2009-2010 Reflection Journal Entries

It is very important to step back and reflect on what is going on around you. Taking notice of your habits of the mind is the first step to becoming a better problem solver, critical thinker, and communicator. The following are the journal entries that have been assigned in class so far. We will continue to add to the list of entries as we address essential questions pertaining to the grammar and writing skills we are developing in class.

1. 8/20 What kind of communicator are you?

2. 8/25 Compare and Contrast an electronic dictionary vs. a book dictionary. Which one do you prefer?

3. 9/8 Using Lesson 3 of Vocabulary For Achievement, use 3 words in context as you creatively write about an imaginary character.

4, 9/15 After analyzing your writing, share what you have noticed to be your writing habits. Include strengths and weaknesses.

5. 9/16 Check out our class blog and share your thoughts about one particular blog post that you find interesting. Explain why you chose the one that you did.

6. 9/21 How can you grow as a writer? What are some ways that you can improve your written expression?

7. 9/25 Provide an in-depth explanation of how to find a subject in an inverted sentence. What else do you know about simple/complete subjects and verbs?

Check out my new digital learning website: GrammarCloud!

Let's Learn Those Prepositions!!

Why are prepositional phrases important for our written and oral communication?
How can varied sentence structure make my writing more effective?


For the past week, we have been studying prepositions and have closely analyzed sentences to learn how they add detail to describe something or to give the location of something. It is not often that I ask the students to do memorization work, but we will be applying a lot of new skills that will require them to have extensive knowledge about prepositional phrases. That means that they will need to recall all of their prepositions from the list below. They have learned that a subject and verb cannot be found in a prepositional phrase. Sometimes a prepositional phrase is wedged between a subject and a verb, and they are learning to look for this when making sure to have correct subject/verb agreement; they know not to make the mistake of having the verb agree with the object of the preposition. The students are also learning about varying the beginnings of their sentences. When prepositional phrases are moved to the front of a sentence, it adds variety to writing.

Did you know that when you take away a preposition's object that the preposition then becomes an adverb? If you identify a word in a sentence as a preposition, it must always have an object that is a noun or a pronoun. Just locate the preposition and ask the question, "Who or what?" and the answer will the the preposition's object. All of the modifiers in between the preposition and its object are part of the prepositional phrase. If there isn't a "who or what" that follows, then the word that you identified as a preposition is functioning as an adverb.

The following are the most commonly used prepositions that should be memorized. We will continue to reference prepositions as we learn new skills throughout the year.

aboard
about
above
across
after
against
along
among
around
at
before
behind
below
beneath
beside
between
beyond
by
down
during
except
for
from
in
inside
into
near
of
off
on
onto
out
outside
over
past
since
through
to
toward
under
until
up
upon
with
within
without

What Does Good Writing Look Like?

(click on the picture for a larger view)

Writing is a process, and this year we will practice writing in stages to ensure that excellent habits are being learned.

Brainstorming on any given topic is the way to begin writing as you jot down relevant words or phrases that come to mind on any given topic. Does it mean that you have to use all of your ideas when you begin drafting? Absolutely not! You only choose the best ideas that will support your topic and arrange them in an organized way by using a graphic organizer; this is part of planning what you want to say. Does it mean that you can't add new ideas that might come to mind at a later stage? Of course not! You can always add new information, but try to stay focused and limit yourself to completing one stage of the writing process at a time. As you allow your ideas to steadily flow, try to keep from revising and editing sentences at this point; you will have the chance to do that at later stages of the writing process. Think about this: If you are distracted by sentence structure, missing commas, spelling, etc while you are trying to formulate your ideas, great ideas might get lost and forgotten. Remember to take it one step at a time.

Once your ideas have been written in a rough draft, it is time to take a look at the organization of your thoughts. Are your ideas logically sequenced? Do you need to add or take out parts? What about finishing any incomplete sentences? If you have short, choppy sentences, you might want to consider combining them by using a clause or conjunction. After you analyze your written work, reread it again. It is okay for writing to be messy when you are using carets to insert words/phrases, underlining portions of sentences by using arrows to relocate them, etc. It is okay to mark up your paper!

After revising, it is time to reread AGAIN for spelling, capitalization, and punctuation errors. Take it one sentence at a time, and read it aloud so that you can hear errors that you might otherwise overlook. Finally, it is time to reread your written work again, and then rewrite it for the final time. Sometimes it takes several times of rewriting something before it is ready to be published, and if you really stick to writing in stages and following the correct process, you will develop excellent writing habits.

The question asked in class was,"What does good writing look like?" The boys worked together to come up with characteristics of good writing that they plan to incorporate throughout the year.

Check out my new digital learning website: GrammarCloud!

Why Do We Write?

In class, we have discussed the importance of communication. Our conversation involved writing with a purpose, and the boys brainstormed some ideas and shared what they believed to be the main reasons for why people write. Afterwards, they compared their ideas to the 4 main purposes for writing: to inform, to create/express, to persuade, and to entertain.

This year, the focus will be on expository writing where the boys will write 5 paragraph essays, newspaper articles, and a research paper. They will also write reflections, personal letters, poetry, and will have many opportunities to give written feedback on others' work. The boys are looking forward to not only collaborating with their classmates but with their peers from around the world.

English Curriculum 2009-2010 School Year

Click here to see a larger version.

"Playing for Change: Peace Through Music"

Click here to watch the video

I am following blogs of some very talented educators, and I saw this video posted on a colleague's website. As I was viewing it, it really touched me to see musicians from all over the world come together as one in their efforts to bring "change through music." I shared conversation with the person who posted this inspirational video, and I thought that it would be perfect to begin the year learning about our 5th grade theme, perspective: one's attitude toward something or in regards to something; a point of view. We will cover this throughout the year as we address how one's perspective might change through experiences.

Watch the video, listen to the lyrics of the song "Stand by Me," and reflect on the apparent diversity of the musicians, but also look deeper to gain insight on the importance of global unification: even though we are different in many ways, there are many commonalities that bring us together. I love how this video uses the common language of music to promote change in the stereotypes, prejudices, and oppression that not only plague the people of our very own city of Memphis, but also the people of the world.

What would the world be like if there wasn't diversity?

Why is it important to demonstrate the need to be accepting of others' differences?

How can you make a difference? In what ways can you positively influence others at school or in your community?

Make a connection to the video and relate it to something that you have experienced in your life.

Animoto

Have a wonderful summer!! I miss you already:)

Research Topics

The 5th grade boys have been researching a topic of their choice.

5A Boys:
King Louis 16th and the Fall of the French Monarchy
Why Hershey is such a Great Company
Why Pixar is the Best Animation Studio
The History of Native American Lacrosse
The History of the Yo-yo
Why Being on Ski Patrol is so Challenging
Why the Yo-Yo is the Best Toy Ever Invented
Why Yellowstone National Park is World Famous
Why Modern Day Zoos Are Better Than Zoos of the Past
Why the Masters is One of the Best Tournaments in Professional Golf
Why Duke University Has the Best Basketball Program in the Nation
The Effects of Autism
Why Lacrosse is the Best Sport Ever
The Importance of Going Green With Solar Energy
How the Dust Bowl was Caused by the Average Farmer and Not by the Forces of Nature
Hurricanes: Causes and Effects
How Computers are Beneficial Today

5B Boys:
Why Performance Enhancing Drugs Should Not Be Allowed
How Antartica is Being Affected By Global Warming
Why Street Racing is an Intense Pass Time
How the Death of a Loved One Can Affect You
The Causes and Effects of Global Warming
How Pancreatic Cancer Affects Lives
The History of Basketball
Why the Credit Crash Affects America
How Brain Tumors Affect People
How Space Travel Has Improved Over the Years
How Going Green Can Affect the U.S.
How F-16's and A-300's are Alike and Different
Obesity: An American Epidemic
The History of ALS
How Navy Seals are Trained for Sea Hijacking
How the Stock Market Affects the United States


5C Boys:
How Smoking Can Affect the Lives of Ordinary People
How the Technology of World War II Affected Its Outcome
Why the Velociraptor is the Deadliest Animal of All Living Creatures
The Affects of Smallpox: Then and Now
How the Armenian Genocide Was the Worst of ALL Time
Why the Deep Sea is Rarely Explored by Humans
Why Mount Everest is the Hardest Feat for Climbers to Conquer
What Happened for the Fight for Fallujah to Unfold
Why O.C.D. is Very Challenging
Why Slamball is the Next Up and Coming Sport
How Cigarettes are Associated to Lung Cancer
How Smoking is Ruining American Lives
How the Beatles are the Best Rock-N-Roll Band of All Time
How Lives are Affected by Dwarfism
The Importance of Creating Better Photos
The Causes and Effects of Diabetes
Leo Frank Murder Case: Innocent or Guilty?

5D Boys:
Why a Dog is a Man's Best Friend
The Curse of the Great Bambino
Bigfoot: Legend or Reality
Why the History of Comics is the Best
How the X-43 is the Fastest Jet on Earth
How Knowing God Improves One's Quality of Life
Why the Cuttlefish is the Most Amazing Animal Known
How Aspirin is Beneficial
Why the Traditions of the Masters Make it the Best Tournament of All Time
Why Computers are Becoming an Essential Part of Life
Why the Yankees is the Best Baseball Team in Major League History
Why the Who was one of the Greatest Rock Bands of all Time
How Modern Day Pirates are an Immense Threat to Every Docking Point in Samalia
UFOs: Fact or Fiction
Big Bang Theory: Myth or Reality
Why Dogs are the Best Animals/Pets Ever

Check out my new digital learning website: GrammarCloud!

PDS Field Day 2009

Make a Smilebox photobook

Plagiarism

The following information came from *plagiarism.org

Many people think of plagiarism as copying another's work, or borrowing someone else's original ideas. But terms like "copying" and "borrowing" can disguise the seriousness of the offense:
According to the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, to "plagiarize" means

1. to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own
2. to use (another's production) without crediting the source
3. to commit literary theft
4. to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source.

In other words, plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone else's work and lying about it afterward.
But can words and ideas really be stolen?

According to U.S. law, the answer is yes. The expression of original ideas is considered intellectual property, and is protected by copyright laws, just like original inventions. Almost all forms of expression fall under copyright protection as long as they are recorded in some way (such as a book or a computer file).
All of the following are considered plagiarism:

* turning in someone else's work as your own
* copying words or ideas from someone else without giving credit
* failing to put a quotation in quotation marks
* giving incorrect information about the source of a quotation
* changing words but copying the sentence structure of a source without giving credit
* copying so many words or ideas from a source that it makes up the majority of your work, whether you give credit or not (see our section on "fair use" rules)

Most cases of plagiarism can be avoided, however, by citing sources. Simply acknowledging that certain material has been borrowed, and providing your audience with the information necessary to find that source, is usually enough to prevent plagiarism. See our section on citation for more information on how to cite sources properly.

Example for using quotations

Example for using paraphrasing

*What is Plagiarism? (n.d.) Retrieved May 4th, 2009
http://www.plagiarism.org/learning_center/what_is_plagiarism.html