All Boys, All Blogged: December 7, 2012

Focus: Wrapping up loose ends from the week: SAT vocabulary, presentations, and final projects

1. SAT List 9 vocabulary quiz

2. Time to start on Monday's A Long Way Gone reading (Chapters 18 and 19).

3. Book talks!

4. Project work time: Review the overview, finalize your choices and start on step 2.

HW: 
1. Read and annotate Chapters 18 and 19 in A Long Way Gone for Monday.
2. Hero's journey grammar revisions due Wednesday.  Click HERE for the format.
3. Hero's journey content revisions due Friday.  Remember to highlight all changes and staple the new draft to the original.

All Boys, All Blogged: December 6, 2012

Focus: Student-led discussion of healing and other topics in A Long Way Gone

1. Warm-up: Memoir quickwrite

15 minutes: Think of a time in which you were mentally or physically injured.  

Describe what happened, then describe your process of healing.  

2. Fishbowl discussion #5: A Long Way Gone, Chapters 15, 16 and 17

HW: Study for tomorrow's List 9 SAT vocabulary quiz; start working on your final project; bring your book and annotations to class tomorrow.

All Boys, All Blogged: December 5, 2012

PLC: Shortened Class

Focus: Augmenting your vocabulary; developing ideas for your final project

1. Kody's book talk

2. Distribute List 9 SAT vocabulary words; circle story time review (20 minutes)

3. Time to work on final projects; you must accomplish Step 1 by the end of class and start working on the next step.

HW: 
1. Prepare for tomorrow's fishbowl on Chapters 15, 16 and 17.
2. Start studying for Friday's SAT List 9 vocabulary quiz.
3. Make sure you have posted your blog on "Trained To Kill."

Response to "Trained To Kill"

Please finish reading the article "Trained To Kill."  Then, select one specific section and compose a 5-8 sentence response to this question.  Remember that a response is not a summary; instead, it is a reaction to, an analysis of, or a questioning of the author's assertions.  Your response can also connect the article to A Long Way Gone.

This response is due Wednesday, December 5.

As always, please read others' responses before posting you own, and feel free to comment on your peers' posts as well.

All Boys, All Blogged: December 4, 2012

Focus: Revising your essays and preparing for your final exam/project

1. Warm-up: Book talks!

2. Return early essays and explain revisions for grammar and content

• All students will complete grammar revisions.  Click HERE for directions and an example.  These are due Wednesday, Dec.12.
• If you received a 79% or lower, you must also revise for content.  
• It is highly recommended that you conference with me before you revise. 
• Please highlight all changes on your new draft.
• Staple your revised draft to the essay with my comments and the rubric.  Revisions that don't follow this policy will not be accepted.  
• These are due on the last day of class, Friday, Dec. 14.

3. Overview of your A Long Way Gone project, which will also be your final exam

4. Time to start working on your project

HW: 
1. Continue reading and annotating Chapters 15, 16, and 17 for Thursday (make sure you bring your book and annotations to class each day).
2. Bring your List 9 vocabulary to class tomorrow for review.
3. Start working on essay revisions.

All Boys, All Blogged: December 3, 2012

Focus: Examining how Ishmael becomes a child soldier in A Long Way Gone

1. Warm-up: Quick whip-around the room to recap Ishmael's journey thus far

2. Examining how teenagers are conditioned to be violent by starting to read "Trained to Kill."

• Mark which parts interest you (What do you agree or disagree with?  What made you think? What surprised you?).  Explain in the margins why you marked these passages.
• Mark any parts that could possibly connect to A Long Way Gone.  Explain in the margins how these parts connect to and shed light on A Long Way Gone.

3. Fishbowl #4: Chapters 11-14

HW: 
1. Finish reading and annotating today's article; by Wednesday, please type a 5-8 sentence response to one section of it on the blog (there will be a separate blog posted for this).  
2. Start on this week's reading assignment for A Long Way Gone; be sure to bring your annotations to class each day for random checks.
3. Start looking over List 9 SAT vocabulary words.

All Boys, All Blogged: November 30, 2012

Focus: Wrapping up this week's tasks: Vocabulary, reading, and memoir writing

1. Taking the list 8 SAT vocabulary quiz

2. Start on your weekend reading assignment for A Long Way Gone (and annotation checks)

3. Book talks!

4. Finishing your dialogues using description and the five senses

HW: Read and annotate Chapters 11, 12, 13 and 14 for Monday; prepare for Monday's fishbowl discussion.