Main Idea: - WJCC Public Schools



WJCC Middle School Learning Plan – Grade 8 ReadingDear WJCC Families,We are facing significant challenges throughout our nation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, WJCC Schools will be closed for the remainder of the academic year per the direction of Governor Northam. The Virginia Department of Education will provide guidance on continued teaching and learning over the next few days.Throughout this time, we will continue to provide resources and activities to support learning. The resources in this packet will help your child practice important skills and review content. This supplemental packet should support learning activities from March 30th – April 3rd. Additional resources may be posted on Student VUE for certain subjects. Students are encouraged to check Student VUE during this time.This work is not required, and it will not be graded. We simply want families to have access to materials and options during our mandated school closure.We will be in touch soon with our direction for the remainder of the school year. We hope everyone remains safe and healthy.Sincerely, WJCC StaffDay 11Day 12Day 13Day 14Day 15Read Gaming Communities (nonfiction text).Complete the Main Idea/ Relevant Details Summary Chart.View the vocabulary words (terms) in context from the provided glossary.Use the glossary to completethe Expanding Your Vocabulary Chart.Closely reread the excerpt from Gaming Communities to complete the Deeper ReadingPractice (multiple choice questions).Read “Mother to Son” (poetry).Completethe Relevant Details/Summary Chart.View the vocabulary words (terms) in context from the provided glossary.Use the glossary to completethe Expanding Your Vocabulary Chart.Closelyreread “Mother to Son” to complete the Deeper Reading Practice (multiple choice questions).Secondary Online Programs Available at HomeExactPath - Login: WJCCSD Used primarily by grades 3-8 for reading and mathematics. Learning Paths aligned to NWEA data. For this time period – all students allowed at no additional costDiscovery Education - CONNECT VIA OFFICE 365Content by standard/subject. Includes virtual experiences and instructional strategies We fully license Essentials and K-8 Science plus Streaming for K-8Office 365 - tools for WORD, EXCEL, POWERPOINT, ONENOTE with heavy emphasis on TEAMS. We are fully licensedEMediaVA - educational service offering media resources appropriate for PreK-14 All students and teachers. Students use computer login for username and last five digits of student ID for password curriculum, for use in classrooms, home schools, and informal educational environments, such as after-school, community facilities, and museums (the "Service").Imagine Learning - program is designed to support the language, literacy, and early reading skills of certain English Learners. Cannot use on a cell phone. Recommendation is 20 minutes a day Licensed for our ELL studentsVUE - access: Primary communication and grading toolCulture Grams - - *Online Database that students should access from school webpageWorld Book Online - 11 ACTIVITYGaming Communities Do They Encourage Positive Communication?Point: Gaming Helps Develop Communication Skills by Joshua Vink1Today, communication is more complicated than ever. Electronic devices have become increasingly important tools of communication in the last thirty years. People rely on their smartphones more than any other device. Communication is vital to doing well in today’s society. A great way to improve your communication skills is through gaming.2Multiplayer gaming brings people together. Chat features allow gamers to meet people from all over the world. They can make friends while having fun. They can also play with family or longtime friends. The reading and writing that comes from chatting with these people can foster positive communication.3Suppose you begin chatting online with a new player, and you find out the person is from Kazakhstan. You have never heard of this country, and you look for it on a map. Then you ask the person some questions about his or her country. You find out that Kazakhstan has major oil deposits. Large U.S. oil companies do business there. You receive a valuable geography lesson just by playing a game.4Some students do not enjoy reading and writing at school. If they find it difficult, it gives them a negative attitude toward communication. It is important to find enjoyable ways for these students to read and write. That can help them to develop their communication skills. Gaming provides this kind of practice.5With two thirds of young people in the United States playing video games (Duggan), everyone should participate to gain its benefits. The constant reading and writing that goes on in gaming chat gives players the opportunity to increase their vocabulary and improve their expression. People enjoy this type of communication more than the type of communication practiced in English class.6Chatting online not only helps gamers make new friends. It also can improve self-esteem. Berni Good is a psychologist in London who works with gamers. She says, “Research tells us that players feel greatly rewarded sharing their gaming experiences with others on social media and also in multiplayer environments” (Wells and Blaghorn). When something improves self-esteem, people gain an appreciation for it.7This means that people who do not game are missing out on invaluable benefits. If people want to improve their self- esteem, they should game. Today’s video games are so advanced that people owe it to themselves to explore them and develop advanced skills. Communication is more than just reading and writing.8In addition to improving self-esteem, gaming can also give people digital literacy. Digital literacy provides the tools needed to interact electronically. Our society has entered a digital age. Business and government rely on computers and other electronic business to handle most activities.9James Paul Gee, a linguist and professor of literacy studies at Arizona State University, thinks we should expand the traditional definition of literacy beyond reading and writing because language isn’t the only communication systemavailable in today’s world (Levasseur). Digital literacy is an example of one such system. Learning to use electronic devices for communication is a key part of digital literacy. Game chat provides users with practice using these devices.10The value of gaming to the economy is shown by how large companies are using gaming. These companies have realized that training needs to be engaging for employees. What could be more engaging than games? “Google and Microsoft have created games to increase worker morale, quality control, and productivity” (Schawbel).11If major technology companies are using gaming to improve workers’ communication and digital literacy, there must be something to it. These companies have billions in dollars in revenue and count on training to improve efficiency.Increases in efficiency means increases in profits. All companies need to use gaming to train their people so that they can maximize success. People interested in getting jobs with these companies would be wise to have plenty of gaming experience.12Gaming helps improve both traditional communication skills and digital literacy. Our world increasingly relies on communication to make economies run smoothly. Gaming will have an increasingly important role to play. Gaming’s lasting popularity means that we should put it to the best possible use.Counterpoint: Gaming Does Not Promote Positive Communication by Caroline Rodgers13Although gaming has become a leading leisure activity, the benefits as far as communication goes are minimal. More than half of the people in the world’s industrialized countries identify as gamers (“Gaming Gone Global” 2016). Yet the negatives of gaming are clear. You just have to look at how it affects relationships and language use.14Gaming damages relationships by reducing communication between gamers and their families and friends. A study at Brigham Young University examined the gaming habits of college students across the country. As the amount of time spent gaming went up, the quality of relationships went down (Hadfield). People need family and friends asthe foundation of their life. Gaming damages this foundation.15The loss of communication outside of gaming is just part of the issue. An even greater problem is the communication that goes on within the games themselves. This communication takes place in what is called game “chat.” The competitive nature of gaming seems to encourage rude and inappropriate comments.16Negative communication is a big part of the gaming experience for committed and casual players alike. Trash talk is common for all forms of competition, but it is especially bad in an online gaming environment. Bullies and sore losers can shout or type insults from the comfort of their own homes. Some people seem to think that it is okay to say things online that they would not say to a person’s face. This has to do with the anonymous nature of chat in many games.17Many of the players who use negative speech online are able to hide behind avatars or fake names. So they feel noconsequences for their bad behavior. “When people hide behind a moniker they think they can say hateful, hurtful things, and harass people simply because they can get away with it,” noted Morgan Lewis of the online zine Gamer Professionals.18There’s a word for a person who posts nasty comments anonymously. That word is coward.19Yet, some players are proud of their cruel insults. These players are called trolls. These individuals play online games specifically to ruin the experience for other players. Many times, these are low-level players who are not skilled at the game. Their only enjoyment comes from making other players angry. What’s worse, other players sometimes encourage them. Trolls post about their worst insults on gaming message boards or post videos of the interaction online. These posts and videos often receive positive comments from players who think the insults are funny. Such encouragement makes the online environment worse for victims of these verbal attacks.20There are options to combat trolls, but they are often temporary. For instance, players can mute these trolls in some games, but that’s not a long-term solution. A player can also make a complaint to the game company. That might get the offender banned. Even then, friends of the banned person may flame the player who made the complaint. Often the banned person will get a new account with a new avatar or be able to log on from a different computer. Then the player can go right back to making nasty comments.21Studies have shown that negative communication is especially directed toward female players. Professors at Ohio University have identified that female gamers are treated differently from males in chat situations. In their study, these researchers played against 1,660 unique gamers. They broadcasted pre-recorded audio clips of either a man or a woman speaking. “Findings indicate that, on average, the female voice received three times as many negative comments as the male voice or no voice” (Kuznekoff and Rose).22The easiest way to solve the problem with chat is to require players to use their real names. Unfortunately, this creates security issues, especially for kids. Gaming companies should consider making more efforts to inform parents of bad online behavior by their children.23Gaming is not an effective form of communication. Gamers are more interested in winning competitions than in making new friends. As long as negative language is such a major part of game chat, gaming will do more to harm communication than to improve it. Our society needs a better sense of community. It does not need more gaming.DAY 11 ACTIVITYMain Idea/Relative Details/SummaryGaming Communities: Do They Encourage Positive Communication?Point: Gaming Helps Develop Communication Skills by Joshua VinkAfter reading Gaming Communities: Do They Encourage Positive Communication? Point: Gaming Helps Develop Communication Skills by Joshua Vink, what is the main idea of this informational text?Main Idea: 91440012636500Complete the Summary Chart with 3 key details and a summary of selected paragraphsParagraphsThree Key DetailsBe sure these are the MOST important details within the paragraphs.SummaryInclude your three key details within your summaryParagraphs 1-7???Paragraphs 8-12???Paragraphs 13-18???Paragraphs 19-23???DAY 12 ACTIVITYGlossaryTermDefinitionImageenvironmenta computer program structurefoundationbasis or key standard that supports somethingNO IMAGE PROVIDEDrevenuemoney that is made by a businessfosterto help something growmonikera nicknamecommunicationla comunicaciónusing words, signs, or sounds to share information with othersel uso de palabras, se?ales o sonidos para compartir información con los demásTermDefinitionImagegamerel/la videojugador/aa person who plays video gamesuna persona que juega a videojuegoschatchatearto write messages in an online discussionescribir mensajes en una conversación en líneaself-esteemla autoestimafeeling good about yourselfla acción de sentirse bien con uno mismorelationshipla relaciónthe way in which two or more people behave toward each otherla manera en que dos o más personas se comportan unas con otrasanonymouslyanónimamentewithout sharing your namesin dar a conocer el nombreDAY 12 ACTIVITYGaming Communities: Do They Encourage Positive Communication?Point: Gaming Helps Develop Communication Skills by Joshua Vink Words in Context: Expanding Your VocabularyDirections: Look at the vocabulary words from the glossary that goes with your text. Choose any four words to complete the following Expanding Your Vocabulary Chart.Expanding Your VocabularyWord (Term)DefinitionWord in ContextWhat sentence from the text uses the word?Original Sentence1.2.3.4.DAY 13 ACTIVITYDeeper Reading PracticeDirections: Read the questions carefully and select the best answer.The following passage from the Point essay (paragraph 3) adds to the development of the argument mainly by explaining that .Suppose you begin chatting online with a new player, and you find out the person is from Kazakhstan. You have never heard of this country, and you look for it on a map. Then you ask the person some questions about his or her country. You find out that Kazakhstan has major oil deposits. Major U.S. oil companies do business there. You receive a valuable geography lesson just by playing a game.Kazakhstan is an important source of oilpeople outside of the United States play video gamesgames are the best place to meet people from other countriesgames introduce people and educational opportunities someone might not get otherwiseWhich of the following statements about in-game chat is best supported by the Point essay?Chat in games can help players build self-esteem.Chatting in games can lead to players feeling worse about themselves.Players who use chat are often already experts on computers.Chatting in games is more valuable than chatting with people in real life.What is most closely the meaning of flame as it is used in the passage below (paragraph 20)?There are options to combat trolls, but they are often temporary. For instance, players can mute these trolls in some games, but that’s not a long-term solution. A player can also make a complaint to the game company. That might get the offender banned. Even then, friends of the banned person may flame the player who made the complaint. Often the banned person will get a new account with a new avatar or be able to log on from a different computer. Then the player can go right back to making nasty comments.to use fire in duels within the gameto harass another player verballyto light the console of the person who complained on fireto comfort another playerWhat is most closely the meaning of flame as it is used in the passage below (paragraph 20)?There are options to combat trolls, but they are often temporary. For instance, players can mute these trolls in some games, but that’s not a long-term solution. A player can also make a complaint to the game company. That might get the offender banned. Even then, friends of the banned person may flame the player who made the complaint. Often the banned person will get a new account with a new avatar or be able to log on from a different computer. Then the player can go right back to making nasty comments.to use fire in duels within the gameto harass another player verballyto light the console of the person who complained on fireto comfort another playerWhich of the following selections best states a main idea of the Point essay?Gaming is a means to get away from learning.Game chat is a place where people are unkind to each other.Gaming teaches players many things, but the most important of those things is munication skills gained from gaming apply to many areas of life.Which statement from the passage most strongly supports the correct answer to Question 5?“Gaming helps improve both traditional communication skills and digital literacy.”“Learning to use electronic devices for communication is a key part of digital literacy.”“People enjoy this type of communication more than the type of communication practiced in English class.”“You receive a valuable geography lesson just by playing a game.”Which of the following selections best states a main idea of the Counterpoint essay?Mute features in games can help solve the problem with trolls.Games can be beneficial if players want to learn from them.Games are designed to promote mean behavior by the players.Games are unneeded for communication because there are many hurtful interactions.Which statement from the passage most strongly supports the correct answer to Question 7?“Bullies and sore losers can shout or type insults from the comfort of their own homes.”“People need family and friends as the foundation of their life.”“As long as negative language is such a major part of game chat, gaming will do more to harm communication than to improve it.”“There’s a word for a person who posts nasty comments anonymously. That word is coward.”Match the following quotes to either the Point essay or the Counterpoint essay: Essay Options (4 of 4)PointCounterpointPointCounterpointQuoteEssay“Multiplayer gaming brings people together.”“Our society needs a better sense of community.”“Gaming companies should consider making more efforts to inform parents of bad online behavior by their children.”“Communication is more than just reading and writing.”Match each vocabulary word with its corresponding synonym: Word Options (5 of 5)environmentmonikerfosterfoundationrevenueSynonymWordSettingEarningsNicknameBaseEncourageDAY 14 ACTIVITY“Mother to Son” by Langston Hughes1Well, son, I'll tell you:2Life for me ain't been no crystal stair. 3It's had tacks in it,4And splinters,5And boards torn up,6And places with no carpet on the floor— 7Bare.8But all the time9I'se been a-climbin' on, 10And reachin' landin's, 11And turnin' corners,12And sometimes goin' in the dark 13Where there ain't been no light. 14So, boy, don't you turn back.15Don't you set down on the steps 16'Cause you finds it's kinder hard. 17Don't you fall now—18For I'se still goin', honey, 19I'se still climbin',20And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.45720015303500“Mother to Son” from THE COLLECTED POEMS OF LANGSTON HUGHES by Langston Hughes, edited by Arnold Rampersad with David Roessel, Associate Editor, copyright ?1994 by the Estate of Langston Hughes. Used by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved.By permission of Harold Ober Associates Incorporated. Copyright ?1994 by The Estate of Langston Hughes.DAY14 ACTIVITY“Mother to Son” by Langston HughesRelevant Details/ Summary/Main Idea Complete the Summary Chart with 3 key WORDS and a summary of each chunk of lines in the poem.LinesThree Key WordsBe sure these are the MOST important WORDS within the lines.SummaryInclude your three key WORDS within your summary.Lines 1-7???Lines 8-13???Lines 14-20???After reading “Mother to Son” what is the main idea of this poem?Main Idea: 45720014033500DAY 15 ACTIVITYGlossaryTermDefinitionImagesplintersmall, thin, sharp piece of wood or other material that has broken off of something largerlandinga wide, flat place between sections of stairs in a staircasecrystalhaving qualities like glass that is clear and elegantstaircase la escaleraa set of steps that people use to get from one floor to another un conjunto de escalones que se usan para ir de un piso a otroinsteaden cambioin the place of something else en lugar de otra cosadamaged da?ado/abroken rotoDAY 15 ACTIVITY: “Mother to Son” from THE COLLECTED POEMS OF LANGSTON HUGHES by Langston Hughes Words in Context: Expanding Your VocabularyDirections: Look at the vocabulary words from the glossary that goes with your text. Choose any four words to complete the following Expanding Your Vocabulary Chart.Expanding Your VocabularyWord (Term)DefinitionWord in ContextWhat sentence from the text uses the word?Original Sentence1.2.3.4.DAY 15 ACTIVITY“Mother to Son” by Langston HughesDeeper Reading PracticeDirections: Read the questions carefully and select the best answer.The Mother in the poem mainly compares life to .a straight path to the starsa hazardous staircasea turbulent boata teenaged boyWhich line from the poem best shows the Mother’s determination to persevere?“Well, son, I’ll tell you:”“And boards torn up,”“I’se been a-climbin’ on,”“Cause you find it’s kinder hard.”With which of the following statements would the speaker of the poem most likely agree?If I can continue to try, then so can you.If you want nice things, you have to work hard.If your home is in disrepair, start with the interior.C. If life becomes difficult, walk away from the struggle.Which quote from the poem most strongly supports the answer to Question 3?“Well, son, I’ll tell you: / Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.”“And places with no carpet on the floor— / Bare.”“And sometimes goin’ in the dark / Where there ain’t no light.”“Don’t you fall now— / For I’se still goin’, honey,”Sort the phrases into the categories to show what the Mother says to herself and what the Mother says to her son:Available Options (4 of 4)“Don’t you set down on the steps” “Don’t you fall now—”“And sometimes goin’ in the dark” “Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.”Mother Says of HerselfMother Says to Son ................
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