1. Mrs. Demos 2012-2013 Quarter 1 ELA Seminar

2. Drill 1 August 28 Homework: Get Parent Letter Signed. Bring in all supplies by Friday. One tissue box for next week. Objective: Students will become familiar with the ELA seminar procedures and policies. Drill: Identify the subject (noun) and predicate (main verb) in the following sentences. (The sentences are on your handout.)

3. Drill 1 Answer Albert Einstein is reading an anti-gravity book. The book is impossible to put down. Mrs. Demos usually takes steps to avoid elevators. Joey could not quite remember how to throw a boomerang, but eventually it came back to him. Mummies are bound to be uptight. Catherine was going to look for my missing watch, but she could never find the time.

4. Drill 2 8/29 Homework: All Supplies Due Friday 8/31. Bring a box of tissues for a project. Objective: SWBAT identify parts of speech in order to ensure correct usage. Drill: Use the same sentences from drill 1. Highlight all of the adjectives pink and all of the adverbs green.

5. Drill 2 Answer Albert Einstein is reading a an anti-gravity book. The book is impossible to put down. Mrs. Demos usually takes steps to avoid elevators. Joey could not quite remember how to throw a boomerang, but eventually it came back to him. Mummies are bound to be uptight. Catherine was going to look for my missing watch, but she could never find the time.

6. Drill 3 8/30 Homework: All supplies tomorrow. Tissue box for project. Objective: SWBAT explore word function in order to expand their writing. Drill: Combine these two simple sentences into one sentence. 1. Catherine was going to look for my missing watch. 2. She could never find the time. 1. Compare answers with your team. Be prepared to share.

7. Drill 4 8/31 Objective: TSW set measurable goals for the coming year in order to measure progress. Drill: Create a list of all the activities (sports, clubs, reading, computer games) in which you are successful. Pick one of your successful activities and list at least three reasons why you think you are successful.

8. Drill 9/4 Objective: The students will demonstrate the ability to combine and compose sentences in order to improve sentence fluency. Drill: Put your name, date, period 1 and Diagnostic 1 on the scantron. Think about two things you can do to be successful on this pre-test.

9. Drill 9/5 Objective: The student will recognize and use phrases in order to improve sentence fluency. Drill: As best as you can define or give an example of each of the following phrases. Prepositional Phrase Infinitive Phrase Appositive Phrase Participial Phrase Absolute Phrase

10. Drill 9/5 answers Prepositional Phrase: Shows location and time. Begins with a preposition and ends with a noun. Appositive Phrase: Renames the noun. Set off by commas. Participial Phrase: Verb used as an adjective. Ends in –ing or –ed Infinitive Phrase: The word “to” plus a verb. Used as a noun, adjective, or adverb. Absolute Phrase: Modifies the rest of the sentence. Begins with a personal pronoun and is set off with commas.

11. Drill 9/6 Objective: The students will be able to analyze figurative language in order to determine meaning. Drill: Compare the following two sentences. The rain falls on the forest. The ancient yet ageless oaks reach their tired arms to the sky, drinking in the drops of cool water like an old lady reaching for the last bit of her youth. Why might an author choose to write one sentence over the other? What examples of figurative language can you identify in this sentence?

12. Drill 9/7 Objective: The students will be able to analyze figurative language in order to determine meaning. Drill: Put your name, date, period 1 and Diagnostic 1 on the scantron. Think about two things you can do to be successful on this pre-test.