Are You in the Right Class?!

Okay, Here's My Deal...

I teach gifted ed. At least, taht is what they tell me. Yesterday, I began a new unit with my seventh graders about the criminal justice system. Admittedly, the first activity is a bit dry, but necessary. All they had to do was read two and a half pages about Larry, a suspected kidnapper, and everything that happened to him from his arrest to his sentencing and put 13 events in order.

"I don't get what we are supposed to do." Read the pages and put these 13 things in order.

"What?" Read through the material and then decide what from the list came first, then second and so on until you get to the last thing.

"I don't know anything about the law." You don't have to--that is why we are reading this and putting the things that happen to Larry in order.

"I just don't understand what to do." Okay, let's read the first paragraph together...while we also have the list of things to put in order in front of us. Larry gets arrested in this paragraph...see? That is the first thing to happen from the list, so put a 1 by the word arrest.

"But that is like the eighth thing listed...why isn't is first?" Because YOU have to put them in order. They are supposed to be scrambled. Let's read on. See the first sentence in the next paragraph? The one that starts with After his arrest...do you think that what happens next needs to have a 2 beside it on the list? You read the next few things on your own and tell me what you think number 3 is.

"I still don't get it." I almost cried...