Moving Forward

Hello Students and Parents,

Here is what to expect for the next two weeks:

7th: We just finished our poetry unit and turned in our final manuscripts. If you have not turned yours in yet, be aware that you will lose 5 points per day it is late. (7C, your packets are due Friday, 1-21-11, so don't worry yet...) We will now begin our Buckle Down review for the upcoming AIMS test and continue working in our workbooks and discussing them as a class for the next two weeks. We must begin preparing early so that we all know what to expect and can do well on the test. We will have three review sessions like this, of two weeks each, to review any unfamiliar concepts that might appear on the test.

8th: We are wrapping up our poetry unit with free verse narrative and lyric poetry. Great job on your sestinas everyone! I know they were difficult. Next week we will be editing and typing the poetry we have written and by Friday, your final typed packet of poems will be due. Next we will begin our nonfiction unit. We will read samples of literary and historical nonfiction from our Literature and Language textbooks and work out of the companion workbooks. Then we will begin discussing functional and informational text. We will begin a research project that puts our new skills to work after we complete our second section of Buckle Down AIMS review.

Keep working hard!

Mrs. Rubasch

Class Assignments and Expectations:

7th: We are gearing up for our final poetry projects. Each student is responsible for turning in a typed packet of their poetry by next Wednesday, January 19th. The poems included are: 1 sonnet, 1 villanelle, 1 ode, 1 Limerick, 3 Haikus, and 2 free verse, (1 narrative, 1 lyric).
We have been learning about formal poetry and the requirements for each form in class, then practicing writing our own for homework for the last week and 1/2. Every student has a collection of poetry in his/her journal. We will conclude our unit with the Haiku and free verse narrative and lyric poetry.

8th: We have begun our poetry unit with the English sonnet. We wil be studying examples of the villanelle and the sestina over the next week and then we will study free verse poetry for one week. At the end of the unit, a final typed packet will be due. This will include 1 sonnet, 1 villanelle, 1 sestina, and 2 free verse poems. We will be practicing all of these forms for homework over the course of the unit. save all of your work and make sure you turn in your journal every Friday to be graded!

Thanks,
Mrs. Rubasch.

Welcome Back!

Hello Students and Parents! I hope you all enjoyed your break. Here is what to expect in the upcoming weeks:

7th: We are beginning our poetry unit this week with an introduction to formal and free verse poetry and the poetic elements. We have ten terms to study for our spelling and vocabulary test this Friday. In this unit we will study formal poetry in depth and practice writing the Sonnet, the Villanelle, the Sestina, the Ode, the Haiku, and the Limerick. Then we will study narrative and lyric free verse poetry and write some of our own free verse poems. The unit concludes with a final typed manuscript, which will be worth 50 points!

8th: We will have our final exam over Romeo and Juliet on Tuesday, January 4th! For the rest of the week we will continue working in our Buckle Down workbooks in preparation for the upcoming AIMS test. Next week we will begin our poetry unit.

Have a great quarter!

Mrs. Rubasch