Thursday, March 29, 2018

Friday/Monday, March 30/April 9, 2018


Announcements and Reminders for Friday/Monday, March 30/April 9, 2018:
                         


You have a substitute teacher on March 29 and 30 because Ms. Dorsey (along with most of our English Department) is attending a literacy conference.

April/May Book Assignment 
Fantasy or Science Fiction 
(Including Dystopian Fiction)


Targets for Today:

I can write an essay.

I can correctly use commas with a set of adjectives that come right before the noun they are modifying.  



Today’s  Agenda for Friday/Monday, March 30/April 9, 2018:

April 9 - B-Day

Today we will go to lab 224 to write a practice informative essay --
so you can get the feel of writing for the test, 
                  remember what it takes to succeed in your writing, 
                  practice proper testing behavior, and
                  get used to writing on the SAGE platform.  
    
                
About SAGE Writing   
     April 16-19
     You may be assigned either an argument essay or an informative essay.
      Come rested, well-fed, well-hydrated (drink enough water), and ready to do your best. 

Review for Writing --
Use RAFTS to figure out what the prompt is asking you to do.
Role
Audience
Format
Task
Strong Key Words
Parts of an informational essay
Parts of an argument essay


Remember to Introduce, Give, Cite. Explain. 

Example: 
An article titled “The Never Ending DST Debate” reports that there was a “7% decrease in robberies following the spring shift to DST”  (Time and Date.com).   Apparently more daylight discourages robbers. Therefore we can see that Daylight Saving Time has the advantage of increasing safety in a community. 



Essays and SAGE Practice Test  -- Lab 224


* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

March 30 - A-Day



1.  Complete a quick essay about April Fools' Day.

2.  Work on your packets for using commas with introductory elements.

3.  If extra time, read.


If You Were Absent:

Write the quick essay, and hand it in. 

April Fools Jokes.docx  -- This is the instructions sheet for your essay. 


Vocabulary:




 Help and Enrichment 


For working on your Genetic Engineering Essays:

Explaining your quotes does NOT mean just repeating what they said.  You need to ADD information.
Use your quotes or paraphrasing as explanation/elaboration on the point you are making.




Elaborating:
Include the basics - who? what? where? when? why? how?
 You can add --
Facts and Statistics,
Definitions,
Descriptions,
EXAMPLES

Use clear, understandable sentences. 
Effective writers give enough detail for their non-expert readers to understand. 

Sample Genetic Engineering Essay


Writing:   Secrets of Good Writers
Using Internal Dialogue when Writing

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Poems -- April 2018


We never know how high we are (1176)


We never know how high we are  
  Till we are called to rise;  
And then, if we are true to plan,  
  Our statures touch the skies—  
   
The Heroism we recite
  Would be a daily thing,  
Did not ourselves the Cubits warp  
  For fear to be a King—
In Just 
by e.e. cummings
IN Just-
spring when the world is mud-
luscious the little
lame baloonman
 
whistles far and wee
 
and eddieandbill come
running from marbles and
piracies and it's
spring
 
when the world is puddle-wonderful
 
the queer
old baloonman whistles
far and wee
and bettyandisbel come dancing
 
from hop-scotch and jump-rope and
 
it's
spring
and
the
 
goat-footed
 
baloonMan whistles
far
and
wee
Read more at http://www.poetry-archive.com/c/in_just.html#uE2J0H2vlQdiUaAS.99





The Buttonhook

Tuesday, March 27, 2018

Wednesday/Thursday, March 28/29, 2018



Announcements and Reminders:                          

If you need to revise your book project, and hand it back in, staple it to the original green sheet you handed in.  

If you haven't completed and revised your genetic engineering essay, do that as soon as possible.   If you already have a grade, let me know when you have thoroughly revised. 

Please get out your composition book and a piece of lined paper, and pick up a green literature textbook.  

There will be Cave Time Intervention today.


Targets for Today:

I can recognize tone in a text.  I can choose a tone for my own writing.
I can make effective inferences as I read a text. 


Today’s  Agenda:

Please get out your composition book and a piece of lined paper, and pick up a green literature textbook.

1. Writing:  
Follow directions for writing down and writing about 
your favorite food.
Fold a lined piece of paper in half.  Think of your
favorite food. Can you picture it your mind?  Remember what it tastes like and how it feels in your
mouth, How would you describe it? Once a few words or phrases come to mind, write them down on the top half of your paper.

Vocabulary --
Inference   


 Tone             Tone  = Attitude  


2. Read a short personal narrative, making inferences, and determining tone. 
What do you infer is going to happen next? And what tone does the author use?
What do you infer this story is going to be about? How do you think

Amy feels about this dinner? What in the story makes you think that?
What is Amy’s tone as she describes all the Chinese food in the kitchen? What in the story makes

you think that?
“How does using a disgusting tone to describe her favorite foods affect the story?”

"Fish Cheeks" by Amy Tan
Find the story here:  https://www.ncps-k12.org/cms/lib8/CT01903077/Centricity/Domain/638/LA/Short%20Story%20-%20Fish%20Cheeks.pdf

3.  Writing with tone. 
Turn back to your description of our favorite food. The
bottom half of your piece of paper should be empty. On that bottom half, describe your favorite food
again… but this time, instead of making it sound delicious, flip the tone and make it sound gross. Once
everyone has finished, we’re going to share our gross descriptions and try to guess what food you wrote

about—So don’t include the name of the food in the description!”

4.  Tone and a poem!    Common Cold by Ogden Nash
What tone would you expect in a poem about a cold?  What tone does the poem use?

4. If time:  Commas with Introductory Elements


Formal writing should be serious, clear, concise, confident, and courteous.
In less formal writing the author can use more variety of tone.



If You Were Absent:


Do the writing assignments.

Read the poem and notice the tone.

Pick up or print the packet for commas with introductory elements.
https://www.svsd.net/cms/lib5/PA01001234/Centricity/Domain/725/Commas-%20Basic%20Lessons%201-3.pdf

Work through it as far as you can.


Vocabulary:

Tone = attitude (the attitude expressed by the author about the subject or toward the reader)
inference = putting together what you know with clues from the text to make a conclusion or educated guess about what is going on in the text)  




Central Idea

A central idea can also be called a main idea.
It is not just a topic or subject.
It will name the topic and make a statement about that topic.
A central idea will be a complete sentence.
It will be a declarative sentence, never a question.
It will be specific to the text.
    It will not be a theme. = It will not be a universal message.

Examples and Non-Examples: 
Examples:  
Jim Thorpe may have been the greatest athlete of all time. 
Jim Thorpe was an outstanding athlete in many sports.

Non-Examples
Jim Thorpe            [This is just a topic. A central idea will be a complete sentence.]
The greatness of Jim Thorpe    [This is just a topic. A central idea will be a complete sentence.]
This paragraph tells about what a great athlete Jim Thorpe was.   [This is just another way of stating the topic.]
A person can excel in many ways.  [This is a theme.  It is not specific to Jim Thorpe.]

Each supporting detail needs to provide support or explanation for the central idea.


With Central Idea, we call the sub-ideas and evidence supporting details.


More examples of central ideas from nonfiction books: 
One of the core aspects of the race to build the atomic bomb was spying on one another. 


Monday, March 26, 2018

Sample Genetic Engineering Essay



          Scientists have developed many new and useful genetic engineering technologies. These genetic engineering technology are a great way to fix genetic diseases, to prevent harmful bacteria or viruses from affecting us, and to help agriculture by creating plants that can survive in harsh conditions. However, with every good there are many potential risks that must be considered.

          To start, there are many advantages of genetic engineering in both the agriculture and medical fields. Some examples include resistant crops and therapy to help fight diseases. In the agriculture field seeds can be genetically engineered. [The quotes are missing introductions, but are correctly cited at the ends of the sentences.] "Engineered seeds are resistant to pests and can survive in relatively harsh conditions" (BiologyWise). This means that genetically engineered plant seeds grow stronger plants that survive in areas normal seeds don't survive. By having these new seeds, the plants bring more yield, giving us more food to sustain the population of Earth. Similarly, genetic engineering has benefits in the medical field. For example, "Gene therapy just saved a young boy's life-by giving him new skin" (Maldareeli). Gene therapy through genetic engineering can help, and has helped, people with various diseases. Diseases that in the past killed with no way for medical personnel to fight back now have a way to stop deaths from these diseases. (What is wrong with this last sentence?)



          However, there are drawbacks in both fields that must be considered. A few of these drawbacks include genetic defects and harmful pathogens. "Genetic therapy in human beings can have certain side effects. For example, while treating one defect the therapy may lead to another" (BiologyWise). No matter how much of the original problem is fixed there is a risk that gene therapy may lead to a new disorder. This could lead to expensive medical bills, sickness, and possibly death. Similarly, there are potential risks to genetic engineering in the agricultural field. For example, "Horizontal gene transfer can give rise to new pathogens" (BiologyWise). A pathogen is a type of virus that can cause disease. New pathogens kill crops, lessening the yield produced. [Adding examples would improve  this.]

In summary, there are many risks and rewards to genetic engineering. In the medical field, a disease may be cured, but as a result a new disease may rise after using genetic engineering to try to fix the original problem. Similarly, in the agriculture field, new plants may be more resistant in the natural climate, but a new pathogen may form negating the benefit of the genetic engineering. Based on this evidence genetic engineering has the potential to help in many ways, but there are serious risks that must be considered before moving forward with genetic engineering technology.

Friday, March 23, 2018

Monday/Tuesday, March 26/27, 2018


Announcements and Reminders for Monday/Tuesday, March 26/27, 2018:
  
Pick up your composition book and one of the pink papers at the back of the room. 
       
If you need to revise your book project, and hand it back in, staple it to the original green sheet you handed in.  

If you haven't completed and revised your genetic engineering essay, do that as soon as possible.   If you already have a grade, let me know when you have thoroughly revised. 


Sunday was Tolkien Reading Day, but make-up days are definitely allowed!  




Targets for Today:
Today is a potpourri.  We are doing several different things.
    I can use commas correctly with coordinate or cumulative adjectives.
    I can find (and write) central ideas.
    I can recognize aspects of poetry and poetic devices.
    I can correctly use the words lie and lay.


Today’s  Agenda Monday/Tuesday, March 26/27, 2018:

1. More about Coordinate Adjectives and Commas

Print your essays if they are due today -- printing only.  You will not have time to work on them.

2. Central Ideas
Reading:   More Samples for Nonfiction Book Project
Central Idea
Everything in the paragraph supports the central idea.
The central idea covers everything in the paragraph.
Ghost Ship
Columbus
Thorpe


3. Commonly Confused Words: Lay and Lie

Create this chart in your composition book. 



Play Kahoot!


4. More Poetry --  Review of Poetic Devices
A1 got to Alliteration - read headlines.
A2 did not do this at all.
B5 did not get to it either.

(Poem #863Frogs   
Frogs sit more solid 
than anything sits. In mid-leap they are 
parachutists falling 
in a free fall. They die on roads 
with arms across their chests and heads high. 
I love frogs that sit  like Buddha, that fall without 
parachutes, that die 
like Italian tenors.  
Above all, I love them because, 
pursued in water, they never 
panic so much that they fail 
to make stylish triangles 
with their ballet dancer's 
legs.

        -- Norman MacCaig


If You Were Absent:

See above.
Ask for the coordinate adjective/comma handout. 



Vocabulary:




 Help and Enrichment 


Helping Verb Song:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-F2JWKY63K0
Helping verbs helping verbs there are 23 Am is are Was and were Being been and be Have has had Do does did Shall should will and would There are five more helping verbs May might must can could


Central ideascentral idea is a main point that the author is making (also called a main idea or a key idea). In other words, a central idea is what the article is mostly about. You can think of a central idea as a thesis statement: one sentence that states what the article is about. A text could have more than one central idea  -- https://cdn-scope.scholastic.com/sites/default/files/SCOPE-090114-CoreSkillReference-CentralIdeas_0.pdf
A central idea is A central idea is a single idea, stated in a complete declarative sentence. 

A central idea is NOT just a topic.