Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Thursday, November 21, 2013




Announcements and Reminders:  

Parent-Teacher Conferences will be held today, Thursday, November 21.

You have four (4) days until your Book-of-the-Month  
assessment on November 25.   Read your book and collect themes and evidence for those themes!
You are welcome to hand this in early as a hard copy. 

You may now complete this assignment on MyAccess. The prompt is titled Theme in a Novel Assessment.


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The Effects of TV Essay on MYAccess 
If you have below a 3.2 on your essay so far, work on it from home or during CaveTime to get it up to at least that before we go to the lab again as a class.  Full points will be 4.5.

When you work on your MYAccess essays, make sure you carefully read any teacher comments -- both those that come up when you log in, and the ones that are embedded on your essays.  I won't get around to all of the essays, but check to see if yours is one I have looked at.
Remember to organize your essay like this:
  1. Begin by telling your central idea and the three or four main pieces of evidence that you are using to prove it. 
  2. Each body paragraph should focus on one of those pieces of evidence, and add support (examples, statistics, explanation, anecdotes, etc.)
  3. The concluding paragraph will restate the central idea and your three supporting ideas for it. 
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As you work, don't forget to make certain that you have correctly spelled  our Essential, Non-Negotiable Spelling words.
 Essential, Non-Negotiable Spelling – Set 1

Essential, Non-Negotiable Spelling – Set 2

If you need to complete a make-up assignment for spelling, pick up one of the make-up forms, or write on your own paper, writing five complete correct sentences, correctly using and spelling the work you had misspelled.
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Book orders for Scholastic Reading Clubs are due by this Friday. See this link for more information.

Book Orders

Books make great gifts.  If you order now, you will have your book before Christmas. 


1. Individual Reading and collecting themes and evidence for those themes. 


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2.  With a partner (appointment clock) --
Find a theme that "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" and "The Dinner Party" have in common.
How does the setting suggest the theme? 
How do the characters suggest the theme? 
What else in the stories suggests the theme? 

A theme that "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" and "The Dinner Party" have in common




____________________________________________________________________

Today:  More Practice with Themes
3.   (Last time or this time, depending on your class) Writing:  Select one of these ideas to respond to.  Label it 

with today's date and "Friendship and Right or Wrong?"


In your composition book, write for five minutes, writing at least 

a half-page. 

            a.  Friendship is more important than choosing right 


over wrong. 
     
(or)  b.  Choosing right over wrong is more important than 
friendship.

or         You should tell on a friend if he or she does something  wrong.
    
 (or) You should not tell on a friend if he or she does something wrong. 




Last time: B5 did the writing -- Today: Listen to the Story and fill out the worksheet. 
B6 did the writing and listened to the story. Today:  Fill out the worksheet. 
B7 discussed the continuums and. . . 
B8 discussed the continuums and . . . .

 

3.  Read and discuss "After Twenty Years" on page 192  in our 

Literature textbook.  Fill out the worksheet as partners. 


B5 and B6 watched the cartoon. 
B7 needs the worksheets. They already read and discussed. 
       Common theme?  
B8 listened to the story.  




Themes for After Twenty Years


Jimmy is described as staunch, true, a plodder.  He is a policeman, probably not wealthy, but fairly comfortable. 
Bob wears a diamond scarf pin, diamonds on his watch, is among the men top of his "professional," and is a wanted criminal. 
Both men started out in the same neighborhood. 
What themes do the differences between Jimmy and Bob suggest? 

___________________________________________________________________


With a partner (appointment clock) --
Find a theme that "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" and "The Dinner Party" have in common.
How does the setting suggest the theme? 
How do the characters suggest the theme? 
What else in the stories suggests the theme? 


A theme that "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" and "The Dinner Party" have in common


B7 did this, but needs to look at real themes for these stories. See the link above.
_______________________________________________________________

More Themes:
What theme(s) do "The Country Mouse and the City Mouse" and "After Twenty Years" have in common?  

The Country Mouse and the City Mouse
video: 

The story:
http://www.taleswithmorals.com/aesop-fable-the-town-mouse-and-the-country-mouse.htm

"Better a peaceful life in poverty than a turbulent life in luxury."
for "After Twenty Years":  It is better to live with honesty and poverty than with dishonestly and wealth."



 If you were absent: 
Continue to read your science fiction or fantasy book if you have not completed it, and collect themes and evidence for those themes on the chart.  If you need more room, you can print the chart:  Book of the Month Theme Chart.doc
Here are the other handouts in case you have lost yours or left them at school:


If you haven't yet, complete this outline for your essay on The Effects of TV:   Essay Outline for Effects of TV.doc   If your essay does not follow the outline, go to MyAccess and revise it to follow the outline.  You can have more than three reasons, but make sure you support each with a body paragraph.



Writing: If you haven't already done this,  select one of these ideas to respond to.  Label it with today's date and "Friendship and Right or Wrong?"
In your composition book, write for five minutes and writing at least a half-page. 
      a.  Friendship is more important than choosing right over wrong. 
      (or) b.  Choosing right over wrong is more important than friendship.

or  You should tell on a friend if he or she does something wrong.
     (or) You should not tell on a friend if he or she does something wrong. 

Read "After Twenty Years" online at  http://www.readbookonline.net/readOnLine/636/
Fill out the literary elements worksheet for it:  Literary Elements Worksheet.doc

See other theme activities above that we may have done today.



For More Help on Theme:

Themes from The Outsiders