Studio Day Work 2/1/2016

This weekend's work will be a cinch!

Sixth Grade-- Read "The Haunted House" by Plautus. Be ready to take a quiz on the story and Ancient Roman vocabulary.

Seventh Grade-- Read Acts I, II, II of Macbeth. Be ready to take a quiz on the story and vocabulary of The Middle Ages. (And since Shakespeare is meant to also be performed, here's a video of Macbeth to read along: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1urw2cGpMXs)

Eighth Grade-- All work for the previous week is due. Staple it all to turn in after the vocabulary and Huckleberry Finn quiz. Here are the portraits for our portrait study:

Roman Pictures:

Second Semester Begins!

Welcome to the second half of the year, artists and scholars! It seems by all students who earned passing grades in English this semester that the majority of the Middle Schoolers are in the swing of things at ORAA. As we shift gears to a more integrated approach to curriculum in the coming semester, I just want to make some general announcements:

1. Students are expected to read a level-appropriate books for 20-30 minutes each night. 
2. It is the student responsibility to keep up with assignments during absence and illness through moodle and blogs. 

As of January 26, students in 6-8 will be receiving their History and English grades in my class. Please make sure students stay on top of assignments when they are absent or need to miss class! 

Assignments for the week of January 26, 2016: 

Tuesday-Friday: Workshop Time. 

   In a self directed manner, students will complete the following items before the end of the period on Friday: 

• vocabulary booklet (half-sheet for each of the vocabulary words)
• vocabulary worksheet
• weekly grammar worksheet (more quotation marks this week)
• Portrait Study--on a piece of paper, write:
• What do you notice about the portraits? 
• What is the same about the portraits? What is different about the portraits?
• How do the selection of portraits relate to our theme? 
• What time period in history might the portraits portray? How do you know?

Students will also create a poster with a group that states the following for their selected time periods on a 12x18 piece of paper:

• where people lived
• a timeline of significant historical events
• what people wore
• who lived in families in the chosen time periods
• who were the enemies of the state during this time period
• what people did for fun and recreation during this time period

Sixth grade students will be studying ancient Rome, reading the plays of Plautus.
Seventh grade will be studying the European Middle Ages/reading MacBeth through act 3. 

Eighth grade will be studying the westward expansion from President Jackson to Lewis and Clark/reading Huckleberry Finn through chapter 10. 

Here are links to the readings for the unit. Students will be expected to be able to read these materials at home. If you cannot make an electronic device available for your child to read, please purchase or borrow the corresponding book so that your child does not fall behind. 

https://www2.bc.edu/michael-caslin/Ancient%20History%20Articles2/Greek%20and%20Roman%20Plays.pdf

http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/macbeth_1_1.html

http://contentserver.adobe.com/store/books/HuckFinn.pdf

A book report on these works will be due next week as part of the Integrated History/English curriculum. 

Please email me with any questions! Thanks! 

Studio Day Work 1/25/2016

Students will do a full book report on the book they have been reading at home in the evenings.

Each of these topics should be written in one paragraph to create a comprehensive essay:
A summary of the book
Characters and descriptions of characters
The conflict (problem) of the story and solution
Favorite part of the book and why
If you would recommend the book and why or why not.

We will begin integrated History and English units next week. As always, it is assumed students are reading at least 30 minutes each night in addition to their school work. 

Creative Writing Rubric

Here is the rubric we'll be using to grade our creative writing stories:

CATEGORY	4	3	2	1
Focus on Topic (Content)	There is one clear, well-focused topic. Main idea stands out and is supported by detailed information.	Main idea is clear but the supporting information is general.	Main idea is somewhat clear but there is a need for more supporting information.	The main idea is not clear. There is a seemingly random collection of information.
Adding Personality (Voice)	The writer seems to be writing from knowledge or experience. The author has taken the ideas and made them "his own."	The writer seems to be drawing on knowledge or experience, but there is some lack of ownership of the topic.	The writer relates some of his own knowledge or experience, but it adds nothing to the discussion of the topic.	The writer has not tried to transform the information in a personal way. The ideas and the way they are expressed seem to belong to someone else.
Sequencing (Organization)	Details are placed in a logical order and the way they are presented effectively keeps the interest of the reader.	Details are placed in a logical order, but the way in which they are presented/introduced sometimes makes the writing less interesting.	Some details are not in a logical or expected order, and this distracts the reader.	Many details are not in a logical or expected order. There is little sense that the writing is organized.
Grammar & Spelling (Conventions)	Writer makes no errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes 1-2 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes 3-4 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.	Writer makes more than 4 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content.
Word Choice	Writer uses vivid words and phrases that linger or draw pictures in the reader's mind, and the choice and placement of the words seems accurate, natural and not forced.	Writer uses vivid words and phrases that linger or draw pictures in the reader's mind, but occasionally the words are used inaccurately or seem overdone.	Writer uses words that communicate clearly, but the writing lacks variety, punch or flair.	Writer uses a limited vocabulary that does not communicate strongly or capture the reader's interest. Jargon or cliches may be present and detract from the meaning.

Week of Creativity

Hello artists and scholars,

I hope everyone enjoyed their three day weekend! This week is the final week of the semester. As such, we will be wrapping up our creative writing unit. If students want a chance for a higher grade or additional points for missed work, all work must be in to me by Thursday, January 21 at the latest. After the break, we will be studying playwriting from different parts of the world and historical time periods. I will also be adding in History lessons to those units, which will be tailored to each grade level. I'm looking forward to a very creative and educational spring!

Dates to remember: January 26-29, 12:30 dismissal for learning plan meetings. I will send out an email to my homeroom class this week for signups. Anyone else wishing to check in on their child's grade in English is also welcome to email me for a conference.

Tuesday: Students will discuss the traits of an excellent story and create a rubric for the class.
Wednesday and Thursday: Students will work on editing their drafts and reading other's works to provide feedback to their classmates. Stories are due at the beginning of the period on January 22 and will not be accepted electronically, only printed or handwritten. 
Friday: Reading party. Students will be reading their stories aloud and silently, sharing with partners. Partners and the students, themselves, will be grading the stories based on the rubrics designed earlier in the week.


I am looking forward to reading everyone's stories!

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at theresa.kurczewski@springscs.org. Have a wonderful week! Mrs. K

Presentations of Learning

Hello Artists and Scholars,

As the final weeks of the semester come to a close, we are now demonstrating everything we've learned over the course of the year so far.

Tuesday/Wednesday: OARS Milestone semester assessment (computer-based, district test for all middle-schoolers).  Some students in my homeroom will do their Presentation of Learning in Mr. Smith's class.

Thursday/Friday: My homeroom will have their presentations of Learning. All middle schoolers will have the opportunity to work on their creative writing story and Ms. Campo's research project. Our daily oral language this week focuses on dialogue and quotation marks.

I will also be sending out a sign-up for my class to do their Learning Plan meetings in two weeks. As a reminder, there will be 12:30 dismissal for those on the week of January 25.

Have a wonderful week! Please email me if you have any questions!

New Year, New Goals 2016

Welcome back from winter break, everyone! I missed you, but trust you had an amazing time off relaxing and enjoying some family time over the break.

Since this next three weeks is action-packed with learning plan meetings and Presentations of Learning, we are going to focus on some skill pieces and a writing project until the end of the semester.

Please remember it's your responsibility to read 20-30 minutes per night. This is not assigned, it's assumed. 

Presentations of Learning will take place the week of January12-15. Teachers will send a schedule of student presentations out this week, so that parents can attend if they wish. These are very important to our school and to presentation skills in life, as most colleges and jobs ask individuals to recap their accomplishments over a given period of time. 

Learning plan conferences will take place the week of January 25. There will be 12:00 dismissal all this week for conferences and sign ups will happen in the next week or so. 

This week's class outline is as follows: 
Monday through Friday: Writing workshop. Students begin writing a story which will be due on January 22. A grading rubric will follow this week. Students will also be completing grammar and vocabulary exercises and working on writing their presentations of learning this week in class. Because Language Arts time works best when students are given time to practice, students will be given ample time to write and edit over the next three weeks. This also means that we will be talking with students and parents about being able to work on task and independently during class time. If your student has difficulty with this, I'll be emailing you this week to set up an additional meeting. 

Daily lessons will be given on elements of a story, using description, writing clearly, and using commas. 

Students will also have the option to work with the teacher or other students to help edit their drafts. 

Electives will begin later this week. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me!