Greetings!
Great class today, as always. This is a lively and engaged group of students. Writing 2 is a great part of my Thursday!
Quick Write
For today's Quick Write, I asked students to choose a topic about which they have strong opinions. It could be something light-hearted and close to home, or it could be a topic of current cultural or political interest. Then, they were to think about the perspectives of those who are on the other side of the issue. My goal is that they would take some time consider what others think. Not so that they could change their minds about their opinions, but so that they could be more understanding of those who they might view as opponents. Being able to do this is a mark of a mature, wise, and graceful thinker.
Words of the Day
stubborn -- fr, OE, stybb, "stump" -- fixed or set in an opinion; refusing to change
dogmatic -- fr. Greek, dogmatikos, "pertaining to doctrines" -- adhering only to principles or dogma
indomitable -- fr. Latin, in, "not" and domitare, "to tame" -- incapable of being subdued
inexorable -- fr. Latin, in "not" and exorabilis, "moved/persuaded by entreaty" -- not convinced or persuaded by requests or petitions.
Writing
Students handed in their Final Drafts of their Process Essays. As soon as we complete one essay, we start the next. Our next essay is either a Classified Essay or an Extended Definition. For our previous papers, we followed a 2-step process (rough draft to final draft). For the rest of the papers we write this year, we'll follow a 3-step process: pre-write (which could include a mind map or outline) to a rough draft to a final draft. We did some brainstorming for both types of essays. Students can choose which type of essay they would like to write. The pre-write and rough draft are due on October 28.
Literature
Students went into their small Literature Circles to discuss My Antonia. I wandered around and heard some of their conversations. They all seemed to be prepared for their groups. We'll continue with the book and reader responses for the next assignments. Students should keep reading and also be working on their final book projects.
Grammar
We're continuing with a unit on phrases in sentences. We've covered prepositional phrases and gerund phrases, and for this week students will be doing two worksheets dealing with infinitives. Infinitive phrases combine the word "to" with a verb. (For example, to sing, to jump, to swim, etc.) Infinitive phrases can function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs. These phrases can also have adjectives or even direct objects. One example from the worksheet had an infinitive phrase that was functioning as a noun, and in the sentence it was the direct object. The infinitive itself had a direct object. No one said grammar was easy!!!
Fall Break
We don't have CHAT classes next week; October 20 & 21 are our Fall Break days. I hope you can find some fun outside activities to do.
Homework for October 28
Read p. 141 - 153 of My Antonia
Links for this week:
Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 8 (October 14)
Have a marvelous Fall Break!
Blessings,
Mrs. Prichard
