Wednesday, October 3

Science: Today we took notes on graphing and went over the speed homework. Quiz tomorrow is on scientific method, systems of measurement & calculating speed. Students may use their notes and worksheets on the quiz.

Geometry: Today we took notes on section 2.5 which involves using algebraic properties to introduce proofs. Homework is the 2.5 worksheet. Quiz tomorrow is on 2.1-2.4.

Humanities: Students completed chapter 1 test and discussed the presidential debate in class today. No homework. Current events due Friday. Homework folders due Friday. I will be attending a conference at Oakland Schools on Thursday and will be sure to return any calls/emails on Friday.

ELA - Students handed in their sentences and moved right on the Writer's Workshop Day 7. Teaching Point -Students will form writer's response groups to share their poem and determine if it conveys the message they are trying to get across. Students filled out a Reader's Response Rubric for Narrative Poetry on the other students' poems in their writer's response groups. They then discussed the responses and filled out an "Exit Slip" describing how the process felt. Homework:   READ!  Journal #22

PreAlgebra: No homework today!

Algebra: Just the 5 word problems on worksheet 2.6

Course 3: Today we continued to talk about a person's net worth and how to calculate it.  We compared the net worth of two celebrities.  Homework is to come up with a "fake" net worth sheet.  Students will switch papers tomorrow and solve their neighbor's net worth sheet.

 

Spanish I: Study for vocabulary quiz on 1.1 (part 2) on Monday, October 8th

Tuesday, October 2

Geometry: Went over the 2.4 notes (Using Postulates & Diagrams). 2.4 worksheet is homework. Quiz on 2.1-2.4 is Thursday.

Course 3: Today we continued to talk about adding and subtracting integers.  We started to talk about net income and what that means.  We talked about assets and liabilities.  No homework.

Science: Practiced solving speed problems. Homework is the speed worksheet. Quiz on Thursday is open note.

Pre-Algebra: We went over our chapter tests. Great job! We had a solid B average. We started chapter 2 - evaluating and simplifying expressions. Our homework today is worksheet (attached).

Algebra: We talked about the Distributive Property (section 2.5). Homework: Practice 2.5 B or C (odds only) Our chapter test will be next Tuesday (10/9).

ELA - Students' definitions were checked and then the class went over the "appropriate" definitions and correct parts of speech for this week's vocabulary words.  We then moved on to Writer's Workshop Day 6 - Teaching Point: Students will experiment with possible poem ideas using previous notebook entries. In other words, if students have been writing nightly in their notebooks they should have multiple ideas from which to write. They looked through their journals and picked a few ideas to try writing poems from. Homework:  READ! (we will be starting The Giver sooner than you think, get those AR books done!)Vocab #3 sentences - make sure we can glean the meaning from the sentence. Journal entry #20

Spanish I: Finish reading comprehension and exs 9 & 11, pg 36. Due tomorrow.  

Humanities: Students reviewed 1.1/1.2 summaries and worked on 1.3 summary in class. Students reviewed for chapter 1 test in class. Homework is to finish 1.3 summary if not complete and to study for chapter 1 test. Current events are due Friday. Homework folders are due Friday.

Monday, October 1

Science: Today we continued practicing converting units in the metric system and took notes on speed. We will have a quiz Thursday on the scientific method, time, speed and measurement.

Geometry: Took notes on section 2.3 (deductive reasoning) and went over the 2.2 worksheet. Homework is the 2.3 worksheet. Quiz on 2.1-2.4 Thursday.

Pre-Algebra: We took our Chapter 1 test today. No homework!

Algebra : We went over our quizzes and Problem Solving Workshop papers. Grades are updated. We went over some new properties from section 2.4. Students are responsible for all properties that we have learned so far. We started discussing section 2.5 - the distributive property. No homework!

Course 3: Today we subtracted integers. Homework is worksheet 2.3, odds only
Humanities:  Students checked chapter 2 pretest and worked with groups to summarize chapter 1-section 1. Homework is to summarize chapter 1-section 2 in preparation for a quiz on Wednesday. Students will have a quiz review in class tomorrow. Current events are due on Friday.

  Art- Grade 7/8:  Watercolor sketchbook covers have been completed and graded. Sketchbooks have been put together. Students will be starting a cityscape drawing /painting today.

Grade 8 Advanced Art: Value grid project has been completed/graded and are displayed in front hallway showcase. We are currently working on daily still life #2 . Today each student will be designing an individual pasta still life. These will be spray painted and students will make a view finder to "zoom in" on a portion of their pasta still life. A well developed detailed, value drawing will then be completed.

Art- Grade 8 1st hr: These students are working on an abstract, landscape inspired, relief sculpture. Realistic drawings have been completed. Now students are building a "relief" version of their landscape. These will be cover in colored tissue paper.

ELA - Students started Vocabulary List #3 - looking at context clues and then finding the parts of speech and definitions in classroom dictionaries. Completed definitions are due tomorrow. We then moved on to Writers Workshop Launching Unit Day 5 with a teaching point of: Students will analyze narrative structures such as line, couplet and stanza in mentor poems. Directions attached. Homework: READ! Vocabulary #3 Definitions & parts of speech. Journal entry #18
Spanish I: No homework

Friday, September 28

Science: Completed Investigation 1-B and practiced metric conversions.

Geometry: Went over the 2.2 notes (conditional statements). 2.2 worksheet is homework.

 Humanities: Students watched student news and shared current events in class. Homework is to complete chapter 2 pre-test for Monday.

Spanish I: Study for vocab quiz on 1.1 for Monday, Oct 1st

ELA - Students took their second vocab quiz today. They were then assigned a journal entry to complete while the rest of the class finished their quiz.  Please double check your student's vocabulary sentences on Tuesday nights, many students are having a hard time using words properly while showing the meaning in their sentences. These should be good 8th grade sentences with context clues in the sentence so I can glean the meaning from the sentence...."This is inadequate work." could mean anything....maybe "This is inadequate work, so it earned and E." would be better at showing what the vocabulary word means. Please have your student check the blog and the Student Access grade-book at least weekly so they are aware of their missing or excellent work.  Have a great weekend.

Pre-Algebra: We checked our Chapter Review. We talked about how to study and what material we each need to focus on for the Chapter 1 test this Monday. Have a great weekend!

Algebra: We took a short quiz today. Homework: Notes on section 2.4. Have a great weekend!

Thursday, September 27

Pre-Algebra: I was out today at a math conference.  Students worked on a Chapter Review in preparation for the chapter test which will be on Monday.

Algebra: I was out today at a math conference.  Students worked on a Problem Solving Workshop that was due at the end of the hour and they received a quiz review sheet.  We will have a short quiz tomorrow covering sections 2.1 - 2.3 after we go over the review.

Geometry: I was out at a math conference today, students will get their chapter 1 tests back tomorrow. In class today students took notes on section 2.1 (inductive reasoning), 2.1 worksheet is homework.  We'll be starting proofs this chapter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Course 3: Today we talked about integers, opposites, and absolute value.  Homework is worksheet 2.1, # 1, 2 - 26 evens, and 28 - 30 all.

Science: I was out today at a math conference, lab corrections will be returned tomorrow. Students did an other jigsaw notetaking on pages 13-17. There is no homework.

Spanish I: Exs 3,4, & 5 pgs 32-33. Due Mon Oct 1

ELA - Students learned about how an ordinary occurrence can be expressed through poetry.  Writer's Workshop Day 3 provided them with a mentor poem which was then split into the Narrative Poetry traits, students then used this mentor poem as inspiration to express themselves through poetry.  Many students shared these poems, it was a good time! We then started Writer's Workshop Day 4 with a discussion on Figurative Language and how to use it to bring more "color" into our writing.  We read a mentor poem by Tupac Shakur and discussed the figurative language he used to express himself. Homework: READ! Study for Vocabulary #2 Quiz. Write Journal Entry #15.

 

Humanities: Students worked on chapter 2 pre-test in class today. Current events are due Friday. Chapter 2 pre-test is due Monday.

Physical Education: September essay is due tomorrow, Friday, September 28. Click here for a copy of the question. 

Tuesday, September 25

Geometry: Took the Chapter 1 test, no homework!

Course 3: We took the chapter one test today.  Homework is a mini-project about decorating your bedroom, # 1 - 4 only

Pre-Algebra: We did a coordinate plane activity today. Reviewing where the axes, quadrants, and points were located. Homework: Practice 1.8 (all)

Algebra: We reviewed Stem and Leaf Plots and Box and Whisker Plots today (MEAP Prep). We covered section 2.3. We will have a quiz covering sections 2.1- 2.3 on Friday. Homework: Finish Properties Flashcards.

Science: Investigation 1-B, systems and change. No homework

ELA - Students "turned in" their Vocabulary #2 definitions and then we went over the correctly worded definitions and the parts of speech together. Sentences are due Thursday. Writer's Workshop - We worked together on WW Launching #2. Students discussed the meanings of multiple poems and wrote these in their journals. Homework:  READ! (still a few weeks out on starting The Giver by Lois Lowry, now is the time to get their independent AR books read and quizzed) . Vocab list #2 sentences. Journal entry #13

Spanish I: Only homework is to study for the 1.1 quiz on Monday

Humanities: Students received homework folder grades, corrected the chapter 1 pre-test and watched a video on European exploration in class today. No homework. Current events due Friday.

Monday, September 24

Humanities: Students checked Constitution work from Friday, turned in homework folders and worked on chapter 1 pre-test in class. Homework is to use the text to finish the pre-test if it is not complete. Current events are due Friday.

Geometry: Went over the answers to the practice test and discussed tomorrow's test. Homework is to complete the odds of the chapter review (pages 60-63) and be sure to check answers in the back of the book. Test #1 tomorrow!

Pre-Algebra: We had a fire drill today that ate up some of our class time... we took a Fractions Review Quiz. Homework: Data Display Review. Students are asked to put data in a Stem and Leaf Plot and a Box and Whisker Plot. I have attached the homework.

Algebra: We went over that tough Sudoku puzzle I assigned on Friday. Thank you to those who worked hard on that! We took notes on section 2.2. Homework: Practice B or C (student's choice). If B, do problems (2-24 evens, 25-27); if C, do problems (2-20 evens, 21-23). There will be a quiz this Friday covering sections 2.1-2.3.

Course 3: We reviewed for our chapter 1 test tomorrow.  If students need more practice, there is a practice test on page 49 in the textbook.

Science: We completed the jigsaw note-taking for pages 6, 8, 9, 11 & 12 and discussed the notes. Homework is to complete the scientific processes worksheet on a separate sheet of paper using the guidelines discussed for great short answers (Give a complete answer, use a complete sentence, repeat key words from the question, be specific, don't leave your reader guessing). We also did the first binder check today, many students do not have their binders organized according to the requirements on the course syllabus. This is part of the participation grade.

ELA - Students received Vocab List #2 (attached), Dictionary Definitions and parts of speech are due tomorrow. We started our Writer's Workshop Writing Unit. Students took notes in their Writer's Notebook (entry #10), they analyzed a few poems from teenink.com and used an anchor chart to chart out the topic, narrative elements, and feelings evoked from each poem. Directions for those absent attached. Homework: READ! Vocab definitions and Journal Entry #11

Spanish I: No homework, except study for 1.1 quiz on Mon Oct 1st