Peer Editing

Today's Goal: Share your work with a partner and get some feedback on your work

The Plan:

1. Book Love
2. Required Survey (in class. If you are absent, don't worry about it)
3. Peer editing!
4. Quiet time to work
   
   

Today you'll be doing some peer editing. I have a sheet of paper to give you for this. It walks you through many important aspects of this paper, and is meant to help you as you reach the final stages of your essay. 

Important Dates and Homework:

• Your final paper is due on Turnitin.com by 11:59 pm on Friday, April 1. 
• You will *hopefully* submit your final paper before you even leave class.
• DO NOT turn it in LATE if you want to avoid a late penalty. This is one of those times where the deadline is strict. 
• Over break, you are required to read Chapter 3 of To Kill a Mockingbird and complete the Purposes for Reading questions that I will be putting on Google Classroom. 
• You will get a short quiz when you return. It will be no more than 5 questions. Make sure you read!
• You must complete a Book Love selection by April 22. That's 3 weeks from now. I believe in you.

Works Cited Page - Citing your Sources

Today's Goal: Create citations for all of the sources from which you gathered information for your essay. If you have an in-text citation for your work, it MUST be on the Works Cited Page.

The Plan:

1. Book Love
2. Learn about Citations, and create your Works Cited Page.
3. Talk about embedding quotes

You will need the following links today:

1. Google Classroom

2. Full Essay Model

3. Embedding quotes 

4. Purdue OWL for Citations

YOUR WORKS CITED PAGE IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT:

Your Works Cited page is supposed to be reference for your in-text citations.
This means that your citations IN your essay should match the ones on your Works Cited Page.

Sometimes, the citation creators (like CiteFast) don't find all the information, and you will need to go digging for ALL of this information.

For websites:

Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). Name of Site. Version number. Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site (sponsor or publisher), date of resource creation (if available). Medium of publication (Print/Web/etc.). Date of access (## Month Year).

For books:

Lastname, Firstname. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.

Other formats and citation information, as well as EXAMPLES can be found at THIS LINK

Important Dates and Homework:

• Tomorrow, you will be taking a "Healthy Kids Survey" that I'm required to give you at the beginning of class, and then you will be doing some peer editing.
• Your final paper is due on Turnitin.com by 11:59 pm on Friday, April 1. 
• You will *hopefully* submit your final paper before you even leave class.
• DO NOT turn it in LATE if you want to avoid a late penalty. This is one of those times where the deadline is strict. 

A Rough Draft

Today's Goal: Submit a completed ROUGH draft of your expository essay on turnitin.com.

The Plan:

1. Book Love!
2. Take your outline and turn it into an essay (there is a new document for you in Google Classroom. It doesn't have to be perfect, but it needs to look like an essay.
3. BEFORE YOU LEAVE: Submit that rough draft to turnitin.com.

Important Dates and Homework:

• Tomorrow, we will talk about the Works Cited page, and you will have time to work on that. We will also be reading most of chapter 3 of To Kill a Mockingbird
• On Thursday, you will be doing some peer editing.
• On Thursday, you will also be taking a "Healthy Kids Survey" that I'm required to give you at the beginning of class, and you will *hopefully* submit your final paper before you even leave class.
• Your final paper is due on Turnitin.com by 11:59 pm on Friday, April 1. 

Research Writing

Today's Goal: Assess the types of introductions you might use for your expository paper.

The Plan:

1. Vocab Test! Yay!
2. Read when you finish
3. Introductions and Conclusions
4. Research Paper Writing Time

Expository Essay Resources:
Most of this will be on the assignment I have sent you in Google Classroom, since that is where you will access your draft document, but I will link it here, too!

1. Google Classroom

2. Research Paper Directions
3. Body Paragraphs are like MEALS slides
4. Body Paragraph MODEL (Use this for your outline)
5. Full Essay Model

6. Embedding quotes **NEW**

7. LEADS and Conclusions **NEW**

Homework:

• By the end of class tomorrow, you will submit your expository paper DRAFT onto turnitin.com. 
• Make sure you are able to log onto turnitin.com (you had to do this at the beginning of the trimester)
• Revise your work and send me emails where applicable. 
• CLICK HERE for the page where you can find an appropriate email to use.
• If you've missed quizzes:
• Make them up Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday after school (March 29, 30, or 31)

Write Away

Today's Goal: Practice three different ways that we can analyze our evidence while writing our expository essay outlines

The Plan:

1. Book Love Reading
2. Look at evidence and analysis writing
3. WRITE (while I work with as many students as possible)

Expository Essay Resources:
Most of this will be on the assignment I have sent you in Google Classroom, since that is where you will access your draft document, but I will link it here, too!

1. Google Classroom

2. Research Paper Directions
3. Body Paragraphs are like MEALS slides
4. Body Paragraph MODEL (Use this for your outline)
5. Full Essay Model

Homework:

• Work on your Research Essay Outline!
• Complete Outline Draft due on Tuesday.
• If you decide to resubmit your research notes, you must send me a polite, professional email about the matter, AFTER you have revised them, and ask for a regrade. I will need them by TODAY, March 25.
• DICT/SUPER Root Vocab Quiz on MONDAY, March 28

Building an Essay

This picture will make sense before you leave today.

Today's Goal: Identify the purpose of the body paragraphs in an expository essay. Using your research and writing skills, begin to craft your body paragraphs.

The Plan:

1. Book Love
2. Quiz - Chapter 1/2
3. Expository Essay: Body Paragraphs

CLICK HERE for the quiz

Expository Essay Resources:
Most of this will be on the assignment I have sent you in Google Classroom, since that is where you will access your draft document, but I will link it here, too!

1. Research Paper Directions
2. Body Paragraphs are like MEALS slides
3. Body Paragraph MODEL (Use this for your outline)
4. Full Essay Model

Homework:

• Work on your Research Essay Outline!
• Complete Outline Draft due on Tuesday.
• If you decide to resubmit your research notes, you must send me a polite, professional email about the matter, AFTER you have revised them, and ask for a regrade. I will need them by Friday, March 25.
• DICT/SUPER Root Vocab Quiz on Monday, March 28

Expository Essay: Crafting a Thesis

Today's Goal: Using the research you gathered, begin to craft a thesis for your research essay.

The Plan:

1. Book Love
2. Expository Essay Thesis article and activity
3. Write your thesis

RESEARCH PAPER LINKS

• Research Assignment Instructions
• Structure of an Expository Paper

Two ways to construct an expository thesis:

Umbrella: a sentence that states clearly the main point you want to make. All the points you plan to discuss in essay should fit under the umbrella of your thesis statement.

Example:  The “freedom rides” played a major role in the quest for racial equality.

List: contains the topic and the three aspects of the topic that will be explored.

Example:  The life of the typical college student is characterized by time spent studying, attending class, and socializing with peers. 

Before you walk out the door, you will turn in a half sheet of paper with the following information. If you are absent, you'll need to turn it in:

EXPOSITORY THESIS EXIT TICKET

State your thesis to introduce the topic and what you will explain to the audience.

Use the list approach or the umbrella approach.

Name:

Research Topic:

The style of thesis I am selecting is the (choose one) umbrella/list

My Thesis Statement:

Homework:

• Finish answering your reading questions on Google Classroom if you haven't already.
• You'll have a short Chapter 1/2 Reading Quiz on Thursday, March 24.
• If you decide to resubmit your research notes, you must send me a polite, professional email about the matter, AFTER you have revised them, and ask for a regrade. I will need them by Friday, March 25.
• DICT/SUPER Root Vocab Quiz on Monday, March 28

Scout goes to school! and Expository Writing Structure

Today's Goal: Grasp the overall structure of an expository essay, read chapter 2, and discuss using evidence to support statements you make in writing.

The Plan:

1. Book Love
2. Read To Kill a Mockingbird Chapter 2
3. Purposes for Reading Questions on Google Classroom
4. Structure of an Expository Paper
5. Credible Research Reminders

Chapter 2 Purposes for Reading

1. Look for examples of Ms. Caroline's rigid thinking. In complete sentences, provide AT LEAST one example of her rigid thinking, and explain how it proves that her thinking is inflexible and fixed.

2. Based on the evidence in this chapter, what statement might Harper Lee be making about the educational system? 

Some notes about CREDIBLE research:

• Wikipedia is not a credible resource.
• Neither are blogs, weeblies, prezis that people made, or sites that simply provide opinions rather than historical FACT. While some of these might have factual information, you need that factual information to come from valid historical sources.
• You were not to use encyclopedias.
• If you can't find research that was clearly written by historians, you are not digging far enough.
• Scholar.google.com should be the FIRST place you look for credible research, NOT Google.
• It is imperative that all of your research is CLEARLY written by historians or journalists that have spoken with historians and done their credible research. If you can't find an author on the page, I'm worried.
• Things that brought you grade down: no citations, copied and pasted material without quotation marks around them, a lack of variety in sources, no book source, sources that are not credible (encyclopedias, prezis, "google searches," blogs and weebly sites, and other sources that clearly lack historical research.)
• You can resubmit this (and email me politely to ask for a regrade), but we're still moving forward with the essay. You'll have to make sure your final product has credible sources, or you will not be happy with how your final product turns out (and is graded).

I am here after school on Wednesday and Thursday this week to help you with ANYTHING English related. 

Homework:

• Finish answering your reading questions on Google Classroom today.
• SUPER Root Practice due tomorrow, WEDNESDAY, March 23.
• Click Here for the Slides
• You'll have a short Chapter 1/2 Reading Quiz on Thursday, March 24.
• If you decide to resubmit your research notes, you must send me a polite, professional email about the matter, AFTER you have revised them, and ask for a regrade. I will need them by Friday, March 25.
• DICT/SUPER Root Vocab Quiz on Monday, March 28

Meet Scout Finch

Also? Use EVIDENCE.

Today's Goal: Learn the context that the book To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is written in. Read Chapter One together.

The Plan:

1. Book Love Reading
2. Circle
3. Short Introduction to To Kill A Mockingbird
4. Read Chapter One
5. Purposes for Reading Questions in Google Classroom

Purposes for Reading (Answer these in Google Classroom):

1. What would it mean if a character could be symbolically represented by a mockingbird? What would we expect that character to be like, and how would they act? (from intro lecture)
2. How do Jem and Scout initially define courage?
3. Read and reread pages 10-15. Trace the background of the Radley House as Scout describes it. In addition, what are the differences between Mr. Radley and Arthur (Boo) Radley?

A Short Reminder about Citing Evidence for your Questions in Google Classroom:
A quote from a novel or other work that you use as evidence CANNOT stand alone. You MUST use a few words to lead into the quote. If you don't, we call those Quote Bombs because they blow up everything you are trying to say (because it doesn't make sense).

An example of a good sentence using a quote:
Lee proves that Scout is looking at the world through innocent eyes when she responds to her first sight of snow with "The world's ending, Atticus!  Please do something" (Lee 64).

Homework:

• Finish answering your reading questions on Google Classroom today.
• SUPER Root Practice due WEDNESDAY, March 23.
• Click Here for the Slides
• You'll have a short Chapter 1/2 Reading Quiz on Thursday, March 24.
• DICT/SUPER Root Vocab Quiz on Monday, March 28

Unreliable Narrators and Research Notes

Today's Goal: Distinguish between an unreliable narrator and a reliable narrator in preparation for starting To Kill a Mockingbird on Monday. Work on research notes if time allows.

The Plan:

1. Book Love Reading!
2. Unreliable Narrator Presentation
3. Short Writing Activity
4. Work on Research Notes

CLICK HERE for the Research Assignment


Unreliable Narrators:

Short Writing Activity:
Choose a villain from a story you know really well. A bad guy. The one that we're supposed to want to lose in the end (Examples: Voldemort, Darth Vader, that evil teddy bear from Toy Story 3, etc).

Write a one-page diary entry from the perspective of that villain. Try to make you reader sympathetic to the villain. Make it seem like he or she has valid, understandable reasons to be acting in a terrible, no good fashion.

You are turning this in.

HOMEWORK AND IMPORTANT DATES:

• Cornell Notes Research due Monday, March 21 on Google Classroom
• You should have FULL PAGE notes for all four questions. More is always better.
• If you don't have a computer, check out some books from the library and handwrite your notes. 
• The school library is open after school and and at lunch (and even before school, I believe).
• Rough Draft of Research Paper due March 29
• You're going to be submitting this on Turnitin.com
• Take it seriously. No rough draft makes it much harder for me to help you be successful on your final draft.
• Final Draft due at the end of class on April 1. 
• You will submit this on Turnitin.com IN CLASS on Friday, April 1. 

Credible Sources

Today's Goal: Research your topic and the questions you have created.

The Plan:

1. Book Love Reading!
2. Look at the example research notes in Google Classroom - What have they done well?
3. Credible Sources
4. Research Time

CLICK HERE for the Research Assignment

You are required to have at least one book source for your research essay.
Try Google Books!
They have full texts of many books that you might be able to use.

Want to look at academic articles? 
Try Google Scholar!
They have academically published articles that you can use, and are generally considered credible!


A Presentation on Credible Sources

HOMEWORK AND IMPORTANT DATES:

• DIT/DIC Vocab Root Practice Due TOMORROW, March 18
• CLICK HERE for the slides
• Cornell Notes Research due Monday, March 21 on Google Classroom
• Rough Draft of Research Paper due March 29
• You're going to be submitting this on Turnitin.com
• Final Draft due at the end of class on April 1. 
• You will submit this on Turnitin.com IN CLASS on Friday, April 1. 

Researchable Questions

Today's Goal: Begin our daily routine of reading for about ten minutes. Create meaningful questions for research about our chosen topics. Begin conducting research in order to answer each of your questions.

The Plan:

1. Get chromebooks and find your new seat.
2. Book Love Reading!
3. Vocabulary Roots
4. Research Paper - Questions and Research notes

Vocabulary Roots:

Each week you will receive a set of 5-10 vocabulary words that each have a specific root in them. These words are your responsibility. I will provide the slides to complete the work, and every two weeks you will be quizzed on these roots and their words. The slides in the homework section below.

Some tips:

• Write meaningful sentences that use each word, with as many versions of the word as possible (meaning, the noun version, the verb version, the adverb, etc)
• Study the parts of speech for those words
• Make sure know synonyms for those words

RESEARCH NOTES!

• CLICK HERE for the Research assignment!
• I have also provided you with a document in Google Classroom for research. You will need to access that document today.
• You will take 4 questions that you want to research and put them at the top of each page of notes. You are required to have 4 full pages of notes (or more!) with 4 different questions.
• Eventually, these will become 3 body paragraphs for your research essay. We make an extra one because sometimes we find that one doesn't provide us with enough information for a whole paragraph, and sometimes two questions are really so similar that the should be one paragraph. 
• You MUST cite all sources used at the bottom of each page. There are links on the document for you to use to help with this. DO NOT get any information off a website without citing it.
• The Research Notes are due Monday, March 21.

Credible Vs. Not Credible Sources:

Have you heard about Dihydrogen Monoxide? IT'S DANGEROUS.

Okay for real, though. You have to be careful about what websites you trust.

Check out this Prezi for some information on sources:

Homework: 

• Get To Kill a Mockingbird from the library TODAY.
• DIT/DIC Vocab Root Practice Due FRIDAY, March 18
• CLICK HERE for the slides
• Cornell Notes Research due Monday, March 21 on Google Classroom

Research: Choosing a Topic

Today's Goal: Learn about your research project and the procedures of this room. Get signed up for the online resources we'll be using in class. By the end of today, you should have chosen a topic for your research project.

The Plan:

1. Circle
2. Chromebook Procedures
3. The Blog
4. Google Classroom
5. Remind
6. Turnitin.com
7. Research Paper Assignment

Google Classroom:
Many of your assignments will be done and posted on this website. Please visit classroom.google.com to join. Use your school email address, and Ms. Black will give you your class code to join our class.

Once you join, there's a question there for you to answer. Write complete sentences.

Remind:
Remind is a tool that allows us to contact each other with much more ease than email. For example, I could remind you that we are meeting outside of the library instead of our room. I may also use this to remind you, when I can, of important homework or other school/class reminders.

To join, you can either text the class code to 81010, or click one of the following links:

Period 4 Click Here
Period 5 Click Here

Turnitin.com
This is one of many ways we track and catch plagiarism, and it's the platform in which I do some of my grading.
Join my class today, please. I will put the class code and password up for you in class.


RESEARCH PAPER:

CLICK HERE for the assignment!

Today we ONLY focus on #1 and #2. You'll have some time to research and get a general idea about the topics listed on that document.

To turn in to me today:
You will make a T-Chart on paper with two columns that looks like this:

It is incredibly important that you have MORE things in the second column then the first.
I expect that you have at least THREE pieces of information that you already know about your topic, and at least FIVE QUESTIONS you have about your topic.

I am checking for your topic before you leave today. Your T-Chart is due first thing tomorrow.



Homework:

1. T-Chart with brainstorming and questions due first thing tomorrow
2. Book Love - Get yourself an independent reading book. We read for the first ten minutes of EVERY day. This starts tomorrow.
3. Get To Kill A Mockingbird from the library if you haven't already. We start reading it on Thursday.

Welcome to 1B!

Today's Goal: Introduce or REintroduce you to this classroom and each other.

The Plan:

1. The Great Depression and Scholarly Discourse - An activity with pictures
2. Introductions
3. Circle Time
4. A Letter to Ms. Black
5. Homework

Homework and Important Dates:

1. Get To Kill A Mockingbird from the library if you haven't already.
2. Book Love - Get yourself an independent reading book. We read for the first ten minutes of EVERY day. 

Revision/Editing

Today's Goal: Get a second pair of eyes on your essay, in order to edit for grammatical errors, identify weaknesses to work on, and strengths to build on.

The Plan:

1. MLA Works Cited Page - Adding a citation. (Please see the slides provided to you for the information we will go over in class)
2. Quoting Poetry in an essay
3. Work with a partner to share your essay

An Important Note About Quoting Lines From Shakespeare (Or Any Poetry):

When you quote lines from Shakespeare, they are on different lines, right?

Well, you have to indicate this in your writing. Since you aren't putting each line on a new line in your essay, you have to add a forward slash at the end of each line. A forward slash looks like this: /

Here's a CORRECT example:

He begs Juliet for permission to kiss her, stating, "If I profane with my unworthiest hand/ This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this:/ My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand/ To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss" (I.iv.102).

Revision:

• Is there a clear introduction, body, and conclusion?
• Are there sufficient transitions between related ideas?
• Does every paragraph address the subject matter of the thesis in some way?
• Has the writer used sufficient examples and detail to make his or her points clearly?
• Is the tone of the essay professional and appropriate?
• Is the language convincing, clear, and concise?

Editing:

• Has the writer checked grammar and punctuation?
• Has the writer spell checked the essay?
• Are there any quote bombs? (There shouldn't be.)
• Is the MLA formatting (header, heading, Works Cited, etc) present and correct?
• Does every quote from Romeo and Juliet have an in-text citation at the end? Is it formatted correctly?
• If the writer is quoting more than one line, do they have forward slashes to indicate that?

HOMEWORK:

• Your Romeo and Juliet Essay is due on TUESDAY MARCH 8 on turnitin.com by midnight.
• Make sure you have a Works Cited page, correct MLA formatting, and have erased everything else at the end of your document.
• CLICK HERE for the final exam study guide.
• Your final is on Thursday or Friday, March 10 or 11.
• Bring in a picture of someone or something that inspires you and will positively inspire other people. We're making a wall.

Something Fun: A Shakespearean Insult Generator. You're welcome.

Introductions and Conclusions

Today's Goal: Review effective introduction techniques, and what is necessary for an effective conclusion. Note: Don't worry about this until you have written your body paragraphs. This is what you should do LAST.

Don't forget about my model essay!!! IT'S DONE. (Well.. it's not perfect, but it's all there.)

Use the links on your document to help you find evidence, organize, and write.

Introductions:

• CLICK HERE for some ideas for your hook/bridge. This goes before your thesis.
• Do not start with a question. It's weak. You can literally invent any question.
• Don't tell me to "picture" anything. An anecdote (story) is fine, but again, you can literally create any picture.
• If you start with a quote, it can't just be a quote. It needs to be part of a larger sentence, just like you have to do with quotes you use for evidence.

Conclusions:

• CLICK HERE to look at the Harvard Writing Center's tips for conclusions. If you don't believe what I have to tell you about conclusions, you should probably believe Harvard.
• Some ideas for how to end your essay (don't necessarily do all of these, but pick what is useful):
• connect everything in your essay back to your hook/introduction (especially if you started with an anecdote.)
• address the larger implications of the theme. If we learn are to take away a specific message (theme) from Romeo and Juliet, why does it matter to your audience?
• Try ending with a quote from Shakespeare or Romeo and Juliet that exemplifies your argument (different from what you used in your body paragraph, though)
• There are SO MANY ways to end an essay. DON'T just copy and paste your thesis. That's not a conclusion.

HOMEWORK:

• Your Romeo and Juliet Essay is due on TUESDAY MARCH 8 on turnitin.com.
• Have a rough draft on Monday, so that we can work on editing and revision.
• I DO NOT WANT A PAPER COPY. I CHANGED MY MIND. 
• CLICK HERE for the final exam study guide.
• Your final is on Thursday or Friday, March 10 or 11.
• Bring in a picture of someone or something that inspires you and will positively inspire other people. We're making a wall.

Writing, Cont.

There is so much writing that needs to happen today. SO. MUCH.

Your book reviews are due today, so that's one more thing you can now check off your list! Yay!

Visit previous blog posts for resources and links you can use.

CLICK HERE to watch me write my own essay about a theme in The House on Mango Street. I'm following the same format and guidelines as you are, but I'm simply writing about a different theme using evidence from a different book. I'll be working on it this afternoon. You should visit it sometime this evening. You might even get to watch me write.

HOMEWORK:

• Your Romeo and Juliet Essay is due on TUESDAY MARCH 8 on turnitin.com.
• Have a rough draft on Monday, so that we can work on editing and revision.
• THIS IS DIFFERENT. I DO NOT WANT A PAPER COPY. I CHANGED MY MIND. 
• CLICK HERE for the final exam study guide.
• Your final is on Thursday or Friday, March 10 or 11.
• Bring in a picture of someone or something that inspires you and will positively inspire other people. We're making a wall.

Body Paragraphs

Today's Goal: Writing!


The Plan:

• Vocab Quiz
• Read or work on writing while people finish.
• Turnitin.com troubleshooting
• Discuss body paragraphs of your essay.
• Write! (I'm going to be meeting individually with people during this time)

Some example thesis statements from yesterday that are interesting, exemplary, and will mostly likely meet requirements (if the body paragraphs support them):

• In Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare’s message is that you can not control your fate but you can control your destiny or how you react to your circumstance, which he develops through his use of character development, the plot, and figurative language.
• Over the course of the play, Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare’s use of characters, plot, and word choice reveals the underlying message that no matter what, family should always stick together.
• In Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare’s message is that love isn’t a choice; hate is. Shakespeare develops this idea through his use of word choice, character development, and plot build-up.
• In Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare uses the resentment between the Capulets and Montagues to prove that no good outcome can result from hate.
• In Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare’s message is that people make decisions that help their own personal motives, which he develops through his use of character relationships, development of plot, and word choice.

HOMEWORK:

• Your second book review is due Wednesday, March 2
• Turnitin.com submitted by midnight on Tuesday, March 1.
• Paper copy due in class on March 2.
• You must do both to avoid a zero.
• Your Romeo and Juliet Essay is due on March 7.
• Turnitin.com submitted by midnight on Sunday, March 6.
• Paper copy printed, due in class on March 7.
• You must do both to avoid a zero.
• CLICK HERE for the final exam study guide.
• Your final is on Wednesday or Thursday, March 10 or 11.
• Bring in a picture of someone or something that inspires you. We're making a wall.