Summer Break from School

Today is the first official day of summer break for me.  Yeah!  I've got many plans in my head, but my goal is to actually get them down in writing.  My goal is a little each day.

I am hoping to do more professional development I want to do this summer than I did last summer with classes.  I do have one day-long training with the archdiocese for our new graded course of study.  I am excited about what I see on paper.  I am more curious to learn what I don't see on paper.

Student Answer About Anne Frank & Heaven

Friday, I was my student-teacher's substitute--Yeah!  I do not like NOT teaching and was excited to fill this role.  The students were wrapping up reading the play about Anne Frank.  We had approximately ten minutes left in class on a Friday afternoon, so we had a general discussion.

Someone asked, "Do you think Anne Frank would be mad if she looked down [meaning--from heaven] and saw all of us reading her diary?"

One beautifully faith-filled student immediately said, "No.  You only feel love in Heaven."

End of discussion . . . and all with smiles of agreement!

Evaluate vs. Valueing

I was at a school function the other day in which I ran into many parents, one of which I sent an email to earlier in the day.  I asked her if she received my email . . . blah, blah, blah . . .  and I passed along a sincere and genuine compliment about her son.  She stopped suddenly and said, "Thanks.  That means a great deal coming from someone who evaluates my son."

VERSUS

I was equally shocked at her remark and added, "I VALUE your son.  I EVALUATE his work."  I think as busy teachers we forget to let our students and parents know this.

I'm thinking about adding this to my beginning of the year parent-night information.  I'd much rather know a teacher values my child.  It is expected that (s)he evaluates him or her.

General Poetry

I stumbled upon this link for a method of teaching a poem.  Could be fun:  https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/poetry-pre-reading-strategies
Place words in ABC order and have students make connections.
Collective memory game.
Teach Channel aligns these videos w/ CCSS

My Brother Sam Is Dead

For the most comprehesive information on the novel My Brother Sam Is Dead, click the following link:  History of Redding .  This site is awesome!  It even has an interactive map that shows students the places Tim Meeker (the novel's narrator) walked.  It does not get any more thorough than this site!

One of the things I love about this novel is the strong relgious overtones.  Students need to be reminded constantly when reading this historical fiction novel about placing themselves in the narrator's shoes--back in 1775.  The Narrator has such a strong sense of moral right and wrong and a strong command of biblical teaching, that it is the perfect novel to teach at a religious school.

Honor thy father and mother.  We talked about how our definition of this Commandment is very different than Tim Meeker's definition.

Daydreaming = sloth = sin.  This concept, too, brought up interesting conversation.

Remember to keep holy the Sabbath.

Interactive Notebook--The Writing Process

I have been trying to work with students on taking notes.  I've taught them outlines and Cornell notes.  I've used graphic organizers.  This past summer I tried to think of some things I could use an interactive note-taking device.  I found some information on different foldables.  Honestly, it is so much more work to plan; however, the students were engaged with the change-of-pace.  I used this one for the first chapter in our new grammar books.

This one was easy to make.  You take three sheets of paper and cut them down the center leaving six 4.25 X 11 inch strips.  You need to use three strips.  You lay the three papers on the table staggering them approximately 1/2 or so.  The bottom is the longest (it is the layer that says "Publishing/Presenting").  Lay the middle layer on top of that but leave the bottom layer sticking out a half inch (layer two says Editing & Proofreading").  Lay the third layer on top of the middle layer again allowing the middle layer to stick out 1/2 inch and bottom layer an inch away.  This third layer says "Revise."

Now you are going to fold the three layers, while staggered, basically in half.  The middle layer folds on itself, but leave another 1/2 tag.  So now that third layer is labeled both "Revising" and "Drafting."  The bottom layer is now both "Publishing/Presenting" and the cover "The Writing Process."  These can be stapled at the top or stapeled directly into student notebooks at the top.

Each layer now opens to to allow students to take notes.  Many of the students went all out creative (should have used their beautiful copies instead of my demo!).  Others just took notes in pen or pencil, but it was neat and organized.  I'm hoping to use these more.

My fellow science teacher used this foldable and wrote the steps of the scientific process.  One could use this in religion with sacraments, fruits of the spirit, etc.

Hope Was Here

Joan Bauer's Hope Was Here is a wonderful novel to read with junior high students.  This 2001 Newbery Honor book has a strong, teenage protagonist, but it is not a gender-exclusive novel.  It discusses issues of non-traditional families--nothing inconsistent with Catholic teaching is promoted.  It covers how doing what is right sometimes does not SEEM right or has negative repercussions.  It briefly introduces the topic of dying--but nothing too heavy.  The novel also addresses themes of hope, coming of age, friendships, etc.  I think I am going to teach this novel during April--National Poetry Month because this book is full of figurative language.

Bauer's website has some great resources including a teaching guide (click HERE) and a much thorough outline of a novel teaching plan (click HERE).