We had a good class time. Last year, my students noticed that many Thursdays were overcast, sometimes making our room a bit dreary. This year, so far, we've had bright sunshine coming through the windows. I'm loving it!
Our Quick Write assignment this week was to write something about role models. November 1 was All Saints Day, and I think it's good to take time to think about those people who are valuable examples to us.
Our Words of the Day were from A Christmas Carol:
misanthropic -- fr. Greek, misanthropos, hating humankind -- a characteristic marked by a hatred of manking
legatee -- fr. Latin, legatus, deputy -- a person to whom a legacy is given
congeal -- fr. Latin congelare, to freeze -- to change from a soft, fluid form to a more stable form
caustic -- fr. Greek, kaustikos; burning -- capable of burning or corroding
trifle -- fr. Middle English, treoflen, to mock -- a matter of trivial importance
garret -- fr. French garite, watchtower -- a small, attic space
I gave the students back their rough drafts of the Examples/Illustrations Essays. I mentioned some common mechanics/grammar errors (contractions, noun/pronoun agreement, commas, etc.), but I took most of the time to talk about building good introductions and conclusions. The three elements that every introduction should have are a strong thesis statement, an attention grabber/common ground establisher, and a "road map." In other words, the introduction should tell the readers the subject and opinion (thesis statement), answer the question, "Why should I care?" and tell the readers where the essay is headed (road map.) The conclusion should mirror the introduction: restate the thesis, tell the readers "where you've been" (a summary) and leave the reader with something to think about. For the Final Drafts of these essays, I want students to underline the thesis statement in their introduction. If they can't find that one sentence that tells their subject and opinion, it may be that they don't have a clear thesis. Also, using the rubric that I handed out to them, I want them to do a self-evaluation of their essay. They should look at the categories and think about where their own essays would be graded.
Our Verbs group gave a good presentation this week. They had clear explanations with some examples on the white board. They lead the students in a game and had a prepared worksheet for them to do in class. In some ways, verbs might seem to be simple and straightforward -- they're the words that show action. When you throw in state of being verbs, helping verbs, linking verbs, changing tenses, and verbal phrases, it can get more complicated. Many times students don't know that they don't know enough about verbs until they start writing. That's why their own essays are better teachers of grammar than worksheets.
We began our discussion about A Christmas Carol. I love this little book not only for its story and long-standing tradition but for the language. Dickens's vocabulary and style are delightful. In this first Stave, we meet Ebeneezer Scrooge, Bob Cratchit, nephew Fred, and a dead Jacob Marley.
Assignments for Next Week:
-- Final Draft of Examples/Illustrations Essay
-- Underline thesis statement in Final Draft
-- Complete self-evaluation using rubric
-- Read Stave Two
-- Answer 3 Study Guide questions
-- Define 4 Vocabulary words
-- No Grammar homework -- finished in class\
Links for this week:
Class Notes
Have a wonderful weekend!
Mrs. Prichard
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