SCHOOL-TO-HOME PRACTICE AND LEARNING Extension Activities for Grades 9-12 Scholars

Directions: In the event you finish the first two weeks of practice, please begin working on these extension activities. The following packet of activities is provided as practice. Refreshing your memory of the concepts learned and keeping your mind engaged will help you hit the ground running upon returning to the classroom. If you do a little each day, it will be done in no time. We look forward to seeing you back in class!

Activity Overview ____ Read your IRLA book for 30 minutes and complete the daily reading activities. ____ Record the titles, authors, and pages read on your reading log (Appendix A). ____ Complete assigned pages in Math packet (Appendix F) ____ Complete assigned tasks for Science (Appendix G; Appendix H)

EXTENSION ACTIVITIES – If you have technology available, the following websites provide additional resources for practice: • https://kids.scholastic.com/kids/home/ • Writing process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=edZkuHHXDlo • High School and Beyond Plan Resource- See Appendix B for multiple links for college and career planning

Weekly Extension Activities

Reading: 30 minutes reading, 15 for answering questions – DAILY Directions: Read for 30 minutes – either IRLA book or book of your choice.

• Write down the title of what you read on your reading log (Appendix A) • Vocabulary Focus: As you read, write down unknown words and try to determine their meaning from context clues. • Choose one question to answer about your reading each day (questions listed on reading log in appendix)

Reading and Writing SBA Practice : 45 minutes - DAILY Directions: Each week you will be showing what you understand about your reading by writing an essay that includes text based evidence from the articles you read. The first two days you will be reading an article each day. After reading write a 2-sentence summary of the gist of the article. List key details from the article (at least 4) that you may want to use in your writing. The third day you will be putting your information together through prewriting and the last two days you will be writing an essay about the articles you read. Here is what you will be doing each of the five days each. Day 1 – Read Source 1 (Appendix) After reading write a 2-sentence summary of the gist of the article. List key details from the article (at least 4) that you may want to use in your writing Day 2 – Read Source 2 (Appendix) After reading write a 2-sentence summary of the gist of the article. List key details from the article (at least 4) that you may want to use in your writing Day3 – Prewriting Today, you will complete a prewrite. Review the graphic organizer for the structure of a multi paragraph essay. Review through your notes from the readings. What is the main idea or claim you want to make? What is the evidence you will use to support it? How will you explain how the evidence supports? You don’t have to write full sentences at this stage of the writing process. Just brainstorm ideas. Use any type of graphic organizer that works for you. Here are some examples:

Day 4 – Drafting Today, you will complete your first draft of your essay. Remember, this is a first draft. Don’t worry about spelling or grammar just get your ideas down in an organized way. Write the body of your draft based on your prewrite with topic sentences for each of your supporting ideas followed by evidence and reasoning. Follow the structure from the 5 Paragraph Essay organizer (Appendix D) to create your own graphic organizer. Make sure you include evidence (quotes) from each of the articles. Cite your quotes with the title of the article. Use transitions between your paragraphs. When you are finished your draft should include an introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion. Day 5 – Revising, Editing and Publishing Today you will revise, edit and publish your draft from yesterday. Revising is the process of changing and improving your first draft. It's your opportunity to think about what you've written and then add, cut, or change it as needed. Add more details to your first draft. Add clear words, specific vocabulary and more description. Your goal is to make all of your ideas clear, detailed and complete. Use the scoring criteria to help review your work. Then you will edit and publish your essay. Editing is checking your revised writing line by line for errors. Also proofread for errors in spelling and punctuation. When you are sure all of your writing is correct. Create your final draft of your writing. Use your very best handwriting or you may type and print your writing using a computer. 11& 12th Alternative Option- Over the course of the week, choose one prompt from the Common College Application (Appendix E) and use the writing process – Prewrite, Draft, Revise, Edit, Publish to create a college application essay. HERE ARE THE TOPICS FOR EACH WEEK: WRITING TASK 1: Nuclear Energy Performance Task Nuclear Energy Pros and Cons https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcOFV4y5z8c Source 1: Nuclear Energy Pros and Cons Source 2: Nuclear WRITING TASK 2: Financial Literacy - Argument Essay Financial Literacy www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTYhN8GUwss Source 1: Working Financial Literacy in with the Three R’s Source 2: Finance Course Promp WRITING TASK 3: Sunflowers and Biofuel - Argument Essay Sunflower Power https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ok4OwF-f5Hc Source 1: Biofuel from Sunflower: A Bright Opportunity for the Sun-Loving Bloom Source 2: Sea of Sunflowers Becomes Biodiesel

WRITING TASK 4: How to Improve Memory - Argument Essay How Can You Improve Your Memory Right Now https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrEafQNV9KQ Source 1: How Do We Remember Source 2: Interpreters: silver-Tongued Masters of Memory Math: 30 – 45 minutes – DAILY Online Tutorials and support: Virtual Nerd Algebra 1, Geometry and Algebra 2 Tutorial support – https://virtualnerd.com/ Khan Academy High School Math Tutorials: www.khanacademy.org Purplemath Instruction and Practice Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2, and College Math: https://www.purplemath.com/ Appendix F- High School Math Packet Directions: Complete 1 – 2 activities per day

Algebra: Activities 1 – 9 and 19 – 27 Enrichment activities: 13,15, 16, 17 Geometry and PreAICE 9: Activities 4 – 12 and 28 – 36 Enrichment activities: 1 – 3 and 19 – 27 Algebra 2 and PreAICE 10: Activities 1 – 9,13 – 18, 19 – 27, and 37 - 42 Enrichment activities: 10 – 12 and 28 – 36 Other Math Classes (Pre-Calculus, Bridge to College, Personal Finance, Calculus, Statistics): Activities: 1 – 42

Science: 30 minutes – DAILY Appendix G – Instructions for Creating a Concept Map Appendix H – Writing a Formal Investigation Report Directions: Each day you may choose to complete a Concept Map for a concept you have studied in your science course so far this year, or to complete one of the tasks below to plan, carry out, and communicate the results of a scientific investigation. Investigation Task A: Plan Your Investigation Identify a scientific question you would like to investigate that can be studied safely using materials you have at home. Write your investigative question, hypothesis, materials list, safety plan, a detailed procedure describing how you will carry out your investigation, and a data table to record your data. This plan must be approved and signed by a parent or guardian before moving on. Investigation Task B: Carry Out Your Investigation Follow your Safety Plan and Procedure to carry out your investigation SAFELY while being supervised by a parent or guardian, and record data in your data table. Investigation Task C: Analyze Your Data Use appropriate techniques to analyze the data from your investigation. These may include calculating averages for data from multiple trials, graphing the data, or identifying patterns from qualitative (descriptive) data. Investigation Task D: Write Your Conclusion Write a conclusion that answers your investigative question based on the results of your investigation and supports that statement with evidence from the investigation. Investigation Task E: Write a Formal Investigation Report See the guidelines in Appendix H to write a formal report for your investigation. Share this report with your science teacher when you return to school.

APPENDIX A: READING LOG, CONTEXT CLUES, QUESTIONS ABOUT READING Keep track of your daily reading. Answer the daily work in your reading journal or on lined paper.

Beginning page Ending page Title and Author

Reader Response Questions (choose one each day) Fiction Informational

• Identify and describe the main character. Why is that character important to the story?

• Summarize this story in the correct order of events. • Why is the setting important to the story? Why

does the author use this setting? • Who is telling the story? How do you know?

• Identify main idea and 3 key details • How is the text organized? • What’s the author’s viewpoint? • How do the text features help you understand the

topic? • Summarize the information in a logical order

APPENDIX B- High School and Beyond Plan Resources: MaiaLearning Scholars complete their High School and Beyond Plan through our online college and career exploration program, MaiaLearning.  A scholar will log in by going to https://www.maialearning.com/#/ and clicking Sign In in the top right corner.

2. After clicking Sign In, they will select the option “Sign In with Google” (the red button at the bottom of the page).  • The email is their StudentID#@p12fwps.org and their school password.

If you need additional help please view the FWPS MaiaLearning Walk Through using the following link: https://vimeo.com/365087703 • 9th Grade HSBP • 10th Grade HSBP • 11th Grade HSBP • 12th Grade HSBP

SAT Prep Resource: Khan Academy How Students Link Their College Board and Khan Academy Accounts:

1. Go to satpractice.org. Create an account on Khan Academy or sign in to their existing account. 2. When prompted, agree to link their Khan Academy and College Board accounts. 3. Send their scores.

Watch this video to learn how students can link their accounts. If you need help troubleshooting the process:

• If your students took a PSAT-related exam, watch this video about how to access those scores to troubleshoot your students’ College Board accounts. • You can also call Customer Service for help at: 1-866-433-7728.

AP Resources: Enrolled in an AP Course? Join AP Classroom AP Classroom is a suite of digital tools that teachers can use throughout the year to help you prepare for the AP Exam. The tools include personal progress checks with multiple-choice and free-response questions your teacher can unlock for you to receive personalized feedback on the skills and topics you’re learning in the course. Your teacher may also assign AP practice or released exam questions using the AP Question Bank.

1. Sign and Practice in AP Classroom https://myap.collegeboard.org/login 2. Go to your course’s “Exam” page. Visit your course page and go to About the Exam. You’ll find the exam date, details about the exam structure, and exam-taking tips. Go to the AP course index to find your course. 3. Scroll to “Exam Preparation” to find all practice materials. You’ll find resources to help you prepare such as questions from real exams, scoring guidelines, and sample student responses.

Can’t access AP Classroom? 1. Visit https://apcentral.collegeboard.org/courses 2. Click on the AP course you’re enrolled in 3. Click on Classroom Resources 4. Review course resources

IB Resources: IB Math resource for Math HL, Math SL & Math Studies: https://www.revisionvillage.com/free-ib-maths-resources/

APPENDIX C: READINGS, TASK PROMPTS AND CHECKLISTS Reading for Writing Task 1 Source #1 Nuclear Energy: Pros and Cons

Nuclear energy is a hot topic in today’s world. Renewable energy sources such as solar and wind haven’t yet proven themselves as viable solutions to meet the population’s wide-scale energy needs. With constantly growing energy demands, it’s imperative we explore nuclear as a dependable energy source. The process used to produce nuclear energy is called fission. Nuclear fission occurs when the atom of a nucleus is split, releasing very large amounts of energy. In nuclear power plants, atoms are continuously split, creating chain reactions that provide high amounts of sustainable energy for a long period of time. Nuclear energy, much like other power sources, certainly doesn’t come without its drawbacks. Disposal of radioactive waste, high up-front construction costs, and public safety are key factors that need to be evaluated. Let’s take a closer look at some of the major pros and cons of nuclear energy. Pros-After the meltdown at Three Mile Island in 1978 and the Chernobyl explosion in 1986, the nuclear industry fell dormant. Quite a few plants stopped producing power, and the construction of new plants was brought to a halt. Since then, a resurgence has occurred. In the age of technology, energy demands are at an all-time high, and nuclear had to be looked at as a viable source. Low Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Compared to coal, gas, and other electric-generating plants, nuclear offers the lowest by far in greenhouse gas release. Carbon dioxide and similar gases, known for depleting Earth’s atmosphere, have notoriously been an issue in the climate change debate. Due to this fact, nuclear energy has once again been looked at for power production. According to the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), nuclear energy produces more clean-air energy than any other source. It produces 62 percent of all emission-free electricity in the United States. In nuclear reactors that utilize large cooling towers, it’s a common misconception that pollution is massively dumped into the air. The large clouds you see leaving the smoke stacks are nothing more than vaporized water. High Power Output. One of the most appealing reasons for nuclear energy is its incredibly high fuel to power output ratio. It has the capacity to meet city and industrial needs with just one reactor, let alone multiple. A relatively small amount of uranium can be used to fuel a 1000 Megawatts electric plant, providing enough electricity to power a city of about half a million people. Renewable sources, such as solar and wind, provide only enough power to meet residential or office needs. They don’t yet have the capacity of nuclear to handle large-scale power needs, especially in the manufacturing world. Economic Impact. Nuclear power provides a vast array of benefits to the economy. Local communities are, more often than not, pro-nuclear due to the amount of jobs and prosperity a new plant brings. According to the NEI, one new nuclear plant creates 400 to 700 permanent jobs, not to mention thousands of others during its construction. Most nuclear sites have at least 2 plants. This is comparable to just 90 jobs for a coal plant, and 50 for a natural gas plant. The main reason local communities are so ecstatic over nuclear plants is that each facility generates close to $500 million annually in sales of goods and services. More workers at plants means more people who need lunches and more people with money to spend. Cons- Nuclear energy has a number of positive aspects, making it appealing to more and more countries world-wide. But like all energy sources, it has its downsides. Many people are scared of nuclear power due to the few, although very significant, accidents that have taken place over the years. And while nuclear energy operates with little pollution to the environment, it certainly isn’t without its environmental impacts.

Notes:

Back-end Environmental Impact. Possibly the biggest concern among nuclear energy advocates is the environmental impact of uranium as a fuel source. A typical nuclear power plant generates about 20 metric tons of used nuclear fuel per year. The problem is that this spent fuel is highly radioactive and potentially dangerous. It’s not a fuel source you can take to a landfill and leave without worry. It has to be carefully handled and stored (which costs a lot of money), and it requires a hefty amount of specially designed storage space. Spent nuclear fuel takes hundreds of years to decompose before it reaches adequate levels of safety. For this reason alone, it becomes an issue that other energy sources simply don’t have to deal with. Past History of Nuclear Accidents. I listed these as numbers 1 and 2, respectively, but if I could I would have listed them as 1 and 1. While experts in the nuclear industry aren’t necessarily as concerned, the public is largely terrified of potential nuclear accidents. Safety is a big deal in the nuclear industry these days, and rightfully so. While significant accidents are actually incredibly rare, history cannot be ignored. And when they do happen, it’s a major problem. With the Fukushima incident in Japan in 2011, the global population was reminded that nuclear still has its drawbacks. While causalities actually weren’t high, environmental impact remains an issue today. Chernobyl is widely known as the worst nuclear accident in the history of the industry. Even though it was more than 30 years ago, the harmful effects are still present to this day. High Up-Front and End Stage Cost. We’ve already discussed how cheap and efficient nuclear plants generate electricity while operating. Usually, the pros outweigh the cons; however, cost can be a major deterrent for countries looking to build new plants. Construction of a new plant can take anywhere from 5-10 years to build, costing billions of dollars. Much of that and more is recouped throughout the lifetime of the plant, but you can see how some nations might be reluctant to pursue. On the back end, high fuel handling and decommissioning costs aren’t anything to scoff at, either. For the long haul though, if you can stomach it, nuclear energy almost always pays dividends. Not a Renewable Fuel Source. Last but certainly not least, nuclear energy is not a renewable fuel source. Contrary to popular belief, Uranium is in limited (although currently abundant) supply. While not a fossil fuel, we still run the risk of running out eventually. Typical renewable energy sources such as solar and wind are in infinite supply. Uranium has to be mined, synthesized, then activated to produce energy, and it’s very expensive to go through this process. This alone is one of the big reasons people are trying so hard to make renewables acceptable in meeting our world’s energy demands.

Source #2 Nuclear

Nuclear power comes from the process of nuclear fission, or the splitting of atoms. The resulting controlled nuclear chain reaction creates heat, which is used to boil water, produce steam, and drive turbines that generate electricity.

The United States is home to 99 nuclear power units, located in 31 states. Together, these plants generate almost 20 percent of America’s electricity, or approximately 8.5 percent of its total energy. However, no new nuclear reactors have started up in the United States since 1996.

From 1973 to 2010, electricity generated by nuclear plants in the United States rose TENFOLD to over 800,000 megawatt hours, but output has declined slightly in recent years as several merchant plants have retired. Reliability of existing plants has grown substantially during this time, which means that existing plants are producing more energy than in the past.

Nuclear energy is reliable and emission-free, and is viewed by many governments around the world as an attractive form of future electricity generation in the light of controlling greenhouse gas emissions.

Notes:

While several new US nuclear plants are planned, none have been built in decades. A new federal law enacted in 2005 seeks to revive the construction and deployment of nuclear power plants by granting regulatory certainty to new and safer designs of nuclear reactors.

The Energy Information Administration, an independent agency in the U.S. Department of Energy, assumes the total overnight capital cost for a new nuclear plant is $5,366 per kilowatt in 2013 dollars. The EIA has projected the cost of generating electricity from a new nuclear plant in 2020 to be 9.52 cents per kilowatt hour, about 30 percent higher than a natural gas combined cycle plant.

One ongoing concern in the nuclear power field is the safe disposal and isolation of spent fuel from reactors and waste from reprocessing plants. Consumers have paid billions of dollars in levies on their electric bills over the years to fund a government program to dispose of the waste.

Further, the nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in Japan resulting from an earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 has caused nations around the globe to review safety regulations for both existing and new nuclear plants

WRITING TASK # 1: You will review your notes and sources. Then plan, draft, revise and edit your writing. You may use your notes and go back to the sources. Now read your assignment:

You are chief of staff for your local congresswoman in the U.S. House of Representatives. She has called you into her office to outline an urgent project.

“I have received advance notice,” she says as you sit down, “that a power company is proposing to build a nuclear plant in the southeastern corner of our state. The plan will be announced to the public tomorrow morning, and citizens and journalists will want to know what my position is on this controversial issue. To be honest, I am not sure how I feel about it. We currently don’t have any nuclear power plants in this state, so I haven’t taken time to consider the issue deeply.” “I need you,” she continues, “to conduct a brief survey of the pros and cons of nuclear power. Summarize what you have learned and then make a recommendation for our position on this nuclear power plant”.

Write an argumentative report that recommends the position that your congresswoman should take on the plan to build a nuclear power plant in your state. Support your claim with evidence from the Internet sources you have read and viewed. Your report will be scored on the following criteria: Statement of purpose / focus and organization

1. How well did you clearly state your claim on the topic, maintain your focus, and address the alternate and opposing claims?

2. How well did your ideas logically flow from the introduction to conclusion using effective transitions? 3. How well did you stay on topic throughout the report?

Elaboration of evidence 1. How well did you elaborate your arguments and discussion of counterarguments, citing evidence from your sources? 2. How well did you effectively express ideas using precise language and vocabulary that were appropriate for the audience and

purpose of your report?

Conventions: 1. How well did you follow the rules of usage, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling?

Reading for Writing Task 2 Source #1 Working Financial Literacy In With the Three R’s

Most Americans aren't fluent in the language of money. Yet we're expected to make big financial decisions as early as our teens—Should I take on thousands of dollars of student debt? Should I buy a car?—even though most of us received no formal instruction on financial matters until it was too late. While no course in personal finance could have prevented many Americans from getting caught up in the housing bubble1, it's clear that most of us need some help, preferably starting when we're still in school. And I'm not just talking about learning to balance your checkbook. It's understanding concepts like the time value of money, risk and reward, and, yes, the importance of savings. All of this raises the question: What's happening inside our classrooms? And how many schools even broach the topic? As it turns out, for a country that prizes personal responsibility, we're doing very little. "We need to teach the basics of economics and finances so people can make financial decisions in a changing world," said Annamaria Lusardi, economics professor at Dartmouth College and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. "It's the compounding of interest, the problem of inflation. These are the principles. And these are really scientific topics." While more states are beginning to require some sort of personal finance instruction, there aren't enough that do, financial literacy experts say, and there is little consistency in the quality of the education. Just 13 states require students to take a personal finance course or include the subject in an economics course before they graduate from high school, up from seven states in 2007, according to the Council for Economic Education. Meanwhile, 34 states (including those 13) have personal finance within their curriculum guidelines, up from 28 states in 2007. . . . But that hasn't stopped enterprising teachers like Mathew Frost, who teaches 11th and 12th graders American history and economics at Sunset High School in Dallas, from working the topic into his student's school day. The Texas economics curriculum carves out time for personal finance, but it doesn't test students on the material. Mr. Frost says it's just too important to ignore. So he tries to bring the lesson to life for his students by pairing them up as married couples and giving them a couple of children. The students must then create a budget based on the average income range for their neighborhood, or about $21,000 to $40,000 a year. As in the board game "Life," the students are dealt real-world circumstances. Mr. Frost has them randomly pick "chance cards" from a bag, which might tell them they need new brakes for their car, broke an arm, suffered a death in the family, or found $20. "I try to make it as realistic as possible," he said. "We talk about building budgets, expenses, investing money," he added, as well as "how to use credit wisely, insurance and careers." One student said, "I first learned that real life isn't going to be as nice as this game,". "I also learned that good budgeting has to be maintained throughout a person's life no matter the income, no matter the living conditions." Research shows that this type of financial education tends to resonate with the students later. Michael S. Gutter, an assistant professor of family financial management at the University of Florida, studied the issue in 2009, after he surveyed 15,700 students at 15 universities who came from states with different (or nonexistent) personal finance schooling requirements. The study was financed by the National Endowment for Financial Education, a nonprofit organization in Denver that provides financial education curriculums.

Notes:

"College students who came from states where there was a course required were more likely to budget, were more likely to be saving, and were less likely to have maxed out their credit cards in the last year and were more likely to be paying off their credit cards fully," Professor Gutter said. But his research also suggested that "social learning is also very powerful as well," he said. "What your parents tell you matters." . . . He said the Department of Education's next step is to work with districts and teachers and help them find the money they need, whether it's through the many literacy-minded nonprofits or the private sector. Mr. Yale also said that department officials were working on competitive grant programs, which would allow schools to compete for money to pay for the financial literacy programs. As a joint effort with the Treasury Department, the Education Department is currently running the National Financial Capability Challenge, an online exam for high school students that measures financial know-how and recognizes outstanding performers, to help raise awareness.

Source #2 Finance Course Prompts Debate

While Carroll County students will be required to take a financial literacy course to graduate starting next year, concerns linger over whether mandating the course is the most effective way to teach money matters to teens. "The course is likely a good thing, but I am convinced it is not the best thing," school board President Thomas G. Hiltz said last week. "One course is not a panacea and, alone, will not make our students financially literate." After a lengthy debate about requiring the class, board members voted 4–1 to require students beginning next school year to take the half-credit course. It will cover concepts such as money management, consumer rights and responsibilities, credit, savings, and investing. Carroll joins a handful of Maryland school systems—including Harford, St. Mary's, Talbot and Baltimore counties—with a similar requirement. The financial course was one of several changes to the high school program of studies that the board approved. During last week's meeting, Hiltz joined Cynthia L. Foley in supporting a motion to amend the proposal that would have eliminated financial literacy as a required course. The motion to amend failed in a 3–2 vote. Foley was the lone dissenter1 when the original proposal came to a vote. Hiltz said he voted to approve the high school program of studies that included the financial literacy requirement because he supported the overall plan. "While it did not turn out the way I may have wanted . . . unless I believe there has been an egregious mistake in judgment, a vote against the entire high school program of studies is, in my view, sour grapes," Hiltz said in an email. During the meeting, Hiltz suggested the board needed more time to consider alternatives, such as incorporating elements of the course into already required classes or developing a comprehensive "financial literacy program," not a single course.

Notes:

Hiltz also said a required course would necessitate about 10 teachers each year and cost the system about $600,000 annually. "My overwhelming concern is not cost—it is effectiveness," Hiltz said. "The $600,000 is a low cost if the course is effective. An effective course will return that investment. It is a high cost if it is ineffective." School officials said statistics suggest teens and young adults are assuming too much credit card debt and are not knowledgeable about finances. About one in five students gets a personal finance course during high school, according to the JumpStart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy, which surveys high school seniors every other year to gauge financial aptitude. Of the 5,775 high school seniors in 37 states who participated in that survey this year, students on average scored 52.4 percent on 30 questions, according to the group. A 2004 poll of college administrators found that excessive credit card debt was the primary reason students dropped out and the secondary reason was low grades, according to the Maryland Coalition for Financial Literacy. Carroll school officials said last week that in a "pre-test" given to about 30 students taking the financial literacy elective this semester, the highest score was about 60 percent—with some students scoring much lower. "Personal finances are not being taught in the home," said Patricia Hummel, a parent who also teaches financial literacy at Winters Mill High as a permanent substitute. "Studies have shown that only 26 percent of 13- to 21-year-olds reported that their parents actively taught them how to manage money.” Hummel supported a required financial literacy course because, "unless this class is mandated, students will not take advantage of the class." Hiltz said that while the district has piloted [tested] a financial literacy course, no local data has been collected on its effectiveness. "We all agree that financial literacy is essential," he said. "The lack of a real consideration of other options . . . troubled me greatly. I am concerned that we picked low-hanging fruit, which may be the most expensive and least effective option." 1dissenter: someone who disagrees with a particular view

WRITING TASK # 2: You will review your notes and sources. Then plan, draft, revise and edit your writing. You may use your notes and go back to the sources. Now read your assignment: Your friend has been telling you about all the cool things she is learning about financial literacy in one of her electives. You’ve never heard of a course like that and your school doesn’t offer it. You decide to do some research and afterwards, you share your findings with your social studies teacher, who suggests that you write an argumentative essay about financial literacy courses for the upcoming school board meeting.

Today, in preparation for the school board meeting, you will write a multi-paragraph argumentative essay in which you take a stance on the topic of financial literacy courses. Make sure you establish an argumentative claim, address potential counterarguments, and support your claim from the sources you have read. Develop your ideas clearly and use your own words, except when quoting directly from the sources. Be sure to reference the sources by title or number when using details or facts directly from the sources. Your report will be scored on the following criteria: Statement of purpose / focus and organization

4. How well did you clearly state your claim on the topic, maintain your focus, and address the alternate and opposing claims?

5. How well did your ideas logically flow from the introduction to conclusion using effective transitions? 6. How well did you stay on topic throughout the report?

Elaboration of evidence 3. How well did you elaborate your arguments and discussion of counterarguments, citing evidence from your sources? 4. How well did you effectively express ideas using precise language and vocabulary that were appropriate for the audience and

purpose of your report?

Conventions: 2. How well did you follow the rules of usage, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling?

Reading for Writing Task 3 Source #1 Biofuel from Sunflower: A Bright Opportunity for the Sun-Loving Bloom

In a bid to decrease the country's overdependence on fuel, various research institutions started to focus their leads in studying and identifying some of the most cost-effective and environment-friendly energy sources to produce biofuels. Biofuels, such as bioethanol, biodiesel and biogas, are renewable fuels that are generally produced from agricultural crops or organic matter. This effort to find an alternative bio-source is also in accordance with the recent passing into law of the Biofuel Acts or SB 2226 and the Department of Agriculture (DA)'s drive towards energy independence. The law requires that "a minimum of 1% biodiesel by volume shall be blended into all diesel engine fuels sold in the country subject to domestic supply and availability of locally sourced biodiesel component." Violators are penalized with one to five years' imprisonment and a fine. Among the crops identified as potential sources of bioethanol are: sugarcane, sweet sorghum, coconut, corn, cassava, and jathropa. And now, sunflower is also coming into the picture as another potential bio-source for ethanol. The potential of sunflower (along with grapeseed) is also being studied in Taipei in their effort to look for more domestic feedstocks coupled with best available and affordable technology. Even the Brazilian agricultural experts are now optimizing the potential of sunflower by learning how to transform sunflowers into biofuel in the most cost-effective means. Other renewable energy sources that they are looking into are soybean and oilseed rape. Meanwhile, an Italian farming association is working on biofuels produced from sunflowers and sugar beets. Its sunflower oil-powered boat premiered at the recent Kyoto Protocol conference in Montreal. It sounded a bit off-beat, but the boat ran fine.

Notes:

According to experts, if this project pushes through in the market, this biofuel is going to be relatively inexpensive. It was also reported that everything smelled faintly like French fries after the demonstration. Sunflowers in the Philippines- Sunflower (Helianthus annuus) is an annual plant that belongs to the family of Asteraceae and is native in North and South America. Although it is not commonly grown in the Philippines, it can thrive in its soil. The giant sunflowers (grows up to 12 feet with head up to 3 inches wide) are native in the eastern United States. The common and recommended variety of sunflower in the Philippines is the hybrid type, which grows up to 105 days after planting. Sunflowers in the Philippines are grown for ornamental purposes and for [their] edible oil. Specifically, at Central Luzon State University (CLSU), they have been growing sunflower since the early 70s, mainly for its edible oil. Sunflower oil, extracted from the seeds, is used for cooking. Its oil is less expensive (and healthier) than olive oil. Its fatty acid content is composed of high oleic type that contains higher level of healthy monosaturated fats. At the moment, CLSU is reviving its sunflower production not for the edible oil but for biofuel. The sunflower seeds contain 36-42% oil and 38% protein meal.

Source #2 Sea of Sunflowers Becomes Biodiesel

Thousands of sunflowers, rows and rows, dot the landscape near the heart of downtown Phoenix. The land this garden is on, between 5th and 6th Street and Garfield and McKinley, used to be just a vacant lot. However a local community group saw it instead as an opportunity. Years ago you'd drive through here and you'd never imagine you'd see a field of gold. The oasis is in a rather unlikely spot. The 2-acre garden is practically large enough for 5-year-old Renee Houser to get lost in. "Oh my gosh, there's thousands of flowers out here in the middle of nowhere!" exclaims mom Nicole Houser. It's called the Valley of the Sunflowers Project, a partnership between the Roosevelt Row Community Development Corporation and the nearby Phoenix Union Bioscience High School. "This project is really about inspiring people, and sunflowers make people smile," says Braden Kay, Sunflowers Project Manager. The seeds were planted back in September, and every Saturday since then volunteers have been out here tending to them, nurturing them so they can be harvested. What we'll do is take these seeds, press these seeds for oil, and then the bioscience class will make these seeds into biodiesel," says Kay. They'll then use the biodiesel to power a solar powered hybrid car they're creating in class—a teaching tool for students and little Renee. "Not only do they provide food for herself and the birds but eventually they'll provide biodiesel fuel for cars," says Houser. She hopes this idea of transforming vacant lots into something beautiful catches on─and it sounds like it already has.

Notes:

We ran into another group out there partnering with the county. They plan to build a garden on a 4-acre lot near 8th Street and Jefferson. Meanwhile that sunflower garden will be replanted in February.

WRITING TASK # 3: You will review your notes and sources. Then plan, draft, revise and edit your writing. You may use your notes and go back to the sources. Now read your assignment: Your Environmental Science class is preparing contributions for the school's Go Green Initiative. Your contribution will be an explanatory essay on sunflowers. The audience for your essay will be other students, teachers, and parents. Using more than one source, craft a thesis to explain the ways in which sunflower seeds can be used to create biofuel and the economic implications of this process. Once you have a thesis, select the most relevant information to support your thesis. Then, write a multi-paragraph explanatory essay explaining your thesis. Clearly organize your essay and elaborate on your ideas. Develop your ideas clearly and use your own words, except when quoting directly from the sources. Be sure to reference the source title or number when quoting or paraphrasing details or facts from the sources.

Your report will be scored on the following criteria: Statement of purpose / focus and organization

7. How well did you clearly state your thesis, maintain your thesis with a logical progression of ideas from beginning to end?

8. How well did you narrow your thesis, so you can develop and elaborate the conclusion? 9. How well did you consistently use a variety of transitions? 10. How effective were your introductions and your conclusion?

Elaboration of evidence 5. How well did you integrate relevant and specific information from the sources? 6. How effective were your elaborative techniques? 7. How well did you effectively express ideas using precise language and vocabulary that were appropriate for the audience and

purpose of your report?

Conventions: 3. How well did you follow the rules of usage, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling?

Reading for Writing Task 4 Source #1 How Do We Remember You need to go to the store and pick up milk, eggs, butter, and bread. You repeat the list of foods over and over on the way to the store. When you arrive at the store, you collect the milk, eggs, bread, and . . . What was the other thing? How did you already forget the other item that was on your mental list? How does your memory work, and why does it let you down sometimes? When most people refer to memory, they think of it as one part of the brain. The truth is your memory isn't one particular part of your brain. Memory involves several parts of your brain working together. It is a concept. It is the idea of remembering. Formerly, scientists used to describe memory as a miniature filing cabinet full of many files that contained memories. Others described memory as a tiny supercomputer located in the brain. Today, scientists believe that memory is much more complicated than that. How Memory Works Memories begin as a result of the senses. The memory is then encoded, or stored, in your brain with electrical impulses and chemicals. Your brain is full of nerve cells. There are electrical pulses carrying messages from one cell to another. The electrical pulses trigger chemical messengers to be released. The chemical messengers are called neurotransmitters. The connection that is made between the cells isn't necessarily permanent. It is changing all of the time. Brain cells work together as a team, organizing themselves into groups. The groups specialize in different kinds of information processing. Each time one cell sends a message to another, the connection between those two cells gets stronger. With each new experience your brain changes a little. If you keep using your brain the same way over and over again, it shapes how your brain will be organized. Types of Memory There are three types of memory: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory. Sensory memory hangs on to information for a very short period of time, only a second or two. When you look at a picture of a beautiful landscape, an almost exact image of that landscape is stored momentarily in your visual sensory memory. Your visual sensory memory requires your eyes and parts of your brain to work together. Unless you make an active effort to think about the landscape the image will quickly fade. Short-term memory stores what you are actively thinking about at any given moment. Your short-term memory is able to hold on to information for as long as you are thinking about it. You use your short-term memory to remember the list of things your mom wants you to pick up at the store. If you continually repeat this information to yourself, you can remember it, but the moment you start thinking about something else, like where in the store the milk is located, the list of groceries will only stick around for about 20 or 30 seconds. Long-term memory stores information, experiences, and ideas long after you stop thinking about them. When you consciously process information, short-term and long-term memory work together. For example, when you think or solve problems, the short-term and long-term memory systems are working together. Long-term memory includes an enormous amount of information. Some of this information is there for a lifetime. Scientists believe that over the course of a lifetime, the long-term memory has stored vast amounts of information. Much more than an encyclopedia!

Notes:

Forgetting As time passes, memory fades or we forget all of the specific details. An hour after you read a book, you can remember most of what it was about. Two days later, you might recall only a bit of the information that was in the book. After a month has passed, you probably remember even less. There are several explanations as to why we may forget things. Maybe the information was not encoded in our memory properly. For instance, while reading over your notes for the test you were trying to watch your favorite show on television. This type of distraction can really interfere in encoding memories and the information is not successfully saved in your memory. Alternatively, another reason that you may not be able to remember something is not because you actually have forgotten the information. The problem could be that you are having trouble retrieving it from your memory. You can't remember the answer to write it down on the test. It is right there, you know the answer, but it just won't come to you. As soon as the test is over and you walk out of the classroom, there it is—that answer you were trying so hard to come up with. This is a problem with retrieval. Your brain is having trouble locating that information again. It is similar to looking for a small object inside a room that is full of stuff. It can be very frustrating!

Source #2 Interpreters: Silver-Tongued Masters of Memory

Today, Murielle Pérégovoy sits in a glass-enclosed booth. An ultra-light headset rests on her ears. A microphone hovers in mid-air, inches from her mouth. Pérégovoy doesn't see any of it. Her attention is riveted on the space between her ears, which is currently filled with short bursts of angry Russian from a participant who has the floor on the other side of the conference room. Her voice rises and falls to match that of the speaker, filling the booth and the headsets of everyone tuned to the French channel. The participant finishes speaking and sits down. Murielle finishes one sentence behind him and reaches out to turn off her microphone. On any given day, she could be the voice of an ambassador, a distraught mother in war-torn Iraq, or an orthopedic surgeon. Pérégovoy is a simultaneous interpreter, and her workday has just ended. In addition to knowing their native languages, professional interpreters are expected to understand two or more languages as well as any educated native speaker. More than 50 percent of the world's population is bilingual (speaks a second language from early infancy), and many bilingual people are drawn to the field. By the age of two, most children have a vocabulary of about 2,000 words. The average American high school graduate has a vocabulary of about 50,000 words. A bilingual high school graduate can possess a vocabulary twice that size, split across two languages. Imagine the vast vocabulary stored in the long-term memory of an interpreter. Interpreters, then, seem to have amazing memories. But do they really? Questions like this one keep neuroscientists up late at night. One of these neuroscientists is Dr. Michel Paradis, who teaches at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and researches aphasia in bilingual people. Aphasia (the inability to understand or use language) usually results from a traumatic brain injury such as a stroke or accident. In the course of his research, Paradis has learned a lot about memory and language in people who are not aphasic. So, when asked whether interpreters have better memories than average, he says, "In the same way

Notes:

that the term intelligence covers many different types of capabilities, memory is an umbrella term that refers to many different kinds of capacity." "Much of an interpreter's brain power is devoted to keeping information in short-term memory," says Paradis. "Simultaneously listening in one language and speaking in another makes the task much more challenging." How then does Murielle's brain undertake this seemingly impossible task? As the message flows through her headphones, Pérégovoy must decode it. Decoding does not mean knowing what each word means. Interpretation focuses on the message being conveyed, rather than the words used to convey it. Understanding the speech flowing through her headset requires the use of procedural (a type of non-declarative) memory—the kind of memory we use for automated tasks, skills, and habits. The interpreter knows the language of the speaker well enough to understand it effortlessly. Similarly, when you hear an utterance in English you probably aren't even aware of trying to understand it. The fact that you comprehend it subconsciously is the hallmark of procedural memory. Once Pérégovoy's brain has decoded the message, it identifies blocks of information that should be stored for later use. This identification process is a conscious activity. Murielle's memory clings to facts, events, people, and objects, relying on what neuroscientists call declarative memory. Where procedural memory is subconscious, declarative memory requires effort and focused attention. Murielle stores the decoded message in her short-term memory and holds it there until it has been correctly translated. She must retrieve the information and compare it to her translation before uttering a single word into the microphone. This step involves working memory. Think of working memory as a tub being filled with water and drained simultaneously. Water cannot flow into the tub at a faster rate than water drains from the tub or else the tub will overflow. While all this is happening in Pérégovoy's brain, the speaker continues talking. The average person speaks at 120 words per minute, with bursts that reach 180 words per minute. Neuroscientists have identified that working memory has about 10 seconds (or 20 words) of storage capacity. As new information is continually added to the tub, previously stored information is constantly being compared to the memory store, putting an extra burden on working memory. For instance, Dr. Franco Fabbro at the University of Udine in Italy found that advanced interpreting students remembered fewer details of a story when they were asked to interpret it than when they just listened to it. Other studies show that sign language interpreters have better recall than interpreters of spoken languages. Sign language interpreters undertake the same process of decoding and encoding the message in another language, but sign language does not require them to speak their translation. Instead, they deliver the message through their hands and upper bodies. Dr. Fabbro and his colleagues reasoned that the demand on interpreters to speak and listen simultaneously might be at the root of the memory interference. To test this hypothesis, he asked the students to listen to another set of stories and told them not to interpret, but to keep repeating "the . . . the . . . the. . ." while they listened. He found that these students remembered fewer details than when just listening to the stories. Working memory is taxed by the need to listen and speak at the same time, and when working memory is burdened, memorizing information becomes more difficult. Interpreters may start out with the same three pounds of gray matter that everyone else has, but they

have trained their short-term memory to help perform a particular task. Not everyone with a three-pound brain will have what it takes to become an interpreter, in much the same way that not everyone with a good pair of lungs and a love of music will grow up to become an opera singer. A lot depends on how you train, how committed you are, and your natural inclinations. "You can be good at one type of memory and poor at another," Paradis explains. "But you can improve each type of memory with practice. If you want to increase your memory, EXERCISE IT!" Do interpreters have better memories than the average person? Probably not better—just more buff.

WRITING TASK # 4: You will review your notes and sources. Then plan, draft, revise and edit your writing. You may use your notes and go back to the sources. Now read your assignment: In your school, the Science Club is encouraging students to provide articles for its new website. For your contribution to the website, you will write an explanatory article about improving memory. Using more than one source, develop a thesis/controlling idea to explain how to improve memory. Once you have a thesis/controlling idea, select the most relevant information to support your thesis/controlling idea. Then, write a multi-paragraph explanatory article explaining your thesis/controlling idea. Clearly organize your article and elaborate on your own ideas. Develop your ideas clearly and use your own words, except when quoting directly from the sources. Be sure to reference the source title or number when quoting or paraphrasing details or facts from the sources. Your report will be scored on the following criteria: Statement of purpose / focus and organization

1. How well did you clearly state your claim on the topic, maintain your focus, and address the alternate and opposing claims? 2. How well did your ideas logically flow from the introduction to conclusion using effective transitions? 3. How well did you stay on topic throughout the report?

Elaboration of evidence 4. How well did you elaborate your arguments and discussion of counterarguments, citing evidence from your sources? 5. How well did you effectively express ideas using precise language and vocabulary that were appropriate for the audience and

purpose of your report?

Conventions: 6. How well did you follow the rules of usage, punctuation, capitalization, and spelling?

Appendix D- Writing Structure 5 Paragraph Essay

Appendix E- Common Application Prompt

Appendix F- High School Math Packet

Use other paper for work if you need more space Activity 1

Activity 2

Activity 3

Activity 4

Activity 5

Activity 6

Activity 7

Activity 8

Activity 9

1. The flowers in the garden are 6 inches or taller or shorter than 3 inches. 2. People with a driver’s license are at least 16 years old and no older than 85 years old. 3. Kyle’s car gets more than 31 miles per gallon on the highway or 26 miles or less per gallon in the city.

4. The number of houses that will be built in the new neighborhood must be at least 14 and no more than 28. 5. The heights of the twenty tallest buildings in New York City range from 229 meters to 381 meters.

Activity 10

Activity 11

Activity 12

Activity 13

Activity 14

Activity 15

Activity 16

Activity 17

Activity 18

Activity 19

1. At least $10,000 2. Less than $7,000 3. Less than $6,000 4. At least $9,000 5. More than $12,000 6. 6. Exactly $8,000

Activity 20

Activity 21

1. How many more games must Leon play in order to score at least 117 points? 2. How many more games must Leon play in order to score fewer than 182 points? 3. How many more games must Leon play in order to score more than 143 points? 4. How many more games must Leon play in order to score at least 100 points? 5. How many more games must Leon play in order to score fewer than 85 points? 6. How many more games must Leon play in order to score more than 200 points?

Activity 22 problems 1 and 2, Activity 23 problems 3 and 4, Activity 24 problems 5 and 6

Activity 25

Activity 26

Activity 27

Activity 28

Activity 29

Activity 30

Activity 31

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Activity 35

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Activity 42

Appendix G: Instructions for Creating a Concept Map Follow these instructions to create a concept map for a concept you have studied in your science class this year. 1. Create a list of 15-20 words related to the topic. Use your science notebook to help with this step. 2. If you are not sure about the meaning of a word, look it up in your science notebook or online. 3. Think about how all of the words on your list are related, and sort your list of words into three to five categories based on these

relationships. If possible, collaborate with other classmates over the phone or online with parent or guardian approval. 4. Identify words that can be used to describe each category. 5. Create a concept map on this topic. Follow these steps:

a. Write the topic in the center of your paper and circle it. b. Place the words describing each category around the topic. Circle each word. c. Draw a line between the topic and each category. On each line, explain the relationship between the topic and the

category. d. Write the words in each category around the category title. Circle each word. e. Draw a line between each word and the category title. On each line, explain the relationship between the category and

the word. f. Add additional lines to connect other related words. Explain the relationship between the words on the line.

Example Concept Map:

Appendix H: Writing a Formal Investigation Report Use the information from your investigation and your class science notebook to write a formal report on the investigation you performed. Label each section with a bold title. Write each section in paragraph form (except the title). Title:

Choose a title that describes the investigation Abstract: What were you looking for in the investigation, and what did you find?

Write a paragraph that summarizes what you already knew about the topic, your purpose, your hypothesis, and your results and conclusions.

Experimental Design: Describe the materials and investigational methods you used to answer the question. State what variables you worked with and any controls.

Data: What did you find? Report observations and measurements. Include an organized data table if appropriate to help someone reviewing your report to easily see the results. Don’t forget to use proper units of measurement and write clear labels for your table columns.

Data Analysis: Represent the data in a way that can be easily interpreted. Use graphs, diagrams, or charts where appropriate to help a reader interpret your data.

Conclusion: What do the data mean? Summarize the data. Discuss your conclusion based on the accuracy of your hypothesis and the data you collected. Discuss any errors that happened that may have interfered with the results. Describe any changes that need to be made the next time the investigation is performed. Describe any new questions to be investigated based on the results of this investigation.