24-28 April (Milestones)

Eight graders are taking their End of Grade GA Milestones this week.

Monday & Tuesday

Language Arts sections

Wednesday

Math

Thursday

Science, 8th grade only

Friday

GA Studies

Since these tests are taking place, students are spending most of their time in their HR class. Teachers are providing content work that should be completed after tests.

Students in this class have an essay due on May 1st

-- A rubric has been provided

-- Students must pre-write, draft, and revise before finalizing their essay

The slides from class are below:

•1. Introduce the topic on a broad scale

•This starts the audience to consider what the specific topic might be.

•The beginning might be an example of a coming of age experience.

•Acne, braces, awkwardness, and uncertainty. These words all describe the feelings most teenagers face.

•2. You introduce the selections that address these feelings

•Eugenia Collier’s short story “Marigolds,” Pat Mora’s poem “Teenagers,” and … address the issues young people face as they move from childhood to young adulthood.

•3. In all of these texts, the authors discuss… (what links the pieces together?)

•4. What is the thesis? What will be the essay’s point. This statement is something that can be proved with evidence.

Going from Thesis to Topic Sentences:

•Moving from childhood into young adulthood, can often create challenges for some young people.

•Topic Sentence 1: As a young person makes his way toward adulthood, his relationships are challenged.

•Topic Sentence 2: Growing up can involved some painful moments.

•Topic Sentence 3: Enduring pain and change can also create opportunities for a person to grow.

Essay Starter Ideas:

•Broad idea: Uncertainty. Confusion. The Unknown. These words share how many teens feel as they struggle to leave childhood behind and enter an unfamiliar stage in their lives.

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A young girl shuts herself off from her family, and no one understands why. “What’s going on with my body?” she asks herself. “I don’t feel like I fit in anymore. My parents want me to be one person, but I’m not sure that’s who I want to be,” she thinks to herself. These are thoughts and feelings some young adults struggle with as they move away from being children and move toward being young adults.

•Begin to bring up big idea and the selections that address that topic:

•“Coming of Age” is a common theme in literature. Texts such as the short story “Marigolds” by Eugenia Collier, the short story “The Whistle” by Anne Estevis, the poem “Identity” by Julio Polanco, and the novel The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, all address the coming of age experience.

•Based on these texts, many young people find leaving childhood and entering young adulthood challenging.

Conclusion:

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•The challenges of coming of age can be difficult; however, these same challenges can allow a person to see the world with a fresh set of eyes. Lizabeth saw hope. The speaker in “Identity” saw the value of individuality, Ponyboy saw the value of his brother’s love, and Chatita saw the importance of understanding different points of view. Without gaining knowledge, nothing changes, and change is essential in overcoming the challenges one faces on his journey through life.