Today we spent almost the entire class period working on verbs.  Going over the homework proved to be a bit difficult as the students had a hard time coming up with vivid verbs to replace the dull or boring ones with which they were presented.  We consulted a Thesaurus so that students could see how beneficial it is as a resource. 

We then moved onto applying what was learned in class on Monday, by identifying verbs and verb phrases within sentences.  Some students had difficulty with this, so we went back to locating the subject (who or what in the sentences) and then asking, “What did the subject do or what happened?”  to locate the verb in the sentence. 

Homework:

Study Helping Verbs and Linking Verbs – Students have a list in their notebooks.  Here is a copy as well:

Helping Verbs – have, has, had, do, does, did, can, could, will, would, may, might, must, am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been.

Linking Verbs  – am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been, appear, become, look, remain, sound, taste, grow, smell, feel, seem.

Students must complete one of the assignments on www.essayscorer.com/ph/ga/mcclure  by 12/17.

Login: student’s lunch number

Password: Student’s lunch number

5 bonus points will be added to their score each time they go in and revise their writing. 

Today in class we discussed our anchor novels, and students took a Standardized Test Practice Assessment.  Students were required to read two passages and make inferences using the passages.  Scores are posted on Pinnacle.  Students should be working to finish their anchor novels.  Unit tests will be next week. 

Homework:

Finish Anchor Novel by Monday, 12/14

Unit Test 12/16

CHILI’S INVITES YOU TO

MCCLURE MIDDLE SCHOOL NIGHT!

With each flyer presented tonight, Chili’s will donate 10% of the

sales you bring in to our school. Let them do the cooking and support

McClure Middle School at the same time!

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Click here to download flyer.

The Power of Verbs!

In class today we discussed the power of verbs to improve our writing.  Verbs are the only part of s[eech that every sentence must have.  Students took notes on three types of verbs: action, helping, and linking or state of being verbs.  Students were given examples of sentences where these types of verbs were used. 

Here is a list of helping verbs:

have has had

do does did

can could

will would

shall should

may might must

am is are was were

be being been

State of Being or Linking Verbs

am is are was were

be being been

appear, become, look, taste, feel, grow, remain, sound, seem, smell

In addition, we also looked at some sample expository essays and reviewed thesis statements. 

We completed chapter 14 in The House of Dies Drear.

Homework: 

Students must complete one of the assignments on www.essayscorer.com/ph/ga/mcclure  by 12/17.

Login: student’s lunch number

Password: Student’s lunch number

5 bonus points will be added to their score each time they go in and revise their writing. 

Finish verb packet for next class.

On Friday in class students completed their analysis of the story “The Scarlet Ibis.”  Grades for this assignment will be on Pinnacle shortly.  In addition, they were given time in class to read from their anchor novels.  Anchor novels need to be completed by next Monday.  Students will have a Unit test on these novels on 12/16.  We then began discussing verbs. 

Homework:  Final Reader Response Letter Due Monday, December 14th.

Anchor Novel Unit Test – December 16th. 

Anchor Book Project due – December 18th or before. 

*****There will be no opportunity to turn this assignment in late, as I will need to have grades completed over Winter Break.***** 

Today in class we focused on the story, “The Scarlet Ibis.”  This is a powerful story which uses beautiful sensory details.  The focus of this story was recognizing the use of flashback and foreshadowing within literature.  Lively discussion followed the reading.  Students then had to engage in a think, pair, share discussion of the story.  A series of questions were posed to initiate this discussion.  Students will finish up the written assessment to this story tomorrow in class. 

Homework:

Reader Response Letter due Friday – Chapters 7-15

Welcome Back!  I hope that everyone had a relaxing, enjoyable Thanksgiving Break.  The countdown has begun.  The 8th grade Writing Assessment will be administered on January 20, 2010.  With so little time before the test, the class is focusing primarily on writing while finishing up the novel, The House of Dies Drear.

In today’s class we reviewed how to write thesis statement.  Students were given the formula:

Specific Subject + stand, feeling, or feature = an effective thesis statement 

We then did a Carousel Brainstorming Activity where students created thesis statements using this formula and proposed topics.  

We finished off the class by reading Chapter 14 in The House of Dies Drear. 

Homework:

Using:  essayscorer.com/ph/ga/mcclure, choose one of the writing assignments to complete by 12/17/09.  For each time a student adds to his/her essay or improves upon it, he/she will be given five bonus points added to their final grade for the assignment. 

Login: lunch number

Password: lunch number

Welcome Back!  I hope that everyone had a wonderful, restful Thanksgiving Break.  With only three weeks to go before winter break, we have a great deal of work to do.  Yesterday in class we discussed the use of flashback and foreshadowing in literature.  Students were taught to recognize the use of foreshadowing through setting, action, dialogue and narrator’s commentary.  They were asked to attempt to use these details with a posed scenario.  Then they had to identify these “hints” and make predictions about the story based on these details. 

Homework:

Reader Response Letter for Chapters 7-15 due on Friday. 

McClure’s Mouthwatering Munchies Cookbooks are on sale in the front office for $12.00. Great Holiday Gift!After the quiz on the anchor novels, students were then asked to refer back to the Essential Question of the Unit, “Can all conflicts be resolved?” Many of the conflicts that the characters in our novel have been faced with are serious issues that may in fact be unresolvable.  Students continued to read silently.  We then discussed word origins.  We reviewed prefixes, suffixes, and root words.  Students pointed out that much of the English language is derived from Greek or Latin words. 

In class we completed pages, 116 and 117 in The Reader’s Journey.

Homework:

None!  Happy Thanksgiving!

Today’s class continued to focus on writing persuasive and expository essays.  We reviewed the State rubric that will be used in scoring their writing assignments on the 8th grade writing assessment, and I showed them how I graded their persuasive writing prompts using this rubric.  We then discussed the necessity of having a clear thesis statement in the beginning of their essays.  Students wrote examples on the board, and these examples were discussed.

We then read and discussed Chapter 13 in The House of Dies Drear.

Homework:

Students should do the back of the Thesis Statement Worksheet.  Choose one topic from that page and write three supporting details.     

Home

Today in class students completed their Anchor novel group projects.  Students were asked to identify and make a graphic organizer for five vocabulary words in chapters 1-6, write a five sentence summary about the novel, write five questions (with answers), and identify five literature terms that have been discussed in class and find examples of each in the novel.  Grades are posted on Pinnacle. 

The first reader response letter for Unit 2 was due today.  Many students did not have theirs.  Please make note that students will have a letter due once a week in response to their reading. 

At this point, all students should have read through chapter 9 in their anchor novels.  The only exception to this is for students reading Annie John.  These students should have completed through chapter 6. 

Homework – Quiz on chapters 1-9 on Wednesday.