Tuesday, November 27, 2012

8th grade: Marcel the Shell Essay revisions



Revise your Marcel the Shell essay. You will be graded on the following:


  1. Does it have proper essay structure? (intro, body, conclusion)
  2. Does it address the question: how do you think Marcel the Shell became so popular that it got its own picture book?
  3.  Do you support your points with examples?


Remember: it’s OK to have an opinion about the video but that can’t be your entire paper. You need to answer the question and back up your reasons with evidence.

It is due tomorrow.

Sunday, November 25, 2012

What was I doing while in Las Vagas?

...meeting and hanging out with amazing authors and teachers!

This is just a small sampling of the amazing authors I met and hung out with while at the NCTE convention in Las Vegas:

Jennifer Holm, author of Babymouse, Squish, and Turtle in Paradise
RJ Palacio, author of Wonder
Ruta Sepetys, author of Between Shades of Gray
Shannon Hale, author of Princess Academy, et al
Blue Balliett, Rebecca Stead, Jo Knowles, Kate Messner, and Jody Feldman
Graphic novelists extraordinaire, Raina Telgemeier and Dave Roman

Jonathan Auxier, author of Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes, who not only gave the greatest book talk/yo-yo show ever but he also drew a very special picture for our class after his very special offer:


Check out his amazing yo-yo-show/book talk here.

So yeah, my time in Vegas was pretty awesome!

Friday, November 9, 2012

Interview with Katherine Applegate

As we finished The One and Only Ivan, many of you had questions about how Katherine Applegate was inspired to write the story. Here is a video that will hopefully answer some of those questions.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

"Still Me" study guide

Here are the things you need to know for your "Still Me" test:

Literary Terms:

  • autobiography
  • point of view
  • first person point of view
  • third person point of view

Short answer questions:
  • What is now parked next to the barn instead of a horse trailer?
  • What did Reeve imagine when he looked at the picture of the Pyramid of Quetzalcoatl?
  • What has Reeve not done for his son in over three years?
  • What might have been different if Reeve had fallen with his head turned a little to the left or right?

Essay:
What is Reeve's definition of a hero today and do you agree?

Sunday, November 4, 2012

6th grade and BYOD


Hello Parents, Guardians, and Students!

As you already know, St. Paul is establishing a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) program in the junior high. Mrs. Popielarz and I will be slowly implementing this policy with the 6th grade once students turn in their permission slips. Students across the world are now using electronic devices to enhance their education so it is very exciting St. Paul is becoming involved in the global trend. In our 6th grade language arts and social studies classes, students will have the opportunity to use their own device to do the following activities:

  • Planner/Assignment notebook
  • Note taking
  • Research tool for reports and projects
  • E-reader
  • Current Events
  • Creating and listening to Podcasts
  • Student response (exit tool, comprehension check, class polls)
  • Google Docs
  • The Cloud
  • Multimedia tool (video, photos, etc)

At St. Paul, we already have an electronic device policy in place and these rules will still apply with BYOD. The device a student brings into the classroom may only be used when given permission or instructed. Student devices will only be used for educational purposes and it will be a goal to learn how to use these electronic devices responsibly in the classroom. When students are not using their device class, it needs to be locked in their own locker. It is not the responsibility of anyone but the student and they need to understand that these devices must be secured in their locker when not in use.

It is important to note that if students do not have an electronic device of their own, they will have access to St. Paul's netbooks and iPads.

Please contact me or Mrs. Popielarz with any questions, comments, or concerns.

Mrs. Shaum

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Author Carrie Harris visits St. Paul 6th Graders

On October 25th, Carrie Harris, author of the epically funny zombie novel Bad Taste in Boys, visited St. Paul to do a writing workshop with the 6th graders. She did a great job getting them thinking about character and plot and even had them write their very own Monster Prom scene.

And since Carrie loves monsters so much (particularly zombies), the 6th graders made sure she was greeted in monsterly fashion:


Fun was had by all: