Final L.A. Project

You have spent almost NINE months with the amazing people in this classroom.

Your final project in Language Arts is to write a sincere and heartfelt letter to the person whose name you picked.

You will give your classmate a meaningful letter: let him know what you think he does well, what you think is great about him, something you admire about him, etc.

Take the time to do this right: You have seen this person in class, at lunch, and in the halls. You have listened to the words they have shared in class, and with friends. Be kind.

·       It should be THREE paragraphs (or more) long.

·       This is worth 25 points. But, if you go above and beyond you can earn up to 50 extra credit points.

                                 Turn it in to me on or before June 5^th

6th Grade: Create Your Own Civilization Project: Due Thursday, June 5th

Create Your Own Civilization Project: Due Thursday, June 5th  

Purpose:  To create a new civilization using the information that we have learned about the parts of a civilization and the ancient civilizations we’ve studied.

Part 1: Create a title sheet with your name (first and last), period, and the name of your civilization (this should be stapled to the top of your paragraphs) (2 points)

Part 2:  Write a paper that describes your civilization.  Format: Times New Roman. Size 12. Double Spaced. (48 points total)

1^st paragraph:  Introduce your civilization.  Give them a name.  Tell me about their natural boundaries/geography.  Your paragraph should answer these questions:

1. What is the name of your civilization?

2. If you were to describe your civilization to the world, what would you say?

3. Which features of the land make your culture easy to attack?

4. What defenses does the land provide naturally? (12 points)

 

2^nd paragraph:  Describe the organized government of your civilization. Your paragraph should answer these questions:

1. What form of government does your culture have?

2. How are the leaders selected?

3. What are the titles of those in power? (Ex. President, king, ruler, all mighty one)

4. What are the responsibilities of those in power?

5. What major laws have been made and why? (at least two)

6. What punishments exist for law breakers?(12 points)

3^rd paragraph:  Describe the religion of your civilization.  Your paragraph should answer these questions:

1. What god(s) is/are worshipped by the people in this civilization?

2. Is your civilization polytheistic or monotheistic?

3. How do the people show respect for their god(s)?

4. Who are the “holy people” of your civilization?

5. What are the most important teachings, rules, or ideas that your civilization’s religion teaches?

6. Describe the most important religious holiday in your culture.  Tell what it is and how people in your civilization celebrate it. (12 Points)

4^th paragraph:  Describe the contributions of your civilization (things your civilization created for the world). For example: The Chinese created paper that we still use today. 

Your paragraph should answer these questions:

1. What is the name of the language your civilization speaks?

2. What are the major inventions your civilization created? (You need at least four inventions)

3. What was one major discovery made by your civilization? (12 points)

 

Part 3:  Illustrations (50 points total)
Map:  (10 points)
Draw a colorful map with a key that shows what your civilization’s geography looks like.
On your map be sure to include:                    
Fresh water source(s)
Main cities  – including a capital (a total of four cities)                      

Artifacts:  (20 points total)
1^st Artifact:  Choose something that an archaeologist might discover from your civilization and illustrate it.  Your choices might include a major building, a religious figure, cooking materials, or flag, etc…
2^nd Artifact:  Create a writing sample that your civilization has created.

Social Class Pyramid: (10 points)

Create a pyramid that shows the class divisions in your society.  Label the levels of the pyramid.

Art of your Civilization: (10 points)

Illustrate or a design a creative model of art used in your civilization.  Examples include, but are not limited to: jewelry, games, dance, musical instruments, weapons, architecture, clothing, or  sports.

**Project should be stapled or bound together neatly.  Do not forget to put a cover sheet on top of work with your name, period, and title.

IMPORTANT:  Your paper must be typed or written neatly in pen.  Please proofread your final copy.  Your illustrations should be on white paper or construction paper.  Do not use notebook paper for your illustrations.  The illustrations must be in color.

GRADE: This project is worth 100 points.  It is a major grade!  See point values beside each requirement.  No work will be accepted late!

Extra Credit:  You may present these projects to the class for extra credit.  Point values will be determined.                                  

I can not wait to see what my wonderful, smart, intelligent, and creative 6^th grade students design.  The possibilities are endless!

Don’t Forget: Due Thursday, June 5th

6th Graders: Charlotte Doyle Questions

6th Graders: here are your DOK level 3 Charlotte Doyle Questions

Novel Study Guide

 

Set in 1832, The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle is a high seas adventure centered on a young female protagonist who has to travel across the ocean by herself in order to reunite with her family already in North America. Her crossing is anything but normal. In no time whatsoever, Charlotte is front and center in a whirlwind of events that will change her in ways that she could not have imagined!

 

The following is a novel guide with questions and vocabulary for every chapter. It can be used in a literature circle, or it can be given to students as an independent novel study. Questions are mixed between literal, inferential and evaluative types. Typical student answers are given at that back of this novel guide to assist with assessment of student’s understanding and knowledge. Since the vocabulary is pretty difficult, words from each of the chapters have also been included for students to study and use in their own sentences.

 

Chapter 1

1. When Charlotte goes to the dock for the first time, she witnesses a great deal of activity. In a very descriptive way, she calls all of this activity a “delicious chaos”. These two words can be considered an oxymoron: two words that mean very different things but when put together mean something completely different. What are the dictionary definitions of these two words? What do they mean when put together? In other words, what is Charlotte getting at with this strange observation?

 

2. A lot of thought goes into a name, especially the name of a ship. It was no coincidence that the Titanic was a very large ship. When you think of the word Seahawk, what images does it bring to your mind? What should a ship by the name of Seahawk be like?

 

3. The captain’s name, Jaggery, is also a very interesting name. What kind of person do you think he is with a name like that?

 

4. “Moored to the dock, she rode the swell easily”. There will be many new words, ideas, and phrases introduced in this novel. The language is of an older style, and many terms are ship related. What do you think this first sentence means?

 

 

Chapter 2

1. Mr. Grummage could not wait to be rid of his responsibility of taking care of Charlotte. Why do you think he was in such a rush to get rid of her, even when you consider the possible threat to her safety in travelling by alone?

 

2. Charlotte is shown to her cabin. Describe the cabin that she was given. When describing the accommodations herself, Charlotte says, “It was unnatural, and, as I stooped there, impossible.” What does she mean by impossible?

 

3. Zachariah is an important character that we meet in this chapter. Who is he exactly, and why does he think that he has so much in common with Charlotte?

 

4. What do you think is meant by the last sentence in chapter 2?

 

 

Chapter 3

1. At the beginning of the chapter, Charlotte states that she is a proper young lady in a place where a proper young lady should not be. Consider life from her point of view for a moment. According to Charlotte, what is a proper young lady, and what should she be doing as a proper young lady?

 

2. Charlotte’s first observation of the crew is quite descriptive: “They were like men recruited from the doormat of hell”. What does she mean by this statement?

 

3. Why does Charlotte consider Captain Jaggery a gentleman?

 

 

Chapter 4

1. Zachariah tries to warn Charlotte about the type of voyage she is on. He tells her the following: A ship Miss Doyle… is a nation of its own.” What exactly does Zachariah mean by this?

 

2. There certainly seems to be no love lost between Captain Jaggery and Zachariah. What is it about the Captain that Zachariah does not like?

 

3. Why is it so important that Captain Jaggery have Charlotte aboard the Seahawk?

 

 

Chapter 5

1. Charlotte finally gets a chance to see what the Captain’s quarters are like. How does the Captain’s cabin compare with Charlotte’s? Do they have any similarities at all, or are they as different as night and day?

 

2. What’s a round robin? What’s its purpose? How would you characterize the type of person who would decide to write their name on one?

 

3. Do you think Charlotte should trust Captain Jaggery? Why or why not?

 

 

Chapter 6

1. It was no accident that the Captain decided to kiss Charlotte’s hand in front of the entire crew. What is the symbolic significance of the gesture?

 

2. How does Charlotte describe the cargo hold and its contents?

 

 

Chapter 7

1. What does Charlotte mean when she says that both Captain Jaggery and Zachariah are courting her? What reasons would each of them have for courting Charlotte?

 

2. Describe Charlotte’s character. Do you think she is a strong person? What about her level of intelligence? If she were alive today would you consider her a friend? Why or why not?

 

 

Chapter 8

1. As a young woman from the upper class, Charlotte was taught to act and behave in a certain way. At the beginning of the chapter she talks about this in reference to her morning routine. Has her morning routine as a “young gentlewoman” changed now that she is on ship? How?

 

2. How has the crew responded to Charlotte now that she has been on the ship for a long period of time? Has it changed from when she first boarded? How?

 

3. “In particular, it was the story of Jonah that had a hold on them.” This is an observation that Charlotte makes as she reads the Bible to the crew. Why does this story have such a strong hold on the crew of the Seahawk?

 

4. How are the first mates, Mr. Keetch and Mr. Hollybrass, different when dealing with the Captain?

 

 

Chapter 9

1. How does Charlotte describe the crew’s quarters?

 

2. What did Charlotte find in Ewing’s trunk, and why was she so surprised to see it?

 

3. As Charlotte reflects on her time in the crew’s quarters, she comes up with a startling discovery. What is it?

 

 

Chapter 10

1. Charlotte’s opinion of the crew has now changed. How does she describe them now, and how does this compare with when she first arrived on the Seahawk?

 

2. Who is the stowaway that Charlotte discovered in the previous chapter, and what is his relationship with Captain Jaggery?

 

3. How did Captain Jaggery respond to the rebellion on the ship? Do you think that he responded in the correct way?

 

4. Why do you think Captain Jaggery chose Zachariah as the person best suited to take the punishment for the crew?

 

 

Chapter 11

1. Did Zachariah show courage or cowardice when standing up to Captain Jaggery? Explain your answer.

 

2. What did Charlotte try to do to stop Zachariah from being whipped? Were attempts at stopping this punishment successful?

 

 

Chapter 12

1. In the previous chapter, Charlotte did something out of character for a “gentle woman”. What has she now decided to do (near the beginning of the chapter) as a young educated woman?

 

2. How did Captain Jaggery respond to Charlotte’s attempt to apologize? What were some of the things that he said? Did he accept her attempt to make amends?

 

3. What did Captain Jaggery do to make sure that the crew would suffer for trying to rise up against him?

 

 

Chapter 13

1. Why did Charlotte want to become a member of the crew?

 

2. What test did the crew give Charlotte to see if she could become one of them? Why did they give her this test?

 

3. Describe what it was like for Charlotte at the top of the mainmast. Can it compare with anything that a person your age can do today? Would you try to make the attempt yourself?

 

 

Chapter 14

1. What was the Captain’s reaction to Charlotte’s desire to be a crew member?

 

2. How well did Charlotte perform her duties as a crew person?

 

3. Why is the Captain watching Charlotte very closely?

 

 

Chapter 15

1. Why is the Captain so obsessed with sailing in the hurricane even though it is extremely dangerous to do so?

 

2. “Every upward inch was a struggle, as though I were forcing myself between the fingers of God’s angry fist.” What does Charlotte mean exactly by the phrase “God’s angry fist”?

 

3. Why was it so important for Charlotte to cut the lines from the foreyard sail?

 

4. Who all of a sudden saved Charlotte from certain death? How do you think he got there?

 

5. What do you now think will happen to Charlotte because of the accident involving Hollybrass?

 

 

Chapter 16

1. What was Charlotte accused of? Why do you think the crew finds it so hard to believe her?

 

2. Now that they have been at sea for a long time, people are starting to look a little different. How does Charlotte now describe Captain Jaggery?

 

 

Chapter 17

1. Why was it so important for the crew to hide Zachariah from Captain Jaggery?

 

2. Why does Charlotte think that, as a person of colour, Zachariah will have a hard time convincing the authorities about how bad a captain, and person, Jaggery is?

 

3. Why does Charlotte believe that Zachariah is the murderer of Mr. Hollybrass?

 

 

Chapter 18

1. Does Captain Jaggery enjoy being Charlotte’s judge? Why or why not?

 

2. “I wish,” he said, “to state how unnatural it is for a girl to carry a knife.” What does Jaggery mean by unnatural?

 

3. “Is it not our duty, our obligation, to protect the natural order of the world?” What does Captain Jaggery mean by the “natural order”?

 

 

Chapter 19

1. Together, Charlotte and Zachariah come up with a new suspect for the murder of Hollybrass. Who do they think killed Hollybrass, and what was his motive for committing the crime?

 

 

Chapter 20

1. What did Charlotte and Zachariah now plan to do in order to save themselves? Describe some of the reasoning behind their plan.

 

2. When Charlotte first came aboard, Mr. Keetch did not care for her. What is his opinion of her now?

 

3. What shocking event caught Charlotte off guard at the end of the chapter? Why?

 

 

Chapter 21

1. How was Jaggery able to know everything that was going on? What information did he know?

 

2. Briefly describe the condition of the Captain’s quarters now.

 

3. What eventually happened to the Captain? In your opinion, do you think he got what he deserved?

 

 

Chapter 22

1. Do you think Charlotte was the correct choice for Captain? Why or why not?

 

2. Why were lies written in the log concerning the deaths of Jaggery and Hollybrass?

 

3. Why was Charlotte so interested in becoming friends with her family’s maid?

 

4. Did Charlotte make the right decision at the end of the book? What are some of the good points about her decision? What are some of the bad points about her decision?