WOD: gorge (v) to stuff with food. Bartholomew gorged himself with mashed potatoes, stuffing and chocolate pecan pie on Thanksgiving and was sick through the new year.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We finished defending the turkey, in our essay style "Turkey's Last Plea," and then shared his/her "defense statements."

Partner writing. Creating stories with partners.

Over vacation, have fun and READ -- your favorite novels or magazines and your mini-novels. Reading is breathing, moving into someone else's world, appreciating another life, experiencing compassion. Go for it!

Look over a general rubric for grading of essays. Also take time to look at traits of effective essay writing.

HW: Coming up: Mini novel assignment, Tues., Dec. 2

Took quiz on mini-novel and peer-graded and handed-in.

Returned rough drafts of movie essay. Final draft due tomorrow, Tuesday. Click link to movie essay for particulars if you have lost your assignment sheet.

Essay reminders: avoid use of "I," and "you." Check your final draft for grammatical errors and no excuses words. Type. Double-space.

Look over a general rubric for grading of essays. Also take time to look at traits of effective essay writing.

HW: Tuesday: Final draft movie essay.

Coming up: Mini novel assignment, Tues., Dec. 2

Peer-edited movie essay rough drafts and handed in.

Wrote spirited defenses on behalf of the turkey, on Thanksgiving, persuasive arguments to not be cooked for dinner. Essay style, of course!
Assignment: Imagine you are a turkey. Convince someone not to cook you for Thanksgiving dinner. What would you say to convince them? Brainstorm first. Make sure to have a thesis statement, 3 body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

You might:
• think about some reasons a turkey might not want to be cooked.
• write the five most convincing reasons.
• use your best ideas in your writing

HW: Read first 35 pages of mini-novel. Be prepared for quiz on Monday.

Tues: Final draft movie essay. (Returned on Monday-- click "movie essay" link for copy of assignment)

WOD: symbolism --an object or character or image that represents (symbolizes, stands for) a concept or abstract idea. Red roses symbolize passionate love.

parable -- a brief, succinct story in prose or verse that illustrates a moral or religious lesson. (Allegory). The moral of the story (parable) is..........

In your Great American novels by Steinbeck and Hemingway, as you are reading, keep note of the symbols and what is the moral message, if any.

Each class took notes on the author of their book, the times in which he wrote and why his work is considered a classic.
We worked on pre-reading strategies for each of the three novels -- Period 2, The Red Pony; Period 4, The Pearl; Period 5, The Old Man And The Sea.

Guide To Traits of Quality Writing 

HW: Finish handouts on pre-reading activities.
Bring movie essay work to class on Thursday.

QW: Free choice. 5 minutes

Daily grammar. Overhead. Write in notebooks. Fix.

Great American Novel -- checkout and project plan.
Per 2 -- The Red Pony; Per 4 -- The Pearl; Per 5 -- The Old Man And The Sea

Work time, 0 or 10 points. Movie essay or read new novel.

QW: Your little brother or sister is lost, or you are so frustrated that you want to sell him/her! Write an ad that will help you find or sell him or her.

Hamadi, Use Venn diagram to compare/contrast Hamadi and Prof. Shlemiel. At end write three complete sentences which one you would enjoy meeting and why. Use intelligent answers connected to the stories and the Venn diagram you just filled out. Hand in for grade.

Persuasive essay on favorite movie assignment. (Handouts) Begin brainstorm. RD due Fri, BOP; Final due Tues 11/25

HW: Brainstorm chart or cluster diagram due for 5-paragraph movie essay.

Please turn in your biographies to my classroom or the library before you can check out our next book.

QW: "The wave of the future is coming, and there is no way of fighting it" -- Anne Morrow Lindbergh

*Spell test # 7 trade/grade/hand in with work and corrections

*Grade grammar tests. Include CB or lose 5 points. Hand in

*Short stories: Iaac Bashevis Singer's "The Day I Got Lost," p. 534, and Naomi Nye's "Hamad," p. 539. Finish reading "Hamadi" for homework.


HW: Mon: Finish reading "Hamadi," p. 539.

Grammar Test. Can use your own study card.

The short story and literary elements: plot, setting, character and theme.
Another way to look at characters.
Characters are flat or round. Flat have no unique traits, or maybe only 1 or 2 recognizable traits. Round characters have individual personalities with a unique combination of likes and dislikes, opinions,etc.
Characters can be dynamic or static. Dynamic characters change or grow as the story progresses. Static characters stay the same.

Literature textbook: In class, read Isaac Bashevis Singer's "The Day I Got Lost," p. 534, and Naomi Nye's "Hamad," p. 539.
Pay attention to main character and their traits. See whether you can identify with any of the characters in the two stories.

HW:
Fri: Final draft IOA essay. With self-edit form and rough draft attached. Stapled together BEFORE come to class. Due BOP> (You are getting one extra day on this. Take advantage. Do a great job.)

Fri: Spelling Test Unit 7. Corrections and work due.

WOD: lout (n) an awkward, brutish person. Because the three louts behind her in the movie theater were loud, Rebecca changed seats.

Work time day. 0-10 points. Can do:
*Study for grammar test
*IOA final draft with your own, self-edit form attached and rough draft. Typed. Stapled.
*Spelling corrections and 1-20 work, page 41. Unit 7. Due Friday, post-test.

Those of you who decided to bring your work and actually work today, congratulations!
This will be the last of our class time work days for a while.

HW:
Fri: Final draft IOA essay. With self-edit form and rough draft attached. Stapled together BEFORE come to class. Due BOP> (You are getting one extra day on this. Take advantage. Do a great job.)

Fri: Spelling Test Unit 7. Corrections and work due.

WOD: condone (v) to regard something or treat something as acceptable, forgivable or harmless.
QW: If you could be the smartest, most attractive or most athletic kid in your class, what would you choose? Why?

Spell pretest #7 Sentences and corrections due Friday. Post-test
DOL exercises, two, write in notebook and correct.

Work time (0-10 pts)
*Biography final project
*IOA Final draft with self-edit attached (Get handout)Use peer edit form. (Get handout if haven’t yet) (Computer time on Weds.)
*Spelling correx and sentences

HW: Weds: Final biog project due Weds 11/12 (no school on Tues)
Thurs: Final Draft IOA essay with self-edit attached

QW: "Rosa sat so Martin Could Walk. Martin walked so Obama could run. And Obama ran so our children could fly." Think. Reflect. Write. Complete Sentences.

Book Reviews. Handouts to show you some ideas for how to write your own for final book project. Copy of cover and back cover of Jane Goodall biography as example.

Returned IOA rough draft. Had to have transitions and conclusion for full credit. Work on if do not have. Discussed the complete essay. Needs to have 1) Introductory paragraph, which includes the THESIS statement, or hook that gets your reader interested and tells what the essay will be about. 2) Obstacles body paragraph. Transition to the next. 3)Influences body paragraph. Transition to the next. 4)Accomplishments body paragraph. Includes CONCLUSION. (Conclusion can be a separate 5th paragraph) Conclusion wraps up or closes the essay. Sums up overall ideas and ends memorably, with a strong statement, interesting quote or comment.

HW: Coming up:
Weds. 11/12: Biography final project.
Thurs. 11/13: Final draft IOA essay. MUST BE TYPED, double-spaced. (Will have computer time on Weds finish.)

Grammar Tests -- those of your peers. Take, trade, grade. Evaluate.

Biography final project discussion.

Start work on final project. Due next Weds., 11/12.

IOA essays returned on Friday. Final IOA essays due Thurs., 11/13

Discussed New York Times article on a Georgia African-American voter involved in the civil rights movement: After Decades, A Time To Reap

Daily Oral Language: on sentences and the overhead. Class fix.

Trade/grade practices sentences and hand in.

Create grammar test study cards to use Thursday. Use a 4X6 card only. (Supplied by me!) Can write on both sides. Can use during test. Look closely at parts of speech definitions. Be able to identify part of speech. Be able to recognize improper usage. Understand sentences and identify run on, fragment, compound and complex.

The victory speech of President-Elect Obama.

HW: Grammar test on Thursday. Bring grammar study card to use during test and turn in after.

QW: Why are people considering this election historic? How do you think it is? What do you hope will change in our world with a new president? Write at least four complete sentences. One has to be compound. Use proper punctuation.

Handed in biography check #3.

Returned essay graph on "Not To Go With Others." Returned grammar cards.

Discussed grammar test. We will have a grammar test made from your tests on Thursday. It will be open study card. You will have time in class on Weds. to create your own study card.
Went over handout on simple and compound sentences.

Grammar card sentence project. Work on in class. Finish for homework. Due BOP Weds. If you take home your grammar cards, please bring back on Weds.

HW: Finish grammar card sentences.

QW: Write about what things you were afraid of a few years ago that no longer disturb you. In this quick write, grammar and writing practice: At least 1 sentence has to have two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction.

Class and computer time to finish IOA essay, due EOP. Edited rough draft, using edit response form. Computer time.
Today's class work time is worth zero or 10 points. If not working, get zero. Not negotiable.

If done IOA essay rough draft, can work on:
Biography #3 due Tues
Compound/complex sentences handout, due Tues
Final biography project, due 11/12

HW: Biography check #3 due Tues
Should finish biographies by Friday. Final project due 11/12.

Friday was Halloween!

We unscrambled Halloween-themed words! And won prizes.

We read scary stories and poems. We shared quick writes.

We wrote BLOTZ poems.


HW: Monday, bring work to finish rough draft with peer edit of IOA essay. Work esp. on transitions and conclusion. Due EOP Monday. Will have time in computer lab to finish.