in our country’s prison system

·      Supports your position with relevant evidence from at least the three sources I will provide

o   Extra credit for finding more on your own

o   You must have a bibliography (www.easybib.com)

·      Shows that you have thoroughly considered your view by discussing the weaknesses of your claim and the opposing positions

·      Uses transitional words to link ideas

·      Keeps an appropriate formal tone

·      Ends with a conclusion that continues your ideas through an inference, question, quotation, or a challenge

Sources I will provide

·      “The Bet” by Anton Chekhov

·      “Solitary Confinement” National Geographic Explore: Documentary video

·      Special Series by NPR: Life in Solitary Confinement (a compilation of articles)

Grades

·      Notes from “The Bet”

·      Notes from the documentary video

·      Completed analysis of the NPR documents (We will discuss on Tuesday.)

·      Chart of pros and cons to organize your position (We have been doing this.)

·      Outline (Wednesday or Thursday)

·      Final Draft (Monday)

What I expect from you

·      You are responsible for researching.

o   I am showing you how.

o   I am providing the research.

·      You must become the expert.

o   You must understand why solitary confinement is used in the first place and why people are against its use.

o   You must be able to explain you position orally to someone. 

o   The more you know, the better you can support your position.

·      You must use a logical method of organization.

o   I will provide you with suggestions.

o   I will provide you with transitions.

o   The easier it is to follow you arguments, the better the grade.

Grading the essay

·      I will provide a rubric from the text book.

·      Try to shoot for 1000 words. 

·      Say what you need to say. 

·      Longer is not always better.

 This is the chart I will give them to make sure they have researched their positions well enough.   It's not really an outline.  It is a way to view their research.

Here is a the document file.

Claim: Solitary should be abolished / Solitary is BAD!	Claim: Solitary should NOT be abolished / Solitary is GOOD!
Reason :   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence: Sources:	Reason :   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence
	Refute: Sources:
Reason :   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence: Sources:	Reason :   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence
	Refute: Sources:
Reason :   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence: Sources:	Reason :   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence
	Refute: Sources:
Reason :   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence: Sources:	Reason :   Evidence:   Evidence:   Evidence
	Refute: Sources:

Section 2 will get their DCAS sheets Monday

I made a slight error in my chart.  If you are really curious and can't wait, I can e-mil the results to you.

Sections 1 and 3 should take their papers home to be signed.  It will count as a grade.

Sorry about that.

DCAS improvement sheets and poetry recordings

Some students allowed me to post their recordings. If you would like to listen to the recordings, check out this page.

ATTENTION: DCAS DATA

I sent home the Fall/Winter DCAS scores improvement sheet today.  I am asking that all students have their sheets signed.  Too many students did not even increase their scores from the fall, let alone raise them the +30 points they needed to make their DCAS goals for the year. 

I am developing plans to address these drops in their scores.  I will use Achieve to help them do better in test situations.  The program gives lots of test situation practice, but the questions are also aligned to the Common Core Standards.  Using the feedback from the DCAS, I will review the skills needed to do better in the spring.

I have been working very hard this year, and I know that I have taught the students at and above grade level. The scores on the DCAS do not reflect my effort, but I will work harder to make sure the students are prepared for the spring.

Argument paper to be due around March 3

Argument Paper (Due March 3)

Assignment Explanation:

Solitary_Confinement_Position_Essay.pdf

Rubric:

Argument_Rubric_2014.pdf

Resources

National Geographic video on solitary

“The Bet” by Anton Chekhov

NPR Solitary Confinement 

Due dates I am shooting for:
    February 24: all the notes should be done and checked off
    February 26: Outline of the paper (or earlier)
    February 27: Rough draft
    March 3: Final draft

I have some goals for this unit:

• Obviously, the Common Core Standards require a written argumentative piece.
• I also want a short timeline for this assignment because the Smarter Balance test will be having students doing a task similar to this (although it will be shorter on the test).
• I want students to gather evidence for their claims from multiple sources.
• With the abundance of information I have given students, there is no reason why they can't support their position.  I am providing an opportunity for the students to be successful as long as they step up and do the work.

I made .mp3s of the poetry readings.

If you would like a copy of your reading for posterity, or maybe you want to send a copy to Grandma and Grandpa, send me an e-mail: bradford.bosler@redclay.k12.de.us . 

I also updated HAC with the scores from the readings.  The only requirement was the poem had to be 30 seconds.  Most had no problem with that.

Remember, interims are this Friday!

Performance Week: No homework.

 If you have a moment and would like to listen to a beautiful presentation of a poem, give this a listen.

Classroom:
I am trying to get all the classes back on track.  Mother Nature has not helped.

Sections 2 and 3 are finishing their group presentations.  They are also reading and recording their poems.  We started some today.

Section 1 is wrapping up the recording of their poems.  They are starting the next unit.  We will be studying "The Bet" by Anton Chekhov.  The short story and two other pieces will be the research we will use for a position paper.

I graded the group poem anaylsis pieces. Well done!

The major summative grade for the poetry unit is the essay on the poem I assigned to the groups.  The essays should have demonstrated the students' ability to critically analyze a poem.  That is exactly what most of the essays did! 

I am so please with the results of the essays!  Although I did not grade any essays lower than an A, I did indicate on the essay what grade I thought the piece should recieve.  Those grades are reflected in the grades on HAC:

100	A+
95	A
93	A-/B+
92	B
90	C

This is the first time I have taught poetry analysis in such depth to middle school students.  Welcome to the Common Core!  I feel like I did a good job scaffolding the skills so the students could be successful.  The students worked hard, and their essays reflected their effort.  (For as much as the students complain about writing essays, they sure are getting good at it!  That will really help them in high school and beyond.)

I am very proud of how well the students did in this unit!  Their presentations in class are also showing how well they are understanding how to analyze poetry.

I am looking forward to hearing the students read their poems aloud to the class this week.

Read the Blue Ribbon Poems of Sections 1 and 2

Click here if you would like to read through what I considered the best poems of Sections 1 and 2.  As I explained in class, not everyone is a poet.  I wanted to recognize those poems that demonstrated the art of poetry... not just the attempt. (I just received Section 1's poems today.)

Top Poems Sections 2 & 3

Addie S.

Alexis Y.

Amya M.

Angela M.

Caroline A.

Dakota N.

Ella M.

Emily R.

Erin C.

Erin D.

Haoda W.

Ian G.

Jehleen Z.

Maddie V.

Rebecca L.

Shane L.

Shannon S.

Siddharth G.

Yuqing X.

Grades have been updated on HAC

Entered into HAC

• I entered the vocab homework for unit 8.
• I read all the poems from sections 2 and 3 and scored the analysis sheets.  (Unfortunately, I did not get sheets from every student.)
• I entered the Achieve scores.  Please remember that those scoreschange throughout the marking period.  If a student did not complete the required weekly assignments, he/she should make them up.

*I will adjust the weights of the assignments later in the MP.





Due tomorrow:

Section 1

• Personal poems and analysis sheets
• Quiz on unit 8

Sections 2 and 3

• Poem presentations
• Analysis essay on the presentation poem. (Students do have until Friday, though, with no penalty.)