REMINDER

Periods Three and Nine: Night ABC projects are DUE at the end of Tuesday's class (12/23)!

Period Four: Night ABC projects are DUE at the end of Monday's class (12/22)! (I will not see you Tuesday due to the half-day schedule.)

Have the best break EVER! Be safe, make good decisions, have fun, and enjoy every moment! (And come back on January 5th ready to get to work... :)

PLEASE NOTE

In the event of a school cancellation tomorrow (12/12/08), please make note of the following information:

*Finish reading Night for Monday's class. (Chapter Nine is about three pages long - literally.)
*Study guides and ABC rough drafts will STILL BE DUE on Monday. Remember, your study guide is worth 72 POINTS and counts as a test grade. We will begin typing ABC projects (in Room 438), so be sure to have all of your rough draft materials with you. Don't forget your two direct quotes!
*Journal assignments that would have been collected on Friday will be collected on Monday.

(Monday is a big day, huh? Please come prepared!) :)

12/8/12/12

Here's the scoop, everybody!

ON-GOING ASSIGNMENTS AND DUE DATES
1. Next six rough draft paragraphs (with one direct quote) - will be checked on Monday, 12/15.
2. COMPLETED study guides for Night will be collected on 12/15. Be sure your work is legible, accurate, and thorough.
3. Rough drafts of the Night creative writing assignment are due on Thursday, 12/11. Final drafts will be collected at the end of Thursday's class period OR the beginning of Friday's class period (without penalty).

Monday: Open-notes quiz on Chapter Five of Night; review of due dates and assignments; explanation of 40-point creative writing assignment; independent work time; HW - READ UP TO PAGE 86; COMPLETE FIVE VOCABULARY DEFINITIONS FOR CHAPTERS 6-9 ON STUDY GUIDE; BEGIN WORK ON CREATIVE WRITING ROUGH DRAFT; CONTINUE WORK ON ABC PROJECT.

Tuesday: INDEPENDENT WORK PERIOD - Please use the class period to continue work on all assignments related to our study of Night. HW - FINISH CHAPTER SIX; COMPLETE RELATED STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS; CONTINUE WORK ON CREATIVE WRITING ROUGH DRAFT; CONTINUE WORK ON ABC PROJECT.

Wednesday: Review Chapters Five and Six; read/listen to Chapters Seven and Eight in class. HW - FINISH CHAPTER EIGHT; COMPLETE RELATED STUDY GUIDE QUESTIONS; FINISH WORK ON CREATIVE WRITING ROUGH DRAFT; CONTINUE WORK ON ABC PROJECT.

Thursday: Bring rough draft of creative writing assignment to computer lab (438); type final copy - due at the end of the period or first thing tomorrow! HW - CONTINUE STUDY GUIDES; CONTINUE WORK ON ABC PROJECT.

Friday: Read/listen to Chapter Nine of Night (the last chapter); discuss ending; review key points; use remainder of period for independent work on related assignments. HW - FINALIZE STUDY GUIDES; FINISH SIX ROUGH DRAFT PARAGRAPHS FOR MONDAY.

Post-Thanksgiving Update

Monday - Quiz on Chapter Three of Night; bring any notes that you took, as you will be allowed to use them on the quiz. After the quiz, we will discuss your final project for this novel. It is worth a whopping 150 POINTS, so pay close attention and take notes! HW - Continue work on project; refer to check point dates on handout.

Tuesday - In-class work on Night project; HW - Continue work on project; refer to check point dates on handout.

Wednesday - In-class reading (via book and audio CD) of Chapter Four; discussion questions; HW - Finish Chapter Four and related work on study guide; continue work on project.

Thursday - Discuss ending of Chapter Four (possible quiz); begin Chapter Five; discussion questions; HW - Finish Chapter Five and related work on study guide for MONDAY; continue work on project.

Friday - Independent work period: in-class work on Night project and/or reading assignment; HW - See Thursday.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Periods Three and Nine
Monday: Begin Chapter Three in class; discuss reading; keep up with reading questions. HW - Finish reading Chapter Three of Night. THIS IS YOUR ONLY HOMEWORK OVER THE BREAK! THERE MAY BE A QUIZ UPON YOUR RETURN, SO PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AND TAKE NOTES SO YOU REMEMBER THE INFORMATION!
Tuesday: Begin watching DVD: Oprah Winfrey and Elie Wiesel visit the Auschwitz death camp.
Wednesday (half-day): Finish DVD presentation; question/answer session.

Period Four
Monday: Begin watching DVD: Oprah Winfrey and Elie Wiesel visit the Auschwitz death camp.
HW - Finish reading Chapter Three of Night. THIS IS YOUR ONLY HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT OVER THE BREAK! THERE MAY BE A QUIZ UPON YOUR RETURN, SO PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AND TAKE NOTES SO YOU REMEMBER THE INFORMATION!
Tuesday: Finish DVD presentation; question/answer session.
NO CLASS ON WEDNESDAY

Your Week - 11/17-11/21

Monday - Finish PowerPoint; review; informal in-class writing; discussion.

HW - Prepare and organize notes.

Tuesday - Hand out books; hand out vocabulary/reading question study guide; begin in-class reading of Night, Chapter One (via audio book); discussion; relate to PP, personal narratives, and vocabulary.

HW - Complete Vocabulary for Chapters One and Two.

**Please Note: Any student who did not hand in or pay for his/her copy of The Outsiders WILL NOT receive a copy of Night until this responsibility is addressed.

Wednesday - In-class work on vocabulary and reading - Chapters One and Two

Thursday - Continue reading; take notes on Reading Questions; discussion

HW - Finish Chapters One and Two, finish Reading Questions

Friday - Discuss Reading Questions; begin Chapter Three; discussion

HW - Complete next Vocabulary section

PLEASE NOTE:

It is difficult to predict reading homework, as it depends on how much we get through in class. While the majority of this book will be completed in class, students WILL HAVE nights where they are expected to finish parts of certain chapters.

The on-going assignment for Night is a 72-point Vocabulary and Reading Questions Study Guide. For 2-3 chapter sections, students will need to define key vocabulary words BEFORE reading the chapters and answer extention questions WHILE reading the chapters. This assignment will count as a TEST GRADE and will be handed in upon completion of the reading.

11/10-11/14

REMEMBER: WE ARE NOW IN THE SECOND MARKING PERIOD! YOU ALL HAVE A CLEAN SLATE! LET'S WORK TOGETHER TO FOR YOUR SUCCESS!

Monday, Tuesday: Computer Lab - You will be composing a final creative writing assignment based on the poem from The Outsiders, "Nothing Gold Can Stay," by Robert Frost. Typed drafts of this personal narrative piece are due at the end of Tuesday's class (or the beginning of Wednesday's class without penalty).

Wednesday: Computer Lab, cont'd - You will be spending the period doing initial thinking about our next class reading: Night, the Holocaust memoir by Elie Wiesel. You will have an assignment to complete based on definitions, what you already know, what you want to know, what you are unsure about, etc. Whatever is not finished during class becomes homework!

Thursday, Friday: We will be back in Room 215 for a Night/Holocaust PowerPoint presentation. You will be asked to take notes in order to prepare for an open-notes quiz (happening early next week). HW (See Wednesday) will be collected at the beginning of the period.

ASSIGNMENTS: "Nothing Gold Can Stay" narrative (writing category-40%)
Night handout (classwork/homework category-15%)
Note-taking on Night PowerPoint (participation/accountability category-10%)

Updates for this Shortened Week

Good morning, Periods 3, 4, and 9!

Monday - Character Tracking Charts are DUE at the beginning of the period (80 point test grade). Then, get ready for our Outsiders review game! Be sure to take effective notes during this experience. A prize will be given to the member of each class who can answer the SECRET MYSTERY QUESTION! Will it be YOU? Stay tuned...

Tuesday - Today, you will have your final test on The Outsiders. You MAY USE any notes you took during yesterday's review game. (See? Aren't you glad you took those notes?)

Wednesday - MOVIE DAY! (I will bring the popcorn; let's all bring the ability to sit still on the day before a long weekend, okay? ;)

Over and out.

Group Teaching Assignments

Hello, Periods 3, 4, and 9!

You must COMPLETE your reading of The Outsiders (Chapters 9-12) - and the related character charts - by Monday, November 3!

On Monday, October 27, we will be explaining your group teaching assignments based on Chapters 4-8 of The Outsiders. Each group will be responsible for teaching its assigned chapter. You must come up with a 15-20 minute lesson based on the characters, plot, and thematic elements of your chapter. Consider a creative approach to get your classmates hooked on what you have to teach! You group's performance will be evaluated by your teacher(s) as well as your fellow classmates. This assignment will count as a classwork grade. The schedule is as follows:
Monday, October 27: Explanation and group planning time
Tuesday, October 28: Group planning time and Chapter Four lesson
Wednesday, October 29: Lessons on Chapters Five and Six
Thursday, October 30: Lessons on Chapters Seven and Eight
Friday, October 31: MOVIE DAY!

This will be one of your last grades for the first marking period. Make it a good one!

Next Week and Beyond

Hello, 9th graders!

*Please read up to and including CHAPTER EIGHT of The Outsiders by MONDAY, OCTOBER 27! Make sure you are keeping up with your character charts (80-point test grade when it is collected). Be prepared for a quiz on what you read!

*This week, we will be visiting the library so that you can become familiar with all the resources available to you. You will have an 80-point scavenger hunt assignment (which will also count as a test grade) to complete over the course of our stay (we will be there for four days). YOU MUST STAY ON-TASK DURING THIS EXPERIENCE. Many of you have been approaching me asking how you can improve your grade in English class. SIMPLE ANSWER: DO THE RIGHT THING!

10/14-10/17

Tuesday - For HW, complete Chapter Two of The Outsiders. Today, you received a copy of the character tracking chart. Please keep it up-to-date as you read! Fill it in thoroughly and thoughtfully! It will be collected when we finish the novel and will count as an 80-point test grade.

Wednesday - Please complete Chapter Three of the novel and keep up with the character chart. YOU WILL HAVE A QUIZ ON CHAPTERS ONE THROUGH THREE ON THURSDAY! You WILL be allowed to use your character chart as a resource, so be sure that you have it with you.

Thursday - Quiz day! Good luck! No HW!

Friday - Today, you will have an independent reading period. Be sure to bring your book and your chart. We will also be available for conferences throughout the period; if you have a question about the book, please feel free to come and chat! For classwork and homework, please complete Chapter Four and your character charts.

HW for the Long Weekend

For Tuesday, October 14, be sure to read CHAPTER ONE of The Outsiders. Come prepared to discuss what you read and learned!

After Your Essay Is Handed In...

...please access your blog and complete the following journal assignment:

Look back upon your life and reflect on a time when you felt like an "outsider." (Maybe you felt alone, misunderstood, alienated from the crowd, different, etc.) Describe the circumstances that led to this feeling. What was the end result? How did you move forward?

Tuesday Reminders, Etc.

*Tomorrow, please come prepared with your finalized rough drafts of your Seedfolks short essays. We will be going to the computer lab to type. FINAL DRAFTS OF THIS ASSIGNMENT ARE DUE AT THE END OF THE PERIOD. Remember, writing is worth 40% of your marking period average! Also, we will be collecting your copies of Seedfolks. Keep in mind that you do not get a copy of our next novel until you hand in the previous one (or replace/pay for a lost copy).

*On Thursday, we will be starting S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders. We have a great in-class activity planned (a scavenger hunt) to get everybody up and moving around. (After our writing focus at the beginning of the week, some movement will be a good thing ;). Thursday night, you will have several questions to answer that deal with "big ideas" from the novel. These questions must be completed in order to...

*...Come prepared for Friday's class! On Friday, we will be trying our first Socratic Seminar! The Socratic Seminar is an opportunity for students - instead of the teacher - to lead class discussion. A MATURE AND SENSITIVE APPROACH IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY FOR THIS EXPERIENCE. You will be assessed based on your participation, your level of engagement, your on-task behavior, and the overall thoughtfulness of your approach. Also on Friday, each student will be receiving a copy of The Outsiders. You WILL have a homework assignment over the weekend. START THIS UNIT OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT, PLEASE.

Project Reminder

Your Seedfolks creative writing projects are DUE at the end of Friday's class period!

Remember, you are writing your own chapter of the novel in YOUR voice. Don't forget to include references to two other characters (one of which must be from Seedfolks) and two images (one that symbolizes you and one of what you grow). Model your work after the chapters in the novel, and please DOUBLE SPACE your writing!

This is a 60-point project that counts toward the 40% WRITING/PROJECTS category of your marking period average. Do a great job!

REMINDERS

1. Your Seedfolks Open-Notes Quiz will take place on WEDNESDAY, October 1!

2. Bring your character wheels with you to use on your quiz. Afterwards, your finalized wheels will be collected and will count as a test grade.

3. Bring your notes from today's collage presentations so you can earn some extra credit on your quiz! (Good job today, by the way!)

4. Thursday and Friday will be spent in the computer lab. You will be working on a final creative writing project based on Seedfolks. This project will be DUE at the end of Friday's class period; budget your time accordingly! (Project details will be given out after you take your quiz on Wednesday.)

5. Be sure to bring in your copy of Seedfolks for collection. Failure to turn in a book means a) that you will be charged for it, and b) that YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE A COPY OF OUR NEXT NOVEL.

Outlook for Next Week: Mostly sunny with a chance of The Outsiders :)

See you in Room 215! Be good!

This Week in a NUTSHELL

*For a list of your on-going Seedfolks homework assignments, please see previous blog entry.
*Remember: we will be checking topic sentences for your open-ended question (How does the movie Nightjohn illustrate the importance of communty?) at the beginning of class tomorrow.

*For those of you who did not hand in your movie questions, please do so immediately! Don't forget, you are losing ten points for each day the assignment is late!

*********************************************

1. This week, we will focus on our first formal writing assignment: an open-ended question response based on the movie Nightjohn. Today, we discussed requirements and scoring. We also looked at two example pieces (a "4" and a "0").

2. Tomorrow, we will make sure everyone is up and running with an effective and well-developed topic sentence. You will have a portion of the period to begin work on the rest of your paragraph. Whatever you do not finish will become homework.

3. Wednesday will be a peer editing/teacher conferencing day. In order to participate, you must have a rough draft! Please come prepared and ready to work productively!

4. We have set aside lab time on Thursday so you can type final drafts of your open-ended responses. This will also be a great opportunity to do final proofreading and editing of your work. Your final draft will be worth 50 points and will be collected at the end of the period; do a great job!

5. On Friday, we will be discussing Seedfolks, the concept of "social capital," and other ideas that go along with themes of community and connection.

To Thursday... and BEYOND!

PLEASE NOTE: YOUR NIGHTJOHN QUESTIONS - TYPED, IN COMPLETE SENTENCES, AND NEATLY ORGANIZED - ARE DUE ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22! THIS ASSIGNMENT COUNTS AS A 52 POINT QUIZ GRADE.

*For homework tonight (9/18), please read Chapters 3 ("Wendell") and 4 ("Gonzalo") of Seedfolks and complete the next two character wheels.

Remember, in the "What Character Says" section, choose a quote from the chapter and put it in the following format: "I walked back there that evening and checked on the beans. They'd picked themselves up and were looking fine" (15).

*The rest of your Seedfolks reading schedule is as follows:

for Monday, 9/22 - "Leona" and "Sam"

for Tuesday, 9/23 - "Virgil" and "Sae Young"

for Wednesday, 9/24 - "Curtis" and "Nora"

for Thursday, 9/25 - "Maricela" and "Amir"

for Friday, 9/26 - "Florence" and "From Seed to Seedfolks"

BE SURE TO COMPLETE A CHARACTER WHEEL FOR EACH CHAPTER! Include good details in each section!

Seedfolks, Nightjohn: Class Update

Good morning, Periods 3, 4, and 9,

*In class, we are watching the movie Nightjohn, which centers on two of our important themes: literacy and community. Make sure you are keeping up with the questions in class. Remember, answers must be typed and handed in for a QUIZ GRADE after we finish viewing the film.

*Today, you received our first class novel, Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman. This novel, too, centers on the theme of community. We talked about the idea of a community garden and how it allows people in urban settings to connect in a common space and make things grow. Remember, tonight you must read the first two chapters, "Kim" and "Ana." Be sure to complete your CHARACTER WHEELS for these two chapters.

*These books are brand new, so take good care of them! Keep your novel in a safe place! Take good care of it, so you won't owe us money at the end of the unit!

Update - 9/11/08

Hello, Periods 3, 4, and 9! Here are some reminders for you:

1) For tonight, please review the article we read in class. There are six bold words listed on the back. Using context clues - and/or a dictionary if you are unsure - please define these terms as best you can. This homework will be checked TOMORROW (9/12); please make sure you are prepared.

2) Remember to have a parent review and sign the class late work/homework policy. The bottom portion must be returned by MONDAY! This, too, will count as a homework grade.

Have a fantastic weekend! Be safe and make good decisions.

First Blog Assignment

The following sentences were taken directly from last week's in-class writing on "connecting to others."

Each one contains an error or errors in spelling, punctuation, or sentence structure.

Please copy and paste the sentences into a new blog post on your page and retype them correctly. When you are finished, click "Publish Post." Happy blogging! :)

1. Its good to get to no others.
2. It is important because meeting new friends can be helpful throughout high school we can reach out to others and get to know them.
3. Its awesome to meet someone who is totally different then you.
4. We get to know what there like.
5. When your sad and you need someone to talk too you have a friend.
6. It is good to make new frends cause can never have enough.
7. Sometimes we need to meat knew people in order to grow.
8. Connecting to others is important weather your willing to or not is up to you.
9. You could learn alot about them.
10. Friends some times bring out the best in you. Show you who you truly are.

Practice

Hello, Periods 3, 4, and 9! Here are some directions to follow to really get your blogs up and running so that you can get the most out of them! Ready? Here we go:

1. Open a new window and go to your blog page. Click "View Blog." Click "Customize" in the top right corner.

2. Click the "E-mail" tab.

3. If you are in Period 3 or 9, type cmancuso@hpregional.org, hstrout@hpregional.org into the BlogSend Address box. Click "Save Settings." (This step will allow all your blog posts to be automatically e-mailed to both of us!)

4. If you are in Period 4, type hstrout@hpregional.org into the BlogSend Address box. Click "Save Settings." (This step will allow all your blog posts to be automatically e-mailed to Ms. Strout!)

5. Go back to your blog page. Again, click "Customize." This time, click "Add a Gadget."

6. Scroll down until you see "Link List." Click the "+" sign on the right.

7. If you are in Period 3 or 9, type "Ms. Mancuso/Ms. Strout's Page" in the title box. In the "New Site URL" box, type the following: hsmenglish.blogspot.com. Click "Add Link." Click "Save."

8. If you are in Period 4, type "Ms. Strout's Page" in the title box. In the "New Site URL" box, type the following: hsmenglish.blogspot.com. Click "Add Link." Click "Save."

9. Go back to your blog page and click on the new link you created. It should bring you to our class page!

10. Once you are back on the class page, leave a comment to show that you can use that feature. Click "0 Comments." Write a short note in the "Leave Your Comment" box. Click "Publish Your Comment."

11. Congratulate yourself on a job well done!

Welcome!

Hello, ninth graders! This blog has been created for you to use as a resource. Check it frequently for class updates, assignments, reminders, etc. Remember, you will receive extra credit for using the blog, so be sure to do so! See you in class!