I am faster than I think I am! Grades have been updated to reflect scores on the Unit 2 Test. I will update again on Friday with the homework assignments that are due this week.

Since we are doing the same thing in class today and tomorrow, I will not be posting to the blog tomorrow.

During class, the students were given the whole block to work on homework for Language Arts. While students were working, I met with kids who needed help on assignments and we conferenced about their “All Summer in a Day” Falling Action/Resolution Rough Draft.

Have a great evening!

Homework:

1. “All Summer in a Day” Falling Action/Resolution Rough Draft due Friday-See me with your plan before you start writing out your four paragraphs!
2. Moby Max: Verbs due Friday-Lesson Tests are Extra Credit!
3. NewsELA: Paying College Athletes due Friday
4. IXL: Verbs Extra Credit due Friday (This is not a required assignment!)
5. 5 Read Theory Quizzes due Friday (You also need to do 10 over the break. Use 12/21 as your starting date and 1/5 as your end date)
6. One-Pager Three due Friday, January 10th
7. One-Pager Four due Friday, January 10th
8. All Late Work for Second Marking Period due Friday, January 10th

Today in Language Arts the students took their Unit Two Test. I was very pleased with how most students did. I will do my best to have grades updated to reflect scores by the end of the day tomorrow but they will not be completely updated before then. Please be patient. There are 84 of you and only 1 of me.

With the remainder of class time, students were given the opportunity to work on their homework for Language Arts.

Have a great evening!

Homework:

1. “All Summer in a Day” Falling Action/Resolution Rough Draft due Friday-See me with your plan before you start writing out your four paragraphs!
2. Moby Max: Verbs due Friday-Lesson Tests are Extra Credit!
3. NewsELA: Paying College Athletes due Friday
4. IXL: Verbs Extra Credit due Friday (This is not a required assignment!)
5. 5 Read Theory Quizzes due Friday (You also need to do 10 over the break. Use 12/21 as your starting date and 1/5 as your end date)
6. One-Pager Three due Friday, January 10th
7. One-Pager Four due Friday, January 10th
8. All Late Work for Second Marking Period due Friday, January 10th

Today in Language Arts the students were given time to go to the library. They were allowed to check out two books today if they wanted to since we are going to be on break and they will have more time to read. It is VERY important that students continued to read for 100 minutes each week while we are on break. They will be taking the Reading and Language NWEA tests shortly after we return from break and they need to keep up their skills. This is also why they are expected to pass 10 Read Theory quizzes over the break.

When we returned from the library, students were given time for SSR. After reading, they wrote out their log in their writing notebook.

In order to review for the Unit 2 Test tomorrow, students played an Escape the Room game on Google Classroom to help them study. Students can play this game at home tonight to study more. They can also use their interactive notebooks to help them. The test will focus on the types of conflict, genres, story devices, mood and tone, the pyramid of action, “Tuesdays of the Other June”, and “All Summer in a Day”. They will get to use their literature books the entire time they are taking the test.

With the remainder of their class time, students were allowed to work on Language Arts homework and study.

Have a great evening!

Homework:

1. Study for the Unit 2 Test-It’s tomorrow!
2. “All Summer in a Day” Falling Action/Resolution Rough Draft due Friday-See me with your plan before you start writing out your four paragraphs!
3. Moby Max: Verbs due Friday-Lesson Tests are Extra Credit!
4. NewsELA: Paying College Athletes due Friday
5. IXL: Verbs Extra Credit due Friday (This is not a required assignment!)
6. 5 Read Theory Quizzes due Friday (You also need to do 10 over the break. Use 12/21 as your starting date and 1/5 as your end date)
7. One-Pager Three due Friday, January 10th
8. One-Pager Four due Friday, January 10th
9. All Late Work for Second Marking Period due Friday, January 10th

Today in Language Arts the students were assigned a narrative writing pieces. Since “All Summer in a Day” ended in a cliffhanger, the students were asked to rewrite the ending of the story. They were asked to plan out a new ending, meet with me, and then write the rough draft. This will be due next Friday.

The students also viewed their last mood and tone videos which focus on Despicable Me. I have attached the videos to this blog post.

Since we have reached the end of our second unit, I will be giving students time to work on assignments before going on break. I have included a list of all the things they are currently working on as well as their due dates. They will be given time every day in class to work on these things until they go on break.

Have a great weekend!

Homework:

1. Read for 20 minutes (Be done with your 4th good fit book by the time you return from break!)
2. Study for your Unit 2 Test on Tuesday. Your interactive notebook is your study guide and we will play a review game in class on Monday to help you. Make sure you know the following: Mood and Tone, Story Devices, Conflict, Genres, the Pyramid of Action, “Tuesdays of the Other June”, and “All Summer in a Day”. You will get your literature book on the test to help you.
3. “All Summer in a Day” Falling Action and Resolution Rough Draft due Friday
4. Moby Max: Verbs due Friday
5. NewsELA: Paying College Athletes due Friday
6. 5 Read Theory Quizzes due Friday
7. IXL Verbs Extra Credit due Friday (This is an optional assignment and will not impact your grade negatively if you do not do it!)
8. 10 Read Theory Quizzes over break due Monday, January 6th (Use 12/21 as your start date and 1/5 as your end date to make sure you are done!)
9. One-Pager Three due Friday, January 10th
10. One-Pager Four due Friday, January 10th
11. All Late Work for Marking Period 2 due Friday, January 10th

Today in Language Arts the students practiced identifying present participles, past participles, and the past tense of irregular verbs.

We also continued to reflect on “All Summer in a Day” by writing a CER analyzing a story element of the students’ choosing with a partner. The students were then asked to choose a different story element to write a second CER. This time, they had to do it independently and give two pieces of textual evidence to support their thinking. If they did not finish this in class, it was assigned as homework. The students will have a similar question on their Unit Two Test next Tuesday.

Have a great evening!

Homework:

1. Read for 20 minutes
2. Read Theory due Friday
3. Unit 2 Test on Tuesday: Pyramid of Action, Conflict, Story Devices, Genres, Mood and Tone, “Tuesdays of the Other June”, and “All Summer in a Day”
4. Moby Max: Verbs due NEXT Friday
5. NewsELA: Paying College Athletes due NEXT Friday
6. IXL: Verbs Extra Credit due NEXT Friday

Today in Language Arts the students reviewed the story we read in class yesterday, “All Summer in a Day”. In small groups, we analyze the conflict, genre, story devices, and mood/tone within the story. Then, with a partner, the students were given the major events in the story and they had to put those events in order.

The students also continued to learn about mood and tone by looking at video clips from Inside Out. We discussed how adding elements that weren’t in the original text or film can change the mood and tone too.

Lastly, the students spent time reading. They had the choice between their good fit book and Read Theory. Afterwards, they completed their SSR Log.

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Homework:

1. Read for 20 minutes
2. Read Theory due Friday
3. Unit 2 Test Tuesday: Conflict, Pyramid of Action, Story Devices, Mood and Tone, Genres, “All Summer in a Day”, and “Tuesdays of the Other June”
4. Moby Max: Verbs due NEXT Friday
5. NewsELA: Paying College Athletes due NEXT Friday
6. IXL Verbs Extra Credit due NEXT Friday

In Language Arts today the students thought about what it would be like if we lived in a place that rained all day, every day. We applied this to the story we read in class, “All Summer in a Day”. We also discussed the story devices used within the text.

Additionally, the students spent time in class learning about the past and present participle forms of verbs.

Lastly, we continued to learn about mood and tone by looking at the trailer of Moana.

Have a great evening!

Homework:

1. Read for 20 minutes
2. Read Theory due Friday
3. Unit Two Test NEXT Tuesday: Pyramid of Action, Mood and Tone, Genre, Story Devices, Conflict, “Tuesdays of the Other June”, and “All Summer in a Day”
4. NewsELA: Paying College Athletes due NEXT Friday
5. Moby Max: Verbs due NEXT Friday
6. IXL Extra Credit due NEXT Friday (This is not a required assignment!)

Today in Language Arts the students continued to look at mood and tone by examining the movie, Elf.

The students were also introduced to a new story, “All Summer in a Day”. We will be reading and analyzing this story all week. Today, the students were given time to hover for words they did not know, analyze the vocabulary within the story, and present their findings to the class.

Progress Reports for Second Marking were sent home with students who have a 70% or lower in Language Arts. I will be calling home today for these students too. If you do not receive a phone call, your child did not get a report from me. Grades can be viewed for all students by checking Parent/Student Connect.

Have a great evening!

Homework:

1. Read for 20 minutes
2. Read Theory due Friday
3. Moby Max: Verbs due NEXT Friday
4. NewsELA: Paying College Athletes due NEXT Friday
5. IXL Verbs Extra Credit Practice due NEXT Friday (This is optional!)
6. Unit Two Test NEXT Tuesday: Conflict, Pyramid of Action, Genres, Story Devices, Mood and Tone, “All Summer in a Day”, and “Tuesdays of the Other June”

In Language Arts today the students spent time working in stations. They had the following options to choose from:

• Read Theory
• Late Work
• NewsELA: Should College Athletes be Paid?
• One-Pagers Three and Four
• Moby Max: Verbs
• IXL Verb Practice (Extra Credit)

Have a great weekend!

Homework:

1. Read for 20 minutes
2. NewsELA: Should College Athletes be Paid? due Friday, December 20th
3. Moby Max: Verbs due Friday, December 20th
4. IXL Verb Practice due Friday, December 20th-Remember, this is extra credit! You do not have to do it!

Today in Language Arts the students continued to learn about action, linking, and helping verbs by practicing identifying them.

The students also continued to learn about mood and tone by looking at Toy Story. The examples videos have been added to this blog post.

Lastly, the students learned about the story devices an author can use to make their writing more interesting. These include suspense, cliffhanger, foreshadowing, and flashback.

Have a great evening!

Homework:

1. Read for 20 minutes
2. 5 Read Theory Quizzes due Tomorrow
3. Moby Max: Verbs due Friday, December 20th