3/30-4/9

Monday - HW - Read up to and including Chapter 17 of Forged by Fire; complete rough draft of editorial article

Tuesday - HW - Read Chapter 18; complete, edit, and proofread all articles up to this point (first fire, obituary #1, advice letter, police blotter #1, editorial)

Wednesday - HW - Complete reading up to Chapter 22; prepare rough draft of police blotter #2 (based on Monique's accident).

Thursday - Complete reading up to Chapter 24 (the end of the novel!); prepare rough draft of obituary #2 (based on Robbie Washington's death)

Friday - (This will be our first day in the computer lab! Bring ALL rough draft materials to class!) HW - Prepare rough draft of the final article (major news article based on the final fire).

Monday, April 6 - Thursday, April 9 - This entire week will be spent in the computer lab (Room 438) preparing final drafts of Forged by Fire Publisher newsletter projects. These projects will be collected at the END of Thursday's class period - NO EXCUSES! Keep in mind: this project is worth 100 points and will count toward your third marking period average! DO A GREAT JOB!

Friday, April 10 - Happy Spring Break!! Enjoy your time off; relax; have fun; be safe!

3/23-3/27

Monday - NO SCHOOL! (Enjoy your day off!)

Tuesday - ***NOTE: Any student who comes to class unprepared with his/her homework will NOT be allowed to come to the computer lab. This classwork assignment will then become homework!***We will be traveling to the computer lab so you can complete a classwork assignment related to Forged by Fire. You will be finding Sussex County statistics on child abuse, DUI, and other concepts relevant to the novel. This assignment is worth 30 points and will be due at the end of the period. HW - Complete reading up to and including Chapter 10.

Wednesday - In-class group teaching activity based on previous reading; HW - Complete rough draft of third article, Gerald's letter for advice

Thursday - In-class writing; discussion; in-class reading - HW - Complete reading up to and including Chapter 13; prepare rough draft of police blotter article

Friday - Writing Workshop for all rough draft articles; in-class reading of Chapters 14 and 15; complete rough draft article of the editorial on child abuse. HW - Finish any classwork that you were not able to complete.

3/16 - 3/20

This week we started our new novel, Forged by Fire by Sharon M. Draper. At this point, students in all periods must read up to and including Chapter Three by Thursday.

Please keep up with rough draft articles and event maps as assignned (may vary depending on period).

All rough draft articles (9 of them) will count as individual 10-point homework assignments. You may complete two additional articles (of your choosing) for EXTRA CREDIT.

The finalized newspaper project will be completed using Microsoft Publisher and will count as a 100-POINT PROJECT.

Additional due dates will follow as we get further into our reading!

The Week

Monday: Check Socratic statement HW (10 points); discuss final due dates; explain final project options

Tuesday: FINAL TEST on Animal Farm; 72 points; notes may be used

Wednesday: THREE Socratic paragraphs due (typed, double spaced, proper heading); 30 points (10 points each)

Thursday: Student-led Socratic Seminar based on Socratic statements and paragraphs

Friday: Student-led Socratic Seminar based on Socratic statements and paragraphs

MONDAY, MARCH 16: FINAL PROJECTS for Animal Farm are DUE! (50 points) - Revised paragraphs (see Wednesday) DUE!

3/2-3/13, plus information on FINAL ASSESSMENTS for Animal Farm

Hello, Periods 3, 4, and 9,

Let's finish up Animal Farm this week, shall we?

Monday - After checking HW (evidence of note-taking on Chapter 8), we will review the section of Chapter 8 that you read over the weekend. We will then finish Chapter 8 in class. Continue taking notes, as there may be quizzes throughout the week! HW - Read the first half of Chapter 9; take notes on what you read!

Tuesday - After checking HW (evidence of note-taking on Chapter 9), we will review the section of Chapter 9 that you read for homework. We will then finish this chapter in class. Continue taking notes, as there may be quizzes throughout the week! Since there will be class time remaining, you may begin Chapter 10 (the final chapter of the novel). Whatever you cannot finish in class will become homework. Again, continue taking notes!

Wednesday - We will discuss the (scary!) ending of Animal Farm and make some connections to real life situations. From here, we will discuss your final assessments: project, test, and 2-day Socratic Seminar. If time allows, you will have the chance to begin your Socratic Seminar questions and/or final projects.

Thursday - (THIRD MARKING PERIOD PROGRESS REPORTS ARE FINALIZED!) This class period will be set aside for individual student-teacher workshops/review sessions/question-answer time. While this is taking place, students will work independently on Socratic Seminar questions and/or final project options.

Friday - Today will be our class-wide review game to prepare for Monday's Animal Farm test! Come prepared with any questions and, as always, there will be at least one Secret Mystery Bonus Prize on the board. :)

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Monday - FINAL TEST: Animal Farm! Please come prepared with your notes! The test WILL take the entire class period. (Tests/Quizzes category - 35%)

Tuesday - Socratic Seminar, Day One (All questions and written responses are DUE at this time.) ALL PARCIPATION COUNTS AND WILL BE RECORDED (Tests/Quizzes category - 35%).

Wednesday - Socratic Seminar, Day Two (All written responses WILL BE COLLECTED AT THIS TIME!) ALL PARTICIPATION COUNTS AND WILL BE RECORDED (Tests/Quizzes category - 35%).

Thursday - Computer Lab: Work on final projects continues.

Friday - Computer Lab: Work on final projects continues. Final projects are DUE at the beginning of Monday's class period (3/16/09)! (Writing/Projects category - 40%)

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Next novel of study: Forged by Fire by Sharon M. Draper (This book has ALWAYS been my students' favorite novel of the year, four years running. Get ready for a great read!)