Moday January 30, 2012

What We Did
Today we all
headed to our classroom to find that we were actually going to do the lesson in
the library. We have gone to the library for humanities many times before, so
we all knew the drill.

Once we were seated at the same table as our blog groups, Ms.Lees explained that we would be
filling out some sheets on our blogs. We did this about a month ago, so she
didn’t need to go over much with us. Apparently many of us didn’t fill out the
sheet correctly last time, so we had to make sure to be extra careful with the
format we used.

The first sheet was for the WHOLE group to fill out together. There were three main parts
of the sheet. One was to put our previous goals from the last time we checked
our group learning logs, and explain whether or not we reached our goals. If
so; then why? If not, why not?

The second part was for us to set new goals for next month (February). We then had to
explain why we thought these goals were necessary, and explain our plan on how
we would reach them. It was important that we put a fair amount of detail. For
example, if we said:

“We want everyone in the group to get at least a four out of five.” When it comes to
how, we can’t say “We will all try harder.” INCORRECT! You would at least need
to say “We will go over the criteria and our previous posts that were not good,
and compare them so we know which areas we need to improve in.”

On the back of the sheet, we needed to put each of our names down, and list all of the
times we have posted and commented. We also needed to give the dates, and for
comments we needed to give the name of the person’s post we commented on. This
was a record for the month of January.

After our groups were finished filling out the sheets, which took from 15 to 30 minutes;
we were given individual evaluation sheets. Ms.Lees asked that we didn’t go
with the same partner as last time. She said it was out responsibility to find
someone who we know we can work well and efficiently with.

We were supposed to work with our partner to choose two of our posts from January and
give each one a rating out of 5. We also needed to give five valid points of
proof on why both of us had decided on that mark. The rest of the class was
spent doing that, and then it was time for fourth block.

Why We Did It:

We go to the library whenever we need access to computers. Many of us don’t have laptops, so
it would be impossible for us to do it in our classroom. Teacher’s can reserve
time slots to use the library, and Ms.Lees seems to do it quite often. Madame
Monk is also always in the library, so we have an extra helper if someone needs
assistance.

Today we NEEDED to used the computers or else we wouldn’t be able to view our previous
blogs to mark them. It was necessary to view our blogs so that we could
critique them with our partner and thoroughly look through them to find
mistakes.
Ms.Lees gave us the group worksheet so that she could evaluate not only our individual
effort, but our blog groups overall improvement through the months.

It was important for our group to set goals together so that one person isn’t totally
slacking while the others are exceeding. We need to support everyone in our
group. If we all take turns pointing out the bad and good in our blogs, and how
we can improve, than there is a better chance we will improve.

For Example:
There may be four people in a group, and three of them are at satisfying
levels, but one may be just horrible at blogging. The group can support them so
that they don’t bring the group down with them.

We checked our previous goals to see if we met them and how we improved because not only
does it help us set new goals, but it also builds our confidence!

We set goals for the month of February so that we have something to aim for. If we didn’t
have goals, then we wouldn’t try as hard to improve. Having goals sets a line
that tells us what we need to do and it also puts a bit of pressure on us so
that we actually TRY!

The reason we made a list of all our posts and comments is so that Ms.Lees can see if we
have been doing an equal amount of work and she can also make sure that we have
been doing our posts when we were/are supposed to.

We marked our personal posts with a partner so that we can get another person’s opinion.
Sometimes we may not notice mistakes that we have made until someone else
points it out to us. If we were to only mark ours, many of us would either give
ourselves a 5 when we didn’t deserve one, or be too modest and give ourselves lower
than we deserve. If our partner were to only mark it, then they may get
confused about something we write or might be pressure to give us a certain
mark. By putting our minds together, we can agree of the perfect mark that
matches our blogs, and we can give each other tips on how to improve.


Connections/Reflections

I am glad that we worked in the library today because sometimes the portable can be a little
secluded. It’s sometimes nice to be able to observe other people and work in
different places. I really like the atmosphere of the library because you can
see a lot of what is going on around the school. In elementary school, we had
laptops that we could reserve for our classroom instead of actually going to
the library to use them.

It was nice for my group to have a chance to get together to discuss our group’s progress.
Sometimes I need to discuss with my group issues for our blog that have come
up. My group sometimes has an issue with coordinating the days that we will be
blogging. We all have specific days, but sometimes we just don’t have time that
day. Due to sports, family events or school related things. I remember one day
someone in our group had a band concert, and need to switch days. But none of
us were available to switch because their day because we had our own activities
that got in the way.

I feel that our group has ALL improved by at least one point. Luke’s has doubled in length,
which is great. One of our goals from last month was to go up, and we all reached
it! YAY! Each time our group reaches a new goal, we reach the bar a tiny bit
more. I think this is clever because soon our group should reach excellence.

Working with Alice to fill out our blog post marks really went well for us. We were able to
decide a reasonable mark easily and we didn’t waste a TON of time. We both put
quite a lot of detail in each other’s mark and I felt that we were fair to each
other. I would have probably given myself a four, because I wouldn’t feel
comfortable choosing a 5. With Alice there, she reasoned with me if I deserved
a five or not, and I felt more confident and less awkward choosing my mark.

I remember in grade 7 I did a HUGE science project with 4 other people. Only I and one
other person did anything on the project. I was upset because it seemed unfair
and I was worried the teacher wouldn’t realize all of the effort I put into it.
Luckily, we all had to fill out a sheet marking how much each other did out of
10 and how much of my part I did. I didn’t feel comfortable giving my effort a
10/10. The other people in the group all gave me around a 10/10, so in the end
I ended up getting a 10. I was really grateful we did this, because in the end
my teacher was able to see my effort.

By setting a goal for myself, I feel more obligated to improve my blogs. When I know I have
a goal I need to meet, then I tend to try harder.



Homework:

There wasn’t any mandatory homework today.


Tips (includes some homework related stuff)

-If you haven’t
finished your There Will Be Wolves chapter 1 and 2 questions, make sure to do
that because we will possibly be reviewing them tomorrow
- When you
have spare time, try to read your novel (There Will Be Wolves) so you don’t rush
through it later.
- Reading
your novel gradually will help you absorb and remember more of the information
- Our
speeches for our webs are tomorrow, so make sure you can explain your poster
-You don’t need
to write a speech (for the web), but make sure to have a basic idea of your
sections
- For ideas
and tips on blogging, check out the other grade 8 and 9 blogs
- If you haven’t
completed your blogging review with your partner, go to FLEX or visit the
library with your partner during lunch.
- Check the
school website http://www.firehawks.ca/ for more information on school upcoming
events
-Email
Ms.Lees if you are sick or have questions. Her email is on the school website
- Always notify
Ms.Lees at least a week before you go on vacation so she can give you the work
you need to do
- If you
ever need help, go in during FLEX. It’s usually on Thursdays, but always double
check with Ms.Lees


**** Sorry, the blog is being silly and wouldn't let me colour code or re size anything, so the titles are a bit confusing :(******

Schedule

Tuesday (TOMORROW)---- ALICE
Wednesday- DANIEL
Friday- LUKE