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!