Those who attended yesterday’s Skype session with Matthew Cody know how awesome it was and how cool HE is. Here’s our group photo with the author—I’ll plan on posting a few more pictures next week.
A male drummer, a female drummer, buckets, brooms… It’s been quite a week.
Today we finish with Neil Pert, the drummer for Rush, and his monstrous drum set. (Stay tuned for a little ditty submitted by Max.)
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On Tuesday I shared with you the first batch of students’ reactions to the following Dr. Ben Carson quote. Scroll down to see the rest. Inspiring!
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Here are the rest of the reflections that students submitted on the quote above.
Inspiring, aren’t they?
My poetry response to Dr. Carson’s quote.
Aaaaaaand…Today is day 4 of Alpha104 DRUM SOLO WEEK!
This one’s a little different. But what are “drums” after all? I got to see this group live a number of years ago. So impressive.
GROUP bucket drums…(get particularly interesting at the 2:40 point
Here is today’s—a little change of pace:
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Did you see what movie trailer came out yesterday? Well, here’s your chance…
I made these for fun:
Last Wednesday we took the opportunity to reflect on a powerful quote about facing obstacles, then we watched how that message was embodied in a video clip that my student Xavier sent me.
Scroll down to see some powerful, insightful, and inspiring student responses.
Here’s what it means to THIS guy:
Here are some students’ writings and reflections. My poem is at the bottom.
My poetry response to this quote.
Happy Alpha104 Drum Solo Week!
As promised, a female drummer! (It was difficult to choose just one…)
If you want to watch a different drummer, Meytal Cohen, try this link.
This meme is originated by Jen and Kellee at TeachMentorTexts. Thanks!
On Friday, we had the Battle of the Books finale. I’m THRILLED to announce that for the first time in history, an ALPHA TEAM won the championship. Congratulations to the
Dauntless Demigod Tributes
As you can see, they scored a perfect 10!
Notice the headphones on one of the members? The team members were so dedicated that one traveling teammate FaceTimed in from the car to contribute. SWEET!
Hats off to all the Alphas who participated:
But wait, there’s MORE!
I was invited to participate in the great Amy LV’s writer’s notebook website. She and others are trying to put together a site of ideas for people—adults and kids—who need writing ideas for the summer. {click the pic below}
I knew that I had a specific student who like to write on her own time, so I asked Arianna if she had something to contribute. She did. Click the pic below to see her writeup:
So Proud!
Does anyone else have an idea you use from your writer’s notebook? Let me know and we’ll submit them.
Period 1&2
Books
http://padlet.com/mretkinshms/12bookselfies
Period 5&6
Books
http://padlet.com/mretkinshms/56bookselfies
Period 9&10
From the author of the multimillion-copy bestseller The Face on the Milk Carton, this riveting new thriller, set against the backdrop of a bucolic summer town on the Connecticut River, will have readers guessing until the very last page, as a seemingly innocent sibling rivalry and newfound young love turn into something much more devastating than anyone could ever have imagined.
Miranda and Lander Allerdon are sisters. Miranda is younger, a dreamer, and floating her way through life. Lander is older, focused, and determined to succeed. As the girls and their parents begin another summer at their cottage on the Connecticut River, Miranda and Lander’s sibling rivalry is in high gear. Lander plans to start medical school in the fall, and Miranda feels cast in her shadow.When the Allerdons become entangled in an unimaginable tragedy, the playing field is suddenly leveled. As facts are revealed, the significance of what has happened weighs heavily on all. How can the family prepare for what the future may hold?
Survival Strategy #50: If You Can, Be Brave
It’s easy to be brave when your eight-year-old sister, Billie, looks up to you as her protector. Twelve-year-old Liberty feels it’s her job to look after Billie once they are sent to live with their father, whom they haven’t seen since they were very young. Dad is unpredictable on his best days, but when he abandons the girls at a gas station in the middle of nowhere, Liberty’s courage is truly put to the test.
As she and Billie struggle to make it home on their own, they encounter a cast of both helpful and not-so-helpful characters, including a man with caterpillar eyebrows, a lady dressed entirely in lavender, a tattooed trucker with a soft spot for cats, a kid who is a little too obsessed with Star Wars, and a woman who lives with a houseful of nontraditional pets. Along the way, they learn that sometimes you have to get a little bit lost to be found.
The Shakespearean delights of Pop Sonnets, one of my favorite reads, are being collected ina new book to be published in October.
Pop Sonnets translates top-40 music into Shakespearean sonnets, and is a delight from start (when you try to guess which song’s lyrics you’re reading, e.g. “From western Philadelphia I hail, where in my youth I’d play upon the green”) to finish (when you come to the beautifully executed sonnet’s triumphant conclusion).
SINCE this is our final FULL week of school, I thought I’d spice things up by have our own
Whatever Wednesday —
a chance to post something I’ve seen that I’m diggin’: a cool quote or poster, a video, or simply a picture.
Enjoy!… and consider posting your own Whatever.
My student Xavier brought this video to my attention and shared how his whole family was moved by it. Before I share, I found a matching quote poster to go along with it.
Here’s what it means to THIS guy:
This meme is originated by Jen and Kellee at TeachMentorTexts. Thanks!
Period 1&2
Books
http://padlet.com/mretkinshms/12bookselfies
Period 5&6
Books
http://padlet.com/mretkinshms/56bookselfies
Period 9&10
From the author of the multimillion-copy bestseller The Face on the Milk Carton, this riveting new thriller, set against the backdrop of a bucolic summer town on the Connecticut River, will have readers guessing until the very last page, as a seemingly innocent sibling rivalry and newfound young love turn into something much more devastating than anyone could ever have imagined.
Miranda and Lander Allerdon are sisters. Miranda is younger, a dreamer, and floating her way through life. Lander is older, focused, and determined to succeed. As the girls and their parents begin another summer at their cottage on the Connecticut River, Miranda and Lander’s sibling rivalry is in high gear. Lander plans to start medical school in the fall, and Miranda feels cast in her shadow.When the Allerdons become entangled in an unimaginable tragedy, the playing field is suddenly leveled. As facts are revealed, the significance of what has happened weighs heavily on all. How can the family prepare for what the future may hold?
{Eat the Book} 
