September 28

IRT: ~10 minutes
WNB: Article of the Week - "From Mollie Tibbett's Father: Don't Distort Her Death To Advance Racist Views"

Students revisited their persuasive essays and completed a reflection activity. This concludes the performance task assignment.

Students will have a test over major literary terms on Thursday. We'll read and discuss stories in class next week to prepare for the test.

Coming Up
Thursday, 10/4 - Lit Terms Test
Monday, 10/8 - No School
Wednesday, 10/10 - PSAT Test for all sophomores
Thursday, 10/11 - 3rd & 4th period midterm exams
Friday, 10/12 - 1st & 2nd period midterm exams and early release for students

Today's Board

September 27

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: Outside Entry

I met with individual students to discuss the claim of their persuasive essay. Students had the remaining class time to finish and submit the essay on Canvas.

September 26

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: Students brainstormed ideas for a sample STAAR essay prompt.

We looked at sample student STAAR essays about the "happy" prompt, and students found examples of papers with score points 1, 2, 3, and 4. We talked about the things that made the 4 papers great and how we could incorporate those skills into our own writing.

With the remaining class time, students shared their claim statements with me through a form and continued working on their performance task writing assignment.

Today's Board

September 25

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: While reading today, place post-its to mark a really long sentence and a sentence written in an unusual way. Copy the sentences into your notebook. How could you use these structures in your own writing?

I reminded students where to find information about the performance task, and they had the remaining class time to work on the essay/editorial/letter/email (they could choose from any of those 4 formats), which is due Thursday. I also met with individual students to finish up the second round of reading conferences.

Today's Board

September 24

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: Make a T chart. On one side, put "Netflix," and list all of the reasons why it's the best place for videos. On the other side, put "YouTube," and list all of the reasons why it's the best place for videos.

We walked through the process of creating a claim with a counterargument and looked at a sample outline for an argument paper. Students completed phase 1 of the performance task assignment, submitting a form with links to sources that present multiple perspectives on their topics. Phase 2, the actual written piece, is due Thursday.

Today's Board

Week-at-a-Glance

September 21

We visited the library for the first 20 minutes of class so students could find new books. The library will be closed for the next two weeks for iPad distribution.

We resumed work on the performance task, and students continued searching for texts that present multiple perspectives on their chosen topics. The first step of this assignment, choosing a topic and finding 3 texts, is due on Monday.

Today's Board

September 20

Students had the first 30 minutes of class to read and annotate today's article of the week, write a response in their notebooks, and read independently. I met with individual students for reading conferences during this time.

Today's Article: "Afghanistan: The Endless War"

We began working on the Unit 1 Performance Task. Students will select a topic, find supporting texts, and write a persuasive letter/email or essay/editorial. We'll be working on this in class for the next several days.

Today's Board

September 19

IRT: ~20 minutes

We did not have a writer's notebook entry today. Instead, we revisited yesterday's work and continued discussing the Texas, US, and world issues. I'll compile answers from both classes into one document and share it on Canvas for students' reference.

Students resumed working on the speech analysis for Act III Scene 2 of Julius Caesar. We read Act III Scene 3 and discussed mob mentality, which reminded us of the four themes of the play that we started with. We finished class with an SAT-style reading passage and questions.

Students who finished the speech analysis handout turned it in before class ended; those who need more time may turn it in tomorrow.

September 18

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: Today's notebook entry is a 3-parter. Brainstorm a list of things you wish you could change in (1) your school or town, (2) Texas or the US, and (3) the world.

We finished reading Julius Caesar, and students analyzed the two funeral speeches for persuasive elements. We will complete this work tomorrow.

Today's Board

September 17

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: Outside entry

We recapped our reading of Julius Caesar from Friday and read Act III Scene 1. Students staged the assassination scene, then we watched the film version of this scene to get a greater understanding. We finished class with a short SAT-style passage and questions.

We will finish reading Julius Caesar tomorrow and begin a major writing assignment on Thursday.

Today's Board

Week-at-a-Glance

September 14

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: Advice from family members is more valuable than advice from friends. Agree or disagree?

We continued reading Julius Caesar and finished Act II today. Students who want to review any of the work from this week should look for the "Julius Caesar" page on Canvas.

Have a great weekend!

September 13

Students had the first ~35 minutes of class to read and annotate this week's article of the week, respond in their notebooks, and read independently. I held reading conferences with individual students during this time. (This is quickly becoming one of my favorite activities!)

Today's article: "Avoid the Back To School Plague of Flu and Cold"

We continued reading Julius Caesar. Students worked with their groups to answer questions about Act I Scene 3 and Act II Scene 1 lines 1-85.

Today's Board

September 12

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: There is never a good reason to betray a friend. Agree or disagree?

I just finished reading The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo, so I shared a book talk to encourage students to add it to their "to read next" page.

We continued discussing Act I Scene 1 of Julius Caesar  and read Act I Scene 2 and answered questions. Absent students should plan to come in A block Thursday to make up this work.

Today’s board looked a lot like yesterday’s!

September 11

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: We did a word association activity for our notebook entry today. Absent students should attend tutorials A block Thursday to make this up.

Our notebook entry was inspired by a Radiolab podcast about words (we listened to the section from 22:30-26:32, but the entire episode is pretty interesting). After the podcast, we watched a video that corresponds with both the podcast and the notebook entry, "Words."

We finished up our discussion of the qualities of a good friend and traits that can end a friendship.

We read Act I, Scene 1 of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar and answered questions. We will continue reading tomorrow.

Today's Board

September 10

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: See image

Today's Notebook Entry

We recapped our work with the "On Women's Right To Vote" speech from Friday and added the rhetorical triangle diagram to our argument and persuasion notes.

I introduced Shakespeare's Julius Caesar through a four corners activity where students moved to different areas of the room depending on whether they agreed or disagreed with a series of statements.

We ended class with a brief discussion about qualities that make a good friend and qualities that could end a friendship. In 1st period, I shared a spoken word piece about friendship by Trent Shelton. We will resume this work tomorrow.

Today's Board

Week-at-a-Glance

September 7

We went to the library for the first 20 minutes of class. Students had time to read, find new books, or write today's notebook entry, which is an outside entry.

We watched the 3rd speech and looked for logos, ethos, and pathos. Students added a few more notes about argument and persuasion. We read Susan B. Anthony's speech, "On Women's Right To Vote," and students worked in groups to analyze the piece using the SOAPSTone strategy.

Today's Board

September 6

Students had the first 40 minutes of class to read and annotate this week's article of the week, respond in their notebooks, and read independently. I held reading conferences with individual students during this time.

Today's Article: "The Death Rate from Cancer Is Falling for American Men, Women, and Children from All Backgrounds"

We revisited "On Nuclear Disarmament" and focused on 2 sentences the author repeated.

We continued notes on rhetoric and examined 2 speeches for logos, ethos, and pathos. These notes are now posted on Canvas. We will resume this work tomorrow.

Today's Board

September 5

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: Choose 1 to respond to in your notebook -- "A stumble may prevent a fall." or "Better to light a candle than curse the darkness."

We reviewed the poetry analysis slides each group created yesterday.

Students began taking notes over argument and persuasion and rhetorical devices. We read "On Nuclear Disarmament" by Carl Sagan and looked for examples of those techniques. We will finish the notes tomorrow.

Today's Board

September 4

IRT: ~20 minutes
WNB: Students calculated their reading rate and discussed the variety of factors that influence that rate.

Students worked in groups to analyze a poem using the TWISTT strategy.

Today's Board

Week-at-a-Glance