Creative writing and English 7 This PowerPoint contains slides for both the Creative Writing and English lessons. Just the first two slides are different depending on the class. The rest of the lesson is the same for all periods. There is a PowerPoint clicker in the basket on the computer at my desk. January 3, 2017

Bellringer – January 3, 2017 Copy these sentences and correct the errors. Makeing resolutions for the New Year is two hard. my friends are all going to the gym tomarrow I don’t eat no vegetables cause they is gross! I will study than I will come to youre house. Alot of peoples want to be more better this year. This slide is for the English 7 classes – 7th and 8th periods. Give them 4-5 minutes to complete this, while you take roll and walk about the room to keep everyone focused. Then have volunteers write the corrected sentences on the board. After all the sentences have been written, show the next slide.

Bellringer – January 3, 2017 Answers: Making resolutions for the new year is too hard. My friends are all going to the gym tomorrow I don’t eat (any) vegetables because they are gross! I will study, then I will come to your house. A lot of people want to be better this year. This slide is for the English 7 classes – 7th and 8th periods.

Sacred writing time – January 3, 2017 Why do people make “New Year’s Resolutions”? Have you ever made one? Have you been successful? Are these kinds of goals a good idea or a bad idea? Why do you think so? In Creative Writing (5th period) they write for the first 5 minutes. Remind them that this time is for writing and not for any other activity, including just staring into space.  You will probably need to walk around and prompt some of them to actually write something… After the 5 minutes, conduct a short class discussion about this topic.

Procrastination… What is procrastination? Write your answers to these questions. You have 3 minutes… Why do people procrastinate? Have you ever procrastinated? Why or why not? Is procrastination a good idea? Class offered answers After some class members offer answers to the first question, click and bring up the definition. Have the students copy it down. Then click and bring up the next 3 questions and set a timer to give them think and write time. Finally, click and bring up the next box of instructions. Now, pair up and share at your table. Then, have a class discussion where you share your thoughts.

Inside the mind of a master procrastinator -ted ed: Tim urban While you watch this talk, take notes so you will remember what you learned, heard, and liked. This TedEd video is about 15 minutes long. You will need to “patrol” the room to make sure that the students are: paying attention, taking notes, not doing other homework, not using their phones, etc.  Click for video 

How to make goals successful… Here are two short videos to give you ideas about making positive changes in your life. Take notes on what you want to remember. Video 1  You may want to conduct a short review after each one to get the students’ take on them. Video 2 

The task! Your assignment is to write a plan to try something new for 30 days. It needs to be something that will improve you, your surroundings, your relationships, etc. You may need to brainstorm a list of possibilities before you decide on one. (You can always do another 30 day challenge after this one with another idea from your list.) Then you need to detail out how you will go about achieving your goal. Decide how you will track your progress. This is the fun part – watching the students create! As you walk about the room, stop and chat with students about what they are planning.

The price of creation Extra time? I am reading The Price of Creation to 7th and 8th periods. They would probably love for you to read them a chapter or two.  If Creative Writing has extra time – they can engage in silent reading of the books they bring with them.