April 16th, 2012
Grade 7 students are currently reading Torn Away, a novel by James Heneghan. It touches on some touchy subjects, specifically about The Troubles in Northern Ireland. Students will finish reading the novel in class this week and we will continue work, including some research, next week.
Grade 8 students are finished with The Outsiders and are now studying drama. We are doing some terms and reading/viewing/listening to some selections in class. It will take approximately two weeks.
Feb. 14, 2013
First and foremost, if you or you child would like online access to the textbook we use please let me know and I will supply you with a password and instructions.
Students in Gr. 8 have completed their movie making projects and shown them to the class. We are now working through the next couple of units of the textbook. In addition, we are slowly and steadily revisiting essay writing, starting from the beginning with paragraphs. The students will be cultivating essays over the next month or so.
Grade 7 students are starting a big unit for the year called Turning Points. Turning Points is a nationally run program that is centred around character development. It is also a unit in essay writing. Students in grade 7 have started the unit this week and will continue for the next three. There are some sensitive subjects discussed and the essay calls for students to share a turning point in their life that has changed them in some way. Please take the time to read the information on the program to the left of the screen and talk to your child about things we're discussing in class. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me as always.
Jan 22, 2013
TEST Friday, Jan, 25, Gr. 7 Language Arts
Students in grade 7 will have a Language Arts test on Friday. The test will be on short stories and there are notes to the left of the screen under Documents. Students will have a story read and provided to them. They will have some multiple choice questions, a story map (they have completed several of these in class) and a paragraph to write.
Grade 7s are also reading independent novels. Some time is given in class, but they should also be reading at home. Assignments will be given in the next couple of days and will be due Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.
Grade 8s are working on a movie making assignment. This should clue up by the end of the month. They also have a novel to be read on their own time by Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.
Jan. 4, 2013
Happy New Year!
Welcome back. Here are a few notes to keep you up to date with what is happening in Language Arts class:
First of all, I'd like to welcome Mr. Steven DeLong to our classroom. He will be interning with us until the Easter break.
Grade 7 students are working on a unit of short stories. We will be learning terms and reading stories for the next 2 weeks and there will be an assessment around the end of that time. There are short story notes available on the documents link to the left of the screen.
Grade 8 students are beginning an exciting project in move making. Students will be creating short movies in class and may bring their devices to class for recording purposes. The focus of the project, however, is narratives and their form. We will be taking the time to write and film the movies in class.
Both Grade 7 and 8 classes are also beginning another round of independent novels. They will have to be read by the end of four weeks. Specific dates will be discussed as the time draws nearer.
Grade 8
Dec. 11, 2012
Grade 7 students are completing a grammar/writing conventions booklet. There will be a quiz following the booklet next week.
Grade 8 students are completing work on short stories. We are using a website to guide our classes and activities in the computer lab. Students can often miss some classes this time of year and this will enable them to keep up and access what they missed from home. The website is: http://staff.fcps.net/tcarr/shortstory/plot1.htm
Check out the new link on the Links for Parents page. It is an interesting documentary about students and attitudes toward cheating.
Nov. 18, 2012
Sorry for the inconvenience, but it seems the links for the smartboard notes for both the grade 7 and 8 novels are not posting properly. I will do my best to fix the notes in school as soon as possible. Those concerned about the novel quiz should simply make sure they remember the main plot events and the main character of the books. The test is not out to trick anyone and will be multiple choice and one journal question. As long as the book was read/listened to, the test should not be challenging. Also, we will review Among the Hidden in class on Monday before the quiz Tuesday.
Nov. 13, 2012
We are finishing up the reading of novels in both grade 7 and 8. There will be a reading test on the content of the novels when we are finished. Grade 8s will write tomorrow and Grade 7s early next week. Notes from class are provided on the documents link to the left
I have now added a blog page to this site. It is on the left of the screen at the bottom of the list, called Beattie Blab. It is my hope that students and parents can use this feature to ask questions that may be helpful to others as well. It is also a quick way to communicate within our classes. I'm new to blogging so let's check it out together.
Oct. 25, 2012
Grade 7s have the unit 1 test next week, Tuesday Oct. 30th. A study guide is provided on the Documents page on the left of the screen. Students will be given the selection for the test on Monday to take home, read and return on Tuesday.
Grade 8s have begun reading the novel Rules of the Road by Joan Bauer. We will be reading the novel in class and working through unit two of the textbook at the same time. Assignments will follow shortly. Some of the subjects that come up in the book include Alcoholism and Alzeimer's disease. You may want to discuss these with your children, as they may have some questions.
Sept. 23, 2012
I am updating both the grade 7 and 8 links to the left to let you know what we are getting up to in class right now and for the next couple of weeks. I have also added and new page For Parents with some interesting links and information about education and teenagers. I am starting with a David Suzuki episode from the Nature of Things called "Surviving the Teenage Brain". If you sometimes wonder what the heck is happening to you child as they hit the teenage years, then this documentary show is for you.
Hello and Welcome
Hello to all new and returning students and parents. I am in the midst of revising my webpage to fit this year. A lot of the information is the same but I will be working to update my page.
Thank you,
Ms. B
Welcome to Mrs. Beattie's website.
On the left of this screen you will find your class. The classes will be updated to include the units we are working on in class. Click on the course and you will find any homework, assignments or upcoming tests or quizzes.
If you would like to contact me my email address is
elizabethandrews@esdnl.ca. or you can click on the email button to the left.
In addition, there are buttons to help you find helpful language arts links, a documents list and information about Ultimate.
Thanks and have a great school year!
Ms. B. (rhymes with Frisbee!)
Laptops and Notebooks:
Students who use laptops or Netbooks in class need to have the software for printing in the classroom. The software can be found at
www.hp.com/support . Students should select the map of North America and then Canada(English). Next, select the option to download and type in the product
F4400 then follow the steps to download and save. When asked to connect to the device simply choose the option to do so at a later time.