Mrs. Stubbs's English Blog: One Week To Go

Here we are, only one week out from the end of the term! My how time flies when you're having fun! I truly am enjoying working with my students every day. There's something about working with freshmen that I just like. I know that some people claim not to want to teach them, but I love their openness, their goofiness (as long as it's appropriate), and the fact that everything is new and exciting to them. It makes my job more enjoyable.

We had a good week last week. They read "The Raven" last Monday and did some study guide work to go with it, then we talked about the ways that figurative language, complex characters, and word choice come together for a central idea. By the end of the week, they were creating their worksheet that will guide them into the final assessment for this mini-unit: a Google slide. This is an alternative assessment, and they'll be submitting it to me online. In addition to the academic work, they spent Thursday talking with the counselors and some seniors about high school and how to successfully negotiate their way through it, pitfalls and all. It was a really nice hour, and they all seemed to be engaged.

Coming up this week we have the following:

Monday: we'll finish the Google slides. Any not completed by the end of the time period will have through Wednesday to get it done. Remember, we have Tuesdays with Teachers and Academic Advisory time during the day on Wednesday.
Tuesday: I'm going to have them do a PSAT sample reading test. They'll be taking the real deal in April, so we'll look at what this is like.
Wednesday: We'll go over the PSAT test, then we're turning our attention to Shakespeare with an online scavenger hunt. They will also have a little questionnaire for you, too!
Thursday: I have some games to play to familiarize them with some of the names in Romeo and Juliet.
FRIDAY: NO SCHOOL!!! (P.D. for teachers)

So, there's lots going on! I've spent my weekend grading papers and have done a pretty good job of catching up on the writing (it takes me so long since there are so many, and I want to make sure I really put thought into it); only two batches to go! As we head for the final week, please make sure that you've checked HAC, and always remember that I'm available to your student after school on Tuesday, during Academic Advisory on Wednesday, or any other time that we agree to meet.