Thursday's class: Paragraph review

Today you are going to assess your group's success in writing a paragraph comparing details from two texts.

Use the following rubric to score your group:

1. There is a clear and specific topic sentence.
                                                                    (How many in your group have one?) _____

2. There are two carefully chosen quotations or paraphrases in the paragraph, one from each text.
                                                                    (How many in your group do this?)_____

3. Each quotation or paraphrase has a correct citation at the end of the sentence.
                                                                     (How many in your group do this?) _______

4. There is insightful analysis after EVERY quotation from the text(s).
                                                                       (How many in your group do this?) _______

5. The writer uses a transition to move from one writer to the next.
                                                                 (How many in your group have one?) ______

6. There is a concluding sentence which brings the paragraph to a close.
                                                                   (How many in your group have one?)_______

7. The writer has clearly proofread, so that there are very few grammatical errors.
                                                                   (How many in your group did this?) ______

What is your group's total score? _________

To earn extra credit today, help EVERYONE in your group earn a "YES" for each of the above questions, then turn your paragraphs into me with the checklist attached. 

Tuesday's class: Revising your paragraph

Today we started class by watching a video by Catlyn Tucker.  I have attached it above.

along with a format chart you can use for almost any informative/analytical paragraph you will be asked to write in this class: Informative Paragraph Format

I have put all those SENTENCE FRAMES together in one place to help you in a google doc:
Sentence Frames all together

Monday: Finishing your Paragraphs

Today we will work on finishing your paragraphs comparing two texts (#5) and (#6).

Be sure that you are using the frames from Thursday's class (posted below).

Also, here are some more to help you introduce your commentary after you have cited a direct quotation or a paraphrase from the text(s).  Choose from this list:

What Powell (or Montessori) is saying here is that _____________________________________.

What this means is that ___________________________________________________________.  

This is important because _________________________________________________________.

This shows the emphasis on structure (or freedom) because ______________________________.


ONE LAST NOTE:  Proofread your paragraph for punctuation, spelling and grammar errors before you turn it in!  Make sure you have correct citation format for each detail/example from the two writers.  

Thursday's class: Sentence Frames to help you with your paragraphs

Today we started with Intervention or Enrichment for Vocabulary Lesson 4.

Then, we continued work on "Analyzing Across Texts."  Students decided on a comparative question to use to focus their paragraph, then began filling out the chart, looking for key details that either show a difference or a similarity between the two writers (Powell and Montessori).

Once students were ready to write, I gave them a few frames for support:

1.  BEGINNING YOUR PARAGRAPH:

The difference (or similarity) between Powell and Montessori is_____________________________.

OR

The examples Powell and Montessori use demonstrate one big difference in their perspective on childhood development: ________________________________________________________________________.



2.   Using details.  You have a choice here.  

   You can Paraphrase:
                            According to Montessori, adults push children into behaviors without paying any attention to their desires, interests, or capabilities (30-31).  

OR

Use a Direct Quotation:
                           According to Montessori, "we try to force them to follow us without regard to their special needs"(30-31).

Don't forget to include analysis (another word for this is commentary) about the details you have chosen. 


3. Transitioning between writers/ texts:      

Powell is clearly saying here _____________________________. In contrast, Montessori is _________________________________.                                                                                                        
            
Paragraphs are due at the end of the period on Friday.

Don't forget to bring your OUTSIDE READING books to class tomorrow, along with your 4 night journal sheet!  

Tuesday and Wednesday's class

Yesterday I was gone at the District Office.  You were supposed to use the first half of class to take notes on Vocabulary Lesson 5.  Flashcards have been posted on my quizlet page (to the right of the posts).

The second half was used to start your next task, which is to compare or contrast the last two Odell texts we have read together (Powell v.s Montessori).  The link to the handout is here: Analyzing Details Across Texts

Today we reviewed Lesson 5 and vocabulary test 4.
We also reviewed student answers to the front side of the Analyzing Details handout.  You should be ready to write your paragraph about the two texts tomorrow after the Intervention of Lesson 4 folks.