Hello Pilots!

Thank you for another successful week! I am happy with the progress we’ve made so far & the progress we will continue to make throughout the year. I know each and every one of you will be successful, and I’m happy to help you reach your highest successes.

Just a quick reminder for tonight: STUDY FOR YOUR VOCABULARY QUIZ! I am looking forward to grading nothing but As!

Have a good night!

~Ms. J

Hello SUCCESS SQUAD!

Thanks for a wonderful first week! I am looking forward to continuing to build upon the successes of last week throughout the school year! Just a quick note about homework…

Homework: All Periods

Tonight, your homework assignment is to compete the Vocabulary Four Square. Remember, we will have a quiz on the vocabulary words this Friday. Study hard & you WILL be a success!

If you have any questions, please email me or drop a comment on this blog.

See you tomorrow!

Ms. J

Hello Curtiss Pilots! Welcome to the SUCCESS SQUAD! My name is Ms. Jackson and I teach 7th grade English & 6th grade Basic Communication Skills, and I am so happy to have you in my class this year. I hope you are well-rested after a long, wonderful summer and ready to work, because it’s time to return to school!!

Because I know that each and every one of you is BRILLIANT and READY to LEARN, I expect so much from you. I expect you to Be Responsible, Always Try You Best, Cooperate with Others, Treat Everyone With Respect, and to Never Make Excuses. These simple guidelines will help you continue to be a HUGE success! This year we will work hard, learn a lot, and have fun.

Periodically, I ask that you check this website for announcements, homework assignments, or special little links I want to share with you. This site will also be a place where I post documents and information for parents.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, do not hesitate to email me or post a comment to this site. I am looking forward to an exciting and productive year!

PS–Parents/Guardians, I am attaching the Family Letter to this site for you to print & take a look at. Thanks! (Click on Link parentletter2008)

Sincerely,

Ms. Jackson

Hello Students,

Welcome to the second semester! I am excited at the fresh start this offers all of us. As I mentioned today, each of you has an A & I hope you work hard to keep it!

Here is the homework for tonight

Per. 1/2

*Vocabulary Four Square

All Periods 

*Write 2 to 3 paragraphs on your goals for the semester.  Please incorporate the following questions into  your response:

• What do you plan to accomplish this semester? What, if anything, do you need to improve on from last semester?

Hello Students,

*Whew* We have made it through the first part of the year! Although I want you all to enjoy your winter break and get plenty of rest, you still have work to do. Please have your assignments completed by your return on MONDAY, JAN. 7th in order to receive credit for your work.

Periods 1-4: English

Your assginment is to read a book of at least 75 pages and complete a book rerpot on it. Please use the book report form I handed out in class. If you’ve lost your book report form, you can print one out here (Book Report Form click the link). This project is worth 35 points!

Period 5: Creative Writing

Over the break you will complete the 1st draft of your fictional narratives. If at all possible, you should type this draft. If you are unable to type it, you should write it neatly. Bring your rough drafts on Monday, Jan. 7th so I can read through it and give you comments. Also, you will be sharing your rough drafts with the class that week so that your peers can give you a helpful critique of your story.

HAVE A GREAT HOLIDAY BREAK!!

~ms. j

Students,

In case you were absent or forgot to write the HW down today, I am listing it here.

Periods 1-4

• Vocabulary Four Square
• Reading Log ~ Read at least 20 minutes for the night
• Remember, you have a vocabulary quiz on Friday!

Period 5

• Reading Log ~ Read at least 20 minutes for the night
• Bring the story, “Don’t Be Disrespecting Me,” and all materials given to you today with you to class tomorrow.

Dear Students,

 Just in case some of you lost your reading log, I am posting the link where you can find it & print it at home.

The Reading Log:  http://home.att.net/~clnetwork/ar/readlog2.pdf

Remember, in order receive credit for your reading log, your parent/guardian MUST sign it each night. Also, you need to read AT LEAST 20 minutes a night & write a short summary of what you’ve read.

 Have a good week!

ms. j

Hello Students…

 Quick reminder on the assignments that are due tomorrow, Friday.

Period 1/2

• Vocabulary Four Square
• Vocabulary Quiz tomorrow

Period 3/4

• Superhero Posters 
• Vocabulary Four Square
• Vocabulary Quiz tomorrow

Per 5 ~ Creative Writing

• Buy the required supplies (red pen, highlighter, and sticky notes)
• Choose a book from the reading list (see previous post)

Hello Students,

As promised, I am uploading the reading list. Feel free to browse the books on the list and choose one to read as a companion to your fiction-writing.

 Happy Reading!

Reading ListReading List (click on it to open the file)

~~~~~

Hello Again,

Below is a list of genres & examples of each genre. Remember, your stories will need to fit into one of these genres. If you have questions, feel free to leave me a comment or see me after class!

History

Historical fiction is full of details that paint portraits of life in a specific historical time period.  When you brainstorm your character and setting, pick the information which accurately and consistently communicates the most about your chosen time period.

Mystery

By definition, anything that is unknown is a mystery. We tend to think that mysteries always involve a crime, but all stories that contain unanswered questions have an element of mystery. A girl whose adoptive parents refuse to tell her about her birth parents, two friends who are baffled by footprints outside their tent, cousins who pry open an old, locked trunk in their grandmother’s attic—all these characters face non-criminal mysteries.

Science-Fiction & Fantasy

Science Fiction stories are those that could not happen without some element of science, or some imagined change (futuristic or otherwise) from the world as we know it today. Science fiction is based on worlds that seem possible or plausible, based on what we know or can guess about science. All science fiction tends to predict the future. It is important to get the science of your created world right, or at least possible. Madeline L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time, Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park, Arthur Clarke’s 2001: A Space Odyssey and H.G. Well’s War of the Worlds fall into this category.

Fantasy can take place in a “normal” setting like the mid-west in the 19^th century as the setting for The Wizard of Oz or in an entirely imaginative world populated by mythical creatures such as Horton Hatches the Egg by Dr. Seuss. Even though readers know the story could never really happen this fantasy world is consistent within itself. The writer makes up the rules of the world, but they make sense and are believable. Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine, Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith, The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley, and The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman fit into this category.

Sports

Think about the difference between walked, ran, jogged, sprinted, sauntered, charged, sped, flew, dashed, or darted. Create characters who act. Unless the main character watches a sporting event and becomes inspired to try out, you don’t want stories where the main character sits on the sidelines and watches the action. Stories, like sports, are more fun on the playing field than in the stands.

You’ll need to know a lot about the sport that you’re writing about in order to supply the details needed to paint an accurate picture of the characters who are drawn together by the sport.

Hello Students,

 Please forgive me for forgetting to post last night’s homework. In spite of my forgetfulness, most of you turned in your homework! (yay!)

Tonight’s homework is as follows: 

Homework Period 1-4

Using your Cornell Notes that you took in class, write a  summary of the video we watched in class today.

Period 5

Bedcause we did not finish watching the in-class video, you do not have homework. Please remember to bring your notes to class because you will need them as we finish watching the video on 9/11.

Excuses Quiz…

The quiz on the poem, “Excuses,” has been postponed until Friday. If you did not copy down the quiz, I will post it below.

“Ecxuses” 

Excuses are tools of the incompetent

They build monuments of nothingness

And those that dwell upon them

Are seldom good for anything more

Remember, if you have anyquestions, please feel free to email me or leave a comment on the site. My email is: MyFavClass@gmail.com

peace,

ms. j