Monday, March 30, 2015

SDL Check in and PRESENTATION SIGN UP!

It’s time for an SDL Voyage check in! Please discuss with your child where he/she is in SDL process.  Each student should be working on some of these elements at home, depending on his/her passion and motivation.
Completed:
J Topic has been chosen and the proposal has been written and accepted.
J A fact-based feature article (a.k.a. research paper) has been researched, drafted, edited, revised, and accepted as “ready for magazine.”
J In-school consultants have been identified and the sixth grader wrote an introduction letter.
In process:
 The “DO” started and the progress/steps being documented in some way for publishing in the magazine
 Consultants are being met with to plan/brainstorm additions to the SDL Voyage
 A survey will be planned and executed with the data organized and analyzed for presentation in the magazine
 A glossary of topic specific words is continuing to develop
 Resources will continue to be documented in a bibliography
 Additional feature articles are being researched, drafted, edited, revised, and accepted as “magazine ready”
 “Extra” pages for the magazine (advice, interviews, games, poems, fiction, advertisements…) are being planned and designed
To be started soon:
 Consultant biographies and analysis of their support are being planned and will be written
 Students reflect on the entire process in anticipation of writing a “letter from the editor”
 The magazine cover and table of contents (the last pieces of the magazine to be attached) will be designed to student’s depth of knowledge and passion in content
 The magazine has been bound and is considered “published”
 After reflecting on this SDL Voyage students will plan a presentation for peers and family that will share and celebrate their readiness to move on to the Prewalkabout program
Schedule now, worry later:
PLEASE SIGN UP for a 20 minute time slot for students to make their presentations.  Thanks to those who have already identified their blocks.  Families who have not identified a day/time by April 17 will be assigned a slot (this will allow future Prewalkabout advisors to make adjustments to their schedules so they can attend the presentations).


Monday, May 11
Tuesday, May 12
Wednesday,
May 13
Thursday,
May 14
9:00-9:20
Guinness
MacKenzie

Emily
9:30-9:50




10:30-10:50


Madyson

11:00-11:20


Lars

2:00-2:20




2:30-2:50




3:00-3:20


Nixon



Thursday, March 19, 2015

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Happy Engagement to You (Per)!

Please take Kululu home!

Please take home Kululu!
Friday, March 13
Riley
Spring Break
Leif
Friday, April 3
Madyson
Friday, April 10
Rodrigo
Friday, April 17

Friday, April 24

Friday, May 1

Friday, May 8

Friday, May 15



Monday, March 16, 2015

Interested in assisting with Continuation planning?

Parents,
Sixth grade continuation will be upon us before we know it.  I wanted to ask if there were any parents that would be interested in sharing ideas and discussing what we would like to do for the continuation this year.  If that is something that interests you, please contact me, Angie den Hartog (Lars' mom), at angiedenhartog@yahoo.com.  

Thank you.

Friday, March 13, 2015

We can support this Walkabout student!

Hello all,
My name is Ty Ogborn, and I am a graduating senior in Open School’s Walkabout program. I have been doing my Global Awareness Passage on incarceration and criminal justice in the U.S. Because of over-incarceration, men and women in prison are deprived of opportunities to improve their lives. Many choose to begin rehabilitating in prison, turning their lives around through self-education. Books to Prisoners is a non-profit organization that provides them this opportunity by sending them free books. I am beginning a book drive to help this cause. The following books are the most popular among prisoners, and are always needed. Donated books must be paperback.
·         Dictionaries
·         Thesauruses
·         Almanacs
·         Legal self help
·         Spanish books (including Spanish-English dictionaries)
·         Books on drawing instruction
·         Game books (including chess, Sudoku, and role-playing manuals)
·         Vocational education (welding, plumbing, carpentry, etc.)
·         How-to books
·         GED preparation books
·         African-American non-fiction and fiction
·         True crime
·         Paperback fiction including thrillers, mysteries, science fiction, fantasy, westerns, and horror
·         Books on the occult, aliens, conspiracy theories, and New Age
·         Blank journals
If you have any of these books at home that you aren’t using, please consider making a donation. There will be a box outside the Open School’s office to drop off donated books. Thank you for your support.

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

In school consultation!

Can you take Kululu home?

Please sign up to take our class pet home for the weekend.  Kululu's cage will need its own seat in a car (food will be sent home) and a safe place to hang out during the weekend.

Date
Taking Kululu home
Friday, March 13

Spring Break
Leif
Friday, April 3

Friday, April 10
Rodrigo
Friday, April 17

Friday, April 24

Friday, May 1

Friday, May 8

Friday, May 15

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Monday, March 9, 2015

PANIC! PANIC!

The rough draft of the first feature article is due Thursday, March 12.  Many students have turned their rough draft in EARLY BIRD!  ALL students have been given a lot of support and time at school, but in order to be successful they need YOUR HELP, too.  Please make sure books are coming to and from school.

Feature Article
This is not just a five paragraph research paper.  Your feature article will dig deeper into a subject, exploring the why and the how of an incident/person/event.
Brainstorm topics: Think about a topic or a person that interests you and fits into your SDL main idea.  Then dig deeper and look farther.  Don’t just stick with the first, obvious idea you come up with.  Use your first ideas as generative ideas and expand your thinking to discover topics you don’t know much about or ideas that interest other people. Your goal is to educate yourself and your readers. You can write a human interest story; explain a short, important event in history; write a biography of an important (perhaps unknown) person…

Research and record your information on Flee Maps. Utilize trusted internet sources, individuals you can interview, and previously published material you find in the library.  You MUST document where you get all your information from on a works cited page.  You need at least three different sources and they can NOT all be from the internet.
The length of your feature article will vary but should be a minimum of five paragraphs (or headings and subheadings):
·         The first paragraph should introduce the subject while capturing the reader’s interest.  
·         The middle of your article provides the information in an interesting, logical manner.  Each separate idea or section is separated by paragraphing.  This is where you often put your quotes.
·         The last section of your article is your conclusion, and your reader sees how you pull it all together.  In some pieces, this might be a “call for action”.
After you have planned and researched your information, write a rough draft in your writing spiral or on the computer.  Make sure your style and vocabulary match the intent and tone of your piece.  Write with a variety of sentence structure, punctuation, and sentence length.  Support your ideas with specific details. If you use headings and subheadings, make sure the formatting is consistent.  You want to consider adding some supporting graphics to your final draft. 
Don’t forget to add relevant details to keep  your feature article interesting.  Feel free to add appropriate stories, descriptive writing, figures of speech, and comparison vs. contract to keep a reader reading.

After you have written your first rough draft, work with a peer to go through the feature article line by line.  Revise for style and information.  Edit for mechanics.  Make your corrections and present your article to another individual to edit and revise.  Do this multiple times.  I’m planning on having this paper looked over by a minimum of three people (Thanks Kristi, Melyssa, and Paula!).

Final notes: Headings, subheadings, and captions do not have to be the same size as the rest of your text.  Keep your fonts a reasonable size and very readable. 

Friday, March 6, 2015

P for P

Per-David Wigand, beloved IA advisor, is getting married! We would like to have a wedding shower for him sponsored by the IA students.  Please bring in an item from the “spicy” or “sweet” category to contribute to a gift basket.  Bring your items in as soon as possible with the deadline on Friday, March 13 (There will be a box available outside of Gabrielle’s room during conferences).  If you can’t bring items in, please send a few dollars to Gabi and she will purchase some things for the basket.
We wish Per and Tessa a SWEET and SPICY life!
Food/ For the Kitchen (vegetarian and not perishable)
Spicy
Sweet
Hot sauces
Dried peppers
Chilis
Cayenne
Spicy Pickles
Ginger
Wasabi
Spicy mustard
Horseradish
Salsa




Honey
Frosting
Sprinkles
Cake mixes
Candies
Fudge
Brownies
Sweet pickles
Almond/coconut and other flours
Peanut butter
Sauce
Chocolate
Ice cream cones
Nutella
Pancake mix
Syrup
Cereal
·         PLEASE ALSO CONSIDER SUPPLYING:
·         Favorite recipe (if we get enough we can make a cookbook!)
·         Advice on how to have a great relationship!

The shower event is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday March 17 at 12:35.  Per’s fiancé Tessa will be invited and may be able to attend!
Every IA student will sign a congratulation card to share our joy with Per.



Per-David Wigand, beloved IA advisor, is getting married! We would like to have a wedding shower for him sponsored by the IA students.  Please bring in an item from the “spicy” or “sweet” category to contribute to a gift basket.  Bring your items in as soon as possible with the deadline on Friday, March 13 (There will be a box available outside of Gabrielle’s room during conferences).  If you can’t bring items in, please send a few dollars to Gabi and she will purchase some things for the basket.
We wish Per and Tessa a SWEET and SPICY life!
Food/ For the Kitchen (vegetarian and not perishable)
Spicy
Sweet
Hot sauces
Dried peppers
Chilis
Cayenne
Spicy Pickles
Ginger
Wasabi
Spicy mustard
Horseradish
Salsa




Honey
Frosting
Sprinkles
Cake mixes
Candies
Fudge
Brownies
Sweet pickles
Almond/coconut and other flours
Peanut butter
Sauce
Chocolate
Ice cream cones
Nutella
Pancake mix
Syrup
Cereal
·         PLEASE ALSO CONSIDER SUPPLYING:
·         Favorite recipe (if we get enough we can make a cookbook!)
·         Advice on how to have a great relationship!

The shower event is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday Morning, March 17 at 9:00.  Per’s fiancé Tessa will be invited and may be able to attend!
Every IA student will sign a congratulation card to share our joy with Per.



Thursday, March 5, 2015

Hey Sixth Graders!

I saw this picture of a colossal cat on the internet today! It must be true, right? Right?!?!

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Rescheduling Thursday's conferences

Thanks to all of the parents who have already contacted me and rescheduled their Thursday "Snow Day" conference.  Because we are unable to take another day off, I am scheduling make-ups before and after school.  Please email me at ghovinen@jeffco.k12.co.us with several dates and times you can meet so I can build a schedule around other conferences and meetings.  In general, I am available to meet at 7:45 in the morning (except Tuesday and Thursday mornings) and at 3:30 in the afternoon (except Mondays and Fridays).

Monday, March 2, 2015

New "just right book" and book project

Students turned in their Out of Five book report and should be now starting their next "just right" book.  The finished book will be analyzed for the elements of plot and the students will make a "Bloom Ball Book Report".

Please make sure you child is bringing his/her book home and reading every night. The due date for the completion of the reading of the book is Friday, April 10.  The rough draft of the report will be due on April 16 with the FINAL DRAFT April 20.

Book title: ____________________________________________________ Author:_________________________________
 # of pages:______________________

For this project you will be creating a bloom ball to represent the Elements of Plot.

Directions:
1.       Get circle patterns of the Bloom Ball from the teacher. (You will need 12 circles total.)
2.       Do not write or draw on the edges outside of the lines. They will be folded and used to connect your ball.
3.       Follow the directions below for each circle. Write or type information NEATLY in each circle. Be sure to write complete sentences and check your spelling!
4.       Illustrations must be colored…no markers, please!
5.       When you are finished writing and coloring, write the number on the bottom of each circle, cut out the circles and assemble your ball by gluing the folded edges together (refer to assembly instructions on back).

KNOWLEDGE
Circle #1- No Title
Write the title and author of the book in the circle. Arrange the lettering to use up the entire space. Be creative! Include your first and last name at the bottom.

Circle #2 – Title: AUTHOR
Research the author of the book. Write a complete paragraph describing at least four facts about the author. Who is he? When was he born? How did he begin writing?

Circle #3 – Title: WORD JAR
Authors often use specialized vocabulary that relates to the topic about which they are writing. What new words have you learned while reading Boy of the Painted Cave? Create a two-column word jar. On the left side, list the new words you learned. On the right side, define the meaning of these words.

Elements of Plot COMPREHENSION  
Circle #4 and #5 – Title: CHARACTERS
Describe the main characters of the story using both circles (Tao, Volt, Kala, Graybeard, Ram, Garth). Include both physical and personality characteristics in your description. Write a minimum of two well-written and detailed sentences for each character.

Circle #6 – Title: SETTING
On this circle, you will recreate a visual of Land of the Painted Cave. Where does Tao live? Based on the descriptions given in the book, draw your own version of what Tao’s land looked like to you. Make sure to include and label key locations such as the Slough, Tao’s cave, the river, the camp of the Valley People, the Secret Cavern, etc. Make sure to include color!

Circle #7 – Title: CONFLICTS
Search the book to review conflicts or problems that occur between Tao and Volt. What causes the problems between them? What are the effects of the conflicts on each character? Create two columns on this circle. Label the left side, “Cause” and the right side, “Effect”. Describe at least two conflicts that happened and the effect each had on the characters. At the bottom, choose one of the conflicts and explain how you would have resolved the problem if you were Tao or Volt.

Circle #8 – Title: RISING ACTION
On this circle, describe 4 events that happened before the climax (most exciting part of the story). Each event should be written in at least one paragraph describing what happened. These events need to be BIG events that occurred in the story!


Circle #9 – Title: CLIMAX
Now that you finished the novel, you can determine the climax of the story. In Haiku form, write a 3 line poem that explains the climax of the novel. What led up to the climax?  Who was involved? What changed the outcome of the story? Include an illustration to represent your poem.

Circle #10 – Title: FALLING ACTION/RESOLUTION
There were many changes that occurred to some characters, relationships and events at the conclusion of the story. On this circle, explain 2 events that happened after the climax that had changed from the beginning of the story to the end.  


ANALYSIS
Circle #11 – Title: THEME
A theme is the author’s message to the reader. Theme is not what happens in the story; it is ideas about life. Sometimes the reader has to read between the lines to figure out the author’s message. In a paragraph or two, explain what you think the theme, or central idea or moral, is in Boy of the Painted Cave. Think about what Tao learned about life, what Volt learned about life, etc. What is the author trying to teach the reader about life?

Circle #12 – Title: RECOMMENDATION
Write a complete paragraph stating your opinion of the book. What do you think about the characters, setting, plot, or theme? Tell why you would or would not recommend this book to a friend. Be sure to support your opinions with reasons. 

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