There is so much left to teach. Did I tell you that William Shakespeare never went to college? Did we read a bit of poetry by Alice Walker? Oops – I forgot to show you that great book by Malcolm Gladwell.  There is never enough time, just the time that we have that I always feel that I have squandered away the year somehow. At the end of the year, there is this feeling of deep regret, perhaps born out of concern and love for you and grief that you will be leaving and all the opportunities to enlighten you are gone.

So I am left to say goodbye and hope that you keep your writings and your blogs going: writing is the truest form of thinking. Hoping that you grow and flourish and continue to be the shining stars that you are. Hoping that you have memories from 8th grade that will carry your mind and heart into your high school life and inspire you to be even greater.

I will miss you. Live your life and be responsible and safe.

Yesterday is history, tomorrow a mystery,  but today is the present: a gift. Use it wisely.

DCAS testing in LA

Finishing 3 essays from the Capstone Project mentioned near the teddy bear below.

They are Accomplishment, Proudest Moment and Middle School Memories essays. These are well developed essays, with a 5 paragraph minimum.  Please pay close attention to the title, development and organization of your essays. Print on paper and post on your blog.

Also, please create a post on your blog that reflects your opinion of an important topic: you choose the topic.

Social Studies Homework – watch or read the news

Topics this week: cyber-bullying and healthy body weight

Finish theme projects relating to your team’s issues.  Present the report and the website this week.

Homework: Read AR books and take 3 tests by May 31

Poem in your pocket

• Poems #8,9,10 – read to someone and reflect on your blog
• Final Exam – due Monday
• Essays – see the Lifestory post – Accomplishment, Middle School Memories, Proudest moment

Write and post on blog.

Contemporary Issues

• Daily News
• Response Questions
• Team Project – develop a website, write news report, submit notes and report

Beautiful Storm

Stand in the rain
Let it wash away your pain.
Let it hide your tears,
That you held for years.
Tears you refused to be shown.
For reasons only you have known.
One tear for all the things you have lost.
One tear for all the pain you came acrossed.
One tear for every hit you indored.
One tear for all the blood you poured.
But every storm comes to a end.
Then the skies clear and then there is a rainbow
And that’s all you need to know
Every storm has a beautiful end.

Homework – watch or read news stories that are global. Be prepared to discuss them in class. Tell the 5 W’s.

Last week we identified four major issues and created teams for research. This week we will

• narrow our topics
• learn to take notes and cite sources
• take 50 notes on topic
• write a news report from the notes
• create a display of pictures to go with the notes
• learn to bookmark using Diigo
• create a news presentation
• discuss what’s happening in the world
• write about current events

Teams and Themes:

Red – Economy – government spending, national debt, Greece, New York and California

Yellow – Pollution/Earth – oil spill, water quality, air, animals, trash/waste disposal

Blue – Health – AIDS, vaccinations, infectious diseases, life span

Green – War and Peace – terrorism, Iraq, Afghanistan, United Nations

Homework – READ good AR books. Deadline for taking 3 tests is May 31!

This week we will

• write a Book Review (see post for sample)
• post Book Review on your blog
• read other students’ posts in your class to find good books and make a comment on each
• vote for your favorite song for Transition Ceremony
• summarize your Blog Theme for the year with a post that tells what you learned, what you want to learn and where you will head with your theme
• test for reading and writing
• special reading
• random poems for pockets that are empty

Petals

by Pat Mora

have calloused her hands,

brightly colored crepe paper: turquoise,

yellow, magenta, which she shapes

into large blooms for bargain-hunting tourists

who see her flowers, her puppets, her baskets,

but not her – small gray-haired woman

wearing a white apron, who hides behind

blossoms in her stall at the market,

who sits and remembers collecting wildflowers

as a girl, climbing rocky Mexican hills

to fill a straw hat with soft blooms

which she’d stroke gently, over and over again

with her smooth fingertips.

A guided response to write a poem about the person who you honor on Mother’s Day. This could be your mom, stepmom, aunt, grandmother or nana.  You may write more than one poem and put it together in a very special way as a gift.

Use the five senses when you complete this sequence. Use vivid words that tell color, shape and texture.

1. write words that describe your mother’s hands
2. write words that tell what she does when she works
3. write words that describe her at work
4. write words that describe her face, eyes, nose, mouth, hair
5. write words that describe her in her favorite clothes
6. write words that describe a memory she may have from when she was a young girl
7. write words that describe her being funny
8. write words that describe her doing something that she loves
9. write words that describe her doing something with you

Now we will take this list and arrange the words into a poem.

This is the last week of the 5th marking period!  Keep reading AR books. STAR Test is on the way!

• Author Websites – presentations and each student to comment on every other student’s website
• Letter of Appreciation – to a teacher (Teacher Appreciation Week), nurse (Mrs. Reed is retiring this year)
• Special Mom Project – to be announced
• Poetry – recite poem in Poet’s corner, poem in Pocket – read to someone and reflect on the blog:”Choices” by Nikki Giovanni and ” Hope” by Emily Dickinson
• Book Review
• Library – Wednesday
• Grade Review