CHAT Writing 2 Class Notes–Week 4 (2/1)

Hello All,

It was great to have class again this week amidst this crazy, wonderful, warm winter weather!

As usual, we started out with a Quick Write on the topic of their choosing:  Read-alouds, handwriting, or pies.  They are random–but based on the National Days calendar.  It was fun to hear what they had written about!

We spent the bulk of our time on Writing.  I have returned the Mystery Podcast Script Rough Drafts.  It was so fun to read what the class had come up with–some very riveting stories!  I mentioned that since these pieces are meant to be heard and not read, I didn’t comment on things like mechanics, spelling or format like I normally do for a Rough Draft.  Instead, we discussed how formatting their work more like a screenplay would be helpful during the recording process.

We also took some time to go over the expectations on how they will submit their podcasts & cover art, Final Peer Reviews, and Endnotes.  Students also had some great ideas and technology strategies.  They are welcome to go lower tech (vocaroo.com, phone recording app) to higher tech sound layering apps and sites like Canva, Wevideo and James suggested Audacity.com.  We also talked about what happens to the integrity of the mystery when we add or omit elements like interviews or others’ voices when recording.  I look forward to seeing what creative choices they will make!

Literature

With regret, we are finished with our Sherlock Holmes unit.  We used our Characterization of Sherlock worksheets that were due today to help them make a chart listing the hero's positive and negative traits.  They then got in small groups and had a mini-debate on whether they think Sherlock was actually a hero or not. They have a Sherlock Final Exam that focuses on that topic.  I passed out the new books which are a collection of short stories.  They are to read three for next week and answer the Short Story Questions.

For Grammar, we went over independent and subordinate clauses again.  This time, we practiced identifying those clauses and writing sentences that contain both.  We took some time to work on those in class.  Most students finished–which is good because they have enough on their plates with their podcast Finals! 

Blessings,

Mrs. G

Homework

Podcast Final Draft

Podcast Final Peer Review

Podcast Endnotes

Sherlock Holmes Final Exam

Read Short Stories: Pushkin (162), Tolstoy (169), Checkov (26)

Short Story Worksheets

Identifying Ind/Sub Clauses

Writing Ind/Sub Clauses

CHAT Writing 2 Class Notes–Week 3 (1/25)

 Greetings!

We had a fun, fast-paced class today where we accomplished a lot and I think we all left feeling energized and encouraged.

We started out with our Quick Write and students had a choice of prompts to write about:

• What is a favorite childhood memory?

• What is one of the best days of your life?

• What was a highlight of your week?

They shared some interesting stories!

After that, we dove into a Grammar lesson about compound and complex sentences.  The point of these lessons is part of our larger goal this semester:  the comma!  We are studying where the commas should go in different scenarios–in this case when using subordinating conjunctions.  To that end, we watched part of a short video and worked through some examples together.  Students should complete and correct their worksheets and hand them in next week.

Next, we switched gears to the Writing portion of our class where we talked about the Mystery Podcast scripts.  Students had some time to Peer Review a classmate’s script using the Peer Review sheet.  If they didn’t finish in class, they should have a friend or family member complete it at home.  Once they get feedback from me, they are clear to begin recording their Final Drafts.

In Literature, we had a short check-in about the Sherlock mysteries we have read so far.  There are mixed opinions on Mr. Holmes’ character, but we can all agree that he is a very interesting person!  We watched a clip from “The Adventure of the Speckled Band” (Jerem Brett).  Some students thought the actor portrayed him well and some were not very impressed! Instead of answering response questions, students are assigned to think deeply about Sherlock’s character using a worksheet I handed around.  It will be a springboard for some writing and is due next week.  Our Sherlock study will conclude with the last two stories that are assigned for next week.

Homework 

Complex Sentences and Commas

The Complex Sentence 1,2,3

Mystery Podcast Peer Review Sheet

Mystery Podcast Script Rough Draft (if not done already)

Read “The Final Problem” & “Adventure of the Empty House”

Characterization of Sherlock Holmes

Links for this Week

Comma Story video

“The Adventure of the Speckled Band”

Audio version of “The Final Problem”

Audio version of “The Adventure of the Empty House”

Writing 2 Class Notes–Week 2 (January 18)

 Today’s class absolutely flew by!  I think it must have been because we were having fun?  At least I can speak for myself.  Here’s a recap with some links.

We started our day with a Quick Write as usual.  Students could choose from a list of prompts I had gathered from some of my previous classes:

• What are some of your pet peeves?

• What do you do that really annoys other people?

• What is the grossest thing you've ever eaten?

• What is the best and worst part of your house?

After that, we did a Q & A in the Writing section of our class about our upcoming writing project–Mystery Story Podcast.  The Pre-Write was due today and we shared topic ideas and aspects that are exciting about the project and things that seem daunting.  There were comments that this type of writing is more challenging in some ways–fitting our ideas into this prescribed format–but also these constraints can be helpful.  Some students are way out of their comfort zones, while some are looking forward to seeing their ideas come to life.  We discussed how to add music and how to produce cover art for their podcasts.  They had some great ideas and I am looking forward to their progress. The Rough Drafts of the scripts are due next week (1/25). Bring a hard copy to class for peer review.

Literature

We switched gears to discuss the first two stories from our Sherlock Holmes study.  We read aloud the first few pages from “The Red-Headed League” to discuss some of Sherlock’s remarkable abilities and characteristics.  They had some insightful comments!  For next week, they are to read two of the most famous stories “Adventures of the Speckled Band” and “The Engineer’s Thumb” and answer the four questions.  

Grammar

They have been assigned three worksheets on coordinating conjunctions and some finer points of where the comma belongs.  They are to complete and correct those worksheets for next week.

Homework

Mystery Podcast Script Rough Draft–Bring a hard copy to class for Peer Review!

“...Speckled Band” & “The Engineer’s Thumb” PDF and audio stories & Four Questions

Commas and Coordinating Conjunctions

Is It a Compound Question?

Writing Compound Sentences

Links for this Week

Putting Together Podcast slideshow

Class Blog

Writing 1 Class Notes–Week 1 (January 11)

Hello Dear Students,

It was good to be back together again in the new year!  The sun was even shining, which matched the shining faces I saw 🙂

We started the day out with a Quick Write.  They had a choice to either write about National Kiss A Ginger Day (yes, that’s a real day!) and National Tea Day.

Though I forgot to bring copies of the Syllabus, Homework Checklist and Late Homework Dates information sheets, I assigned them to make sure they’ve signed up for Spring Semester of Writing 2 and take a look at those documents.  They will be instrumental in helping them stay organized.  They are linked below and I will bring hard copies next week.

For Literature, we kicked off the class by introducing our new book:  Six Great Sherlock Holmes Stories by Arthur Conon Doyle.  Some students had seen a TV show or movie based on the stories–and some had read a few stories themselves.  We had a  discussion on what images come to mind when you think of “Sherlock Holmes” and what elements make a good detective story.   Some students were surprised to hear that Sherlock Holmes never actually said, “Elementary, my dear Watson.”  He merely said “Elementary!”  I hope students will thrill at meeting this calculating and intense sleuth themselves.  We read a few pages of the first story aloud and they are to finish reading “Scandal in Bohemia” & “The Red-Headed League” this week and answer 4 questions from the Study Guide.

We went from reading mystery stories, to writing them with our first Writing assignment this year–a mystery writing with a twist.  It’s a podcast! I am excited about this writing project because not only do students get a chance to write a mystery story, they get to build on their skills from the previous semester from the Advertisement project to produce a podcast of their own.  My hope is that they will be inspired to launch out and do a podcast on a subject of their choosing someday soon.  Our world needs their voices!  

Today, we spent some time walking through how to structure their work.  We found that a typical mystery/true crime podcast follows a fairly predictable routine–which will make their job that much easier.  We broke those steps down and discussed different ways they could make it happen. After that, we sampled the first few minutes of such a podcast called “Up and Vanished.”  Students listened to the story and took notes on clues and locations and we noted the rhythm/structure of the podcast.  The Prewrite for this project is due next week.

Lastly, for Grammar, I introduced the comma unit we will be studying this year. We discussed compound sentences and got started on the three worksheets they will need to complete this week.  Don’t forget to correct your work and mark it!

Enjoy your weekend!

Blessings, 

Mrs. G

Homework & Links for This Week

Syllabus

Homework Checklist

Homework & Late Dates

Characteristics of a Detective Story

Read Ch. “Scandal in Bohemia” & “Red-Headed League” 

Study Guide Questions

About Essay 1:  Mystery Podcast

Mystery Podcast Prewrite

“Up and Vanished” Podcast (Mentor Text)*

FANBOYS

Compound Sentences and Commas

Sentence Structures:  Simple and Compound Sentences

Writing 2 Class Blog

*Though the “Up and Vanished” podcast is a good source as a Mentor Text for this project, I am only recommending Episode 1 of Season 1.  It can be intense for more sensitive students and I noticed a few swears in later episodes of Season 1.  For those reasons, please be warned if you proceed to listen farther than what we heard in class.

Writing 2 Class Notes -- Week 15 (December 14)

Greetings!

We had a wonderful day today.  I try to get most of the hard work of the class done before this last week so that we could have some fun on this final day.  

Homework & Grades

Students handed in their final drafts of their Advertisement Projects and Advertisement Endnotes. I will grade those projects and any other homework that was handed in; my goal is to have final grades out soon.  I mentioned to the class that I will take any homework submitted by December 17 at 11:59 p.m. If there are any questions, please contact me.  Because I have final drafts and projects from all of the classes, I know that I won't have the work ready for final grades until after Christmas.  Look for them some time after the New Year.  

The Wrap-Up

We had few loose ends to tie up work-wise.  They used their One-Pager assignments to drive a discussion about the genre of Magical Realism based on two short stories they had been assigned to read–”Chivalry” by Neil Gaiman and “The Paper Menagerie” by Ken Liu.  The discussion was a more formal “Four Square” style where each student answered and asked a question in order to hear from all voices.  They went “around the square” until they felt like all the questions had been discussed adequately.  To close out, each group shared their best insight–I was impressed at some of their observations and how they were able to think critically about how each work we read did or didn’t fit into the genre of Magical Realism.

After that, they got split into groups again and Jack led us in his Peace Like A River presentation which was (another) rousing game of Jeopardy!  The clues were well-written and the students enjoyed playing.  

Finally, as I mentioned, the Advertisement Final Projects were due today.  I had planned to have a “Viewing Party” where we would watch all the ads together and assess their success using those rhetorical devices we had been learning in this unit.  However, in the interest of time, we decided to make this viewing party optional and I opened up the floor to students who wanted to share their work.

I am SO glad we decided to do that because the ads that were shared were SO impressive!  It was obvious that these students had put HOURS of hard work into crafting their pieces.  They displayed a  high level of understanding of persuasive techniques and amazing technology skills (that far surpass mine.)  There was a mix of platforms used to video edit:   Imovie, Canva, and WeVideo–James used something none of us were familiar with–to amazing results (his Ad is posted on our Class Stream–as per request!)  I have to say I am very proud of the results of this assignment–students learned about persuasive writing and used their creativity to produce products that might have pushed them out of their comfort zone a little bit.  This assignment is exactly the kind of assignment that they will be given in their future academic careers.  I am confident that in this rapidly changing world, it is vital that students are able to communicate their message using various techniques and platforms and I want my students to be prepared for that.

A Contest

During the truncated “Ad Viewing Party,” we had the Annual Writing 1 Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest–there were some other choices for coloring and word searches too (as per their request last week.)  They were pretty intent on their drawing and coloring, for the hotly contested 1st Prize:  a quality Spork!  Thank you, Esther, for impartially judging the winner.   We also enjoyed some Christmas music, a  Hot Chocolate Bar and cookies–thanks to the students who brought treats to share.  The class really enjoyed this wrapping up time together.

Links for this Week

Ugly Christmas Sweater Template

Magical Realism Short Stories

One Pager:  Magical Realism

Final Draft:  Advertising Assignment

Advertising Project:  Endnotes

Writing 1 Class Notes (on blog)

My prayer is that all of you have a great Christmas that includes lots of love and laughter!

Blessings,

Mrs. G

Class Notes–Week 14 (December 7)

We had a wonderful day in class today.  A lot of the hard work of the semester is over, so our "work" today was a little more fun.

No Quick Write today

Writing

I have graded the rough drafts of their Advertisement Script Rough Drafts.  I really enjoyed reading these; I am really looking forward to how the students will bring these persuasive Ads to life!   The final drafts and Endnotes are due next week when we will have our Ad Viewing Party.

Grammar

The class was assigned a Fall Grammar Test about parts of speech and verbal phrases. I sent home a paper copy of the test to be taken at home.  They can use their notes to answer the questions at home.

The best way of learning grammar is through lots of reading and writing. Direct instruction of grammar is important and helpful, and combined with literature and writing it can be pretty potent.  Next semester we'll be working on commas!

Literature

We had some more presentations today.  Each one of them showed not only that the students had a good grasp on the details of our book, Peace LIke A River, but they also had a strong understanding of the themes and motifs of the book.  We saw two ABC books, two One-Pagers, a musical play list and some beautiful drawings based on the novel.  Brady made a fantastic Jeopardy game which became very spirited.  All around it was a fantastic day.

Next Week

Our last week of the semester is next week, December 14.  All work should be handed in by that date.  They should not wait until then to do their work and hand it in.  

Next week we will have our "Class-mas Party."  I will bring warm drinks, and students can bring goodies if they like. (Please label if there are allergens.)  We have our Ad Viewing Party, and a discussion of our Magical Realism One-Pagers–which we haven’t had the chance to do as of yet.   

After that, we will have one more Jeopardy! Game based on PLAR and hopefully have some time to enjoy some Christmas cheer.

Assignments for Next Week:

Advertisement Project Final Draft

Advertisement Project Endnotes

Presentation Self Evaluation

Fall Grammar Test

Magical Realism One-Pager

Writing 2 Class Notes–Week 13 (11/30)

Students were energetic and ready to engage today. I can’t believe we are nearing the end of the semester already! Quick Write Yesterday, November 29th was C.S. Lewis’ birthday. Today’s QuickWrite is in honor of him. After listening to the opening paragraphs of Voyage of the Dawn Treader, students invented a character of their own. They used Lewis’ genius opening lines to imitate: “There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he/she almost deserved it. Students shared some amazing character descriptions. I was impressed! Literature Today we had Peace Like A River Book Presentations. Each student had a few minutes to present their projects and explain how they tied in with the novel. These students showed great creativity and we had a wide-ranging collection of presentations. There were two “Books in Bags'' from Esther and Stella, a One-Pager by Teegan, Zach printed up an actual T-Shirt! Both Avery and Sam both showed off their writing skills. Samuel had a full-on newspaper about the Land family complete with “current events” and opinion pieces (ghost written by some classmates.) Avery re-wrote a dramatic alternate ending. Next week we’ll continue our presentations from the rest of the class: Ruby Tanner Veronica Isaiah Miya Jack Brady Arden Katelyn We did not discuss our Magical Realism One-Pagers next week. We will discuss them next week. Grammar We finished up our unit on phrases and today we had a review of the phrases we have studied this semester: prepositional, infinitive, gerund, participial. After a refresher mini-lesson, students paired up for a game of Phrases Matching. For homework, students can watch a video on phrases and complete a Phrases Quiz, which is posted as a Google Form on Google Classroom. Writing The Advertisement Rough Draft and Pre-Writes were due today. I showed the students my example visual Advertisement my daughter and I made on weevideo.com so they would have a solid idea of what I am looking for. The Finals are due December 14–the last day of class when we will have an Advertisement Viewing party. Blessings on your week. Mrs. G Homework Prepare your presentation (if you didn’t present today) Magical Realism One-Pager Edpuzzle Phrases Review Phrases Quiz Work on your Advertisement Project Advertisement Final Project