Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 6 (Sept. 26)

Greetings!

Again, another great class.  This group of students brings a lot of positive energy and attitudes to the class.  The prompt for our Quick Write today was the  190th anniversary of Scotland Yard.  We discussed detectives, law enforcement, mysteries, and perspectives about rules.  Students could take the topic(s) in any number of directions.

We skipped the Words of the Day this week because I knew that we already would have a full class.  We'll resume next week.  A new element that I'm adding to the class is the role of a "Class Scribe."  I recently purchased a Rocketbook, that is a digital notebook, and I want students to take turns taking handwritten notes, especially of the examples and diagrams that I put on the board.  Those notes then get shared to the Google Drive folder for the class and a link to them will be included with the Class Notes.

I handed back rough drafts of their Process Essays.  These were amazing essays that I thoroughly enjoyed.  Whenever I hand back rough drafts, I take a significant amount of time to go over common errors/mistakes so that we can make those mistakes into learning opportunities.  The three most common mistakes this week included the following: 

1. Having the right spelling but it's the wrong word (spell check and auto-correct can be helpful but not always trusted); e.g. costumer/customer, plane/plain, right/write, heard/herd
2. Parallel structure.  If students have a list, all of the elements need to be in the same form, such as all nouns or all verbs with the same endings.
3. Comma splice & Run-on sentences.  We will probably talk about this all year long!
4. There is/There are sentences.  These sentences postpone the subject and are considered grammatical expletives.  (go here for more information)
5. Amount vs. Number, which has to do with countable and non-countable nouns

I took some time to discuss some new guidelines for formatting their papers, moving towards MLA formatted papers.  (Here is a video for formatting in Google Docs, and here is one for doing the same in Word.) Going forward, I would like the students to format their papers in the following way:  1 inch margins, 12 pt. font, double spaced, header in the upper right margin with last name and page number, and a heading on the left side with full student's full name, class name, teacher's name, assignment name, and date handed in. This document is a "sample."  

With all of our essays, I'm having the students designate a section of the note-taking to those "Watch Out For" points that I've noted in the comments section of my corrections.  Along with making revisions for their final drafts, I want students to fill out the little half-sheet titled, "My First 5 Errors."  For this worksheet, students should look at the first five marks that I made on their rough drafts and write what the error was and, if they know, what grammar rule is connected with the error.  Under the First 5 section is a place for them to write about what area they want to improve in.

Because we discussed a lot of grammar topics while going through the rough drafts, I felt that was enough grammar for the day. 

For our discussion of My Antonia, I had the students gather in "table groups" to discuss the primary characters and their behaviors as exhibited in sections we've recently read, which included Antonia, Wick Cutter, grandmother, and Jim.  One table group discussed 2 significant events from these pages:  the dance and graduation. In our reading of the book we will be transitioning from Jim as a boy and teenager to Jim as a young adult in college.  

Assignments for Next Week

-- Read Book III, Sections I - IV (pages 119 - 140)

-- 3 Reader Responses & 5 Vocabulary Words

-- Work on Book Project (the proposal is due Week 8, Oct. 10)

-- Process Essay Final Drafts

-- My First 5 Errors worksheet

-- Verbs Homework

Links for This Week

Class Notes

Class Scribe Notes

Grammatical Expletives

Countable Nouns

Sample Google Doc with Formatting

School House Rock Verbs Video

How to Format a Google Doc in MLA

How to Format a Word document in MLA

Have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 5 (Sept. 19)

Greetings!

We worked this week and covered a lot of material in class.  As always, we started our day with a Quick Write. Yesterday was International Talk Like a Pirate Day (here is the official website and here is a Wikipedia article and here are the Muppets!)  Most of the students were unaware of this notable event.  As an alternative, they could write about super heroes.  I look forward to reading their responses.

This week's Words of the Day included:

valise-- noun -- fr. French, valigia, of obscure origin-  a small piece of luggage that can be carried by hand

autocratic-- adjective -- fr. Greek, autokratis, ruling by oneself-- characteristic of an absolute rule; tyrannical, despotic

unmollified-- fr. Latin, mollificare , to make soft--  to NOT be pacifed, calmed, or made more temperate.

candid -- fr Latin, candidus, white, shining -- to be open, frank, sincere

IMPORTANT NOTE:  I had told the students that there would be a test at the end of the semester for their words of the day.  Instead, we will have a test at the end of second semester for the second semester words.  The Words of the Day will include unusual foreign words and Latin roots. 

In connection with the returned homework, we discussed their Final Drafts of their Personal Essays.  As I grade the final drafts, I use a rubric for a more holistic look at their work.  (The rubric is attached and is on this blog post.)  For the first essay, I'm a pretty easy grader.  As we progress through the year, we will use these rubrics to set writing goals and students will use them to evaluate their own writing.  For example, in the Focus category, students will be thinking about whether their thesis statements are compelling and thought-provoking or simply a statement that combines the topic and opinion.

We did not take a lot of time for My Antonia this week.  (I wanted to cover a lot of ground with our grammar topics)  I checked in with the class about their book projects that they will complete and present at the end of the semester.  Some students are planning to work in groups, and some have already come up with individual project ideas.  The proposal form is not due until Week 8, so they have time to brainstorm.  When they know what they want to do, they should turn in the proposal (with a parent's initials) so that I can OK it.  There is some great positive energy about these projects, and I'm looking forward to seeing what they produce.

We spent the remainder of the time in Grammar discussion.  I've had the students do work sheets for Parts of Speech review, and we briefly discussed these.  Every word in every sentence falls into one of these categories:  interjections, verbs, adjectives, nouns, conjunctions, adverbs, pronouns, and prepositions.  When we are correcting or revising our own writing, we need to know what parts of speech might be causing problems.  Likewise, many parts of speech do the work of other parts of speech in a sentence, sometimes making grammatical structures more confusing.  (e.g. the verb "swimming" would be doing the work of a noun in this sentence:  Swimming is my favorite sport.)

Following our parts of speech review, we discussed the basic construction of a sentence, and I'm including some photos of "equations" that I use to explain sentence elements. 

 
A common writing error that students make is to think that dependent clauses are independent clauses because they have a noun and a verb.  However, because the clause began with a subordinating conjunction, it loses its sentence status and is not a "complete thought."  Another common error is to omit the comma before the conjunction in a compound sentence.  If you feel confused, it's because grammar can be awfully confusing and is not as straightforward as we would wish. 

Assignments for Next Week

-- Read pages 94 - 118 of My Antonia

-- 3 Reader Responses

-- 5 Vocabulary Words

-- My Antonia book project -- proposal due Week 8

-- FANBOYS worksheet

Links for This Week

Class Notes

Essay Rubric

International Talk Like a Pirate

Talk Like a Pirate Wikipedia

Muppets Talk Like a Pirate

Have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Writing 2 Final Draft Rubric

Criterion	Incomplete (0)	Beginning (1 – 2)	Developing (3 – 5)	Proficient (6 – 7)	Advanced   (8 - 9)	Exceptional (10)
Focus:  Thesis, Intro, Concl.	Specific topic is unclear and no statement of an opinion or a stand. No introduction No conclusion	Specific topic is clear but no statement of an opinion or a stand. Brief introduction that doesn’t state the topic or subtopics Brief conclusion; abrupt ending	Thesis statement expresses the topic but not an opinion or a stand. Weak introduction that states the topic but is missing a clear thesis. The focus of the paper is unclear. Conclusion does not fully summarize the main points nor restates the thesis statement.	Thesis statement includes the topic and expresses a stand or opinion. Introduction states topic and thesis and gives direction to the paper. Conclusion reiterates main points and restates the thesis statement.	Clearly-stated topic and thoughtful thesis statement. Strong introduction with a thesis statement that grabs attention and directs the course of the essay. Strong conclusion that summarizes the main points and restates the thesis statement.  Satisfactorily wraps up the essay.	Clearly-stated, thought-provoking topic and compelling thesis statement. Excellent introduction with a thesis statement that grabs attention and directs the course of the essay. Excellent conclusion that summarizes the main points and restates the thesis statement.  Skillfully wraps up the essay.
Content	Contains mostly unrelated information No specific details, only generalities.	No major points to support the thesis are included.  No details related to the topic have been used; ideas are disconnected.	Some of the major points are covered. Some specific details are included. Lacks sufficient material to fully support thesis.	Many of the major points are covered. Many of the appropriate details are included with each point.	All major points are discussed. All points include some details.	All major points are thoroughly and insightfully discussed. All points are fully supported with strong details.
Organization	Ideas are arranged randomly.  There may be no division of paragraphs.	Ideas are slightly random with occasional orderly sections.  Inconsistent division of paragraphs.	Like ideas are grouped together, and paragraphs are present, but ideas within may not be organized logically.  Transitions may be lacking.	An apparent progression of ideas that allows the reader to move through the text without confusion. Sentences with paragraphs are organized and flow smoothly	A coherent progression of ideas that allows the reader to move through the text without confusion. Sentences within paragraphs flow smoothly with good use of transitions.	Expresses a clear, logical sequence of ideas within paragraphs and throughout the paper. Sentences within paragraphs flow effortlessly with excellent use of transitions.
Mechanics	Numerous errors; meaning of paper unclear	Frequent errors, seriously impairs flow & meaning of paper	Errors noticeable and occasionally detract from flow or meaning of paper	Some errors that are minor in nature and don’t detract from overall meaning of paper	Very few errors that are minor in nature and don’t detract from overall meaning of paper	Essentially faultless; errors may result from risk-taking and do not detract from the paper

Total Score – 40 possible points

Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 4 (Sept. 12)

Greetings!

Again, another great class.  This group of students brings a lot of positive energy and attitudes to the class.  The prompts for our Quick Write today were taken from the National Days Calendar:  National Video Game Day, National Day of Encouragement, and National Milkshake Day.  As always, if none of those options triggered any productive thinking or writing, students could write about something else.  We had good discussions about all three topics.

This week's Words of the Day came from the students and included:

taciturn--adjective--  fr. Latin, taciturnus, tacitis, to be silent -- temperamentally disinclined to talk

outward-- adjective-- fr. Old English, utweard, out-- moving, directed, or turned to the outside or away from the center

and-- conjunction-- fr. German, und, and-- along, together, in addition to

During the Writing portion of today's class I collected the final drafts of their Personal Essays.  For all of the essays that they will write they are required to hand in the rough drafts with the final drafts so that I can see the specific changes.  Those who didn't do that in class this week can send me a picture or scanned version of their rough drafts with my corrections.  A couple of students mentioned that they had thrown away their rough drafts, so I will correct their papers without them.  I also reminded them that they SHOULD NOT throw away any work from this class until the end of the semester; they should also save all of their essays until the end of the year.

In Writing 2, as soon as students finish one paper we start another.  Their new assignment is a Process Essay.  The topics for this essay can be something simple and every day or something complicated and more abstract.  For example, they can write about tying their shoes of about the process of becoming more like Jesus. 
As we discussed the topics, we also  considered thesis statements. I introduced my equation for a thesis statement and a template for thesis statements that include a plan for development. 

Equation:

     Topic/Subject

  +  Opinion/Stand

Thesis Statement

Template:

     (topic/stand)     is/are      (opinion/stand)     because      (reason #1)  ,      (reason #2)     , and       (reason #3)     .

We also  took time to discuss the elements of an introduction and conclusion.  The introduction should include a hook, a thesis statement, and a "road map."  The conclusion mirrors the introduction and should restate the thesis, summarize the main points, and leave parting thoughts with the reader.  

Our Grammar topic for this week, complete and compound sentences, was tabled due to our longer discussion about the next paper and our literature discussion.  When I write the course schedule for the class, I do it in a way that can be flexible.  (Most of the students didn't mind having the grammar homework.   )

For our literature discussion, I introduced the final book project for My Antonia.  The book project is due at the end of the book, but I want students to have plenty of time to work on it.  Some of students were getting excited about some of their ideas; they have permission to do work as a group as long as they divide the work evenly.  Students were given a proposal form that they will need to fill out and have you sign.  I love these projects because it gives students room to be creative.

Assignments for Next Week

-- Read p. 70 - 94 of My Antonia

-- 3 Reader Responses

-- 5 Vocabulary Words

-- Process Essay Rough Draft

-- Preparation for your book project

Links for This Week

Class Notes

My Antonia Final Project

My Antonia Project Proposal

Process Essay

My Antonia audiobook, part 1

My Antonia audiobook, part 2

My Antonia audiobook, part 3

My Antonia audiobook, part 4

My Antonia audiobook, part 5

My Antonia on Vibrivox (downloadable)

Have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Process Essay

Process Analysis Essay

Definition

            In the process analysis essay, the writer describes how to do something or how something happens by describing the steps or stages in the process.  The writer breaks down the process into steps and describes them in detail in order to inform or persuade the reader about the process.  Process analysis by be used to describe a simple process such as how to bake a cake or change the oil in a car, or it may be used to describe a complex process such as scientific experiments or works of Congress.

Organization of a Process Essay

            The process you are analyzing will dictate the structure of your essay.  Break the process down into its component parts (or steps) and structure your writing around logical divisions in the process you are analyzing.

Thesis Statements

            The thesis or topic statement names the process that will be described or analyzed.  Often the thesis contains an attitude or opinion about the process.

            Examples:

– Changing a tire is easy if you follow the right steps.

– Anyone can fail a class if he tries hard enough.

– It is important for citizens to know how ideas become laws.

Tips on Planning

1.    First, divide the process into logical parts.  Decide what actions you would take and in what order they would happen.

2.    Next, list the individual steps or stages in the process, making sure not to leave out any steps, including any preparation that might be necessary.

3.    Describe each step in detail.  Try not to leave anything out.  Remember that your readers may not be familiar with the process you are describing, so your directions will have to be explicit and complete. 

4.    Anticipate any problems that might arise at each step in the process, and tell the reader how to avoid or remedy the problem.

5.    Avoid incomplete details.

Essay Guidelines

– Due dates:  Rough Draft due September 19; Final Draft due October 3

– Essay length:  500 – 700 words (between 2 and 4 pages)

– Rough drafts can be typed or hand-written, but must be double-spaced.

– Final draft format:

– Typed (if this is not possible, please let me know)

– 1 inch margins

– Name and date on the upper right hand corner

– Number the pages on the lower right hand corner

– Title centered above the text of the essay

My Antonia Project Proposal

NAME:  ___________________________________________________

Parent’s Initials:  ___________

My Antonia Project Proposal Form

Description:

At the end of reading My Antonia by Willa Cather, students will present a project related to the book as a whole. Most of the projects are meant for individual work, but some can be expanded to a group project.  (Permission must be acquired for group projects.)  Some of the project ideas involve other media, and you are encouraged to be creative and to choose something that fits your interests, abilities, and personality. 

Due dates:

Project Proposal:  Week 8 (10/10)

Project Presentations:  Weeks 12 & 13 (11/14 & 11/28)

Presentations:

The format for the presentations will be dependent on the types of projects chosen.  Some projects will be suitable for a “science fair” format with stations, and others will be more performance or audio-visual oriented.  We will plan our two days for presentations accordingly.

My Proposed Project: 

  

Why have you chosen this particular project?

  

Will you be working with anyone else?

  

How will you present your project?  (for example, performance, poster board, artwork, written work, etc.)

Will you need any special materials for do your project?  If so, do you have plan for getting these?

My Antonia Final Project

Description:

At the end of reading My Antonia by Willa Cather, students will present a project related to the book as a whole. Most of the projects listed below are meant for individual work, but some can be expanded to a group project.  (Permission must be acquired for group projects.)  Some of the project ideas involve other media, and you are encouraged to be creative and to choose something that fits your interests, abilities, and personality. 

Due dates:

Project Proposal:  Week 8 (10/12)

Project Presentations:  Weeks 12 & 13 (11/16 & 11/30)

Presentations:

The format for the presentations will be dependent on the types of projects chosen.  Some projects will be suitable for a “science fair” format with stations, and others will be more performance or audio-visual oriented.  We will plan our two days for presentations accordingly.

FINAL PROJECT OPTIONS/IDEAS

1.      Design book covers for the five sections

2.      Create a travel brochure for Black Hawk

3.      Create a soundtrack or playlist for the five sections of the book

4.      Design a graphic novel for one of the sections of the book

5.      Write a radio play excerpt for one of the sections of the book

6.      Perform live or record a dramatic reading of a portion of the book (at least 3 pages).

7.      Prepare a TV commercial related to the book.

8.      Write a series of correspondence between you and the author or one of the characters (at least 6 letters)

9.      Play charades for the characters in the book.

10.  Design/draw clothing for 3 of the characters.

11.  Design/draw the various pieces of clothing that one of the characters would wear throughout the span of the book.

12.  Make a piece of clothing (full-size or miniature) for one of the characters.

13.  Make a diorama of a scene from the book.

14.  Design/build a board or card game for the book.

15.  Perform or record a scene from the book as a “silent movie.” 

16.  Create a children’s book for a section of the book.

17.  Write and perform a dramatic monologue for one of the characters.

18.  Create a movie trailer for the book.

19.  Create an ABC book that correlates with aspects of the story.

20.  Make a t-shirt that connects to the book.

21.  Create a mobile of characters, items, etc. that are a part of the book.

22.  Create a timeline for the whole of the book.

23.  Design/draw a set of maps for the pertinent sections of the book.

24.  Create a “book in a bag.”  Choose 10 items that represent the people, places, events, and other parts of the story.  Place them in a paper or fabric bag and write a key describing each of the items and their importance to the story.

25.  Create a sculpture of a character. 

26.  Create a book award that might be given to this book.  Create a ribbon, a certificate, and a press release.

27.  Write a report chard for two of the characters.  Come up with 5 areas of his/her personality to grade based on behavior in the book.  Design a report card to go with it.

28.  Write a test for the book that includes multiple choice, true/false, and short answer responses. (at least 20 questions)

29.  Make a stop animation video.

30.  Make a jeopardy game to go with the book.

31.  Put together a PowerPoint presentation that explains one of the following literary elements:  characterization, setting, plot, conflict, etc.

32.  Make a set of three inspirational posters using quotes from the book.

33.  Write an imagined interview with one of the characters.

34.  Write a song.

35.  Write about yourself in 20 years.

36.  Create a newspaper about the book that includes comics, ads, weather, letter to the editor, etc. along with news stories.

37.  Create a “lost scene” from the book.  Write and/or perform.

38.  Create a puppet show for the book.

39.  Write/perform a newscast for the book.

40.  Write an alternate ending for the book.

More ideas can be found at

http://teachnet.com/lessonplans/language-arts/more-ideas-than-ever-book-reports/

Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 3 (Sept. 5)

Greetings!

We began class this week, as usual, with a Quick Write. This week's prompt was inspired by the fact that it was National Cheese Pizza.  I asked the students to write something pizza related.  As they shared their responses, they expressed their opinions about square pieces over triangular pieces, thin crusts vs. thick crusts, and the important question regarding the appropriateness of pineapple on pizza.  

Our Words of the Day were contributed by students and selected from this week's reading of My Antonia:

supercilious-- adjective, fr.Latin superciliosis, "above the eye"  -- haughtily disdainful or contempuous

docile-- adjective, fr. Latin, docere, "to teach"  -- easily managed or handled; teachable

from-- preposition, fr. Old High German, fram, "from" --  used to specify a specific starting place

Most of the time while the students are writing their Quick Writes I am passing out completed homework, and we follow the Word of the Day work with any questions pertaining to the homework.  This week we followed our beginning of class work with the Writing portion of the class.  Whenever I hand back rough drafts of essays, I take a good portion of the class to go over common errors in their writing.  In my classes I have students label a page "Watch Out For," and under this title they are to list the items that I noted on their corrected rough drafts.  We will use this list to develop writing goals as the year progresses.  This week we talked about contractions, conjunctions, sentence fragments, subject-verb agreement, and the word "things."  For next week, students are to make corrections on their rough drafts so that they can hand in their finished final drafts of their Personal Commentary Essays.

For the literature portion of the class, the students broke into their Literature Circles to discuss My Antonia.  As they read through the assigned portion of the book, students were to prepare for their individual roles:  Discussion Director, Illustrator, Luminary, Word Nerd, Connector, and Summarizer.  I sat in on each of the four groups and heard good comments about their reading.   The value of these structured small groups is that everyone has to participate in order for the groups to be successful.  The circles also give a structure and framework to help the students with academic talk.  We will continue to use these circles throughout the semester.

As the students were in their groups, I handed out packets of a parts of speech review for them to do.  I had originally planned to start a Grammar section on sentence construction, but decided to use this review of packet instead of taking time from their literature circles.  As they work through the packet, they will notice a few items:  1) they have already done the sections for Nouns, Pronouns, Adjectives, and Adverbs; 2) the header says Writing 1; and 3) there is a typo on the Adjectives section.  Students only need to do the sections for Verbs, Interjections, Prepositions, and Conjunctions. 

Assignments for Next Week

-- Extra Credit -- Bring to class information about the origins of the Oxford Comma

-- Final Draft of Personal Commentary Essays

-- Read p.  47 - 69 of My Antonia

-- 3 Reader Responses (either study guide questions or ala carte)

-- 5 Vocabulary Words 

-- Parts of Speech Packet (see notes above)

Links for This Week

Class Notes

Literature Circle Guidelines

Nouns & Pronouns Worksheet

Adjectives & Adverbs Worksheet

My Antonia audiobook, part 1

My Antonia audiobook, part 2

My Antonia audiobook, part 3

My Antonia audiobook, part 4

My Antonia audiobook, part 5

My Antonia on Vibrivox (downloadable)

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard