Monday, January 5, 2009

Objectives:
After this class, students will be able to:
1. meet deadlines.
2. explain the criteria by which their senior project will be scored
3. practice peer review and scoring.

Agenda:
1. Warm-Up Part One: In their notebooks, students will write the answer to the following questions: Describe the experience you had working/sitting in groups. Loved it? Hated it? What do you think about sitting in rows? (5 sentences) Ms. Kingsbury will solicit student feedback on the "new" classroom arrangement and offer her rationale for making the classroom old-school again.

2. Warm-Up Part Two: Students will answer the following question in their notebooks: WINTER BREAK - tell me about it? High points, low points - 1/2 page. Ms. Kingsbury will solicit answers from students.

3. VERY IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS:
a. Ms. Kingsbury will be closing her gradebook for the second marking period on Friday, January 9, 2009. This is earlier than most teachers as Ms. K takes all your late work (aren't those kids lucky?!). If you need a list of make-up work and/or would like to know your grade, please send an email to ms.kingsbury@verizon.net requesting this information.
2. Due to communication problems, the SENIOR PROJECT for Ms. Kingsbury's students is now due on Friday, January 23, 2009.

4. Notes: These must be copied into students' notebooks:
Each piece of the senior project is scored based on 4 criteria:
a. Content - Did you write enough substance? Is the essay the right length?
b. Focus - Did you stay on one topic or did you wander off?
c. Organization - Is the paper in a logical order?
d. Conventions - Is the spelling, grammar, punctuation, etc., all correct?

You will receive a score of 5 (perfect) -----> 1 (terrible) for each of these criteria. Total possible points for each piece is 20.

PRACTICE TIME! Please review the following transcript self-assessements and score them according to the above criteria.

Transcript Self-Asssessment #1
When I saw all of my grades, I wasn't surprised at all , because I knew what I was doing and how I prepared myself when it can down to studying or picking up a book. There were a lot of times that I didn't wanna go to school & there were a lot of days that I was sick or I had death's in my family" or , because I am a year behind. After I got tired of "not" going to school , I realized a whole lot "like by me not going to school isn't gonna make it any better if I don't go unless I start going to school and keep that promise to myself. The classes that I were successful in was math,marine classes,art,and gym. When I was younger those classes weren't hard to me its that when I transfered to different schools the work became harder for me to understand , but I got the hang of it as I got used to it. The classes that I had trouble with was math,chemisty,and biology. Those classes were hard for me, because I didn't really know anything those or I had gave up. If I had to do school all over again I would come to school everyday and on time and I would do as I'm told and not play around or give up on my.

Transcript Self-Asssessment #2
When I look at my transcript and see my grades I feel as though I could have done better.I look at my transcript and is proud of the big turn around in my grades.I feel as though I have improved a lot and has grown an it show.At the same time I ask myself what was going on with me in my early high school years.If I could do high school over again I would stay focuses and try hard like always.

Transcript Self-Asssessment #3
When I look back on my high school performance, I see that my grades have been in the middle of good and bad. I did well in my math classes because I was just naturally good at it. I didn't do well in English 2 because I wasn't go to class. Seeing my grades on paper makes feel good because now I can see how I can improve. If I could ever do high school again, I would keep myself focused and attend all of my classes.

Transcript Self-Asssessment #4
When I look back on my high school performance, I see that my grades have been very good. I did well in Florida, because I had good company to hang out with and it had a good motivation. I didn’t do well in Philadelphia, because I got caught up in the wrong crowd. Seeing my grades on paper makes me feel proud, because I did it and I made it through high school. If I could do high school over again I probably would.

Transcript Self-Asssessment #5
When I look back on my high school performance, I see that my grades have been rough at first. I did well in 11th grade, because I knew I couldn’t play around and take life serious. I didn't do well in 10th grade, because I was lazy and believed I could through life like that. Seeing my grades on paper makes me feel angry because I know I could have done so much better. If I could do high school over again, I would most certainly because I know I could do a much better job.

HOMEWORK: The list is extensive - complete the typing for your senior project, finish that independent reading, get working on the Unit Sheet previously posted. And extra credit, don't forget that!