Week of April 5, Our final, final drafts

Hi everyone,

• This week we will be finishing the final draft of our Welcoming Stories.
• Remember that this draft will be graded as a test.
• Follow Irina's instructions:
• Remember, you're telling your story about your experience of coming to America, and within your story, you are transitioning to a sub-story about someone that welcomed you. You're leading with your main story (coming to America), and then telling a sub-story (story of someone that welcomed you and helped change your life).
• Make sure your main story and sub-story meets all of the checklist criteria:
  
  1. Do you have a strong hook for introducing your main story?
  2. Does your main story of coming to America follow a strong story arc?
  3. Does your main story of coming to America address the WWWWWH?
  4. Do you use rich details and help the reader visualize your background, how you came to America, the circumstances about your last day in your country/first day in America, what you were feeling?
  5. When you transition into your sub-story about the welcoming person, do you have a strong hook?
  6. Does your sub-story about your welcoming person have a strong story arc?
  7. Does your sub-story about your welcoming person address the WWWWWH?
  8. Do you use rich details and help the reader visualize your welcoming person--their physical traits, their personality, etc? You may want to describe their voice, their personality, recall something specific they said to you. Talk about your feelings and how their actions made you feel.
• Make sure your entire story addresses all of the above criteria!
• When you have finished, print your story and email your story (file-email as attachment) to:

1. Irina (irinalee@gmail.com
2. Your Eagle Tech partner

Be sure that you email it as an attachment, not a link. If you don't know how to do this, ask! File-email as attachment.

I will count these final drafts as a test grade for the second marking period.

Week of March 29, Sharing our Stories

Hi everyone,

Today and tomorrow we will be working on our stories. First check your email to read the feed back from your partners at the Eagle Tech Academy in Columbia City, IN.

I asked their teacher, Mr. Urschel, to share the link to the story on CNN where he learned about our school, and here it is.

Here is information about the school:
Eagle Tech Academy is a small, stand-alone public high school. Any type of student can choose to come here; there are no grade requirements. Our students stay here for the first three blocks of the day, then they go to the main campus of the high school (Columbia City High School) for their electives. This is the first year we've been open. We're a STEM school (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math).

Here is a note Mr. Urschel posted to our blog:

Newcomers Students,
Thanks so much for your responses. Our students in third block just finished looking at your school through Google Earth. They're impressed that your school is so large. It's a beautiful building. If you would like to look us up on Google Earth, we’re at 107 N. Walnut Street, Columbia City, IN 46725. We're located inside the Marshall Building. One of our students, Angel Sanders, wanted to know if there was a way for some of our students to become "pen pals" with you all at Newcomers. We are looking forward to reading your stories. Thanks so much for your willingness to share! We have a great deal to learn from you.
- Mr. Urschel, Teacher at Eagle Tech Academy

Today, we will use our computer time to really finish our stories for First Person American, and then email these final drafts, with answers to their questions/comments to our Eagle Tech partners.

Open your draft in Google Docs and revise it based on Irina's instructions:

• Remember, you're telling your story about your experience of coming to America, and within your story, you are transitioning to a sub-story about someone that welcomed you. You're leading with your main story (coming to America), and then telling a sub-story (story of someone that welcomed you and helped change your life).
• Make sure your main story and sub-story meets all of the checklist criteria:

1. Do you have a strong hook for introducing your main story?
2. Does your main story of coming to America follow a strong story arc?
3. Does your main story of coming to America address the WWWWWH?
4. Do you use rich details and help the reader visualize your background, how you came to America, the circumstances about your last day in your country/first day in America, what you were feeling?
5. When you transition into your sub-story about the welcoming person, do you have a strong hook?
6. Does your sub-story about your welcoming person have a strong story arc?
7. Does your sub-story about your welcoming person address the WWWWWH?
8. Do you use rich details and help the reader visualize your welcoming person--their physical traits, their personality, etc? You may want to describe their voice, their personality, recall something specific they said to you. Talk about your feelings and how their actions made you feel.

• Make sure your entire story addresses all of the above criteria!

At the end of class, email your story to your Eagle Tech partner, and print your story. We will help each other revise our stories tomorrow in class!

Week of March 22, Sharing our Stories

Hi everyone,

This week we will be finishing the fourth draft of our Welcoming St

ories.

Remember that you have to refine your Welcoming Story, focusing on the welcoming person only. Apply the WWWWWH and the story arc to the segment of your story related to the welcoming person. Remember to be specific, for example: include an anecdote, describe the welcoming person in detail, describe the first time you met that person, a specific time s/he helped you, your relationship with that person now.

I have very exciting news, however. Students at the Eagle Tech Academy in Columbia City, IN, will be reading and editing your stories. They are studying immigration, and they are going to read your stories, and will write to you with questions and suggestions. Then you will revise your stories based on their feedback to create your final, final, final draft!

So today, we will use our computer time to finish this draft of our stories and then email them to our Eagle Tech partners.

Open your draft in Google Docs and revise it based on Irina's instructions.

Then you will email it, as an attachment, to the Eagle Tech student I've assigned to you. Please ask me if you don't know how to email as attachments using Google Docs.

When you are all done with this, please write a post to our blog answering the following questions:

1. How do you feel about sharing your story with students at Eagle Tech Academy and why?
2. What kind of feedback do you hope to receive?

Post your answers to our blog as a comment.

Week of March 15, Grades for MP1 and working on FPA

Hi everyone,

Today we are going to evaluate our grades and then revise our welcoming stories.

Photos from our trip to SLS Family Dance.

Please answer the questions below in Google Docs:

Please give me feedback (comments/suggestions) about your experience in the class. Please be specific and honest as this will help make the class better for you and everyone else in the coming semester.

1. What did you enjoy about class this marking period? Why? Please refer to specific activities, projects, workshops, etc.
2. What didn't you enjoy and why? Please be specific.
3. Do you feel you have changed in any way as a result of your participation in this class? If yes, how?
4. Were there any activities/projects/topics that I didn't cover that you want us to cover?Which ones?
5. What can I do to make the class better for you (aside from no homework J )? Please be specific.
6. What advice can you give to your classmates to make their experience in this class more meaningful?
7. Fill in the blanks..."From class this marking period, one thing I will take is _______________ and one thing I will give is ________________."

When you finish, please post your answers to our class blog.

Then open your Welcoming Story in Google Docs

• Based on the review and critique of your story, use the feedback and your classmates' follow-up questions to edit and revise your story.
• Keep exploring details. Remember the 5 W's. Follow the story arc. Show, don't tell. Let the reader envision and SEE your story through the details in your writing.
• For tomorrow, bring a printout of your revised story.

Good follow up questions:

1. How did you feel in that moment?
2. How did you learn English?
3. Who helped you?
4. Describe that person. What does she look like, act like?
5. Do you still keep in touch with her?
6. What do you want to say to her? How do you want to thank her?
7. What dreams did you have about the US? What were you expecting?
8. How did you make your decision to come here?
9. Describe how your welcoming person helped you.
10. How have you shown your gratitude?
11. How did you feel coming here without your parents?
12. How did your family react when you left?
13. Describe a specific moment when your welcoming person made you feel welcomed.
14. Talk about any regrets you have about leaving your country.
15. How do you know your welcoming person?
16. Talk more about the night before you left.
17. How did you feel when you came here?
18. How do you want to thank your welcoming person?

HW 2 for First Person American

Photos from our trip to SLS Family Dance.

For next Friday, March 16:

• Based on the review and critique of your story, use the feedback and your classmates' follow-up questions to edit and revise your story.
• Keep exploring details. Remember the 5 W's. Follow the story arc. Show, don't tell. Let the reader envision and SEE your story through the details in your writing.
• For next week, bring a printout of your revised story.

Good follow up questions:

1. How did you feel in that moment?
2. How did you learn English?
3. Who helped you?
4. Describe that person. What does she look like, act like?
5. Do you still keep in touch with her?
6. What do you want to say to her? How do you want to thank her?
7. What dreams did you have about the US? What were you expecting?
8. How did you make your decision to come here?
9. Describe how your welcoming person helped you.
10. How have you shown your gratitude?
11. How did you feel coming here without your parents?
12. How did your family react when you left?
13. Describe a specific moment when your welcoming person made you feel welcomed.
14. Talk about any regrets you have about leaving your country.
15. How do you know your welcoming person?
16. Talk more about the night before you left.
17. How did you feel when you came here?
18. How do you want to thank your welcoming person?

Week of March 8, Reflections on Trip and First Person American

Hi everyone,

This week we are going to reflect on our trip to St Luke's and then continue working on our welcoming stories.

Here is a link to photos from our trip!

In google docs, please answer the questions below:

1. What was the best part of our day? Why?
2. What will you remember 10 years from now about the visit?
3. What do you wish we had more time for?
4. What part of the day should have been changed and why?

Then post your answers to our blog as a comment.

Now open your welcoming story in Google Docs. Please revise it in the following ways and make sure you finish it and bring a printed copy to our session with First Person American tomorrow!

Based on our first sesion's discussion of Welcoming Stories, continue to think about the person who welcomed you.

Watch David, Illona, Mona and Leila's Welcoming Story. Notice the specific details that make their story rich and memorable. Think about how to apply the story arc and hook to each story. What makes their story a good story?

Refine and continue working on your "Your Name's Welcoming Story" document in Google Docs.

Refer to your notes from the workshop's discussion of the story arc, hook and characteristics of a good story. Identify each part of your story arc and the hook. Label it on your story directly.

For tomorrow, bring a printout of your revised Welcoming Story. Be ready to discuss and illustrate how the story arc and hook applies to your story. Be specific! The good stuff is all in the details!

March 2, HW for First Person American

1. Get your media release form signed and bring to class Monday!

2. Go to the First Person American website and Watch David, Illona, Mona and Leila's Welcoming Story. Notice the specific details that make their story rich and memorable. Think about how to apply the story arc and hook to each story. What makes their story a good story?

Refine and continue working on your "Your Name's Welcoming Story" document in Google Docs.

Refer to your notes from the workshop's discussion of the story arc, hook and characteristics of a good story. Identify each part of your story arc and the hook. Label it on your story directly.

For Friday 3.9, bring a printout of your revised Welcoming Story. Be ready to discuss and illustrate how the story arc and hook applies to your story. Be specific! The good stuff is all in the details!