Presentations

Hello,

     Remember that tomorrow (Thursday) is presentation day here in Clan Barclay; each of you must be prepared to present your claim and your evidence aloud to the class. Students may ask questions of you, and to earn a four on your presentation you must be prepared to show that they learned something from your work. To earn a four on your audience part, you must not only show that you listened and learned attentively, but you also can justify how well you feel the presenter did in his or her argument.

     Rest well, and tomorrow attend well. Thank you for all your hard work. As we say in Clan Barclay, engraved on our crest:  do or die! I am excited to see how well you all do!

Regards,
Mr. DeMaris

P.S. — On an unrelated note, the staff soundly beat the students at the staff-student soccer game today; the girls half was won 3–0, while the boys half was won 2–0.

Week of October 10 – 14

Good Evening,

     This week has three major components:  arguments, NWEAs, and reading. On Tuesday, students get introduced to their big persuasive project, which will include written, visual, and presentation components. Students will get rubrics for each section in time to ensure they all have the opportunity to earn a three (3) or four (4) in every aspect of the project. There will be ample class time over the next couple weeks for students to work on this in school and to ask questions so the work they do at home will be successful.

     Remember, as students you are responsible for your own success. You have reached an age where you can ask for help when you need it, and you can recognize when you are struggling. While we, as teachers, check in and offer support, you must take charge of your work and stay focused.

     On Wednesday and Thursday, students will have regular Allied Arts classes followed by NWEAs before lunch. After lunch, they will have their standard afternoon classes for those two days. This way, thanks to the Green / White scheduling, they will have all of their four core classes once each over the two days. Students will read silently in Language Arts on those days, taking a break from the computerized tests and the pressure.

     On Friday, students will have a chance to work on their persuasive projects in class; they should be prepared to get up and announce their topics to the class as a whole by the end of the period.

     After school this week, Yearbook Club meets on Tuesday, and the same afternoon sees our field hockey teams facing Scarborough and girls' soccer teams facing King at home. Wednesday is Chess Club, and 8th grade soccer faces SMC. Thursday we play Gorham in field hockey, and on Friday our girls are home competing against Westbrook in soccer. As always, you should take an afternoon out of your busy schedules and come support your Scots — there is always more room for fans to cheer them on!

     Yearbooks are still for sale, but prices have returned to normal — $25 for hardcover, $20 for soft. Buy them online at jostens.com or in person by bringing cash or check up to Room 83. Make checks to BEMS Yearbook. Students will get yearbooks delivered to their homerooms in the spring upon completion of design by the club and printing and binding by Jostens.

    Thank you for reading, and remember to get in touch if you have any questions!

Kind Regards,
Mr. DeMaris

Week of September 26 – 30

Welcome back!

     This week will be all about developing the practical use of persuasion. That means combining the simple persuasive method with letters and speech. On Monday and Tuesday, students will write a basic persuasive letter about a selected topic, finding evidence from credible sources to support their claims. Wednesday, the late arrival day, will be for silent reading in the classroom. Students must submit their letters by Wednesday evening to be printed for Thursday. Throwback Thursday will be a chance for students to present their claims and a part of their reasoning aloud to the class, and Friday will be a day for review.

     After school this week, Yearbook Club meets on Tuesday and Chess Club meets on Wednesday. On the sports front, there is field hockey Monday at 4:30, a girls' soccer game Wednesday at 4:30, and a boys' soccer game Friday at 4:30; the seventh grade games all happen at 3:30 the same days. If you have the time, come out and support your Scots!

     Remember, Wednesday is a late arrival day for students. That means everything starts two hours later — busses and the school day.

     Finally, the school news website is up and running! bit.ly/BENewsNet is the official site of the Newspaper Club — check it out!

Regards,
Mr. DeMaris

The Week in Preview

Hello Everyone,

     This week in Clan Barclay we have ourselves a busy, busy schedule. Last week, students were introduced to the basic ideas of argument, and this week we will continue on that theme. But first, we need to refocus on our books.

     Monday will be spent in the library, reading quietly or finding new books and then reading. Students must be prepared by the end of September to present their reading book to the teacher and the class, and they will write a review of their books as well. Monday is a step in that process. Remember your book if you have one.

     Tuesday will be a day for argument development. Students will open their first argument assignment and begin to flesh it out, adding evidence and searching for credible sources to support themselves, separating the good from the bad. Remember, if your source is not credible, your evidence is not useful, and your argument is not valid. Do not ruin a good argument with bad evidence! Also, the next Newspaper Club meeting is Tuesday after school.

     Wednesday is our field trip to the Ecology School at Ferry Beach in Saco! Students will attend their first Allied Arts class, then pack into busses and head down for a day of walking and talking and exploring the coast and the woods nearby. Be sure to dress accordingly — check the weather forecast! We are going, rain or shine. Also, the next Chess Club meeting is Wednesday after school.

     Thursday we get right back to arguments, and this time they will be student pairs based on student-selected topics, albeit selected from categories we may discuss ahead of time. Remember, we will not use laptops this day. The key is a clear, cohesive presentation of your ideas, this time in written and spoken word.

     Friday will be a day for building on arguments by developing claims from evidence found in news articles. This day will be less free-form and more structured, so students can better understand how argument should be organized.

     Finally, I found this clever quotation by a modern author, and I appreciate it; share and consider!

Sincerely,
Mr. DeMaris

Our Upcoming Week

Good Evening,

     This is our first full week of school this year, five uninterrupted days at BEMS, and it looks like the weather will be a little cooler by the end of the week, too. Those of us upstairs are thankful for that; any break from the heat will be appreciated. Come December, we will appreciate our warmer spot, but right now it is just uncomfortable.

     On Monday, we in Clan Barclay will be watching the ESPN mini-documentary "The Man in the Red Bandana," a fourteen-minute segment honoring the memory of Welles Crowther, a man who sacrificed his life on September 11, 2001 rescuing others in the South Tower. We will discuss and write about the event as a part of history, a tragedy, and a moment that united the nation; this year's students are the first group where everyone was born after those events took place.

     Tuesday will be a reading day in class; all students should bring their reading books and read silently throughout the class period. Tuesday is also picture day here at Bonny Eagle Middle School! Dress your best, comb your hair, and smile for the camera; even if you do not plan to purchase photos from LifeTouch, you should still look good — these will be the student photos in the yearbook this year. Speaking of yearbook, our first club meeting will be Tuesday after school in my classroom; if you are interested, come join us!

     We begin discussing argument and persuasion on Wednesday; students will learn the basic terminology — claim, counterclaim, evidence, source, rebuttal. Students will memorize the terms and see which team can identify them all clearly first. The first Chess Club meeting is Wednesday after school in Room 98, down the hall. We also have a Cross-Country meet Wednesday afternoon at 4:00; come support your Scots!

     Throwback Thursday will be a discussion day; we will review argument definitions and read quotations on the purpose of democracy and government, and then students will have group discussions and small debates centered on those quotations. Remember, you are not allowed to use your laptop in Language Arts on Thursday, so come with a pencil or pen if you want to jot down notes. Thursday afternoon is the first Newspaper Club meeting; if you are interested in investigating your school, your community, and your world, or you like drawing cartoons, or you are just curious, stop in!

     On Friday, all students will write a "Week in Review" letter, reflecting on their first full week of school and connecting it, if they please, to their weekend or their plans for the future. This is an open opportunity to express themselves clearly and without any criticism of grammar and spelling, as it is only graded on completion. Once they have finished writing, they may free write or read quietly. We also have our first school-wide assembly Friday afternoon, so classes will be shorter than usual — roughly 40 minutes instead of the full hour.

     As usual, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, get in touch by email or phone, or even by commenting here. We are always interested in what you have to say.

Have a good week!

Mr. DeMaris

This Week in Preview

Dear Students,

     This week, I will be able to stay after school to help students on Tuesday and Wednesday. If this changes, I will let you know. On Monday I have a staff meeting to attend, on Thursday I have personal plans, and on Friday there is no late bus.

     Our work this week will involve writing a persuasive essay based on your assignment 04-10, having classroom and then clan spelling bees, and transitioning into Norse Mythology.

     On Monday you will spend class writing an essay based on assignment 04-10; this will be the final part of your persuasive unit. This will be due at the end of school on Tuesday, so you can finish writing it during Tutorial on Tuesday.

     On Tuesday you will have a spelling bee, wherein we will pick the top three students from each class.

     On Wednesday you will begin Norse Mythology with an overview of the grisly Creation of the World and the formation of human beings.

     On Thursday you will learn about the major gods and all the Nine Realms on the World Tree. You will have the clan spelling bee during Tutorial on Thursday as well.

     On Friday, you will have a Review and Improve day to catch up on missing or low-skill work. If you do not have work to do, you are wrong.

     Let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris