Here’s Dorothy celebrating her 104th birthday in style! Isn’t she precious?!?
So I just love to keep up with my friends and family both near & far on Social Media, and the other day I came across an obituary in the Richmond Times-Dispatch of a complete stranger named Dorothy McELHaney. Although I never had the privilege of meeting Mrs. Dorothy, I surely wish I had the pleasure because after reading her fascinating obit, well, I felt like I knew her and boy, was she a character! I think you’ll agree with me after you read her final last words, an autobiographical narrative that is packed with historical memories that truly gives the reader a feeling of familiarity, almost like Mrs. Dorothy was our long-lost great grandmother! Here’s what I’d like you to do… read Mrs. Dorothy’s obituary for both historical details as well as to get a sense of her character and personality. With your ELA partner, after reading her obituary, here are your assignments to be completed in your Interactive Reading Notebook:
ASSIGNMENT 1: Click on the link below and read Dorothy McELHaney’s Obituary with your ELA Partner! Highlight historical, interesting details in the essay and share any SCHEMA, or background knowledge, you may have as you read with your buddy!
http://www.richmond.com/obituaries/article_fec4a58c-74a1-507b-8df4-8fd9c63fb341.html
ASSIGNMENT 2: Construct a two-column chart listing the historical details of Mrs. Dorothy’s life. In the first column, list the historical fact/memory, then in the second column, briefly state its significance. Try to come up with as many as you can, but you should have at least 10!
Your graphic organizer will look like this:
The Obituary of Dorothy McELHaney: An Autobiographical Narra
Historical Fact/Memory Significance
1. Born on November 15, 1910 1. Lived in 20th Century and was 105 years old
ASSIGNMENT 3: Okay, after you have constructed your two-column chart of historical facts, memories, and their significance, you are ready to construct a Character Map of Mrs. Dorothy! Follow the Character Bubble Map that I created for myself and that you made of yourself! Remember that all of the character traits you include on your graphic organizer should be ADJECTIVES, which are describing words that will perfectly match Mrs. Dorothy’s personality!
Rules about all Thinking Maps:
~Begin with the Frame of Reference that should be a frame of about 1-inch around the perimeter of your sheet of paper turned horizontally! Record where you got the information contained on your map, such as “Dorothy McELHaney’s obituary”, “My Schema”, and “Ms. Fitzgerald”.
~Record the subject of your bubble map in the very center of your paper, in this case, Dorothy McELHaney.
~Record your words first, which should all be adjectives, THEN draw the circle! REMEMBER, WORDS FIRST, THEN CIRCLES OR BOXES!
~Use the sentence starter, “Mrs. Dorothy was …! to think of character traits to describe her.
~Your Character Bubble Map should have at least 10 or more descriptive words to describe Mrs. Dorothy!
ASSIGNMENT 4: Independently (that means on your own!), BLOG about Mrs. Dorothy and this assignment! Tell what you learned about her life, and share your favorite parts of this assignment! Don’t forget to include your name as well as your ELA Partner’s name, and ask at least 3 questions about this learning experience for other bloggers to answer in their responses!
ASSIGNMENT 5: Respond back to 3 bloggers and try to answer their questions! One of your response blogs CAN be your ELA partner!
HAVE FUN READING & WRITING!
Posted Saturday, August 15, 2015
Let’s get blogging, Sixth Graders!
First, go to my “Meet Ms. Fitzgerald!” page and read about me! Look at my pictures in case you have any questions to include in your blog!
Now it’s time for you to write your first BLOG! Tell us about yourself! Include likes and dislikes, talents you have, family, and interests. Here are some questions to get you started:
What is your full name? When and where were you born? Who is in your family? Where do you live? What do you like to do in your spare time? What are your talents? Do you play a sport? Do you play a musical instrument, or are you a talented singer? What are your favorite things, such as food, sport, animal, color….? What are your favorite things about school? Are you good in math? Do you like science or social studies better, and why? Do you like to read? What kinds of books do you like? Do you have a favorite author? Where is your favorite place you have been on vacation? Who are your best friends? What kinds of things do you and your friends like to do together? If you could choose anywhere on Earth to visit, where would it be?
And, finally….do you have any questions for me?
After you have blogged about yourself, you are ready to construct an “ALL ABOUT ME” Character Map! Follow the directions from Ms. Fitz to create your one-of-a-kind Bubble Map telling all about YOU!