Late Arrival / Reading Day

Good evening!

     Remember that Wednesday is a two-hour delay (one of only two we have left, since we axed the rest to make up for storm days) for students, not staff. Classes will be shortened, but all after-school activities should continue as usual.

     Students in Clan Barclay will be reading all period in Language Arts; make sure you bring your books!

     Also, if anyone needs a refresher on figurative language, here is a video I posted for the class this week. Another, relating to rhyme, is below.

Regards,
Mr. DeMaris

Learning Lab

Good morning,

     Learning Lab signup is now completely digital; there will not be a paper in the office to sign. Instead, you need to go to the link and fill out a form online, explaining which day you will go this week and what you will do there. There is a link to the form on this website, just as indicated in the image below.

     Please remember that Learning Lab is not a place to socialize or play games or simply waste time. This is a time and space for doing homework, studying for tests, or seeking help on concepts you did not quite master in class. Respect the needs of other students working there, and follow all the rules for good conduct.

Thank you,

Mr. DeMaris

Yearbook Clarification

Hello All,

     I have gotten a couple questions recently about yearbooks, so I figure it makes sense to announce this to all staff rather than field the same questions more than once. I apologize for intruding on your inbox, but here is the yearbook scoop.

     You have two options for yearbooks — hardcover and (new this year!) paperback. The paperback version is the exact same yearbook, with the same sized pages, and the same content. The only differences? It has a soft cover instead of a binder board cover, and it costs five dollars less!

     Hardcover yearbooks cost $23, two dollars less than last year, and paperback yearbooks cost $18 — that's over 25% off last year's prices! Yearbooks are all full color this year, too, so your vibrant Bonny Eagle classroom and event decor will shine from the pages in all its glory.

     To buy a yearbook, either go to jostens.com and search Bonny Eagle Middle School (here is a link — http://bit.ly/1OQNDSc) or bring a check (made out to BEMS) or cash to me upstairs in Room 83. I'll give receipts for cash and check purchases, so students can get confirmation home that their order is secure.

     Thank you for your patience, and let me know if you have any further questions!

Best,

Mr. DeMaris

Week in Preview — September 14

Hello Everyone,

     I hope you all had a good weekend. I had to replace a corroded brake line in my car and rotate some tires, but it was a good weekend overall. This week, September 14–18, starts comfortably, but we will be back up into the 80s from Tuesday on.

     This week, we will continue our development of the elements of literature, which we started with theme last week. You will work in groups and individually on terms and application of the concepts.

1. On Monday, students will discuss terms and definitions in class, including application of concepts with a story of their choice.
2. On Tuesday, students will provide and work with examples of setting, characterization, point of view, and conflict.
3. On Wednesday, students will provide and work with examples of mood, irony, foreshadowing, and plot.
4. On Thursday, students will provide and work with examples of symbolism and theme.
5. On Friday, students will recap the concepts and write a Week in Review.

     Remember that Tuesday is Picture Day here at Bonny Eagle Middle School, and Open House has been rescheduled for Tuesday evening from 6:30 to 7:30. Students also have their first dance on Friday from 6:30 to 8:30.

     Finally, Yearbook Club meets Tuesday afternoon from 2:20 to 4:00 in Room 83 (my room), and Chess Club meets Wednesday afternoon from 2:20 to 4:00 in Room 98 (Mr. O'Searcoid's room, in Clan MacCallum).

     Have a good week!

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

Week in Preview

Hello Everyone,

     This coming week, September 8–11, promises to be another hot one; dress accordingly, within school code. As usual, the eighth grade floor will be toastier than the rest of the school. Remember that the quieter and less active you are, the cooler the rooms stay and the longer the doors can stay open to circulate air!

     This week, we will work on objective summarization, identification of themes in narratives, and how to properly defend a point.

1. On Tuesday, students will read a passage from their individual reading books, summarize it objectively, and provide a possible theme of the story so far, including how that theme relates to the events in the story.
2. On Wednesday, students will discuss in teams and with the teacher what a theme is, and how evidence can be used to support it.
3. On Thursday, students will review their answers and improve them as needed, and help team members with their answers and definitions until the entire team can provide working definitions and examples of both summary and theme.
4. On Friday, students will complete a Week in Review letter and present their week's reading to their team and the teacher.

     Also on Friday, students will participate in a short memorial for the anniversary of September 11, 2001; all students will join together in the first floor hallway to sing the national anthem and honor the flag.

     Finally, Learning Lab begins this week; it runs every Tuesday–Thursday from 2:15 until 4:00 in the library. Students must sign up in the main office beforehand, and they must have work to complete; it is not social time. The activity bus can take all students home after. Many clubs and events begin this week as well; check with teachers and coaches for official times.

     Welcome back to school, and enjoy the heat!

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

    

Welcome to Clan Barclay!

Hello Everyone,

     The new year is about to begin, and for all of you, this means the transition into eighth grade, your last step before entering high school. You will have many challenges this year, including maintaining your personal responsibility for all assignments at school; we expect you to meet these challenges with maturity and respect.

     We are Clan Barclay. Our clan leader is Mrs. Davis, the math teacher. The rest of us are Ms. Rancourt, for science; Mr. Robertson, for Social Studies; and Mr. DeMaris, for Language Arts. We are a dedicated clan, and we believe strongly in personal student responsibility both in and out of the classroom. Each of us has his or her own teaching style, but we care very deeply for the success of our students, and we expect you to work your best to honor that.

     Our clan motto is "Aut Agere Aut Mori," which, cleanly translated from the Latin, means "Do or Die." We work very hard to make our assignments and lessons understandable and accessible to you, the students, and we strive for success in all aspects of our professional lives. In return, we expect you to embrace the motto with equal vigor. School is your training for adult responsibility and education, and the lessons you learn here will have a direct and meaningful impact on the rest of your lives. You have no reason to give up on your education, and we expect you to try your hardest at all times. If you struggle and cannot solve your own problem, recognize your limitations and seek help. Your classmates and your teachers are here. Asking for help is not the same as giving up, and we respect students who can honestly assess their skills. "Do or Die" means you should fight for your success and find it despite any obstacles.

     This is a year of transition at Bonny Eagle Middle School, with changes in many areas and at many levels. We will communicate soon with you and with your families about all important aspects of school this year, and we will continue to communicate any important news throughout the year. In return, we hope you will communicate clearly with us about any questions or concerns you may have, or any obstacles you face that may impact your experience here at Bonny Eagle. We cannot solve problems if we do not know they exist, and communication should travel two ways. Personal responsibility means respectfully communicating concerns as well as compliments, and addressing consequences, both good and bad, for any actions. You are at the top of the middle school now, soon to enter high school, and you should be mature enough to recognize and accept responsibility for your work and actions.

     Welcome to Clan Barclay. We look forward to working with you this year.


Sincerely,



Mr. DeMaris

Words of the Week—Difficulty

Hello,

     Here are your Words of the Week; the theme is levels of difficulty. Each word, regardless of its part of speech, indicates a level of difficulty or a problem. They are, in alphabetical order, as follows.

Word (Origin)	Part of Speech	Definition
1. arduous (L)	adj.	involving or requiring great, strenuous effort; very difficult
2. elementary (L)	adj.	basic; easy to deal with; uncomplicated
3. tricky (OF)	adj.	requiring care and skill because it is difficult or awkward
4. problem (G)	n.	a situation considered unwelcome or harmful that needs to be dealt with
5. problematic (G)	adj.	presenting a challenge or difficulty; doubtful or questionable

Apply these to today's Make a List assignment, and study them, including spelling and part of speech, for the Thursday Think.

     I will stay after tomorrow to help any students with work who need it. If you are missing assignments or do not understand some material, stay for help. This is not, however, social time for you to waste with friends; I expect results. Let me know if you have questions.

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

Grades are Posted

Hello,

     All Language Arts grades for Quarter Three, including comments to parents, are posted on Infinite Campus. Many of you did far better than you have in previous quarters, but some of you have slipped behind. Take the opportunity that Quarter Four gives you to bring your grades up as high as they can go before you finish your eighth grade year.

     Quarter Four starts on Monday, April 6—tomorrow. Come to class prepared to do your best. This is a new quarter, with a fresh new gradebook, so take full advantage of it. This is your last chance to show your teachers, parents, and the high school what you are capable of academically. Take advantage of all opportunities to Review and Improve assignments, including time after school. Use the Learning Lab for a quiet place to study and do homework from Tuesday–Thursday, and ask your teachers for help all through the quarter, not just in the last week or two.

     You must be responsible for your own success; we are here to help, but we can not and will not do the work for you. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

Commas, Ellipses, and Dashes

Hello Everyone!

     I tried a new idea today! Modern technology is great for absent students, interested people, and everyone out there on the internet.

     I uploaded a video containing the basic information of today's lesson; hopefully, you can use this to review if you are absent or need to check the information later. Here is the video explaining the basics of commas, ellipses, and dashes.

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

Prepositions and Conjunctions

Hello All,

     For your convenience, here is every single preposition out there:

about above according to across after against along along with among apart from around as as for at because of before behind below beneath beside between beyond but* by by means of

concerning despite down during except except for excepting for from in in addition to in back of in case of in front of in place of inside in spite of instead of into like near next of off on

onto on top of out out of outside over past regarding round since through throughout till to toward under underneath unlike until up upon up to with within without

     * "But" is usually used as a coordinating conjunction; it is only used as a preposition when used in the place of "except." For example, consider these sentences:

I ate everything but the Doritos.
Everyone is wrong but me.

In this case, you are speaking about all times but once, or all locations or items but one. I just used "but" as a preposition twice in that sentence, too.


     Now, concerning conjunctions, there are three categories:  coordinating, correlative, and subordinating. Here is the breakdown by category.

Coordinating Conjunctions:  For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So
     You can use the acronym FANBOYS to remember all seven of them.

Correlative Conjunctions:  both, and; not only, but also; either, or; neither, nor; whether, or; as, as; such, that; scarcely, when; as many, as; no sooner, than; rather, than.
     Correlative conjunctions work in pairs to connect related ideas. There are many combinations.

Subordinating Conjunctions:

Common Subordinating Conjunctions

after although as because before even if even though how if in order that

no matter once provided that rather than since so that than that though unless

until what when whenever where whereas wherever whether while why

Subordinating conjunctions start dependent clauses, and they answer the questions when, why, and if, or they show opposition.

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

This Week in Preview

Dear Students,

     This week, I will be attending the two home games on Monday and Tuesday, and I will also attend a meeting on Monday afternoon. However, since this is the start of the quarter, you won't need to stay after for any work, so I will be going home right after school on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. On a personal note, on Wednesday I get to see a friend I haven't seen since New Year's last year; he is coming north again for a couple days, so we are going to dinner in Portland that afternoon. It should be fun!

     This is the first week of Quarter Three, which means you all start with perfect grades! I expect all of you to try your hardest to keep them just that perfect. I will help with that as best as I can.

     On Monday, we will go over classroom rules and layout, including how I will structure the grading for this quarter. This will cover MobyMax, classwork, graded assignments, quizzes, projects, and bonus points. After that, we will talk about the District Writing Competition, and how to submit your entries. Then, we will dive into parts of speech.

     On Tuesday, we will continue covering parts of speech, including the best ways to organize them and which ones are most appropriate in context. If something is allowed, that doesn't mean you should do it. Think of parts of speech like things you can say (they are things you can say, come to think of it); just because you can say something doesn't mean you should.

     On Wednesday, we will review parts of speech, and we will discuss sentence structure. We went over this previously in the year, but it didn't stick. So, we will try again! I will remind you all that you will take a quiz on Friday. Wednesday's homework will involve writing a page about a topic we discuss in class. This formative assessment will be graded on your grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling (L.8.1 and L.8.2).

     On Thursday, we will discuss ways to improve our own writing. We will identify the parts of speech in passages from our own work, and determine if we used them correctly. Then, we will read a short passage from a story and identify parts of speech in it as well. Thursday's homework will be to study for the quiz on Friday.

     On Friday, you will take a quiz on parts of speech; you must identify the definition and use of each part of speech, and then you must identify parts of speech within a sample paragraph. This is your summative assessment on parts of speech. Once you finish the quiz, you will begin reading a short story. Provided class goes well, you will have no homework over the weekend.

     Let me know if you have any questions, and have a great week! Start Quarter Three out right!

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

The Quarter Ends on Friday

Hello All,

     This Friday, January 23, is the last day of the quarter. This means that Friday is also the last day I will accept student work for the quarter. Just so you are aware,

FRIDAY AT 2:08 PM

is the last minute I will accept any student work for the quarter. If you walk in at 2:09 PM, I will not accept the work. If you email me at 2:09 PM, I will not accept your work. You have had months to work on many of the assignments, weeks for most, and days for a few. You need to make sure you get the work in on time.

     I will be in the Learning Lab on Thursday afternoon from 2:20 PM until 4:00 PM if anyone still needs extra help on an assignment. Sign up in the morning and come in for the afternoon; I will happily help you with any missing assignments or confusing aspects I can. This has been a busy quarter, and you have accomplished many things. It ends on Friday at 2:08 PM.

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

This Week in Preview

Dear Students,

     This week, I will be able to stay after school tentatively on Wednesday; I have meetings on Tuesday and I work in the Learning Lab on Thursday. I will let you know if any of this changes.

     Our work this week will involve discussing the district writing contest, free writing to develop our grammar and spelling skills, and building a greater understanding of Norse Mythology through a combination of reading and listening assignments.

     On Monday, you will discuss the details of the school writing contest; any student may submit a writing assignment that is up to two, single-spaced, size twelve Times New Roman pages. The writing assignments are due by January 30; I will explain the submission process later in the week. Then, you will read silently and write when you are done.

     On Tuesday, you will review the terms for the Norse Mythology quiz taking place on Wednesday. Then, you will free write a minimum of one single-spaced, twelve-point font page, or one handwritten page. This will be graded on the minimum length, grammar, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation.

     On Wednesday, you will take the Norse Mythology basics quiz. This quiz is based on the terms written on the board on Friday. You will be allowed one hand-written page (one side) of notes for the quiz, as spelling is required for credit on each answer. After the quiz, you will work on MobyMax.

     On Thursday, you will learn more about Norse mythology, including the story "The Three Gifts, or How Loki Learned to Shut his Mouth." Read quietly and answer the questions that follow. You will be graded on your accuracy, spelling, and grammar.

     On Friday, you will have a Review and Improve day to catch up on missing or low-skill work. Next Friday is the last day of the quarter, so you should take full advantage of this time to fix assignments or hand in back work. If you are currently failing or in danger of failing this quarter, this time is critical to your success.

     Finally, some students will be retaking their NWEA tests this week during their Allied Arts and Tutorial times. If you did not reach the benchmark in Reading or Math in the fall, you will work on that this week. Stay focused, do well, and avoid distracting others.

     Let me know if you have any questions or concerns!

Sincerely,

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