Post date: May 16, 2015 3:26:33 AM
Hi All.
Most important things first: please reply as to whether or not you are planning on attending the parent meeting this Monday evening (5/18 at 6:30). Susan and Debra and I are trying to get our numbers so that we can decide whether to meet in 1 room or 2 rooms or all 3. We'll be discussing the rafting trip, graduation, the curriculum for the rest of the year, and enjoying the desserts that you are hopefully willing to bring in.
Recap of the week:
1. Sound Editing: Last week I introduced the kids to digital audio editing tools and let them play with various effects, loops, and sound sampling. This week I gave them a simple structured assignment that required basic cut-paste editing skills and they each were able to manipulate their file, save it, make it public, and post the link.
2. Civil War Topics: I asked each kid to browse a website that had about 100 pages covering various aspects of the war and choose one of personal interest by putting their name on this list. Then they were to carefully and completely read the page they chose, create a 60 second summary along with a note card. Those mini-presentations went well but we still have a few more to go.
3. Compare & Contrast Essays: After reading through the class' North-South paragraphs from a few weeks ago I noticed that many lacked a level of organization and mechanics that would be present in a typical compare/contrast writing piece. Consequently, I gave them a very structured assignment from Scope magazine that walked them through the process of gathering information, organizing it, and writing a solid few paragraphs comparing various aspects of smoking 40(ish) years ago with that of today. I just scored those assignments and it looks like the exercise was effective. This coming week the kids will be repeating the process but with a topic of their choosing. Here is the page on my site that has some detail.
4. CAASPP Tests: On Friday the kids took the first test in ELA and it seemed to go very well. A few technical glitches were experienced by those that weren't using the school's Chromebooks, but they figured out solutions quickly and worked hard for 60 to 90 minutes to complete the test. This new set of tests has raised the bar for education in our state and I'm glad to see it. Each day this coming week has a different test (listed on my homepage) and I hope that the kids' endurance & focus holds out.
Well, guests are starting to arrive for our daughter's pre-prom primp-n-photos gathering, so I better leave my desk and join the party.
Have a great time this beautiful weekend and don't forget to reply (now?!) to let me know if you can come Monday evening, and perhaps what desert/snack you might be willing to bring.
Chris