December 8, 2015

You're just gonna need to take a minute to truly appreciate the oddness of this photo. 

.

.

.

Ok...now you may move on. 

I know its been a while, and its hard to get back into things...it is for me too. It won't be that much longer until Christmas vacation though, and we have some things we need to finish up with before then. 

For History we're going to be learning about a new colony and a new settlement. So far we've learned about Jamestown and Plymouth. Today we're learning about Boston and New Amsterdam (which later becomes New York). Read pages 141-143 in The United States:Its History and Its Neighbors.  Define the words on page 141, and answer the questions on pages 141 and 143. 

For Science, read and watch the videos for the lesson on Cell Division. 

For  Math continue with XtraMath. My goal before Christmas is for you to have improved by 20 points and completed math *DAILY*.  If you think that it isn't recording that you have completed math each day, then you are responsible for taking a picture of the screen that shows you have completed it each day, or leaving the screen up on your laptop so that I can see it. If we don't meet this goal, we'll continue with math during Christmas break. 

You can do it. Shia LeBeouf and I believe in you!! (seriously. You gotta watch this video. Its pretty much hilarious.) 

For Spelling complete your spelling contract for these words. Remember to do one activity each day to keep it from being such a chore! 

1. meiosis                                   6. inflation

2. mitosis                                    7. Manhattan

3. zygote                                     8. Netherland

4. deciduous                               9. militia

5. navigable                              10. embryo

For Writing we are still working on Personal Narrative. Read the following information and complete the assignment. Its not due until Thursday, so do a really good job!! 

The elements necessary for a narrative are:

Characters: people or creatures about whom your reader will care;

Setting: a place that is familiar, even in a fantasy;

Action: something interesting that happens.

The three rules for writing a narrative are as follows:

Rule One:  Know your audience. In story telling, your listener or your reader is your foremost consideration. Your story would shift dramatically were you writing a narrative for an uptight English teacher who will give you a grade, for a group of young children in a summer camp setting, or for your classmates held captive by the bell schedule. Vary word choice, images and action in a manner appropriate for your audience. 

Rule Two:  Have a story in mind. This means you have a character in a setting with a problem and a resolution.  Sometimes narratives can be fragments of stories; glimpses of experience. Still these bits of life must compel your listener to listen. They inform and enlighten when they show a life being lived. The best of them leave your readers with something for themselves: a lesson, an idea, or an image. 

Rule Three: Describe. You must show rather than tell the story. Use words to create sensory images of the experience you are relating so that your reader can hear the scrape at the window, feel the hammer on the thumb, smell the locker room, taste the fried termites, see the just-born bird. Which has more impact: “Ralph is mean” or “Ralph likes to stomp little kittens to death with his size 14-D steel-toed boots?"  Details are everything.  They provoke the empathic reaction.

Exercise in “Showing Rather than Telling” When Writing a Narrative

Read the following narration about getting to school in the morning.

I got up at 6 a.m.

I got annoyed with the alarm and got hurt when I hit the clock too hard.

I got into the shower.

I got chilled because my sister had used up all of the hot water.

I got dressed.

I got into the kitchen after all the eggs and toast were gone.

I got myself a breakfast of cereal and juice.

I got a stain on my shirt.

I got a different shirt.

I got my stuff together and got it all in my backpack.

I got yelled at by my mother for lagging.. 

I got irritated by the way the morning was going.

I got in trouble for keeping my carpool waiting.

I got in the backseat of the car with two other people.

We got a ticket for speeding on the way to school.

We got to school late.

I got detention for being late.

I got behind in the assignment given in my first period class.

I got a bad grade on my assignment.

This is a narration no one wants to read. Rewrite it:

Do not use got at all.

Vary your sentence length and style. 

For Reading choose one of the following novels to read during the next two weeks: 

The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Begin reading the book that you chose. 

Ok, we'll stop there for today. I'm looking forward to the Christmas Party tonight! See you there, and Remember: 

Happy Gay Anniversary Conner Franta.