Day 69

Good afternoon! It's Thursday and we're getting close to the weekend.  Please write independently while I take attendance.  You may choose to write to the following prompt if you wish:

You are in class one day reading an article about a historical event and when you read the date on the page you are somehow transported to the time and place of the event!  Write a story about what happens. 

RFotD: There are more mobile phones in the world than there are personal computers!  Check out the infographic about cell phones here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 68

We made it to Wednesday!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will practice looking at sections of text and analyzing their parts in the whole.

RFotD: The names of the days of the week are mostly related to mythical gods.  Read each day of the week's name origin here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 67

Happy Tuesday! Please write independently while I take attendance.

We will be making a special trip to the library today.  We will also be looking at how a writer uses certain parts of their text to develop their message.

RFotD: McDonald’s uses about 7% of the potatoes grown in the United States for its French fries. They sell more than 1/3 of all the French fries sold in restaurants in the U.S. each year.  Read more about the glorious french fry here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 66

Welcome back!  I hope that you had a tremendous Thanksgiving Break, and are ready for the final push before Winter Break.  Please check your Reading Log and be sure that it is up to date.  When you have finished, write independently.

Today we will have our big debates: Are athletes overpaid? and Should sugary drinks be labeled?

RFotD: During the Dust Bowl, people sewed clothes out of flour sacks when money was tight. When flour distributors heard about this, they made their bags more colorful so the subsequent clothing would be more attractive.  Read about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 65

Happy Friday! Please get right to your research while I take attendance.

Today we will finish our preparations for our Debate Seminar, which will take place on the Monday that we return from Thanksgiving Break. 

NsRFotD: Male turkeys, also called toms, are the only ones that can gobble. The females, or hens, make clucking or clicking sounds.  Read more interesting Thanksgiving facts here.

Homework: Catch up on any unfinished assessments.  If you are caught up, you have NO HOMEWORK!

Day 64

Happy Thursday! Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will take out Spelling Bee pretest and begin our research for our Seminar Debate.

RFotD: The first webcam watched a coffee pot. It allowed researchers at Cambridge to monitor the coffee situation without leaving their desks!  Read about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 63

Happy Wednesday!  We're half-way there!  Please write independently while I take attendance.  You may choose to write to the following prompt:

You are working on your homework one night when as you type, you realize that the words describing what you are thinking about begin to materialize right in front of you as you type (if you type hamburger, a juicy hamburger appears). Write about what happens.

Today we will have our second practice debate! We will also begin the process of choosing topics for our debate assessment.

RFotD: In 1889, the Queen of Italy, Margherita Savoy, ordered the first pizza delivery. Read all about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 62

Happy Tuesday!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will have a practice debate in class and read another argument.

RFotD: The average American uses more than 20,000 squares of toilet paper in a year. Read more t.p. facts here.

Homework: Catch up un unfinished/ missing work.  Read for 30 minutes.

Day 61

Well, it's Monday again.  At least we only have a week's worth of class until Thanksgiving Break!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will begin evaluating arguments to establish a stance on a topic.

NsRFotD: Today is World Kindness Day.  Find out how to honor the day here.

Homework:  Do something kind for someone. Read for 30 minutes.

Day 60

Happy Thriday! This day of the week only comes around once in a while, so savor it! Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will be tracing arguments and claims to check their validity.

RFotD: The earliest recorded use of the word “weekend” occurred in 1879 in an English magazine called Notes and Queries.  Read about the history of the five-day work week here.

Homework:  Read for 30 minutes.

Day 59

Happy Wednesday! Please write independently while I take attendance.


Today we will be evaluating claims.


RFotD: Because news traveled so slow back then, slaves in Texas didn’t know they were free for more than two months after Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Read more here.


Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 58

Happy Tuesday! Please write independently while I take attendance.  You may choose to write from the following prompt:

You and a friend win an all expenses paid trip to Italy!  On the trip, your train to Venice is secretly robbed.  You and your friend must solve the mystery of the robbery.

Today we will continue our work with claims and how to identify them.

RFotD: Ōkunoshima, nicknamed “Rabbit Island,” is home to — brace yourself — hordes of fluffy bunnies.  Read about it here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 57

Happy Monday! Life returns to normal today, but we only have four days this week! Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will begin Unit 3: The Power of Argument.

NsRFotD: Benjamin Franklin proposed something similar to Daylight Saving Time in a satirical essay in 1784.  Read all about it and other facts about Daylight Saving Time here.

Homework:  Be sure that your Reading Log is up to date and read for 30 minutes.

Day 56

Happy Friday! Today we are on Assembly Schedule so classes are about 20 minutes shorter.  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will work to finish our research essays.

RFotD: Contrary to popular belief there is a word that rhymes with orange: sporange. It means "spore case". Here are some other really fun facts to go with it.

Homework: Finish your research essay. If it's finished, no homework!

Day 55

Happy Thursday!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will be working on your research essays.

RFotD: Because light takes time to reach us, everything we see is in the past. The sun you can see out of the window is 8 minutes and 20 seconds old. The light from our nearest star, Proxima Centauri, is 4 years old. Read the explanation here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.

Day 54

Happy November 1st.  I hope you had a wonderful Halloween evening!  Please write independently while I take attendance.

Today we will visit the library and begin work on your research-based essay.

RFotD: If all of the candy corn produced by Brach's Candy Company each year were laid end to end, it would wrap around the Earth more than 4 times!  Read more candy facts here.

Homework: Read for 30 minutes.