Thursday, 29 November, 2012

Class today began with a discussion of what the audience for the college and scholarship personal essays would want.

In short the class concluded that Admissions Officers and Scholarships Committee folk want to know the answer to the following questions:
Who are you?
Why do you deserve to be part of the college or to have the scholarship?
Are you a learner?
Will you take good advantage of the opportunity?
Do you have dreams, aspirations or goals?
What do you bring or offer?
How do you respond to challenges?
Are you committed to something?
Are you honest and sincere?

Next we began studying the Restaurant Review. Students will be writing a review this month.

We began by considering what the role of the critic is; we viewed and discussed this clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih6jcKd7VwU&feature=related&safe=active

Then we discussed this clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ef91za0liTM&safe=active and discussed how being an egotistical reviewer is a problem because you may not give the audience of your review what it is they want.

Next, working in pairs, students read a multiple reviews to determine what the essential components of a good review are. Essential to a review is information to answer the question, "Should I go?"

Tuesday, 26 November

We reviewed the criteria for a well written essay.
Clear purpose
Well organized (including thesis and related topic sentences)
Specific, vivid word choice
concrete imagery
figurative language
carefully chosen and developed ideas
well edited
strong lede or hook
good balance of scene and summary


Homework was checked.

Then writers were asked to see which items in their list of experiences could be entered under more than one heading. Writers identified those experiences that involved the most categories. 

Next the class looked at the questions asked for the OSAC Scholarships and the Common Application:

OSAC

Requires writing on each of the following four topics, each essay to be no more than 150 words.

1.    Explain your career aspirations an your educational plan to meet these goals.

2.    Describe a challenge or obstacle you faced in the last ten years. What did you learn about yourself from this experience.

3.    Describe a personal accomplishment and the strengths and skills you used to achieve it.

4.    Explain how you have helped your family or made your community a better place to live. Provide specific examples.

Common App

The length for the common app essays is 250-500 words.

1.    Evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.

2.    Discuss some issue of personal, local, national, or international concern and its importance to you.

3.    Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.

4.    Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence.

5.    A range of academic interests, personal perspectives, and life experiences adds much to the educational mix. Given your personal background, describe an experience that illustrates what you would bring to the diversity in a college community or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you.

6.    Topic of your choice.

The next step in class was for writers to identify an experience that seemed to match with one of the questions, and to write about that experience.

Monday, 26 November

Students received credit for bringing their new independent reading book to class and for sharing why they choose it. Books should be read and analyzed by December 14th.

Students made up their toasts as needed.

The class reviewed the qualities of a good essay:
Clear purpose
Well organized (including thesis and related topic sentences)
Specific, vivid word choice
concrete imagery
figurative language
carefully chosen and developed ideas
well edited
strong lede or hook
good balance of scene and summary

Next students developed a chart of seven categories of experiences:

Exciting    Boring    Satisfying    Unusual     Family    Learning    Failure
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

For homework, students are to have at least seven (7) and preferably ten (10) experiences for each category.

Week of 12-15 November, and homework for break

Monday, 12 November was a holiday to celebrate Veteran's day.

Tuesday, 13 November students presented their toasts in class.

Thursday, 15 November

Class began with a discussion of how people know when they know something and how knowledge can be assessed.

Students were then put in groups to write good quiz questions for today's vocabulary quiz.

At the end of class students took the quiz of questions that they had developed.

(Toasts that were not presented on Tuesday will be presented next week.)

Homework:
Students were told that they need to obtain a new independent reading book from the  Suggested Independent Reading List. They need to have this book by the time they return from the Thanksgiving break. The book will need to be read by the beginning of winter break.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tuesday / Thursday 6-8 November

Sorry for the late blog entry.
This week we've been working on developing Toasts that are due in class on Tuesday, 13 November. On Tuesday students received a handout with instructions and a variety of advice about toast style and structure.

We established the the ritual format for a toast is:
State the purpose of the toast
Thanks the hosts
Tell an anecdote (story) that illustrates the reason for the toast
Make (state) the toast.

On Thursday students were to bring a rough draft of their toast. The toast should be between one and two minutes long.

On Thursday we reviewed the state scoring guide for speaking, and then reviewed videos of toasts that were done well (or not) and analyzed what was done well and what not done well.

Finally students worked in groups to get feedback on their own toasts, and to begin revising these toasts for Tuesday.

Here are links to some of the toasts we reviewed:
Gets some of it just right

Many things NOT to do.

Bad job.

Strengths and weaknesses

Well done.

One more we didn't get to.

REMEMBER: Toasts due on Tuesday!

Thursday, 1 November, 2012

Students turned in and began presenting their independent reading projects today. After each presentation other students had opportunities to ask questions about the books. Since there will be other independent reading assignments, note taking and asking clarifying questions was suggested.

Before giving presentations, students had a brief conference with another student who examined the project and told the maker what the project clearly explained to the conference partner. With this feedback students could adjust their presentation to the class to be sure the project and presentation covered all salient points.

Students also completed the following self-evaluation that was turned in with the project:

Thinking about the entire process resulting in your project: choosing/ getting/ reading a book; thinking about and analyzing your book; choosing a project type; drafting the project; completing the project:

Describe what your strengths were:

Describe ways you could be more successful and / or ways you might enjoy the process more:

For the project itself:
Describe strengths
Describe weaknesses
Assign a grade to the project and provide a rationale for this grade


Thanksgiving Writing:
Think about Thanksgiving. Take 10-15 minutes to write about the memories you have; activities that commonly occur in your family during the holiday

The last assignment, which students who missed class need to complete in their note books is to think about the upcoming holiday of Thanksgiving. For ten to fifteen minutes write about the holiday with emphasis on the traditions, foods, activities, and feelings that are part of it.