Tuesday, December 22nd

There is NO SCHOOL on Tuesday.  This means that we will not meet again until January 4th, 2010!  

Enjoy your winter break and come back rested and ready for the last three weeks of the second marking period

-Mr. Swain

Monday, December 21st

School is closed on Monday due to the weekend's weather.  Keep your fingers crossed for Tuesday!

Thursday, December 17th

Parents & Guardians: Interim reports for the second marking period are being mailed out today.  Please encourage your child to make up any missing assignments for partial credit before the holiday break!

Lesson Objectives - Students will take their test on "A Retrieved Reformation" today.  Those students who have completed their test essay rough draft will recieve three homework credits.

Homework -

• Students should prepare for their Unit 2 Vocabulary Quiz that they will take tomorrow.  I will collect their books to check their practice exercises during their quiz.
• Class work pages 7-13 are due on Monday.

Wednesday, December 16th

Lesson Objectives - Students will be able to reinforce their understanding of the four kinds of sentences with a competitive activity.  They will use their vocabulary words for the first 2 units in completing this exercise.

Homework - Students are to continue writing their test essay rough draft. Essay question: Compare and contrast the characters and plots from O. Henry's two stories, "After Twenty Years" and "A Retrieved Reformation." 

Tuesday, December 15th

Lesson Objectives - Students will be able to...

• Enhance their writing with the use of transitional phrases. (13a-13b)
• Reinforce their understanding of the four kinds of sentences with a competitive activity.

Homework - Students are to continue writing their test essay rough draft. Essay question: Compare and contrast the characters and plots from O. Henry's two stories, "After Twenty Years" and "A Retrieved Reformation."

Monday, December 14th

Lesson Objectives - Students will be able to identify and compose examples of the different kinds of sentences. (Pages 12a-12d)  They will also be able to use an outline in order to organize their test essay.  We will also go over the vocabulary sentences so that they can prepare for Friday's quiz.

Homework - Students are to start writing their test essay rough draft.  Essay question: Compare and contrast the characters and plots from O. Henry's two stories, "After Twenty Years" and "A Retrieved Reformation."

Friday, December 11th

Parents and Guardians: Please check Home Access Center for the updated assignment grades.  The overall grade counts toward the interim for the second marking period.  Interim reports will be mailed home toward the end of next week.  I also sent home a Student Detail Report with each student today.  Please talk to your child about his or her grades so that he or she can improve before the winter break.

Lesson Objectives: Students will be able to prepare for their test essay for next week.  They will compare and contrast the plots and characters from O. Henry's "After Twenty Years" and "A Retrieved Reformation."  (page 11b)  Students will also complete page 31 in Unit 2 of the vocabulary books.

Homework: Students will get their Student Detail Report signed by a parent or guardian.

Wednesday, December 9th

Lesson Objectives - Students will be able to...

• Familiarize themselves with the words from vocabulary unit 2 and evaluate their own understanding of the terms.
• Apply the story elements to the currect story "A Retrieveved Reformation." (page 10b)
• Determine the factors in O. Henry's life that influenced the two stories we have read. (page 11a)

Homework - In a paragraph, answer the following: If you were in the same situation as Ben Price, would you have done the same thing?  Explain why or why not.

Tuesday, December 8th

Lesson Objectives - Students will be able to analyze the motives that cause dynamic characters to change.  They will also compare and contrast writing samples from the same author.

Homework - Students can complete corrections for their recent vocabulary unit 1 quiz.

Monday, December 7th

Parents and Guardians: I have updated the grades on Home Access Center to include the recent vocabulary class work and quiz as well as the test on "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi."  Please make sure that your child is up to date on his or her class work since the interim for the second marking period is rapidly approaching.  Let's make sure we dismiss for the holiday break with everything completed! 

Lesson Objective - Students will take test on the O. Henry story, "After Twenty Years."  This is their third test of the marking period.  When they finish they will will introduce themselves to the next vocabulary unit and read the next story, "A Retrieved Reformation," also by O. Henry.

Homework - Students will complete the Synonym & Antonym sections of Vocabulary Unit #2, page 32.

Friday, December 4th

Lesson Objectives - Students will take their first unit quiz in their new vocabulary series.  After that, we will review for Monday's test in "After Twenty Years."

Homework - Prepare for Monday's test.

Tuesday, December 3rd

Lesson Objectives - Students will be able to examine and correct examples of sentences with subjects in an unusual order.  This will enable them to utilize sentence variety in their essay writing.  (Pages 9a-9d)

Homework - Students should prepare for tomorrow's quiz on the first vocabulary unit.  Also, they can complete test corrections for the the "War of the Wall" test that I gave back yesterday.

Wednesday, December 2nd

Lesson Objectives - Students will be able to identify examples and analyze the effectiveness of the author's use of foreshadowing in the story, "After Twenty Years."  They will also examine the impact that a different point of view would have on the story. (Pages 8a, 8b)

Homework - Students can make corrections on "The War of the Wall" test in order to bring their grade up.  Also, they should prepare for the vocabulary test on the first unit for this Friday.  I will collect their books on that day to grade their progress with the assignments.

Tuesday, December 1st

Parents & Guardians:

There are still many students who have not purchased the vocabulary book.  Please be sure to send in payment with your child in the form of cash or check.  Please make checks payable to "Conrad Schools of Science."  The book is $9, but I can accept partial payments until it is paid off. 

Also, please visit the Home Access Center on a regular basis to check the grades of your son or daughter.  This is the time of year when many students lose their academic focus.  Encourage them to finish the 2009 calendar year on a high note!  After the holiday break, there are only 3 weeks left in the second marking period.

Lesson Objectives:  Students will be able to evaluate their progress in the learning the words for the 1st vocabulary unit.  They will also review ther practice exercises so that they can be prepared for Friday's quiz.

Homework: Students can complete test corrections for the "War of the Wall" test. CORRECTION:  We never got to the test today so students can work on completing their vocabulary unit work tonight.