Finally… here’s that follow-up post I promised plus the winning essay entry Photo: Pixabay Last winter, I wrote a post about a contest that my seventh-graders enter each fall: the Patriot’s Pen youth essay contest sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars. At the conclusion of that post, I wrote that I would update youContinue reading “2017-18 VFW Patriot’s Pen Youth Essay Contest Results”
Tag Archives: Middle School
How to teach sentence variety
A mini-lesson from Gary Provost Copy off the paragraph below from writing guru Gary Provost and read it aloud to your students at the beginning of class or as a mini-lesson. Don’t just read it aloud… make sure they follow along on their own copy. It’s more effective that way. You’ll see the light bulbsContinue reading “How to teach sentence variety”
Words are things that are beautiful to picture, things that glow in the world.
Today’s post: Sixth-graders reflect on their writing Today, I’m posting some responses from a reflection assignment I gave to my sixth-graders the last week of school. I asked them to write a 300-word reflection of the progress they made in my language arts class this year. Read more about the assignment and my seventh-grade reflectionsContinue reading “Words are things that are beautiful to picture, things that glow in the world.”
“I would write like a dog with hooves it was hard.”
When students reflect, three things happen. About a week before school ended in May, I asked my sixth- and seventh-grade students to write a 300-word reflection of the progress they made in my language arts class this past year. I find this assignment very valuable, both for me and my students because it provides threeContinue reading ““I would write like a dog with hooves it was hard.””
Here’s the Poem that Won a National Silver Key Award
I’ve posted the poem below that one of my eighth-grade students wrote, which won Gold and Silver Key Awards, respectively, at the regional and national levels of the 2018 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. Read yesterday’s post here to find out more about the contest, such as guidelines, tips, and how to enter. Hint: it’sContinue reading “Here’s the Poem that Won a National Silver Key Award”
Contest #6 That Works for My Students: Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
One of my goals during the 2017-18 school year was to finally enter a student’s work in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. And right before Christmas break, two of my students entered poetry. Brooke S. entered four poems, Ally W. entered two. Brooke earned a Gold Key Award at the regional level, sponsored by theContinue reading “Contest #6 That Works for My Students: Scholastic Art & Writing Awards”
Reflecting on My PBL Experiment
Time to reflect on the first year of my 7th-grade PBL project Year one is down! During the 2017-18 academic school year, my seventh-grade language arts classes started a project in partnership with the White River Valley Historical Society, a local organization in Forsyth, Mo., that preserves, promotes, and protects the cultural heritage of southernContinue reading “Reflecting on My PBL Experiment”
Don’t ever delete anything again
Never ever ever. So many times I have kids in my classroom who will delete sentences, whole paragraphs, or even more of their writing as they struggle through a first draft. When I find out they’ve deleted something, I turn on the drama. I gasp, cover my face with my hands, and plead with themContinue reading “Don’t ever delete anything again”
Dear DailyMail.com: Tom Cruise has never won an Academy Award.
Your fact-checkers and my students should take note; teachers like me over 50 should take heart. This post is based on a story I recently wrote and posted on Medium.com. When I read something that I know is false, I take notice of it. This DailyMail.com article shows kids that not everything they read is trueContinue reading “Dear DailyMail.com: Tom Cruise has never won an Academy Award.”
Welcome to My World: Boil Order at a Middle School
Ten things that happen when the water main breaks Over the weekend, the local water protection district issues a “boil order” and ships pallets of water bottle cases to be stacked next to the water fountains on Monday morning. In any place other than a middle school, this would be a good thing.Continue reading “Welcome to My World: Boil Order at a Middle School”