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Due:
U4W5 prompt
Based on the information in the passage from the selection The Gymnast, write an essay about the narrator's dedication to looking like a gymnast. He thinks it is important to look like a gymnast in order to be a gymnast. Do you agree or disagree with this view? Why? Give 3 reason you agree OR disagree. (paragraphs 2, 3, 4)
State your opinion and support it with reasons. Use your own ideas as well as details from the text. Write a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion.
story: https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4--w5-the-gymnast.html
State your opinion and support it with reasons. Use your own ideas as well as details from the text. Write a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion.
story: https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4--w5-the-gymnast.html
Due:
Unit 4 Week 4 writing
Writing – Extended Response (DO NOT TYPE IN A GOOGLE DOC). Type in the space provided
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided. Submit YOUR FIRST SENTENCE ONCE YOU TYPED IT. Then edit. By 9:30 I need to see how you started the essay.
You have read two texts about students who feel like they are alone.
• The Stormi Giovanni Club https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4--w-4-the-stormy-giovanni-club.html
• Weslandia https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4---w1-westlandia.html
If you shut other people out of your life, your feelings cannot be hurt.
Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not? Write a 4-5 paragraph opinion essay in which you discuss this idea. State your opinion and support it with two or more reasons. Use your own ideas as well as details and examples from the texts. Provide a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided. Submit YOUR FIRST SENTENCE ONCE YOU TYPED IT. Then edit. By 9:30 I need to see how you started the essay.
You have read two texts about students who feel like they are alone.
• The Stormi Giovanni Club https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4--w-4-the-stormy-giovanni-club.html
• Weslandia https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4---w1-westlandia.html
If you shut other people out of your life, your feelings cannot be hurt.
Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not? Write a 4-5 paragraph opinion essay in which you discuss this idea. State your opinion and support it with two or more reasons. Use your own ideas as well as details and examples from the texts. Provide a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Due:
U4W3 compare and contrast essay
Writing – Extended Response
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided. Then after 5 minutes submit your response so I can see how you started the compare and contrast essay.
You have read two texts about changing how others see you.
• "The Art of Mimicry"
• Tripping Over the Lunch Lady
Compare and contrast Jinx in Tripping Over the Lunch Lady and the animals in "The Art of Mimicry." Jinx tries to change a reputation for causing accidents through square dancing and animals change their behavior to increase chances of survival. How are Jinx and the animals alike and different? Write an essay in which you compare the methods used by Jinx and the animals. Introduce the topic in the first paragraph and then develop it with facts, details, and examples from the passages in the body of the essay (paragraphs 2, 3, 4). Link your ideas for comparisons with words such as similarly, in the same way, on the other hand, and after all. Provide a concluding paragraph that sums up your main points (5th paragraph). Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4-w2-tripping-over-the-lunch-lady.html
Tripping Over the Lunch Lady
by Angela Johnson
Do you know how embarrassing it is to be caught in a locker?
Just ask me.
I'm especially not good with my feet off the ground. I was telling Mr. Deimeister just that, about the time I went flying off the trampoline over Tony Friedman's head yesterday and scared him so bad (he wasn't spotting for me but was talking to Gus Jackson about what they were going to do after school) that he choked on some gum he wasn't supposed to have in his mouth.
Right around the time he was having the Heimlich done on him and Gus was screaming to apply direct pressure (luckily we'd just had a first-aid class the period before gym), I realized that what everybody calls me is probably true.
Jinx.
That's how everyone refers to me. My own parents, even.
Mom thinks it's cute. My uncle Jeff began calling me Jinx when I started crawling backward as a baby and getting stuck in boxes, under tables, and even, the story goes, a pair of my dad's boots.
Dad pats me on the head like an old skunky stray and says Uncle Jeff was just like me.
Yeah, right.
Uncle Jeff drives a Porsche and lives in a cabin in the woods with a hot tub.
I'm too uncoordinated to ever drive a car, and I'm pretty sure a hot tub is just a bad accident waiting to happen. I love Uncle Jeff anyway, though. I guess he might have been a jinx back in the day. But hey, he must have grown out of it, which doesn't necessarily mean I will.
I'm never going to be able to keep my feet together and fly perfectly on the trampoline. I'm never going to be able to make a basket without breaking somebody's bones (the doctors did do a good job on Mr. Deimeister's nose, though). I'm never going to run like my sister or kick a soccer ball like my brother without falling, throwing up, or pulling a muscle on me or somebody else. My dad won't even let me use a steak knife. I still have to cut meat with one of those plastic picnic things that sort of look like a knife.
But a while ago everything changed—my whole life, even, because of something I saw on the Folk Arts Channel. A couple days after that, a picture in an album made it feel exactly right.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, people I've run over, stepped on, and tripped up . . . I am going to be a square dance star.
The dancers on television floated over the floor, arm in arm. They smiled, laughed, and nobody fell into anybody else or sprained anything. They were all so happy and even seemed to really like each other. And then I saw this woman who looked just like my mom. She could have been my mom, she looked so much like her. Then in the middle of a swing around she looked the camera in the eye and smiled at me. Honest, it was as if she looked right at me to say: "You could be me, and look—I can do this."
Wow.
It was a couple of days later when a picture fell out of a photo album I'd just dropped in the fish tank (I rescued everything pretty quick, except now our goldfish hide when I come close to the tank), but there in living color was a picture of my mom arm in arm with this kid with hair way down his back— square dancing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Art of Mimicry
by Robert Kausal
Many animals know that the best way to prevent becoming a predator's lunch is to appear as dangerous or unappetizing as possible. You may be surprised to learn that there are many animals that specialize in the art of mimicry.
Sticks and Stones
There is a critical difference between animals that use camouflage and animals that mimic. Animals that use camouflage try to "blend in" to their environments to avoid predators. Insects are especially good at this. There are insects that look like sticks, leaves, thorns, pebbles, and even bird droppings!
Animals that mimic model themselves after objects or other animals. Some of nature's best mimics of objects are insects. Many insects have adapted by making themselves look like other objects in their environments. They adapt by mimicking the sounds, movements, or behaviors of things or animals in their environments. Let's take a look at some of these animals that mimic.
A Master of Disguises
In the tropical waters of Indonesia lives the mimic octopus. This creature is a master of disguises. Most octopuses hide among reefs and rocky areas, but the mimic octopus's environment is muddy and sandy. Since places to hide are scarce, the mimic octopus has learned to trick predators into thinking it is another type of fish.
The flatfish is one of the mimic octopus's most successful disguises. The mimic octopus can change its shape and glide along the ocean floor just like a flatfish. Why a flatfish? For most ocean predators, eating a flatfish is like drinking sour milk. It tastes horrible! The amazing mimic octopus can also imitate a poisonous lionfish and a sea snake. Some divers believe the mimic octopus has other disguises as well.
It's a Dog—It's a Plane—No, It's a Lyrebird!
While many animals mimic other animals to fool predators, the male lyrebird of Australia mimics sounds to attract females of the species. This small brown bird clears a space in the forest, spreads its elaborate tail feathers, and begins a concert of sounds that amazes and fools any listener.
Besides mimicking more than twenty different kinds of species, the lyrebird also imitates some unusual sounds. These include a chainsaw, a camera, a crying baby, a dog, a car alarm, and even musical instruments! This bird is like a one-man band!
Having a Hissing Fit
Snakes might look scary enough to you and me, but sometimes even they need a little help to keep enemies away. The hognose snake is a harmless snake found throughout the United States. However, its pattern of irregular dark spots enables the hognose to look like a venomous rattlesnake. When threatened, the hognose mimics the behavior of a rattlesnake. It coils up, hisses loudly, and strikes out at its predator, but this is all for show since the hognose doesn't have fangs or venom.
If acting like a venomous snake doesn't work, the hognose will roll over, stick out its tongue, release a foul smell, and play dead. So don't make the mistake of trying to pick up a dead hognose. It's not sterile!
The Last Resort
Sometimes the animal kingdom must rely on the ultimate survival tactic . . . playing dead. Many animals, such as bats, lizards, spiders, and toads, will play dead to fool their predators. This strategy works well. Many predators don't like to eat dead animals. This could be because there is no thrill in the hunt (or in a toad's case, because the animal's body is covered in mucus).
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided. Then after 5 minutes submit your response so I can see how you started the compare and contrast essay.
You have read two texts about changing how others see you.
• "The Art of Mimicry"
• Tripping Over the Lunch Lady
Compare and contrast Jinx in Tripping Over the Lunch Lady and the animals in "The Art of Mimicry." Jinx tries to change a reputation for causing accidents through square dancing and animals change their behavior to increase chances of survival. How are Jinx and the animals alike and different? Write an essay in which you compare the methods used by Jinx and the animals. Introduce the topic in the first paragraph and then develop it with facts, details, and examples from the passages in the body of the essay (paragraphs 2, 3, 4). Link your ideas for comparisons with words such as similarly, in the same way, on the other hand, and after all. Provide a concluding paragraph that sums up your main points (5th paragraph). Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4-w2-tripping-over-the-lunch-lady.html
Tripping Over the Lunch Lady
by Angela Johnson
Do you know how embarrassing it is to be caught in a locker?
Just ask me.
I'm especially not good with my feet off the ground. I was telling Mr. Deimeister just that, about the time I went flying off the trampoline over Tony Friedman's head yesterday and scared him so bad (he wasn't spotting for me but was talking to Gus Jackson about what they were going to do after school) that he choked on some gum he wasn't supposed to have in his mouth.
Right around the time he was having the Heimlich done on him and Gus was screaming to apply direct pressure (luckily we'd just had a first-aid class the period before gym), I realized that what everybody calls me is probably true.
Jinx.
That's how everyone refers to me. My own parents, even.
Mom thinks it's cute. My uncle Jeff began calling me Jinx when I started crawling backward as a baby and getting stuck in boxes, under tables, and even, the story goes, a pair of my dad's boots.
Dad pats me on the head like an old skunky stray and says Uncle Jeff was just like me.
Yeah, right.
Uncle Jeff drives a Porsche and lives in a cabin in the woods with a hot tub.
I'm too uncoordinated to ever drive a car, and I'm pretty sure a hot tub is just a bad accident waiting to happen. I love Uncle Jeff anyway, though. I guess he might have been a jinx back in the day. But hey, he must have grown out of it, which doesn't necessarily mean I will.
I'm never going to be able to keep my feet together and fly perfectly on the trampoline. I'm never going to be able to make a basket without breaking somebody's bones (the doctors did do a good job on Mr. Deimeister's nose, though). I'm never going to run like my sister or kick a soccer ball like my brother without falling, throwing up, or pulling a muscle on me or somebody else. My dad won't even let me use a steak knife. I still have to cut meat with one of those plastic picnic things that sort of look like a knife.
But a while ago everything changed—my whole life, even, because of something I saw on the Folk Arts Channel. A couple days after that, a picture in an album made it feel exactly right.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, people I've run over, stepped on, and tripped up . . . I am going to be a square dance star.
The dancers on television floated over the floor, arm in arm. They smiled, laughed, and nobody fell into anybody else or sprained anything. They were all so happy and even seemed to really like each other. And then I saw this woman who looked just like my mom. She could have been my mom, she looked so much like her. Then in the middle of a swing around she looked the camera in the eye and smiled at me. Honest, it was as if she looked right at me to say: "You could be me, and look—I can do this."
Wow.
It was a couple of days later when a picture fell out of a photo album I'd just dropped in the fish tank (I rescued everything pretty quick, except now our goldfish hide when I come close to the tank), but there in living color was a picture of my mom arm in arm with this kid with hair way down his back— square dancing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Art of Mimicry
by Robert Kausal
Many animals know that the best way to prevent becoming a predator's lunch is to appear as dangerous or unappetizing as possible. You may be surprised to learn that there are many animals that specialize in the art of mimicry.
Sticks and Stones
There is a critical difference between animals that use camouflage and animals that mimic. Animals that use camouflage try to "blend in" to their environments to avoid predators. Insects are especially good at this. There are insects that look like sticks, leaves, thorns, pebbles, and even bird droppings!
Animals that mimic model themselves after objects or other animals. Some of nature's best mimics of objects are insects. Many insects have adapted by making themselves look like other objects in their environments. They adapt by mimicking the sounds, movements, or behaviors of things or animals in their environments. Let's take a look at some of these animals that mimic.
A Master of Disguises
In the tropical waters of Indonesia lives the mimic octopus. This creature is a master of disguises. Most octopuses hide among reefs and rocky areas, but the mimic octopus's environment is muddy and sandy. Since places to hide are scarce, the mimic octopus has learned to trick predators into thinking it is another type of fish.
The flatfish is one of the mimic octopus's most successful disguises. The mimic octopus can change its shape and glide along the ocean floor just like a flatfish. Why a flatfish? For most ocean predators, eating a flatfish is like drinking sour milk. It tastes horrible! The amazing mimic octopus can also imitate a poisonous lionfish and a sea snake. Some divers believe the mimic octopus has other disguises as well.
It's a Dog—It's a Plane—No, It's a Lyrebird!
While many animals mimic other animals to fool predators, the male lyrebird of Australia mimics sounds to attract females of the species. This small brown bird clears a space in the forest, spreads its elaborate tail feathers, and begins a concert of sounds that amazes and fools any listener.
Besides mimicking more than twenty different kinds of species, the lyrebird also imitates some unusual sounds. These include a chainsaw, a camera, a crying baby, a dog, a car alarm, and even musical instruments! This bird is like a one-man band!
Having a Hissing Fit
Snakes might look scary enough to you and me, but sometimes even they need a little help to keep enemies away. The hognose snake is a harmless snake found throughout the United States. However, its pattern of irregular dark spots enables the hognose to look like a venomous rattlesnake. When threatened, the hognose mimics the behavior of a rattlesnake. It coils up, hisses loudly, and strikes out at its predator, but this is all for show since the hognose doesn't have fangs or venom.
If acting like a venomous snake doesn't work, the hognose will roll over, stick out its tongue, release a foul smell, and play dead. So don't make the mistake of trying to pick up a dead hognose. It's not sterile!
The Last Resort
Sometimes the animal kingdom must rely on the ultimate survival tactic . . . playing dead. Many animals, such as bats, lizards, spiders, and toads, will play dead to fool their predators. This strategy works well. Many predators don't like to eat dead animals. This could be because there is no thrill in the hunt (or in a toad's case, because the animal's body is covered in mucus).
Due:
U4W2 writing test
Based on the information in the passage from the selection Tripping Over the Lunch Lady, write a news article for a school newspaper about Jinx and the accidents Jinx causes on a typical Friday.
Introduce the topic and then develop it using details from the text as well as your own examples. Group related information in a logical way. Conclude with a sentence that sums up the article.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4-w2-tripping-over-the-lunch-lady.html
Tripping Over the Lunch Lady
by Angela Johnson
Do you know how embarrassing it is to be caught in a locker?
Just ask me.
I'm especially not good with my feet off the ground. I was telling Mr. Deimeister just that, about the time I went flying off the trampoline over Tony Friedman's head yesterday and scared him so bad (he wasn't spotting for me but was talking to Gus Jackson about what they were going to do after school) that he choked on some gum he wasn't supposed to have in his mouth.
Right around the time he was having the Heimlich done on him and Gus was screaming to apply direct pressure (luckily we'd just had a first-aid class the period before gym), I realized that what everybody calls me is probably true.
Jinx.
That's how everyone refers to me. My own parents, even.
Mom thinks it's cute. My uncle Jeff began calling me Jinx when I started crawling backward as a baby and getting stuck in boxes, under tables, and even, the story goes, a pair of my dad's boots.
Dad pats me on the head like an old skunky stray and says Uncle Jeff was just like me.
Yeah, right.
Uncle Jeff drives a Porsche and lives in a cabin in the woods with a hot tub.
I'm too uncoordinated to ever drive a car, and I'm pretty sure a hot tub is just a bad accident waiting to happen. I love Uncle Jeff anyway, though. I guess he might have been a jinx back in the day. But hey, he must have grown out of it, which doesn't necessarily mean I will.
I'm never going to be able to keep my feet together and fly perfectly on the trampoline. I'm never going to be able to make a basket without breaking somebody's bones (the doctors did do a good job on Mr. Deimeister's nose, though). I'm never going to run like my sister or kick a soccer ball like my brother without falling, throwing up, or pulling a muscle on me or somebody else. My dad won't even let me use a steak knife. I still have to cut meat with one of those plastic picnic things that sort of look like a knife.
But a while ago everything changed—my whole life, even, because of something I saw on the Folk Arts Channel. A couple days after that, a picture in an album made it feel exactly right.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, people I've run over, stepped on, and tripped up . . . I am going to be a square dance star.
The dancers on television floated over the floor, arm in arm. They smiled, laughed, and nobody fell into anybody else or sprained anything. They were all so happy and even seemed to really like each other. And then I saw this woman who looked just like my mom. She could have been my mom, she looked so much like her. Then in the middle of a swing around she looked the camera in the eye and smiled at me. Honest, it was as if she looked right at me to say: "You could be me, and look—I can do this."
Wow.
It was a couple of days later when a picture fell out of a photo album I'd just dropped in the fish tank (I rescued everything pretty quick, except now our goldfish hide when I come close to the tank), but there in living color was a picture of my mom arm in arm with this kid with hair way down his back— square dancing.
Introduce the topic and then develop it using details from the text as well as your own examples. Group related information in a logical way. Conclude with a sentence that sums up the article.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u4-w2-tripping-over-the-lunch-lady.html
Tripping Over the Lunch Lady
by Angela Johnson
Do you know how embarrassing it is to be caught in a locker?
Just ask me.
I'm especially not good with my feet off the ground. I was telling Mr. Deimeister just that, about the time I went flying off the trampoline over Tony Friedman's head yesterday and scared him so bad (he wasn't spotting for me but was talking to Gus Jackson about what they were going to do after school) that he choked on some gum he wasn't supposed to have in his mouth.
Right around the time he was having the Heimlich done on him and Gus was screaming to apply direct pressure (luckily we'd just had a first-aid class the period before gym), I realized that what everybody calls me is probably true.
Jinx.
That's how everyone refers to me. My own parents, even.
Mom thinks it's cute. My uncle Jeff began calling me Jinx when I started crawling backward as a baby and getting stuck in boxes, under tables, and even, the story goes, a pair of my dad's boots.
Dad pats me on the head like an old skunky stray and says Uncle Jeff was just like me.
Yeah, right.
Uncle Jeff drives a Porsche and lives in a cabin in the woods with a hot tub.
I'm too uncoordinated to ever drive a car, and I'm pretty sure a hot tub is just a bad accident waiting to happen. I love Uncle Jeff anyway, though. I guess he might have been a jinx back in the day. But hey, he must have grown out of it, which doesn't necessarily mean I will.
I'm never going to be able to keep my feet together and fly perfectly on the trampoline. I'm never going to be able to make a basket without breaking somebody's bones (the doctors did do a good job on Mr. Deimeister's nose, though). I'm never going to run like my sister or kick a soccer ball like my brother without falling, throwing up, or pulling a muscle on me or somebody else. My dad won't even let me use a steak knife. I still have to cut meat with one of those plastic picnic things that sort of look like a knife.
But a while ago everything changed—my whole life, even, because of something I saw on the Folk Arts Channel. A couple days after that, a picture in an album made it feel exactly right.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, people I've run over, stepped on, and tripped up . . . I am going to be a square dance star.
The dancers on television floated over the floor, arm in arm. They smiled, laughed, and nobody fell into anybody else or sprained anything. They were all so happy and even seemed to really like each other. And then I saw this woman who looked just like my mom. She could have been my mom, she looked so much like her. Then in the middle of a swing around she looked the camera in the eye and smiled at me. Honest, it was as if she looked right at me to say: "You could be me, and look—I can do this."
Wow.
It was a couple of days later when a picture fell out of a photo album I'd just dropped in the fish tank (I rescued everything pretty quick, except now our goldfish hide when I come close to the tank), but there in living color was a picture of my mom arm in arm with this kid with hair way down his back— square dancing.
Due:
5 paragraph essay Unit 3: Do you think being famous would make your life easier or harder? Why?
Writing – Extended Response
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided.
You have read three texts about famous people who act with determination and courage.
• "A Job for Michelangelo"
• "A Model Scientist"
• Mahalia Jackson
Think about how Michelangelo, Garfield Minott, and Mahalia Jackson are famous for what they did, and imagine you are famous in your field of work. Do you think being famous would make your life easier or harder? Why? Write a 5 paragraph opinion essay in which you answer these questions. State your opinion (in 1st paragraph) and offer 3 reasons supported by details from the selections and your own ideas. Use transitional words such as in addition to, as a result, and for this reason to connect your ideas. Provide a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
for each of your 3 reasons, refer to a story
2nd paragraph 1st reason, refer to one of the stories to back up your reason
3rd paragraph 2nd reason, refer to the next story to back up your reason
4th paragraph last reason (3rd), refer to the last story to back up your reason
How will you use the life of Michelangelo, Garfield Minott, AND Mahalia Jackson to back up your reasons?
All stories are here:
https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/m/MzAyODUxOTgwMzIx/details
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided.
You have read three texts about famous people who act with determination and courage.
• "A Job for Michelangelo"
• "A Model Scientist"
• Mahalia Jackson
Think about how Michelangelo, Garfield Minott, and Mahalia Jackson are famous for what they did, and imagine you are famous in your field of work. Do you think being famous would make your life easier or harder? Why? Write a 5 paragraph opinion essay in which you answer these questions. State your opinion (in 1st paragraph) and offer 3 reasons supported by details from the selections and your own ideas. Use transitional words such as in addition to, as a result, and for this reason to connect your ideas. Provide a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
for each of your 3 reasons, refer to a story
2nd paragraph 1st reason, refer to one of the stories to back up your reason
3rd paragraph 2nd reason, refer to the next story to back up your reason
4th paragraph last reason (3rd), refer to the last story to back up your reason
How will you use the life of Michelangelo, Garfield Minott, AND Mahalia Jackson to back up your reasons?
All stories are here:
https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/m/MzAyODUxOTgwMzIx/details
Due:
U3W5 writing
Writing – Extended Response
You have read two texts about ways to show things that do not exist.
• Special Effects in Film and Television
• The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins
Compare and contrast the making of the miniature scene in Special Effects in Film and Television and the making of the giant dinosaur in The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins. Write an essay in which you tell how these processes are alike and different. Introduce the topic and then develop it with facts, details, and examples from the selections. Use transitional words such as instead, likewise, on one hand, and in contrast to compare your ideas. Write a concluding paragraph with a statement that sums up your main points. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Special Effects in Film and Television
by Jake Hamilton
IN MINIATURE
Special effects (SFX) is the art of making the impossible into a fantastic reality. Special effects has always pushed the boundaries of human imagination. It keeps today's movie and television audiences glued to their seats in starry-eyed wonder.
The art of miniature model-making has always been an important part of special effects in movies. Some movie stories have big, spectacular, action-filled scenes. They may call for fights between dinosaurs, explosions on the Golden Gate Bridge, or an armed force charging through the desert. Movie-makers can save time and money by making models for these scenes. This article tells the story of the building of a miniature landscape for a television show.
1 A General Idea
A special effects team must build a prehistoric world in a workshop. The team's first step is to make a "concept" model of this mini-world. The model will give a general view of what the finished product will look like. [The] model shows that the landscape will include a fallen tree and a circular lake.
2 Getting Larger
The movie-makers study [the] concept model to decide on the size and shape of the finished product. Then they make a larger and more detailed "prototype" model. This gives them a clearer picture of how the finished product will look. The prototype comes in sections that are fitted together like puzzle pieces. The 2 ft × 2 ft (0.6 m × 0.6 m) prototype is fully painted and fitted with bushes and trees. Now the team can work on the final product.
3 Getting Started
The full-size miniature model will be 24 ft × 24 ft (7.2 m × 7.2 m). Building it will take real cooperation among all the SFX team members. The model's base is made of the kind of plastic used in fast food cups and boxes. Model-makers carve the plastic surface to make hills and valleys and rivers and lakes. They use references such as pictures of trees and rocks to guide them. [The] modelmakers [use] photographs of a dry riverbed as a guide.
4 Carving It Out
[Next], the model-makers [cut] out the area of the huge circular lake at the heart of the model. They will then add more surface detail and mark out other features in the landscape.
5 Rebuilding
The model is cut into sections so it can be taken on trucks to the television studio. Since the model is so large and detailed, each section is numbered. That way, when the pieces reach the studio they can be reassembled easily.
6 Foaming the Model
At the studio, the model is put back together, and the miniature trees, rocks, and other surface details are all put in place. Then a technician wearing a special protective suit sprays the model. He uses a light foam made from toxic chemicals. The foam gives the surface of the model a smooth, natural look. He also adds bumps and dips to the surface. This makes it look just like a real landscape.
7 In the Studio
Putting the miniature landscape back together takes a great deal of attention to detail. Every last tree, bush, and rock must be exactly in place. A huge painted backdrop of blue sky streaked with clouds has been placed on the far wall. Lights positioned overhead will give the landscape more texture and shadow.
8 Fixing in Place
Model-makers use a special glue to make sure the sections will not come apart. The glue is carefully dried by hand. Technicians use the same kind of blow-dryer people use on their hair. That way they can aim the hot wind just right so it will not disturb any delicate details on the landscape's surface.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins
by Barbara Kerley
Horse-drawn carriages clattered down the streets of London in 1853. Gentlemen tipped their hats to ladies passing by. Children ducked and dodged on their way to school.
But Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins had no time to be out and about. Waterhouse, as he liked to call himself, hurried toward his workshop in a park south of town. He was expecting some very important visitors. He didn't want to be late.
As he neared his workshop, Waterhouse thought of the hours he'd spent outside as a boy. Like many artists, he had grown up sketching the world around him. By the time he was a young man, he'd found his true passion: animals. He loved to draw and paint them. But what he really loved was sculpting models of them. Through his care and hard work, they seemed to come to life.
Now Waterhouse was busy with a most exciting project: He was building dinosaurs! His creations would prowl the grounds of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert's new art and science museum, the Crystal Palace.
Even though the English had found the first known dinosaur fossil many years before—and the bones of more dinosaurs had been unearthed in England since then—in 1853, most people had no idea what a dinosaur looked like.
Scientists weren't sure either, for the only fossils were some bits and pieces—a tooth here, a bone there. But they thought that if they studied a fossil and compared it to a living animal, they could fill in the blanks.
And so, with the help of scientist Richard Owen, who checked every muscle, bone, and spike, that's exactly what Waterhouse was doing. He wanted to create such perfect models that anyone—a crowd of curious children, England's leading scientists, even the Queen herself!—could gaze at his dinosaurs and see into the past.
Waterhouse threw open the doors to his workshop. Nervously, he tidied up here and there. His assistants came, then Richard Owen.
At last, the visitors arrived: Queen Victoria and Prince Albert!
The Queen's eyes grew wide in surprise. Waterhouse's creatures were extraordinary! How on earth had he made them?
He was happy to explain: The iguanodon, for instance, had teeth that were quite similar to the teeth of an iguana. The iguanodon, then, must surely have looked like a giant iguana. Waterhouse pointed out that the few iguanodon bones helped determine the model's size and proportion. And another bone—almost a spike—most likely sat on the nose, like a rhino's horn.
Just so for the megalosaurus. Start with its jawbone. Compare it to the anatomy of a lizard. Fill in the blanks. And voilà! A dinosaur more than forty feet long.
Waterhouse was also making ancient reptiles and amphibians. While Richard Owen could imagine their shapes, it took an artist to bring the animals to life.
Designing the creatures was only the first step. There was still the monumental task of building them.
Waterhouse showed his guests the small models he'd made, correct in every detail, from scales on the nose to nails on the toes. With the help of his assistants, he had formed the life-size clay figures and created the molds from them. Then he erected iron skeletons, built brick foundations, and covered the whole thing with cement casts from the dinosaur-shaped molds.
"It is no less," Waterhouse concluded, "than building a house upon four columns."
You have read two texts about ways to show things that do not exist.
• Special Effects in Film and Television
• The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins
Compare and contrast the making of the miniature scene in Special Effects in Film and Television and the making of the giant dinosaur in The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins. Write an essay in which you tell how these processes are alike and different. Introduce the topic and then develop it with facts, details, and examples from the selections. Use transitional words such as instead, likewise, on one hand, and in contrast to compare your ideas. Write a concluding paragraph with a statement that sums up your main points. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Special Effects in Film and Television
by Jake Hamilton
IN MINIATURE
Special effects (SFX) is the art of making the impossible into a fantastic reality. Special effects has always pushed the boundaries of human imagination. It keeps today's movie and television audiences glued to their seats in starry-eyed wonder.
The art of miniature model-making has always been an important part of special effects in movies. Some movie stories have big, spectacular, action-filled scenes. They may call for fights between dinosaurs, explosions on the Golden Gate Bridge, or an armed force charging through the desert. Movie-makers can save time and money by making models for these scenes. This article tells the story of the building of a miniature landscape for a television show.
1 A General Idea
A special effects team must build a prehistoric world in a workshop. The team's first step is to make a "concept" model of this mini-world. The model will give a general view of what the finished product will look like. [The] model shows that the landscape will include a fallen tree and a circular lake.
2 Getting Larger
The movie-makers study [the] concept model to decide on the size and shape of the finished product. Then they make a larger and more detailed "prototype" model. This gives them a clearer picture of how the finished product will look. The prototype comes in sections that are fitted together like puzzle pieces. The 2 ft × 2 ft (0.6 m × 0.6 m) prototype is fully painted and fitted with bushes and trees. Now the team can work on the final product.
3 Getting Started
The full-size miniature model will be 24 ft × 24 ft (7.2 m × 7.2 m). Building it will take real cooperation among all the SFX team members. The model's base is made of the kind of plastic used in fast food cups and boxes. Model-makers carve the plastic surface to make hills and valleys and rivers and lakes. They use references such as pictures of trees and rocks to guide them. [The] modelmakers [use] photographs of a dry riverbed as a guide.
4 Carving It Out
[Next], the model-makers [cut] out the area of the huge circular lake at the heart of the model. They will then add more surface detail and mark out other features in the landscape.
5 Rebuilding
The model is cut into sections so it can be taken on trucks to the television studio. Since the model is so large and detailed, each section is numbered. That way, when the pieces reach the studio they can be reassembled easily.
6 Foaming the Model
At the studio, the model is put back together, and the miniature trees, rocks, and other surface details are all put in place. Then a technician wearing a special protective suit sprays the model. He uses a light foam made from toxic chemicals. The foam gives the surface of the model a smooth, natural look. He also adds bumps and dips to the surface. This makes it look just like a real landscape.
7 In the Studio
Putting the miniature landscape back together takes a great deal of attention to detail. Every last tree, bush, and rock must be exactly in place. A huge painted backdrop of blue sky streaked with clouds has been placed on the far wall. Lights positioned overhead will give the landscape more texture and shadow.
8 Fixing in Place
Model-makers use a special glue to make sure the sections will not come apart. The glue is carefully dried by hand. Technicians use the same kind of blow-dryer people use on their hair. That way they can aim the hot wind just right so it will not disturb any delicate details on the landscape's surface.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins
by Barbara Kerley
Horse-drawn carriages clattered down the streets of London in 1853. Gentlemen tipped their hats to ladies passing by. Children ducked and dodged on their way to school.
But Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins had no time to be out and about. Waterhouse, as he liked to call himself, hurried toward his workshop in a park south of town. He was expecting some very important visitors. He didn't want to be late.
As he neared his workshop, Waterhouse thought of the hours he'd spent outside as a boy. Like many artists, he had grown up sketching the world around him. By the time he was a young man, he'd found his true passion: animals. He loved to draw and paint them. But what he really loved was sculpting models of them. Through his care and hard work, they seemed to come to life.
Now Waterhouse was busy with a most exciting project: He was building dinosaurs! His creations would prowl the grounds of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert's new art and science museum, the Crystal Palace.
Even though the English had found the first known dinosaur fossil many years before—and the bones of more dinosaurs had been unearthed in England since then—in 1853, most people had no idea what a dinosaur looked like.
Scientists weren't sure either, for the only fossils were some bits and pieces—a tooth here, a bone there. But they thought that if they studied a fossil and compared it to a living animal, they could fill in the blanks.
And so, with the help of scientist Richard Owen, who checked every muscle, bone, and spike, that's exactly what Waterhouse was doing. He wanted to create such perfect models that anyone—a crowd of curious children, England's leading scientists, even the Queen herself!—could gaze at his dinosaurs and see into the past.
Waterhouse threw open the doors to his workshop. Nervously, he tidied up here and there. His assistants came, then Richard Owen.
At last, the visitors arrived: Queen Victoria and Prince Albert!
The Queen's eyes grew wide in surprise. Waterhouse's creatures were extraordinary! How on earth had he made them?
He was happy to explain: The iguanodon, for instance, had teeth that were quite similar to the teeth of an iguana. The iguanodon, then, must surely have looked like a giant iguana. Waterhouse pointed out that the few iguanodon bones helped determine the model's size and proportion. And another bone—almost a spike—most likely sat on the nose, like a rhino's horn.
Just so for the megalosaurus. Start with its jawbone. Compare it to the anatomy of a lizard. Fill in the blanks. And voilà! A dinosaur more than forty feet long.
Waterhouse was also making ancient reptiles and amphibians. While Richard Owen could imagine their shapes, it took an artist to bring the animals to life.
Designing the creatures was only the first step. There was still the monumental task of building them.
Waterhouse showed his guests the small models he'd made, correct in every detail, from scales on the nose to nails on the toes. With the help of his assistants, he had formed the life-size clay figures and created the molds from them. Then he erected iron skeletons, built brick foundations, and covered the whole thing with cement casts from the dinosaur-shaped molds.
"It is no less," Waterhouse concluded, "than building a house upon four columns."
Due:
Research step for women history project
Complete this quick research by tomorrow at 8:30 am
Due:
U3W4 writing
You have read two texts about famous people in the arts.
• Mahalia Jackson
• Leonardo's Horse
Imagine you are a famous person in your favorite field of music, art, or drama. Write a story for a time capsule, describing the journey of how you became famous. Use details from both texts to help organize an event sequence. Use sensory details and description to develop the events and experiences in your story. Conclude by stating your most important experience from the story. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
_______________________
Mahalia Jackson
by Julius Lester
Mahalia Jackson (1911–1972) was not a blues singer. She sang church songs, gospel, but she knew blues and brought the blues feeling into church music. Other people, like Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin, grew up singing gospel, too, but they took the gospel feeling and put it into the blues. The words in a gospel song and the words in the blues will be different, but both can make you start moaning like you've just bitten into the best fried chicken anybody ever made. So that's why you have to know about Mahalia Jackson. Even if she didn't sing the blues, she learned a lot from listening to blues singers, and blues singers have learned a lot from listening to her sing gospel.
Mahalia grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana, the city where jazz was born and where there is still more good music and good food per block than anyplace in the world. Her father worked on the docks during the day loading bales of cotton on boats, was a barber at night and a preacher on Sundays. When Mahalia was five years old her mother died. Her father took her to live with Mahalia Paul, an aunt who lived nearby and the woman for whom Mahalia Jackson was named. Mahalia never lived with her father again, but she saw him almost every day at his barbershop.
Mahalia grew up loving music, and the person she wanted to sing like was none other than Bessie Smith. But Mahalia's aunt was very religious, and she took Mahalia to church every day. When talking about her childhood, Mahalia said that in her church, "everybody sang and clapped and stomped their feet, sang with their whole bodies! They had the beat, a powerful beat, a rhythm we held on to from slavery days, and [the] music was so strong and expressive, it used to bring the tears to my eyes." It was in church that Mahalia first started singing.
She dropped out of school after the eighth grade and went to work doing people's laundry. Mahalia began hearing stories from relatives and friends about how good life was in Chicago, Illinois. So when she was sixteen, another aunt, Hannah, took her to Chicago to live. Once there, Mahalia joined a gospel group and a church choir while working during the day as a maid in hotels.
It was in Chicago that Mahalia got the chance to see her idol, Bessie Smith, who came to town to put on a show. Years later Mahalia remembered that Bessie "filled the whole place with her voice [and] I never went home until they put us out and closed up for the night."
Mahalia's singing brought her to the attention of Thomas A. Dorsey, who directed a number of gospel choirs in Chicago. Dorsey was the father of gospel music, but earlier in his life he had been the pianist for Ma Rainey, the blues singer Bessie Smith had traveled with. He began taking her to out-of-town churches for concerts and her reputation began to grow almost as fast as you are.
In 1946, Mahalia's first record was released. She would go on to become the most famous gospel singer in the world, and in 1976 she received (posthumously) a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Mahalia was a close friend of Martin Luther King, Jr., and at the March on Washington, he asked her to sing right before he gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.
Mahalia Jackson had a big voice, and she could go from a high note to a low one as easily as you put one foot in front of the other. She could hold a note until you thought she should run out of breath, and she could put together a lot of notes in a line of music that would take your breath away. And she did it as easily as a cloud floats across the sky.
------------------------------------------
Leonardo's Horse
by Jean Fritz
For a man who liked to ask questions, Leonardo da Vinci was born at the right time—April 15, 1452. Everybody was asking questions then. The age was called the Renaissance, a time of rebirth when people who had forgotten how to be curious became curious again. They were exploring new countries, discovering, inventing, looking at old things in new ways. What was the point, Leonardo asked, in copying what had already been done? He had to bring his own experience into whatever he painted. You wouldn't catch him putting a halo around the head of a saint. How could he? He had never seen a halo.
Leonardo da Vinci turned out to be a famous artist; still, he was not just an artist. He could never be just one thing. He was an engineer, an architect, a musician, a philosopher, an astronomer. Once he fashioned a special kind of flute made of silver in the shape of a horse's head. The ruler of Florence, Lorenzo de' Medici, asked him to deliver it as a gift to the duke of Milan. This was lucky for Leonardo. He had heard that the duke of Milan wanted to honor his father with a bronze horse in front of his palace. And Leonardo wanted to be the one to make it.
This would be his mark on history. Hundreds of years later people would point to the horse. "Leonardo made that," they would say.
So he wrote to the duke, listing all the things that he could do. He could make cannons, lightweight bridges, and covered chariots that couldn't be broken or harmed. On and on he went, but he saved the most important point for the last. He could make a bronze horse. In the end, he didn't send the letter. He simply left for Milan. Never mind that he was in the midst of painting a large religious picture in Florence. Let someone else finish it. He had planned the picture and that was the important part.
Leonardo was thirty years old now, handsome with curly blond hair. The duke gave him the job of working on the horse, but at the same time he was expected to take charge of entertainment in the palace. He had a beautiful singing voice, he could play musical instruments, he could juggle and ask riddles, and he was also asked to stage elaborate plays for special occasions. Whenever he had a chance, he went back to the horse.
He visited the stables, studying how a horse was put together.
He needed to understand everything about his subject. He measured and drew pictures until he knew where all the bones and muscles of a horse were. But you couldn't show all the muscles on a statue, he said, or the horse would look like a bag of turnips. You should show only those muscles the horse was using or getting ready to use.
He visited statues of horses. Many were shown in an amble—left front leg moving at the same time as the left back leg. This was not easy for a horse; he had to be taught to do it. Leonardo saw one horse, however, that he described as free—left front leg and right back leg moving together, in a trot. Moreover, both ears were pointed forward. (Some horses pointed one ear back to hear the rider's orders.)
Leonardo was ready to begin.
• Mahalia Jackson
• Leonardo's Horse
Imagine you are a famous person in your favorite field of music, art, or drama. Write a story for a time capsule, describing the journey of how you became famous. Use details from both texts to help organize an event sequence. Use sensory details and description to develop the events and experiences in your story. Conclude by stating your most important experience from the story. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
_______________________
Mahalia Jackson
by Julius Lester
Mahalia Jackson (1911–1972) was not a blues singer. She sang church songs, gospel, but she knew blues and brought the blues feeling into church music. Other people, like Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin, grew up singing gospel, too, but they took the gospel feeling and put it into the blues. The words in a gospel song and the words in the blues will be different, but both can make you start moaning like you've just bitten into the best fried chicken anybody ever made. So that's why you have to know about Mahalia Jackson. Even if she didn't sing the blues, she learned a lot from listening to blues singers, and blues singers have learned a lot from listening to her sing gospel.
Mahalia grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana, the city where jazz was born and where there is still more good music and good food per block than anyplace in the world. Her father worked on the docks during the day loading bales of cotton on boats, was a barber at night and a preacher on Sundays. When Mahalia was five years old her mother died. Her father took her to live with Mahalia Paul, an aunt who lived nearby and the woman for whom Mahalia Jackson was named. Mahalia never lived with her father again, but she saw him almost every day at his barbershop.
Mahalia grew up loving music, and the person she wanted to sing like was none other than Bessie Smith. But Mahalia's aunt was very religious, and she took Mahalia to church every day. When talking about her childhood, Mahalia said that in her church, "everybody sang and clapped and stomped their feet, sang with their whole bodies! They had the beat, a powerful beat, a rhythm we held on to from slavery days, and [the] music was so strong and expressive, it used to bring the tears to my eyes." It was in church that Mahalia first started singing.
She dropped out of school after the eighth grade and went to work doing people's laundry. Mahalia began hearing stories from relatives and friends about how good life was in Chicago, Illinois. So when she was sixteen, another aunt, Hannah, took her to Chicago to live. Once there, Mahalia joined a gospel group and a church choir while working during the day as a maid in hotels.
It was in Chicago that Mahalia got the chance to see her idol, Bessie Smith, who came to town to put on a show. Years later Mahalia remembered that Bessie "filled the whole place with her voice [and] I never went home until they put us out and closed up for the night."
Mahalia's singing brought her to the attention of Thomas A. Dorsey, who directed a number of gospel choirs in Chicago. Dorsey was the father of gospel music, but earlier in his life he had been the pianist for Ma Rainey, the blues singer Bessie Smith had traveled with. He began taking her to out-of-town churches for concerts and her reputation began to grow almost as fast as you are.
In 1946, Mahalia's first record was released. She would go on to become the most famous gospel singer in the world, and in 1976 she received (posthumously) a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Mahalia was a close friend of Martin Luther King, Jr., and at the March on Washington, he asked her to sing right before he gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech.
Mahalia Jackson had a big voice, and she could go from a high note to a low one as easily as you put one foot in front of the other. She could hold a note until you thought she should run out of breath, and she could put together a lot of notes in a line of music that would take your breath away. And she did it as easily as a cloud floats across the sky.
------------------------------------------
Leonardo's Horse
by Jean Fritz
For a man who liked to ask questions, Leonardo da Vinci was born at the right time—April 15, 1452. Everybody was asking questions then. The age was called the Renaissance, a time of rebirth when people who had forgotten how to be curious became curious again. They were exploring new countries, discovering, inventing, looking at old things in new ways. What was the point, Leonardo asked, in copying what had already been done? He had to bring his own experience into whatever he painted. You wouldn't catch him putting a halo around the head of a saint. How could he? He had never seen a halo.
Leonardo da Vinci turned out to be a famous artist; still, he was not just an artist. He could never be just one thing. He was an engineer, an architect, a musician, a philosopher, an astronomer. Once he fashioned a special kind of flute made of silver in the shape of a horse's head. The ruler of Florence, Lorenzo de' Medici, asked him to deliver it as a gift to the duke of Milan. This was lucky for Leonardo. He had heard that the duke of Milan wanted to honor his father with a bronze horse in front of his palace. And Leonardo wanted to be the one to make it.
This would be his mark on history. Hundreds of years later people would point to the horse. "Leonardo made that," they would say.
So he wrote to the duke, listing all the things that he could do. He could make cannons, lightweight bridges, and covered chariots that couldn't be broken or harmed. On and on he went, but he saved the most important point for the last. He could make a bronze horse. In the end, he didn't send the letter. He simply left for Milan. Never mind that he was in the midst of painting a large religious picture in Florence. Let someone else finish it. He had planned the picture and that was the important part.
Leonardo was thirty years old now, handsome with curly blond hair. The duke gave him the job of working on the horse, but at the same time he was expected to take charge of entertainment in the palace. He had a beautiful singing voice, he could play musical instruments, he could juggle and ask riddles, and he was also asked to stage elaborate plays for special occasions. Whenever he had a chance, he went back to the horse.
He visited the stables, studying how a horse was put together.
He needed to understand everything about his subject. He measured and drew pictures until he knew where all the bones and muscles of a horse were. But you couldn't show all the muscles on a statue, he said, or the horse would look like a bag of turnips. You should show only those muscles the horse was using or getting ready to use.
He visited statues of horses. Many were shown in an amble—left front leg moving at the same time as the left back leg. This was not easy for a horse; he had to be taught to do it. Leonardo saw one horse, however, that he described as free—left front leg and right back leg moving together, in a trot. Moreover, both ears were pointed forward. (Some horses pointed one ear back to hear the rider's orders.)
Leonardo was ready to begin.
Due:
U3W2 writing test
Based on the information in the passage from the selection Leonardo's Horse, write a news article (4-5 paragraphs) about Leonardo and how he is prepared to make a bronze horse.
Introduce the topic in the first paragraph and then develop it using details from the text. Group related information in a logical way. Provide a concluding paragraph that sums up his greatest strength as an artist.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Leonardo's Horse
by Jean Fritz
For a man who liked to ask questions, Leonardo da Vinci was born at the right time—April 15, 1452. Everybody was asking questions then. The age was called the Renaissance, a time of rebirth when people who had forgotten how to be curious became curious again. They were exploring new countries, discovering, inventing, looking at old things in new ways. What was the point, Leonardo asked, in copying what had already been done? He had to bring his own experience into whatever he painted. You wouldn't catch him putting a halo around the head of a saint. How could he? He had never seen a halo.
Leonardo da Vinci turned out to be a famous artist; still, he was not just an artist. He could never be just one thing. He was an engineer, an architect, a musician, a philosopher, an astronomer. Once he fashioned a special kind of flute made of silver in the shape of a horse's head. The ruler of Florence, Lorenzo de' Medici, asked him to deliver it as a gift to the duke of Milan. This was lucky for Leonardo. He had heard that the duke of Milan wanted to honor his father with a bronze horse in front of his palace. And Leonardo wanted to be the one to make it.
This would be his mark on history. Hundreds of years later people would point to the horse. "Leonardo made that," they would say.
So he wrote to the duke, listing all the things that he could do. He could make cannons, lightweight bridges, and covered chariots that couldn't be broken or harmed. On and on he went, but he saved the most important point for the last. He could make a bronze horse. In the end, he didn't send the letter. He simply left for Milan. Never mind that he was in the midst of painting a large religious picture in Florence. Let someone else finish it. He had planned the picture and that was the important part.
Leonardo was thirty years old now, handsome with curly blond hair. The duke gave him the job of working on the horse, but at the same time he was expected to take charge of entertainment in the palace. He had a beautiful singing voice, he could play musical instruments, he could juggle and ask riddles, and he was also asked to stage elaborate plays for special occasions. Whenever he had a chance, he went back to the horse.
He visited the stables, studying how a horse was put together.
He needed to understand everything about his subject. He measured and drew pictures until he knew where all the bones and muscles of a horse were. But you couldn't show all the muscles on a statue, he said, or the horse would look like a bag of turnips. You should show only those muscles the horse was using or getting ready to use.
He visited statues of horses. Many were shown in an amble—left front leg moving at the same time as the left back leg. This was not easy for a horse; he had to be taught to do it. Leonardo saw one horse, however, that he described as free—left front leg and right back leg moving together, in a trot. Moreover, both ears were pointed forward. (Some horses pointed one ear back to hear the rider's orders.)
Leonardo was ready to begin.
Introduce the topic in the first paragraph and then develop it using details from the text. Group related information in a logical way. Provide a concluding paragraph that sums up his greatest strength as an artist.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Leonardo's Horse
by Jean Fritz
For a man who liked to ask questions, Leonardo da Vinci was born at the right time—April 15, 1452. Everybody was asking questions then. The age was called the Renaissance, a time of rebirth when people who had forgotten how to be curious became curious again. They were exploring new countries, discovering, inventing, looking at old things in new ways. What was the point, Leonardo asked, in copying what had already been done? He had to bring his own experience into whatever he painted. You wouldn't catch him putting a halo around the head of a saint. How could he? He had never seen a halo.
Leonardo da Vinci turned out to be a famous artist; still, he was not just an artist. He could never be just one thing. He was an engineer, an architect, a musician, a philosopher, an astronomer. Once he fashioned a special kind of flute made of silver in the shape of a horse's head. The ruler of Florence, Lorenzo de' Medici, asked him to deliver it as a gift to the duke of Milan. This was lucky for Leonardo. He had heard that the duke of Milan wanted to honor his father with a bronze horse in front of his palace. And Leonardo wanted to be the one to make it.
This would be his mark on history. Hundreds of years later people would point to the horse. "Leonardo made that," they would say.
So he wrote to the duke, listing all the things that he could do. He could make cannons, lightweight bridges, and covered chariots that couldn't be broken or harmed. On and on he went, but he saved the most important point for the last. He could make a bronze horse. In the end, he didn't send the letter. He simply left for Milan. Never mind that he was in the midst of painting a large religious picture in Florence. Let someone else finish it. He had planned the picture and that was the important part.
Leonardo was thirty years old now, handsome with curly blond hair. The duke gave him the job of working on the horse, but at the same time he was expected to take charge of entertainment in the palace. He had a beautiful singing voice, he could play musical instruments, he could juggle and ask riddles, and he was also asked to stage elaborate plays for special occasions. Whenever he had a chance, he went back to the horse.
He visited the stables, studying how a horse was put together.
He needed to understand everything about his subject. He measured and drew pictures until he knew where all the bones and muscles of a horse were. But you couldn't show all the muscles on a statue, he said, or the horse would look like a bag of turnips. You should show only those muscles the horse was using or getting ready to use.
He visited statues of horses. Many were shown in an amble—left front leg moving at the same time as the left back leg. This was not easy for a horse; he had to be taught to do it. Leonardo saw one horse, however, that he described as free—left front leg and right back leg moving together, in a trot. Moreover, both ears were pointed forward. (Some horses pointed one ear back to hear the rider's orders.)
Leonardo was ready to begin.
Due:
U3W1 writing test
Writing – Extended Response
You have read two texts about fictional inventions.
• "The Toy Space Shuttle Is Here!"
• The Fabulous Perpetual Motion Machine
Imagine that both inventions are real, affordable, and available in any toy store. Write a 4-5 paragraph review in which you describe both and tell which you think is better and why. State your opinion and offer reasons supported by details from the selections as well as your own ideas. Provide a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion and main reasons. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
-------------------
main selection: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjQ3NDAzNTcwNzEz/details
-------------------
The Toy Space Shuttle Is Here!
You've seen the launch of a space shuttle on TV. Now launch one in your backyard!
That's right. The Toy Space Shuttle is an exact replica of a NASA space shuttle. Only it measures just one foot tall and four inches across.
But here's the really big news. The Toy Space Shuttle can do everything that a real space shuttle can do. When you launch the Toy Space Shuttle, it rockets up, up, up into the sky. It keeps soaring until it disappears from sight. That's when you run upstairs to your bedroom. The Toy Space Shuttle comes with its own Mission Control Center, just like the one at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. It is small enough to fit on your desk, but powerful enough to let you track your Toy Space Shuttle while it is in orbit!
You read that correctly. The Toy Space Shuttle can orbit around the Earth!
How do you play with a toy that is so far away? It's easy.
Put on your Mission Control Center headphones. Key in your password. Now that you've logged in, you can see and hear everything that your Toy Space Shuttle is doing. You can even direct your Toy Space Shuttle to take photos of the Earth. It's truly amazing!
Ever wondered what Iceland looks like? Direct your Toy Space Shuttle to fly above it. Punch in the code to tell your Toy Space Shuttle to take some pictures of Iceland. Then download the photos to your computer. Whatever fun you've ever had in your life, there is no way it compares to this!
It's even better if your friend also has a Toy Space Shuttle. Then, you can view each other's shuttle missions. You can even arrange for your Toy Space Shuttles to meet up in orbit! How cool is that?
When you're ready to have your Toy Space Shuttle come back, simply key in the code for HOME. This tells the Toy Space Shuttle to head on home. You can monitor your shuttle's progress from your Mission Control Center. You can even program the Toy Space Shuttle to fly into your bedroom window. Just be sure to leave your window open!
Here's what one happy customer had to say about the Toy Space Shuttle:
"Ever since I got the Toy Space Shuttle, I have been smiling twenty-four hours a day. I rush home from school in order to check in at Mission Control. Will my shuttle be flying near Asia today? or Australia? I can't wait to find out. Because of the Toy Space Shuttle, I have become really interested in space travel. I think I may want to become an astronaut. And I owe it all to this remarkable invention."
Parents will love the Toy Space Shuttle too. One parent who bought it said, "We used to get our children all these fancy toys, which they would misplace or lose. But with the Toy Space Shuttle, we know exactly where that toy is. All we have to do is look at the Mission Control Center."
There is something wonderful about having a toy that can go into orbit. Every time your Toy Space Shuttle comes home, you can give it a hug. It's pretty amazing to have a toy that has flown so high!
In short, if you want to have fun, if you want to learn about space, if you want to be happy, you should run out and buy the Toy Space Shuttle. It is more exciting than any video game. It is more educational than any book about space travel. It is the invention of the century.
So get your Toy Space Shuttle now before they're all gone! For a special price of just $10,000, you will agree that this fabulous and amazing toy is well worth the money.
You have read two texts about fictional inventions.
• "The Toy Space Shuttle Is Here!"
• The Fabulous Perpetual Motion Machine
Imagine that both inventions are real, affordable, and available in any toy store. Write a 4-5 paragraph review in which you describe both and tell which you think is better and why. State your opinion and offer reasons supported by details from the selections as well as your own ideas. Provide a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion and main reasons. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
-------------------
main selection: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjQ3NDAzNTcwNzEz/details
-------------------
The Toy Space Shuttle Is Here!
You've seen the launch of a space shuttle on TV. Now launch one in your backyard!
That's right. The Toy Space Shuttle is an exact replica of a NASA space shuttle. Only it measures just one foot tall and four inches across.
But here's the really big news. The Toy Space Shuttle can do everything that a real space shuttle can do. When you launch the Toy Space Shuttle, it rockets up, up, up into the sky. It keeps soaring until it disappears from sight. That's when you run upstairs to your bedroom. The Toy Space Shuttle comes with its own Mission Control Center, just like the one at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. It is small enough to fit on your desk, but powerful enough to let you track your Toy Space Shuttle while it is in orbit!
You read that correctly. The Toy Space Shuttle can orbit around the Earth!
How do you play with a toy that is so far away? It's easy.
Put on your Mission Control Center headphones. Key in your password. Now that you've logged in, you can see and hear everything that your Toy Space Shuttle is doing. You can even direct your Toy Space Shuttle to take photos of the Earth. It's truly amazing!
Ever wondered what Iceland looks like? Direct your Toy Space Shuttle to fly above it. Punch in the code to tell your Toy Space Shuttle to take some pictures of Iceland. Then download the photos to your computer. Whatever fun you've ever had in your life, there is no way it compares to this!
It's even better if your friend also has a Toy Space Shuttle. Then, you can view each other's shuttle missions. You can even arrange for your Toy Space Shuttles to meet up in orbit! How cool is that?
When you're ready to have your Toy Space Shuttle come back, simply key in the code for HOME. This tells the Toy Space Shuttle to head on home. You can monitor your shuttle's progress from your Mission Control Center. You can even program the Toy Space Shuttle to fly into your bedroom window. Just be sure to leave your window open!
Here's what one happy customer had to say about the Toy Space Shuttle:
"Ever since I got the Toy Space Shuttle, I have been smiling twenty-four hours a day. I rush home from school in order to check in at Mission Control. Will my shuttle be flying near Asia today? or Australia? I can't wait to find out. Because of the Toy Space Shuttle, I have become really interested in space travel. I think I may want to become an astronaut. And I owe it all to this remarkable invention."
Parents will love the Toy Space Shuttle too. One parent who bought it said, "We used to get our children all these fancy toys, which they would misplace or lose. But with the Toy Space Shuttle, we know exactly where that toy is. All we have to do is look at the Mission Control Center."
There is something wonderful about having a toy that can go into orbit. Every time your Toy Space Shuttle comes home, you can give it a hug. It's pretty amazing to have a toy that has flown so high!
In short, if you want to have fun, if you want to learn about space, if you want to be happy, you should run out and buy the Toy Space Shuttle. It is more exciting than any video game. It is more educational than any book about space travel. It is the invention of the century.
So get your Toy Space Shuttle now before they're all gone! For a special price of just $10,000, you will agree that this fabulous and amazing toy is well worth the money.
Due:
writing test Unit 3
Based on the information in the selection "Thunderbird and Killer Whale," write an essay that tells whether you agree or disagree with this statement: "Killer Whale should share his idea with all the other whales." Be sure to consider the consequences for both the whales and Thunderbird. (will be a 4 OR 5 paragraph essay)
State your opinion and support it with reasons. Use your own ideas as well as details from the text. Write a concluding paragraph with a sentence that restates your opinion. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Story for evidence:
Thunderbird and Killer Whale
adapted from a Quillayute myth by Helen Morton
Thunderbird was immense. His wings were so long that when he flapped them, they made great gusts of wind and the sound of thunder.
Thunderbird made lightning too. Whenever Thunderbird blinked, lightning appeared.
Whenever there was a storm with thunder and lightning, Thunderbird was there, flying around, flapping his wings and blinking his eyes.
When Thunderbird got tired and flew back to his home on a mountain, the storm would come to an end. Thunderbird lived in a cave high on a mountaintop. Thunderbird liked his privacy. He did not want any visitors.
Once, a group of hunters approached his cave. Thunderbird was angry that anyone would dare approach his home. He flapped his wings to make the sound of thunder. Then he rolled ice out of his cave so that it would roll down the mountain and break into a million pieces. The hunters ran away. They were terrified of Thunderbird.
Thunderbird had a big appetite. His favorite food was whale. To catch it, Thunderbird flew over the ocean. When he saw a whale come up for air, Thunderbird swooped down. Thunderbird was so big that he could snatch a whale with his gigantic claws. He would fly back to his cave, carrying the whale in his claws. He ate happily.
Some whales were more difficult to catch than others. Killer Whale, in particular, always gave Thunderbird a very hard time. Every time Thunderbird caught Killer Whale and tried to carry him to his cave, Killer Whale would get away and go back into the water.
This made Thunderbird very angry. He flapped his wings, making huge sounds of thunder! He blinked his eyes, making great flashes of lightning!
But no matter how hard Thunderbird tried to catch him, Killer Whale always escaped Thunderbird's grasp.
Thunderbird was determined. "I will catch and eat Killer Whale!" he said.
To achieve his goal, Thunderbird flew over the ocean all day long. He was waiting for Killer Whale to come up for air.
But Killer Whale was very, very clever. Killer Whale swam under the surface of the ocean for long periods of time. Sometimes Killer Whale would pop up for air many miles from where he had last been seen. That made it difficult for Thunderbird to know where to look for him. "The ocean is wide," thought Thunderbird. "Big as I am, I can't be above every part of it all the time."
So Thunderbird devised a plan. "Killer Whale swims just below the surface of the ocean. The next time Killer Whale escapes my grasp, I will fly just above the surface of the water. Wherever I see Killer Whale go, I shall follow. Then, when Killer Whale comes up for air, I will be right above him. I will have him in my clutches. I will take him back to my cave and eat him. It is the perfect plan!"
Meanwhile, as he swam, Killer Whale was also talking to himself.
"This is exhausting," Killer Whale admitted. "Thunderbird is always swooping down on me. How many times can I escape Thunderbird? Sooner or later, Thunderbird is going to manage to take me back to his cave, and that will be the end of me! I can't let that happen. But how can I get away from Thunderbird when he is flying right above me all the time?"
Suddenly Killer Whale had an idea. "What if I live in the deepest part of the ocean? That way, Thunderbird will never be able to spot me."
So Killer Whale tried it out. Killer Whale swam to the deepest part of the ocean. He swam so deep that he could not even see the rays of light that came from the sun. The deep ocean was dark and cool and safe. "I like it here," Killer Whale said. "I especially like that down here Thunderbird will never bother me again."
Up above, Thunderbird flew around and around and around.
"Where is Killer Whale?" Thunderbird asked angrily. "I am so hungry, and he is nowhere to be seen!"
Several days passed by and Thunderbird still saw no sign of Killer Whale. Thunderbird became so hungry that he had to find other whales to eat. After many weeks passed, Thunderbird said, "Well, I guess I won't be eating Killer Whale."
Ever since that time, Thunderbird has never bothered Killer Whale, and Killer Whale has lived safe and sound in the deep, dark ocean.
State your opinion and support it with reasons. Use your own ideas as well as details from the text. Write a concluding paragraph with a sentence that restates your opinion. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Story for evidence:
Thunderbird and Killer Whale
adapted from a Quillayute myth by Helen Morton
Thunderbird was immense. His wings were so long that when he flapped them, they made great gusts of wind and the sound of thunder.
Thunderbird made lightning too. Whenever Thunderbird blinked, lightning appeared.
Whenever there was a storm with thunder and lightning, Thunderbird was there, flying around, flapping his wings and blinking his eyes.
When Thunderbird got tired and flew back to his home on a mountain, the storm would come to an end. Thunderbird lived in a cave high on a mountaintop. Thunderbird liked his privacy. He did not want any visitors.
Once, a group of hunters approached his cave. Thunderbird was angry that anyone would dare approach his home. He flapped his wings to make the sound of thunder. Then he rolled ice out of his cave so that it would roll down the mountain and break into a million pieces. The hunters ran away. They were terrified of Thunderbird.
Thunderbird had a big appetite. His favorite food was whale. To catch it, Thunderbird flew over the ocean. When he saw a whale come up for air, Thunderbird swooped down. Thunderbird was so big that he could snatch a whale with his gigantic claws. He would fly back to his cave, carrying the whale in his claws. He ate happily.
Some whales were more difficult to catch than others. Killer Whale, in particular, always gave Thunderbird a very hard time. Every time Thunderbird caught Killer Whale and tried to carry him to his cave, Killer Whale would get away and go back into the water.
This made Thunderbird very angry. He flapped his wings, making huge sounds of thunder! He blinked his eyes, making great flashes of lightning!
But no matter how hard Thunderbird tried to catch him, Killer Whale always escaped Thunderbird's grasp.
Thunderbird was determined. "I will catch and eat Killer Whale!" he said.
To achieve his goal, Thunderbird flew over the ocean all day long. He was waiting for Killer Whale to come up for air.
But Killer Whale was very, very clever. Killer Whale swam under the surface of the ocean for long periods of time. Sometimes Killer Whale would pop up for air many miles from where he had last been seen. That made it difficult for Thunderbird to know where to look for him. "The ocean is wide," thought Thunderbird. "Big as I am, I can't be above every part of it all the time."
So Thunderbird devised a plan. "Killer Whale swims just below the surface of the ocean. The next time Killer Whale escapes my grasp, I will fly just above the surface of the water. Wherever I see Killer Whale go, I shall follow. Then, when Killer Whale comes up for air, I will be right above him. I will have him in my clutches. I will take him back to my cave and eat him. It is the perfect plan!"
Meanwhile, as he swam, Killer Whale was also talking to himself.
"This is exhausting," Killer Whale admitted. "Thunderbird is always swooping down on me. How many times can I escape Thunderbird? Sooner or later, Thunderbird is going to manage to take me back to his cave, and that will be the end of me! I can't let that happen. But how can I get away from Thunderbird when he is flying right above me all the time?"
Suddenly Killer Whale had an idea. "What if I live in the deepest part of the ocean? That way, Thunderbird will never be able to spot me."
So Killer Whale tried it out. Killer Whale swam to the deepest part of the ocean. He swam so deep that he could not even see the rays of light that came from the sun. The deep ocean was dark and cool and safe. "I like it here," Killer Whale said. "I especially like that down here Thunderbird will never bother me again."
Up above, Thunderbird flew around and around and around.
"Where is Killer Whale?" Thunderbird asked angrily. "I am so hungry, and he is nowhere to be seen!"
Several days passed by and Thunderbird still saw no sign of Killer Whale. Thunderbird became so hungry that he had to find other whales to eat. After many weeks passed, Thunderbird said, "Well, I guess I won't be eating Killer Whale."
Ever since that time, Thunderbird has never bothered Killer Whale, and Killer Whale has lived safe and sound in the deep, dark ocean.
Due:
Writing Test U2W5
Based on the information in the excerpt from the poem The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, write an essay that explains Paul Revere's friend's job, Paul Revere's job, and the connection between the two. Answer these questions about each man: What was he supposed to do on that April night in 1775? Why?
Introduce the topic in the first paragraph and then develop it in the body of the essay using details from the text. Group related information in a logical way. Provide a concluding paragraph that sums up the importance of what the two men were doing. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
[1]
Listen, my children,
And you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five,
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.
[2]
He said to his friend, “If the British march
By land or sea from the town tonight,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light—
One, if by land, and two, if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm.”
[3]
Then he said, “Good night!”
and with muffled oar
Silently rowed to the Charlestown shore,
Just as the moon rose over the bay,
Where swinging wide at her moorings lay
The Somerset, British man-of-war;
A phantom ship, with each mast and spar
Across the moon like a prison bar,
And a huge black hulk, that was magnified
By its own reflection in the tide.
[4]
Meanwhile, his friend, through alley and street,
Wanders and watches, with eager ears,
Till in the silence around him he hears
The muster of men at the barrack door,
The sound of arms, and the tramp of feet,
And the measured tread of the grenadiers,
Marching down to their boats on the shore.
[5]
Then he climbed the tower
of the Old North Church,
By the wooden stairs, with stealthy tread,
To the belfry-chamber overhead,
And startled the pigeons from their perch
On the somber rafters, that round him made
Masses and moving shapes of shade—
By the trembling ladder, steep and tall,
To the highest window in the wall,
Where he paused to listen and look down
A moment on the roofs of the town,
And the moonlight flowing over all.
[6]
Beneath in the churchyard, lay the dead,
In their night-encampment on the hill,
Wrapped in silence so deep and still
That he could hear, like a sentinel’s tread,
The watchful night-wind, as it went
Creeping along from tent to tent,
And seeming to whisper, “All is well!”
A moment only he feels the spell
Of the place and the hour, the secret dread
Of the lonely belfry and the dead;
For suddenly all his thoughts are bent
On a shadowy something far away,
Where the river widens to meet the bay—
A line of black that bends and floats
On the rising tide, like a bridge of boats.
[7]
Meanwhile, impatient to mount and ride,
Booted and spurred, with a heavy stride
On the opposite shore walked Paul Revere.
Now he patted his horse’s side,
Now gazed on the landscape far and near,
Then, impetuous, stamped the earth,
And turned and tightened his saddle girth;
But mostly he watched with eager search
The belfry tower of the Old North Church,
As it rose above the graves on the hill,
Lonely and spectral and somber and still.
And lo! as he looks, on the belfry’s height
A glimmer, and then a gleam of light!
He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns,
But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight
A second lamp in the belfry burns!
Introduce the topic in the first paragraph and then develop it in the body of the essay using details from the text. Group related information in a logical way. Provide a concluding paragraph that sums up the importance of what the two men were doing. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
[1]
Listen, my children,
And you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-Five,
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.
[2]
He said to his friend, “If the British march
By land or sea from the town tonight,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light—
One, if by land, and two, if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm.”
[3]
Then he said, “Good night!”
and with muffled oar
Silently rowed to the Charlestown shore,
Just as the moon rose over the bay,
Where swinging wide at her moorings lay
The Somerset, British man-of-war;
A phantom ship, with each mast and spar
Across the moon like a prison bar,
And a huge black hulk, that was magnified
By its own reflection in the tide.
[4]
Meanwhile, his friend, through alley and street,
Wanders and watches, with eager ears,
Till in the silence around him he hears
The muster of men at the barrack door,
The sound of arms, and the tramp of feet,
And the measured tread of the grenadiers,
Marching down to their boats on the shore.
[5]
Then he climbed the tower
of the Old North Church,
By the wooden stairs, with stealthy tread,
To the belfry-chamber overhead,
And startled the pigeons from their perch
On the somber rafters, that round him made
Masses and moving shapes of shade—
By the trembling ladder, steep and tall,
To the highest window in the wall,
Where he paused to listen and look down
A moment on the roofs of the town,
And the moonlight flowing over all.
[6]
Beneath in the churchyard, lay the dead,
In their night-encampment on the hill,
Wrapped in silence so deep and still
That he could hear, like a sentinel’s tread,
The watchful night-wind, as it went
Creeping along from tent to tent,
And seeming to whisper, “All is well!”
A moment only he feels the spell
Of the place and the hour, the secret dread
Of the lonely belfry and the dead;
For suddenly all his thoughts are bent
On a shadowy something far away,
Where the river widens to meet the bay—
A line of black that bends and floats
On the rising tide, like a bridge of boats.
[7]
Meanwhile, impatient to mount and ride,
Booted and spurred, with a heavy stride
On the opposite shore walked Paul Revere.
Now he patted his horse’s side,
Now gazed on the landscape far and near,
Then, impetuous, stamped the earth,
And turned and tightened his saddle girth;
But mostly he watched with eager search
The belfry tower of the Old North Church,
As it rose above the graves on the hill,
Lonely and spectral and somber and still.
And lo! as he looks, on the belfry’s height
A glimmer, and then a gleam of light!
He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns,
But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight
A second lamp in the belfry burns!
Due:
U2W4 writing test
You have read two texts about characters who make sacrifices for others.
• A Summer's Trade
• The Ch'i-lin Purse
Despite vast differences in their genres, characters, and settings, these two stories have important similarities in their plots and in the lessons they teach. Write a 4 to 5 paragraph essay in which you compare the stories' PLOTS and LESSONS. Introduce the topic in the first paragraph and then develop it with facts, details, and examples from the selections in the body of the essay. Provide a concluding paragraph that sums up your main points. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
A Summer's Trade: https://www.butlerschools.net/userfiles/217/Classes/8958/A%20Summers%20Trade%20Story.pdf
The Ch'i-lin Purse
https://www.savvassuccessnet.com/temp-images/scorm/rdg10/na/en/0-328-73643-0/A21621/pdf/RSEN11_G5U2W3_ms.pdf
• A Summer's Trade
• The Ch'i-lin Purse
Despite vast differences in their genres, characters, and settings, these two stories have important similarities in their plots and in the lessons they teach. Write a 4 to 5 paragraph essay in which you compare the stories' PLOTS and LESSONS. Introduce the topic in the first paragraph and then develop it with facts, details, and examples from the selections in the body of the essay. Provide a concluding paragraph that sums up your main points. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
A Summer's Trade: https://www.butlerschools.net/userfiles/217/Classes/8958/A%20Summers%20Trade%20Story.pdf
The Ch'i-lin Purse
https://www.savvassuccessnet.com/temp-images/scorm/rdg10/na/en/0-328-73643-0/A21621/pdf/RSEN11_G5U2W3_ms.pdf
Due:
U2W3 writing test
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided.
You have read two texts about young people who learn important life lessons.
• The Ch'i-lin Purse
https://www.savvassuccessnet.com/temp-images/scorm/rdg10/na/en/0-328-73643-0/A21621/pdf/RSEN11_G5U2W3_ms.pdf
• At the Beach
https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u2-w1-at-the-beach-abuelitos-story.html
Think about Hsiang-ling in The Ch'i-lin Purse and Fernando, the narrator in At the Beach, and about the lesson each character learns.
Which lesson do you think is more important, a lesson that all people should learn? Why?
Write an opinion 5 paragraph essay in which you answer these questions.
State your opinion and offer reasons supported by details from the selections and your own ideas. Provide a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
You have read two texts about young people who learn important life lessons.
• The Ch'i-lin Purse
https://www.savvassuccessnet.com/temp-images/scorm/rdg10/na/en/0-328-73643-0/A21621/pdf/RSEN11_G5U2W3_ms.pdf
• At the Beach
https://stacyteacher.weebly.com/u2-w1-at-the-beach-abuelitos-story.html
Think about Hsiang-ling in The Ch'i-lin Purse and Fernando, the narrator in At the Beach, and about the lesson each character learns.
Which lesson do you think is more important, a lesson that all people should learn? Why?
Write an opinion 5 paragraph essay in which you answer these questions.
State your opinion and offer reasons supported by details from the selections and your own ideas. Provide a concluding paragraph that restates your opinion. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Due:
U2W2 writing test
Writing – Extended Response
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided.
You have read two texts in which people must show determination and courage in life-threatening situations.
• Hold the Flag High
• Red Kayak
Imagine that Ned, the drummer boy in Hold the Flag High, meets Brady, the rescuer in Red Kayak. They talk about how they faced fear and found courage. Write the dialogue between Ned and Brady using facts and details from both texts. Establish the situation and introduce the characters. Use dialogue and description to show how they responded to their experiences. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Red Kayak: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjE1MDU0Mjg3MDQw/details
Hold the Flag High: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjExMDk0NDU2NTA5/details
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided.
You have read two texts in which people must show determination and courage in life-threatening situations.
• Hold the Flag High
• Red Kayak
Imagine that Ned, the drummer boy in Hold the Flag High, meets Brady, the rescuer in Red Kayak. They talk about how they faced fear and found courage. Write the dialogue between Ned and Brady using facts and details from both texts. Establish the situation and introduce the characters. Use dialogue and description to show how they responded to their experiences. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar and use correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Red Kayak: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjE1MDU0Mjg3MDQw/details
Hold the Flag High: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjExMDk0NDU2NTA5/details
Due:
U2W1 writing test
Based on the information in the passage from the selection At the Beach which is attached below, write an essay about the narrator's intentions. Apparently he does not plan to tell the adults the truth about what happened. Do you think this is a good idea or a bad idea? Why?
Begin by introducing your topic. State your opinion and support it with 3 reasons (with evidence from the passage below). Use your own ideas as well as details from the text. Connect your opinion with reasons using words such as consequently, for this reason, or therefore. Conclude with a paragraph that restates your opinion. After you finish writing, read your 5 paragraph essay and correct mistakes in grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Begin by introducing your topic. State your opinion and support it with 3 reasons (with evidence from the passage below). Use your own ideas as well as details from the text. Connect your opinion with reasons using words such as consequently, for this reason, or therefore. Conclude with a paragraph that restates your opinion. After you finish writing, read your 5 paragraph essay and correct mistakes in grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Due:
11/18 Unit 1 Writing Test
Directions: For the following activity, type your response in the space provided.
You have read three texts about people or characters who act with determination and courage. Go to the online textbook to find evidence from each story. https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjA3OTc2OTEzMzE4/details
• "Roberto Clemente: A Baseball Hero"
• Red Kayak
• Thunder Rose
Think about what it means to be a hero. What must a person have or do to be a hero? Write an ESSAY (not 1 paragraph) in which you define what a hero is and explain why Roberto Clemente, Brady, and Rose can be considered heroes. Introduce the topic and then develop it with facts, details, and examples from the selections. Provide a concluding statement that sums up your main points. Remember to check your writing for correct grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
You have read three texts about people or characters who act with determination and courage. Go to the online textbook to find evidence from each story. https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjA3OTc2OTEzMzE4/details
• "Roberto Clemente: A Baseball Hero"
• Red Kayak
• Thunder Rose
Think about what it means to be a hero. What must a person have or do to be a hero? Write an ESSAY (not 1 paragraph) in which you define what a hero is and explain why Roberto Clemente, Brady, and Rose can be considered heroes. Introduce the topic and then develop it with facts, details, and examples from the selections. Provide a concluding statement that sums up your main points. Remember to check your writing for correct grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Due:
EXTRA CREDIT writing MP 1
This assignment will be used to help students bring up their report card average who have missing assignments. These extra credit projects are optional and can be completed by any student. Please keep in mind that only FULLY COMPLETED assignments will be graded. (**Completing the extra credit projects does not guarantee you will pass the subject, but if you do an outstanding job, the report card average will be increased.)
No extra credit assignments will be accepted after 8:30 am on Monday, November 9. It is best to submit it a few days before the deadline to avoid any problems submitting the assignment on Google Classroom. Even if you are absent on Monday, November 9th, it is still expected that the work be turned-in on or before 8:30am on 11/9/20.
You must use these articles to help you write your essay: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MTkyMzA4NjQ0NTc0/details
No extra credit assignments will be accepted after 8:30 am on Monday, November 9. It is best to submit it a few days before the deadline to avoid any problems submitting the assignment on Google Classroom. Even if you are absent on Monday, November 9th, it is still expected that the work be turned-in on or before 8:30am on 11/9/20.
You must use these articles to help you write your essay: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MTkyMzA4NjQ0NTc0/details
Due:
Expository Composition
Many people thought that building the transcontinental railroad was impossible. Think of ANOTHER American achievement that seemed impossible. Write an expository composition about it.
Pick a topic by choosing a challenge people in the United States faced. How has this challenge been overcome?
Remember to write about how something was achieved that once was thought impossible.
You must research your topic.
Race to the moon
Education for all citizens (public school)
slavery
segregation
women being able to vote
children under 16 working (child labor)
racial segregation in sports
Native Americans removed from land (Indigenous people)
First Draft:
1st Paragraph (introduction): Introduce the topic. What background information about the problem must you make me aware of? What is the problem/challenge/impossible goal?
2nd paragraph: first steps taken to reach the goal or address the challenge problem
3rd paragraph: next steps taken...
4th, 5th, 6th.... just tell me about one aspect in time order until the last step taken to reach the goal
conclusion (last paragraph): wrap-it up. What was accomplished? Your final thoughts/opinion on this accomplishment
Pick a topic by choosing a challenge people in the United States faced. How has this challenge been overcome?
Remember to write about how something was achieved that once was thought impossible.
You must research your topic.
Race to the moon
Education for all citizens (public school)
slavery
segregation
women being able to vote
children under 16 working (child labor)
racial segregation in sports
Native Americans removed from land (Indigenous people)
First Draft:
1st Paragraph (introduction): Introduce the topic. What background information about the problem must you make me aware of? What is the problem/challenge/impossible goal?
2nd paragraph: first steps taken to reach the goal or address the challenge problem
3rd paragraph: next steps taken...
4th, 5th, 6th.... just tell me about one aspect in time order until the last step taken to reach the goal
conclusion (last paragraph): wrap-it up. What was accomplished? Your final thoughts/opinion on this accomplishment
Due:
U1W5 EXTENDED RESPONSE Write an opinion essay in which you defend this idea: A project will be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process.
You have read two texts about important projects and the people who worked hard to complete them.
• Ten Mile Day and the Building of the Transcontinental Railroad
• Island of the Blue Dolphins
Write an opinion essay in which you defend this idea.
A project will be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process.
Begin by introducing the topic and stating your opinion. Then offer two or more reasons, each supported by details, facts, and examples from the texts. Provide a concluding sentence that restates your opinion. When you have finished, read your paragraph carefully and correct any errors in grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Top-Score Response: A top-score response uses evidence from the texts to support your opinion about how a successful project is completed. What is your opinion? (A project will be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process.). (START thinking of 3 DIFFERENT reasons for thinking that). Why will a project be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process?? (think of 3 reason for the body of your opinion essay...paragraph 2, 3, and 4)
A top-score response should include:
1st paragraph • An introduction of the given topic and a statement of the student’s opinion on the topic.
2nd paragraph • FIRST Reason supported by facts, details, and examples from the texts. (to support and defend your opinion in paragraph 1) What is your first reason?
3rd paragraph is SECOND reason supported by facts, details, and examples from the texts. (to support and defend your opinion in paragraph 1) What is your second reason?
4th paragraph is LAST reason supported by facts, details, and examples from the texts.(to support and defend your opinion in paragraph 1) What is your third reason?
5th paragraph • A concluding sentence that restates the opinion.
Example of ONE paragraph for the body of your essay (paragraph 2, 3, 4):
One reason I feel that a project will be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process is that ________(WHY)_________________. In the story Ten Mile Day and the Building of the Transcontinental Railroad, on page ______ the author states "___________________." This shows that ____________________________________(explain in a few sentences using your own words....EXPLAIN TO ME AS IF YOU ARE A TEACHER TALKING TO YOUNGER KIDS). In the story Island of the Blue Dolphins, on page ______ the author states "___________________." This shows that ____________________________________(explain in a few sentences using your own words....EXPLAIN TO ME AS IF YOU ARE A TEACHER TALKING TO YOUNGER KIDS).
Island of the Blue Dolphins story: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjAwODA3OTIyOTgw/details
Ten Mile Day story below
• Ten Mile Day and the Building of the Transcontinental Railroad
• Island of the Blue Dolphins
Write an opinion essay in which you defend this idea.
A project will be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process.
Begin by introducing the topic and stating your opinion. Then offer two or more reasons, each supported by details, facts, and examples from the texts. Provide a concluding sentence that restates your opinion. When you have finished, read your paragraph carefully and correct any errors in grammar, capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Top-Score Response: A top-score response uses evidence from the texts to support your opinion about how a successful project is completed. What is your opinion? (A project will be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process.). (START thinking of 3 DIFFERENT reasons for thinking that). Why will a project be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process?? (think of 3 reason for the body of your opinion essay...paragraph 2, 3, and 4)
A top-score response should include:
1st paragraph • An introduction of the given topic and a statement of the student’s opinion on the topic.
2nd paragraph • FIRST Reason supported by facts, details, and examples from the texts. (to support and defend your opinion in paragraph 1) What is your first reason?
3rd paragraph is SECOND reason supported by facts, details, and examples from the texts. (to support and defend your opinion in paragraph 1) What is your second reason?
4th paragraph is LAST reason supported by facts, details, and examples from the texts.(to support and defend your opinion in paragraph 1) What is your third reason?
5th paragraph • A concluding sentence that restates the opinion.
Example of ONE paragraph for the body of your essay (paragraph 2, 3, 4):
One reason I feel that a project will be successful only if it is completed using a carefully planned step-by-step process is that ________(WHY)_________________. In the story Ten Mile Day and the Building of the Transcontinental Railroad, on page ______ the author states "___________________." This shows that ____________________________________(explain in a few sentences using your own words....EXPLAIN TO ME AS IF YOU ARE A TEACHER TALKING TO YOUNGER KIDS). In the story Island of the Blue Dolphins, on page ______ the author states "___________________." This shows that ____________________________________(explain in a few sentences using your own words....EXPLAIN TO ME AS IF YOU ARE A TEACHER TALKING TO YOUNGER KIDS).
Island of the Blue Dolphins story: https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg0MDha/a/MjAwODA3OTIyOTgw/details
Ten Mile Day story below
Due:
100 words challenge story week of 10/19
A 100 word story with the following words: CONCRETE FLUFFY SCOOTER RED DANCED
https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg1MTFa/p/MTkwOTk4NzYxNzIy/details
Submit by adding the link to your blog post. I want to click the link and go straight to your story.
https://classroom.google.com/c/Mzc3ODY4Mzg1MTFa/p/MTkwOTk4NzYxNzIy/details
Submit by adding the link to your blog post. I want to click the link and go straight to your story.
Due:
U1W4 Write a simple story. What would their conversation be?
I am looking for outstanding writing which exceeds 5th grade standards and expectations for a score of 4. For a score of 3 it must meet 5th grade level expectations. A score of 2 is probably something a 4th or top 3rd grader can write. A score of 1 is what a 1st to early 3rd grader can write if they listened to the stories being read to them.
You have read two texts about extraordinary baseball players who overcame obstacles to play the sport they loved.
Satchel Paige
“Roberto Clemente: A Baseball Hero”
Imagine that Satchel Paige and Roberto Clemente have dinner together and talk about their lives and careers. Write their conversation USING FACTS AND DETAILS FROM BOTH TEXTS! Establish the situation and introduce the characters. Use dialogue and description to show how the characters respond to experiences and events. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar. Be sure to check your writing for correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
You have read two texts about extraordinary baseball players who overcame obstacles to play the sport they loved.
Satchel Paige
“Roberto Clemente: A Baseball Hero”
Imagine that Satchel Paige and Roberto Clemente have dinner together and talk about their lives and careers. Write their conversation USING FACTS AND DETAILS FROM BOTH TEXTS! Establish the situation and introduce the characters. Use dialogue and description to show how the characters respond to experiences and events. Remember to follow the conventions of standard English grammar. Be sure to check your writing for correct capitalization, punctuation, and spelling.
Due:
Thunder Rose story to use for writing test
Find evidence in the text.
Due:
Island of the Blue Dolphins story to use for writing test
Use evidence from the text
Due:
Invitation week of 10/5
Attach a google doc with your typed invitation. Turn it in each day by 2:45 for me to see how the writing is improving. See rubric to get a score of 4.
Tuesday: Write a first draft
Wednesday: Revise this first draft
Thursday: proofread/edit this revised draft
Friday: Outstanding Final draft completed
Tuesday: Write a first draft
Wednesday: Revise this first draft
Thursday: proofread/edit this revised draft
Friday: Outstanding Final draft completed
Due:
Tall Tale #2
Write a tall tale that explains how something was created in our environment.
Due:
NEW Tall Tale #1
Think about a character who is larger than life. Now write a tall tale, using exaggeration to stretch the truth in an entertaining way.
___ The story has many exaggerations in it.
___ The main character has a problem to solve.
___ The main character is bigger than life and has super-human abilities.
___ The plot of the story is funny and impossible.
___ In the end, the main character solves a problem, overcomes an obstacle and/or defeats a “bad guy.”
___ The story includes lots of action.
___ The story has many exaggerations in it.
___ The main character has a problem to solve.
___ The main character is bigger than life and has super-human abilities.
___ The plot of the story is funny and impossible.
___ In the end, the main character solves a problem, overcomes an obstacle and/or defeats a “bad guy.”
___ The story includes lots of action.
Due:
How To Essay
Add your how to essay to this assignment and then turn it in. It should be a final draft. There should be no mistakes. It should be about 4-5 paragraphs long.