Families! Love our school, but don't have money or time during the week to show that love? Join the club! The Currey family is eternally grateful for what Cascade does for Elora and Isaiah, and we want to show it. On Saturday, April 5, the school will be open from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. for a good spring cleaning. We have 44,000 square feet of building and a BIG yard to clean! Bring the whole family down and help us! Bring your vacuum, feather dusters, Windex (or other organically suitable cleaning products), and more! Some possible jobs for your crew:
* power washing (you bring the power washer!)
* window washing
* baseboard scrubbing
* vacuuming
* dusting
* organizing
* AND MORE!
Teachers have made lists of things they'd like us to do, so there will be plenty of work to go around! Save the date! Bring a picnic lunch! Come for the whole time or just for an hour or two! Help children have pride in their school by helping to keep it clean!
There will be no child care, and this is not a time for kids to run amok or help themselves to unsupervised playground time! Kids are expected to help out, too!
This is also a perfect opportunity for NHS students to get some volunteer hours in!
Monday, March 17, 2014
NON - Choosing the Right Resources
What resources are required and how do I choose the right ones?
Night of the Notables is first and foremost a research project. We are asking students to dig deep into a person's life and really get to know them. We are also asking students to learn research techniques that will last them a lifetime in academia and beyond.
Required resources include books, periodicals, interviews, and web pages. Below I will discuss each one and share what was covered in class.
Books - Students are required to use a minimum of three books. This means visiting a library and learning to use the catalog, talking to the research librarian, or getting help from a family member. Students will learn how libraries function, how to request information, and may even stumble upon another book that they want to read for pleasure. When choosing books students should take in to account the length of time they have for research, their personal reading level, and availability. We have already begun note taking. There is not time to request books from out of the area if it's going to take more than 24 hours. I have encouraged students to choose one book, at their reading level, that they will read cover to cover. The other two may be anthologies, encyclopedias, children's books, or adult biographies that are longer or more complex. These will be skimmed for information, but at least one they are expected to read cover to cover. I've already had the question, are ebooks alright? The answer is yes, as long as it's a full book, not just a web page, ebooks are fine.
Periodical - Periodicals will require that students go to a library, preferably one with a research librarian. The research librarian can help them locate and use periodicals catalog. They will then learn how to use the microfiche to view the original article. A periodical can be a newspaper story or a magazine story. These should be printed out so that notes can be taken from it. Be sure to note the name of the periodical, publication date, and author of the article for your bibliography.
Interview - Interview requests should have gone out last week. Please see the blog post about interviews for further information.
Web Pages - Yes, students may use web pages to fill in gaps in the information. While the main source of information should come from books, there may be information found on web pages that will be useful. Sites chosen must be credible and truly useful. In class we discussed the hierarchy of credibility and talked about the fact that this is not hard and fast, you must read with a critical eye and decided for yourself. Basically .gov and .edu tend to be the most credible with .org, .net. and .com coming in second. Wikipedia is NOT a credible site and may not be used.
Night of the Notables is first and foremost a research project. We are asking students to dig deep into a person's life and really get to know them. We are also asking students to learn research techniques that will last them a lifetime in academia and beyond.
Required resources include books, periodicals, interviews, and web pages. Below I will discuss each one and share what was covered in class.
Books - Students are required to use a minimum of three books. This means visiting a library and learning to use the catalog, talking to the research librarian, or getting help from a family member. Students will learn how libraries function, how to request information, and may even stumble upon another book that they want to read for pleasure. When choosing books students should take in to account the length of time they have for research, their personal reading level, and availability. We have already begun note taking. There is not time to request books from out of the area if it's going to take more than 24 hours. I have encouraged students to choose one book, at their reading level, that they will read cover to cover. The other two may be anthologies, encyclopedias, children's books, or adult biographies that are longer or more complex. These will be skimmed for information, but at least one they are expected to read cover to cover. I've already had the question, are ebooks alright? The answer is yes, as long as it's a full book, not just a web page, ebooks are fine.
Periodical - Periodicals will require that students go to a library, preferably one with a research librarian. The research librarian can help them locate and use periodicals catalog. They will then learn how to use the microfiche to view the original article. A periodical can be a newspaper story or a magazine story. These should be printed out so that notes can be taken from it. Be sure to note the name of the periodical, publication date, and author of the article for your bibliography.
Interview - Interview requests should have gone out last week. Please see the blog post about interviews for further information.
Web Pages - Yes, students may use web pages to fill in gaps in the information. While the main source of information should come from books, there may be information found on web pages that will be useful. Sites chosen must be credible and truly useful. In class we discussed the hierarchy of credibility and talked about the fact that this is not hard and fast, you must read with a critical eye and decided for yourself. Basically .gov and .edu tend to be the most credible with .org, .net. and .com coming in second. Wikipedia is NOT a credible site and may not be used.
NON - Notecards
Students are required to take notes on 3x5 cards for Night of the Notables. Today we set up the organizational folders and demonstrated note taking.
Below you will find examples and information about note taking.
This is our organizational folder. Students are expected to use it to gather and sort their note cards as they work on their Night of the Notable project. Each rectangle is a pocket, cards are slipped in the pocket vertically.
Below you will find examples and information about note taking.
Students will accumulate approximately 200 note cards before we begin creating our key word outline. Ideally, the 200 would be evenly distributed throughout the topics, but some notable characters may have more or less in certain areas. All cards should be completed by the end of spring break. We will be spending time each day in class working on them, which is why it is critical for students to have their resources with them every day.
Friday, March 14, 2014
Care and Feeding of Tie Dye Shirts
1. Leave in bag for 24 hours.
2. Take out of bag.
3. Cut off rubber bands.
4. Put in dryer by itself.
5. Rinse in cool water until water runs clear.
6. Wash in cold water with dark fabrics or towels.
7. Dry on high heat.
8. Bring back on Monday for step 2 of the project.
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
NON Interview
The next step in Night of the Notables is to interview an expert on the student's chosen person. Yesterday in class we discussed who, when, where, and how to interview an expert.
Who: Choose an expert in the field. An expert is someone that has a degree in a related field, has works published, or has clocked over 1000 hours in research. This disqualifies most hobbiests and "my neighbor". Some ideas for who to contact would include museum curators, professional organizations that highlight the person, authors of biographies about the person, college professors in a related field, ambassadors from the country, coaches, directors, or fan club organizers.
When: Emails requesting interviews should have gone out yesterday (3/10/14). The interview needs to be completed no later than March 28th. We discussed setting up interviews for late afternoon or early evening.
Where: Interviews should be conducted in public places. Libraries and coffee shops are both great options. Parents should accompany their student on the interview and sit nearby after being introduced. Safety is vitally important. If an in person interview is not possible, students may conduct their interview by phone or Skype. Email is not an acceptable alternative, the purpose of the interview is to practice oral interpersonal communication skills.
How: In class we rehearsed how to introduce yourself, how to introduce your parent, and how to ask the person to be seated. We discussed asking for permission to audio record the interview and how to take notes if they decline. We then wrote 5 - 7 questions that would be appropriate to ask. The questions we're looking for are not "What was their middle name?". We are looking for , "Why did you choose to study this person?" "What impact has my notable character had on the world in your opinion?" I encouraged all students to end their interview with "What do think is the most important thing I should learn about this person?" The interview should last about 30 minutes. If you and your interviewee have the time and inclination to talk longer, do so!
Many people in the past have said that their interview was by far the most meaningful part of the interview. Make it work for you!
Who: Choose an expert in the field. An expert is someone that has a degree in a related field, has works published, or has clocked over 1000 hours in research. This disqualifies most hobbiests and "my neighbor". Some ideas for who to contact would include museum curators, professional organizations that highlight the person, authors of biographies about the person, college professors in a related field, ambassadors from the country, coaches, directors, or fan club organizers.
When: Emails requesting interviews should have gone out yesterday (3/10/14). The interview needs to be completed no later than March 28th. We discussed setting up interviews for late afternoon or early evening.
Where: Interviews should be conducted in public places. Libraries and coffee shops are both great options. Parents should accompany their student on the interview and sit nearby after being introduced. Safety is vitally important. If an in person interview is not possible, students may conduct their interview by phone or Skype. Email is not an acceptable alternative, the purpose of the interview is to practice oral interpersonal communication skills.
How: In class we rehearsed how to introduce yourself, how to introduce your parent, and how to ask the person to be seated. We discussed asking for permission to audio record the interview and how to take notes if they decline. We then wrote 5 - 7 questions that would be appropriate to ask. The questions we're looking for are not "What was their middle name?". We are looking for , "Why did you choose to study this person?" "What impact has my notable character had on the world in your opinion?" I encouraged all students to end their interview with "What do think is the most important thing I should learn about this person?" The interview should last about 30 minutes. If you and your interviewee have the time and inclination to talk longer, do so!
Many people in the past have said that their interview was by far the most meaningful part of the interview. Make it work for you!
NON Business Letter
In class last week we wrote our business letters and mailed them. After discussing who to send the letter to, we learned the proper format for a business letter and how to address an envelope.
We use the Purdue OWL as the basis for formatting. (https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/653/01/)
We use the Purdue OWL as the basis for formatting. (https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/653/01/)
Night of the Notables Project Time Line
It's Night of the Notable time again! I'm very excited to see the amazing projects completed this year.
|
Description
|
Where Completed
|
Due
Date
|
|
|
|
N.O.N contract due
|
At home
|
3/4/14
|
Done!
|
|
|
Notable person brainstorm due
|
At home
|
3/4/14
|
|
|
|
Business letter written
|
In class
|
3/5/14
|
|
|
|
Computer Lab Research Day
|
In class
|
3/6/14
|
|
|
|
Library Field Trip
|
In class
|
3/14/14
|
|
|
|
Resources gathered
(3 books, 1 article via microfiche,
interview)
|
At home and on library field trip
|
3/1714
|
|
|
|
Research skills taught/Note cards
using KWO format introduced
|
In class
|
Week of 3/17/14
|
|
|
|
Note cards worked on
|
At home
|
Weeks of 3/17 and 3/24
|
|
|
|
Timeline First Draft
|
In Class
|
3/20/14
|
|
|
|
Interview conducted
|
At home
|
3/28/14
|
|
|
|
Key Word Outline using note cards
|
Modeled in class/Completed at home
|
4/1/14
|
|
|
|
Rough Draft begins in class,
approximately one section completed each week
|
In class
|
4/2/14
|
|
|
|
Black and White Sketch
|
In Art Class
|
Week of 3/31
|
|
|
|
Timeline Final draft
|
At home
|
4/3/14
|
|
|
|
Costume Brainstorm
|
At school
|
4/8/14
|
|
|
|
Souvenirs Created
(An optional afterschool workshop will
be held for students to begin working on souvenirs. they will need to finish
at home.)
|
At school
|
4/15/14
|
|
|
|
1st draft of paper
|
At home
|
4/22/14
|
|
|
|
Editing of paper, peer, home and
teacher
|
In class
|
4/22/14
|
|
|
|
Final draft of paper
|
At home
|
4/24/14
|
|
|
|
Costume completed
|
At home
|
4/24/14
|
|
|
|
Presentation board completed
|
At home
|
4/24/14
|
|
|
|
Teacher assessment of paper and board.
Student revamps if needed.
|
At school
|
Week of 4/28/14
|
|
|
|
Participation in N.O.N presentation
|
At school (6-8pm)
|
5/1/14
|
|
|
Monday, March 10, 2014
Drivers Needed!
It's Field Trip Friday and I need drivers. This month there is not a bus available for our trip, so I need you! We will be going to two destinations. Our first stop will be at the electricity substation. There we will see how energy is produced. After a lovely sack lunch, we will travel to the central library in downtown Portland to conduct research for Night of the Notables.
Uniform of the day:
Students may wear clean jeans that are in good repair, sturdy tennis shoes or hiking boots, and their class t shirt or white polo shirt. Be sure to bring a jacket!
Lunch:
All students should bring a healthy lunch in a reusable container.
Arrival time:
7:45
Dismissal time:
3:30
Other things to bring:
Multnomah County Library card or a completed application for one
Uniform of the day:
Students may wear clean jeans that are in good repair, sturdy tennis shoes or hiking boots, and their class t shirt or white polo shirt. Be sure to bring a jacket!
Lunch:
All students should bring a healthy lunch in a reusable container.
Arrival time:
7:45
Dismissal time:
3:30
Other things to bring:
Multnomah County Library card or a completed application for one
Please let me know if you can drive.
Tuesday, March 4, 2014
Experience Music Project
What a day! A special thank you to Mr. O'Reilly, Mrs. McFarland, and Mrs. Foos for braving the extended day. It was worth every minute!
Oregon Culinary Institute Field Trip
I can not thank Mr. Moutos enough for helping us set up this field trip. The food was incredible and the etiquette lesson priceless. I would highly encourage families to take their own trip to OCI for lunch or dinner!
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