Today

Today we listened to book reports - videos and all.  We experienced some technical difficulties but by the end of the day everyone had finished.
Tomorrow the students are assigned a script to write - from any story in the Crossroads anthology.

Today

Today we had muffins, had a guest reader for two poems and a play and then did an in-motion Santa dance:)
Students will present book projects tomorrow - 2 classes.  Then the students have to write a script - either individually or with a partner using any story from the Crossroads book.

We tried searching the youtube video... for Social script:

Miss Rachul's Grade 9 Social Studies class created, wrote, directed and performed the following play to teach the Grade ½ class about Treaties.  The play can be seen at the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkQFMjbh7Eo.

Test Outline

Conflicts, Challenges and Choices

Selections:

-          “And the Lucky Winner Is”

-          “Signposts on the Journey”

-          “In the Silence”

-          We Are All One Poems – “my father hurting”, “If You Think”, “Tires Stacked in the Hallways of Civilization, “how do I feel”

-          “The Long Journey”

-          Listening – “Native Residential Schooling in Canada” and Stephen Harper’s speech to apologize to the country

-          “Halting Hatred”

-          “The Highwayman”

-          “David”

-          “Consorting with Frogs”

-          “Shoes”

-          “Birdfoot’s Grandpa

-          “The Last Leaf”

Other items:

Literary Devices: simile, personification, metaphor, alliteration, onomatopoeia, irony, idiom

Grammar: run-ons, fragments, compound sentences, simple sentences, complex sentences

Basic Structure of an Essay and Paragraph

Book Report

BOOK REPORTS ARE DUE ON TUESDAY, DECEMBER 20.
THEY MUST BE GIVEN THIS DAY; WE HAVE TWO CLASSES TO COMPLETE PRESENTATIONS.

English Test

We will have a test on Thursday, January 5 on all of the selections from our Unit: Conflicts, Challenges and Issues: Doing the Right Thing.  We will go over and list all of the selections before the break. 

January Reader Response letter is also due Thursday, January 5th.

We are working on our videos and book projects this week.  These are due on Monday.

We have a couple more selections to read from the unit in the next week.

Choices, Challengees and Conflicts: Doing the Right Thing

How do the following video stories fit into our unit?

1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bskw0fLqYyM

2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2mf8DtWWd8&feature=youtube_gdata_player

3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fb0q8SL_kLY&feature=related

4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QKxsiRYC9Q


How does the picture book: Have You Filled a Bucket Today? fit into our unit?

How does the following picture fit into our unit of study?

The HIghway Man

Pictures - to illustrate one stanza - due tomorrow.

Tomorrow we will read "David".

Book Report

Grade 9 Book Report

Name: __________________

Components:  You may choose how to present your report: orally, Power Point, poster

/10         Video (10-15 pictures)

/2            Setting

/3            Characters

/5            Plot (including conclusion)

/2            Persuasiveness or how it fits into the theme

/2            Choice – length of book – 150 pages

/5            Volume

/5            Fluency and eye contact

Tuesday

We will be working on reading some poems from the Unit Issues, Challenges and Conflicts.  Students will have a few questions to answer, with a partner and then will be asked to write a poem about a current issue.

Later this week:
The Highway Man
http://www.teachingideas.co.uk/english/thehighwayman.htm

This Week

Thank you to everyone for coming out to conferences!  The kids did a great job!  Please remember if you have specific issues or concerns to call me directly or send an email to hiltz.catherine@prairiesouth.ca


This week will continue to read selections from our unit Conflicts, Challenges and Issues: Doing the Right Thing.
We will start the week with Stephen Harper's public apology regarding residential schooling.  We will then continue to read some of the selections from the Crossroads anthology.

Also - start another novel for a book report that will be due right before Christmas!

Today

Today we worked on getting our folders ready for student conferences, and then did some work on our book reports.

Book Project

Book Projects - Conflicts, Issues, Challenges: Doing the Right Thing
Due Wednesday, November 23rd.

Wednesday

Students need to make sure that they have a book to read for their book report due next week.
Today we went over "And the Lucky Winner Is" and finished "Signposts" - both from Crossroads.
Tomorrow we will listen to articles about residential schools and read orally "In the Silence".

This Week

We are working on:
- reading for our book reports
- stories from Unit - Conflicts, Issues and Challenges: Making the Right Choice: 
"And the Lucky Winner Is"
"Signposts on The Journey"

Book Talk

Grade Nine

Book Report/Talk Assignment

Due:  November 21^st

Your assignment is to read a book of your choice, related to the theme “Conflicts, Issues and Challenges: Making the Right Choice”.  When you are finished reading, you must prepare a book talk to deliver to the class.  You must outline the entire plot, and convince/persuade someone to read the novel.

You will be graded on the following:

/1       book choice

/2      introduction (including title, setting, other books by the same author) – see blog for extra assistance

/5      plot outline/summary

/2      conclusion

           /5      persuasiveness and how the book fits into the theme

           /5      oral reading of a selected page

Delivery:

          /2      fluency/rate

          /2      volume

          /2      clarity

          /2      pronunciation

          /2      expression

          /30    Total

The Breadwinner

Students are writing a formal essay on the novel and completing their group projects.

The Breadwinner Essay

Grade Nine English

Your assignment is to answer the following question.

“What can we learn from this novel?”  OR “What does this novel teach us?”

Example: The novel The Breadwinner shows how Parvana’s family fights to survive living under Taliban rule in Afghanistan.

Example: It is clearly evident in the novel, The Breadwinner, that women are treated very differently than men and they have fewer rights than Canadian women.

Your essay must consist of at least five paragraphs, the first will be the introduction, the middle paragraphs will be the body paragraphs (the reasons to support your statement) and the last paragraph will be the conclusion. 

You will be graded on the following:

          /5       Outline and rough copy

/2       Title page with original title

          /3       Introductory paragraph with the novel title and author cited

          /9       content and organization of body paragraphs

          /2       use of at least one quote to support the essay (inc. pg number)

          /5       mechanics – spelling, grammar, double spaced

          /5       rough copy(s) with EDITING

          /2       concluding paragraph – summarizing essay in an original way

          /2       effort and attitude

          /35     TOTAL

Test is tomorrow - Thursday, November 10th.

Essays and group projects are due on Monday, November 14th.

Breadwinner Essay

Today we will go over the basic formal essay and students will be assigned an essay to write on the novel.  Tomorrow and Wednesday students will be able to work on their group projects and their essays.

Breadwinner

Students are working on The Breadwinner group assignment.
Use the following website for the plot line.

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/plot-diagram/

Project -
1. 3 pictures of Afghan clothing
2. Map of Afghanistan
3. Venn Diagram comparing your life to Parvana's life.
4. Plot line.

ALL GROUP WORK MUST BE IN "PUBLISHED" FORM AND DISPLAYED IN THE CLASSROOM ON THE BACK BB.

Test - next week - Wednesday.
Essay on novel - Monday

Breadwinner

Reader Response Letters due today.

We are reading The Breadwinner - Chapters 7, 8 and 9 today.

Monday

Today we will go over:
"Taste of Melon" - hand back assignments and go over
"How to Tell Renata" - and finish - questions and journal entry

Silent reading of the short story "The Game" by Ken Dryden.  Students have to select five words that they do not understand, write the sentence, circle or underline the word and then write a definition.  Then students must select one of the following activities to complete:
Outline all of the qualities of the "sports hero" or celebrity identified by Dryden.  Select a sports figure, and compare Dryden's description.  Create a chart to show your findings. 

Work on Remembrance Day - poem or essay.
Study
Test tomorrow -  students must hand in all notes - organized and complete.

Today

Today we worked on:
- listening activity-I read "Long, Long After School" and they had to listen. After listening, they had to answer ten questions.
- reading comprehension activity - half a page with ten questions
- talked about reading to Seniors
- starting reading "Taste of Melon" with reading strategy prediction chart. We will finish this tomorrow.

Test - Monday, October 24th on everything that we have studied "In Search of Self".

Friday, October 14

Today we finished reading "Golden Girl" silently and finished the assignment - graphic organizer and five comprehension questions.  Assignments need to be handed in when completed.

Then we went to the library to select things to read to the Seniors on Monday for Education Week.

Next week we will try to finish the selections from the Unit In Search of Self, and plan to have a test the following week.

Tuesday, October 11th

Today we completed a short work sheet on sentence fragments; tomorrow we will work on run-ons.  We also went to the computer lab to continue our drafts for our personal stories/anecdotes. 

These are due on Thursday, October 13th!

Tomorrow we will read two short poems and create a visual representation for one of them.

Due Monday, October 3rd

Reader Response Letters
Book Reports - due Thursday, October 6th

Short Story Assignment

Grade Nine English Language Arts

In Search of Self

Creative Writing Assignment

Your assignment is to write a short story, or a personal anecdote, describing an event in your life that helped you to understand yourself.  This event may be small in nature or very large.  For example, it may be attending a friend’s birthday party or it may be when your parents got divorced.  The event may be recent or it may be from several years ago.  This event must include some discovery or realization about you.

You must write in first person and you must consider word choice, organization, voice, conventions, and sentence fluency (handouts).  Your story must be at least 1500 words.

You must include pre-writing, drafting and a good typed copy with a title page.  You must have at least TWO people edit and proofread your story.  They must use two different colors and sign their names on the draft.

The story will be due on Tuesday, October 11^th.

Today

Students were writing and classifying simple, compound and complex sentences.  We finished reading Jade Peony.
Tomorrow the students will need to finish assignments for Happy Feet, Jade Peony, corrececting sentence sheets and reading for book report.

Today

Today we are finishing up:

1. Four Grammar sheets on sentences - hand in.
2. Outlining Story Elements - for "Kath and Mouse"
3. Finish critiquing video on self presentation and hand in.
4. Read for book report.

Tomorrow -
1. Read two short selections "Appearance" and "Living Life to the Max"
2. Grammar

This Week

Monday and Tuesday:

- I Was a Teenage Ingenue - short article and assignment.
- Kath and Mouse - short story and assignment including outlining story elements.
- Critquing oral song presentations - hand in or email.
- two more grammar assignments (hand in last two).
- time to work on book report presentations.

Wednesday, September 14

BOOK REPORTS - PRESENTATIONS DUE:
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2011

Song Lyric Assignments

We will finish listening to the song lyric assignments tomorrow.  Students are also finishing up questions from the short story "Borders" and completing some grammar work on simple and complex sentences.

Students must also continue reading their novels that they selected.  Each novel must relate to our unit of study - In Search of Self.

Students must check their student email to analyze their song lyric presentation.
1.  Analyze your voice - loudness, clarity, pacing...
2. Analyze your posture, eye contact and body movements.
3. Analyze the flow of the presentation: were they unnecessary pauses?  Were you rushing?
4. Did you forget anything?  If so, what?
5. Overall, describe your presentation, and inlcude at least one aspect that you plan to target for your next presentation.

Answer and hand in - or email to me.

Weekend

Today, we read books for our book assignments. 

Song Lyric Assignment is due Tuesday:  All students to present.

Monday - I will be in Assiniobia for a workshop.

Students will read short story "Borders" and have a short assignment.

Good Morning

Today we are working on the following:
 - students were given marks for All That I Am Webs
- working on Song assignments - some students will be able to present this afternoon and the rest tomorrow.

Rhyme Patterns:  http://www.loske.org/html/school/english/rhyme.pdf
- Reading short story "Borders"
- given book assignment/project

Tuesday, September 6

Working on:
1. Hand back letters and go over - run-ons, capitals...
2. Presentations
3. Accpetance - read short story (very short) with five comp questions
4. Song Lyric Assignment - go over "I Am My Hair" as an example.  Handout - assignment and rhyme schemes.
5. Working on song lyric assignment.
6. Short Story "Borders"

Your identity is who you are.  It has been built by you and shaped by your family, friends and community.  By exploring who you are and finding out more about your friends, classmates and others as individuals you gain a stronger sense of self.  In turn, by knowing yourself, you can consider who you want to become and be open to changes (and conflicts) that you will encounter as you journey through life.

Possible Questions for Deeper Understanding:

• From where does our sense of identity come?
• What makes each person unique and interesting?
• How do people express their individuality?
• How do people change as they journey through life?
• How do we keep our self-identity yet, at the same time, become part of a community?

I Am My Hair

http://www.directlyrics.com/lady-gaga-hair-lyrics.html

Homework

"Search of Self" web is due Tuesday.
Students need to search for a song that expresses something about themselves..

Search of Self

Students will be working on Reader Response Letter - due September 1.

Students will also work on "self web".

Our next assignment will be "SONG LYRICS"

Grade 9 Assignment

SONG LYRIC ASSIGNMENT

IN SEARCH OF SELF – “ALL THAT I AM”

“Nothing separates the generations more than music.  By the time a child is eight or nine, he has developed a passion for his own music that is even stronger than his passions for procrastination and weird clothes.”  Bill Cosby

Music has defined many moments in my life and I am quite certain that each of you can say the same thing.  Your assignment is to find a song that speaks to you and helps you define yourself and “ALL THAT YOU ARE”.  You must select a song, print out the lyrics, determine the rhyme scheme and analyze what the song is really saying.  You must include why you chose the song that you did and why it helps define you at this moment in time.  You will present the song and your presentation to the class. 

Your song must be “school appropriate”.  I will not accept an assignment with lyrics that are racist, sexual or degrading in any way.  If you are uncertain about your song choice, please consult me before starting your assignment.

Welcome to Grade 9 English Language Arts

Welcome Students! 

The first day of school is Monday, August 29th (for everyone except Kindergarten - they start Tuesday)!
We will not have English until Tuesday, August 30th and we will go over course load, classroom procedures and we will begin with our first unit of study, "All That I Am - Seach of Self".  If you are reading this blog before we start, then please bring some ideas for your first assignment:

UNIT #ONE:  “All that I Am – The Search for Self”

SLO – I CAN CREATE A VISUAL USING CONCEPTS OF “ME”.

ACTIVITY:

Create a web of who you are by putting a circle in the center of the page with your name in it.  From there branch out of the web with different categories: favourite quote, favourite bed time story, picture of self, favourite song, personality description, hobbies, likes/dislikes.  Branch out as many different “legs” as you can.  You must have at least 15 “legs”.

Three more days - one project to finish!

Students must turn in their movie review assignment today by 9:00am. Late assignments will not be accepted.

We are finishIng the year with a linguistic inquiry assignment. Yesterday the students picked their topic and started work! Most students picked a partner, and they are creating a board game.

Sample topics: new language, Dictionary, Old English, comparison of British and Canadian spellings...

Students have two classes today to work and one on Monday!

Then we play and grade them on Tuesday!!

City of Ember

We just finished viewing City of Ember.  Students will have time to work on their written review tomorrow.

Non-Fiction PP Presentation

Required Reading - non-fiction book; 20-30 articles or 15-20 Chicken Soup stories

Required Components:
/5     Introduction - grab the interest of the reader...  title, author(s)...
/5     Print out of slide presentation
/20   20 slides
/5     Grammar/mechanics
/5     Factual information related to topic on one slides
/5     Personal responses

Presentation
/5     Volume
/5     Expression
/5     Eye Contact and Fluency

/60     TOTAL

DUE:FRIDAY, JUNE 10TH

June 6-10th

Monday - Test
Tuesday - hand in comparison for 2 movies and play chart, practice memoriztion of lines and discussing components of PP, and reading for non-fiction power point presentation
Wednesday- working on non-fiction power point - reading and/or presentation
Thursday  - working on non-fiction presentation
Friday - presentations

May 30-June 3

Grade Nine  Assignments

ASSIGNMENTS	DUE DATE
ACT TWO WORK (a) FIGURES OF SPEECH PITCURE (b) Scenes 1&2 (10questions) (c)  Scene 3 (6 questions) (d) Scene 4 (6 questions) (e) Scene 5 (4 questions) (f)    Scene 6 (5 questions)	DONE
SCC STORY	DONE
ACT THREE WORK (a)       Multiple Choice (b)      Pun-demonium (c)       Scene 1 (7questions) (d)      Scene 2 (8 questions) (e)       Scene 3 (6 questions) (f)        Scenes 4 & 5 (10 questions)	Due Thursday, June 2nd (2 more classes to work – had one on Friday, May 27)
ACT FOUR WORK (10 questions)	Due Friday, June 3rd
JUNE READER RESPONSE	JUNE 1, 2011
ACT FIVE WORK (10 questions)	Due Friday, JUNE 3, 2011
ROMEO AND JULIET TEST	Monday, June 6th, 2011
NON-FICTION POWER POINT	Friday, June 10th
MEMORIZATION – 20 LINES Recite individually for me.	END OF ROMEO AND JULIET- June 7th

May 16-20th

This week we will be working on:
 1.  SCC writing competition assignment - given on Monday.  Due Tuesday, May 24th.
 2. Act Two Work - due Friday, May 20th
 3. Working on Act Three of Romeo and Juliet: reading.
 4. Selecting Non-fiction reading to complete a power point presentation.  Due:  June 6th!!!!!!

This Week

This week we are working on some work for Act One - Romeo and Juliet.  All of this work is due for the Monday right after the break.  We are also working on our book projects - reading our books.  All of the books need to be read for Monday, May 2nd.  Students will have two classes after the break - in the computer lab to work on their Power Point presentations.  Presentations are due Thursday, May5th.

Romeo and Juliet

Today we read to the end of Act One Scene Four and it was absolutely enjoyable!!!!  We will continue reading next week, and we will finish off some quotes and questions.  Hopefully we can finish the novel before EASTER!!!!!!

Possible Questions for Deeper Understanding:

• Why do people need each other?

• What does it mean to be a loyal and true friend?

• What does it mean to belong and be loyal to our family?

• What does it mean to be in love?

Book Project

Grade Nine Book Project

Due Date: Monday, May 5^nd

You must create a Power Point that has a minimum of 20 slides that represents your book.  You must include captions and pictures on each slide.  You can represent and talk about the novel in any way: plot, characters, point of view, setting, theme, mood...  There is no expectation to cover everything, except the audience must understand the entire novel.  There is an expectation to RESPOND to the novel.  What are you feelings about the topic; how can you connect to the novel; can you learn anything from the novel...  You can refer to our reader response questions.

Power Point

/20       slides and overall content on each slide

/5         creativity and overall appearance

/5         covering what happened in the story

/5         grammar, spelling

/5         responding to the story -

Presentation

/5         volume

/5         expression

/5         fluency and eye contact

Total

/55

Compose and Create (CC) Goal 2 Representing, Speaking, and Writing Assessment and Evaluation Criteria Holistic Rubric
Level 6	The visual, multimedia, oral, or written composition is original and insightful. (Product is well-crafted, fully developed, and appropriate to purpose and audience. The student demonstrates confident control of the language elements of composition and presentation. Planning is evident, and the composition or presentation comes together as a secure whole. The few errors in mechanics are likely the result of risk taking.)
Level 5	The visual, multimedia, oral, or written composition is clear and thoughtful. (Product is fully developed and appropriate to purpose and audience. The student controls the language elements and techniques effectively. Planning is evident and the composition seems complete. The few mechanical errors do not impede communication.)
Level 4	The visual, multimedia, oral, or written composition is clear and straightforward. (Product is adequately developed, appropriate to purpose, and shows some awareness of audience. The student demonstrates control over the language elements and techniques. Planning identifies main ideas. Minor errors, though noticeable, do not impede audience understanding.)
Level 3	The visual, multimedia, oral, or written composition is satisfactory but unrefined. (Product is understandable but uneven in its development. It maintains the purpose on a basic level, but may not show awareness of audience. The student shows a basic control over the language elements and techniques. Some errors in mechanics may impede understanding.)
Level 2	The visual, multimedia, oral, or written composition is limited and over generalized. (Product demonstrates uneven/uncertain control over the language elements relative to the purpose. It may not show awareness of audience. The student shows some control over the language elements and techniques, but attempts at complicated or sophisticated structures and variety results in awkwardness and/or obscured meaning. Less than adequate planning results in inconsistent development. Frequent mechanical errors impede understanding.)
Level 1	The visual, multimedia, oral, or written composition is unfocused and unclear. (Product is difficult to follow. The purpose is unclear, and the subject may be off topic. Evidence of planning is absent. The composition shows an uncertain grasp of the basic language elements relative to the purpose. Sentences are incomplete, run-on, or simple

Questions to Consider While Creating Your Presentation:

About what am I speaking, writing, or representing? Who is my audience (to what person or group of people am I trying to communicate)? What is my purpose (what do I want to achieve)? What register and tone would be appropriate (what level of language should I use and what “voice” should I assume)?

What form should this take? Is this the right form to communicate my message? Is my text effectively and logically organized? Does each section/paragraph begin and end effectively? Does my text use a consistent point of view? Does my text use effective transitions and connections?

Are all sentences clear, complete, and with varied beginnings? Have I used a variety of sentence types (e.g., exclamations) and sentence structures (e.g., S-V, SVO, and S-LV-C)? Have I created sentences of varying length? Have I used co-ordination, subordination, and apposition to enhance my communication? Are there any sentence fragments or run-ons? Does each verb agree with its subject?

Are my word choices vivid? Have frequently confused words been used correctly? Have I used qualifiers effectively and appropriately? Have I noted the denotative and connotative meaning of words and used them effectively? Are my pronoun references correct? Have I avoided double negatives?

How could I clarify or enhance my communication using other elements such as graphics, colour, sound, movement, or props? How can I make this more interesting? More effective? Are my accompanying visuals and other media appropriate? Did I use legible handwriting or appropriate fonts?

Have I included everything I want to say? Do I need to add any other information? Are there enough details? Do I need to take anything out?

Is the writing interesting?

Does the writing achieve the purpose? Are there unrelated ideas that distract the listener, reader, or viewer?

Do I have an introduction?

Is my main idea clearly developed and supported?

Is my order clear?

Are the ideas and details arranged in an effective order?

Are the connections between ideas and sentences clear?

Do I have a good ending?

Are my sentences clear and complete?

Do my sentences read smoothly?

Is the sentence structure varied?

Do the subjects and verbs agree?

Does my language fit the audience and purpose?

Have I used the best words?

Have I used any words too many times?

Have I left out any words?

Are my words spelled correctly?

Did I proofread for capitalization and punctuation?

Is it audible?

Is my polished draft legible?

Is the layout clear?

What is the part that I like best?

Does it say what I wanted it to say?

Does it have a clear form?

Does it make sense? Is it interesting?

Does it give the intended reaction?

Is it clear and easy to understand? Is it appropriate for my purpose and audience?

How can it be improved?

What could I do next?

What does quality speaking, writing, and other forms of representing look and sound like?

Is my presentation ready?

In what context (situation) will my listeners, readers, or viewers engage with my text?

How will this context affect its presentation?

What is the listeners’, readers’, or viewers’ response?

What worked well?

What would I try next time?

What lessons have I learned from this experience?