Monday, August 18 th

1. Monday, August 18th • Vocabulary & Grammar Bellwork • Finish Important Book Presentations • Read “The Baker Heater League” & “The 11:59” • Fiction & Non-fiction Homework: Remind parents to come to Open House at 6:00; bring in $ for field trip and/or Predator t-shirt

2. Vocabulary Bellwork • Add the following vocabulary to the list we began Friday: • lurking • prodigy • reputation • Definitions for these words can be found in the literature book. Also use the book to find out where/how the word is used.

3. Grammar Bellwork—titles • Quotation marks identify titles of short stories, essays, poems, songs, magazine or newspaper articles, and book chapters. • Use italics or underlining to identify the title of a book, play, film, television series, magazine, or newspaper. • Have you read the book Cold Sassy Tree? • We read the poem “Did I Miss Anything” last week.

4. Practice — punctuate the following sentences by underlining or using quotation marks • My favorite TV show is Bonanza. • Andrea says that the best book she ever read was Gone with the Wind. • Ike always reads Sports Journal, a newspaper article, first. • O Captain! My Captain! is a poem about the death of Abraham Lincoln. • Alan once wrote about a wolf for a magazine called Dog Fancy. • Shawna always dances when the song Beat It plays on the radio. • It doesn’t take long to read the short story The Ransom of Red Chief. • Last week our class went to the theater to see As You Like It, a play by William Shakespeare. • Have you seen the animated movie called Fantasia? • Last night I read the chapter called The Cell in my science textbook.

5. Fiction Non-Fiction Qualities Examples

6. Tuesday, August 19th • Poetry Bellwork • Read “The 11:59” • fiction

7. Poetry Bellwork • Go to the first available page in the poetry section of your notebook and title it “What Poetry Can Do.” We will start a list today and continue adding to it all year. • Go to the next page. At the top of it, list the subjects that poems are usually about. We will discuss these in a moment.

8. “You Can’t Write a Poem about McDonald’s” Notice: • The sensory language: images, descriptions, and comparisons readers can see, feel, taste, and smell • The similes that compare people to food, like a McDonald’s counter girl as crisp as a pickle • The humor: Suddenly I understand cannibalism • The line about how easy it is to be filled and the last three lines of the poem: among the most important theme-wise in an ode to the availability and plenty of food in America • How the first-person voice and the expression of the speaker’s emotions make this a lyric poem

9. Respond: • Now it’s your turn to read this poem and make it your own. Please go back into “You Can’t Write a Poem about McDonald’s” with a pencil in your hand and read it silently to yourself. Sound each of its words in your head. As you read, mark the sensory lines in the poem: the lines you can see, smell, taste, and feel. Also, think about the challenge of the title: can a good poet write a good poem about anything?

10. Fiction— “The 11:59” • Question: What would you do if you knew you only had twenty-four hours left to live?

11. “The 11:59” Questions • What causes Lester’s death in “The 11:59”? • Name one of the railroad heroes Lester talks about. What facts are presented about him? What legends/fiction are presented about him? • Nonfiction writers often use fictional elements in their work. Why does the author include tales about well-known railroad figures in “The Baker Heater League”? • What details in the setting make “The 11:59” seem believable?

12. Wednesday, August 20th • SAT/ARMT Practice Bellwork • Writing Workshop • Reading Workshop • Making and supporting predictions Homework: Vocabulary Quiz Friday

13. Bellwork—SAT/ARMT Practice • In the appropriate section of your notebook, label a piece of paper “ARMT Practice 1” and date it. • Go to page AL 34 in your lit book (with the gold border), read the directions and the selection, then answer the 6 questions. (You don’t need to copy the questions; just write the letter of the answer.) • Be prepared to explain why you chose your answer.

14. Writing Workshop • For a descriptive essay you may write about a person, develop a web of five to seven possible subjects. In the main circle put “People.” Then draw lines connecting to smaller outer circles. Complete the web by filling the circles with the names of people you know well. Save this Description Web in your writing section.

15. Making Predictions Directions: As you read “Raymond’s Run,” complete five prediction charts in response to the questions in the margins. My prediction: Text support: What actually happens:

16. Climax Falling Action Rising Action Resolution Exposition Plot

17. Thursday, August 21st • Reading Skills Bellwork • “Raymond’s Run” • Finish reading & making predictions • Discuss plot • Apply the skills • Vocabulary & grammar enrichment Homework: Vocabulary Quiz tomorrow

18. Reading Skills Bellwork • Find the “Good Readers” notes you took last week. • Use a highlighter to mark any of the “Good Reader” skills that you know that you do already. • Look at the remaining skills and circle one that you plan to try using during the next week. • Quiz Tuesday on ways to tell you’re stuck, how to get unstuck, and what good readers do.

19. Vocabulary Review • DIRECTIONS: Think about the meaning of the italicized Word List word in each sentence. Then, answer the question. • 1. Because of Cynthia Procter’s talent on the piano, Squeaky calls her a prodigy. How does Cynthia play the piano? • 2. What kind of reputation as a runner would Squeaky have if she never won a race? • DIRECTIONS: On the line, write the letter of the word or phrase that answers the question. • 1. Who is not a prodigy? • A. a talented person • B. a genius • C. a mean person • D. a wonder • 2. Which word does not have anything to do with a reputation? • A. authority • B. influence • C. fame • D. disgust

20. Friday, August 22nd • Vocabulary Quiz • SSR • Idioms No homework—have a great weekend!

21. Idioms • “Raymond’s Run” contains many idioms. • Idioms are words or phrases that have meanings other than that shown by the individual words. Idioms should not be read literally. • “Come by me” (p. 39)—This is a way of saying that Squeaky will defend Raymond by standing in the way of anyone who tries to hurt him physically or with words. • “put out the tale” (p. 40)—This is a way of saying “told a lot of people.” • “that’s chicken” (p. 42)—This is a way of saying a behavior is fearful.

22. Illustrate an Idiom • On a piece of drawing paper, write your idiom at the top in large, dark letters. • Below the idiom, illustrate the literal meaning of the words (if you took the words at face value, what would they be saying?)