Mrs. Boyer's Blog

Take a look at The Cay final products!

2012-01-29T09:13:00.000-08:00

Here are my 8th hour students and their final projects:

Here are my 6th hour students and their final projects:

Here are my 4th hour students and their final projects:

Here is Jamie with the cake she created to celebrate The Cay:

The week of January 30th through February 3rd will be another busy one!

In L.A., students will be reviewing the ISAT extended response format applying it to text they have previously read. Additionally, we'll be focusing on poetry in their Buckle Down workbooks.

In reading, we will begin a poetry unit. Students will be learning and using poetic terms and then they will be applying them to poems throughout the unit. The first poem we will be discussing, analyzing and emulating is titled "Moco Limping" a poem about a dog owner and his dog. The author realizes his pet is not perfect, yet he is still very lovable! Many life lessons here. :)

expository essay by Ewa W.

2012-01-23T13:10:00.001-08:00

Ewa Character Sketch

Expository essay by Stephanie W.

2012-01-23T12:51:00.001-08:00

Stephanie Character Sketch

persuasive essay from Sonja R.

2012-01-23T12:38:00.000-08:00

Sonja Dog

persuasive essay from Amy V.

2012-01-23T11:20:00.001-08:00

Amy Washington

persuasive essay from Mary E.

2012-01-23T10:13:00.000-08:00

mary dog

What's happening in class?

2012-01-22T11:10:00.000-08:00

My dog, Lexy, was ready for the snow this weekend!

The last week of January will be a busy, interesting one!

In language arts, students will continue working on news articles, pulling the who, what, when, where, and why out of written material. They will be choosing one of the short stories we've read in the past, pulling out the 5 w's and creating a news story with an accompanying picture.

In reading, students are in the process of working on their final projects for The Cay. They chose between 4 options, all including a written aspect. The 1st option is designing a diarama of a significant scene from the novel, the 2nd option is drawing and labeling an island map of the cay, including all major aspects of the cay as they were described in the novel. The 3rd option is researching connecting themes from the novel such as hurricanes, blindness, etc. and the 4th option is creating a survival kit for a midwestern tornado. Projects are due, and some will be presented on Friday, January 27th!

***AR book quizzes are due on or before Wednesday, January 25th.

What's happening in class?

2012-01-16T18:26:00.000-08:00

The week of January 17th through January 20th will be a short but busy one!

In L.A., we will continue focusing on writing. Students will be doing article writing.  They will be creatively incorporating the 5 W's (what, who, when, where and why) into news articles based on well-known nursery rhymes.

In reading, students will be getting back their chapter 9-16 quiz in The Cay. They did awesomely well on it!  They did an excellent job with vocabulary, and on using text information to support discussion questions, especially those connected to showing Phillip's emotional growth and the ways Timothy helped Phillip during their time together. This week, we will finish the novel, and students will begin their final project centered on their understanding of The Cay.

Students will have a choice between creating a DIORAMA, DRAWING AN ISLAND MAP, DOING RESEARCH ON GIVEN TOPICS CONNECTED TO THE NOVEL, OR CREATING A SURVIVAL KIT FOR SURVIVAL AFTER A HURRICANE.

Here's to a good week!

What's Happening in class?

2012-01-08T17:29:00.000-08:00

The week of January 9th through 13th will be a fun, busy one!

In L.A., in order to practice good organizational and speaking skills, students will be presenting introductory speeches. Each student interviewed a fellow classmate, turned his or her interviewee into an expert in one of his or her interests, and will now be introducing the fellow classmate as a "guest speaker" for an invented event. We will focus on presenting interesting, organized information, with enthusiasm, great eye contact and engaging voices.

Students turned in their persuasive essays last Friday. I have read several essays already, and I am impressed! Nice job! I will be posting some great example essays at the beginning of next week.

In reading, we will be finishing chapter 16 of THE CAY this week, and spending time reviewing chapters 9-16, including vocabulary. We will concentrate on important, plot enhancing events and character motivation and growth throughout the novel. Friday of this week will be the quiz.

Additionally, students chose new AR book reports last week. They have three weeks to take their AR quizzes.

Here's to a great week!

What's happening in class?

2012-01-02T12:47:00.000-08:00

WELCOME BACK!

The week of January 3rd through January 6th will be a short but busy one!

In L.A., students will be delving into what makes a good communicator -listening intently and speaking enthusiastically. All students will be interviewing fellow classmates and turning their interviewees into experts on something in which those students excel. They will be creating introduction speeches for their interviewees as if their people were the guest speakers at celebratory events.

This week they will work on preparing their speeches, and next week, on Monday and Tuesday, students will present their introduction speeches.

In reading, students will continue reading and discussing their novel, The Cay. Additionally, students will be selecting new book report books!

Here's to a good week!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from my husband, my "daughter" and me!

2011-12-11T11:13:00.000-08:00

The last week before Christmas break will be a busy one!

In L.A., students are working on typing their rough draft persuasive esays. Parents, you are in trouble! Their essays are good, and since you are their targeted audience, you may have a tough time saying no to their requests! Additionally, with the help of their Buckle Down workbooks, students will be focusing on MAIN IDEA, THEME, and DETAILS to help them polish their essays.

In reading, students will be given class time to work on and get help with their mosaic tile book reports. I'm looking forward to seeing the finished products. Book reports are due by Friday, December 16th.

We will also continue reading and discussing The Cay, Theodore Taylor's adventure/survival novel. Phillip has just gone blind, and the relationship between Timothy and him is about to drastically change, as Phillip is forced to depend on this man who, up until this point, has both intimidated and frustrated him. Stay tuned to see what happens next.............For a closer look at the author of The Cay, please click on the link below:
http://www.theodoretaylor.com/bio.htm

Here's to a great week and an awesome vacation!

Discussion questions to be completed for Thursday!

2011-12-08T11:31:00.000-08:00

1. Compare and contrast Phillip and Timothy from The Cay. How are their personalities different and how are they the same? Include at least 3 similarities and 3 differences.

2. Predict how you think Phillip and Timothy's relationship will change now that Phillip is blind. Remember to include what their relationship is currently like and how it will now be different?

What's happening in class?

2011-12-04T15:51:00.000-08:00

The week of December 5th through December 9th will be another busy one!

In L.A., students will be writing their first persuasive essay of the year! This will be a unique assignment in that parents will be playing an important role in this assignment.  Each student will be coming up with a topic connected to persuading their parents to allow them to have a certain item, a certain privilege, or to do a certain task. In turn, parents will be coming up with arguments against the request, so that students can practice counter arguing. This should be an interesting, challenging assignment with a twist of fun.  Of course parents will be presented with the finished essay. The decision to agree or not agree to the request will be completely up to them! :) The week's focus will be on brainstorming ideas, gathering arguments, and organizing their essay format.

In reading, we will continue to read and discuss The Cay. Students will be reading chapter 4 this week, playing a review game covering chapters 1-4, and taking their first quiz on Wednesday. Chapters 5 & 6 will also be covered before the end of the week. In the novel, Phillip is stranded on a remote iland and must learn to survive, while overcoming a prejudice ingrained in him by his mother..............Stay tuned to see how he manages...............

***Book reports will be explained this week, and due before Christmas vacation.

What's happening in class?

2011-11-27T19:52:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving vacation!

The week of November 28th through December 1st will be a busy one!

In L.A., we will be continuing our unit 3 verb unit. We will be covering inverted and interrupted subject-verb agreement, and the tricky verbs, rise, raise, lay, lie, sit, set, bring, take, let, leave, lend, and loan. On Wednesday, we'll be reviewing for our unit three test, and Thursday, will be the final verb test.

In reading, we will be choosing a new book report book, a free choice fiction novel. Students will have three weeks to read their books, and the creative book report will be explained in detail at a later date.

The final test for Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie was last week. and most students did a great job on it! This week we will begin our next novel, The Cay. It's a survival story based on a young boy who is lost at sea after a ship wreck, and is stranded on an island with only an older blind man and a cat to help him. Stay tuned to see how the story unfolds..........

Here's to a great week!

What's happening in class?

2011-11-20T17:00:00.000-08:00

The week of November 20th through 21st will be a short one!

In L.A, we will continue with verbs part II, and focus on subject-verb agreement.

In reading, students will be reviewing key events from the novel, by acting out 13 different scenes in groups of 2-4. On Tuesday, students will be writing their responses to 6 given questions, hi-lighting the most important lessons from the novel, Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Enjoy Your break!

What's happening in class?

2011-11-13T12:03:00.000-08:00

The week of November 14th through November 18th will be another busy one!

In L.A. this week, students will be reviewing for and taking their first verb quiz. The quiz will be on Tuesday, and will cover action and linking verbs, verb phrases, simple and perfect verb tenses and irregular verbs. Beginning Wednesday, we will be focusing on direct and indirect objects, predicate adjectives, and predicate nominatives.

In reading we will be finishing the realistic, touching novel, Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie. Next week, students will be showcasing their knowledge of the novel, by reflecting on the main character's growth throughout the novel, and the lessons he has learned, which are universal to all of us. They will be writing a detailed journal response centered around Steven's (the main character's) perspective of his 8th grade year. They will be charged with the task of answering three given questions, offering their opinions, and using evidence from the novel as support.

Here's to a good week!

Study your vocabulary for tomorrow's Drums, Girls and Dangerous pie quiz!

2011-11-07T11:30:00.000-08:00

Click on this link: http://dynamo.dictionary.com/search/drums Then click on Drums chapters 8-14 vocab to play some challenging games!

What's happening in class?

2011-11-06T17:40:00.000-08:00

The week of November 6th through November 10 will be a short but busy week!

In L.A., I will be returning character sketch expository essays. Students did very well drawing pictures of their admired family members and friends with words. Please stay tuned for some well written student examples. I'll be posting at least three of them soon!

Throughout the week, we will be reviewing verbs and verb phrases. Students will be learning about action, linking, regular and irregular verbs, all for the purpose of improving their writing.

In reading, students will be reviewing for and taking the chapters 8-14 quiz on our novel, Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie. We will then continue reading chapters 15 and 16 before the week's end. Though Jeffrey seems to be getting worse, with the help of his family and friends, Steven, our main character, is surviving the reality of his brother having Leukemia. Stay tuned to see wat happens next.............

Here's to a good week! Happy Veteren's Day!

What's happening in class?

2011-10-30T20:17:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

The week of October 31st through November 4th will be another busy one!

In L.A., students will be turning in their 2nd essay of the year, their character sketches! They've worked hard on creating and revising these essays, and I'm looking forward to reading them!

Monday through Friday, we will be focusing on NOUNS. Students will be reviewing, learning about, and practicing the use of proper, common, abstract, concrete, singular, plural, collective and possessive nouns. On Friday, students will be creating a story using a picture prompt, which will test their knowledge of this very important part of speech.

In reading, students will continue reading the novel, Girls, Drums and Dangerous Pie. Steven is currently dealing with the knowledge of his brother's Leukemia, while still trying to navigate 8th grade and all that encompasses it. Chapters 11-14 will be read and discussed this week.

Here's to a good week!

Compare/Contrast Book Report

2011-10-23T15:51:00.000-07:00

Drums Book Report

What's happening in class?

2011-10-23T15:35:00.000-07:00

The week of October 24th through October 28th will be another busy one!

In L.A., students will finish writing their character sketch essays. We'll be typing the rough draft in school, and it will be due on Friday, so students can peer edit with a classmate.

In reading, I will return the chapters 1-7 quiz in the novel, Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie. As a whole, students did very well! There were many good grades and several 100%'s! We will continue reading and discussing chapters 9-11 this week.

Additionally, COMPARE/CONTRAST BOOK REPORTS ARE DUE ON FRIDAY! The book report requirements and an example can be found to the left of this screen.

Here's to a good week!

Check out two great personal narrative essays!

2011-10-19T19:27:00.000-07:00

Simply click on Amy's essay and Jenna's essay to the left!

Amy's essay

2011-10-19T19:21:00.000-07:00

First Bike Ride

Jenna's essay

2011-10-19T19:09:00.001-07:00

Snowboarding

What's happening in class?

2011-10-16T13:40:00.000-07:00

The week of October 17th through October 21st, will be another busy one!

In L.A., students will begin writing their first expository essay of the year - a character sketch. We will be writing the essay, step by step, in class, and Monday through Friday will be dedicated to the introduction and body paragraphs.

In reading, we will continue reading our class novel, Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie. The students' first quiz will be on Thursday, October 20th, covering chapters 1-7. On Tuesday, students will make vocabulary flash cards for the quiz, and on Wednesday, we will have a formal review in class. On Friday, we will read and discuss chapter 8.

Additionally, on Tuesday, the next book report will be explained. It will be a comparison/contrast bk report, which will be visually displayed, but not presented. Later this week, I will post the explanation sheet and rubric on my blog. This book report will be due on Friday, October 28th.

What's happening in class?

2011-10-10T12:26:00.000-07:00

The week of October 12th through 14th will be short but busy!

In L.A., students will be focusing on comparing and contrasting, using higher level thinking. On Wednesday, we will be using the Buckle Down ISAT prep workbook to review and introduce new techniques to compare and contrast literature. On Thursday, students will be taking what they learned and apply it to the novel they are currently reading, by comparing and contrasting themselves to the main character Steven, using characterization inferences. Students will be sharing their work with classmates in preparation for their upcoming book report, which will focus on......drum roll please.........comparing and contrasting their chosen independent novel, with our class novel, Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie.

***A detailed explanation of the next book report and its due date will follow soon.

In reading, we will continue reading and discussing Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie. On Wednesday, we will take a look at the 5 stages most people go through when they themselves or a person they care about is diagnosed with a serious illness. The rest of the week, we will be analyzing characters from the novel, using these stages and the coping methods characters use to get through them.

Keep an eye out for some wonderfully written student essays. I plan to show case at least 3 personal narratives by the beginning of next week..................

Here's to a good week!

What's happening in class?

2011-10-02T16:52:00.000-07:00

There will be a lot happening in class during the first week of October!

In L.A., students will get their unit 1 test on sentence structure returned on Monday. Overall, students did well on their test!

Throughout the week, our focus in L.A. will be on story elements. Using the Buckle Down ISAT preparation workbook, students will review and learn new information pertaining to plot, point of view, characters, setting, tone, mood, irony, and theme, which they can then apply towards our first class novel.

On Friday, personal narrative essays will be returned to students, and in return, each student will have the opportunity to revise/improve his or her essay for a better grade.

In reading class, we will begin reading our first novel, Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie, a novel by Jordan Sonnenblick. It is a thought-provoking, honest novel, about a boy navigating his way through 8th grade, and additionally, dealing with the discovery of his brother's newly diagnosed, possibly terminal, disease.

Here's to a good week!

What's happening in class?

2011-09-25T14:53:00.000-07:00

***Thanks to everyone who donated to and/or walked to show support for our "Save a Brain" fundraiser to help cure Alzheimer's! We, as a 7th grade class, with help from family, friends, teachers and administrators, raised a total of $1,428.00!! I walked and donated in honor of my mom, who suffered through and eventually died from Alzheimer's. She would have been 84 years old this weekend. She is pictured above with me.

The last week of September will be a busy one!

In L.A., on Monday through Wednesday, we will be focusing on unit one from our English text book which covers, subjects, verbs and complete sentences. We will review for our unit 1 test on Thursday, and students will take the unit one test on Friday.

In reading, book report story boards are due on Monday! Students will present their story boards Monday through Wednesday. We will be checking out new bk report books on Thursday, which will connect to the major themes of our first novel, Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie.

Here's to a good week!

What's happening in class?

2011-09-18T06:16:00.000-07:00

The week of September 19th through September 23rd will be a busy one!

Concerning L.A., students should continue working on their personal narrative essays. Last week, we practiced using the personal narrative essay rubric to grade a sample essay and practice using it again during peer editing. Using the rubric as a check for writing final drafts would be a wise move!! Completed final drafts, along with all revision steps in the writing process, are due on WEDNESDAY, September 21st.

Starting on Tuesday, we will be delving into the exiting world of prepositions! Students will be reviewing prepositions and prepositional phrases and the proper use of pronouns in prepositionl phrases. On Friday, students will be creating stories based on a picture they choose, and demonstrating their understanding of prepositions through their writing.

On Monday in reading, students will be taking their short story test, worth 80 points.  Students were given a review guide on Friday, outlining the material they need to know for the test, which we went over together in class. Additionally, students should use all the short story handouts provided in class throughout the unit. ***Three of the four stories we read in class are below. "Zebra" by Chaim Potok is unavailable online.

'Seventh Grade" by Gary Sota:   http://www.olgcnj.org/documents/SeventhGrade.pdf

"Thank you Ma'm" by Langston Hughs:   http://staff.esuhsd.org/danielle/english%20department%20lvillage/rt/Short%20Stories/Thank%20You,%20Ma'am.pdf

"Rikki Tikki Tavi" by Rudyard Kipling: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~mongoose/rtt.html

The first book report of the year is due and will be presented on Monday, September 26th. Students should finish reading their books soon and begin work on their story board! They will be given time to read/work on story board on Tuesday of this week.

Students will also be exposed to current events through reading SCOPE magazine this week.

Here's to a good week!

What's happening in class?

2011-09-11T17:25:00.000-07:00

The week of September 12th through September 16th will be a busy one!

In L.A., students will continue work on their personal narratives. I will be checking introductions, body paragraphs and conclusions, offering feedback. Students will be peer editing and then polishing their essays based on comments. The overall goal, which embraces the writing process, is writing well developed, detailed, engaging essays.

***Completed rough draft essays will be due on Friday, (one showing 5 revisions and one rewritten or typed with the added revisions) and final drafts will be due next Wednesday, September 21st.

On Monday, in reading class, I will be going over the requirements for the first book report of the year. I have posted the book report requirement explanation sheet and rubric I passed out in class. Look to the left of my post and click on the desired information!

On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, we will be reading and discussing the short story "Rikki Tikki Tavi" which will complete our short story unit. On Friday, we will review for the short story test, and on MONDAY, September 19th, students will take an 80 point short story test.

Poster Board Book Report Rubric

2011-09-11T17:21:00.001-07:00

7th Grade Poster Board Rubric

Poster Board Book Report

2011-09-11T17:16:00.000-07:00

7th Grade Story Board Book Report

What's happening in class?

2011-09-02T10:23:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone had a good holiday weekend!

The week of September 6th through September 9th will be action packed!

In L.A., students will be writing their first personal narrative essay!  The essay will be based on achieving a milestone or on the shattering of a once held belief.   Tuesday and Wednesday, we will be selecting topics, and learning about the personal narrative format and rubric for grading. On Thursday, students will be organizing their essays, using a graphic organizer, and Friday they will focus on developing engaging introductions.

In reading, we will be continuing our short story unit. On Monday, we will be reading and discussing "Thank You M'am" by Langston Hughs, a story which focuses on accountability and respect, and Wednesday through Friday, we will be reading and discussing "Zebra" by Chaim Potok, which focuses on the mutually helpful relationship between a young boy, Zebra, who was injured in a car accident, and John Willis, a Vietnam vet who lost his arm in the war.

***Additionally, all students should have their first "book report" book which they are to read independently. Book report requirements for these books will be explained on Thursday, September 15, and the completed book reports will be due on Monday, September 26th.  Students will need a poster board for this project.

What's happening in class?

2011-08-28T20:09:00.000-07:00

The week of August 29th through September 2nd will be a busy one!

In Language arts, students will be preparing, practicing and presenting their first speech this year! It is called a "One Item" speech. The purpose of this speech is to share information about yourself, using one item that you think showcases your personality best. We will be working on these speeches in class for three days, and presentations will begin on Thursday! What item would you choose?

One Item Speech

In reading classes, we will be starting our short story unit. On Monday, we'll review the elements of a short story, using a chart to help students visualize these elements. Tuesday is MAP testing, and we will start with our first story, entitled, "Seventh Grade" on Wednesday. Our entire unit will consist of students reading, discussing and analyzing 4 short stories, participating in several enrichment activities, and demonstrating their understanding through a final unit test.

Here's to a good week!

What's happening in class?

2011-08-25T14:27:00.000-07:00

Welcome back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm excited to be teaching 7th grade!

Check out my beginning of the year letter below:

MRS. BOYER'S 7th grade LANGUAGE ARTS AND READING CLASSES

Dear Parent,
Welcome to 7th grade! I am looking forward to an interesting and enjoyable language arts and reading program this year! My classes will experience individual, as well as group learning, participate in discussions, and further develop reading, writing, speaking and thinking skills. The following is a brief overview of my grading scale, heading, textbooks used, and classroom expectations. Please read through the material and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me at 985-2700 ext. 5016 or via e-mail at LBoyer@ccsd66.org,
Sincerely,
Mrs. Boyer

I ask that students use the following heading for all assignments:
Name
Date
Subject/Period
Assignment
***** The heading should be placed in the upper right corner of the page.

7th grade language arts and reading texts and workbooks:
English - Houghton Mifflin
The Language of Literature - McDougal, Littell
Buckle Down ISAT reading

The district grading scale is as follows:
92- 100 = A                           78 - 79 = C+                           60 - 61 = D-
90 - 91 = A-                           72 - 77 = C                             59 and below = F
88 - 89 = B+                          70 - 71 = C-
82 - 87 = B                            68 - 69 = D+
80 - 81 = B-                           62 - 66 = D

Course Outlines:
***This year in reading, we will be delving into a variety of studies, including novels, short stories, poetry, drama, vocabulary development, book reports, and ISAT test preparation
***This year in L.A., we will also be deveoping skills in a variety of areas including writing, speaking, grammar, sentence structure, usage, and subject-verb agreement.

Classroom Expectations:
1. Be in your seat ready to begin when the bell rings.
2. Be prepared for class. Bring all needed materials with you.
3. Raise your hand and wait to be called upon when you want to speak.
4. Do not leave your seat or the room without permission.
5. Treat others as you wish to be treated yourself.