Intro/conclusion Reminders

Checklists for paragraphs

Campaign of Kindness & Gratitude

We spent our advisory meeting today discussing ways to recognize and appreciate people who make a positive influence in our lives.  Sometimes it's easy to unintentionally take the people who mean the most to us for granted. Now that it has been brought to our attention,  we all agreed that there are lots of ways to honor their love and support. 

Mrs. Harmon's Helpful Hints

Use the link below to check out some persuasive writing reminders from Mrs. Harmon.

https://docs.google.com/a/wethersfield.me/document/d/1Y0wRS56MGGmekX-YXdEnt9QU4tGHrq3xXUnPEl7KEzQ/edit?usp=sharing

You can  also access this page at any time clicking
 the tab at the top of the blog. 

Main body "quick-write"

Body paragraph "To-Do" list

Use this checklist to write each of your main body paragraphs. 

Literary Essay Structure

Identifying a Shared Theme...

Using Evidence Effectively...

Lit essay claim structure

Use the charts below to help write your claim statement (thesis) for the literary essay. 

Craft moves you can write about!

We Passed the 1000 Book Mark!!!

Congratulations to the Indigo Team students! As of yesterday, our team total for books read since the beginning of the school year has reached 1145!!!

Introducing...... The Roar!

Attention students and parents:

  SDMS has launched a new school blog to help keep parents up to date on all the incredible work happening in our building. It's called "The Roar." You can follow the blog by clicking the link below and entering your email address for email alerts on new postings.

Identifying symbolic archetypes!

Archetypes

Archetypes are fundamental “building blocks” of storytelling. Carl Jung, a German psychologist, came up with the term ARCHETYPE. He thought that most people fell into certain categories. Later, English teachers noticed that the way Mr. Jung described people were also the same as certain characters that showed up in stories. The term changed and students all over the planet study Literary Archetypes.

 Certain characters, plots (situations), objects (symbols) and settings show up over and over in stories from all over the world and in all time periods. These archetypes have special symbolic meanings. Archetypes represent universal symbols of bigger ideas, just like a baby represents youth and innocence. A road may represent not just a trip, but the journey through life.Symbolic archetypes occur throughout literature to help the audience identify with and understand important parts of a text. 

Common Symbolic Archetypes:

Light vs. Darkness Light usually suggests hope, renewal, or intellectual illumination; darkness implies the unknown, ignorance, or despair. 

Innate Wisdom vs. Educated Stupidity Some characters exhibit wisdom and understanding of situations instinctively as opposed to those supposedly in charge. Loyal retainers often exhibit this wisdom as they accompany the hero on the journey. 

Supernatural Intervention Spiritual beings intervene on the side of the hero or sometimes against him. 

Fire and Ice Fire represents knowledge, light, life, and rebirth, while ice, like the desert, represents ignorance, darkness, sterility, and death.

 Nature vs. Mechanistic World Nature is good while technology is evil. 

The Threshold Gateway to a new world which the hero must enter to change and grow 

The Underworld A place of death or metaphorically an encounter with the dark side of the self. Entering an underworld is a form of facing a fear of death. 

Haven vs. Wilderness Places of safety contrast sharply against a dangerous wilderness. Heroes are often sheltered for a time to regain health and resources 

Water vs. Desert Because Water is necessary to life and growth, it commonly appears as a birth symbol, as baptism symbolizes a spiritual birth. Rain, rivers, oceans, etc. also function the same way. The Desert suggests the opposite. 

Heaven vs. Hell Man has traditionally associated parts of the universe not accessible to him with the dwelling places of the primordial forces that govern his world. The skies and mountaintops house his gods, the bowels of the earth contain diabolic forces. 

The Crossroads A place or time of decision when a realization is made and change or penance results 

The Maze A puzzling dilemma or great uncertainty, search for the dangerous monster inside of oneself, or a journey into the heart of darkness 

The Castle A strong place of safety which holds treasure or princess, may be enchanted or bewitched 

The Tower A strong place of evil, represents the isolation of self 

The Magic Weapon The weapon the hero needs in order to complete his quest. 

The Whirlpool Symbolizes the destructive power of nature or fate. 

Fog Symbolizes uncertainty. 

Waste in our World

For the half day before Thanksgiving, Mrs Czapla challenged us to plan a "wow" experience for our students; something meaningful that tied into skills we are trying to reinforce in classes. The Indigo team took that challenge to heart. We spent the day involved in social activism. Our students learned all about food waste in our nation. We watched "Just Eat It," a documentary that examines the issue at all levels of the food supply from farm to processing to stores to homes and restaurants. Students took notes on the documentary. Then, they examined other sources (articles, Infographics) and worked in small groups to come up with a plan for how we could tackle this issue in our schools and in our homes. Students were amazed and outraged at the magnitude of this problem. They displayed a lot of passion for the solutions they came up with, and were very enthusiastic in their presentations at the end of the day. When we return from break we will meet as a team to talk about next steps. We are so proud of our students. I am confident that some day they will be able to tackle other issues facing our world with the same vigor and passion. Happy Thanksgiving to all our Indigo team families. We are so grateful  to have had  the opportunity to work with your kids on such a worthwhile cause today. 

October Sky

The Man Who Lived October Sky- great article about the real Homer Hickum

Day off = opportunity!!

While I am toiling away  in meetings and professional development... I know my students are making the most of their day off from school.
My suggestions for how to use your time today:

1. Read your historical fiction novels and update your reading logs.
2. Catch up on those weekly notebook entries.
3. Work on Published Entry #2
4. Did you revise your Narrative Essay??


Have a fun Day off!!!

Mrs. D