English 1 - Shaping the Essay

I apologize for not having posted for a while, but I hope someone is still reading this.  I think it's a great tool to communicate between school and home.  I hope someone agrees.

Today, we continued to work on the Of Mice and Men benchmark, which is a literary analysis essay.  Students were to complete an Essay Map as their prewriting activity for this essay, which was due today.  Most remembered.  Some forgot.

Shaping the Essay

I introduced and explained the second step of the writing process for this essay, Shaping the Essay, which is commonly called the rough draft.  To help students structure their thoughts, I have a form that takes students step by step in the writing process.  It is somewhat formulaic, and therefore I allow some students who feel too confined to work in the manner that best fits their needs.  What students need to remember from today's conversation is the notes we took about the various parts of the essay.  These are basic, but important for all to have a comfortable handle on.

Class Notes

• Possible hooks: Anecdote, provocative question, shocking statement.
• Introduction must include: Title, author, and clear thesis.
• TS: Topic Sentence, which includes an opinion statement about the main point of the paragraph.
• CD: Concrete Detail, this can be either a direct quote, fact, or other specific example from the story.  There is no opinion here.
• CM: Commentary, also called interpretation, explanation, or inference.  This is where the writer must comment on the Concrete Detail and explain how that Detail correlates with the Topic Sentence and ultimately with the thesis.  Show how the CD supports your main argument.
• CS: Closing Sentence, reiterates and elaborates on Topic Sentence. In between body paragraphs, may also serve as a transition sentence.

The Shaping the Essay form is due on Monday, November 17.  The final draft, which will be typed, is due on Wednesday, November 19.

Grades for this grading period went in today, and students will bring home a Grade Report for parents to sign tomorrow.

English 1 - Of Mice and Men 1

Today was a good day.  We finished the first chapter from Of Mice and Men, and discussed the major themes introduced in that chapter.  We also discussed Steinbeck's writing style and elements of effective story telling.  In the last few minutes, we reviewed important information for tomorrow's field trip.  And speaking of the field trip, I can't wait.  It's going to be a great day, and I'm very excited about this opportunity.  As I was telling the students today, this is a rare experience.  This is the first year we are able to have this, and only a few classes are able to enjoy this.  I hope the kids understand that.  Just in case you are wondering, here's a brief description of the day's activities.

1. 6:30 - Leave Redwood.
2. 9:30 - Stop in Soledad for a break and tour through the Old Downtown.
3. 10:30 - Arrive in Salinas at the Steinbeck House.  We have a tour through the house, where Steinbeck wrote many of his early books.
4. 11:00 - Convene at the National Steinbeck Museum, where we also will have a tour and explore the various exhibits available.
5. 1:00 or so - Head for Cannery Row, where students will have lunch and some free time.  There is a Steinbeck exhibit there as well, that we will see, but I also want to give the students some time to simply explore and enjoy the area.
6. 3:30 - Leave Cannery Row.
7. 7:00 - Or hopefully a little earlier, arrive at Redwood.

This should be a good day.  I'm glad it's finally here.

English 1 - CSF Application

15 minutes - AR reading.  Students have 2 more weeks to earn 5 AR points for this grading period. They must have read a book and then take a quiz.  They may read Of Mice and Men as their AR book.

20 minutes - CSF Application.  Students learned to fill out an application and were introduced to CSF and its role.  This was a simple activity, but the purpose was to expose students to the reality of CSF and to train them to work with informational documents.  I think a few may qualify to CSF by the end of the semester.

I was a bit disappointed with English 1 today, though.  Very few of the students completed the homework that was assigned last Thursday.  They were to read the first 2 chapters from Of Mice and Men and answer a few follow-up questions.  I had only a handful in each class.

Homework/Reminders

• Read chapters 1-2 from Of Mice and Men (OMM)
• Answer follow-up questions
• Bring the book to class
• Grade report due tomorrow