A New Semester, A New Start

I was so busy last weekend driving my children all over the earth, celebrating family birthdays, grading papers, and planning for a new semester, that I didn't get my blog done!  So this is going to double up for the past two weeks. 

Let me first finish off Semester 1 by sharing some photos from my English 9 class.  We tried something new and I asked adults (teachers, counselors, parents) to help me by interviewing my students for a faux job at McDonald's.  I didn't give my students warning that adults they didn't know would be doing this (wanting to take them out of their comfort zone), so it was a real eye-opener for many of them to have to work on professional speaking skills on the fly.  I got positive feedback from the group; the realities of what they need to be prepared for hit home.  I want to thank Mrs. Agrusa, Mr. Redmond, Mrs. Krechnyak, Mrs. VanWasshenova, Mrs. Moore, and a very special Thank You to Mrs. Hill!  I was so excited that Mrs. Hill wanted to come spend time with us, and I have to say that it was fun for both me and her son to watch her in a role different from that of "mom."

I'm sad that so many of these students in these photos have now left me, but I know they'll do great things with their new English 9 teachers.

On to Semester 2...

For those of you I already know, welcome back; for those who are new, welcome to my blog.  This is where I put detail about what we've done, sometimes pictures and/or video from our class time, and give you information about what is coming up.  So here goes:

• In English 9 we've started our new semester.  I sent home a parent letter with a rough schedule and class information; I hope you all saw it and signed the parent signature sheet and sent it back for a grade.  We're spending these first two weeks creating routines and looking at the 6+1 Traits of Good Writing.  Last week we focused on Ideas and Content (and I even brought them in a popcorn experience); this week we'll focus on the other six traits with activities and a couple of creative writings.  There is not a lot of homework coming home yet, so don't be alarmed, and please check the calendar on my webpage to know what they need to be doing.
• In English 11 we've got three focuses:  Lord of the Flies, ACT, and preparation for English 12.  Last week we primarily focused on ACT skills by doing 10% Summary worksheets, paragraphs, and then we did a timed argumentative essay.  The topic of survival, however, links to Lord of the Flies, and so we've done some preview information for the novel.  This coming week we will finish our preview, and then they will begin reading and annotating.  Please expect the novel to be coming home regularly, and hopefully you'll see it in their hands (open).  We will work on Chapters 1-3 this week.  They will also have vocabulary on Monday with a quiz on Friday.  I'm tightening up the ship, so to say, to prepare them for English 12, where the teachers accept very few excuses.  I'm not accepting late work unless there's a very good reason, so a few students were unhappy that I wouldn't just take their late work because life got busy.  I try to make sure they know that I'm not angry with them, but they need to be held accountable for their deadlines.  It's a hard lesson for some.

I hope everyone has a great week, and a great end to January.  Can you believe it's almost month two of 2015?!!?  Ciao, everyone!


A New Semester, A New Start by Laura Stubbs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Final Week of Semester One!

Here we are, into our final week.  Time really does fly, doesn't it?  We are also into that time of year when snowdays can really mess with the schedule, so planning is somewhat of a problem.  This is definitely a situation where flexibility and rolling with the punches comes in handy!  So here's what we accomplished last week, despite the snow day, and here's what's coming up, depending on how tomorrow goes with its forecast for a couple of inches of snow to make the morning drive messy:

• English 9 - last week they created a resume and cover letter.  They also began collecting together letters of recommendation and samples of work/projects that showcase their talents.  On Monday, they will be filling out job applications and finalizing/printing their materials and we will collect them all into a manila folder.  My plan for Tuesday is that they will participate in "interviews" in order to practice their speaking skills, and will have their manila folders all set to hand over to someone for analysis.  My hope is that this mini-unit will help them to focus on their futures and give them an idea of how to prepare for a real situation that will call for these skills and materials; for some of them, that might happen this summer, and I hope that this gives them a head start. If we end up with a snowday on Monday, I will have to forego the interviews, but will have them submit their written portfolio to me for grading. On Thursday they will have a semester exam, so I will spend Wednesday going over things and giving them time to prepare; then on Friday they will be doing a written portion.  I hope that this will help them with the skills they will need for testing in the higher levels of academia, and it will bring the semester around full circle.
• English 11 - they should have read through chapter eight of Animal Farm by the time they get to school on Monday.  We will be finishing the book by Tuesday, and then we'll start preparing for the exam.  Their objective exam is Thursday; most of it will be about Animal Farm, but we will have a certain number of questions about the material from the rest of the semester.  Their written portion will happen on Friday.  If there is a snowday on Monday, they will finish the book Wednesday and the exam will still be on Thursday and Friday.

I have enjoyed working with this group of students, so I'm sad to see so many of them move to another teacher, but I hope that they've had a positive experience in English so far this year and will continue to do so as we head into the second half of the school year.  For those of you who are moving on, thanks for all of your help and support; for those of you who will still hear from me weekly, thank you, too, for your efforts, and I look forward to continuing on with you through June.

Have a great week, everyone!

Final Week of Semester One! by Laura Stubbs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Welcome 2015!

Welcome back, and as Lucy Maud Montgomery once said, "Tomorrow is always fresh, with no mistakes in it."  It's always nice to get a fresh start, and so even though it's not the end of the semester (yet), we are starting new units and it's now time to evaluate what needs to be done to either continue to make things great, or to make changes in order to make things better.  So along those lines, here's what's coming up:

• English 9 - we will do a brief unit regarding job skills and readiness.  We will be creating a resume, collecting letters of recommendation, filling out job applications (which are not intended to be submitted, just used for practice), pulling together a small portfolio, and working on interview skills.  So here's what I'm looking for:  on Monday, January 12 I am hoping to conduct interviews.  If there are any parents out there who would be interested in volunteering an hour of their time toward this cause, please contact me ASAP.  I am hoping to find 8-10 adults who can follow a guide which I will give them in order to give my students an idea of what it's like to go through a job interview.  I'd love to have parents involved in this, though the timing is super early in the morning (7:30 until about 8:20 A.M.), and I'll also be asking staff members at the school for help.  I think this will be a valuable experience.  We will be doing vocabulary in class with no quiz on Friday; we'll be applying the terms, instead.
• English 11 - we have one more unit to go:  Animal Farm.  Here's where reality hits for this group since they will be responsible for reading at least half the book at home on their own.  We have about a week and a half to get this done, so this will be fast.  Just as a heads up, I've been working the past few days on getting grades caught up, and many of my juniors have gotten very lazy whenever they are asked to do work independently, and it's showing up in their grades.  This is the opportunity for those students to get things pulled back together.  As a parent, please look for them to have an Animal Farm book in their hand for the next week and a half, and it should be opened and read.  Thanks for the help in advance.  We will be doing vocabulary with worksheets and quotes; the terms will show up on the test instead of being quizzed at the end of the week.
• On Thursday, January 15, all students will be taking a semester exam.  I believe that this needs to happen in order to prepare them for a future beyond high school, since post-secondary training and education tests them over large amounts of material.  I'll give out a study guide in advance, but they have the review packets already in their hands since I've been warning them from moment one not to throw away their materials.

Well, that about covers it.  I hope everyone is feeling well-rested and is ready to take on the future...I know I am!  Ciao!


Welcome 2015! by Laura Stubbs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License