Today I was teaching grad exams skills to my tenth graders, and one of the skills we reviewed was making conclusions. We have worked on ths all year, but sometimes they just don't get things. A refresher for my readers who may not remember tenth grade English. A conclusion is when you take prior knowledge and combine it with evidence from something you read or write and then make a conclusion. It it were a math equation it would look something like this:
What you know (prior knowledge) + what you see or read
= conclusion
A good person is kind, generous and selfless + Ben Franklin gave food to poor people
= Ben Franklin is a good person
Get it?
So a conclusion is like an assumption, and you know what they say about making assumptions...
I went to the teachers' lounge before lunch to get a soft drink, and discovered a young female in blue jeans looking kinda lost and uncomfortable. I combined my prior knowledge- students aren't allowed in the teachers' lounge and teachers can't wear jeans- and the evidence I could see- young woman in jeans, and concluded "There is a friggin' student in the teachers' lounge! Busted!"
I barked at her: "What are you doing in here?" She looked at me questioningly.
I snarked: "I'm sorry, are you a new teacher I don't know about?" I couldn't tell if she was about to cry or run away, but she wasn't responding.
My voice trailed away: "Are you a substitute?" She nodded.
She said: "Did you go to Erwin High School?"
Holy crap! I yelled at a substitute teacher! A sub that went to junior high with me!
I am such an ass!
2 comments:
Well if she looked young enough to be a student then you had every right.
P.S. Thank God I no longer have to worry about things like 10th grade English. Conclusions? Ugh!
Ohhhh KAF...how I miss thy territorial ways. I totally felt like I walked in the teacher's lounge right behind you and witnessed this display of questioning.
:)
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