CHAT Writing 1 Class Notes–WK 3 (1/29)

Quick Write:

Today, we practiced thinking! As discussed earlier, we think by asking ourselves questions and then answering them. It’s funny that we humans always want to circumvent the hard word of thinking–especially in the age of AI! So, we are going to practice today! We stretched our muscles by generating as many questions about, topics pertaining to and aspects of:  SNOW. These questions we ask, become fodder for writing as we attempt to answer them using research and organizing our thoughts.

Since today’s National Days are about Puzzles and Corn chips, students selected a topic, I set the timer for five minutes and they began to generate as many questions as they could.

In Literature, we had a check-in about the Animal Farm.  We are getting momentum in the story now and we reviewed the ballad that was sung in chapter 1–”Beasts of England.”  I asked them to skim the lyrics and notice how the song was filled with descriptive images, hope for a bright future of what life will be like when they finally get rid of the oppression of man.  After that, we stood up and sang it to the tune of “O My Darling Clementine.”  In true capitalist style, enthusiastic singers received a fabulous juiceprize.  (In true communistic style, they ALL received one! ;)  As homework, they are to read chapters 5 & 6 and complete the discussion questions in preparation for our in-class discussion.

Writing

First up, we checked-in about the upcoming Narrative Essay that is due next week. I fielded some questions. It should be a fun essay to write as these students have a lot of creative ideas! After that, we flexed our storytelling muscles by playing a few rounds of Story Matic. While they played, I checked their Key Word Outlines, which were due today.

Because we were enjoying our storytelling, I opted to simply hand out the grammar worksheets. Students can watch the mini-lesson videos I have posted on Simple Sentences with Compound Subjects and/or Compound Predicates should they need some guidance. The worksheets are due next week. Make sure you grade them–and mark your corrections!

That’s it! I hope you have an awesome weekend. Have fun writing your stories. Reach out with questions if you have any.

Blessings, 

Mrs. G

Homework:

Narrative Essay

Read Ch. 5 & 6 Animal Farm

Answer the Discussion questions

Grammar

Simple sentences/Compound Subjects

Simple Sentences/ Compound Predicates

Simple Sentences/Compound Subjects & Predicates

CHAT Writing 1 Class Notes–Week 2 (1/22)

 Today, we started our Visual Vocabulary words for Spring.  This is where we work with some ACT/SAT vocabulary words; we learn the definition, the part of speech, and use it in a sentence.  I gave them this semester’s worksheet where the words will be cumulatively compiled.  They turned in the sentences or prompts that they completed to help cement this word in their memories and to “furnish the mind” as writing teacher Andrew Pudewa says. I hope to see some of these words in composition this semester!  The words today were:  bellicose and presume. 

Writing

Today I introduced our first essay for this semester: The Narrative Essay. This style of essay tells a story from a clear point of view. A narrative essay allows for some creativity and is more informal than expository essays–and tells a story from a clear point of view. In this assignment, students will tell the story from the perspective of a character from a Normal Rockwell painting. (Paintings are posted on GC). 

On the board, we talked through how to break writing this story down into manageable parts. We looked at the painting “Happy Birthday, Miss Jones” by Norman Rockwell. I gave the class a chance to do a “picture study” as we observed all the details we could. After naming some, we began to ask ourselves questions:   who, what, (what are they thinking/doing/saying/feeling) when, where, why, how?  And then a level deeper:  what happened before the picture?  After?  Outside the picture?  What may have happened before or after?  In this way, students begin to access their thinking and imagination and create their own story.

We also imagined what could have happened before this moment, then what was happening in the moment captured on the canvas and last, what happened after. That’s where they come up with their story’s message or takeaway. Those three “moments” will become their three paragraphs for the story.

After reading and discussing the sample essay based on the same painting, students will be ready to compose their story. They are to use the Topic-clincher rule for each paragraph and to employ all the Dress-Ups we have used so far:  -ly adverb, who/which clause, strong verb and a decoration of some sort. In addition, I encourage them to use dialogue where appropriate. Please take the dialogue quiz (GC) to brush up on how to punctuate dialogue correctly. The Key Word Outline is due in class next week!

Literature

We had a quick check-in today on Animal Farm.  I asked them to think/pair/share on a few questions.  They had some thought-provoking answers!  After touching on the qualities of a good leader, I shared with them a free resource on the topic of socialism and communism.  It’s a FREE course through Hillsdale College for those students who are interested in learning more about the political background of this novel.  It is excellent! For homework, they are to keep reading (chapters 3 & 4), answer the questions AND take the quiz over chapters 1-4 posted on Google Classroom.

Grammar

For the Grammar portion of class, we worked again on simple and compound sentences.  The worksheets are a review of the basic elements of a sentence (subject + verb + complete thought).  Many times students write sentence fragments and run-on sentences and comma splice sentences because they don't have a strong sense for these sentence elements.  [Note:  Remember to correct your grammar worksheets and to clearly mark that they've been corrected.]

Homework

Read Animal Farm Ch. 3 & 4

Take Home Quiz #1–Chs. 1–4(GC)

Narrative KWO–due IN CLASS next week!

Grammar worksheets

What is a Sentence?

Sentence Patterns–N-V

Links for this week

Visual Vocabulary #1

Hillsdale College Socialism/Marxism course

Writing 1 Class Notes–Week 1 (January 15)

 Hello Dear Students,

Even though some may not be that excited to start up again, I am very proud of them for all they had been learning this past year.  There’s much to be grateful for!

We started the day out with a Quick Write.  Today’s topic was a choice between:

JANUARY 15–NATIONAL BAGEL DAY

JANUARY 15–NATIONAL HAT DAY or

JANUARY 17–NATIONAL CLASSY DAY

After that, we previewed the Spring Syllabus, Homework Checklist and Late Homework dates.  We highlighted the important due dates and took a brief look at what this semester has in store.  I told them a good strategy is to use the Homework Checklist to help them parcel out their work during the week to avoid having it all pile up at the last minute. Students should plan to work on this class at least 30 minutes per day.

After that, we switched gears to introduce the novella Animal Farm. We talked through a slideshow on The Cycle of Revolution and the Iron Law of Oligarchy.  We had a Jigsaw style discussion on the three themes from the book:  Government, Equality/Equity and Leadership. They had some interesting insights!  There were some that argued that though we are all created with equal rights, some people have different gifts and therefore, in reality, it is impossible for everyone to be “equal.”  How smart is that?!!  Our discussion led beautifully into the main slogan of “Animalism” from our novel which is an allegory for Communism. 

For homework, they are assigned to watch two videos and take a quiz on the historical background on this novella–which is actually an allegory about the Russian Revolution. For homework, they will keep thinking about the theme of leadership as they answer the discussion question (on GC) about what character quality makes for a great leader.

They should start reading the book (Ch. 1 & 2) and answer 3 Study Guide questions.  They also have a Vocabulary Worksheet that they should be filling out as they read–it will be due at the end of the unit.  

Grammar

After that, I introduced this semester’s grammar focus:  Basic Sentence Patterns. I explained that while English depends largely on word order to convey meaning, other languages often rely on inflection (modifications to word forms) to determine relationships between words, making their sentence structures more flexible in comparison. Some students have studied another language, so they were able to illustrate that with examples.

We watched a Youtube Short on the Basic sentence patterns and I handed out two worksheets. 

Students had time to get started on those and are to complete and correct them. This semester, instead of paper KEY, students are to use the KEY that is posted with each worksheet on Google Classroom. Please remember to correct your own work and mark those corrections! I was more lenient on that last semester than I will be this semester;)

Enjoy your weekend!

Blessings, 

Mrs. G

Homework

Syllabus

Homework Checklist

Homework & Late Dates

Read Ch. 1 & 2

Animal Farm Vocabulary Worksheet

Ch. 1 & 2 Study Guide Questions

Introduction to Animal Farm Quiz (GC)

“Top Character Quality–Leader?” Response 

Links for this week

Syllabus

Homework Checklist

Homework & Late Dates

Writing 1 Class Notes -- Week 15 (December 18)

 Greetings!

We had a wonderful day today and combined both work and fun on this final day. 

Homework & Grades

The Final Edits for their Victorian Invention Essays were due today. I will grade those and any other homework that was handed in; my goal is to have final grades out soon.  I mentioned to the class that I will take any homework submitted by December 21 at 11:59 p.m. If there are any questions, please contact me.  Because I have writing and projects from both my classes, I know that I won't have the work ready for final grades until after Christmas. Look for them some time after the New Year.  

The Wrap-Up

As a culminating event, students were given a few minutes to put the finishing touches on their A Christmas Carol presentations. When the timer went off, students were ready to put on their productions. They had the option of a game show, a news broadcast, a mimed scene or a one-minute story all based on the characters and action from the novel. They sure are a creative bunch!

Next, we combined work and fun with a quiz on the Fall Visual Vocabulary in the form of a KAHOOT! game.  I will record their scores and use it as their grade. 

Before our next segment, each table helped themselves to the hot chocolate bar and snacks that I brought. These were good fortifications before they took their test.

The “test” over A Christmas Carol was in the form of a game called ZAP!  The class split into teams and had fun answering questions and things got a little competitive!  ZAP! Is not only a question/answer game, but it also allows teams to steal points from each other. The winners received bragging rights and a candy reward. The class really enjoyed this wrapping up time together.

My prayer is that all of you have a great Christmas that includes lots of love and laughter!

Blessings,

Mrs. G

Due Today

Victorian Invention Final Edits

Grammar Test (corrected)

Link for this Week

Writing 1 Class Notes (on blog)

Class Notes–Week 14 (December 11)

 Class Notes–Week 14 (December 12)

We had a wonderful day in class today.  A lot of the hard work of the semester is over, so our "work" today was a little more fun.

Our last Visual Vocabulary words for today were: amalgamate and alienate.  These words will show up on our end of the semester quiz next week–so make sure to review those.  The slides are posted on Google Classroom.

Writing

The Victorian Inventions composition was due last week and I handed the graded/coded essays back. I forgot to remind you in class, but the Final Edits are due next week. 

Grammar

I handed out the Parts of Speech Post-Test in class today.  It is identical to the Pretest they took at the beginning of the semester.  It is an “open-book” test and can be finished at home.  The KEY is posted and, just like a regular grammar worksheet, it needs to be corrected before it is handed in.  They will receive a base score when it is completed.

The best way of learning grammar is through lots of reading and writing. Direct instruction of grammar is important and helpful, and combined with literature and writing it can be pretty potent.  Next semester we'll be working on sentence structures.

Literature

First, I reminded the class about the A Christmas Carol vocabulary worksheet that is due next week.  If they have been defining four vocabulary words from each Stave as they have been reading, it should be a simple matter of finishing. It is worth 40 pts, so it is a bigger project.  

For homework, they were to invent their own ghost.In small groups, they compared and contrasted their creations. They had fun with this creative assignment to wrap up this novel. After that, we had fun creating some impromptu creative presentations on A Christmas Carol. We will have a test over the novella next week.

Next Week

Our last week of the semester is next week, December 19.  All work should be handed in by that date.  That said, they will be given until Sunday, December 21st to get any last work in.  They should not wait until then to do their work and hand it in.  Next week we will have our "Classy Classmas Party."  I will bring warm drinks, and students can bring goodies if they like.  We will combine work & play:   During the first part of the class,we will have the A Christmas Carol Final Exam and Visual Vocabulary quiz. The rest of the class time we’ll spend enjoying Christmas games, music and holiday cheer. 

Assignments for Next Week:

Review Visual Vocabulary words–quiz next week

Grammar Post-Test–open book/notes

ACC Vocabulary

Writing 1 Class Notes–Week 13 (December 4)

 Students were energetic and ready to engage today.  I can’t believe we are nearing the end of the semester already!

Quick Write

Today, we revisited the topic of using strong verbs in our writing. To that end, we banned the boring, predictable and insipid word said. After brainstorming some alternatives that students listed on their Banned Verbs lists, we were ready to write about some special Christmas traditions your family does. The topic choices were:

December 4–NATIONAL SANTA’S LIST DAY

December 6–NATIONAL ST. NICOLAUS DAY 

December 8–NATIONAL TIME TRAVELLER DAY

After that, we practiced paraphrasing and citing those paraphrases again. Since our practice was about the British Victorian candy called Jelly Babies, each student got to choose a few to sample while they worked on their paraphrases.

Writing

Victorian Invention Essays were due today.  I answered a few questions and we reviewed how to make your own Style list to make sure all the style points are included in each paragraph. I hope to get the essays back ASAP so that students can perform the Final Edits and turn them in by the last day of class.

Speaking of final edits, the Biography Essay Final Edits were also due today. As a reminder, that is where students use the Grammar and Content Codes to isolate and fix the errors that are coded on their essays. Those must be handwritten, stapled to the paper essay and rubric I handed back to them. This is a requirement for all students. As an option, if a student wishes to improve their grade for this essay, they may edit and polish using the codes and Resubmit their paper for a regrade. CAUTION: Thinking of resubmitting? Great! Just know that every code I mark needs attention. A resubmission that fixes only two out of ten errors is like washing one sock—it doesn’t really help anyone, and it wastes my time. Aim high and revise them all.

Grammar

Our last group presented today. The Prepositions group of Jediah, Toby and Aaron taught a mini-lesson, played a game and handed out a worksheet. Good job guys! As usual, I also had two worksheets for them to do. Those need to be completed, corrected and handed in next week. Don’t forget to fill out an evaluation for this group.

Now that we are finished with our presentations, I have assigned a CAPP review. These are 10 point (open book) quizzes that are posted on Google Classroom similar to the IVAN reviews a few weeks back.

Literature

Now that Scrooge has met the three ghosts, we had a discussion today about how Dickens used the ghosts to tell this redemptive story. Students were assigned one of the three ghosts to think deeply about:  what did they show Scrooge? What emotions did Scrooge feel? How did this ghost nudge Scrooge towards his transformation? They were given a worksheet to design their own ghost. It is due next week. There are no Stave 5 questions assigned this week!

Blessings on the rest of your week.

Mrs. G

Homework

Read Stave 5 ACC

Stave 5 Questions

Invent your Own Ghost Worksheet

Prepositions Homework–1

Prepositions Homework–2

Prepositions Evaluation

Conjunctions Review

Adverbs Review

Pronouns Review

Prepositions Review

Links for this Week

QuickWrite (12/4) + Paraphrasing (pt. 2)

Grammar Codes

Content Codes for Expository Essays

About Prepositional Phrases

QuickWrite (12/4)

CHAT Writing 1 Class Notes--Week 12 (11/20)

 Dear Students,

The weather is turning and we are all ready for a break! But before the break:  one last class!  

Visual Vocabulary

I opened class with a Bellringer activity to practice paraphrasing. After that, we did our usual visual vocabulary words.  This week the words are:  felonious and elated. Hopefully, you are not elated about something felonious!

Writing

Today, the KWO on Victorian Inventions was due.  During their work time today, I circulated and gave credit to those who met their deadline. I will close this assignment by midnight tonight. Part of learning how to be a good student is learning how to budget time wisely. I hate being a stickler about deadlines–on the other hand, since we are on about a three week essay cycle, and I know from experience that once a student gets behind, it is very difficult to dig out of that hole. That is why I tend to be strict about writing due dates. On that note, I have changed the due dates for this last essay, see below:

Victorian Invention KWO due–11/20 (WK 12)               🦃~~Thanksgiving Break~~🦃 Victorian Invention Essay due–12/4 (WK 13) Final Edits due–12/18 (WK 15)

In preparation for writing the final essay this semester, which incorporates some research, we had a Writing Circle discussion about MLA Style citations. Students have been handling this skill fairly well, but supporting claims using citations can always use some practice. Each small group was given a folder with directions on how to cite the most common sources:  books, online articles, podcasts, videos/Youtube, and movies. After taking a look at those, I gave each group a stack of cards with an example of each type of source. Their job was to compose a Works Cited entry AND show how to cite the source in their writing. They were very engaged in this task! 

Literature

Over break, students should read the rest of Stave 4 of A Christmas Carol and answer 3 Questions from the worksheet.  They should also answer the fun Discussion question posted on Google Classroom about who played Scrooge the best on the “silver screen.” 

Though we haven’t had the opportunity to have a full-blown class discussion on this novella yet, I gave the preview that in this Stave, we meet the final ghost.  After break, we will have a discussion and activity on how these three “spirits of Christmas” nudge Scrooge towards his transformation. Last, I reminded the class about the A Christmas Carol vocabulary worksheet that is due 12/11 (WK 14).  If they have been defining four vocabulary words from each Stave as they have been reading, it should be a simple matter of finishing. It is worth 40 pts, so it is a big project! 

Grammar

The Pronouns Group presented today with a fun mini-lesson, game of Bingo and worksheet. As usual, they have two worksheets from me. Don’t forget to fill out the Evaluation for the Pronouns group. Our last presentation on prepositions will be presented when we come back from break on December 4th (Jediah, Toby & Aaron).

That’s all for now. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and break. We have so much to be thankful for!

Blessings,

Mrs. G

Homework

Victorian Invention Essay–due 12/14

Final Edits–Biography Essay

Pronouns–1

Pronouns–2

Pronouns Evaluation

Read Stave 4 ACC

3 Questions

ACC Discussion Question–Which Scrooge?

Links for this week