Mrs. Slaviero's Blog

I've been utilizing blackout poetry as a means of assessing knowledge for a few years now  because it's one of the best ways to assess deep understanding of a topic. Yesterday's classwork was no exception. I've never used music from the hit musical "Hamilton" in my classroom before. I've wanted to but planning lessons seemed daunting because, frankly, many of the songs aren't student-friendly. I located a friendly version and decided to take the plunge--I'm so glad I did! We listened to and annotated the song two days ago and then wrote our poems yesterday. We are studying the New Nation and the seeds of discord surrounding Hamilton and Jefferson. The song "Cabinet Battle #1" tells the story of the negotiations into paying off state debts in the Northern states, creating the National Bank, and the creation of Washington DC (exciting, right?) I've never particularly cared for teaching this time period but I do now, thanks t...

These three poems are a sampling of the creative thinking produced after reading a portion of an article illustrating the importance of learning History:

Students completed blackout poems this week on portion of an article about the importance of studying History. I learned as much as the students did! This is an excellent, challenging activity for all students and wanted to pass along some tips I learned in case it can help you. (I posted this article for my students on Schoology--the steps are really useful.) http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/top-teaching/2016/04/blackout-poetry#.V9gotzNz0y8.email I've learned: listing the words on a scrap sheet of paper (step 3) really is critical--we skipped this step and ended up going back to do it (I'm requiring it to be turned in from now on as part of the completed poem.) It was eye-opening for students to see their words out of the text and they could much more easily pick different words/thoughts. if students are struggling I suggested having them start with a main word (like History) and then count every 7th word to see if that string of words could make a complete thought/s...

Student Historians will think about why we study History today and complete a blackout poem. Students read a portion of an article on studying History yesterday and I explained the concept of a blackout poem. Some students have experience with writing them, many (including myself!) have never written one before. I am very excited to see the creations these students will produce!  There is nothing better than to experience the processing, learning, and thinking that unfolds in our classroom when students are challenged to be creative. Watch this space for finished masterpieces!

These haiku are created by my Fourth Hour historians:  Young children could work long, hot, and tiring days very poorly paid ~Ben Conditions are bad dust and cotton fill the air suffocating kids Very low wages little kids wanting to learn no education ~Annette Young girls are working in cotton mills, they suffer in harsh conditions Windows are closed shut machines are crying loudly they cry for the girls ~Shivani A dollar a week at first seems good but later... future is ruined ~Sahaja Sweat forms on our brows we are not educated we work for money The air is dirty danger constantly finds us our wages are low ~Ronak Working at the mills I think I need some water it is very hot ~Drew Others play outside I am struggling inside my factory life ~Karma The factory life was really hard and it was really, really hot! ~Louis Young children work hard hot and loud environment low...

The historians in my third hour would like to share their creations with you: Working at the mills dirty working conditions humid like summer Supporting family woman making small profits hopeful for success ~Mark Poor environment the girls are risking their lives very low wages ~Aishwarya The place is like winter everybody is confined no one can escape Life is like summer the air is hot and humid the place reeks from lamps ~Vasanth Very little pay working conditions were poor some girls got injured ~Luke Very dangerous working conditions are bad get paid very low ~Ravi Girls work very hard some died or had injuries the air was dirty Girls were bruised and scarred dangerous work conditions working long hours ~Yousif Working in the mills hard dangerous conditions make it out alive Long days in the mills twelve or fourteen hours long girls work with caution ~Jenna Kids are suffering ...

My 8th Grade Historians have been learning about life in Northern factories during the Industrial Revolution. The task today is to create haiku poems about factory life. This life was exciting for these children but was also very dangerous. Many girls worked in the mills because it was their only chance for independence in society and provided the opportunity to earn good money for themselves and contribute financially to their families.  I would post these poems in the hallway but our hallways are currently being painted so this blog will be our display board for some of the the creative work my students have written today. Working day and night risking my life for money little time to rest. ~Abby No windows open almost like stuck in summer just trapped in, not out. ~Abby Hot like the summer lives falling away like leaves as sad as winter. ~Oliver Two books ain't enough boarding takes half of my pay the strikes haven't worked. ~Oliv...