SENIOR MEMORY BOOK



SENIOR MEMORY BOOK

During this semester you will write a book – a Senior Memory Book. It will consist of your memories and thoughts from your whole life. The due date is tentative – towards the end of the school year, but you must begin now and work on it for the remainder of this semester in order to complete it on time without rushing. You will have periodic checkpoints throughout the year. I will give you some time in class to work on this assignment.

The final product should be presented in a scrapbook album or a loose-leaf, three-ring binder (if you want to use something else, just run it by me). Whether you need a ½-inch or a 2-inch binder will depend upon how much you put into this memory book. Your binder should be decorated in some form or fashion – drawings or pictures pasted on the outside cover, inside cover, and the spine if you wish. You may buy a notebook with a clear plastic sheet cover behind which you may place sheets of paper. However, if you use a bought scrapbook album, you do not necessarily have to decorate it.

Just think how wonderful this is! Easy grades AND a present your mom or dad or aunt or third cousin will just love! This is a good graduation “thank you” for a person in your life who has helped you along the way.

Your Senior Memory Book must include 12 chapters in categories below. Each writing piece should be 250-300 words or more. The final product must be typed.

• 3 chapters from your “early” years – birth through middle school

• 3 chapters from high school overall

• 4 chapters from senior year

• 1 Favorites list (20 or more)

• 1 Epilogue: “Why I Would Not Change Anything About My Life” or “If I Could Live My Life Over Again…”

Chapters 1 – 3: The Early Years

Choose three of the following to write about. If you have another idea, please get it approved by me before beginning. The more creative and descriptive your writing is, the better!

❖ "Before I Was, There Were . . ." (Your parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, older cousins and siblings and anybody who may not be a relative but who has helped to pave the way for you and your family.)

❖ “What a Beautiful Baby!” (Baby pictures, stories that you’ve heard from when you were 1 year or younger, the effect you had on people, etc.)

❖ "Suddenly, I Became Me" (Earliest memories: people, places, events, all those cute things that you did when you were little that your mother tells you about.)

❖ "School Bells" (Your earliest years in school – K through 3 -- learning to read, special school programs or plays, unique teachers and friends)

❖ “Birthday Parties” (Special birthday parties you remember, presents you received, or a birthday that everyone forgot.)

❖ "More School Bells" (Grades 4 and 5 -- school work gets harder -- research paper, multiplication tables, science experiments, other)

❖ "I Grew Up Here / I Am From Here" (Describe your town, neighborhood, rural community, where you moved from, the moving process, etc.)

❖ "Hide and Seek" (Describe in some detail games you and your friends played.)

❖ "My First Boyfriend/Girlfriend" (That first crush in elementary or middle school)

❖ “My Best Friend” (Describe your best friend and the things you used to do together. Why did you make such good friends? What about that person has caused you to stay friends with them all these years? If you still see that person but are no longer friends, what happened?)

❖ "I Wish I Could See _____ Again" (Tell about a childhood friend that you have no contact with any more but would like to see again.)

❖ “Middle School” (Getting accustomed to "big kids'" school: teachers, friends, activities, successes, heartbreaks)

❖ "Getting Involved" (What were your favorite activities or sports or school extracurriculars during elementary or middle school? Describe them. Why did you choose those particular activities? Is there a funny story to tell? A major goal that was achieved?)

❖ “Family Vacation” (Write about a favorite or funny family vacation you took during elementary or middle school.)

❖ Have another idea? Run it by me.

Chapters 4 – 6: High School

Choose three of the following to write about. If you have another idea, please get it approved by me before beginning. The more creative and descriptive your writing is, the better!

❖ "Who Am I?" (Who are you? How would you define yourself? What are your life goals – getting more education, having a career, traveling the world, getting married, having a family, moving away, etc.? How do you expect to reach those goals?)

❖ "High School: the Early Years" (Your freshman, sophomore, and junior years in high school: highlights, troubles, successes, heartbreaks, friends, teachers, coaches, classes, homecoming, prom, sporting events, concerts, summers, spring break, girls’/boys’ night out, a special date, band/orchestra, clubs, trips, etc.) *This could be more than one chapter.

❖ “Influential Person / Special Relationship” (Write about the one most influential person in your life. I know this is difficult to do, but don't waffle here and try to select more than one. Do some soul searching and choose the ONE person who has been MOST influential. Tell why you chose that person.)

❖ "I'm Really in Love this Time" (Your first serious romance)

❖ Have another idea? Run it by me.

Chapters 7 – 11: SENIOR YEAR!

Choose four of the following to write about. If you have another idea, please get it approved by me before beginning. The more creative and descriptive your writing is, the better!

❖ "At Last, I'm a Senior" (Your senior year: highlights, troubles, etc. (See “High School…” above) *This could be more than one chapter.

❖ “Midpoint Musings” (What are you thinking about in the middle of your senior year? We’ll ALL do this one at the beginning of second semester.)

❖ “Special Privileges” (Driving to school, getting measured for your cap and gown, your senior portrait, all those “lasts” – last summer reading (, last football game, last basketball game (or other sport). How did you treat this year’s freshmen?) *This could be more than one chapter.

❖ “Reflections” (Was this year what you expected? Did it fly by or drag on? Are you excited to get out of here or sad that things are changing or a little of both? Look back on your high school career and write reflectively about it.)

❖ Have another idea? Run it by me.

Chapter 11: Favorites List (More info later…)

Chapter 12: Epilogue: “Why I Would Not Change Anything About My Life” or “If I Could Live My Life Over Again…”

See the next page for additional requirements….

Details that are REQUIRED!

• Decorated front cover

• 3 collage pages – drawings, pictures, ticket stubs, memorabilia, etc. Coordinate this with one of your chapters. I’m looking for creativity and effort!

• Title Page – Senior Memory Book, Name, Central Gwinnett High School, Class of 2011

• Table of contents – List out each chapter and the title

• Each written page must have the chapter number and title at the top.

Grading

If your Senior Memory Book is complete and shows some creativity and thought, your grade will be no less than an 80. The more thorough, thoughtful, and creative you are in your writings, the higher the grade will be. Similarly, the more you decorate your book and pages and sections with drawings, pictures, photographs, stuff cut out of magazines or newspapers or brochures, the higher the grade will be. Any book that does not contain all 12 chapters will receive a lower grade, regardless of how fancy it is. Any book that is a bunch of "junk" will not receive a grade. This project counts as 2 “major” grades.

Checkpoints

From time to time, I will check on your progress. Other times I will check to make sure you’ve done the assignment. These will be daily grades. Pay attention in class for due dates.

Remember, this could make a great “thank-you” to your parents or someone

who has helped you be successful. Good luck, have fun, and be creative!

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download