Curtis' Story

Another story for you to listen to. Does Curtis sound similar or different than the other characters? Is his grammar correct?

Curtis

Read the following quote: "You don't know what you got till it's gone." What does Curtis mean when he says that?  Do you agree or disagree with him? Try to think of evidence from the story that will support your claim.

Isaura, Fatou and Luis Arturo Present!

Hi everybody,
Here are some wonderful examples of your work during the layered curriculum activity. Isaura presented a model of the water solution the neighbors created for the garden. Sorry about the sound as it's not so great, but I think you will understand the idea. Second is Fatou and Luis Arturo (Luis is a little camera shy!) presenting their song about Sae Young. Let them know what you think (in a professional way, please!) and let me know if you would like to add any of your work to this blog to show all of your classmates what a great job you did.

Sae Young's Story

And here is Sae Young's story. One question: Does Sae Young speak grammatically correct? Listen closely and let the class know if you could make some corrections to her English grammar.

Sam's Story

Also by request. Let the class know what you think!

Leona's Story

By request, here it is!

Sae Young

Hopefully you have enjoyed working on the Layered Curriculum for Sae Young's chapter and it has given you the opportunity to think about her in more detail. What do you think is Sae Young's contribution to the garden? Is her contribution more or less important than Sam or Leona's contribution? Why do you think that? Do her actions "help a neighborhood become a community"? Why or why not?

Kim's Story

Hi everyone,
I managed to get the first chapter's audio uploaded. I won't be able to upload all characters, but let me know if you enjoy this and I'll upload another. Just let me know which character you might like to hear next and let me know that this works!

Sam and the Divided Garden

At the end of Sam's chapter, it looks as if the garden is very divided. What do you predict that Sam and/or other neighbors might do to help people come together as a community in the garden? If you were a character in the story, what would you do to encourage the people to come together?

Author Paul Fleischman "Seedfolks" Interview

Hi all,
Here is an interview of Paul Fleischman, the author of the book Seedfolks. He explains what inspired  him to write the book.


http://www.youtube.com/v/mABgJdkVabE?autohide=1&version=3&attribution_tag=w43hZR541dtPcCTnbBZkSA&autoplay=1&showinfo=1&autohide=1&feature=share

Leona

What do you think is Leona's contribution to the vacant lot/garden? Is this important? Why or why not?

Rubric

Hi everyone,
Thanks to all of you who have posted, asked questions or made comments. It's exciting to see your opinions and get you introduced to a "blog discussion". For the next four weeks we will continue our conversation, but now I would like to "formalize" the blog with a rubric:

Outstanding:
You have nine (9) or more posts (comments/questions/agree/disagree).
You have asked at least three (3) questions.
You have responded to or commented on a classmate's post at least three (3) times.
You use accountable talk in every post (I agree/disagree, I understand what you are saying, but..., I think that..., etc.).
Spelling and grammar are excellent, no errors.

Good:
You have 6-8 posts (comments/questions/agree/disagree).
You have asked at least two (2) questions.
You have responded to or commented on a classmate's post at least two (2) times.
You use accountable talk for most of your posts (I agree/disagree, I understand what you are saying, but..., I think that..., etc.).
Spelling and grammar are good, but may have some errors.

Competent:
You have 3-5 posts (comments/questions/agree/disagree).
You have asked only one (1) question.
You have responded to or commented on a classmate's post only once (1 time).
You rarely use accountable talk (I agree/disagree, I understand what you are saying, but..., I think that..., etc.).
Many spelling and grammar errors, but reader can still understand.

Needs Revision:
You have two (2) or less posts (comments/questions/agree/disagree).
You have asked no questions.
You have not responded to or commented on a classmate's post.
You don't use accountable talk (I agree/disagree, I understand what you are saying, but..., I think that..., etc.).
Numerous spelling and grammar errors. Reader is unable to understand your post.

Questions? Please ask them in the comment section of this post. Thanks!

Excellent Online Dictionary

Hi everyone,
Here is a link to a really good English language learner's dictionary. You can use it for spelling, definitions and examples when you find words that you don't understand in Seedfolks.

http://www.learnersdictionary.com

Gonzalo and Tio Juan

How does Gonzalo affect Tio Juan? How does Tio Juan affect Gonzalo? Do you see any changes in both characters as a result of their relationship? If so, how?

Gonzalo

"The older you are, the younger you get when you move to the United States." Why does Gonzalo say this?

Funny Seedfolks Movie

I know we just started the book, but I thought you might enjoy this short movie. This is a great way to show what you learned. Do you think it is a good representation of Kim and Ana? What other ways can we show that we have learned about Seedfolks?

Kim and Ana

What is the relationship between Kim and Ana? Do you think they are thriving in Cleveland? 

Sometimes I think that Ana lives just to be nosy. What do you think?

Introduction

Hi all,
This blog will hopefully allow another platform for discussing ideas about our current book: Seedfolks. However, it all depends on your participation. You can discuss whatever you like about our book: ideas, vocabulary, grammar points, characters, point of view and the list goes on. Is there something you don't understand? Do you have additional questions that we didn't discuss during class? This is the forum to get help and share your ideas with your classmates.

A couple of rules:
1. Remember the ICHS Core Values (CPRsquared) when writing questions or responses.
2. No profanity (no bad language).
3. Please keep your discussion limited to the book Seedfolks.
4. Any inappropriate discussion/language/responses will be deleted.
5. Write as much as possible in English. If you need to write in another language, that's ok, but try to translate into English so we can all understand.
6. Have fun and learn something from your classmates!

Thanks,
Mr. Nine