Monthly Archives: November 2017

Co-op Update — Week of 11/27

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Lots happening in school these next few weeks.  A few FYIs…
1) Athletic Day Forms will be coming home soon.  Our athletic day will take place on Friday, December 22nd.   Please return those as soon as possible.  (There will be updated info on the actual due date in this week’s CHOICE weekly.)
2) Presentations of Learning will take place on December 5th and 6th during the afternoon integrated block.  Parents are welcome (encouraged) to attend their student’s presentation session.
3) Integrated classes end on December 8th. Health classes will commence on December 11th and continue through December 21st.  Students will be broken up by grade level for this curriculum.
4) You should have received your student’s LA and Math rubrics electronically.  (Your student will have shared these with you.) These should also be printed and placed in portfolios.  In addition, students should now have 3-4 artifacts in their personal section.
Have a great week!  -JF

Fast Food Nation Update — Week of 11/27

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Crazy to think that we only have 10 more days of class!   Busy times ahead.

Here’s what’s happening.

1) Please see the presentation schedule (also pasted at the conclusion of this email).  We hope you will be able to join us in class for your student’s presentations of learning.

2) We’ll be working on our presentations all week.  Here is the task description and rubric for our POLs.

3) There are still two groups who need to record their ancient civilization newscasts.  I’m hoping to be able to share those with you electronically in our next update.

4) In addition, students will be working on their PSRs for their portfolios.  One reflection focuses on a concept they learned.  The second reflection focuses on their growth as a learner.  Here is the task description

5) Lastly, it is tradition at CHOICE to have an end-of-integrated party on the final day of class.  We’ll be doing this on Friday, December 8th.  It seemed a little crazy to study “Fast Food Nation” all semester and then celebrate by eating all sorts of junk food.  So instead, as a final “assignment,” I am asking all students to bring in something on our final day that is “slow food” instead.  In other words, students should plan on bringing something that they have made from scratch on that day.

6) With all this happening, I’ll be updating Infinite Campus pretty regularly over the next week or two.  Please check for missing assignments using that platform.

Upcoming due dates:

Tuesday, 11/28:  POL Movie should be complete.

Thursday, 11/30: PSRs should be signed off.

Tuesday, December 5th /Wednesday, December 6th:  POLs

Thursday, December 7th:  Semester Rubrics and final day for any outstanding assignments.

Friday, December 8th: End of semester party.  “Slow food” due.

Have a great week!  -Josh Feiger

CLASS:

DATE & TIME

 Fast Food Nation

(Feiger’s Room)

PRESENTING
Tuesday

December 5th

1:40 pm
  1. Cooper
  2. Macy
  3. Lilly
  4. Dillon
  5. Evan
  6. Max
  7. Teague
Tuesday

December 5th

2:45 pm
  1. Keira
  2. Liam H.
  3. Joe
  4. Savannah
  5. Dale
  6. Spencer
  7. Maya M.
Wednesday

December 6th

1:35 pm
  1. Phoebe
  2. Alex
  3. Leticia
  4. Jett
  5. Jenna
  6. Liam Z.
Wednesday

December 6th

2:40 pm
  1. Aniela
  2. Lahja
  3. Skye
  4. Ellie R.
  5. Anya
  6. Tommy
  7. Eli S.

LA Update — Week of 11/27/17

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Our focus this week will be on polishing and proofreading as we finish the final drafts of our stories.  Here’s the grammar/polish protocol that we’ll be using to finalize our work.  On Friday, we’ll also have about 50-100 open-enrollment visitors coming through Block 1.  For students in that class, they will be sharing their process as story writers with our OE guests (in small groups).
Due dates:
Every day:  Read 30 minutes.
Tuesday:  Students should have a complete draft of their story.
Thursday by 9pm:  Final draft due via Google Classroom.
Also, friendly reminder that our coffeehouse event at the Espressoria Coffeehouse is on the evening of Thursday, December 14th.  I don’t want to use the word “required” — but this evening is a really important celebration of their hard work and it’s an expectation that all students attend.  It is also a collaborative performance so if your student is unable to join us that evening (Block 1 5pm-6pm or Block 2 6:30-7:15pm), please let me know by Wednesday, November 29th so I can adjust accordingly.  
Have a great week!

Fast Food Nation Update — Week of 11/13/17

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Here’s what’s happening in class this week:

1) We’ll be headed out to the Museo De Las Americas in Denver on Friday, November 17th.  Students should be dressed for the weather and should bring a sack lunch.  We are going to get a tour of the museum and then get the chance to participate in two workshops.  The first one will be on the history of the Tortilla and we’ll get a chance to make our own tortillas.  The second workshop will be about protest art by Jose Guadalupe Posada (1852-1913).  Students will get a chance to create their own protest art pieces using a Tortilla press.
2) In class, we’ll be filming our Ancient Civilization Newscasts.  Students have written their scripts and should bring any props or materials to school by Tuesday.
3) We’ll also be introducing the POL (Presentation of Learning) on Monday.  Students will be working on that when they are not broadcasting the news.  Click here for the complete POL task description and rubric.
Have a great week and a fantastic Thanksgiving!  -JF

LA Update — Week of 11/13/17

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A few notes as we enter into Thanksgiving:
1) If your student is NOT able to make it to the coffeehouse readings on December 14th, please email me asap.  It’s a collaborative performance of sorts (kids introduce each other) and so I really appreciate the heads-up.  Again,  Block 1 students will read from 5pm-6pm and Block 2 students will read from 6:30pm-7:20pm.  In the spirit of community, we ask for students to stay for the entirety of their block’s performance.  (They are welcome to stay for both blocks — but that is completely optional.)
 
2) The <new> due date for final-draft stories is now Thursday, November 30th.
3) Students should be reading 30 minutes a night — even over the long weekend and Thanksgiving.  I’ll be doing my best (and we’ll be visiting the library) to make sure that all students have something good to read over the break.
4) First trimester progress report rubrics from both math and LA will be shared with you from your student on Wednesday, November 15th.  Look for them!
5) In class this week, we’ll be exploring:
  • A) How to actually use feedback as writers.
  • B) How writers develop a sense of place.
  • C) Endings — how do you show/not tell your theme?
Have a great week and a wonderful thanksgiving!   I’m thankful for the opportunity to work with these amazing students.  -JF

LA Update — Week of 11/6/17

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We’ll be tackling peer critique this week.  This is one of the most important topics that we’ll address all year in LA.  If students can learn to give one another kind, helpful, and specific story critiques, they also learn to  “step outside” of themselves as editors.  This allows students to begin to see their own writing with a more critical eye.
Here’s the peer critique protocol that we’ll be using to guide our process.  We’ll be introducing this on Monday and working on it throughout the week.
Upcoming due dates:
  • Every night:  Reading 30 minutes
  • Thursday by 8:30am:  All peer critiques should be complete. Peer Critique Survey due.  (Students will have time to do this in class)
Have a great week!  -JF

Fast Food Nation Update — Week of 11/6/17

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We had a fantastic visit with Ann Cooper on Friday.  It was fascinating to hear about all the factors that go into providing a healthy school lunch.  Great week of class last week — LTPs are done!  I’ll be hopefully handing these back in the coming days.  If students wish to further revise their LTPs after the final draft, they should make an appointment with me to get additional feedback and plan on turning in any revisions by November 16th.
Many students may wish to use their LTPs in their social studies section of their CHOICE portfolios.  We’ll discuss exactly how to do that sometime in the next several weeks.
As for this week, we’ll be focused on writing scripts and — depending on timing — actually shooting video of our Ancient Civilization Newscasts.  Due dates TBA in class — but you can click here to see the task description.  (We are currently on steps 5 or 6.)
Have a terrific week!  -JF

Co-op Update 11/6/17-11/17/17

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A few quick updates for co-op for the next several weeks.
1) Portfolio.   By Thanksgiving break, students should have the following in their portfolio:
  • A) Three or four artifacts in their personal section.
  • B) Printed out copies of their trimester rubrics in LA and Math. Students will share these with parents electronically on 11/15/17.  (Ideally, these are printed at home.)
  • C) Updated their service logs to reflect their hours.  In a perfect world, students should have completed at least 1/3rd of their community hours by this time.
2) For 8th graders, we have alumni night 6pm-7pm on Thursday, 11/16.  This is a great chance to hear from  former CHOICE students about their transition to different high schools throughout the area.
3) Friendly reminder — no school on Friday 11/10.
4) We have our final ADI of the semester on Friday 11/17.  Students should bring lunches and check with their integrated teacher for specific details.
Have a great week!  -JF