A Change to Your Blogs

As we’ve discussed in class, when you leave a comment on a classmate’s blog your first AND last name will show up. What we’d like to do, for now, is to contain our blogs within the CTK school community only. What each of you will need to do is make a change in your blog’s settings. Don’t worry…it’s supremely easy!

• From any page on your blog, select “More actions” and then “manage site.”
• On the manage site page, select “Sharing” under “site settings.”
• Under “Advanced Permissions” uncheck the box that says “Anyone in the world may view this site.

There are actually a few blogs that are already set to only be viewed within the CTK school community, so if your box is already unchecked…perfect!!

This is going to be perfect, my friends! We’ll have plenty of practice in our own safe community, and when we’re ready Mrs. Massi will create new accounts
for us that will allow us to collaborate with the world! In other words…

It’s all good!!

Today’s Homework

Ok, I’m feeling like there may be some confusion about what you’re doing for homework this evening. So let’s clear it up, shall we? Here’s what you need to do tonight:

• Rough draft of the paragraph describing the spotted owl picture (written in your notebook or typed in word, but NOT posted to your blog)
• The “paper blog” – the one that you’re writing a couple of paragraphs about something you’re passionate about and then decorate it however you’d like.
• We didn’t talk about it, but it’s up on the homework board: please write our petitions for Friday’s mass. Remember who we pray for: (1) church leaders, (2) leaders of government, (3) Special occasions – Guardian angels and St. Francis of Assisi, (4) The sick, (5) The dead.

Both assignments for YOUR blog are due Friday, not tomorrow. You may, of course, do it tonight and email me if you have any questions. Check the Assignment Blog for explanations.

Writer’s Workshop

Here is the link to the photograph we used in writer’s workshop today:

Northern Spotted Owl – photo from National Geographic

Tonight you will need to write one paragraph that describes this photograph using the notes you took in class today. Bring your rough draft with you to class tomorrow.

Giver Blog Assignment

I’ve just posted a question for you to answer on your blogs! On the blog page you created for The Giver, create a post entitled “Sameness,” and answer the questions you’ll find here:

Sameness Blog Question

The Assignment Blog

I’m in the process of creating my own Google Site where I will post your blogging assignments. It’s located here:

Miss McMillan’s Assignment Blog

It will also be located in the sidebar of this blog under “Blogroll.”

No, there isn’t an assignment posted there yet, but there will be later tonight or tomorrow morning. I know how anxious everyone is to get started!

Adding Comments

I know you’re all anxious to begin the conversation with your classmates, but I’m going to ask you to wait until we talk about how and why we add comments. Remember these blogs are for educational purposes, not for general chatting with your buddies.

You have cellphones for that! 🙂

If you have already added comments, please delete them if you can. Or if someone has added a comment to your blog, please delete it. Thank you!

Let’s Get Started!

I know all of my wonderful seventh graders are ready to get started blogging, so let’s finish setting up our pages. In case you’ve forgotten already, start here:

Google Apps for Education

You will sign in using the same information you used in the computer lab this afternoon. If you need more help with the sign-in, please send me an email.

Once you log in, click on “sites” and you will see your student number, that’s the link to your Google Site page. Click on it and let’s get to work.

Moving Pages

If you need to move a page, it’s actually quite simple. From your Sites Home page, click on the page you wish to move. For example, if you have “The Giver” showing in your sidebar then it needs to be moved so that it’s located off your Literature page. If that’s the case, here’s what you do:

• From the home page, click on “The Giver” in the sidebar
• Click on “More actions” at the top of the window on the right-hand side (right next to “edit page”).
• Under “More actions” there is an option to “Move page”. That’s what you want!
• Click on “Move page” and a new window will open with a page highlighted in yellow. That is where your Giver page is currently “attached”…if you will.
• Now, click on “Literature” and it will become yellow.
• Finally, click on “Move” (at the bottom of the window).

That’s it! Easy, right?

Adding Pages

Ready to add some more pages? Of course you are! Let’s start with a Language Arts page. This will go off of the Home page, just like we did with literature. Got it?

Now let’s add a Vocabulary page, but this will go off of the Language Arts page…not the Home page. To do that, remember you need to click on “Choose a different location” when creating the page. Then select “Language Arts.”

How we doing?

OK? Great! Now, add the following pages off of the Home page:

• Religion
• My Reflections
• Writer’s Workshop
• Social Studies

If you’d like to see what it looks like, you can visit my practice page. But check back frequently as I’ll add STUFF as I think of it!

Your First Blog Assignment

Ready to write something? Sure you are! Hopefully you noticed that I added a “My Reflections” page to the list above. I’d like you to write your reflection about blogging. What are your thoughts as we start this blogging journey together? Are you excited? Anxious? Thinking you’d rather be using that old fashioned tool…oh, what’s it called?

Oh yeah…a pencil.

What are some ideas you might have for using the blog? What do you think some of the guidelines should be for using blogs? Every reflection you write should be at least a paragraph, but you may always feel free to write more!

Be sure to save the page now and then. Once you do, you’ll have to click on “edit page” in order to write more.

That’s it for now. What do you think?

🙂

ITBS Testing Week

Monday morning we will begin ITBS testing which will continue throughout the week. Before coming to school Monday, be sure you:

• had a good night’s sleep Sunday night
• had a hearty and healthy breakfast Monday morning
• have at least two (2) number 2 pencils (if you’re using a mechanical pencil, be sure to check the type of lead)
• bring a good, quality eraser – one that won’t leave a lot of smudges
• bring a silent reading book, sudoku or crossword puzzles,
  a coloring book…anything to do if you finish tests early

Here’s what it looks like to be poised and ready to go Monday morning:

Poised and Ready

Another Short Week

We have a short but busy week ahead of us. Well, at least it will be short for the students. Teachers will be at our diocesan Staff Development Day on Friday. My seventh graders will want to be prepared for:

• Spelling Test #3 on Wednesday
• DOL Quiz #4 on Thursday
• Vocab Test – Unit Two on Thursday
• Vocab Spelling Test on Thursday

Parents, if you haven’t already done so, please fill out and return your student’s permission slip for Loaves and Fishes. Also, please be sure to fill out my Back to School Google form which you can find here: Netvibes.

Ahhhh…A Day Off!

In case you can’t tell, George lives by the motto “Naptime is Anytime, Anywhere” (especially if there’s a lovely sunbeam shining on the kitchen floor). I hope all of my students are enjoying some much needed rest so that you’re ready to get back to work bright and early tomorrow morning!

If you want to get a head start on your week, I’ll be updating the calendar with assignments this afternoon.

So…what have you read this weekend???!!!