Comma Rules

Students are finishing up their study of the first six comma rules.  We've been reviewing and practicing for the comma unit test on Tuesday, November 26. Students can list the rules, identify where commas are needed & label with the rules, and write their own sentences that use these rules correctly. When we return in December, we will transition into studying the first half of the 10 Common Compositional Errors. The students have done well with their comma study and they are becoming skilled at using commas correctly in their own writing. Now that we have mastered those rules, the expectation is that the students will be held accountable for these rules in both daily and long-term writing assignments. 

To Kill a Mockingbird

Students are now approximately halfway through the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. We've spent some time examining Jim Crow laws in the South and the impact that these laws had on the way of life for many individuals. We will also be taking a closer look at the Scottsboro trial and its connection to TKAM. When we return from Thanksgiving Break, we will also be examining the social hierarchy of characters from within the novel and investigating what influences this caste system.  Students will also be writing about this hierarchy as the topic of the final essay of the semester.  There will not be a unit test over the novel, although it will be covered in-depth in the semester exam.