30 October - Last Grey Day

English 11

Thanks for a great end of the week today in English 11. Today's class was focused on writing and especially on the development of our topics for our research work in this unit. We discussed the importance of specificity when it comes to our research topics. We need to be as specific as possible when it comes to the scope and context of our problem. Remember to ask questions like Where? When? What type or kind? Who? These questions will help you to focus in on a particular part of a larger problem that you can really examine in an assignment like this.

By the end of the weekend, be sure that you've completed your brainstorming assignment. I'll take a look and give feedback to the good of the group next class. We'll revise from there. We'll also take some time next class to have our discussion on our unit and texts so far. There are a few more readings that we have ahead of us, but this is a great time for us to review what we've read so far before moving on. Great work this quarter, everyone! I'm excited to move us forward into Q2.

17 May

English 10

Solid day in English 10 as we read two more chapters of Persepolis and continued to track Marji's development to adulthood. We ended our day by focusing on our memoir assignments and brainstorming key moments in our life that we can turn into a graphic novel. Remember that with this assignment the goal is to focus on ONE important moment. Think about the book we're reading, right? She's really telling us about major moments, not about everything. Try to do the same.

Next class we'll finish up with our movie tasks. Be ready to do a bit of writing. Remember that if you have any missing assignments (vocabulary, paragraphs, videos) that those assignments are due by May 30. No work will be accepted after May 30 except for the final examination and portfolio.

Friday the 13th of January - Scary Tech Issues

English 10

Ugh. Some tech issues hit a few of us as we were writing our final essays today. If this happened to you, feel free to complete the assignment on your own this weekend or next week with me in Lion Time. If you were absent, I would recommend using Lion Time so you have access to your folders.

Over the weekend you'll want to spend some time brainstorming ideas for the problem you'll be focused on in our next unit. We'll do the official assignment to start on Wednesday next week. Remember that there's no school on Monday in honor of Dr. King.

Homework for Wednesday - 4 September - A Day

AP Research

It's time to start the QUEST. Navigate to your PREP folders and begin working on your "Planning Log" and your "Reading Log". Document all steps that you take as you begin. Begin to consider your problem statement, gap, and question as it stands and as it develops. Try to be working with 2-4 sources per evening as we work.

Russian I

We're almost done with the alphabet! Tonight we have some more letters to practice with and sounds to learn. Be sure to review your notes daily and keep practicing with your sentences and vocabulary. We will have our first quiz on Monday and it will cover the sounds and shapes of the Russian alphabet! Your handwriting packets are also due on this day.

Advanced Russian

We now know more about the One Stem Verb System than we did before and that is incredible! Keep working and practicing with it to develop even more! You should be making your verb cards at this time (use our work in class as an example). Also, engage with the language! Take a look at Bunin's "Three Rubles" and try to find the verbs (Russian IV - Try to also find the participles! They come from verbs, so that counts!)

Homework for B Day Students - 26 September

AP Seminar

Tonight we are moving forward into our first theme based unit by developing questions around the topic of education. Take the work that we did today in class around topic development and go further. Take at least four lenses and develop questions related to these lenses.

Once you've worked out a question that you like - move forward into the development via research. Be sure to find an adequate source and use that to further refine your question/idea using the second graphic organizer. On Friday you'll be meeting as a team, so it's important to have this work done in order to meet your goals as a group on Friday.

Advanced Russian

We didn't get as far as I would have liked today - but we did get a lot of good speaking and listening done, so that worked out well for us. First, to go further from the speaking and listening today, spend time writing a paragraph in Russian that deals with your plans for the weekend. What are you planning to do this weekend? With whom? Where? Everything we did today while talking is great to set you up for this. You should write anywhere from five to ten sentences.

Next, collaborate with your team. Share a Google Document among your teammates and with me - dump all of your ideas as a team into this document. On Friday you'll meet and determine your topic.

Lastly, if you are working to correct your quiz to earn back points - do so. If you feel as though you really don't understand the One Stem Verb System, then I would complete an exercise. The exercise is on Pages 174-175. There is an article and a list of vocabulary words. Not all stems are there, and some are repeated: your job is to read the article and find your verbs. Organize them around stems - notice how they are used and conjugated in the text. Like Pokemon, gotta catch 'em all!

You'll want to turn in your resubmission work by the beginning of next week!

Russian I

Today we had our quiz on the alphabet as well as some time to work on our Russian city research projects. Next class will be the last day to work on our research before we present next week. For tonight, there are a few things that you should settle:

1. We're coming to the end of this first unit so all work is due. Make sure that you've done your handwriting packet, your name and paragraph about yourself, and any other assignments in PowerSchool. Missing assignments will be marked as a zero on Friday.
2. I'll have your quizzes graded for you next week. You'll be able to make corrections - remember that we'll have an exam on this same information, so it's important to learn all of these letters and sounds.
3. Focus on learning your new vocabulary - the greetings, introductions, and farewells. We'll be working with these words next class as we begin some speaking.

I think that's really it! Stay on your grind everyone - keep moving forward!

27 August - Homework - A Day

Welcome back to Jordan High for the 2018-2019 year! I'm so happy to be back to teaching and learning with you all in Room 301. Here are your reminders and announcements to get you going into our next class on Wednesday.

ESL English IV

Today was a wonderful day where we all got to know each other just a bit and we began to work on some of the important work in our class, like how words are built to create meaning. Next class we'll keep working with these new vocabulary skills as well as with a poem related to our opening theme.

For tonight, be sure that you've completed your Parent Contact Sheet - you'll want to turn that in to us next class. Then, take some time to think and make a list of about five things that are important parts of your identity. Try to make these specific to you. Don't just say "cooking" but think of an item that you like to cook more than any other. What does that say about who you are as a person?

AP English III

Today we had a great opening class in which we reviewed the class policies and procedures, you turned in your summer assignments, and you've already received some grades as well! Ms. Coco and I will be working hard to score your summer work and return it to you in a timely fashion, likely later this week or at the beginning of next. Remember that you can resubmit most of your summer work for new scores after you've learned the new expectations related to writing, outlining, and annotating.

For tonight, your main goal is to complete your paperwork (Contact Sheet/Honor Code) as well as complete the reading of "Keeping a Notebook" by Joan Didion. The article is available here as a .pdf file. Remember to read and annotate - take notes in your notebooks, take notes on the article, or on post-its. Never forget that annotating is a key skill and a standing assignment.

On Friday we'll be reviewing Sections I and II of In Cold Blood. You may find it helpful to start reviewing your annotations and reading tonight. Don't forget to add to your vocabulary bookmark as you do this work.

Starting the Week Right - B Day Homework/Reminders - 29 January

What a rainy and cold Monday, ugh. Hopefully the weather turns around so we aren't so sleepy and worn down all week.

English IV:

Tonight you have the same homework as the group below, if you have a chance. We got caught by the bell at the end of class, so you may not have had a chance to take note of the different topics. If so, look below at the A day post and consider those six topics before next class.

AP English III:

Today we began the process of completing our research based argumentative essays, aka - our research papers. This will be a long process in which you will showing all that you've learned this year around writing and composing a full argument. You'll research, evaluate sources, and show the way in which you use sources to support your own ideas.

Tonight, begin by brainstorming and considering which topic you will consider for this assignment. Remember that you want to pick something that interests you. Use the topic sheet and complete the first five sections. Next class we will go to the Media Center to begin research - remember to bring your Durham County Library card if you have one.

Lastly, we will have our quiz on Transcendental philosophy on Friday. There will be a question related to each of our authors. Be sure that you are prepared for this quiz.

Birthday Presents aka Homework for 5 September 2017 - B Day

AP English III

Your main task for homework tonight is to read and annotate Stephanie Ericsson's "The Ways We Lie" - this article is available in 50 Essays (first edition) and at this link. As you read, annotate. Keep track of vocabulary and major ideas and motifs in the text.

As you read "The Ways We Lie" take note of the different lies that Ericsson writes about. Do you see how Didion, Capote, Dick and Perry employ these different lies? To what larger effect?

Also, keep in mind that you will receive your responses to the In Cold Blood questions on Thursday and will be able to resubmit them for a new grade.

English IV

If you haven't yet considered the brainstorming questions for our personal essay, do that tonight so that you are ready to write and plan your essays next class. We'll be focused on drafting our personal essays before going to the computer lab to type them up.

Homework for the Weekend - B Day - 31 August

English IV

For the weekend make sure that you've considered your brainstorming and the questions related to your introduction for your personal essay. We'll be spending a lot of time in class on Friday to draft these personal essays.

If you haven't turned in your student/parent contact form, please do that on Tuesday.

AP English III

Over the weekend you should be focused on Sections One and Two of In Cold Blood. Review both sections with an eye toward vocabulary and record on your bookmarks anywhere from five to ten good words that you would like to further study.

Take the questions I gave you today in class and prepare your question for Section One. We'll use these questions to take us through Section One - make sure that you've identified at least two significant passages that you could use to answer the question.

Look over and review Section Two. Hopefully we'll have time to work through that as well.

Homework for A-Day Students: 30 August

Russian I

Tonight, continue to work on the handwriting exercises that you've been given. You should be able to complete most everything up to Exercise 6. There are a few letters we haven't met yet, and you can skip those. Continue to focus on the letters we have learned in class which are:

A / К / М / О / Т / В / Е / Ё / Н / Р / С/ У / Х

By this point you should be able to say the letter and write it in upper and lower case.

Advanced Russian

Tonight you have a bit of practice with the ideas of truncation, addition, stems, and endings. In the exercise I gave you today in class I want you to do a few things:

1. Identify the process which will happen - addition or truncation.
2. Combine the stem and ending in standard transcription.
3. Transform into Russian, if you can.

We'll continue to work through this next class. You also have your vocabulary from Chapters 1-4; focus on relearning the verbs!

English IV

In class today we began our study of The Canterbury Tales by looking at some historical information as well as a bit of the Prologue in Modern and Middle English. We'll read more of the text next class and work on our writing assignments a lot. Make sure that you have considered your brainstorming questions and that you have decided which aspect of yourself you are focusing on in your personal essay. Next class we will be very focused on the writing of this assignment.

Homework for B-Day - 29 August

English IV

For tonight, just like the A-day class, please finish your brainstorming for "The Me You Don't See" as well as your paperwork (student/parent contact sheet). We'll be using the answers for the brainstorming to guide us into the drafting of the personal essay.

Today was a wonderful first class - I was very happy to see the excitement and energy in the room. Let's keep that going and make sure we have a wonderful year together.

AP English III

Mr. Bernhard and I are working on your summer assignments and will get them back to you as soon as we can. For now, you have reading and paperwork to complete.

Complete the reading of Didion's "On Keeping a Notebook" - it's available in the first edition of 50 Essays and at this link. Read the text and take notes. As you read, find four new words and write them on your vocabulary bookmarks.

Also, don't forget the parent/student contact form. You can fill out the paper copy or the online version in the post below.

Next class we'll be working with Didion and Capote - so have your books and your notes!

Homework for the First Day

Yay! We made it through the first day. After today it just gets easier. I was very happy to see and meet all of you today. I was also very pleased with the tone you all set with me today. If we keep doing the year like we did today, then we're golden. Here are your reminders for Wednesday's classes.

You can also go to the post below to access the student/parent contact sheet online.

English IV

Please complete the brainstorming sheet - remember five questions total with three from one section. You'll also want to fill out your student/parent contact sheet, the honor code form, and your student handbook form.

Advanced Russian

Think of ten verbs that you would need to use to discuss your everyday habits and activities. Look them up in Russian if you don't already know them and write them out in Russian as well as in Structural Transcription. We'll review the work on Wednesday as we jump into the system of classifying verbs by their stems.

Don't forget to also complete your student/parent contact sheet.

Russian I

We know five letters in the Russian alphabet - just 28 more to go! Tonight, work on your handwriting practice. Remember that if the word has a letter we haven't seen yet then you can skip it. Only work with the letters A, K, M, O, T. Review your notes and practice!

Don't forget to also complete your student/parent contact sheet.

Homework for the Weekend - B Day - 27 January 2017

AP English III

This weekend there are three key things that you should work on. First, you have your reflection on being a Transcendentalist this week; I hope that through this experiment you learned something about yourself as well as the larger society of which you are a member. Reflect and think about this experience and express what you learned about yourself or society through this process. There are many routes that you can go with this reflection, but you should focus on showing what you learned and how you learned it.

Second, there's the beginning of the preparation for our research papers. Start by brainstorming three topics - these can be as general or as specific as you want. Remember that eventually these will be argumentative research papers, so it's important now to think about what interests you about this topic and what you want to learn more about the topic. Part of the process of developing this paper involves research, which we will begin next week.

Lastly, there's an article to read for Tuesday's class. The article is by James Baldwin and it's called "Notes of a Native Son" - it's a long piece, so only read Part One for Tuesday. Annotate heavily and consider how Baldwin uses personal examples to make a larger point about race and racism in society.

English II

Though we were cut short by the fire drill we were still able to watch our episode of The Twilight Zone, "Mirror Image". This will be the last thing that is on your quiz. For Tuesday's quiz we will have questions on "The Night Face Up" and on "Borges and I" as well as a paragraph response about the concept of doppelgangers. Make sure to study your notes and review the stories. Prepare for your quiz!