Announcements
On this page you will find updates, announcements, and additional resources from Mrs. D'Amico's 7th grade classroom.
This week we are kicking off a new unit. We will be reading The Pearl by John Steinbeck.
To gather some essential background knowledge that will help students understand the setting of the story, we are spending this week learning about the history of Mexico. In class we have completed the reading of the Legend of Popo and Ixtla. For homework tonight: Students should complete the Reading Response Worksheet provided in class. Students may refer to the reading to complete the questions. Click here to access the story. The File can also be downloaded on the English page of this website, under the Courses menu.
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Students did an excellent job today of incorporating their narrative revisions into the first draft of their stories,
Tomorrow students will peer edit to help others polish their final drafts, If students did not finish adding in each revision during today's class, they should finish typing tonight. Students DO NOT need to print, as we will be using the Chromebooks for tomorrow's activity. A checklist of revisions/reminders that all student must have in their typed copy for tomorrow can be found below: -Narrative Hook -Figurative Language -Replacing “Boring” Words -Effective Ending with a Reflection of Lesson -5-Paragraph Minimum -Interesting Story Title I cannot wait to see everyone's stories completed! Best, Mrs. D'Amico Students have officially moved from the pre-writing phase to working on the first draft of their Lessons Learned Narratives.
Today in class students began typing their drafts, incorporating everything we have worked on so far: Character and Setting descriptions and Plot stages. They are working hard to include transitional words and phrases in their writing to help the story flow smoothly. Tomorrow students will have another period in class to type. For homework tonight and tomorrow: Students should continue typing their stories using their Google Drive account to access their draft document. Due on Thursday: A printed copy of their draft to use in class. Options for typing: - school library - public library - home computer (if accessible) - smart phone (if necessary) **I will be staying after school on WEDNESDAY until 3:45 and will have a Chromebook cart available for anyone who wants to stay after school to type. ** Students will be responsible for completing the typing and printing of this assignment outside of class. Please let me know of any questions or concerns. Best, Mrs. D'Amico Today students completed their last day of PRE-WRITING for their narratives about Life Lessons.
Tomorrow they will begin typing their drafts on the Chromebooks we have available for class. Tonight students should: -Complete Character Silhouettes (if needed) -Complete Plot Diagram (if needed) Looking forward to typing our stories tomorrow! Best, Mrs. D'Amico Tonight's homework is as follows:
Period 1 and 3:
Period 2: No homework tonight, as students completed STAR testing in class today. Period 6: Complete TWO Quick Writes by selecting 2 topics from your 10 Lessons Learned List and telling a story about a memory that demonstrates each lesson. Write for THREE minutes on each topic. Today in class, students read a new mentor text, "The Cluster of Queens." This reading kicked off our new Narrative Writing Unit, where students are going to write a short story based on life lessons they have learned so far.
I was very impressed with the depth of discussion that students generated based on their reading, as well as the annotations they made in response to the text. For homework tonight, students should complete their Brainstorm List: 10 Most Important Lessons Learned Students will use this list in class to kick off their writing, so it is important that they come with at least 10 ideas. Parents: I encourage you to discuss this list with your child, and discuss some of the life lessons you hope your child has learned so far. Some of the ideas students generated in class today:
I look forward to working with these topics tomorrow! Best, Mrs. D'Amico This week, students have been reading the short story, "Seventh Grade," by Gary Soto as a way to begin exploring the key elements of a narrative text.
On Monday, students analyzed the purpose of setting details, and how these details impact our understanding of characters and events. Today, we continued our reading, while transitioning our focus to the main character, Victor. Students used clues from the story to identify and analyze Victor's external and internal personality traits. For homework tonight, students should:
Remember to respond by using complete sentences. Tip: Turn the question around to use it as a sentence starter for your response! Best, Mrs. D'Amico I am so impressed with my students today! They were focused and ready to write.
We completed a series of free writes based on the homework lists that they created yesterday. For homework tonight, I have asked students to complete one more free write on the fifth topic they selected from their A to Z list. To complete the freewrite, students simply need to set up their journal entry, put a timer on for FIVE MINUTES, and begin writing. This is not about completing a story, but simply an activity to explore the topic and how it connects to them personally. I am looking forward to working more with these topics tomorrow! Best, Mrs. D'Amico Today in class, students began to brainstorm a list of words and phrases that best describe them.
I challenged students to come up with a list with at least one word that begins with each letter of the alphabet. Tonight for homework, students should complete the A to Z graphic organizer and show their best effort to complete their list. Parents: I encourage you to help your child brainstorm. What words or phrases would you use to describe them? Help them be creative! Stuck on a letter? THINK ABOUT:
I look forward to using these lists as a starting point for writing in class tomorrow! Please let me know if you have any questions. Best, Mrs. D'Amico |
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April 2018
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