Last week, was definitely a stressful week. Unfortunately, your child came home with homework more nights than not for multiple reasons. This is never my intent. I am not a fan of homework and this will definitely not be the norm. The first guided essay is always the hardest and takes the longest. Students are learning to move beyond structure and to actually analyze the deeper meaning and extend their thinking. I explained it to them as putting together a puzzle that doesn't exist, until they actually have all the pieces put together. This definitely requires think time and some students actually think better at home than at school--whether it is because there are fewer distractions, they are more comfortable, or whatever the reason, they actually like the homework. This means they are usually not using their class time wisely and they are choosing to have homework. Some students are more thoughtful and work at a slower pace taking a longer time to process the information; therefore, homework for them is inevitable and not really a choice. Whatever the reason, they had more English homework than normal. This week they will get a break from that, yay! Hopefully, this allows for more family time or extracurricular activities.
I am in the process of grading all of the essays. I try to do a 5-day turnaround policy on all work, but sometimes life gets in the way. It takes between 6-8 hours to grade one class period's essays (that is about 30 hours of grading for a single essay). If your child's essay has been graded, there are multiple places where feedback was given: 1) all introductions were commented on in Google Classroom and were given suggestions for improvement by both peers and myself; 2) body paragraphs were given peer feedback in Google Classroom and I commented on some of them; 3) a peer editing sheet was filled out for the entire essay; and, 4) the scored rubric can be found at the bottom of the essay, along with comments made in Google Classroom for suggestions and next steps. If you are curious to see what a Grade 8 "A" level essay looks like, please click here for examples.
We will be starting the short story "Charles" about a very bright, but mischievous young man. We will be reviewing terms about characters (protagonist, antagonist, major, minor, static, and dynamic), setting, plot, and theme. We will also be extending these ideas and analyzing universal themes, perspectives, and motives (there is that evil work analyze again--this year will be filled with it and writing). I think the students will enjoy this week a lot more than the last two (I can admit that essay writing is not the most fun, but it is definitely a necessity that can eventually be E-A-S-Y).
Monday
Interactive Notebook: Plot and Characters
Tuesday
Interactive Notebook: Universal Themes
"Charles" Slidedeck and Vocabulary
Wednesday
"Charles" Vocabulary
AR Log Check (Log-5 entries/Signature)
*Students need to be reading an AR book that has a reading level >3.5 for 30 minutes 5 nights per week. Students need to earn 35 points at every quarter checkpoint (10/21, 12/9, 3/10 and 6/2). GOOD NEWS: Students only need 5-entries to take an AR quiz!
Thursday
"Charles" PDF
"Charles" Handout Side 1 and Side 2
Friday
"Charles" PDF
"Charles" Handout Side 1 and Side 2
**GRADES FOR PROGRESS REPORTS ARE DUE BY SUNDAY**
This break is definitely needed for all of us! Please take the time to relax, refresh, and rejuvenate (that is easier said than done during this busy time of year). It is very important to take care of yourself and to cherish this time with family and friends!
I want to send a HUGE THANK YOU to the parents that supported my Donors Choose projects for Bring on the Books: We Love to Read! (AR young adult books for the classroom library) and Art Comes Alive in English (supplies for coloring, cutting, and gluing). I am so touched by your generosity and support and all of my students will definitely reap the rewards when all of these items arrive mid-January.
It was an amazing first week back to school after the Thanksgiving break! We started reading Maus I: My Father Bleeds History and the students seem to be enjoying the graphic novel. It definitely portrays the Holocaust in a different way (the students were pretty excited that it had pictures). The main reason why I love having the students read this book is because their ability to recognize literary terms and analyze text improves so much over the course of the graphic novel. This will prepare them for the novel that we will read in January/February, Fahrenheit 451. They will apply the same skills they are learning now on a deeper level through literary analysis essays.
I hope everyone had a relaxing Thanksgiving break where you were able to create lasting memories! The next three weeks are going to fly by and then we will be on break again (sleeping in is so nice). With that said, there is a lot to get done before final semester grades are due 12/16. 
Last week, the students were able to be creative--yay! Many of them chose to produce a new take on "The Tell-Tale Heart" by creating a graphic novel from a different perspective, a children's book that uses animals, a thematic song, or a newspaper from the 1800s. Students will be adding their projects to their e-portfolios, so please check them out in the next week or so. Here is an example of some amazing artwork from Sophia K. for her graphic novel--that is some talent! Also, please look at the book recommendations from my 8th graders as there are some really good books!
Last week, the students really brought their ability to analyze to a whole new level--from reading a short story to writing a literary analysis essay that analyzes the themes of time and mortality! It is amazing that they can now take a 10-15 word quote and write paragraphs about the quote's deeper meaning. Here are some examples of "A" level essays from Friday's essay. 
What I have really enjoyed about the process of this essay is that they are usually complaining about the actual task of writing--structure, analysis, etc.; however, this time, they are struggling to put the "truth" in their essay and feel confident about what they are writing without going against their moral compass. It has been great to watch them struggle because this means they are truly thinking critically about the issues. This will definitely allow them to make an informed decision when they participate in the nationwide Student Presidential Mock Election in their history classes on Tuesday. Here is a link to examples of "A" essays. 
We finally finished our first short story "Charles" last week. The students were troopers and made it through their depth and complexity handouts, an argumentative short-essay test, and a group narrative from a different character's perspective. Their "handwriting" was done after that; however, then they got their next argumentative essay (at least, they are back on the computers).
Last week was a nice little break from essay writing! The picture shows students reading "Charles" in their groups, filling out their handouts, and referring to their notes in their interactive notebooks. They seemed to enjoy the story and loved the fact that it was a cliffhanger, which, in turn, made their plot diagram a lot shorter, ha!
