Being Unpopular...Always a Good Time

Well, in case you're not aware by now, mid-term progress reports went out last week.  It made me very popular amongst my students (not).  I don't usually send home a hard copy since everyone has access to grades continuously, but I felt that they were not checking grades, not worrying about grades, not setting real goals (as a whole - not all, but most).  I believe that they need to be pro-active, not re-active, and so I decided to go this route.  As I handed them out, a few said, "It's OK.  We check them all the time at home."  But I also heard many say, "Great!  Now my parents are going to want to see all my grades," and "You're getting me grounded, Mrs. Stubbs."  I was even stopped by other teachers to be teased about how well-loved I am right now.  If it means that those who were paying no attention and putting their future high school career into jeopardy are now paying attention, then it's worth it.  It's just not very pleasant.

So last week, here's what we accomplished: we finished Act III and took a quiz (which I'm still working on grading); we did our first round of Khan Academy Test Prep for the PSAT which is coming up in April; we read part of Act IV.

Here's this week's schedule as it stands right now:

• Monday, 2/27 - we'll hand back papers; 2nd Hour will continue with Verb Packet #4 (the rest are done); we'll finish reading The Crucible.
• Tuesday, 2/28 - we'll continue with verbs; they'll start watching The Crucible and do a Type 2 identifying 10 key differences from text to movie.
• Wednesday, 3/1 - academic advisory - we'll continue with verbs; we'll continue the movie and Type 2.
• Thursday, 3/2 - career advisory - we'll continue with verbs; we'll try to finish the movie and the Type 2.
• Friday, 3/3 - we'll begin the final assessment, which will be a final, multi-paragraph essay.  I'm working on getting their mid-unit essays done now so that they have them back before they do the final essay - it just takes me a lot of time.

That's the plan for now.  As things change, I'll change the electronic calendar.  Ciao!


Being Unpopular...Always a Good Time by Laura Stubbs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at https://www.laurastubbs.blogspot.com.

We're Halfway through Term 3!

Can you believe it?  We're already halfway through Term 3!  Time moves fast and the freshmen are beginning to realize how quickly high school is going to go.  I hope they're learning a lot, but also enjoying a lot.

Last week we accomplished quite a bit.  We just about finished reading The Crucible: Act III.  We also finished the mid-unit assessment for the play, turning in a 5-paragraph essay.  That takes us to this week:

• Monday, 2/20 - no school; mid-winter break.
• Tuesday, 2/21 - except for my 2nd hour, we'll finish Verb Packet #4 and turn it in (2nd Hour hasn't started this yet...for multiple reasons); we'll finish reading Act III and take a Type 2 quiz.
• Wednesday, 2/22 - academic advisory - we're going to take a short break from The Crucible to get signed up for Khan Academy, doing some prep work for the PSAT 9 test which is coming up in April.
• Thursday, 2/23 - career advisory - we'll do a Type 1 and then read The Crucible: Act IV.
• Friday, 2/24 - we'll do a Type 1 and turn them in; we'll try to finish The Crucible - at least the reading of it.

That's the plan for the week. I hope everyone had a good weekend!  Ciao!

We're Halfway through Term 3! by Laura Stubbs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at http://www.laurastubbs.blogspot.com.

Whew! What a Few Weeks It Has Been!

Wow!  It has been a whirlwind the past three weeks.  Three weekends ago my oldest son not only participated in the high school district Solo & Ensemble, but his school hosted it, so I had to go volunteer and work it also.  That took up a lot of my time.  Here's a picture from his performance, sans haircut since I forgot all about the appointment (it has since occurred, but I'm amazed he was able to see his music):

Then the following week I managed to catch the cold of a lifetime, right before a HUGE weekend that started with both of my boys having Friday night dances.  The next morning my younger son participated in middle school district Solo & Ensemble, also held at the same high school, which meant four more hours of volunteering.  Later that day my younger son was singing at a service, then a soccer game for both of them that night, followed by another one the next morning, and...oh...it was my mom's birthday and her present was to stay at my house and go with me to a cooking class for making pizzas.  Here's a picture of my younger son's performance at Solo & Ensemble:

So this weekend wasn't quite as crazy, but the younger kid's musical he's been involved in since September was this weekend, so I worked it Friday night and then enjoyed it on Saturday.  And I was on the committee for the Afterglow, so I arrived home late last night, but happy.  It was a great production of Beauty and the Beast:

So that's my saga.  The fact that I have everything graded from the past few weeks except for one 10% Summary is amazing.  I have 150 of those, but I think I can get through them fairly quickly early this week.  That's my goal since their 5-paragraph analytical essays are due on Tuesday.

Which leads to what we've been working on.  Last week we were able to read Act II of The Crucible and pre-write and write a 5-paragraph analytical essay.  It's not due until Tuesday, but we're not working on it in class on Monday.  There has been quite a bit of illness running through the school, so I want to make sure everyone has everything they need.

So here's what's coming up this week:

• Monday, 2/13 - address any questions regarding essays; we'll begin reading Act III of The Crucible.
• Tuesday, 2/14 - essays are due - we'll read aloud, edit, revise, and submit them; Verb Packet #4 will be handed out and we'll start them; Act III of The Crucible.
• Wednesday, 2/15 - Academic Advisory - Verb Packet #4; Act III of The Crucible.
• Thursday, 2/16 - Career Advisory - Finish Act III of The Crucible; Quiz over Act III
• Friday, 2/17 - No School - Winter Break!

 That's the plan.  I hope everyone has a great week.  Ciao!


Whew! What a Few Weeks It Has Been! by Laura Stubbs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at http://www.laurastubbs.blogspot.com.

Getting Goal Oriented

This past week brought another glitch in my plan, but it also gave us a lot to work with.  Glitch: snow day - it knocked me off schedule and we got behind; benefit: it gave us a chance to work on how to work toward a goal even when life gets in the way.  I started the week asking them to make a specific strategy to work on for the week; on Friday they reflected back on their progress.  Despite the fact that they don't enjoy this topic, I think that some of them are becoming more goal oriented and are focused on what has to happen to achieve those goals. 

They have also had more homework to deal with this week.  On Monday, many did not finish their quizzes and had to take them home to finish them, and then bring them back!  (If there's an empty space in HAC right now for the quiz, it's because I'm still working on grading them.)  Bringing them back is often the challenge.  On Wednesday they had to take their worksheet for the 10% Summary home to finish, and then Thursday they needed to take the actual writing home and finish it...and bring it all back!  On Friday, they all brought reading home to finish over the weekend.  During their analysis of their goal on Friday, one of my students said the most amazing thing.  This person commented that their goal is to get all assignments turned in. When I asked what strategy they are using, this person said, "Well, I do my homework at home the night before, then I'm able to turn it in on time when I get to class."  Personal growth, my friends, that's what it's all about!

So this coming week, here's what we have in store:

• Monday, 2/6 - we'll finish and turn in Verb Packet #3; we'll briefly discuss what they've read for Act II in The Crucible, then they'll read through the end of the act; what they don't finish goes home for homework.
• Tuesday, 2/7 - we'll discuss Act II of The Crucible  and make notes on conflict, character, and figurative language.  If time, we'll do a Type 1.
• Wednesday, 2/8 - Academic Advisory - we will do the pre-writing for the mid-unit assessment (yes, it will be another multi-paragraph essay).
• Thursday, 2/9 - Career Advisory - we will write the essay for the mid-unit assessment; what they don't finish will go home for homework.
• Friday, 2/10 - we'll start Act III of The Crucible which will be read together in class.

I hope everyone has a great week!  Ciao!

Getting Goal Oriented by Laura Stubbs is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Based on a work at http://www.laurastubbs.blogspot.com.