Monday, March 27, 2006

Vocabulary corrections

Here are the correct parts of speech and definitions for "The Cremation of Sam McGee" vocabulary words.

queer (adj) oddly unlike the usual or normal
roam (verb) to go or go over from place to place without a plan
heed (verb) to pay attention to
raved (verb) to talk wildly as if crazy, to talk with great enthusiasm
tax (verb) to make heavy demands on
spent (adj)used up, drained of energy
planks (noun) a wide heavy thick board
boiler (noun)a strong metal container used in making steam for an engine
seldom (adv) not often, rarely
scowled (verb) to make a frowning expression of displeasure
ventured (verb)to face the risks and dangers of

Friday, March 24, 2006

How Fast is Your Brain? (and Sam McGee)

Here is a test that you can take to see how fast your brain works

and here is a copy of The Cremation of Sam McGee online. (unfortunately with no line numbers)

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Chapter 5 Reading Guides

5.1 – Land and Water
Copy each question and answer in a complete sentence.
1. What is the Rub al-Khali? Where is it located?
2. Why is Southwest and Central Asia called “the Dry World”?
3. Describe two kinds of deserts in Southwest Asia.
4. If an oasis has enough water, what can it support?
5. Why are rivers important in this region? What are two well-known examples?
6. Mountains have served what function in Central Asia?
7. How did the seas of Southwest Asia serve a function similar to the mountains of Central Asia? What are some examples?
8. What is another name for Southwest Asia?
9. Where they meet, Southwest and Central Asia serve as a crossroads for people traveling from what three continents?

5.2 – Climate and Vegetation
Copy and complete the following table with information from section two.

The Climate and Vegetation of Southwest and Central Asia
Climate
1.
2.
Vegetation in Harsh Conditions
3.
Water and Crops
4.
5.
Water and Population
6.
7.
Crops and Technology
8.
9.

5.3 – Natural Resources
Copy and complete the following sentences.

1. Petroleum deposits take _____ to form.
2. Petroleum is Southwest Asia’s number one _____.
3. Southwest Asian countries with little or no oil tend to have _____ standards of living than their neighbors.
4. Central Asia is also rich in _____.
5. Three Central Asian countries that contain large oil reserves are _____, _____, and _____.
6. Countries that offer equipment, training, and loans to Central Asia’s oil-rich countries hope to share the _____ in return.
7. The resource that people need most in Southwest and Central Asia is _____.
8. The countries of Southwest and Central Asia must _____ the water they have.
9. Too much _____ can use up the water that is available in Southwest and Central Asia.
10. Oil wealth allows many Southwest Asian countries to increase the _____ of their people.
11. Coal, oil and natural gas are examples of _____, ones that cannot be replaced once they have are used.
12. The oil mined in Kuwait is _____, which is found under the Earth’s surface.

Friday, March 10, 2006

SS Test review

Chapter three quiz
Chapter four quiz - You won't be able to do all of these questions becuase we only covered sections one and two, but you can do most of them.

Tuesday, March 07, 2006

Letter to Author - an example

Here's a sample letter that a students wrote for an assigment similar to yours.


Eastside High School
10245 Eagle Drive
Covington, GA 30015
May 16, 2002

Barbara O’Connor
Double Day Press
1234 Main St.
Duxbury, Massachussetts
98765

Dear Mrs. O’Connor:

On Monday May 13, I finished your novel Me and Rupert Goody, your novel about a young girl struggling to come to terms with a new “sibling” in her “family.” I wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed reading the novel.

As a girl from the South, I considered your portrayal of Jennalee and her problems to be very accurate and realistic. Jennalee’s descriptions of her family made me laugh but also made me feel very sad for her. I also have a large family and sometimes it does seem as though there is “a ton of hell” going on in my house. I especially liked the part where Jennalee got her sister in trouble with their mom; it happens like that at my house, too. I know why Jennalee was so jealous of Rupert. Until Rupert arrived, Uncle Beau’s was Jennalee’s sanctuary; she had Uncle Beau’s undivided attention. He made her feel important and valuable. She didn’t want to share that with Rupert.

I especially liked the language in the novel. Jennalee’s grammar wasn’t perfect so she sounded like a real person. I also liked that she wasn’t perfect; she was jealous and sometimes mean. She also worked hard. Eventually, she did the right thing and accepted Rupert as a member of her family. In spite of her sometimes bad actions, Uncle Beau and her family still loved her.

At first, I was wondering why you made Rupert a black man. I thought that was going to be the major conflict. I like that his race was really not the issue to Jennalee. I thought that sent a valuable message without being really obvious. He was also a very forgiving and loving character; he didn’t try to be mean to Jennalee even when she was being mean to him.

In your letter, you talked about things that you took from your own life and included in your books. Do you keep a notebook of possible ideas or do you just rely on your memory? Do you ever use people you know in your books?

Is it hard to make the characters in a book sound like real people? Jennalee and her family sound just like my family. How much time do you spend writing a book? Does anyone help you?

I really enjoyed Me and Rupert Goody and I am looking forward to reading the book you have set in Freedom, Georgia. Thank you for taking the time to respond to letters from my class.

Sincerely,



Melanie Hundley