Hurricane Notes and Blogs due 9/4

Hello students,

Just in case we are out until Tuesday (because Monday is Labor Day), I want to give you an idea of what's coming next so that you can use this down time as effectively as possible:

• You should continue your outside reading over this time as normal and expect blog posts to be due Tuesday by midnight.  (Obviously if no one has power at that point, we will revisit this issue).  Remember you can write the blogs offline and publish later.  
• You should also expect a vocab quiz on Tuesday when we return, so keep studying your unit 1 cards and using your words.  The quiz will may ask you to define the words, use them, identify correct uses, or choose the best word to fit in a sentence or paragraph.
• We will continue working on the book chat project when we return to school, so bring your summer choice read and notes.
• At some point next week, we will begin preparing for the literacy narrative.  This will include reading and annotating the Norton Field Guide chapter on literacy narrative and several of the example essays.  While I can't yet give you a set assignment with a date on that, you are welcome to preview the chapter and examples if you would like to work ahead.
• Wordly Wise Unit 2 cards will be due the following Monday (9/10), and you should be able to complete most of them without internet, so that is another way for you to get ahead.

Your blog posts for this week (due Tuesday 9/4 by midnight because Monday is a holiday):

• A reading response: 2 fully developed paragraphs, NOT summarizing the story
• A post that describes a scene or event from your week in vivid detail - use concrete sensory details to bring your readers to the scene.  You may want to use dialogue.  Focus particularly on word choice.  It's important to choose a moment here, not to describe your week in general, or the whole hurricane.  Pick a period of time that's no more than an hour.

I hope that you are all safe and comfortable, and I look forward to whenever our class next meets.

Dr. deGravelles

Blog Posts Due 8/27

You will have two blog posts this week:

1.) Reading response to your current outside reading book.  Make sure to include your reading times.  See your routines document for suggested formats.  Read some good samples pointed out in the post below, and remember to keep the focus on your ideas, not summarizing what happened.  Support your claims with evidence and specific examples.

2.) Assigned post: "In Defense of _____________: A ______________'s Manifesto" Use the argument strategies we have been talking about to write an impassioned defense of some aspect of your day to day life that you feel needs defending.  Present strong reasons why this concept or practice needs defending and what must be done to defend it.  Support your reasoning with evidence and examples.  And make it interesting (but school appropriate).

Great Posts! Week 1

Here are a few examples of strong, well-developed posts to help guide your writing.

Block 1:

Free posts - Lily, Christine

Reading Repsonses - Matthew G, Elizabeth

Block 3:

Free posts - Gabrielle, Porscha

Reading Responses - Jake, Mary Beth

Block 4:

Free posts - Jim, Richard

Reading Responses - Aimee Claire


Great posts!

Welcome to English I

Welcome to Upper School and to English I.  I have really enjoyed meeting you all this week, and I am looking forward to a great year!

As you know, blog posts will be a routine assignment in my class.  They will be an opportunity to share and think through our reading, to try out new genres and writing strategies, and to communicate with each other and with me about how our work is going.  Please read the "Blogging Instructions" and "Commenting Instructions" pages on this site for details on how to set up your blog and some overall guidelines.  Also, make sure to review the "Routines" document handed out in class or available on my course website for tips and scoring details.

For this week, you will make two posts:

1. A free post.  This is a good opportunity to introduce yourself and your blog, and to discuss your expectations, goals, or concerns about the course, but you may choose another topic if you'd like.

2. A response to your summer reading, either In Defense of Food or your free choice book.  Remember that a plot summary is not a response.  For examples of responses, look at the "reading response" label (to the right), or read some blogs from last year (see 2011-2012 Blogs, also on the right).

Happy Blogging!