Educational Links 12/2/18

Applying Learning in Multiple Contexts

https://www.edutopia.org/article/applying-learning-multiple-contexts?fbclid=IwAR335x3icLuQmtyak6zbiDubyl8krsXxvOUrkFJ7ro8udq3YxAaEnXpFjHE

Helping Kids With Learning and Attention Issues Cope With Test Anxiety

https://www.understood.org/en/school-learning/learning-at-home/homework-study-skills/helping-kids-with-learning-and-attention-issues-cope-with-test-anxiety?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=understoodorg&fbclid=IwAR1pI0C2i4mja7pacpfvKZc3cF6UFb54JAdy2wM9K0I2as5LCZxwZ68596k

Learning Problem Solving and Growth Mindset in a Makerspace

https://www.edutopia.org/video/learning-problem-solving-and-growth-mindset-makerspace?linkId=100000004200110

ADHD and the Myth of Laziness: What You Need to Know

https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/child-learning-disabilities/add-adhd/adhd-and-the-myth-of-laziness-what-you-need-to-know?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=understoodorg&fbclid=IwAR1h6MA3bD7UW8TQM3TrK-BRVUMxhqWy3jDghmmdbkWspn9-yMnCxtryKbA

Helping Students See Hamlet and Harry Potter in a New Light With Computational Thinking

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2018-11-28-helping-students-see-hamlet-and-harry-potter-in-a-new-light-with-computational-thinking?utm_content=bufferaad81&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=EdSurgeBuffer

Reverse suspensions let parents get involved in school discipline

https://www.newscentermaine.com/article/news/local/now/reverse-suspensions-let-parents-get-involved-in-school-discipline/97-617806340?fbclid=IwAR1fnZnizbI_BM-xiluxqTl7CLrfYa5Pd1FhfgB-nGGk4SYCXjFvDCnG1UQ

Your kid gets in trouble at school and you, the parent, are a part of the punishment. It's been going on at a middle school in West Virginia with some tremendous success.

Would you be willing to take a day off from work and spend it with your child at school if it could help correct that child's behavior? At Huntington East Middle School in West Virginia, when kids get in trouble and are facing suspension, their parents are called. to come to school with them for a day.

[little tree]

[little tree]

By E. E. Cummings

 

little tree

little silent Christmas tree

you are so little

you are more like a flower

who found you in the green forest

and were you very sorry to come away?

see          i will comfort you

because you smell so sweetly

i will kiss your cool bark

and hug you safe and tight

just as your mother would,

only don't be afraid

look          the spangles

that sleep all the year in a dark box

dreaming of being taken out and allowed to shine,

the balls the chains red and gold the fluffy threads,

put up your little arms

and i'll give them all to you to hold

every finger shall have its ring

and there won't be a single place dark or unhappy

then when you're quite dressed

you'll stand in the window for everyone to see

and how they'll stare!

oh but you'll be very proud

and my little sister and i will take hands

and looking up at our beautiful tree

we'll dance and sing

"Noel Noel" 

Educational Links 12/1/18

How Do I Know If My Child Has Executive Function Issues?

https://childmind.org/article/child-has-executive-function-issues/?fbclid=IwAR0uq1r4n2GNCfAyS5zZp0I_ptbaBeXZEbSzhJ-gaeveqc4Ki2DKo4jsXAg

HERE’S WHAT I HAVE COOKIN’ OVER THE NEXT TWELVE MONTHS

http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2018/11/30/heres-what-i-have-cookin-over-the-next-twelve-months/?fbclid=IwAR3OZ7NlUneJHRlLgvsj23_3Re_B1uEhnwU2ck_PSUCWA12GbcSkPOiNUiY

Businesses say students aren’t mastering basic workplace skills. Are they right?

https://hechingerreport.org/businesses-say-students-arent-mastering-basic-workplace-skills-are-they-right/

5 Tips to Eradicate Marking Misery

https://www.teachertoolkit.co.uk/2017/03/19/marking-misery/?utm_content=buffer4fe36&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Facing child poverty in L.A.

https://www.latimes.com/la-me-sg-steve-lopez-telfair-2018-storygallery.html

Top Teacher Stories: Week of November 30, 2018

https://www.weareteachers.com/top-teacher-stories/

Redshirting Debate Just Got New Fuel with ADHD Study

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/speced/2018/11/redshirting_debate_and_ADHD_study.html?cmp=SOC-EDIT-FB&fbclid=IwAR3WxcUxXiZaNxU9F2_ClotqQcuLpaIR4lwqV7NL7Ok8fpzuRdnayJ5_6yM

A newly-released study published in the New England Journal of Medicine adds yet another data point to a complicated decision. The researchers found that kindergarten students who had turned 5 in the month before starting kindergarten were more likely to be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder than children who started kindergarten in the month that they turned 6. 

Christmas Short Stories

 THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL 
http://www.shortstoryamerica.com/pdf_classics/andersen_little_match_girl.pdf

The Gift of the Magi
https://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/1-the_gift_of_the_magi_0.pdf

WCCO's Christmas classic, The Gift Of The Magi, with Dave Moore 12/?/1983

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXRxQ4uDQOQ 

 Christmas Day in the Morning
https://www.whatsoproudlywehail.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Christmas-Day-in-the-Morning-Pearl-Buck.pdf?x65350 

A CHRISTMAS CAROL

https://www.ibiblio.org/ebooks/Dickens/Carol/Dickens_Carol.pdf 

Finishing Up NaNoWriMo

Thank you, Chromebooks, for the experience.

Today we complete the month of November--all my English Classes from Grades 7 through 11--have been writing a novel.

It is amazing. They have been fully engaged.

Why? I ask myself.

I have tried to take away the common roadblocks to writing, being a writer myself I know them well. 

No laziness. 

No hesitancy to get started. 

No procrastination. 

It's a classroom--I get to boss them into getting going!

The kids look forward to writing. Why?

Strong reading background.

Movies, media, television-lots of stories.

Video games--what? Yes, I think participating in video games is an ongoing story that involves some writing essentials and engagement. The intense focus of extended involvement may have conditioned the kids to writing fiction.

I worked to encouraged the students to imagine and write quickly, less worried about editing.

Liberty to try without the shackles of ELA.

For now. We'll edit later--using ELA to make sure the meaning of the story is clear. Authors use punctuation and usage for their own purpose to move the story along.

Using what we already know, I kept referring to a plot diagram.

 Write like a real author-everyone has a story.

I am grateful for the tech to do this--we have Chromebooks in the class.  This is great. This makes me happy.

Writing Strategies: Macbeth Prompts

Ms. Taylor’s English Class, VVCS 2018-2019

Macbeth Writing Prompts-Choose one to write a five-paragraph essay.

Discuss the transformation of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth from Act 1 to the end of the play.

Is Lady Macbeth more responsible than Macbeth for the murder of King Duncan? Is Lady Macbeth’s character more evil than her husband and, if so, why?

Examine Macbeth's mental deterioration throughout the play. 

The three witches told Macbeth his fate. Did the events in Macbeth’s life occur because of the witches’ prophesy or because of the choices he made?

What caused Macbeth to fall: Fate or Free Will? Explain the role of free will in the play.  

If Macbeth were put on trial today, would he be innocent of murder by reason of insanity? How about Lady Macbeth?

A tragic hero is a protagonist, usually of noble birth or high-standing, who brings about his own downfall by a choice brought on by a character flaw. Tragic heroes have several other common features: they undergo meaningful suffering, learn from their mistake somehow, and arouse pity or fear in the audience through their demise. Is Macbeth a tragic hero? Explain why or why not.

Charles Dickens-Documentary

Charles Dickens (Part 1 of 3)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEYdX5_U0Yg

Charles Dickens (Part 2 of 3)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8R5APXDJ6fE

Charles Dickens (Part 3 of 3)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXXm2QtBxts

Illustrations from 'A Christmas Carol.'

Macbeth: Choose a Writing Prompt

Discuss the transformation of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth from Act 1 to the end of the play.

Is Lady Macbeth a Villain or a Victim? 

 Is Lady Macbeth more responsible than Macbeth for the murder of King Duncan? Is Lady Macbeth a more evil character than her husband and, if so, why?

 Examine Macbeth's mental deterioration throughout the play. 

 

The three witches told Macbeth his fate. Did the events in Macbeth’s life occur because of the witches’ prophesy or because of the choices he made?

What caused Macbeth to fall: Fate or Free Will? Explain the role of free will in the play.  

If Macbeth were put on trial today, would he be innocent of murder  by reason of insanity? How about Lady Macbeth?

A tragic hero is a protagonist, usually of noble birth or high-standing, who brings about his own downfall by a choice brought on by a character flaw. Tragic heroes have several other common features: they undergo meaningful suffering, learn from their mistake somehow, and arouse pity or fear in the audience through their demise. Is Macbeth a tragic hero? Explain why or why not.

Educational Links 11/30/18

A Class Library That Represents All Students

https://www.edutopia.org/article/class-library-represents-all-students?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

Project-Based Learning and the Research Paper

https://www.edutopia.org/article/project-based-learning-and-research-paper?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

Call for schools to do more for teacher mental health

https://www.tes.com/news/exclusive-call-schools-do-more-teacher-mental-health?fbclid=IwAR07NO5C3Q6SdXNpylWdkk8A4X01-IxbE7IVV9C_U4ZHwCZ-x0IMZf_kDO0

4 ways to teach empathy in the classroom

https://www.educationdive.com/news/4-ways-to-teach-empathy-in-the-classroom/542323/

The Students Suing for a Constitutional Right to Education

https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2018/11/lawsuit-constitutional-right-education/576901/

Plans come into focus for California schools ravaged by wildfires

https://edsource.org/2018/plans-come-into-focus-for-schools-ravaged-by-wildfires/605409?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=wildfires-1128-18&fbclid=IwAR0J7pyOEFdf8ycof024USWFW-crWYn_2P1cu-FUrgHVWjp4DaSfZLKADYc

26 Awesome Team-Building Games and Activities for Kids

https://www.weareteachers.com/team-building-games-and-activities/?utm_content=1543511461&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR2mUm5xEeK9OUBdrXQUVkEHV7SnL6OkgAhmUtGqT9syXMHdLGN6xGR4dF4

Team-building games and activities are a great tool for helping students learn to work together, listen carefully, communicate clearly, and think creatively. They also give your students the chance to get to know each other, build trust as a community and, best of all, have some fun! Here are 26 team-building activities that will teach your students these skills and more.

Silent Night in Irish

Silent Night by Yoshiko Mishino

 Enya Silent Night (in Irish) 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KTfL6_eiWo 

Oíche Chiún [Silent Night]

Oíche chiúin, oíche Mhic Dé, [Silent night, night of God's son.]
Cách 'na suan dís araon, [Soundly in slumber, the pair together]
Dís is dílse 'faire le spéis [The pair and love, watching with affection]
Naoín beag gnaoigheal [The small bright beautiful child,]
ceananntais caomh [darling little one.]

Críost, 'na chodhladh go séimh. [Christ, calmly asleep.]
Críost, 'na chodhladh go séimh. [Christ, calmly asleep.]

Oíche chiúin, oíche Mhic Dé, [Silent night, night of God's son.]
Aoirí ar dtús chuala 'n scéal; [Shepherds first heard the tale]
Allelúia aingeal ag glaoch. [The angels crying out Alleluia.]
Cantain suairc i ngar is i gcéin [Lovely chanting near and far.]

Críost an Slánaitheoir Féin [Christ, the saviour himself.]
Críost an Slánaitheoir Féin [Christ, the saviour himself.]

Oíche chiúin, oíche Mhic Dé, [Silent night, night of God's son.]
Cách 'na suan dís araon, [Soundly in slumber, the pair together]
Dís is dílse 'faire le spéis [The pair and love, watching with affection]
Naoín beag gnaoigheal [The small bright beautiful child,]
ceananntais caomh [darling little one.]

Críost, 'na chodhladh go séimh. [Christ, calmly asleep.]
Críost, 'na chodhladh go séimh. [Christ, calmly asleep.]

Required Reading in MzT's English Class

Required Reading

English Class, Ms. Taylor

mtaylor@vvcs.org

Each English student will read material outside of English class. Three types of material are required: fiction, informational and biographical. Students log their daily progress in a reading log in their interactive notebook (INB). The student will present an alternative book report (ABR) for each of the required reading three types. and write a five paragraph essay on one of the required readings.

The purpose of Required Reading outside of class is to

1.   Give students ownership of their reading responsibilities;

2.   Improve reading comprehension skills, as well as speed and fluency, in more than one genre;

3.   Enhance familiarity with punctuation skills and grammar usage through the written page;

4.   Open venues of research online;

5.   Develop speaking skills to the entire class as well as in collaborative groups; and create a community of respectful listeners.

6.   Strengthen thinking and writing skills through creation of presentations and essays.

7.   Grow curiosity and imagination, and an increasing love of literature.

What kind of reading is acceptable? Books and topics are cleared by the teacher.

Fiction books must be at grade level, and books considered classics are preferred. The student may watch a Shakespeare movie and do a presentation; however only Shakespeare is allowed in movie form.  Students may also read books of poetry.

Biographical material may be a book or information found online from valid sources, at least seven links to be documented. The resources may include video.

Informational material may be a book or information found online from valid sources, at least seven links to be documented. The resources may include video.

Here are the choices for Alternative Books Report:

Thank you, Todd Finley.

Students will choose one writing prompt.