Research Paper -- DUE MONDAY

REMEMBER! Research papers on famous mentors will be collected on Monday!

Mentoring Research Paper!

Hello! Students in ELA 8 have a research paper due on Monday, January 24th. They are to research a famous mentor throughout history and write a two page research paper on them. They should be in the notetaking phase this weekend! If you have any questions, email me at jsmith49@scsd.us .

New Unit - National Mentoring Month

January is National Mentoring Month. As a result, students in Mr. Smith's 8th grade ELA class will work to learn about mentoring and the effect it can have on a life. We will then take part in researching a famous mentor, and end the unit by doing some mentoring of our own! It should be fun!

For more information, go to http://www.nationalmentoringmonth.org/

Christmas Carol Essay

ELA 8 – Mr. Smith
“A Christmas Carol”

Critical Lens Essay

In class, we have read “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens. In it, the main character, Ebeneezer Scrooge is visited by three spirits that work to put his life in perspective.
Write a critical essay in which you discuss “A Christmas Carol” from the particular perspective of the quote that is provided for you as the critical lens.
In your essay, provide a valid interpretation of the quotation, agree or disagree with the statement as you have interpreted it, and support your opinion using specific references to 3 different literary elements from the text.

QUOTE
“No man can tell whether he is rich or poor by turning to his ledger. It is the heart that makes a man rich. He is rich or poor according to what he is, not according to what he has.”
Henry Ward Beecher

In your essay, be sure to:

•Provide a valid interpretation of the critical lens quote

•Indicate whether you agree or disagree with the statement as you have interpreted it

•Use the criteria suggested by the critical lens to analyze the work you have chosen

•Avoid plot summary. Instead, use specific references to 3 appropriate literary elements (for example: theme, characterization, setting, point of view) to develop your analysis

•Organize your ideas in a unified and coherent manner

•Follow the conventions of standard written English

This essay is due in class on Tuesday, December 21st

Back from Break!

Welcome back from your short rest! Our new unit takes us to the writing of one of the greatest authors in history, Charles Dickens! We will read some short stories in class, as well as a short Dickens biography, and then read the dramatic version of the classic "A Christmas Carol." We will take part in some readers theatre, write some short responses, and culminate the unit with something we've never tried before, a critical lens essay! More details to follow. For now, go get a hot cocoa and read a book!

Social Responsibility Assessment

Social Responsibility
& the Civil War

In class, we have been expanding our knowledge of the social studies unit focusing on the Civil War by reading various texts including, “Civil War Journal” by Louisa May Alcott, and “Abraham Lincoln Photo-essay.” The theme of this unit is to understand how social responsibility and how one person can make a difference.
The assessment for this unit will include two components, a journal and a photo-essay. Students will brainstorm a way to get involved in their school, their home, or their community in a positive way. You could try to clean up the school or your neighborhood, work to eliminate bullying in the school, volunteer to read in a classroom, or anything you think helps improve a facet of your surroundings. You will then write a journal chronicling your experience, including a few pictures that will become a photo-essay. Please make sure:

 100 points: Your journal includes 10 entries, each at least 2 paragraphs apiece that show your creation of a project, how you implement it, and your reflection on how it made you feel and what you learned.
 30 points: Your photo-essay includes three pictures of you taking part in your project or three downloaded photos relating to the theme.
 20 points: Your presentation of your photo-essay to the class, no less than one minute in length.

Your journal will be collected on Friday, November 19th, and your photo-essay will be presented and collected on Monday 22nd or Tuesday 23rd.

Social Responsibility & The Civil War

As part of the service learning component of "Generation Yes," our ELA class will engage in a cross-curricular unit with Ms. Ventresca to examine social responsibility as it pertains to the Civil War. Students will activate their prior knowledge from social studies class to frame our readings; one is a personal diary called "Civil War Journal" by Louisa May Alcott, and the other is a photoessay on Abraham Lincoln. The objective is to understand social responsibility by examining these pieces and the ways in which the authors got involved. Then, students will write their own journal and present their own photoessay that chronicles their own attempt to be socially responsible through service learning! If you want to get involved, email me at jsmith49@scsd.us.