MRS. CONTRERAS Language Arts 9 th Grade – Eng I Gifted Honors Room C209

1. Welcome Braddock Bulldogs!!! MRS. CONTRERASLanguage Arts9th Grade – Eng I Gifted Honors Room C209 2006-2007

2. Home Learning PLACE COMPLETED ASSIGNMENT(S) IN HOMEWORK BOX BEFORE THE BELL RINGS! • additional scene for the Epic of Gilgamesh (2 pg maximum). • paragraph explaining where your section would be interjected in the existing narrative and why.

3. Weekly Forecast8/28/06 – 9/1/06 • Monday – retake test. Review FCAT short/ extended responses rubric. • Tuesday – Using FCAT short/extended responses rubric, evaluate sample responses from last week. Practice new/timed short & extended responses. • Wednesday – Review paragraph writing samples. Revise significance of Gilgamesh's quest" paragraph. • Thursday – Discuss Plato's "The Republic" (Book VII) for addressing the role of education as set forth in the "Allegory of the Cave," as well as other education articles. Review Essay Writing using response essays to these readings. • Friday – retake test. Share additional scene to Epic of Gilgamesh using descriptive language for setting & characters.

4. Home Learning By Tuesday, 9/5: • Read complete introduction to Mesopotamian, Egyptian & Hebrew civilizations (pg 16-33) • Group Research projects (Mesopotamian, Egyptian & Hebrew, Indian, Greek, Roman civilizations through PP presentation). • Read "Book of the Dead" pg 50 • Read "Adoration of the Disk” pg 54 • Read "I'm going downstream on Kingswater Canal" pg 56 • Read "Whenever I leave you, I go out of breath" pg 58 • Revise “significance of Gilgamesh’s quest” paragraph according to last week’s slides on good paragraphs • Find a newspaper/magazine /journal current event article of interest (at least 1/2 page - newspaper, 2 full pages - other). Write a 1 page response where you 1) summarize what the article is about 2) explain the writer's purpose 3) significance of article. Have a great week!

5. Essay Writing:Understanding the Modes… There are several writing modes: • Narration: what happened? • Description: what does it look like? • Exemplification: what are some examples of it? • Process: how did it happen? • Cause & Effect: why did it happen? • Comparison & Contrast: how is something like/different from something else? • Classification & Division: what are its parts, and on what basis can they be grouped? • Definition: what is it? How does it resemble other members of its class?

6. Essay Writing:Understanding the Parts… Regardless of which pattern of development you use, an essay will always have an introduction: usually one paragraph includes your subject, engages your reader’s interest, and states your thesis (your central point to be developed). Tone is consistent with that of essay. • Use background information and then move directly into your thesis statement • Introduce with a definition to a relevant term or concept • Use an anecdote or story that leads right to your thesis • Pose a question • Begin with a quotation

7. Essay Writing:Understanding the Parts… Body Paragraphs: the middle section of your essay that develops your essay. These paragraphs make single points which are developed in each through examples, details, statistics, etc. • Don’t forget about unity (when every sentence relates directly to the main idea of paragraph or topic sentence) • Don’t forget about coherence (sentences within each paragraph are smoothly and logically connected) • Coherence is achieved in three ways: 1) repeat key words to carry concepts from one sentence to another 2) use pronouns to refer to key nouns in previous sentences 3) transitions

8. Essay Writing:Understanding the Parts… Body Paragraphs: the middle section of your essay that develops your essay. These paragraphs make single points which are developed in each through examples, details, statistics, etc. • Don’t forget about unity (when every sentence relates directly to the main idea of paragraph or topic sentence) • Don’t forget about coherence (sentences within each paragraph are smoothly and logically connected) • Coherence is achieved in three ways: 1) repeat key words to carry concepts from one sentence to another 2) use pronouns to refer to key nouns in previous sentences 3) transitions

9. Essay Writing:Understanding the Parts… Body Paragraphs: • Each body paragraph should be well developed (examples, facts, explanations). If sufficient explanation is not provided, the reader will only get a partial picture of your subject. • Each body paragraph should follow a logical arrangement • Each body paragraph MUST support thesis

10. Essay Writing:Understanding the Parts… Conclusion: • Since readers remember best what they read last, your conclusion is extremely important. • You should not just try to summarize but really drive the point home in this section. • Like the introduction, the conclusion should be one paragraph

11. Essay Writing:Understanding the Parts… Conclude by: • Reviewing your key points (don’t restate your thesis) • End the discussion with a recommendation of a course of action • Conclude with a prediction (must follow logically from your points) • End with a relevant quotation

12. Essay Writing:Organizing Your Thoughts… Cluster: • Make diagrams (circles, squares) to represent your subject, thesis, sub-points (to support thesis), supporting details for each sub-point

13. Essay Writing:Organizing Your Outline… Thesis statement:As I look back on the situation, I wonder why I kept silent and what would have happened had I acted. I. The incident A. Taking the test B. Witnessing cheating C. Reacting 1. Anger 2. Dismissal II. Reasons for keeping silent A. Other students’ attitudes B. My fears III. Current opinion of cheating A. Effects of cheating on education 1. Undercuts the process 2. Is unfair to teachers B. Effects of cheating on students

14. Essay Writing:Checklist… • Introduction: Did you find some innovative/creative way to engage your reader or provide enough background information so you can introduce your thesis? • Thesis statement: Is it clear and specific? Does it indicate the direction your thesis is taking? • Body Paragraphs: Are they unified? Coherent? Well developed? Do these support the thesis? • Conclusion: Is it appropriate? Did it drive the point home? Did it support thesis • Sentences: Are they effective? Interesting? Varied in length and structure? • Diction/Word Choice: Did you choose the most effective words? Do you show a mastery of language through your choice of words?

15. Essay Writing:A Note on Editing/Revising… • Subject-Verb agreement: Do all your verbs agree in number with their subjects? • Clear pronoun reference: Do pronouns that refer back to specific nouns do so clearly? Be careful of using “this.” Follow this word with the word it is meant to clarify. Ex: John left my classroom yesterday without submitting his detention. This (act of defiance and disrespect) is never acceptable. Consequently, I telephoned his parents. • Punctuation: Are there any commas misplaced, missing, or unnecessary? • Spelling: Proofread or run spell check!

16. Essay Writing:A Note on Editing/Revising… • Sentence Fragments: Does each group of words punctuated have a subject and a verb? • Comma Splices: Are commas used alone to connect two independent sentences? Are coordinating conjunctions (and, but, so, for, yet, etc) missing? • Inconsistencies: Are you consistent in expressing yourself throughout the paper? For example, have you shifted tenses from past to present unless required? • Manuscript Format: Have you followed teacher’s guidelines (MLA)? Is your essay neat, presentable?

17. FCAT FloridaWrites:Aim for a score of 6! • Writing focuses on the topic • Writing is logically organized • Writing includes substantial development of supporting ideas or examples • Writing demonstrates a mature command of language with freshness of expression • Sentences vary in length and structure • Few, if any, errors in conventions.