bell ringer

Journals 4th 9 Weeks
• Worth 100 points EACH Semester
• Must be ¾ a page.
• 1st 5 minutes of each class.
• Every entry must be formatted with
– The Journal #
– The Date
– The “Title”
Every entry must have the 3 formatting items in the top corner of the page. Only
1 entry per page. Longer entries may take up 2 pages if necessary.

Journal Entry #1Journal Entry #70
March 19, 2014
Comma Practice
Practice using COMMAS using the following rules
(write examples in complete sentences):
 Separate two INDEPENDENT CLAUSES joined by a
conjunction (, and/, but)
 Set off introductory SUBORDINATE CLAUSES and long
PHRASES (When…..,)
 Set off NONESSENTIAL CLAUSES (APPOSITIVES)
 Separate two adjectives that MODIFY a single noun
(could replace the comma with AND)

March 20, 2014
Pronoun Practice
Practice using the following indefinite pronoun &
pronoun combinations in sentences:
 “Nobody” & “his or her” (singular verb)
Ex. Nobody will want his or her skin to get sunburned while at the
beach over Spring Break.
 “Many” & “they/their” (plural verb)
 “Someone” & “his” (singular verb)
 “Several” & “they/their” (plural verb)
 “Anyone” & “his or her” (singular verb)

March 27, 2014
Gratitude Day!
Topic: Showing Gratitude for ________________
Detail 1: ___________________
Detail 2: ___________________
Monthly Challenge:
Your paragraph
MUST use 3
DIFFERENT comma
rules, at least 1
semicolon, 1 dash
(double hyphen),
and 1 set of
parenthesis!!
(Remember: TDSSDSSC)
Write your TOPIC & 2 DETAILS at the top of your page, then wait for the timer!!

Dear Mrs. Carter,
I just wanted to take a minute to let you know how much you are truly
appreciated here at Murray Middle School. For one thing, your job is filled with
stresses, obligations, and thankless duties; however, you handle all of it with
class and a sense of humor. In the early days of your tenure here at MMS, we
could read the stress on your face—now, after years of experience, you face
each challenge with a positive attitude and a smile. It is nice to walk into the
office every morning to either a compliment, a giggle, or just a smile from our
principal, the queen of our Tiger realm. Another reason you deserve some
gratitude is way that you truly epitomize the "eye of the Tiger" attitude that our
district uses as it's motto. Indeed, it can't be easy for a "Graves County Girl" to
bleed black and gold, but there is NO question where your loyalty lies. You have
a Tiger attitude and live by the Tiger motto every day, every month, every year
(even years after your baby graduated, you still remain a Tiger fan in the
stands—tried and true). All in all, you're a great principal who is 100%
dedicated to this school—its staff, its students, and its reputation in this
community and beyond. Saying "thank you" might not be enough (and I know
those words aren't shared enough), but I DO hope you know how much you
mean to all of us here at MMS.
Sincerely,
Hope Foster

April 7, 2014
Scavenger Hunt-Punctuation
Look through a novel of your choice to find sentences
where the author used the following punctuation:
 SEMI-COLON
 PARENTHESIS
 PAIR of COMMAS (APPOSITIVE)
 COMMA/CONJUNCTION COMBO
 COMMA to set off an introductory phrase
 DASH—DOUBLE HYPHEN
Leave room to note any interesting punctuation or text features.

April 8, 2014
Aspire Practice-English
Number your page 7-12 and be ready to answer
some ASPIRE questions.
7. 10.
8. 11.
9. 12.

April 9, 2014
Aspire Practice-Writing
The ACT ASPIRE test will ask you to write an essay.
You will have 2 hours to plan and draft (you will be
drafting and submitting online).
Create a 1 Page SPAM plan on your page
and get ready to plan a sample essay.

April 14, 2014
Digging Deeper:In-depth
Draw a soil chart on your page. Choose ONE line
from the “Changes” poem on your desk and place
it at the top of your page (GRASS/Surface).
Now DIG DEEPER:
 Make an inference about
that line
 Draw a conclusion based
on that inference
 Make a meaningful
connection
 Connect all your ideas to
an overall THEME.

April 15, 2014
Digging Deeper
Turn your page into a soil chart—include surface and all 3 horizons.
Choose another line from the poem “Changes” (one with hidden
meaning) and put it on the SURFACE…now Dig Deeper!
 Make an inference about
that fact (surface)
 Draw a conclusion based
on that inference
 Make a meaningful
connection
 Connect all your ideas to
an overall THEME.

April 16, 2014
Sentence Complexity Search
Look through one chapter of the novel you are reading to
find sentences at the varied degrees of complexity:
 Simple Sentence—short/minimal punctuation
 A Bit More Complex Sentence—still short/some internal
punctuation (likely one comma to separate a phrase)
 Compound Sentence—Two complete thoughts
(Independent Clauses) combined with either a
comma/conjunction or a semi-colon (;).
 The Longest/Most Complex Sentence you can find! Lots of
internal punctuation (of various types)

April 17, 2014
The Art of the Argument
ar·gu·ment (ärgyəmənt)
1. an exchange of diverging or opposite views, typically a heated or angry one.
2. a reason or set of reasons given with the aim of persuading others that an
action or idea is right or wrong.
Write down the definitions above in your journal.
Using the 2nd definition of “ARGUMENT,” write a script
of a recent “ARGUMENT” that you have had with
another person (no heat, no anger…just persuasion).

April 21, 2014
Concession/Counterargument
Go back to the ARGUMENT you drafted last week.
Write 2 sentences of concession/counterargument for
EACH side of the argument (4 sentences total).
I concede that…; however
Yes, …, but…
I recognize that…, but I must point out that
While I agree that…, I doubt that…
While it is true that…, we must remember that…
Although I understand that…, I still believe that…

Journal Entry #1
Journal Entry # 81
April 28, 2014
Fortune Cookie Speeches
 Read the following fortune & write it on your journal page,
 INTERPRET IT (explain, describe, explore multiple meanings)
 Plan out a three point speech ().

Journal Entry #1
Journal Entry # 82
April 29, 2014

April 30, 2014
Gratitude Day!
At the TOP of your journal page LIST
your TOPIC & 2 Details!
Topic: Showing Gratitude for ?
Detail 1:
Detail 2:
Challenge:
• MUST use the RULE
OF THREE
• Three IS Key!!
EVERYTHING COUNTS: Format (indent/SPAM), Organization,
Spelling, Capitalization, Punctuation, Grammar, etc.
DRAFT your gratitude note in your journal
and then show REVISING & EDITING notes!!

Dear Mr. Lomax,
I just wanted to take a minute to let you know how much our
group enjoyed our experience at your facility. For one thing, the
grounds and facility itself are well-maintained. Every year, I’m
impressed with the cleanliness and organization of the grounds.
This year we took full advantage of the entire grounds by fishing,
hiking and, of course, using the activity areas—literally, every path
and station was clearly organized. Another amazing feature of
Brandon Spring is the staff. The patience, enthusiasm, and overall
encouragement from the “leaders” (Sarah, Jeffry, David, & Patrick)
were outstanding and I just can’t say enough about the staff in the
cafeteria. Not only are they friendly and welcoming, but (more
importantly) they give cafeteria food a GOOD reputation. All in all, I
feel like Brandon Spring just keeps getting better and better with
every visit. I hope that we will continue to work together for years to
come.
Sincerely,
Hope Foster
Teacher, MMS
Showing gratitude for Richard Lomax (manager, Brandon Spring)
Detail 1: Facility
Detail 2: Staff

Journal Entry #1
Journal Entry # 84
May 1, 2014

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