Dearborn Public Schools
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQq79KFowEA
7th graders, Check out the above link to listen to the audio book online. You’ll have to scroll through the chapters on the right, to make sure you have the correct chapter, as they are not listed in order.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvTMm6GGbEgOgmPLBUcGD6B4MmDGRqTUc
Above, is the link to the audiobook version of “the Westing Game”, our 6th grade class novel. if you are ever absent, or unable to finish a chapter in class, you can find the book here, listed by chapter, and easy to listen to.
Battle of the Books is here! This means, that the classes from the various grades will compete in a competition overseen by Ms. Alvarado and the media center, to see how many of the selected books we can read for “March is Reading Month”.
6th grade: this will be mandatory, and will be used for our cardmarking 3 book talk. This time it will be done a a group project, complete with a written summary and a book poster. Students will sign up for one of the 3 following books to read:
I have several copies of the starred copies available in the classroom. For “Maniac Magee”, you may have to look at the library when we go on Tuesday, or order it from the Centennial, using the Book Locker.
7th grade: I would still like us to participate in this, however, since we are already reading “The Maze Runner” as a class, I am going to make this voluntary. However, if you choose to read one of the books, you will be able to use it as extra credit, that substitutes your lowest summative grade (test or essay) with a 100%. In order to get the credit, you (or your group) must provide a written summary and a picture collage poster (like we did for cardmarking 2).
The options include:
The starred books are ones that I have available in the classroom (in the bottom cupboard in the back ofthe the room. Just ask!) For “Call it Courage”, you may have to visit the library, or order it from the Cntennial library, using our new Book Box program.
Good luck, and may the most well-read class win!
– Ms. Reynolds
6th graders and parents, please expect a test on “Yeh Shen” and “Sootface” on Thursday! AS we enter the Myths, Legends and Folktales unit, we will be comparing and contrasting different oral stories from different cultures. “Yeh Shen” is the Chinese version of Cinderella, and “Sootface” is the Ojibwe (a Native American tribe) version of the same story. They both have the same elements of heroes, good vs. evil, and the same theme.
See below for the study guide:
**Vocabulary**
Collapse: to fall over
glistening: to shine
banquet: a large dinner or feast, honoring a person or event
eldest: the oldest
embrace: to hug, or hold close
**Comprehension**
What is Yeh Shen’s most precious possession?
A: her magic fish bones
Q: Why does Yeh Shen run from the festival?
A: She is running from her step-sister
Q: Why is Sootface renamed Dawn-Light?
A: She is generous and kind
Q:The theme “goodness is rewarded” is proved when?
A: Both Sootface and Yeh Shen are rewarded with good lives in the future.
q: Sootface reacts to her mistreatment by…
A: Ignoring her step-sisters and continuing her work
Written Response: You will be required to compare and contrast the 2 stories, including the universal theme (be able to say what it is), and write a summary in complete sentences.
Having started this project at the beginning of the 2nd card marking, I hope no one is scrambling to find a chapter book now! But when we come back, be prepared to present your book-talk and poster for 100 summative points. Hopefully, this will help some of you after the vocab quiz and final exam we had this week! But you must do it, and do it on time, no excuses or extensions!
Your book must be a grade appropriate chapter book (no picture books or graphic novels will be accepted!) Any “newcomers” are always free to check out leveled chapter books from the classroom to accommodate learning needs. Everyone should have access to a “good fit” book!
Below is the checklist, (created by student demand, awesome!) which will also be passed out in class:
Book Talk Checklist
100 points (25 for presentation, 50 for summary and book log, and 25 for poster/visual aid)
Put a “check mark” , next to each requirement you have completed.
2. A poster board with 5 or more pictures related to my book. (This can be hand-drawn or printed. If you draw it by hand, you may use printer paper) ______
3. An oral presentation of your book, at least one minute long, no longer than 2 minutes.
Be prepared to take the final on “A Christmas Carol”, this Friday! Bring your comprehension questions on Thursday, so we can have a question and answer session, and you can ask about any questions you might have struggled with. The comprehension question packet will serve as your study guide, so make sure you’re completing it acurately. The packet will be collected for a grade, when take the final. The short essay on the test, (20 points) will be about comparing and contrasting the movie to the book.
Enjoy the upcoming break!
Ms. Reynolds
While reading will be done in class, the comprehension questions (below) will often be assigned as homework. No more than 10 questions per night, the questions will be adjusted in class, allowing for some changes in the abridged text. For our purposes, a “stave” is the same as a chapter. If you would prefer that your student reads the unabridged version, or would be helped by the one with pictures, both are available on MyOn.
Reading Questions
A Christmas Carol
Stave 1: Marley’s Ghost
1. What important fact “must be distinctly understood?” Why is this fact so
important?
2. Describe Scrooge in your own words? What metaphor does Dickens use to
emphasize how mean he is?
3. Who visits Scrooge in his counting house, and to what purpose (all visitors)?
4. How does Scrooge react to these visitors?
5. What particularly appalling thing does Scrooge say to the portly gentlemen?
6. Describe the ghostly happenings that lead to Marley’s appearance.
7. Why is Marley visiting Scrooge?
8. What is Marley wearing, and why is he wearing it?
9. What is Marley’s (and the other spirits’) punishments for their wicked lives?
10. How can Scrooge be saved?
Stave 2: The First of the Three Spirits
1. In your own words, describe the Ghost of Christmas Past.
2. Where is the first place that Scrooge and the Ghost visit?
3. Describe Scrooge’s reaction upon arriving at this place.
4. Describe Scrooge’s childhood.
5. Who is Fan, and why is she important to Scrooge?
6. Who is Fezziwig, and why is he important to Scrooge?
7. Why does Belle end her engagement to Scrooge?
8. Describe the final scene Scrooge witnesses and explain what about this scene
upsets him so much.
Stave Three: The Second of the Three Spirits
1. Describe the scene in which Scrooge meets the Ghost of Christmas Present.
2. Describe this Spirit’s appearance.
3. How does the Ghost of Christmas Present transport Scrooge?
4. What scene is being described on pages 46-47?
5. Describe the Crachit family – both in appearance and personality.
6. What do the Crachits eat for Christmas dinner?
7. What future does the Spirit predict for Tiny Tim?
8. What is Scrooge ashamed of as he watches Tiny Tim and Bob?
9. What are Fred and his wife laughing about as Scrooge watches them?
10. Describe Scrooge’s reaction to Fred’s party.
11. What does the Spirit have beneath his robes?
Stave Four: The Last of the Spirits
1. What other ghostly creature does the third spirit resemble?
2. How has Scrooge’s attitude towards the Spirits changed from his encounter
with Jacob Marley to the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come?
3. What are the men at the Exchange discussing?
4. What items are the people in the shop sorting?
5. How has the Crachit family changed since Scrooge last saw them?
6. What does the Spirit finally reveal to Scrooge?
Stave Five: The End of It
1. What does Scrooge ask the young boy to do for him?
2. To whom does Scrooge send the turkey?
3. Describe Bob’s arrival at work on December 26th.
There is a method to my madness! Congrats to all the students who re-tested after coming to our study session. Every single student who studied with us got a 90% or a 100% on the re-take! We are working on learning effective study skills, such as how to break down your study guide into essential questions, which can be used to make flashcards. I trust that the more of these sessions you attend, the more capable you/your student will be at making their own study tools on their own in the future. My goal is to slowly release these scaffolds once the students are able to do this for themselves.
If you received a 70% or below on your quiz/or test that was handed back today, to both the 6th and 7th grades, we will be retaking the test on Thursday and Friday after school. In order to be elligible for the retake, you must come on Wednesday to study. I will be gone most of tomorrow, and cannot stay after school, do to a training. Please be aware that this is the week to re-take, and it will not be extending into December. Please make this a priority, as many of these concepts may re-appear on the unit test later on.