Thursday, December 15, 2011
Group Name
I'm just wondering if we are going to change our group name because I remember we have discussed about it a couple weeks ago but we couldn't think of a name. Maybe, we could think of one during the winter break! :)
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Smart, Luke... You didn't publish it...
What We Did ?
Today we had a double block in class today. in the first block we all got our books that we were asigned to at the beginning of class. then we started to read them. after about 30 minutes Ms. Lees told us that we can go in a comfortable position to read so most of us went and layed on the floor to read for the rest of the first block. in the second block we started to read our books again for about 25 to 30 minutes. after that we split up into the groups with other people that had the same book as yourself. while we were in our groups Ms. Lees gave us directions to start a web with our group and we did that for about 20 minutes. then we sat back down at our desks and wrote in our agendas for the homework and then it was time to leave class and go home so we left.
Why we did it ?
We did this to get started on our books and to work with our group.
Homework
we have to read our book by the end of winter break. and study our geography skills.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Tuesday, December 13th Reflection Post
What We Did
When we came into class, we moved our desks into groups instead of rows like before. Just incase you didn't know, EMILY CHEN won the spelling bee that was held in the thetre afterschool yesterday. She will take a written test and if her score is high enough, she will go to the regionals which is awesome! Ms.Lees also talked to us about the geography contest that's coming up soon. She said it'll be on soon after we come back from winter break. It's basically a geography contest where grade 8's to 10's participate and the school picks the finalists. Don't stress about it because it's just a contest, we won't get marked on it which is a good thing to hear!
Ms.Lees handed out 7 books that took place in the middle ages, per group and worksheets for each person. It was a "Book Pass" worksheet. We just had to read each book and fill in how we thought the book was. We had to circle if it was easy, hard and e.t.c. We also had to point out if we were interested in it or not. After, we circled them, we had to write briefly about why we thought it was (what we circled) in full sentences. For example, if I circled easy and interested. I had to explain how I knew the book was easy for me and the reason why I'm interested in the book. We got about 50 minutes to finish the reflections for each book (total:7). We weren't able to read the whole chapter or read half of the book because we didn't have enough time. I only read a couple pages to get the idea of the book. I also read the summary on the back of the cover so I could know better. On the very back of the worksheet, we were assigned to rank the books and choose what we'd like to read the most to least, in 1-7. I chose a book that looked like it would have a lot of action and intenseness in the story for 1st because I love scary/intense stories and the book I chose seemed to have a lot of them. After we were done, it was time for our next classes already so we just left our books and worksheets on the desks and left.
Why We Did It
We put our desks into groups because I think we are going to do lots of group discussions and such this term, and it'd be a lot easier to do assignments with the desks together than, having them in rows. Everyone could look at each other and be able to reach things if it's in the middle. It'd help groups to discuss better. Also, it was helpful and important for Ms.Lees to inform us about the geography contest coming up because if she didn't, we would've been panicked when the time came. We do the contests so it could build up our geography skills if we study and it'll give the people who are great in the geography section, a chance to get recognized. Ms.Lees said a grade 8 won the contest before so the grade 8's COULD do better than the grade 9's and 10's if they work up for it so do not discourage yourself! :)
By writing the things that we think about the book would show Ms.Lees what kind of books we like to read and by choosing our favourite books out of the 7 would help her decide which books to give to who. We had to write rankings from 1-7 because we might not get our first choice because there are certain limits to the amount of books. All of us won't get to get our favourite books but hopefully our second favourite! She will get us to read the books we get assigned, over the winter break and we are going to create a web on a piece of paper eventually after we get back from vacation. Ms.Lees drew on the board as an example, with Japanese Middle Ages in the middle and culture, transportaion, government, and e.t.c as the main ideas and wrote about them. The novels will help us know better about the middle ages and this is the main reason why we are reading these novels. Not only would it help our English skills, we would learn social studies at the same time! It'd be way better to learn about the middle ages with an interesting story than just reading the informations off from the textbook.
Connections/Reflections
I think putting our desks into groups could be good AND bad because people seem to fool around more if they sit facing each other but it'll be good when we have group discussions because we won't have to move our chairs and do a whole lot of things. It's good to face each other and talk a lot in group discussions. I remember in grade 6, we had our desks pulled into groups and it was helpful because the teacher could make groups easily and if we had a big project we could use each others desks to put posters and things. The bad thing was that, the group of boys always got into trouble because they always fooled around since it was harder for the teachers to see under the desks.
I think it's good how we just had our geography test so not many people would've forgotten about the things that we learnt and it could help us do the contest. I am still stressed about it even though it won't count as our mark because I think it would be embarrassing if I get a really low mark. I think geography is great to review because we'd use the skills we learnt, so much when we grow up, like the scales. My mom always have trouble reading maps but now, I could read it for her since I learnt how to read them!
I think it'll be lots of fun reading about the middle ages. I'm very excited to read the book about Japan, I think the title was "The Sum.....'s Tale", I don't remember but I hope I get to read that one! It was interesting reading a bit of every book and getting a chance to know what each book was about. I think it was a great way for Ms.Lees to get us to do this because sometimes, teachers would assign random books to students that they are not even interested and it's usually not so great. I would rather like the teacher to know what kind of books I have in mind and choose the nearest one as possible for me. If I get a book I don't like, I wouldn't want to do the assignments involving the novel at all! It'd be great to recommand other teachers to do this because it'll make the teacher and the student happy. :)
Homework
- If you haven't finished the oral language skills chart yet, finish it for tomorrow!
- You should've finished the worksheet we worked on today in class, if not, you should've asked Ms.Lees if you could come in somtime to finish it after class. She wants it ASAP.
Tips
- If you were not at school today, check out the reflections for today!
- If you aren't able to finish a certain homework, contact Ms.Lees by her e-mail (on the school's website)
- Check through your binder to see if all your work is completed. If not, finish it!
- If you don't get something or beind, go in for flex on Mondays and Thursdays at lunch (11:10).
- You better try to catch up on all your homework, because I'm pretty sure you wouldn't want homework during winter break!
Schedule
- The schedule is posted on the side bar of this site
I'm pretty sure Luke is doing his post tomorrow because he owes Daniel one! :)
When we came into class, we moved our desks into groups instead of rows like before. Just incase you didn't know, EMILY CHEN won the spelling bee that was held in the thetre afterschool yesterday. She will take a written test and if her score is high enough, she will go to the regionals which is awesome! Ms.Lees also talked to us about the geography contest that's coming up soon. She said it'll be on soon after we come back from winter break. It's basically a geography contest where grade 8's to 10's participate and the school picks the finalists. Don't stress about it because it's just a contest, we won't get marked on it which is a good thing to hear!
Ms.Lees handed out 7 books that took place in the middle ages, per group and worksheets for each person. It was a "Book Pass" worksheet. We just had to read each book and fill in how we thought the book was. We had to circle if it was easy, hard and e.t.c. We also had to point out if we were interested in it or not. After, we circled them, we had to write briefly about why we thought it was (what we circled) in full sentences. For example, if I circled easy and interested. I had to explain how I knew the book was easy for me and the reason why I'm interested in the book. We got about 50 minutes to finish the reflections for each book (total:7). We weren't able to read the whole chapter or read half of the book because we didn't have enough time. I only read a couple pages to get the idea of the book. I also read the summary on the back of the cover so I could know better. On the very back of the worksheet, we were assigned to rank the books and choose what we'd like to read the most to least, in 1-7. I chose a book that looked like it would have a lot of action and intenseness in the story for 1st because I love scary/intense stories and the book I chose seemed to have a lot of them. After we were done, it was time for our next classes already so we just left our books and worksheets on the desks and left.
Why We Did It
We put our desks into groups because I think we are going to do lots of group discussions and such this term, and it'd be a lot easier to do assignments with the desks together than, having them in rows. Everyone could look at each other and be able to reach things if it's in the middle. It'd help groups to discuss better. Also, it was helpful and important for Ms.Lees to inform us about the geography contest coming up because if she didn't, we would've been panicked when the time came. We do the contests so it could build up our geography skills if we study and it'll give the people who are great in the geography section, a chance to get recognized. Ms.Lees said a grade 8 won the contest before so the grade 8's COULD do better than the grade 9's and 10's if they work up for it so do not discourage yourself! :)
By writing the things that we think about the book would show Ms.Lees what kind of books we like to read and by choosing our favourite books out of the 7 would help her decide which books to give to who. We had to write rankings from 1-7 because we might not get our first choice because there are certain limits to the amount of books. All of us won't get to get our favourite books but hopefully our second favourite! She will get us to read the books we get assigned, over the winter break and we are going to create a web on a piece of paper eventually after we get back from vacation. Ms.Lees drew on the board as an example, with Japanese Middle Ages in the middle and culture, transportaion, government, and e.t.c as the main ideas and wrote about them. The novels will help us know better about the middle ages and this is the main reason why we are reading these novels. Not only would it help our English skills, we would learn social studies at the same time! It'd be way better to learn about the middle ages with an interesting story than just reading the informations off from the textbook.
Connections/Reflections
I think putting our desks into groups could be good AND bad because people seem to fool around more if they sit facing each other but it'll be good when we have group discussions because we won't have to move our chairs and do a whole lot of things. It's good to face each other and talk a lot in group discussions. I remember in grade 6, we had our desks pulled into groups and it was helpful because the teacher could make groups easily and if we had a big project we could use each others desks to put posters and things. The bad thing was that, the group of boys always got into trouble because they always fooled around since it was harder for the teachers to see under the desks.
I think it's good how we just had our geography test so not many people would've forgotten about the things that we learnt and it could help us do the contest. I am still stressed about it even though it won't count as our mark because I think it would be embarrassing if I get a really low mark. I think geography is great to review because we'd use the skills we learnt, so much when we grow up, like the scales. My mom always have trouble reading maps but now, I could read it for her since I learnt how to read them!
I think it'll be lots of fun reading about the middle ages. I'm very excited to read the book about Japan, I think the title was "The Sum.....'s Tale", I don't remember but I hope I get to read that one! It was interesting reading a bit of every book and getting a chance to know what each book was about. I think it was a great way for Ms.Lees to get us to do this because sometimes, teachers would assign random books to students that they are not even interested and it's usually not so great. I would rather like the teacher to know what kind of books I have in mind and choose the nearest one as possible for me. If I get a book I don't like, I wouldn't want to do the assignments involving the novel at all! It'd be great to recommand other teachers to do this because it'll make the teacher and the student happy. :)
Homework
- If you haven't finished the oral language skills chart yet, finish it for tomorrow!
- You should've finished the worksheet we worked on today in class, if not, you should've asked Ms.Lees if you could come in somtime to finish it after class. She wants it ASAP.
Tips
- If you were not at school today, check out the reflections for today!
- If you aren't able to finish a certain homework, contact Ms.Lees by her e-mail (on the school's website)
- Check through your binder to see if all your work is completed. If not, finish it!
- If you don't get something or beind, go in for flex on Mondays and Thursdays at lunch (11:10).
- You better try to catch up on all your homework, because I'm pretty sure you wouldn't want homework during winter break!
Schedule
- The schedule is posted on the side bar of this site
I'm pretty sure Luke is doing his post tomorrow because he owes Daniel one! :)
Monday, December 12, 2011
December 12, 2011 Learning Log
What We Did
Today we mostly worked on our oral language. We haven’t done many group discussions before, but Ms.Lees explained this will be the first of several discussions.
Ms.Lees put us into discussion groups by giving us each a number and why had to get together with the people who had the same number as us. There we about five people in each group (Daniela, Sara, Luke and Colin were in mine.) After we all were organized and sitting in a circle, Ms.Lees gave each group a piece of paper with a set of questions in the middle. We had to draw lines splitting the paper into 5 groups, and then we each wrote our own responses. The questions were based on the movie “The First Night” we watched in class last week. The movie was about the famous King Arthur, Lady Guinevere and Sir Lancelot in the middle ages. My group was given:
Lady Guinevere had promised to marry King Arthur when her father was alive. Does she love him? (Give reasons for your answers)
a.) In the beginning?
b.) At the end?
c.) If she doesn’t – why does she still want to marry him? Or does she? Explain.
Other groups got different questions. After we had all expressed and written our opinions, we compared ours with each other. We all gave our input and discussed what answer we thought was correct and why. After a lot of persuasion and a tiny bit of arguing, everyone had come to their conclusions. We were supposed to write our answer on the back of the paper and give reasons how and why we came to that conclusion.
After all of the groups had completed their discussion, we moved back to our seats. Ms.Lees handed out a personal review sheet for oral language. We individually had to evaluate our self in three categories: Tell you idea, Ask questions, Listen Respectfully, Keep the conversation going. That was the end of humanities class.
Why we did it
A big part of high school is being able to work independently or with a group. We have done almost nothing in groups (other than these blogs), and Ms.Lees has decided it’s time to start. By discussing with more than one person, we can see different sides and perspectives. We may think that our opinion is the only correct choice there is, but when other people tell us theirs, we sometimes realize that maybe ours isn’t the correct one. Or maybe we just decide that there is more to one side and sometimes there isn’t just one right answer.
Learning how to cooperate and discuss in groups was also very helpful because we learned how to contribute all of our opinions equally and get our point across. Some people in the class are more shy and don’t talk as much, so hopefully this will help them come out of their comfort zone and show everyone that their opinion is just as important.
Someone may give their perspective and you may wonder: could my opinion be incorrect, or how did they think of that, it doesn’t sound right? Questioning yourself is an important aspect in learning. Sometimes you realize that you need to explain yourself better or that your answer is not as good as it could be and you didn’t think it through correctly.
Being able to reflect on your group discussions is very important because you need to know how you can improve your oral language skills and what you are exceeding at. You may be filling out the sheet and realize that you really didn’t let anyone else in the group talk, or you weren’t good at keeping the conversation going.
Connections/Reflection
I really enjoyed doing the group conversation today because I was able to discuss the movie King Arthur with people I wouldn’t normally discuss it with. I think it’s important for me and everyone else to get really good at group conversations in grade 8 so that we can build up our conversation skill for grade 9 and future grades.
My group did a pretty well job of displaying their input and jotting down reasons why they thought the way they did. I’m glad I got the question about Guinevere because it’s the classic love triangle and I have read and watched many books similar to it. The love triangle in this reminded me of the Twilight series because Bella loves Jacob, but is IN LOVE with Edward. Jacob would be an easier and smarter choice because he is less dangerous and doesn’t want to drink her blood, but Edward is the one she TRULY wants to be with, even though it is forbidden and not allowed. This is almost the exact same situation as Guinevere with Arthur and Lancelot. I can’t exactly say I can “relate” to it, because I’m too young to be involved in a love triangle.
Last year in grade 7 our class was all pretty good friends, and we did a lot of class discussions on novels we were reading. We had to express our feelings, opinions and question our judgement, just like we did today.
Being able to work well with groups will help me and all of you in the future years. This is an important skill to have for University and many jobs. If you work for a big company, then you will HAVE to work well with other. Lawyers need to be good at displaying their input and persuasion when in court to convince the judge to believe a certain thing. They need to know how to let others talk, but really explain why they believe they’re correct. Judges need to be good at weighing their options and choosing which side to go along with.
Homework
The only homework we had today was to finish part of your oral language skills chart.
Tips
-when you don’t have any homework, I suggest you look through your binder to make sure you are caught up on ALL of your work
- It can be hard to concentrate when people are talking around you; so respect others and either ask Ms.Lees or if you're allowed, ask your friend when you need help.
- Whenever you are behind on your work, go in during FLEX to catch up and get extra help.- If you miss a day, make sure to either email Ms.Lees (you can find her email on the school website) or ask one your study buddies. You should have at least 2 people in our classes numbers or emails by now.
- If you are unable to complete your assigned work, make sure to email Ms.Lees to let her know. If you have a good reason, then she will usually let you off the hook and give you extra time to finish it.-If you need help with your blogs, you can look at other group's blogs, or check out the English Grade 9 homepage and blogs.
-Even if you didn’t compete in the spelling bee in the theatre, it’s still important that you improve your spelling skills for the future.
- No one wants homework over Christmas break, so I suggest you make sure you’re up to date with all of your work.
ALICE IS TOMORROW!! :)
(The posting order is on the sidebar)
Today we mostly worked on our oral language. We haven’t done many group discussions before, but Ms.Lees explained this will be the first of several discussions.
Ms.Lees put us into discussion groups by giving us each a number and why had to get together with the people who had the same number as us. There we about five people in each group (Daniela, Sara, Luke and Colin were in mine.) After we all were organized and sitting in a circle, Ms.Lees gave each group a piece of paper with a set of questions in the middle. We had to draw lines splitting the paper into 5 groups, and then we each wrote our own responses. The questions were based on the movie “The First Night” we watched in class last week. The movie was about the famous King Arthur, Lady Guinevere and Sir Lancelot in the middle ages. My group was given:
Lady Guinevere had promised to marry King Arthur when her father was alive. Does she love him? (Give reasons for your answers)
a.) In the beginning?
b.) At the end?
c.) If she doesn’t – why does she still want to marry him? Or does she? Explain.
Other groups got different questions. After we had all expressed and written our opinions, we compared ours with each other. We all gave our input and discussed what answer we thought was correct and why. After a lot of persuasion and a tiny bit of arguing, everyone had come to their conclusions. We were supposed to write our answer on the back of the paper and give reasons how and why we came to that conclusion.
After all of the groups had completed their discussion, we moved back to our seats. Ms.Lees handed out a personal review sheet for oral language. We individually had to evaluate our self in three categories: Tell you idea, Ask questions, Listen Respectfully, Keep the conversation going. That was the end of humanities class.
Why we did it
A big part of high school is being able to work independently or with a group. We have done almost nothing in groups (other than these blogs), and Ms.Lees has decided it’s time to start. By discussing with more than one person, we can see different sides and perspectives. We may think that our opinion is the only correct choice there is, but when other people tell us theirs, we sometimes realize that maybe ours isn’t the correct one. Or maybe we just decide that there is more to one side and sometimes there isn’t just one right answer.
Learning how to cooperate and discuss in groups was also very helpful because we learned how to contribute all of our opinions equally and get our point across. Some people in the class are more shy and don’t talk as much, so hopefully this will help them come out of their comfort zone and show everyone that their opinion is just as important.
Someone may give their perspective and you may wonder: could my opinion be incorrect, or how did they think of that, it doesn’t sound right? Questioning yourself is an important aspect in learning. Sometimes you realize that you need to explain yourself better or that your answer is not as good as it could be and you didn’t think it through correctly.
Being able to reflect on your group discussions is very important because you need to know how you can improve your oral language skills and what you are exceeding at. You may be filling out the sheet and realize that you really didn’t let anyone else in the group talk, or you weren’t good at keeping the conversation going.
Connections/Reflection
I really enjoyed doing the group conversation today because I was able to discuss the movie King Arthur with people I wouldn’t normally discuss it with. I think it’s important for me and everyone else to get really good at group conversations in grade 8 so that we can build up our conversation skill for grade 9 and future grades.
My group did a pretty well job of displaying their input and jotting down reasons why they thought the way they did. I’m glad I got the question about Guinevere because it’s the classic love triangle and I have read and watched many books similar to it. The love triangle in this reminded me of the Twilight series because Bella loves Jacob, but is IN LOVE with Edward. Jacob would be an easier and smarter choice because he is less dangerous and doesn’t want to drink her blood, but Edward is the one she TRULY wants to be with, even though it is forbidden and not allowed. This is almost the exact same situation as Guinevere with Arthur and Lancelot. I can’t exactly say I can “relate” to it, because I’m too young to be involved in a love triangle.
Last year in grade 7 our class was all pretty good friends, and we did a lot of class discussions on novels we were reading. We had to express our feelings, opinions and question our judgement, just like we did today.
Being able to work well with groups will help me and all of you in the future years. This is an important skill to have for University and many jobs. If you work for a big company, then you will HAVE to work well with other. Lawyers need to be good at displaying their input and persuasion when in court to convince the judge to believe a certain thing. They need to know how to let others talk, but really explain why they believe they’re correct. Judges need to be good at weighing their options and choosing which side to go along with.
Homework
The only homework we had today was to finish part of your oral language skills chart.
Tips
-when you don’t have any homework, I suggest you look through your binder to make sure you are caught up on ALL of your work
- It can be hard to concentrate when people are talking around you; so respect others and either ask Ms.Lees or if you're allowed, ask your friend when you need help.
- Whenever you are behind on your work, go in during FLEX to catch up and get extra help.- If you miss a day, make sure to either email Ms.Lees (you can find her email on the school website) or ask one your study buddies. You should have at least 2 people in our classes numbers or emails by now.
- If you are unable to complete your assigned work, make sure to email Ms.Lees to let her know. If you have a good reason, then she will usually let you off the hook and give you extra time to finish it.-If you need help with your blogs, you can look at other group's blogs, or check out the English Grade 9 homepage and blogs.
-Even if you didn’t compete in the spelling bee in the theatre, it’s still important that you improve your spelling skills for the future.
- No one wants homework over Christmas break, so I suggest you make sure you’re up to date with all of your work.
ALICE IS TOMORROW!! :)
(The posting order is on the sidebar)
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Wednesday Dec.7 Learning Log
What did we do?
In class, today we watched a movie, called the 'First Knight,' for educational purposes, such as learning about the middle age. We were told to take notes, answer questions and infer on the events that happened throughout the movie.
Why ? (Learning Intentions)
The main reason was to test our note-taking skills and learn about middle age culture, traditions, etc (such as knights, chivalry, wars, religion, etc.)
My Reflections / Connections:
Today, where we didn't really do any work, was very different due to the fact that we watched a movie. In my opinion, it was very fun, and at the same time it was a learning experience for me.
Homework: Due dates and tips
-Finish Pathaways Textbooks notes, or go to Flex
-Portfolio conferences are still going on
In class, today we watched a movie, called the 'First Knight,' for educational purposes, such as learning about the middle age. We were told to take notes, answer questions and infer on the events that happened throughout the movie.
Why ? (Learning Intentions)
The main reason was to test our note-taking skills and learn about middle age culture, traditions, etc (such as knights, chivalry, wars, religion, etc.)
My Reflections / Connections:
Today, where we didn't really do any work, was very different due to the fact that we watched a movie. In my opinion, it was very fun, and at the same time it was a learning experience for me.
Homework: Due dates and tips
-Finish Pathaways Textbooks notes, or go to Flex
-Portfolio conferences are still going on
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Tuesday December 6th Reflection Post ! :)
What We Did
We started the class by trying to figure out where Shaneses' geography test went because she couldn't find it but it turned out she or somebody misplaced her test in the other classes file. If you can't find yours in our class geography test file, you should probably check the other classes file because it'll be likely to be in there. Also, remember to discuss with Ms.Lees about the time your going to come in to finish your geography test if you haven't yet. It shouldn't take you too long to finish it because we've already learnt the things. Ms.Lees told us our class is very slow on the portfolio conferences because a lot of people aren't ready which means that our portfolios aren't complete so just remember to get your portfolios organized before so she can go through yours quickly and get to everyone in the class. If you don't have some things in the portfolio, she'll mark you as INCOMPLETE. She said some people probably will need to come afterschool or before school (anytime out of class) to finish the conferences soon. Not even half of the class has been through the conference which isn't good!
Also, Ms.Lees informed us about the spelling bee coming up this Friday. Remember to study the spelling words and if you get chosen on Friday, you get to decide if you want to be brave and go to the school's spelling bee on Monday afterschool, but if you know you get really nervous talking in front of people (like me), you can just tell Ms.Lees about that and she'll get someone else to fill in for you. Just tell her on Friday after the spelling bee. Ms.Lees recommands us to go to the spelling bee on Monday afterschool (thetre) to watch because if one of the spellers can't make it, someone will have to fill in for them and if you go, you might get a chance to try.
We spent most of our class time today watching a video about the middle ages and taking notes. The video was about "History of the Middle Ages" and we had to take notes in point form about the things the people in the video said about the middle ages. We split our paper into two columns, one with "Main Ideas" on it and the other, "Details". We would write the main idea and write the details. For example, Early Middle Ages - Charles the Great -- and other facts. The video went pretty fast so we had to stop the video several times so we could get all the information down on our paper, but Ms.Lees said we will get better at taking notes as we do lots of them through the year. Ms.Lees wrote on the board today what we should avoid when we are taking notes. One of them were to avoid repetation which means repeating things. To prevent from repeating the same thing over and over, we could use abbreviations, symbols, headings, and pronouns. Also, when taking notes, we should elminate little words such as the because you don't have to look at too much grammer and sentences when writing point forms! :)
At the end of class, we practiced the spelling bee. We practiced with the grade 7 words this time and surprisingly, only a couple people were able to say the correct spelling. I made a mistake on a letter and I was pretty shocked because after, I knew right away what the actual spelling was!
Why We Did It
It's very important to take the geography test and finish it because it's like a assignment for Ms.Lees to know if we get all the geography things and to check our geography skills. If we do bad on a certain part, we'll be able to know what we need to work on and improve. It's a good way for Ms.Lees to check if we actually concentrated on our geography worksheets and actually filled them out with understanding all the concepts. It's also good to have organizing skills with the portfolios. It's a great way to look back at your own work and get Ms.Lees to explain it and go through what you've done. It's good to know what you need to work on to improve for next time. You have to get your portfolios organized in order for Ms.Lees to give you a mark/letter grade, or else you will get an INCOMPLETE mark.
It's good to get informed about the things that are coming up like the spelling bee because some people have forgotten about it and never actually practised, but by warning everyone and practising in class, they'll realize how important it is and study at home so they don't get off in the first round on Friday.
I think it's really good practice for us taking notes with the video because the people in the video speaked pretty fast. It can help us delvelop our note taking skills and help us write better notes. It's very important to write notes that you can understand because I sometimes have a hard time understanding what I wrote in my notes. By Ms.Lees telling us what we needed to avoid when we are taking notes before we actually did the assignment, we could've kept that in mind and tried to avoid the things and the more often we get practice, the more we'll improve. It's good to practice these skills because it'll be often used when we grow older. This skill will help a lot in highschool because the teachers have a lot to teach, especially in grade 12 and they can't speak too slowly and photocopy every single thing we learn because that'd be too much paper, they won't be able to speak too slowly or else, the teacher wouldn't be able to finish the whole unit in time. Also, taking notes for things could help us study for tests better because we'll know the main things we need to study for and not all the detail things. If we have to remember all the details, our heads would explode! Learning about the middle ages, also helps us learn about the history back then, and learn note taking skills and social studies at the same time. It's great because you can look back at your notes and figure out some things from it. We practised note taking skills on our PATHWAY text books before, so it was kind of like a review for some of us who already finished the note taking assignment.
Reflections/Connections
I've learned some geography things in grade 5 but we never had to take a test before so I didn't know much about geography but since we got to learn a lot about it, I was very glad and I actually didn't find the test too hard but it was a little confusing though. I hope we get to learn a lot of geography. It'd really help if we are going somewhere by car. I'll be able to read the map for my dad because my dad usually drives but my mom isn't very good at reading the signs so he always multitask at the same time which could be dangerous sometimes. I could be a great assistance! I've already got my portfolio organized and finished the conference so I don't have anything to worry about now. In fact, I got mine done last week! I got to know all the things I'm weak at and I'm going to try to speak up more in class from now on hopefully! Organizing portfolios could help a lot when I prepare a resmee for university later because I heard that it's very similar to portfolios and you gather all the things you accomplished and send it to them. Porfolios are quite confusing at first because it has to be in a certain order and all my work kind of mash all together and sometimes it's hard to find certain worksheets but as I got to the end, I was quite proud of myself that I organized it so neatly so it was really worth it! The conference with Ms.Lees went smoothly because I had all my worksheets there!
Spelling bees could help in a lot of ways like I said on my other relflection post. Knowing how to spell all the words could lead you to being a great writer and reader and could possibily be a teacher when you grow up. It's very useful because you'd seem smart in front of people and you can always help them spell things when they are having troubles. You can build up your vocabulary skills and you'd eventually have to write documents when you grow up, and it wouldn't be good if you spell easy words or any words wrong.
I thought the note taking while listening to the video was quite a bit of challenge for me because in elementry, we used to just relax and watch videos without worrying about writing notes but today, it made me write messy because I had to write it so quickly. I didn't leave too much space between the main ideas so I had trouble trying to fit all my information. Now, I know that I could warn myself next time to put lots of spaces in between. It could help in ANY subject literally. I take LOTS of notes in math and my math teacher did show us some abbreviations and symbols for some words but the problem was that after I used them, I forgot what I used the symbols for. I think I need to work on making some simple symbols so I could actually use them in my notes correctly. One of my problem when taking notes was that I put too much detail in them and I wasted a lot of time from doing that. Maybe next time, I'll try to write my notes shorter! :) After I fix all these problems, I think I'll be able to write notes perfectly and be able to use them a lot! I heard that you take a lot of notes in university especially, and once I saw in a movie people carrying laptops to write down the things the proffessers are talking about more quickly. I think that'd be a lot better than actually writing in hand because your hand will hurt. Writing good notes will help me a lot in university and especially before tests because I could study with the notes I took. Also, in clubs, almost every single time, they use point form to jot down things like ideas. I went to the Student Council meeting a couple weekes ago and they jot down the main ideas and the details in point form. I really like taking notes because you don't have to write full sentences, not care about grammer as much, and it's more effective when I read I think.
Homework
- Study Canspell (Spelling Bee is this Friday)
- If you haven't finished your pathways assignment (note-taking), come in for flex this Thursday to finish it!
- Discuss with Ms.Lees what day you're going to come in to finish your geopgraphy test if you haven't finished it yet.
- You should've finished your note-taking and QAR booklet but IF you haven't, make sure you finish it for tomorrow!
Tips
- Try to organize your portfolios and get ready because Ms.Lees have had some trouble finding everyones not organized and some things missing.
- Study the Canspell words with you parents or your siblings and get them to test you for at least 5 minutes per day. Try the grade 9 words, if you've mastered the grade 8 words already!
- If you missed a day or don't know what's for homework tomorrow, you better read the blogs!
- Get all your work done and try to finish the PATHWAYS assignment on Thursday because we won't have time to work on it class. If you're behind, be sure to catch up soon!
Guess what? We are watching a movie tomorrow in class! Yay! :)
Schedule:
Monday : Olivia
Tuesday : Alice
Wednesday ( Double Block ) : Luke
Friday : Luke
LUKE will be doing his blog tomorrow! :)
Monday, December 5, 2011
December 5, 2011 Learning Log
***Most of the day we just did catch up work, so this blog probably won’t be as long as my last one. ***
What We Did
First, Ms.Lees had a quick discussion with us about what we’re behind in, and what we are on schedule with. She told us that we are quite behind in our portfolio discussions, and soon people are going to start coming in on their own time, (FLEX time, after school, before school) so we need to work as quickly as possible today.
After Ms.Lees start the individual portfolio discussions, we got to work on the notes we have been taking the past few classes. We took notes from the PATHWAYS textbook. The first section of notes we were supposed to work on was “Outlining” notes. The order that “outlining” notes go by is:
1. Main Idea
A. Idea/Detail
i)Sub-detail
ii)Sub-detail
B. Idea/Detail
i)Sub-detail
ii)Sub-detail
iii)Sub-detail
After we finished our outlining notes, we had to take notes using the “Mapping” method. Mapping is almost like a web. Mapping is more like a diagram, instead of Outlining which uses more numbers and words. In the middle of the diagram, there is the main idea. There are lines sticking out of the main idea, and these include Ideas and Facts. If you have even more important sub-details, then you can make them come out of your ideas and facts. The web can just keep growing and growing.
The last method we learned was the “Cornell” method. This is probably the most confusing and complicated way to take notes because there are many different sections to it. I don’t think many people have started their Cornell notes yet. The 5 sections are: Record, Reduce, Recite, Reflect and Review. I find that the Cornell method is VERY helpful because you need to put a lot of detail into it. It is hard to describe the method without a diagram, so I suggest you go on Ms.Lees Hum8 Blog, and there is a very helpful video on how to do it.
I can’t remember the pages that were supposed to do for the three different types of notes. I think for the Outlining notes, we do pages 9-20. Sorry, I will try to find them out tomorrow and post them.
Why We Did It
Taking notes is a VERY important skill to have for high school, especially in the higher grades. Teachers have a lot to teach in high school, and they shouldn’t have to always write the notes you need for you. We need to know and be good at taking notes from the teacher talking, and from the things we read. Taking notes makes it a lot easier to study for tests so that you don’t study pointless things, and you know exactly what to study. This applies to University too, even more. From what I’ve heard, a great way to be successful in University/College is about being able to be speedy at jotting down what the professor is teaching.
Several jobs require the note taking skill, such as lawyers, reporters, writers, etc. Or even if you want to be something that requires a lot of meetings. Most of you’ve probably seen movies where the character works for a big company and they have meetings at a big long table. The boss quickly talks and they jot something down like crazy. This is an example of why it’s useful to know how to take great notes.
Connections/Reflections
In Elementary school we didn’t do a lot of our own note taking. Instead we filled out booklets, but that didn’t require very much categorizing notes. I am really glad that we are putting a lot of our focus on taking notes in Humanities class right now. I think it will really pay off in the future.
I absolutely LOVE writing, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I opt to a job in the writing career one day. A good writer always does a rough draft first. They need to know how to put their main ideas in sections, and extend. After they have all of the information down, the article or story can flow quite nicely.
I think I have a pretty clear understanding of the three different types of notes. I take a long time to take notes, so I am just finishing up the outlining section. My problem is that I think my notes have TOO much detail, and don’t just stay to the main point. Even though I haven’t had a lot of practice with all of the different methods yet, my favourite method is probably the “Outlining” method because it is very neat and in order. I find both the Cornell method and the Mapping method confusing because the sections are kind of everywhere. Especially with the mapping method. I am getting more comfortable with note taking every day
Homework
If you are already finished your test and your portfolios are finished, then there isn’t any exact homework. We are not allowed to take the PATHWAYS textbook home, so we can’t do our notes at home. Just make sure you are finished the note-taking booklet and the QAR booklet.
Tips:
ips:-Everyday you should try to go over your Canspell words. If you’re already quite successful with the grade 8 words, move on to the Challenging grade 9 words.
-It’s easier to spell a word when you actually know what it means, so try to learn the definition of all the words.
-You should be finished your geography test by now, and if you’re not, then you need to email Ms.Lees (her email’s on the school website)
-If you ever miss a day of school or you can’t remember what’s for homework, check one of your piers blogs, or ask one of your study buddies.
-Christmas break is pretty soon, and you don’t want to have a ton of homework for it, so I suggest if you are seriously behind in something, then you get caught up before the break.
-If you don’t understand note taking, then you can look up tips online or practice using your booklets.
-Always plan ahead!
Schedule
Monday- Olivia
Tuesday-Alice
Wednesday-Luke
Friday-Luke
ALICE IS TOMORROW!!! :)
What We Did
First, Ms.Lees had a quick discussion with us about what we’re behind in, and what we are on schedule with. She told us that we are quite behind in our portfolio discussions, and soon people are going to start coming in on their own time, (FLEX time, after school, before school) so we need to work as quickly as possible today.
After Ms.Lees start the individual portfolio discussions, we got to work on the notes we have been taking the past few classes. We took notes from the PATHWAYS textbook. The first section of notes we were supposed to work on was “Outlining” notes. The order that “outlining” notes go by is:
1. Main Idea
A. Idea/Detail
i)Sub-detail
ii)Sub-detail
B. Idea/Detail
i)Sub-detail
ii)Sub-detail
iii)Sub-detail
After we finished our outlining notes, we had to take notes using the “Mapping” method. Mapping is almost like a web. Mapping is more like a diagram, instead of Outlining which uses more numbers and words. In the middle of the diagram, there is the main idea. There are lines sticking out of the main idea, and these include Ideas and Facts. If you have even more important sub-details, then you can make them come out of your ideas and facts. The web can just keep growing and growing.
The last method we learned was the “Cornell” method. This is probably the most confusing and complicated way to take notes because there are many different sections to it. I don’t think many people have started their Cornell notes yet. The 5 sections are: Record, Reduce, Recite, Reflect and Review. I find that the Cornell method is VERY helpful because you need to put a lot of detail into it. It is hard to describe the method without a diagram, so I suggest you go on Ms.Lees Hum8 Blog, and there is a very helpful video on how to do it.
I can’t remember the pages that were supposed to do for the three different types of notes. I think for the Outlining notes, we do pages 9-20. Sorry, I will try to find them out tomorrow and post them.
Why We Did It
Taking notes is a VERY important skill to have for high school, especially in the higher grades. Teachers have a lot to teach in high school, and they shouldn’t have to always write the notes you need for you. We need to know and be good at taking notes from the teacher talking, and from the things we read. Taking notes makes it a lot easier to study for tests so that you don’t study pointless things, and you know exactly what to study. This applies to University too, even more. From what I’ve heard, a great way to be successful in University/College is about being able to be speedy at jotting down what the professor is teaching.
Several jobs require the note taking skill, such as lawyers, reporters, writers, etc. Or even if you want to be something that requires a lot of meetings. Most of you’ve probably seen movies where the character works for a big company and they have meetings at a big long table. The boss quickly talks and they jot something down like crazy. This is an example of why it’s useful to know how to take great notes.
Connections/Reflections
In Elementary school we didn’t do a lot of our own note taking. Instead we filled out booklets, but that didn’t require very much categorizing notes. I am really glad that we are putting a lot of our focus on taking notes in Humanities class right now. I think it will really pay off in the future.
I absolutely LOVE writing, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I opt to a job in the writing career one day. A good writer always does a rough draft first. They need to know how to put their main ideas in sections, and extend. After they have all of the information down, the article or story can flow quite nicely.
I think I have a pretty clear understanding of the three different types of notes. I take a long time to take notes, so I am just finishing up the outlining section. My problem is that I think my notes have TOO much detail, and don’t just stay to the main point. Even though I haven’t had a lot of practice with all of the different methods yet, my favourite method is probably the “Outlining” method because it is very neat and in order. I find both the Cornell method and the Mapping method confusing because the sections are kind of everywhere. Especially with the mapping method. I am getting more comfortable with note taking every day
Homework
If you are already finished your test and your portfolios are finished, then there isn’t any exact homework. We are not allowed to take the PATHWAYS textbook home, so we can’t do our notes at home. Just make sure you are finished the note-taking booklet and the QAR booklet.
Tips:
ips:-Everyday you should try to go over your Canspell words. If you’re already quite successful with the grade 8 words, move on to the Challenging grade 9 words.
-It’s easier to spell a word when you actually know what it means, so try to learn the definition of all the words.
-You should be finished your geography test by now, and if you’re not, then you need to email Ms.Lees (her email’s on the school website)
-If you ever miss a day of school or you can’t remember what’s for homework, check one of your piers blogs, or ask one of your study buddies.
-Christmas break is pretty soon, and you don’t want to have a ton of homework for it, so I suggest if you are seriously behind in something, then you get caught up before the break.
-If you don’t understand note taking, then you can look up tips online or practice using your booklets.
-Always plan ahead!
Schedule
Monday- Olivia
Tuesday-Alice
Wednesday-Luke
Friday-Luke
ALICE IS TOMORROW!!! :)
Friday, December 2, 2011
December 2nd Learning Log
What did we do?
Today, due to the geography test, we learned nothing...
All we did was a geography test until the end of the block.
Describe briefly what we did in class.
The geography test, that we were told to prepare for for 2 days.
Why ? (Learning Intentions)
In order to test what we've learned and to review our skills and knowledge in geography.
My Reflections / Connections:
In my opinion, the test was not very complicated, and didn't require you to do anything more than what you've learned. It was fairly easy compared to the previous work we were assigned to do, in the past.
Homework: Due dates and tips
-Study for Canspell school spelling bee
-Finish leftover homework, if you haven't done it yet.
-Do QrA (I think that's what it was)
Today, due to the geography test, we learned nothing...
All we did was a geography test until the end of the block.
Describe briefly what we did in class.
The geography test, that we were told to prepare for for 2 days.
Why ? (Learning Intentions)
In order to test what we've learned and to review our skills and knowledge in geography.
My Reflections / Connections:
In my opinion, the test was not very complicated, and didn't require you to do anything more than what you've learned. It was fairly easy compared to the previous work we were assigned to do, in the past.
Homework: Due dates and tips
-Study for Canspell school spelling bee
-Finish leftover homework, if you haven't done it yet.
-Do QrA (I think that's what it was)
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