April 2, 2012

   Happy April!

1. Self-Starter: Sentence Combining

Sometimes a long sentence is best.
Sometimes a short sentence is best. 
Sometimes a middle-sized sentence is best.
Your writing will be best if you use a variety of sentence lengths.
To fix choppy-sentence-itis, use sentence-combining.

Sentence Combining
Students completed a Sentence Combining Worksheet. They learned about combining sentences by taking a key word (adverb, adjective, or participle) from a short sentence to combine with another short sentence.

Worksheet  -- Examples and Practice

For example:
1.   "I passed my English test. I passed it yesterday." (adverb)
This could be changed to "Yesterday, I passed my English test."
Now you try it:
1Y.  Katniss volunteered to take Prim's place in the Hunger Games.  She did it quickly.
Combine the sentences to change it to ____________________________________

For example:
2. "Ella did the exercises with ease. The exercises were difficult." (adjective)
This could be changed to "Ella did the difficult exercises with ease."
Now you try it: 
2Y.  The people in the Capital are excited and eager each year to watch the Hunger Games.   The Hunger Games are deadly.
Combine the sentences to change it to _____________________________

For example:
3. "Joe's dog scares people. Joe's dog snarls." (participle)
This could be changed to "Joe's snarling dog scares people."
Here is another example of this one:
"Holding my cat is comforting.  My cat purrs."
This could be changed to "Holding my purring cat is comforting."
Now you try it:   (Notice that you need to change a verb into an adjective ending in -ing.)
3Y.  The audience is impressed with Peeta and Katniss's fiery entrance.  The crowds cheer.
Combine the sentences to change it to _____________________________

Here is the document for this exercise:
Sentence Combining 1.docx
___________________________________________
2. 
What makes a good essay?
 See and compare the two sample essays.  What makes one better than the other?  After clicking on this link, click on the Download tab to open the document on your  computer.
D20387-01TraitsLessonsIdeas.pdf

What makes a good essay?
more detail
   the reader can see
   the reader can hear -- including dialogue
It makes the reader feel and think


__________________________________________________

                       Learning Outcomes for Today
for sentence combining:  After this and other lessons, students will be able to correct sentence problems such as run-ons and fragments, and will be able to use more variety in sentence structure and length.
for looking at essays:  Students will be reminded of what they need to do to create a quality essay.





this post originally published 3/27/12

August 31/September 1, 2009

August 31/September 1, 2009

Spelling Test -- No, not the prince-into-frog sort of "spelling."
1. Students took a practice spelling test on their teachers' names, the names of the principal and assistant principals, and the name of their counselor. The real test will be in class next time.
See August 21/24 blog for the original assignment.

Everyday Editing
2. Students recombined sentences. The teacher had split up single sentences (which used commas in a series) from books into several sentences. The students then recombined each set of sentences into one. If you were absent, here are your sentences to combine:
_______________________
Example:
The fox coughed.
The fox gagged.
The fox sneezed.
The Stinky Cheese Man flew off his back and into the river, where he fell apart.
(from Jon Scieszka, "The Stinky Cheese Man")

Example of combining the above sentences:
The fox coughed, gagged, and sneezed, and the Stinky Cheese Man flew off his back and into the river, where he fell apart.
_______________________________

In your composition books, write today’s date, then combine these sentences into one using commas in a series. Try not to lose or change any of the meaning. (If you were absent, you may do this on a separate sheet of paper, and then tape it into your notebook.)

1st set of sentences to combine into one that uses commas in a series:

Her cleats were in her backpack.
Her shin pads were in her backpack.
Her sweats were in her backpack.
Her backpack was slung over her shoulder and heavy with homework.

2nd set of sentences to combine into one that uses commas in a series:

I have hair the color of carrots in an apricot glaze.
My skin is fair and clear where it isn’t freckled.
I have eyes like summer storms.

Combine these sentences into one using commas in a series. Try not to lose or change any of the meaning.

Vocabulary
3. Students copied into their composition books this phrase and definition:
character development: how the author tells you about the character

Copy also these ways that an author tells you about a character:
l What the character says and how he or she says it
l What the character does
l What other characters say about him or her
l What the author tells you about the character

3. Poems as examples of how an author (or poet) reveals character:
Literature text -- page 227 "Madam and the Rent Man"
and page 240 "Mama is a Sunrise"

Madam and the Rent Man by Langston Hughes

The rent man knocked.
He said, Howdy-do?
I said, What
Can I do for you?
He said, You know
Your rent is due.

I said, Listen,
Before I'd pay
I'd go to Hades
And rot away!

The sink is broke,
The water don't run,
And you ain't done a thing
You promised to've done.

Back window's cracked,
Kitchen floor squeaks,
There's rats in the cellar,
And the attic leaks.

He said, Madam,
It's not up to me.
I'm just the agent,
Don't you see?

I said, Naturally,
You pass the buck.
If it's money you want
You're out of luck.

He said, Madam,
I ain't pleased!
I said, Neither am I.
So we agrees!

Mama Is a Sunrise
by Evelyn Tooley Hunt

When she comes slip-footing through the door,
she kindles us
like lump coal lighted,
and we wake up glowing.
She puts a spark even in Papa's eyes
and turns out all our darkness.

When she comes sweet-talking in the room,
warms us
like grits and gravy,
and we rise up shining.
Even at nighttime Mama is sunrise
that promises tomorrow and tomorrow.

4. During the day, we spent some time looking at our class library, some students checking out books, some reading. Students also signed up for their Book-of-the-Month club books.

5. We began reading The Outsiders.
B1 --page 2, 3rd paragraph
B2 --page 4, end of paragraph 4
B4 -- page 3, line 5
A1 -- page 2,
A2 -- page 8, 1/2 of the way down
A4 -- page 3, 2nd paragraph

November 5/6, 2008

November 5/6, 2008

Special Notice: A1 and A2 received their Book-of-the-Month Club assignment for November-December. The B-Day classes will receive the assignment on November 7. See nearby posts for more information. The book approval is due by Novmeber 14. The reading log for this week will be extra credit.

Responding to Poetry -- Emotions and Ideas
Students responded to the poem "High Flight. " They read the poem, and in their composition books they a) wrote quickly for about two minutes about anything this poem brought to mind for them. b) borrowed one line from the poem and created a poem or continued to write their thoughts, focusing now on that one line. (See the nearby post for the poem and information about the poet.

Genre and Theme
We then read a play titled The Flying Machine by Ray Bradbury. We discussed genre and theme.

Sentence Combining
B1 and B2 had time to do sentence combining. Ask for the worksheet if you were absent.
A1 did part of the sentence combining.

Prefixes and Suffixes
We also looked at a list of words such as
prewrite
prerinse
prealgebra
preview
prekindergarten

What does "pre" mean in these words?
Is "pre" a prefix or a suffix?

We will be learning prefixes and suffixes in class during this term.