G & T MUR
This week we finished reading Dragonwings the play and continued on with the Junior Great Books series. We had excellent discussion groups and were able to talk in depth about how characters change over time.I am continually amazed at how the students are able to have such high level discussions with their peers. It is wonderful to witness this academic independence.
In spelling, we are working in Red Hot Root Words. Students are working in stations to develop new words with their roots, create stories with our spelling words and test our peers.
On Friday, I introduced our independent writing project for the trimester. We worked in the computer lab doing research on our chosen topics and will slowly work through the essay writing process.
Advanced MUR
This week we read two short stories about the adolecencent problems bullying and sibling arguments. Students were able to give numerous personal examples on the topics, and we worked to get to the root of these overwhelming problems. On Wednesday, we had a seminar and students were able to share ideas with each other.
In spelling we continue our study in Wordly Wise. Students are working with high level vocabulary in a meaningful way.
We began typing our fictional stories as we delve deeper into our independent writing project. We finished up our study of our main characters and will move next week onto our supporting characters. Students completed the introduction and problem of their stories. We now begin the long journey toward the climax. I also spent time conferencing with each student this week, helping them edit and add to their work.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Friday, March 9, 2012
Enjoy your Spring Break!
G & T MUR: This week we began the story Dragon Wings we are reading the story in play form. We began by sharing our knowledge of Chinese culture and have moved into lessons on American History and how people from other lands view us as Americans.
For this unit we will be focusing on character traits. Students are developing charts in the classroom on each character and keeping track of how a character changes over time. We are learning that characters as well as people are multifaceted.
In writing we continue to work on Elements of Styles. Our focus is a review on possessives!
Advanced MUR: This week we are learning about Elizabeth and Robert Browning in a unit entitled "Literature's True Love Story." We began by reading Sonnet 43. Students were able to share their thoughts and ideas as well as pose questions about the text. This stirred some great thoughts in our middle schoolers. We briefly touched on the differences between English and Italian sonnets as well as the background of both authors. We finished out the week by reading A Woman's Last Word by Robert Browning and discussing his perspective of women.
Interim Assessment: This week we took our third interim assessment of the year. Students are making tremendous progress. I have noticed a particular improvement in the area of writing. We are becoming more proficient at communicating our ideas in written form.
***If you would like more information regarding your child's progress please feel free to email @ jgordon @cologneacademy.org
For this unit we will be focusing on character traits. Students are developing charts in the classroom on each character and keeping track of how a character changes over time. We are learning that characters as well as people are multifaceted.
In writing we continue to work on Elements of Styles. Our focus is a review on possessives!
Advanced MUR: This week we are learning about Elizabeth and Robert Browning in a unit entitled "Literature's True Love Story." We began by reading Sonnet 43. Students were able to share their thoughts and ideas as well as pose questions about the text. This stirred some great thoughts in our middle schoolers. We briefly touched on the differences between English and Italian sonnets as well as the background of both authors. We finished out the week by reading A Woman's Last Word by Robert Browning and discussing his perspective of women.
Interim Assessment: This week we took our third interim assessment of the year. Students are making tremendous progress. I have noticed a particular improvement in the area of writing. We are becoming more proficient at communicating our ideas in written form.
***If you would like more information regarding your child's progress please feel free to email @ jgordon @cologneacademy.org
Friday, March 2, 2012
Wrap Up!
Josephine and Aunt Edith "Caught" in Crime!
This week we finished our mystery unit. It was exciting to see the student's reactions as they uncovered the final scenes in the book. Many students yelled out "NO WAY!" as they came to the ending. It was difficult to keep everyone quiet until all had a chance to finish the book. Unfortunately, our snow day interrupted our final discussion. I am anxious to read the student's final exam essays and read their thoughts and ideas on the story.
Thursday and Friday we took our final exam and are ready to move on to our next unit!
Advanced MUR Writing Project:
This week we spent time getting to know our main characters. Each student gave a short presentation on their main character, describing the character's personality traits, and sharing a hidden talent of their character. It is exciting to see middle school students so excited about a project. We are all looking forward to next week when we will be sharing our stories with a partner.
***Reminder: Next week is our 3rd Interim Assessment.
Next week we will be working with short stories so we have ample time to review and prepare for our Interim Assessment. This trimester we will be giving differentiated assessments to better suit the needs of students in the class.
This week we finished our mystery unit. It was exciting to see the student's reactions as they uncovered the final scenes in the book. Many students yelled out "NO WAY!" as they came to the ending. It was difficult to keep everyone quiet until all had a chance to finish the book. Unfortunately, our snow day interrupted our final discussion. I am anxious to read the student's final exam essays and read their thoughts and ideas on the story.
Thursday and Friday we took our final exam and are ready to move on to our next unit!
Advanced MUR Writing Project:
This week we spent time getting to know our main characters. Each student gave a short presentation on their main character, describing the character's personality traits, and sharing a hidden talent of their character. It is exciting to see middle school students so excited about a project. We are all looking forward to next week when we will be sharing our stories with a partner.
***Reminder: Next week is our 3rd Interim Assessment.
Next week we will be working with short stories so we have ample time to review and prepare for our Interim Assessment. This trimester we will be giving differentiated assessments to better suit the needs of students in the class.
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