My Antonia Project Self Evaluation Rubric

Name:  _________________________________

Description of Project

  

SELF EVALUATION

Rate yourself and your project

	0	1	2	3	4
Connection to the Book	Not at all connected	Vague connection	Some connection	Good connection	Strong connection
Project Quality	No effort; no product	Weak effort; poor product	Some effort; satisfactory product	Good effort; commendable product	Exemplary effort; insightful & impressive product
Presentation	No presentation	Vague & indistinct comments	Clear but incomplete comments	Clear & thorough comments	Thought-provoking & perceptive comments

TEACHER EVALUATION

Rate yourself and your project

	0	1	2	3	4
Connection to the Book	Not at all connected	Vague connection	Some connection	Good connection	Strong connection
Project Quality	No effort; no product	Weak effort; poor product	Some effort; satisfactory product	Good effort; commendable product	Exemplary effort; insightful & impressive product
Presentation	No presentation	Vague & indistinct comments	Clear but incomplete comments	Clear & thorough comments	Thought-provoking & perceptive comments

COMMENTS:

Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 13 (Nov. 21)

Greetings!

We started the class with a Quick Write using the student ideas for the prompts:  Today we wrote on about 1) Hair styles and 2) Arrogant and annoying people.  As always, the students did some good thinking and writing.  

We didn't do any Words of the Day because I wanted to make sure that we had enough time for our presentations.

Students handed in the Rough Drafts of their Comparison/Contrast Essays along with their Pre-Writes and Rough Draft Rubrics. (Note:  If students did not hand their essays in class, they can email them as Word Documents or share them as Google docs.  I can not open documents from Apple/Mac Pages.)

We spent most of the class time enjoying the presentations of the book projects for My Antonia.  The presentations included some thoughtful artwork that connected to the book, a game, a dramatic reading, a short essay, an apron, and a movie trailer. I'm so very pleased with the work the students have done and am looking forward to finishing up our presentations after our Thanksgiving Break.

We had a few minutes at the end of class, so I pulled out an activity that I've been wanting to do that relates to the prairie/western genre.  The class was divided in half, and each group was given a poem by Marvin Hass, an old cowboy poet.  Their  goal was to figure out how to recite it, making sure every person was included.  They were marvelous.

Assignments for Next Week

-- NOTHING!

Links for This Week

Class Notes (with photos)

My Antonia Project Self Evaluation

My Antonia Movie Trailer

The Prickly Pear and The Claim Shack

Have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Mrs. Prichard

Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 12 (Nov. 14)

Greetings!

We had a good class time this week.  They usually come to class with lots of energy!

For the Quick Write prompt this week I asked students to give me a list of at least 10 prompt ideas.  We've had 11 weeks of writing these quick writes so they have an idea about the types of prompts they like.  I will take those prompts and use them for most of our Quick Writes for the rest of the year.  I had each student share one of his/her ideas.  I'm looking forward to using their ideas throughout the year.

Our Words of the Day (click here to see these words)

cattywampus -- 19th century slang; askew or disarrayed

bumfuzzle -- to confuse, perplex, or fluster

gardyloo -- an interjection yelled before throwing slops out the window; possibly from the French phrase garde a l'eau ("Attention!  Water!")

The class has been assigned a Comparison/Contrast Essay, and the rough draft and pre-writes are due next week.  Writing a clear thesis statement that includes the topic and the writer's stand on that topic can be really difficult.  Thesis statements are different from topic sentences in that they are meant to give purpose and to direct the focus of the paper.  We reviewed the elements of the introduction and did some brainstorming how to come up with that elusive thesis statement.  Along with the rough drafts and pre-writes, I want students to fill out the rough draft rubric.  This rubric can serve as a checklist for students to determine the strength of their introductions, conclusions, content, and organization.  

We had our first Book Project Presentations for My Antonia, and each one was wonderful.  David wrote a children's story about Jim and the snake, Joseph drew fresh book covers for the five sections of the novel, Julia brought yummy chocolate cookies, and Katie drew portraits of Jim and Antonia.  (see pictures in the blog!)  I'm looking forward to the next two weeks!  (Note:  some students have requested to change their projects.  That is OK.)

The upcoming presenters: 

Nov. 21

Trinity A

Annika C

Elliana & Aaron

Alyse P

Abbie Kate W

Irene S

Emma M

Laura M

Olivia R

John D.

Dec. 5

Michael & Aaron

Justin K

Eli A

Caleb K

Caralynn N

Isaac B

Sophia H

Brinna K

During the final minutes of class, we reviewed the Grammar topic of subject-verb agreement.  Basically, this means that if the subject is singular, the verb is singular.  If the subject is plural, the verb is plural.  It's a simple enough concept, but longer sentences with prepositional phrases and restrictive clauses/phrases complicated the issue.   They have two worksheets to practice.   (Note:  attached to this email is an handout explaining a little more about subject-verb agreement in case the information presented in class wasn't clear.)

Assignments for Next Week

-- Rough Draft & Pre-write of History Essay

-- Rough Draft Rubric (self-evaluation)

-- My Antonia project

-- 2 Subject-Verb Agreement worksheets

Links for This Week

Class Notes

Student Notes

Rough Draft Rubric

Comparison/Contrast Essay

Nov. 14 Project Presenters

Have a beautiful weekend!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 11 (Nov. 7)

Greetings!

This week will be a brief set of notes because I might not have access to my computer for a couple days after tonight.

The Quick Write prompt:  1)  What is the most expensive thing you own or would like to own; 2) What are your spending habits or your attitudes towards money?  Cheapskate, thrifty, frivolous, or generous.

Words of the Day:

(Go here for more information on these words)

meldrop -- a drop of mucus at the end of the nose, whether produced by cold weather, sickness or otherwise.

obelus -- the division symbol; used in dictionaries to denote variations in pronunciation

agelast -- someone who never laughs

Writing

Students handed in their final drafts (along with rough drafts.)  The next essay is a Comparison/Contrast Essay.  Although they have 2 weeks to do the pre-write and rough draft, they must have a draft of their thesis statement for class next week.

Grammar

We took a few minutes to go over compound sentences and commas.  They have 2 worksheets due next week.

Literature

We had a brief discussion about the two readings I had given them -- one from Giants in the Earth and Grapes of Wrath.  The landscape and nature descriptions are key elements to these novels.  We talked about which one was more interesting and why.  We will begin our My Antonia project presentations next week.  

Presentation Schedule:

Nov. 14

Julia H

David S

Katie O

Joseph V (?)

Nov. 21

Trinity A

Annika C

Elliana & Aaron

Alyse P

Abbie Kate W

Irene S

Emma M

Laura M

Olivia R

Dec. 5

Michael & Aaron

Justin K

Eli A

Caleb K

Caralynn N

Isaac B

Sophia H

Brinna K

Assignments for Next Week:

-- Comparison/ Contrast Essay Pre-Write

-- Comparison/ Contrast Essay thesis statement draft

-- Compound Sentences Worksheet

-- Compound Sentences & Commas Worksheet

-- My Antonia Project Presentation

Links for this week

Class Notes

My Antonia Presentation Dates

Comparison/Contrast Essay

Have a wonderful weekend.  It's time to get out hat and mittens!

Blessings,

Mrs. Prichard

Comparison/Contrast Essay

Definition 

In comparison and contrast essays, the writer places two subjects side by side and examines their similarities and/or differences in order to clarity the qualities of each (to inform) or to make a point (to persuade).  Comparison and contrast papers can be used independently with just similarities or differences or in combination covering both similarities and differences.  These essays are important since they allow you to show your knowledge of two subjects while analyzing the relationship between them. 

Thesis Development 

The thesis of the essay should name the subjects (A and B) and announce the focus of the contrast and comparison.  The thesis also states a general opinion but leaves the explanation of the points of comparison to the body of the essay.   For example, if the essay compares two sports, the writer’s thesis might express opinions regarding the cost, danger, difficulty, etc. of the one sport compared to the other.  A thesis also might deal with surprising similarities between two seemingly different subjects. 

Organization 

Essays that compare and contrast two subjects use either a subject-by-subject or a point-by-point structure.  In a subject-by-subject structure, the writer describes one subject first and then moves on to the second subject.  In such a structure, the writer would discuss everything about subject A before moving on to discuss subject B.  This structure results in larger blocks devoted to each subject. 

In a point-by-point structure, the writer organizes his or her writing around specific points of similarity or difference between the two subjects, so each subject is discussed in relation to a point o similarity or difference.  This structure results in both subject A and B being discussed within a paragraph. 

 EXAMPLES 

Subject-by-Subject Pattern 

1. Introduction 

2. Subject A 

1. Point #1 

2. Point #2 

3. Point #3 

4. Point #4 

3. Subject B 

1. Point #1 

2. Point #2 

3. Point #3 

4. Point #4 

4. Conclusion 

* Note:  The points for Subject A and Subject B correspond. 

Point-by Point Pattern 

1. Introduction 

2. Main Point #1 

1. Subject A 

2. Subject B 

3. Main Point #2 

1. Subject A 

2. Subject B 

4. Main Point #3 

1. Subject A 

2. Subject B 

5. Main Point #4 

1. Subject A 

2. Subject B 

Tips on Writing 

• Select the subjects for your comparison/contrast with a purpose and audience in mind.  Consider why and how you plan to bring these two topics together. 
• Are you trying to help your reader understand the topics more thoroughly or are you trying to persuade your reader of something? 
• List similarities and differences in your subjects before planning your structure and outline. 
• Decide if your subjects share more similarities or differences.  You will want to choose carefully what aspects you will emphasize so that your reader has a clear impression and understanding. 

Pitfalls to Avoid 

Avoid obvious comparisons.  It’s not very interesting to hear what you already know, so try examining similarities or differences that aren’t obvious. 

Avoid incomplete comparisons. A comparison that does not discuss the same elements for both topics would confuse your reader. 

Avoid confusing comparisons.  If the writer shows only the similarities, the reader will wonder if the two subjects are identical.  If the writer shows only differences, the reader might wonder why they are being compared. 

Essay Guidelines 

• Due dates:  Pre-Writing due November 14; Rough Draft due November 28; Final Draft due December 12.  
• Essay length:  800 – 1000 words (at least 2 ½ 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