Intro

Description of Mr. Estes

• Father of Three
• Fifth Grade Teacher
• Made a C

Describe the Moment

• Going to PE
• Issued the Challenge

Relate a Story

• Over the next four years

Describe impact on you

• Graduated with a 4.27
• Presentation: “Are You a Mr. Estes?”

Concluding Thoughts

• Describing what Common Core standards are and why they were created…
  1. Explain that Arkansas uses these standards here. 
• Why do teachers need standards?
• Why/How are they important to students?
• Conclude your thoughts.

In Introduction to Education, the students have been discussing Common Core Standards and learning why…

The Common Core Standards were created… They serve as a … In Arkansas, educators use…

Standards are important to teachers because…

Standards are, also, important to students because…

Based on the above, Common Core Standards are…

• Blog 2.1 – Social Media 
  • Intro
  • Body
    • Negative
      • How could this have been prevented?
    • Positive
  • Conclusion

Review the rubric here!

Intro: Happy graduation day, Cia! After this, Cia learns she is leaving home…maybe forever. Oh no. What a way to be introduced to your future story, one not of your own choosing. Author Joelle Charbonneau’s The Testing challenges my thinking on loyalty to one’s leaders.

BODY: CHOOSE THREE OF THE FIVE TOPICS

Body 1: Setting – Set the scene (setting). How does the setting affect either the actions performed by the characters OR how does the setting affect the conflict within your novel. Give three examples of the one to which you decide to respond. Set into a future, once again, when America did not face its enemies successfully, the scene is harsh, yet underlying all that is happening, a small sense of hope. Quickly going from her home to the initial testing site to the barren, challenging land where many will not succeed, Cia uses her brain (she is always thinking!) to use this setting to her advantage. For example, in chapter…

Body 2: Character – Talk about a character. Does the writer make you believe in them as people? Why or why not? Think about whether you like the characters and about how liking them or disliking them makes you feel about the book. As you write about a character, use three example quotes they have said or actions to give a sense of their personalities. Main characters Cia and Thomas

Body 3: Theme – Explain a theme of the book. What life lesson does the book illustrate? Give three details to support the impact of the theme on the characters.

Recommendation/Conclusion: Yes! (I have already ordered the next two in the series!)

Happy New Year! Now is the time to begin making plans and goals for 2022.

PART 1: First, my One Word: knowledge.

I have known 2022’s word since October:  knowledge.  This seems quite the strange word for me, as I am in year 31 of teaching and have shared much knowledge (hopefully).  Where will this word take me?  I shall continue to share knowledge…and I will continue to learn.

The word knowledge means…

The letter m is used twice in Tammy.

There are two 3s in my phone number.

Here’s a quick recap of my previous words:

• 2011:  Peace
• 2012:  Quiet
• 2013:  Fit
• 2014:  Smile
• 2015:  Complete
• 2016:  All
• 2017:  Diligent
• 2018:  Less
• 2019:  Birth
• 2020:  Restore
• 2021:  Ponder
• 2022:  Knowledge

I am looking forward to my continued journeys with all twelve words…for I do not want to leave any of them behind…and with an increased focus on knowledge. 

PART 2: Intentions…instead of resolutions!

I began this tradition of writing intentions instead of resolutions about a decade ago after reading a blog post rationalizing the word change…gives one more grace when one initially fails at a resolution.  Grace…a beautiful concept.

Wow!  22.  Twenty-two.  Better get started on that list!

1. Read Gone with the Wind.  I never have.  I am choosing this one as my Independent Read for Quarter 3.  Pressure…and assignment…is on!
2. Watch Gone with the Wind…only after having completed #1.
3. Lose 52 pounds…one pound a week.
4. More water…less sodas.  
5. Read an average of one book a week.  Hummm…see #1!
6. Read the Bible through…again.
7. Read The Christmas Carol and complete a Bible study connected to this book.  (AND I received another book regarding this same book.  Must be meant to be!)
8. Attempt to complete this book challenge:  52 Book Club’s Reading Challenge.  Why this challenge?  To push myself to read books out of my comfort zone!
9. Read one professional read every two months.  I need to read one a month…but…  I have not grown professionally during this pandemic…as surviving became the goal and little energy or want-to was left to read books, other than ones of personal choice.
10. Re-read the Harry Potter books!  
11. Find good deals on books and buy/stock them up for 2022 Christmas gifts.  I gave books this year…and I have enjoyed doing so.
12. Give books as gifts for birthdays.  This one will take some planning, as birthdays tend to slip up on me!
13. Send birthday and thank you cards much more diligently!
14. Blog…more.  Write, reflect…just write.
15. Finish all the quilts I currently have started or promised to others AND make more quilts for others…and for me.
16. Paint.  
17. Pick up and put away…especially in my car and house!  Family gatherings will more often be hosted within our home; much less work to be more diligent about keeping our humble abode consistently presentable.
18. Focus on my One Word:  knowledge.  Maybe refer to all the above intentions that deal with books?!
19. Continue making time for my friend groups:  Meeting of the Minds and the Wildcats.
20. Be even more involved in ALA and WRLC…two literacy groups.
21. Spend quality time with the fam, especially The Man and The Daughter.
22. Create and grow even more beautiful flowers than I did last year.

Did you notice that many focus on books?  I just really like books!  2022…going to be a good year!
How about you?  Resolutions?  Intentions?  One?  22?!

Rubric for this assignment is here!

_______________________________________________________________

Mrs. Gillmore’s Sample:

J.K. Rowling has created another masterpiece. Yes, again! Love Harry Potter and his friends? Love to hate He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named and Severus Snape? Then, be prepared to fall for Jack and his new friends who assist in creating Christmas miracles. Involving created worlds and grand adventures, Rowling’s The Christmas Pig reminds the reader of the immeasurable value of personal treasures and the length to which one will go to preserve such momentoes.

First, main character Jack, through his many admirable qualities, proves he is not afraid of the adventures needed to save his friend, his confidante, his pig. In chapter 2,…. In chapter 15, ….. Also, in chapter 31….

One potential theme for this novel is that people will go to such extremes to save what they own. In chapter 2,…. In chapter 15, ….. Also, in chapter 31….

Rowling’s writing style continues to pull in readers…to new lands and exciting adventures…with her attention to descriptive detail. In chapter 2,…. In chapter 15, ….. Also, in chapter 31….

Based on the above, I totally…like really totally…recommend this book because….

Intro: Hook. Arthur Miller’s The Crucible + verb + opinion on a topic.

Body 1 Character Mary Warren reflects so many teenagers I know today. In Act 2,

Body 2 The setting had a dramatic effect on conflict. In Act 1,

Body 3 One theme on the topic of __________ is … In Act

Conclusion

Intro.

Body 1

Body 2

Body 3

Conclusion/Recommendation

SAMPLE BOOK REVIEW: Why did Mrs. Gillmore earn a D?!

Imagine deciding your future at the age of sixteen. This is expected of Beatrice and her brother and all other sixteen-year-olds.  With Divergent, author Veronica Roth creates another almost-believable dystopic world, one that is set, this time, in Chicago.

According to the author, the setting chose her.  As she pondered on her setting, she realize it was her own setting of Chicago because of the trains that all run above ground in this city.  This setting dramatically impacts the actions performed by the characters, as this dystopic world affects the culture that each faction lives within.  For example, Abnegation, a selfless people, seek to make others happy, giving up seats on a bus, as Beatrice’s brother Caleb does. The setting most affects the Dauntless, who love an adrenaline rush.  Imagine a zipline from a one hundred story building.  Imagine jumping from a moving train.  Fighting to stay alive.  Enduring extreme pain to win.

As you read be prepared for Roth’s warning, yes, a theme, one of the lessons that she wants her readers to consider is imperfections always lie within what seemingly appears perfect.  Beatrice’s world is divided into five factions that each depict a particular virtue.  So what could be better than being allowed to choose among several of these virtues? This Beatrice must do, realizing only later that this also makes her different:  a Divergent.  This begins her battle towards self-realization and and learning that some do not want her to be different; some have no appreciation for Divergents.

Even more so than Beatrice, my favorite character is Four, a leader in the Dauntless faction.  Maybe it is because he is the strong, silent type?  Maybe because he helps those help themselves?  Because he helps those when they can no longer help themselves? Because of these characteristics, Four appears older than his eighteen years, having learned much in this not-so-perfect world.  According to him, “selflessness and bravery aren’t that different.”  He lives both of this words, rarely putting himself before others (he could have been the main leader) and pushing himself and others, including Beatrice, to be more than they were so that they may enduring the Initiation phase.

Enjoy a book with one adventure after another?  Then, yes, Divergent is for you.  Hurry!  Book two Insurgent is already out, with book three’s release planned for sometime this fall.

Additional Note:  I took the Faction Quiz at the end of the novel.  I tied for Abnegation and Dauntless.  Hummm…I suppose that means I am a selfless brave person.  Really?!  Give me minute to imagine that!

Prewriting Stage: Writer’s Notebook #9

Introduction – Must use an allusion from The Crucible.

Body 1 – First Name

Body 2 – Last Name

Conclusion – Impact of your name…on you, your family, community…

In Rick Riordan’s The Lightning Thief, Percy’s mom, showing her love and concern for her son, cautions Percy about saying aloud the names of the monsters.  “Names have power,” she explains to Percy.  Just as she specifically named her son, so my parents chose my name. 

Yes, names have meaning. I received my first name thanks to the Tammy movies that starred Debby Reynolds and Sandra Lee, which were a series of four films.  Due to their popularity, this name became quite common during that time.  As a matter of fact, if you know a Tammy, she is probably in her 50s…right?  Maybe 60?  Also, ready for a giggle?  Hummm…Tammy means “perfection.”  This truly results in my having empathy for all ladies named Tammy, for, seriously, I do understand the struggle to live up to this name’s meaning, for our parents set us up for failure!  Such an unattainable goal!

Originating from the country of Ireland, my maiden name Friel descends from a long line of hard-working, dependable men and women.  At some point, the name was shortened, as the spelling once was O’Friel, and before then, other spellings existed, as reported here.  In addition, growing up as a Friel, I watched my parents and noticed often how our community perceived them, for my dad was quite the highly respected man in our little community and surrounding areas, for he owned one of the most successful tire businesses in our part of the state, selling to locals, gas stations, and other businesses who sold tires and batteries.  (SIDENOTE:  ask me my thoughts about unloading a semi-trailer load of tires.  Ugh!)

CONCLUSION GOES HERE. What is the impact of your name?