Literacy Speaks Volumes

The wind is tossing the lilacs. The new leaves laugh in the sun. The petals fall on the orchard wall,  But for me, spring is done. Beneath the Apple blossoms, I go my wintry way. Love that smiled to me in April Seems false to me in May. Sweet April Whose morning fog and chill Breathes life into the day. Anticipation and longing Bring a compacted lie And patent love to bitter May.

For this delightful sweet sauce, you will need the following: 1 cup of peeled and chopped mango 1/2 cup of ketchup 1/4 cup of lime juice 1/4 cup of soy sauce 1 tablespoon of toasted sesame oil 1 tablespoon of honey Combine ingredients. Pour into a saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes.

You will need the following for this yummy hamburger or hot dog sauce: 1 cup of mayonnaise 1 cup of ketchup 1/4 cup of sweet relish 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar 2 teaspoons of sugar 1 1/2 tablespoon of minced garlic salt and pepper Mix all of the ingredients together and serve as a condiment for your burgers and hot dogs.

There are many big ideas and key concepts that are expected of sixth graders in English Language Arts. The following is a breakdown of what the standards might actually mean. When a standard states that a student will "demonstrate control" of Standard English, what does that really mean?  The standard means that students should recognize the eight parts of speech correctly and effectively. It also means that students must be able to use correct capitalization and punctuation to  help make their writing clear. And finally,  they need to know how to spell correctly. All of these are difficult tasks. So how do we teach them? The second language standard says that students must use different strategies to determine a word's meaning. Okay? Does this mean that we need to have a school-wide vocabulary program? Yes. I believe that every school should adopt some sort of school-wide vocabulary program. This program should teach both domain-specific words and ...

The modes of persuasion, often referred to as ethical strategies or rhetorical appeals, are devices in rhetoric that classify the speaker's appeal to the audience. The three modes are ethos, pathos, and logos. Ethos is the appeal to the authority or credibility of the presenter. It is how well the presenter convinces the audience that he or she is qualified to present on the particular subject. It can be done in many ways: By being a notable figure in the field in question, such as a college professor or an executive of a company whose business is related to the presenter's topic. By demonstrating mastery of the argot of the field. By being introduced by, or producing bona fides from, other established authorities. Pathos is an appeal to the audience's emotions, and the terms sympathy, pathetic, and empathy are derived from it. It can be in the form of metaphor, simile, a passionate delivery, or even a simple claim that a matter is unjust. Pathos can be parti...

To analyze an argument, you must be able to understand, analyze, and evaluate arguments according to specific instructions and to convey your evaluation clearly in writing. You must be able to critically examine the author's line of reasoning and the use of evidence.  After reading the argument, ask yourself the following questions: What is offered as evidence, support, or proof? What is explicitly stated, claimed, or concluded? What is assumed or supposed, perhaps without justification or proof? What is not stated, but necessarily follows from or under  lies what is stated? When analyzing an argument, you should recognize the author's line of reasoning. You should be able to recognize the separate implicit steps in the thinking process and consider whether the movement from each step to the next is logically sound. Look for transition words and phrases that show that the author is making logical connections. Look for some of the following transition words: ...

What is an argument in writing? When you write an argument , you express your preference for a side to an argument. When you write an argument, you write a claim . Your claim is how you feel about a controversial topic. For example, if the question is "Should students grade their teachers?",  your claim might be, "Yes, students should grade their teachers." Or, "No, students should not grade their teachers." Your claim is your position on an issue. The issue is a problem in which there are two sides. The argument must be arguable. Something like "Smoking is bad for your health" is not an argument because everyone agrees that smoking is bad for our health. However, the argument might be that smoking should or should not be banned in public places. Now that is something that is arguable. Your claim must be supported. If you can't back it up, then you can't argue it. Your support is your evidence . Your support can be sta...