7th & 8th Blue ELA
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Food Truck Festival Reminders
As we are approaching the end date of our food truck project, I want to remind students of the criteria/requirements for the project and the different elements teams should be focusing on. I will have pockets of class time available between now and May 15/16, but if teams are finding themselves farther behind most, outside class time will need to be used (especially if one or both team members has had several absences).
The required writing components of the project are:
- A food truck theme and name page focusing on understanding puns
- An “about us” page that shows proficiency in homophones
- A menu that shows proficiency with punctuating coordinate adjectives
- A print advertisement that shows proficiency in punctuating pauses or breaks
- A design plan showing proficiency using ellipses to omit information
The writing should be engaging and creative. It should include effective word choice and clear, varied sentences that flow well. Final drafts should demonstrate few to no errors in standard grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc.
All the rough drafts for these components should already be completed, and class time given will be to clean up and finalize each part. Team members should be discussing with each other a plan for acquiring the needed items to create the physical truck. The only guidelines given concerning the truck are that they need to be at least the size of a large boot-sized shoe box. They can be as big as students want as long as they can get them here easily. Food trucks should have wheels, even if they don’t work.
Students have been told they can bring sample-sized giveaway food items that represent what their food trucks would be serving, but this is in no way required. Students will not be penalized for not having giveaway samples; this is totally optional!
There will be several judges (teachers and staff) that will look at the written components as well as the time and effort spent on the creation of the food truck itself. There will be awards for food truck design, an award for writing components, and an overall award for best all around.
I love how excited they have been about this project and can’t wait to see the final results!
Homework Due April 29 (red) / April 30 (blue)
Today we went over poetic devices. Students took notes that should’ve made it home. Between now and Coop Day One next week, students need to annotate two of the four poems we have left: “The Rose That Grew From Concrete” and “Abandoned Farmhouse”. Students were given a handout on how to annotate in steps (also attached as a file) . Please keep in mind this is a process of learning, and this is likely your first attempt at this.
Below this post you will find a downloaded pdf of today’s material we covered in class. You should review that before annotating your poems. There is also an attached copy of “Identity” for you to look at as an example.
Haiku topic that is due on Coop Day One next week is the beach/ocean.
Homework Update
Homework Due on Coop Day One Next Week
Homework Due Coop Day One of next week- students, you are to take the remaining poems- our Elite Eight chosen this week from the Sweet Sixteen- and reread them. This time as you read, you need to do three things to each:
- Write down what you think the author’s tone is- what is the attitude he or she takes towards the subject/ content of the poem? Is it light-hearted, arrogant, depressing, judgmental, etc?
- Circle any word or phrase that the author uses to convey sensory imagery. How does the author paint a picture in our minds using the five senses? Circle these and label which sense is being appealed to.
- Finally, write a simple definition above any word you aren’t familiar with. You can either look this up or ask someone. You can’t understand the poems if you don’t understand all the language.
This class chose the following poems:
“The Rose That Grew From Concrete”
“Willow and Gingko”
“Abandoned Farmhouse”
“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening”
“Caged Bird”
“Tattoo”
“If We Must Die”
“What Love Isn’t”
Also for homework due on Coop Day One, you are to write a haiku on chicken nuggets. Have fun and get creative!
Check back here after Coop Day One for your homework due Coop Day Two.
Homework due for Coop Day Two this week- Please Read!
Before Coop Day Two this week, please do the following: click on the following 8 files and links and read and print the poems. These are the last of the poems to be printed. Read them for understanding and come to class prepared to discuss them.
Also- don’t forget to bring your haiku about the moon on Coop Day Two this week.
For National Poem in Your Pocket Day on April 18, you can earn raffle tickets by doing one or two of the following:
Post a pocket-sized poem in a public place
Memorize a poem and recite it to 5 people
Create and give away bookmarks with some of your favorite lines of poetry
Send a poem to a friend in a note/letter
Add some lines of poetry to your email footer
Share a poem on social media
(the poems shared must be published poems, not personal ones)
To receive the raffle tickets, simple have your parent write down what you did and sign a note and bring it to class! These must be completed by Coop Day One next week.