Write, then Write again!
"Half my life is an act of revision." John Irving
Happy New Year!
Welcome to the New Year! And welcome to our classroom newsletter, "Write, then Write again!"
I hope everyone had a well-rested and relaxing vacation. It's hard to believe we are nearing the half-way mark in the school year.
Since NBHS is slowly switching over to using Google Tools, I am moving and re-working my classroom website at nbschools.org to a Google Site. Once the new website is complete I will share the URL with you.
I am also going to try using these Smore newsletters to continue to foster communication with my students families. We'll see how it goes! In the meantime, you'll find a few classroom updates below, including important due dates for larger assignments.
Best,
Mrs. Heather Macpherson
Classroom News
Book Trailers
Student created book trailer for a new take on the traditional book report. This project integrated reading literature, writing, and technology. Students had the choice between a variety of media including Prezi, Google Slides, and Animoto. One student also discovered a great online tool called Splice. You can see an example of a student-made book trailer above!
Monthly Course Calendars
On Tuesday, January 6th I gave my ELA 8 students our course calendar for the months of January and February. These calendars provide a day-by-day look at the content we are covering in class. Sometimes lessons may change, or fall out of order, but for the most part it is an effective way to keep us on track. I am hoping to include these calendars on our new class website.The calendars do not denote homework assignments, since that is something that may fluctuate often, but major assignments and vocab quizzes are included. Upcoming major assignments include:
- Book report #3 (this one will be a written report)
- Compare & Contrast Essay (analytical writing; this will not be due until sometime in March, but we'll begin discussion in February)
- Personal Essay #2
- Poetry Writing
- Vocab Quizzes 13 & 14
Staying motivated during the winter months is sometimes difficult, so I approached the class with an incentive program to encourage homework completion. If every student completes their homework assignments between now and February 1st, we will have a class pizza party on Thursday, February 5th.
Enrichment Projects
Students are invited to participate in an enrichment project. There are several choice projects available plus the option to design one of their own. The enrichment project is an opportunity for students to employ higher order thinking skills and work independently yet maintain a level of communication with me about their project and seek assistance when needed.
Coming Up!
About
Email: hmacpherson@nbschools.org
Location: North Brookfield, MA, United States
Phone: (508) 867-7131 1201