ELA STUFF

Good afternoon,

We had one period of class today and the period was alloted for the following objectives:

Renew their seating places

Know their reading partners

• Pick an autobiography/biography book for their pair reading and report from the collection I have chosen from our classroom set.
  

Effects:

• Many were not happy with the new arrangement, specially then one who was isolated from the group.


• One girl who tried to distract the class with post it really disappointed me gravely.


• Another girl who was overly dramatic with the situation tried to call attention to herself was another heart breaker because she doesn't behave like that at home. I know that for a fact.


• One scholar received a legal document for his behavior.


• Two girls came in late - one from the principal's office and one from the Dean.


• I had to give a "speech" reminding them that they do not have any rght to call the shots in this class because they are not the one in charge. IT'S NOT HAPPENING IN MY CLASS!


• One boy had to be told 5 times to start reading his book! I could not phrase the sentence in a simpler way than that.

At the end of the period, I gave them a chance to choose their own biography or autobiography books for independent reading because some were not happy about the selection they made due to the limited books we have in our library. They were told to go the public library and check a book of their choice similar from our independent reading study. We need to approve the book firt. There is a pair project based on the reading : Book Talk and Non-fiction Project due on Nov. 25, 2009 (Wednesday).

Ms. Adams and I have also set up an incentive for those who come late for our Mon and Thu sessions. For those who come on time, they get to participate to our Thanksgiving Raffle on 11/25. So the more entries they have, the better chances of winning! There are two major prizes at stake so you know what to do in order to join. BE ON TIME FOR ELA MONDAY AND THURSDAY CLASS!

Toodles,

Ms. Maria Acedo

ELA Teacher

ELA STUFF

(La Push Beach, Washington 8/20/09)




Hello again. I'm signing back to give everyone an update of my 801 ELA class for the week of Oct. 19-23. By the way, the class meets 8 times a week as follow:

• Mondays and Thursdays from 8:00-9:37 (Lesson starts promptly at 8:00)


• Tuesdays from 11:56-1:27


• Wednesdays 12:42-1:27


• Fridays from 12:42-1:27

The unit on non-fiction continued with questions, I formulated to help them focus on ir readings which is one of the strategies an active reader should do all the time. They are as follow:

• What is the text about?


• What does the author want me to think? (with support from the text)


• What does the author want me to feel using our mood words on chart? (with text support)


• What is the aim of the author for writing? (with supporting details from the text)

We did a sample on the article about "H1N1 Flu Virus" and the class was grouped impromptu to avoid bias. The task for the group was to create a tv ad campaigning for the prevention of the spreading of H1N1 Virus which the article discussed. Two days were given for the group to create the ad and the presentation was held last Friday, Oct. 23. It was the second quiz for the current marking period.

Rubrics for the ad are as follow:

• Accuracy of the Information based on the article : 40 pts.


• Creativity of the Ad : 20 pts.


• Teamwork reflected from the presentation : 20 pts.


• Originality of the Medium : 20 pts.

Total : 100 pts.

Three actors emerged from the presentation: James, Nazia and Reggie. (They can act!)

I want to upload photos Mr. Dennis, our paraprofessional, took from the presentation but I need to clear it up with my principal first for safety issues.

Till then... Ooops reminder guys! Oct. 30, 2009 is the deadline for your 3rd book reports! I do not have the template right now due to the xerox copier breakdown so, you need to create one for your report. Typing is the best way to go. Technology room is open daily from 3:00-4:30. You need to make your way there because many of you have not submitted the 2nd book report till now.

Toodles,

Maria Acedo

ELA STUFF

Hello everyone!

Our school has just started the 2nd Marking Period for the school year and for everyone's information, the Open School Night is scheduled on Nov. 16 from 5:00-7:30 p.m. which resumes the next day, Nov. 17 from 12:00 - 2:20 p.m. I am calling to invite parents to come and talk to the teachers regarding their child/children in school. I am encouraging parents to come and be involved with the education of their children.

Our unit for the next 7-8 weeks is on Non-Fiction. Yesterday, we have already discussed about the form, use and importance of reading non-fiction texts. Allow me to go into details.

Non-Fiction are writings about real people, places, things and events.

Forms of non-fiction are as follows:

• Essays
• Autobiographies/Biographies
• News Stories
• Speeches
• Documentaries
• History
• How-to-books or manuals
• Memoirs

Why do we NEED to read non-fiction?

• Knowledge is power.
  
• We use facts to use.
  
• It helps us understand people, the past, cultures and be tolerant of the world through our understanding.
  
• It helps us think critically or question the truth.
  
• It gives us directions, guidance, inspiration and release.
  
• It balances fiction.
  
• It helps us find out more about ourselves.

Questions to ask during our non-fiction reading to monitor our comprehension of the text.

• What is the text about? (Foucs on facts)
  
• What does the text want me to think? (Focus on ideas/concepts)
  
• What does teh text want me to feel? (Focus on emotions)

Aim is the writer's REASON(S) for writing a non-fiction text. (Why did the author write this piece?)

* to inform or to r eport about something that happened
* to entertain, amuse or enlightened

* to share a story
* to share his views or her views about a particular topic/subject

* A writer can have more than one aim in creating a work

We did a classwork today using the Health section of the Reader's Digest. The lesson was only 60% successful because even if the text was short, vocabulary became a big factor for some of my students to comprehend the text. Ms. Adams and I were able to come up with a contingency plan that we will be using for our next ELA session, tomorrow at 7th period.

Their homework for tonight is to go over the National Geographic booklet they read a few weeks back and complete a graphic organizer to help them prepare for their next writing assignment - Expository Writing!

Have a good evening to you all!

Toodles,

Ms. Maria Acedo

ELA STUFF : Our Class Today

Good evening. Before I turn in and call it a day, I want to talk about how my class went for 6th and 7th period. Usually, it is not the best time of the day as they have already been highly energized and by they time they get to my class, I have to be a "drill sargeant" to keep them in order.

Here are the highlights of the periods:

• 
  
  A listening quiz was given to make up for their unit test scores. Partial class standing grades have been given to each of them except for those who were absent (3 of them, i.e after a long weekend).They had listen to an African myth and answer 6 comprehension questions about it. It was ok, rocky but ok.


• Period 7 was alloted for their Independent Reading as Book Report #2 deadline comes on Friday, Oct. 16 which also marks the end of the First Marking Period. Conferences were held for everyone which includes updates of reports they did not turn in or writing assignments (their family stories as retold by them) they have not fully completed or revised for publishing/grading. Only a handful were able to turn in their work and all of them need to be edited for final submission.


• I have also returned their unit test papers-graded and scored including classwork on setting and mood which was also graded and scored.


• Book Reports submitted lack quality reflecting little effort in its production and presentation. I hope many of you doing this will wake up to the reality that high school work will require you so much more. It is what it is.


• Unfortunately, many of them are not paying serious situation about their school work which really makes me very sad but if that is the choice they make inspite all my guidance and help, consequences for these choices are inevitable.
• Also thanks to a concerned guardian who came and conferenced with me after my phone call last Friday night. I appreciate the time and effort you gave to check on your child at school.
  
• Lastly, Kudos to those who are making the most of their time in ELA....I admire your determination and unwavering perseverance. Keep the good study habits developing.

P.S

You want a taste high school? Ok. I have no problem with that.

Toodles,

Ms. Maria Acedo

Ms. Maria Acedo

Updated Book Report Rubric

October 12, 2009

 

801 BOOK REPORT RUBRIC

(EXPIRES ON YOUR 5^TH BOOK REPORT)

 

DIRECTIONS
Report cover is an original art design and displays relation to the story. Effort exerted is proportional to the product design. There is evidence of creativity from the work presented.
Report Template Author, your name and class are on appropriate headings. Setting and characters are clearly identified in their appropriate sections.
Summary Sequences of events are clearly organized for reader's understanding of the story. There is a beginning, middle and an end in the presentation of the important scenes in the story. A flow from one scene to the next is unmistakably evident.
Recommendations/Vocabulary The reporter used details from the book to back up his recommendations, thus, reflecting evidence that the book was read from cover to cover. 5 Vocabulary words were used to describe the novel
Use of correct sentence structure (complete sentences, spelling, punctuations and paragraph form). There are no runs on sentences. Punctuations are correctly used. Slang language is not used in the report
Presentation and submission of Report On time and neatly presented which shows consciousness of the quality of work being submitted on the part of the reporter.

 

 

Performance Level

 

Level 4 (100-90) Beyond meeting the requirements

Level 3 (89-80) Averagely meeting the requirements

Level 2 (79-65) Barely making the requirements

Level 1 (64-55) Below the requirements

Level 0 (50) No work submitted