Mrs. Manderano

End of year information

We have made it to the last week of school!!  But before we get into the summer mindset, we need to remember that exams are Monday-Wednesday next week.  On Monday, the morning exam will be from 9:15-11:15.  The students will then go to third period for lunch and study hall.  The afternoon exam will be from 2:30-4:10.  Each day the schedule will be the same with a morning and afternoon exam with a study hall/lunch period in between.  On Wednesday, there will be only a morning exam.  Be sure to check with your HR teacher for the classroom where you will be reporting.  It will vary with each test.  The Eighth Grade Dance will be Thursday from 6-9, so make sure to buy your ticket!  Awards Day will be Friday morning along with the Eighth Grade Talent Show in the afternoon.  Look forward to a great week!!

Anne Frank

We have begun our study of Anne Frank this week.  We are continuing to watch the A&E Biography of Anne Frank which gives informative background knowledge of her life, yet also incorporates interviews with rescuers and survivors of the death camps from those who knew her and her family.  It is intriguing to watch, and it is my hope that the students learn important life lessons.  The students are responsible for taking notes on the movie which will be a class work grade.  They will then take their notes and write a personal response to the movie. 

Tomorrow, Mrs. Kaplan has arranged a holocaust survivor to speak to our students.  Mr. Kessler is an inspiration to us all, and I am sure the students will find his story a fascinating one. 

CRCT testing ends tomorrow!! Hurray!! Have a great week!!

CRCT and The Chocolate War

Yes! We are still seeking the end of the tunnel with our grammar preparation for the CRCT.  Today, we reviewed double negatives.  Tuesday through Thursday, we will cover verbals - participles, gerunds, and infinitives.  On Friday, we will be having a "Read All Period" day simply enjoying our novel, The Chocolate War.  The students have really been enjoying our novel which speaks a great deal about the author, Robert Cromier, and his ability to weave a great tale!! 

Next week, we will have two practice CRCT tests for language arts.  Testing begins on Wednesday, April 23rd.  It will last through April 29.  Have a great week!!!

Types of sentences and The Chocolate War

We are completing our grammar unit with the 4 types of sentences: simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex.  Within the study of sentence types, we will review phrases and clauses (adjective and adverb clauses).  We will divide our class time reviewing CRCT skills and completing our novel study, The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier.  The Chocolate War is a great example of adolescent literature that students relate to, as it covers the topics of bullying, betrayal, love, and the perserverance to be an individual in the midsts of cliques and gangs.  The week of April 7-11 is Spring Break, and I hope everyone has a safe and restful vacation!!

Verb Unit

We have begun the wonderful world of verbs! Our first week we will be reviewing the following: action verbs, verb phrases, direct and indirect objects, linking verbs, and predicate nouns and adjectives. Classwork will combine use of our Language Arts Today textbook, workbook, various handouts, quizzes, and tests. On Monday, we will be singing "The Helping Verb Song" out loud in class for a grade. The students have a list of the verbs that are sung to the tune of "Jingle Bells". They will not be graded on their singing ability, but they will be graded on their knowledge of the helping verbs! Have a great week!

Pronouns and more pronouns

In our never-ending world of pronouns, we are about to see the light at the end of the tunnel!! This week and last, we have conquered personal pronouns...subjective, objective, and possessive cases! On Friday of last week, we were introduced to indefinite pronouns. Today, we reviewed indefinite, reflexive, and intensive pronouns. Tomorrow, we will review interrogative pronouns along with the correct usage of the pronouns who and whom. Demonstrative and relative pronouns will end the unit. We will have test at the end of the week on the entire pronoun unit. Students will need to study all handouts (charts) in order to be prepared for the test. Have a great week!!

Possessive and Plural Nouns

We have completed our three day unit on the five types of nouns.  On Monday, we will begin our study of possessive and plural nouns.  We will be completing two charts that my students can keep through high school that will clarify the rules of plural and possessive nouns.  Work will consist of textbok pages, workbook, and skill sheets.  Have a great week!

MLK Projects and tests

Today, we took our "I Have a Dream" speech test. We have also selected our metaphor or simile to illustrate and will be working on it in class tomorrow, 2/13/08. On Thursday, we will begin our "Say It Loud, Say It Proud" speech to be completed in class. This will be due Friday at the end of the class period. Please remember that there is no school on Monday and Tuesday, so enjoy the long weekend.

MLK Unit

We have begun our civil rights unit.  On Thursday, February 7, students are responsible for turning in their "Choice" vocabulary words.  Each word should be defined, along with a sentence, synonym, and antonym.  It will be a test grade.  On Thursday, we will discuss MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech with background information about the civil rights march to Washington.  We will view the original video of that historical speech just as it was viewed by its participants and T.V. audience years ago.  We will also be analyzing the speech to learn literary elements of alliteration, metaphors, similies, and use of high level vocabulary.  Future grades on the speech will include a study guide of the speech, speech quiz, and project.  Students will also be writing their own version of the "I Have a Dream" speech in a cloze format. 

Upcoming Lassiter Information for 8th Graders

Please read the following information and mark your calendars!

Monday, Feb 4 - Parent meeting at LHS on honors classes. Parents and students are welcome.

Thursday, Feb 7 - LHS teachers to Mabry during planning.

Wednesday, Feb 13 - LHS students to Mabry.

Friday, Feb 15 - Pebblebrook auditions at 2:30

Thursday, Feb 21 - Parent night at LHS. Students also welcome.

Friday, Feb 22 - Counselors to Mabry for any last minute parent or teacher questions.