3 June - It's LDOC

English 11

Happy LDOC everyone! Today we met together to close out the year. We did our raffle for prizes, did a little bit of work, and I told you a few answers to some of your burning questions. We'll see each other again next week on Monday the 9th. Be ready for the multiple choice portion of your final exam. Remember that the texts and the ideas of the questions are posted, so prepare as you need to. Bring your Chromebook and be ready to rumble.

If you still have to submit your design challenge, it will be accepted. I will not be on campus the rest of the week since I'm working for College Board as an AP Exam Scoring Leader. Be in touch via email and submit items to Schoology for me to score.

30 May - Almost LDOC - Final Friday!

English 11

Easy day today as we focused on finishing up our tasks for Quarter 4. For many of you, this is your design challenge. I'm really glad to see the way which you're crafting arguments about problems that impact you in some way. This is why we do English class, so that we can craft arguments that convince. That's the main skill.

If you need any additional time to close out Quarter 4, then we have Tuesday - LDOC. The last day of class. Sign up for something to bring for our end of the year gathering and celebration. I'm excited to celebrate a great year and send you off to your futures and senior year. If you haven't yet taken your final exam, then remember that the exam will be on June 6. We're the second exam block that day. You'll need your school computer to take the final, so be sure that you have it!

28 May - Coming Up on LDOC

English 11

Another day complete as we march our way toward summer vacation. I'll have essays from today scored as soon as possible. Check out Schoology for your updated grade by the end of the weekend. If you were absent, I'll be available on Friday during Lion Time. We can also make alternative arrangements if we need to. The next day that I see you - Friday the 30th - is our day for Design Challenge. If you haven't yet submitted your final demonstration - your creation - be sure that you can do that on Friday. Tuesday the 3rd is the very last day of class. Everything should be in and finalized by then.

You'll need your school Chromebook for the MCQ on our Final Exam day - June 9. Let's finish strong. Ask for any help or assistance you may need!

23 May - Friday Feels

English 11

Today was a great day because some of you finished up your grades for English 11. The only thing that we have left to do is our Final Exam which is going to fall on two days - Wednesday the 28th and then June. On Wednesday we'll do our essay. You'll have the whole class period to write. I've already given you the prompts, and I've chosen one. Remember to review your tools for success with writing. You'll be typing your essays to help with scoring.

Outside of that, focus on your design challenge and your final tasks. I'm here to help, but we are running out of time. There are only three class meetings left. If you have items to turn in, get them to me as soon as possible. You have Lion Time on Wednesday and Friday next week. Remember if you're coming in for the early final exam, you'll need to make a pass for Lion Time on Wednesday.

21 May - Wacky Wednesday

English 11

Great days at the end of the year in English 11. Today was a day for us to focus on creating and finalizing some of the evidence we'll need for our design challenge. I am excited to see what you all are creating as you explore a problem and potential solution. As we are closing out the year, be in touch about your grades or any questions. I appreciate that so many of you are using Lion Time now to get extra help that you need.

Next class, Friday, some of you will be presenting your work to me. Others of you will present the week after, the final day to turn in items related to the Design Challenge is the last day of class. Be sure to study for your final vocabulary quiz. We'll vhae it on Friday. It covers list eight. The link to the study materials has been posted. Let's finish strong! We're nearly there!

19 May - Kicking Off the Week

English 11

Whoo! What a day! I love when we have days like today when it feels like everyone is making some forward momentum and progress. We're all in some different places, but that's called life, what matters is that we're all pushing forward in the way that we need to. Our main focus for today's class was focused on our final writing assignment - The Design Challenge - and understanding the requirements for our final exam.

Your Design Challenge could be finished this week. Next class will be a class focused on creating. I'm hoping that we'll be in workshop mode as we make and produce and revise with feedback. The goal is that you can submit your "text" by Friday for us to review together. If you can't make Friday, then you have several other deadlines. The final deadline is June 3. The last day of class.

We also discussed the final examination today. Your essay will fall on May 28. You'll have the whole class to write. If you are planning to take the exam early, you'll need to make a plan for Lion Time to complete the reading portion. I've given and posted the review materials, so prepare as you need to!

As always, reach out with any questions. I'm looking forward to supporting you in your creations on Wednesday. We'll take our Vocabulary Quiz Eight on Friday. Study and prepare! This is the final quiz! I'll see you soon. I'm always here to help!

15 May - End of the Week

English 11

Really good end to the week in English 11 today. I'm really happy with the way that so many of you lauched right into our final assignment. I love the enthusiasm. Be sure that if you didn't complete your Brainstorming today, to do so by the end of the weekend. I'd like to have feedback for you by the next time I see you. That will set you up well for Part 2 - Finding Evidence and Planning Your Text.

After lunch we moved into our choice independent working time. As I explained, some of you need to finish the Drama Project. You can use your choice play or A Raisin in the Sun for this. Prioritize the writing about the speech - this is two major grades. Use SIS and your progress report to help you figure out what to complete. Most of the work is located in Previous Lessons, Unit 4. 

I'm available next week during Lion Time for extra help. We'll also get our final exam materials next week. Be ready for the end! It's coming on apace!

13 May - Rain, Raisin, and Tuesdays

English 11

No recording for today because most of today was spent enjoying A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry. We watched the rest of Act 1, Scene 1 as a class in order to understand the motivations for each of the main characters, the foiling of Walter and Benethea, and the message around the American Dream that is being created by Hansberry in her text. I liked the fact that so many of you were engaged by hearing Hansberry talk about her own work. Please continue to visit that podcast if you'd like to keep listening.

During our independent time, there were several choices. It is important that any missing assignments are submitted as soon as possible. These are final demonstrations of skill. We have one task left which is our final writing task, and we'll start working on that during Thursday's class. If you have any questions or concerns about anything related to your grade or assignments, reach out immediately.

Have a great weekend! Once you have items complete, please submit them. I'll score immediately and update SIS - you can always revise and resubmit tasks as you finalize your grades for the year.

9 May - Victory Day and End of the Week

English 11

It was a good end to the week in English 11. We took time to finish our assignments from Unit 4 to include our formative assignments and our summative assignments. Be sure that you're focused on submitting any assignments this weekend so that I can update the gradebook and send out formal progress reports on Monday. Remember that you've got your summatives (Drama Project and Vocabulary) and then formatives (Game Plan and Reading Bank). Don't get zeroes here at the end of the year, get your work submitted and let me know what I can do to help!

At the end of class, we started A Raisin in the Sun as a means of understanding our final challenge of the year - the design challenge. With this play, Hansberry is designing a solution to a problem. This is a great way for us to prepare and see the way in which we are acting as authors to design solutions with reasoning. We'll keep reading, viewing, and studying across the next few days. 

18 December - Wacky Wednesday!

English 11

Y'all gave me so many gifts today and that is records of your work and your thinking. Thank you for being so productive during our testing day. If you were absent, you'll want to schedule a Lion Time pass to take your reading test AFTER Winter Break. 

If you have missing major work, try to get that in. Let's make a plan for Lion Time when we return, if necessary. You can complete the vocabulary on your own, but please plan to work with me to do the letter. I'll be updating grades throughout the next few days, and I hope to have them finalized by the time we go out on Friday.

On Friday we'll do some book shopping to prepare for the next unit. If you'll be absent, please complete the Google Form, so I can make some recommendations for you. As always, reach out with any questions or concerns.

1 April - Welcome Back, No Foolin!

AP Language

Welcome back, everyone! I hope that you found some time over the break to rest, recuperate, and relax. The trip to Mexico was a blast. I think my top highlight was seeing whales in the ocean each morning while I was having breakfast. The breakfast was pretty tasty too with all sorts of tropical fruits, juices, and Mexican flavors and products - like cactus (yum, nopales!)

If you have finished with your copy of Invisible Man, please have it ready to return. I'd like to get all the books processed. If you see a stray Gatsby around, be sure to bring him back to me too. If you have any work left to submit, now is the final time to do so. I am still missing a few annotated bibliographies in both classes. Be aware that failure to submit this major reading assignment will negatively affect your grade for the third quarter and could drop you as low as a D. My grades will be finalized and submitted at 3:00 on Tuesday, April 2. If you would like your work scored and reported on this report card, your deadline is clear.

Next class we'll be taking time to understand this final major unit of the year and take time to understand and complete our presentations of research. I'm excited to see you all very soon!

Happy Holidays and Happy Break!

AP Language

Happy Holidays and Happy Break Everyone! I hope that you enjoyed our gathering today in class. Thank you for sharing treats and bringing some joy to our classroom today. I hope that you all find time to do the things that you enjoy doing over the break. 

If you missed part of the midterm exam, try to find time once we come back to get that made-up. We'll be looking at some feedback from the essays and do some scoring of our practice arguments. From then, we're launching into Invisible Man and Unit 5. It's not required that you read over break, but I'd recommend it because the book is pretty complicated. I've got some videos posted in the new unit folder to help you out. There's also the audiobook on Spotify to help you with reading. I'd recommend reading and listening at the same time.

Can't wait to see y'all in 2024! Have a great few weeks!

Exams - Nearly Complete!

We're all set, y'all. Thanks for a pretty solid year. If you have any questions about your standing at the end of the year, feel free to drop by and visit. SIS is locked for the final grade reporting, but I'm happy to let you know where you fall. Visit in the fall, I should be in the same classroom!

9 June - Happy LDOC Grey Day!

English 10

Happy LDOC Grey Day! I hope that you have found moments to enjoy in our year together. I know that I have. I'm looking forward to seeing your final tasks for the year come through in your portfolio reflections on the year. If you've already submitted the tasks, check any feedback and resubmit. Portfolios will continue to be accepted through until the final exam date next week.

Any last tasks for our Persepolis unit are due today. No extensions can be granted on this. I gave out a study guide for your final exam next week. Be sure that if you were not in class that you see the list posted in the folder. You'll want to know this information for next week's test!

8 June - Blue Day LDOC!

AP Language

Happy LDOC Everyone! Work to complete and submit your final examination items. We'll see each other on Monday for our final final. Some of you will present your stories, others will present them just to me, and we'll enjoy our final moments together for the year. Remember that I have to finalize your grades within 24 hours of the examination, so everything is due at the end of the examination block.

Thank you all for a great year! Enjoy the weekend. I look forward to hearing your stories of America!

2 June - Off to the Final

AP Language

Great times in AP Lang for our end of the year character party. It's always fun to have a good time. A special congratulations to our two winners of the costume competition - The Yellow Car and Jordan Baker from The Great Gatsby.

After the party, we took some time to submit key tasks for the final examination. Remember that I am now working for College Board as a Table Leader, so my time is very limited. Though I'll be in the classroom with you next week, I will be working and grading AP Examinations. Be sure that you are completing your tasks, submitting or resubmitting as needed, and moving forward. Your final task, the story, is due on the final examination day - June 12/13. Remember you have to have a recording or written version of the story submitted.

Reach out if you need anything. Let's finish the year well.

31 May - End of the Month / Bye Seniors!

AP Language

Today was our day to complete our final in-class writing assignment. In this assignment you have a prompt, because you always have a prompt - there's always exigence, but you're encouraged to answer the prompt in a more creative and risky way. It's our hope that part of this assignment finds its way to your future personal writing tasks. Note that you now have two tasks due, the writing and the reading.

Quarter 4 officially closes on Friday (Monday for Grey Day). If you have any final choice board items to review or anything else to submit, it needs to be in and done. After this week our work will focus only on the final final exam task, the story telling assignment. This has been posted for your review. You're only getting an oral communication grade for this assignment. 

If you have any questions about closing out the year, please be in touch. Remember that I start reading for College Board on June 1, so I will be less available than I have been.

AP Research

We're all set! Final exams are done and grades are in. Fun times to end the year and lots of lovely energy. I'm sad I won't be at graduation next week, but I'm happy we had our time to say good bye today. If you find yourself on campus, come and say hello. Drop me a line from time to time and let me know how your life is going. Wishing you nothing but the best to take you forward.

30 May - Closing out the Year!

English 10

Great day today in English 10 as we ended our unit on memoirs, the Middle East, and Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. We took our test today, and I will have your results back to you as soon as I can. Check by the end of tomorrow to see your grades and feedback.

At the beginning of today's class, we went over the next few days - aka the end of the year. You have three things left to complete (and some of you have already completed one). First, finish your comic book. Make sure that you're telling your own story and conveying a lesson. Follow the steps in the rubric. If you didn't finish it today, be sure that it's in at the end of Thursday. Then, there are our portfolios. These are due by June 9. Follow the instructions and reach out if you have questions.

Your final exam is on June 15. This is also the day you'll return your laptops. Let's finish strong to end our year together!

26 May - Into the Weekend

AP Language

Really fantastic day today in AP Language. College essays are one of my favorite things to teach, read, and advise on, so today's lesson hit me in all of my happy places. I hope that you enjoyed. Please submit your Active Reading Task before we see each other next class. Next class we'll be writing about ourselves and taking a foray into personal statements and college essays. This is the second part of your final exam tasks. We'll also look at the instructions for the last part.

AP Research

Hooray for the last day of class. Make sure that any items that you need to submit for Wednesday's presentation are in on Schoology. Your presentation on Wednesday is a pitch of one of your item. Your goal in your presentation is to sell your item to me to be used in next year's class. Remember that you'll have a maximum of five minutes. Bring snacks! I'm excited to see what you do!

24 May - AP Final Examination Tasks

AP Language

Another wonderful day working on our ART (Active Reading Task). We started our class by defining our needs, and then we moved forward to meet those needs. We collaborated with peers to discuss texts and uncover more meaning. I liked that I saw a lot of active engagement and collaboration. This is the key to being successful in these tasks. 

By this point, you should have most of your two texts read/processed. Please use your work from your group discussions to help you do this. Next class we'll be focused on personal writing and personal brainstorming - thus the right side of the document. It's due at the end of next class.

If you need anything else at this time, please make an appointment at Lion Time or After School. The door is closing on the AP Language skills part of the gradebook as we are now working on our final examination tasks.

AP Research

Remember to submit your Final Examination artifacts as well as any last items from Quarter 4 by Friday. I will be finalizing Q4 grades on Friday at the end of the day. Next week I'll see you on the 31st for your Final Exam day. Bring snacks! Each of you will have about five minutes to present your item. Do your presentation as a pitch. Pitch your item for me to use next year. 

Please submit all items on Schoology. I need to be sure to have a record of all final examination artifacts.