October+27th+-+October+31st

=Week at a Glance =

== This week we will be finishing up our science video (different for high school and middle school) and write a paragraph response. The paragraphs will be constructed using sentence-starters and turned in on Monday. On Tuesday we will be reviewing the vocabulary studied in class (weather or biology) and have a quiz on Thursday. High school students will be continuing their biology handouts while middle school students will begin learning about the jet stream and how topology affects weather patterns. On Friday, the high school classes will begin researching their zoology animals (specific to the biology section we are studying) while middle school classes will upload additional writing samples. ==

=Wednesday, October 29th, 2008=

==Today students in all classes worked on two assignments: Completing sentence-fragments and "What a Fright" writing activity. I chose the same grammar exercise (sentence fragments) because that seems to be the #1 most common writing error other than spelling and punctuation regardless of grade level. The writing sample for this week is about recounting a scary experience in a paragraph. Students are encouraged to use sensory details such as touch, taste, sound, sight, and smell in their paragraphs. These samples need to be uploaded to their english wiki page by Friday (Halloween). == What a Fright writing activity.pdf sentence fragments page 1 sentence fragments page 2

Parents can check their child's English wiki page to see if they have their "scary experience" writing assignment completed. These samples are due FRIDAY.
=Monday, October 27th, 2008=

 2) Finish "Chasing Tornadoes" video (about 15 minutes left)
=== 3) Response to Chasing Tornadoes. Students use a sentence-starter worksheet to construct a simple paragraph with their response to the video. ===

 4) Hand out middle school spelling packet. MSspelling4.pdf
=== HOMEWORK: If students did not complete their written responses, they are due tomorrow. Spelling packets are due Friday. No student aced the pretest so ALL students will be taking the final test on Friday. ===

=== 1) Warm-up activity: Homonyms. Students had to brainstorm 3 pairs of homonyms and create a sentence using each pair. For example, "I wanted to stare at the clown who tripped on the bottom stair." ===

 2) Spelling pretest: HSspelling4.pdf (1st period did not take this pretest)
=== 3) Students finished the shark video (about 20 minutes left) and created a written response using the Response to The Wild- Sharks sentence-starters. ===