Tammy Crossman, Author at Baldwin Prep School

Burke Recap – Monday, Nov. 5

Cookie/Annabel

Students brainstormed for their “This I Believe” essays. They will begin writing rough drafts in class tomorrow.

First drafts are due on Friday, November 9th. These must be typed. Complete project details will be distributed in class tomorrow.

The Article of the Week AoW+1819_08+The+Value+of+Failure is also due on Friday. It must be typed and emailed to burkeclasswork@gmail.com

Lacey

Students watched part of the movie “Wonder” in class today.

Romeo Group

Students watch the following video and took notes:

They wrote a one-page response. We will be working with their rough drafts in class this week to develop them into final drafts.

By Tammy Crossman|2018-11-05T19:29:54-04:00November 5th, 2018|7-12|Comments Off

Burke – Tuesday 10/30 Recap

Cookie/Annabel

Inner Strength from Desperate Times

We’re All Different in Our Own Ways

Lacey/Geuliette Groups

Students start each class with a short writing assignment. Today’s prompt:

What are some things that you struggle with and how do you cope?

Romeo Group

Students analyzed the Robert Frost poem, “Nothing Gold Can Stay”. They also wrote about how it relates to the characters in the book.

Cagney Group

I split the Cagney Group into two reading groups. This will better suit the individual needs of the students as well as allow me to work with the students as smaller groups.

Group One finished The Masque of the Red Death and are working on a One-pager in class.

Group Two has started the first few chapters of The Life of Pi. They were working on comprehension questions as they read today.

By Tammy Crossman|2018-10-30T11:55:20-04:00October 30th, 2018|7-12|Comments Off

I’m going to try to start posting a daily recap. When a student is absent he/she is responsible for checking the blog and making up any work that is missed. This work should be turned in within three days of the absence.

Cookie/Annabel

We have started a new unit called This I Believe, which is based on a 1950s radio program of the same name, hosted by acclaimed journalist Edward R. Murrow. Each day, Americans gathered by their radios to hear compelling essays from the likes of Eleanor Roosevelt, Jackie Robinson, Helen Keller, and Harry Truman as well as corporate leaders, cab drivers, scientists, and secretaries—anyone able to distill into a few minutes the guiding principles by which they lived. These essayists’ words brought comfort and inspiration to a country worried about the Cold War, McCarthyism, and racial division. This project engages youth and adults from all walks of life in writing, sharing, and discussing brief essays about the core values that guide their daily lives.

Students will be writing and presenting their own essays in the coming weeks.

Today we read (and listened to) two essays. Students must complete this response worksheet for each speaker/essay:

This I Believe Reading and Listening Worksheet

https://thisibelieve.org/essay/57159/

Finding the Flexibility to Survive

Lacey/Geuliette Groups

Students start each class with a short writing assignment. Today’s prompt:

Define courage in your own words.

After the students completed the assignment, we went outside and read a few more chapters from the book Wonder. We discussed how the main character must feel as he is starting his new school.

We spent the last two minutes of class in quiet meditation, enjoying the sun on our faces and feeling the wind blowing through our hair. We talked about the importance of learning to quiet our minds and be still sometimes. I think they enjoyed that.

Romeo Group

The Romeos completed a reading comprehension sheet on The Outsiders in class. Many of the students did not finish, and so it is homework and due at the start of class tomorrow. Several of the students admitted to not reading chapters 1-5, which was supposed to have been read by last Friday. Please check with your son/daughter to be sure they are doing the daily required reading assignments. If they do no complete the reading, then they will have a tough time with the assignments, discussion, and quizzes we have in class.

Cagney Group

I split the Cagney Group into two reading groups. This will better suit the individual needs of the students as well as allow me to work with the students as smaller groups.

One group is reading “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allen Poe. We are using the graphic novel version. The students are really enjoying it. The pictures help with visualization as well as making predictions about the story. We are taking turns reading and the students are learning how to decode unfamiliar words using context clues. They are also learning how to break down larger words to help with pronunciation.

The other group has started the first few chapters of The Life of Pi. They will have daily reading comprehension questions, participate in discussions about the book, as well as complete a final project.

By Tammy Crossman|2018-10-29T19:05:56-04:00October 29th, 2018|7-12|Comments Off

Just another beautiful day at Baldwin Prep

By Tammy Crossman|2018-10-26T07:12:01-04:00October 26th, 2018|4-6, 7-12, K-3|Comments Off

Burke – English: Keep Looking Up

Today we spent some time being mindful

Today, I took my students outside and asked them to notice the beauty that is all around them if they take the time to look. I think social media, iPhones, video games, etc, tend to take over our lives a bit. It’s not just the kids. I’m guilty of spending too much time on my tech too. So, we sat and wrote about all of the beautiful sights that we all too often overlook. I’m hoping they appreciated the quiet peacefulness of just sitting still and taking it all in. Today I encouraged them to look up. I really love these kids. ❤️

By Tammy Crossman|2018-10-25T16:13:13-04:00October 25th, 2018|4-6, 7-12, K-3|Comments Off

All Burke English Classes

From now on, students should send all work to:

burkeclasswork@gmail.com

instead of christyburke8@gmail.com

I want to keep all of my students’ assignments in one spot. This way, they won’t get lost in all of my other emails.

Thank you!

By Tammy Crossman|2018-10-24T17:54:09-04:00October 24th, 2018|7-12|Comments Off

Lacey/Geuliette English

We started reading Wonder in class today. We are alternating between reading and watching the scenes from the movie to help the kids visualize the characters.

By Tammy Crossman|2018-10-22T10:30:57-04:00October 22nd, 2018|7-12|Comments Off

Romeo English

Students must finish reading chapter 1 and read chapter 2 of The Outsiders tonight. There will be a quiz tomorrow on the reading.

By Tammy Crossman|2018-10-22T10:26:59-04:00October 22nd, 2018|7-12|Comments Off

Burke – English: Cookie & Annabel Groups

Just a friendly reminder that your Dystopian project that was assigned four weeks ago is due this Thursday, October 25th. I will continue to give you class time this week to work on it. Please bring necessary supplies to class.

By Tammy Crossman|2018-10-20T18:10:00-04:00October 20th, 2018|7-12|Comments Off

tapnmonkey

About Tammy Crossman

Cookie/Annabel

Lacey

Romeo Group

Cookie/Annabel

Lacey/Geuliette Groups

Romeo Group

Cagney Group

Cookie/Annabel

Lacey/Geuliette Groups

Romeo Group

Cagney Group

Today we spent some time being mindful