Homework the Weekend - A Day - 7 September 2018

AP English III

Today we talked about arguments in section III of  In Cold Blood. For homework this weekend you have three things to focus on. First, complete 5 vocabulary notecards. These vocabulary words come from your vocabulary bookmarks. Choose five words (from In Cold Blood, Didion, Ericsson, or the AP Multiple Choice). On the front side of the card put the word, sentence in which you found it, page number (not necessary if you chose it from AP multiple choice), other forms of the word (verb, noun, adjective, etc.), and its etymology. Google is one of your best resources for finding the prefix/root/suffix. THIS is also a helpful website. One the back of the card, you should put your own definition and synonyms (explain any difference between the definitions!). Remember – 5 cards on Tuesday, they will be checked for completion.

The second part for homework this weekend is to revise your outlines. Ms. Coco will be available Monday before and after school, as well as A lunch if you have any questions. Mr. Miller will be back on Tuesday. You can always email either/both of us as well if you have any questions.

Finally, work on your rough draft of your In Cold Blood essay. You should have ½ of the rough draft done by Thursday, Sept. 13. Come to class with a printed copy so we can have a writing workshop.

Period 4 – Thank you for your patience and cooperation during technical difficulties. I appreciate you all staying on task for that final activity.

English IV

No real homework to complete over the weekend. Do keep reviewing all of the new vocabulary (aka literary terms) that we learn on a daily basis so that we are able to keep moving forward! We will have a quiz coming up on those terms next week– so be sure to keep that in mind.

Hope you all enjoy your weekend! We’ll see on Tuesday!

Homework for the Weekend - B Day - 6 September

AP Seminar

Today we went forward into our work on questions and lenses. This work can be very difficult and really frustrating - remember that the goal is to have something to guide your search. Without some sort of a map, even a bad one, you begin your journey with no plan in mind - thus you're immediately lost.

For tonight, delve deeper into your topic (diversity, innovation, space) and develop a sub-topic of interest to you. For example, you may want to look at diversity of Native Americans, or personal space, or cancer innovations. Go in the direction that you see fit, and develop new questions. Apply 5-7 of the lenses for your work on Monday with online resources and databases. Technically, this is the homework for next class - we are flipping the two, because of my absence.

Russian II/III

We will complete our viewing of Moscow Doesn't Believe in Tears next week. I hope that you enjoyed the beginning of the film today. I think that Russians are great story tellers and this film is a wonderful example of that skill. For our next class, apply what you have learned today to your verb cards - work through the non-past conjugation of your verb types. Be sure to look for mutations as well as the process of joining the endings to the stem. You should be developing your cards so that you have a good study aid for our upcoming quiz on verbs and stems. This quiz will likely fall next week on Friday.

Russian I

For the weekend you should all be focused on learning the shapes and sounds of the letters that we have learned so far. That would be the letters in Groups One through Four. As you are going through your handwriting packet, remember to complete any exercises which have the letters that we have seen so far. By the end of next week you will be turning in a complete handwriting pack with everything complete. Keep that in mind as you are working this weekend. Be able to read and write what you see in that packet.

Also, don't forget to practice with our classroom on Duolingo. That's another great way to reinforce and develop your skills.

Enjoy the weekend everyone and have a Happy (Jewish) New Year! I'll see you all on Wednesday!

Homework for A-Day - 5 September 2018

AP English III

Sorry that we didn't get to touch on the outlines that you built around Section II of In Cold Blood. Please hang on to this work as we will likely take a look at it next class or next week as we spend time working on outlining and writing skills. Today you all got some great direct instruction in writing an argument, particularly on structure, organization, and thesis/argument statement writing. Start to apply this now to your outlines. Begin the revision process.

Next week will will have a rough draft workshop - more instructions will come on this Friday and Tuesday. You should work through half of your outline and turn it into a rough draft. To me, it makes most sense to do your introduction paragraph with your argument as well as a topic or two of the body.

Next class we'll be focused on Section III of In Cold Blood. Be sure that you have updated your vocabulary bookmarks with words from Sections I, II, and III - have pages numbers and synonyms. We'll be going on to the next phase of vocabulary work on Friday, and you'll need full bookmarks to do that.

English IV

Thank you all so much for the amazing celebration! I'm going to remember this for a long, long time! We even found time to do some work! Bonus! Today we were able to review grammar rules around apostrophes and start understanding how word families work. Remember - if the words share a root, then they share a meaning.

For tonight, take a look at your vocabulary notes and your literary terms from "I Go Along". We'll be reading more of the story on Friday, and doing some work about ourselves.

Homework for B-Day - 4 September 2018

Remember, the next time that I see you I'll be a bit smarter since I'll be a bit older! Make sure that you're ready for our next class by preparing the proper tribute aka gifts aka homework assignments.

Russian I

We're almost halfway through the Russian alphabet! Hooray! As we keep working, remember that you should be working through your handwriting packet on a daily basis. Be sure that you remember to review and study every day so that you are able to memorize these shapes and sounds. Looking at the letters we have done so far, you should be able to complete the following exercises:

1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9, 13

Feel free to do more if you would like, but those would be the minimum requirement. See you all next class!

Russian II/III

Today we spent a lot of time drawing and writing outside before getting back to our work on verbs. Tonight, you have two assignments to work on - one you'll complete and one you'll just begin.

Start by completing Exercise 8B - complete what we started in class by finishing the even questions. Remember to follow the chart format where you address the process of joining, the stem, and show how the process works. Then, move on to your verb cards.

For the verb cards you'll be assigning one verb to each card. For tonight, I want you to try to show the verb in its Standard Transcription for the infinitive and past tense endings. Show the stem + the ending, and how they combine.

Next class we'll start looking at present tense (aka non-past) to understand more about what stems are telling us.

AP Seminar

For our next AP Seminar class we'll be focusing in on the idea of perspective and approach to questions and inquiry. We started to discuss some of these ideas today at the conclusion of class. For this, you'll be taking a look at the film Blackfish and considering the perspective on the issue that the film explores.

Take a look at our previous post so that you remind yourself of what to follow as you watch the film. Take notes as you watch related to those ideas, and don't forget to read over SeaWorld's official response to the documentary. We'll have some interesting ideas to bandy about on Thursday.

31 August - Homework for the Weekend - A Day

We're done with August and done with the first week of school! Hooray! See the information below as you prepare for our next class.

AP English III

In class as we were leaving I handed out the questions to go along with Section II of In Cold Blood. Over the weekend, I would like for you to outline your response to ONE of these questions. I direct you to certain parts of the text in the questions - use those areas as a starting point. Remember that at its core an outline is a plan. We should be able to read your outline and have an understanding of what your answer will be and how you will use evidence to clarify and explain that answer. You are outlining a response of around a paragraph in length.

Further, there's a piece called "The Ways We Lie" by Stephanie Ericsson that I would like for you to read and annotate. It's available in some editions of 50 Essays and at this link. As you are reading, pay attention to the idea of honesty versus lies. Is Capote using any of these "lies" in his text? Are any of the characters? How does this piece help us to better investigate the idea of author credibility in the text?

Lastly, this weekend your scores for the Summer Outline will be populated into PowerSchool. Remember that you will have the chance to resubmit this work as we go through our writing and revising process. Class on Wednesday will focus on proper outlining procedures and expectations, so the revisions will begin then!

English IV

No real homework to complete over the weekend since we got through much of what we needed to do in class today. Do keep reviewing all of the new vocabulary (aka literary terms) that we learn on a daily basis so that we are able to keep moving forward!

Enjoy the long weekend and take it easy if you can!

30 August - Homework for the Weekend - B Day

AP Seminar

This weekend you have two tasks to accomplish. Now, you really don't have to do the second one until next week, but I would recommend getting it done now while you have the three-day weekend.

For Tuesday I want you to have read and annotated the article called "Put Your Husband in the Kitchen" - remember to keep your notes and have them to show if asked. You may print and annotate the article or just take notes as you read. We'll also be finishing our QUEST posters on Tuesday. For Thursday I want you to have viewed and considered the film Blackfish. There's also this response to the film by SeaWorld which you should also read. As you are viewing these documents, consider the following tasks:

• Identify EVERY invested party brought up in the documentary
• Identify parties that were NOT brought up.   
• Make a list of lenses that the film focuses on and the lenses that are neglected.
• Lastly, write a strong paragraph that analyses the approach that the documenary creators use in specific regards to lens and how it relates to their purpose/objective. 

I will collect the paragraphs for a grade. You may not be able to complete the whole assignment for Thursday until class on Tuesday due to what we'll be covering related to lenses and approaches.

Advanced Russian

For homework over the weekend I want you all to practice working with verbs in transcription and going through the process of joining verbs and stems together. Take a look at Exercise 8B on pages 168-169. Organize the work through a chart. Identify the process of joining (truncation or addition), the stem of the verb, and then join them together to show HOW they combine.

This, and then working through your vocabulary from Units 1-4 (focusing on the verbs) will prepare you for Tuesday. We have a holiday to celebrate on Tuesday - bring sidewalk chalk if you have it!

Russian I

Today we finished learning our Group Two letters (the tricksters) while we also reviewed our Group One letters. I think that everyone so far is showing me some impressive skills. I was very happy that while we were doing our cafe simulation you were able to order coffee drinks and read a Russian menu! That's really great work!

Over the weekend be sure that you're prepared for Groups One and Two. You should start working through the handwriting packet in earnest now so that you can start to complete the exercises. As I said to the Russian II/III students, if you have sidewalk chalk, bring it to class on Tuesday!

Enjoy the long weekend everyone!

29 August - B Day - Homework and Announcements

We're well into the swing of things now; here are your reminders and announcements as we prepare for next class.

English IV

Ms. Coco and I were very happy to see how engaged you all were today in class as we worked through Langston Hughes. Next class we're going to continue reading and spend a lot of time focused on vocabulary learning.

For tonight, we are going to stay focused on learning about ourselves and telling others about ourselves. For this, find a song that you think represents you well. Bring in the lyrics or the song itself (YouTube video, website, recording) to show us how the song connects to you. If the song is not in English, translate a bit so that we can understand.

AP English III

Our main goal for next class is to work through Sections I and II of In Cold Blood. Be sure that you have reviewed your annotations in these sections and prepared your vocabulary bookmarks for these sections too. We'll be working through these sections through some group activities and we'll also start looking at outlining skills in advance of giving back your first part of the summer assignment next week.

As always, if you have any missing paperwork, please get that turned in as soon as you can!

Homework for B-Day Students: 28 August

AP Seminar:

Tonight we have some important work to do in order to stretch you as you develop yourselves to be more creative and critical thinkers. Tonight you'll be watching the video below, analyzing your letter of the QUEST model and then completing your paperwork for class. So, here are your tasks.

Watch this TEDTalk and take notes on the following questions as you are watching:

1. Explain the story of Alfred Dreyfus?
2. What is motivated reasoning? What is problematic about this?
3. What is the scout mindset?
4. How are mind sets rooted in emotion? What are they and how are they different?
5. Seriously, what do you most yearn for?
6. How do you think this connects to our class?

Remember - answer these questions as bullet points, not necessarily as complete sentences or paragraphs. Be sure that you can show me your work on this if I were to ask for it.

Secondly, take a look at the Course and Exam Description booklet. Go to pages 11-24 and read carefully your assigned element of the QUEST framework. Read and annotate your section in order to better understand what that part of the Framework means. Be able to explain it to your classmates and to yourself!

Lastly, complete your paperwork - Honor Policy and Parent Contact Form - and turn those in to me next class.

Advanced Russian 

Welcome back to all of you, дорогие мои! I am so happy to continue working with you in Russian class. Hopefully we had some fun today reviewing the basics and delving a bit further. Our first unit is focused on verbs, so for tonight I want you to make a list of ten verbs you use commonly to talk about your day. With each verb, be sure to write it down in Russian, in English, and make a list of the various cases that the verb will use to communicate meaning.

Russian III Students - You should attempt to transcribe the verb using structural transcription. That can be found at the beginning of your Russian language textbook if you still have that. This will help us to move forward into the One Stem Verb System.

Russian I

I hope that all of you enjoyed class today. Be sure that you access our Google Classroom page as well as our Duolingo page as well. You may find it more helpful to access these using the desktop site rather than the app or mobile site.

For homework tonight I want you to be practicing with your new letters A, K, M, O, T. Go through the handwriting packet and work with exercises that feature these letters. Practice your reading and writing. Remember that I'll collect the whole packet at the end of the unit.

Also, don't forget your Parent Contact Sheet too. I like to call parents and tell them how great you are.

See you all on Thursday!

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.

Opening the Year - 2018-2019

Hello Parents and Students! Below is some important information to be aware of as we start our classes. Please see the notes below about each document.

Parent/Student Information Sheet

This is the same as the paper version which will be sent home on the first day of class. Please complete this online version or paper version for my records. If you complete an online version, please return the paper version with the student's name filled out and actual signatures at the bottom.

Google Classroom

Outside of this classroom blog I will be posting a lot in our Google Classroom space. This is a wonderful place to go if you have missed class or if you have missed something in class. Handouts, class notes, and other important resources will be posted here. Use the codes below for your specific class to gain access. Remember to join class using your DPS Google Account (first_last@dpsnc.net) and your DPS password (the same you use to access computers on campus).

AP English III: t86rhds

English IV: bu7bl

AP Seminar: tzooce

Russian I: 662ysix

Advanced Russian (II/III): df3adf

And now, we're through!

All the grades have been posted and finalized. The room has been boxed up. My flight to Russia leaves on Thursday! First World Cup game is a week from today!

Cheers to an overall successful year in Room 301! To my graduates, I look forward to saying your names on Tuesday! Congratulations on this first step into your futures! To my under-classmen and rising seniors, don't forget to take a look at the Jordan website for your summer assignments! Remember that ALL English classes next year have summer reading, not just AP - the difference is that AP has required work to go with the book, whereas non-AP classes just have reading. Everyone should enjoy at least one good book each summer; hopefully you'll find more than one!

Happy Summer!

Grades Complete

I have FINAL GRADES calculated for all students who have taken their final examinations before today. If you tested today or will test next week during make-up testing, then I (obviously) do not have your grades ready.

You can email me or see me on campus if you would like to know your final grades.

Exam Scores and Recommendations - Russian I, II, III

If you tested yesterday in Russian II/III or Russian I then I have scored your final examination and calculated your final grade for the year. I am happy to report that everyone who has tested will receive credit for the class. However, some of you are not qualified to continue on to the next level of Russian. Some of you, if you choose to advance, will need to participate in tutoring in order to solidify some of your skills.

If you are planning to continue to the next level of Russian, please get in touch with me about what you can do over the summer to improve yourselves. There are plenty of great online resources and YouTube channels that you can use in order to improve your skills!

Поздравляю вас!

Final Grades - English IV

If you took the NCFE on Friday or Tuesday I have your scores. You can come and see me for your exam scores and your final grade for the year. I am VERY HAPPY TO REPORT THAT EVERYONE WHO TESTED HAS PASSED FOR THE YEAR AND RECEIVED CREDIT FOR ENGLISH IV!!!!

Not Exempt? Names Posted

Russian and AP Students -

Students who are NOT exempt have been verified and those names are posted outside of my classroom. Please check in if you are unsure of your status. If you believe that I have made an error please stay with me to check your absences and grades and confirm your status related to the examination.

Grades Complete - Q4

A-Day Students

Your Q4 grades have been finalized. The only grade that you have left to earn is the examination, which counts for twenty percent of your total grade for the year.

Please remember to check in regarding exemptions if you are working to become exempt from the examination. Any student who fails to show for their examination will be given a zero for the exam. Make-ups are very limited. It is in your best interest to show for your scheduled examination time.

Let's Be Ready for Exams

Congratulations everyone! We've made it to the end. Since I will not be here tomorrow for the B-Day Classes I wanted to make sure that this was posted to go over exams for all of the classes.

Be sure that you are where you need to be for your final examination. Remember not to assume that you are exempt from a teacher made exam unless you hear that confirmation from me!

2A - English IV NCFE (No Exemptions)
Students will test on Friday the 25th at 12:00 PM. You will test in our classroom. Be sure that you are on time so that you have time to complete your entire test. Exams will be scored once I receive score reports from the State.

3A - Advanced Russian
Students will test on Wednesday the 30th at 9:00 AM. You will test Room 309 with me.

4A - Russian I
Students will test on Wednesday the 30th at 1:00 PM. You will test in our classroom. Be sure that you have reviewed all of the study materials that you have been given in order to complete this examination.

2B - English IV NCFE (No Exemptions)
Students will test on Tuesday the 29th at 12:00 PM. You will test in our classroom. Be sure that you are on time so that we can complete the examination in the required timeframe. Again, I will receive your scores from the State and input your scores once I receive them.

3B - AP English III
Students will test with me in our classroom on the 31st at 9:00 AM. Be on time. You will have identifications and two essays for this exam. Be sure that you have reviewed all of your notes and texts from the year so that you are prepared.

4B - AP English III
Students will test with me in our classroom on the 31st at 12:00 PM. Be on time. You will have identifications and two essays for this exam. Be sure that you have reviewed all of your notes and texts from the year so that you are prepared.

Exemptions for the AP English III students will be ready on Tuesday after I have graded your short story tests. It is your responsibility to check the class website or to see me for your exemption information. After I return on Tuesday from Boston I will begin to grade your examinations and have your scores finalized as soon as I can.

Homework for The End! - 22 May 2018

English IV

Today was Senior Day! Congratulations to our future graduates. I hope that you all enjoyed the day and the festivities that were planned for you. As a reminder - I will not be on campus Thursday, which is your actual last day of class. Many of you were not in class because of the Senior Day festivities. For this reason I will continue to accept any more novel projects - please be sure that it is turned in tomorrow at the latest.

Today was also a day to cash in rubles or Falcon Feathers for extra credit. Please see me tomorrow before or after-school to do this in order to improve your standing at the end of the year.

On Thursday you'll have a substitute teacher and a chance to earn more points on your Frankenstein essays. Attend class, enjoy Young Frankenstein and then write about it. Should be a great last day.

The B2 exam is scheduled for Tuesday the 29th in our classroom. We will begin after lunch. You will have A lunch.

AP English III

Today was a visit from Student Services to talk about planning for next year. Then we had a chance to also talk about what planning for next year is like. As you continue to make your decisions and start your planning, come and talk as you wish. We also cashed in rubles and Falcon Feathers - remember to see me tomorrow with any last cashing-in that you may need to do.

Tomorrow we have our AP Exam! Yay! It's time to cross this finish line! I'll be out there to see you all and give you some of my super early morning energy. Remember to get a good night's sleep and a solid breakfast in you to prepare. Look over your tasks, skills, strategies and notes. Chill out and be cool.

Thursday you'll have your short story exam. Be sure that you have clear understandings of all five of our short stories (Orwell is not on this exam). There will be multiple choice, matching, and a short answer question. In this test you will be challenged with some questions to find the BEST answer. After that we'll have course evaluation time.

Remember that exam exemptions will be finalized on Tuesday of next week after I grade your unit tests. Check in after your grades have been posted.

Homework for the Last Day of Class - 21 May 2018 - A Day

English IV

As the title of the post implies, today really was the last day to submit any assignments for scores. Since I will not see 2B tomorrow for class, those students should see me outside of class tomorrow to submit anything that is left for this Quarter. On Wednesday we will finish watching Young Frankenstein and complete a brief writing assignment for extra credit on your Frankenstein adaptation essays. This assignment on Wednesday will be only for extra credit added to your previous Frankenstein essays. No work will be collected on Wednesday for other scores.

Advanced Russian

For those of you who will be absent on Wednesday it is imperative that I collect your rubric, grammar goals, and written work to replace your grades for Wednesday's project work. Tonight, you should all be actively preparing for our speaking task on Wednesday. Finish writing your statements and questions, use your textbooks to check on your grammar skills, focus on vocabulary! You'll want a bit of a costume that goes with your character (nothing too elaborate) and a good tone of voice to be your person.

We'll spend some time warming up on Wednesday, run through our speaking assignment, and then spend time asking questions related to the final examination. I'll also tell you on Wednesday if you are exempt or not - be sure that you've checked in on your absences before this time!

Russian I

On Wednesday's class we'll be finishing Office Romance and completing the second viewing guide. Many of you did very well on the first one, just be sure that you are always answering all parts of the question being asked of you. We will also have the chance on Wednesday to do a bit of review - as I go through your Начало sheets tonight I'll make a list of topics and go over the more popular topics for you then.

I'll also go over exemptions on Wednesday for all of you. As I said above, be sure to check in on your absences if needed!

Homework for the Weekend - B Day Students

English IV

It is very important that everyone realize that today really was the last day of class because of the Senior Day next Tuesday. On Tuesday we will not really meet because of the Senior Brunch. If you need to finish your final novel project over the weekend, you can and should. Please submit your work to me on Monday or Tuesday outside of class so that I can finish your grades.

I would also suggest that any of you with rubles gather them together. Come and see me to cash-in for extra credit so that we can raise your Q4 score as high as possible. If you have any questions, see me ASAP!

AP English III

I hope that all of you had fun interacting and playing around a bit. I'm happy that I still remember how to tie a toga from a bedsheet. Anyway - the main thing that everyone should be preparing for is your AP Examination on Wednesday morning and your Short Story Unit Examination on Thursday. Tuesday's class will be spent with guidance counselors and finishing up the quarter in terms of ruble exchange and the like.

Remember to look for any books that you may have checked out through the year so that everything is returned and cleared up before the end.

Homework for the Weekend - 17 May 2018 - A Day

Russian I

Today in class we finished our first part of Office Romance and reviewed a bit around forming possession statements in Russian. Over the weekend I would suggest staying focused on your work to prepare for the final examination. I've given you all a set of exercises that review many of our main skills from this year in Russian I. These exercises are for extra credit and personal enrichment. Feel free to complete all or some, based on your needs. Points will be added to previous assignments.

On Monday we will begin watching Part Two of Office Romance since we finished with a bit of a cliffhanger. Then, we'll continue to review grammar and vocabulary points in preparation for our exam. We will also be cashing in our rubles on Monday.

Advanced Russian

Today we had our examination on Unit 7 or Unit 9 depending on your level. If you were absent, please see me ASAP to make up the examination. It should take you about an hour to complete.

Your main goal for this weekend is to complete a lot of your preparation for your final speaking assignment. On Monday we'll be participating in a workshop where we will review our work, go over some key elements of phonetics, and collaborate to prepare. We'll also watch a bit of a Russian talk show in order to understand how they operate a bit.

If you will not be in class on Wednesday due to the AP Examination, you are required to submit written work that aligns with your selected grammar points from the review sheet. This will be your grade for the project and it will be scored for grammar, vocabulary, and sentence complexity.

I'll announce exam exemptions for all Russian students on Wednesday. Please see the main office if you have documentation related to your absences as I will go off of the official absence count in PowerSchool for this class.

English IV

A few of you were able to submit your final projects today and many of you looked like with a bit more time at home or over the weekend that you would be able to finish your work with no issues. I'm really happy with how well you've been able to pull things together here at the end of the year. Here's a quick overview of the final project for those of you that need a reminder:

• Central Panel - White Paper - Write a theme for your book. Remember that themes are complete sentences that state a lesson about an idea. What is your book saying about love? Family? Loneliness? Change? Write it as a complete sentence that fills the panel.
• Inside Side Panels - Construction Paper  - What has been most important to develop the theme? Is it a character? A quotation? Put one significant element on each panel and then use bullet points to explain how this develops your theme.
• Outside Side Panels - Construction Paper - What is the title of your book? What cover art helps to show the main theme or message? On the other panel - Who is the author? When were they born and died? Where did they live? What are some important moments from their life that connect to the theme?

Remember that these should come to me on Monday finished. There will not really be any time to work on Monday since we will be: reviewing the practice NCFE and commonly missed questions, cashing in rubles for extra credit, doing our gallery walk of our books and participating in our seminar.

Homework for B-Day Students: 15 May 2018

Remember that since school is closed tomorrow the next day that I will see you will be on Friday.

AP English III

Today we had a very solid class working through Graham Greene's "The Destructors" and considering the way in which authors are able to fill their stories with important meaning through the inclusion of small details. This is a key thing for you to consider next week with your rhetorical analysis prompt. I will have your annotations graded later today.

Tonight you will need to complete your character review sheet for our party on Friday. If you need one, print and complete the questions based on your character. Remember that you can't answer all of the questions directly from the text, so use the text as inspiration. Your ticket to enter the party on Friday is the completed sheet. If you were not in class today, please see me to sign up for a character on Thursday.

Next week we have a very hectic week - there's guidance coming in to discuss senior year on Tuesday followed by ruble exchange and exemption announcements. On Wednesday we have our AP Examination - I'll be there in the morning to wish you all the best (my dog will be there too!). Then, on Thursday, you'll have your short story examination. Remember that you'll have ten questions on each of the five stories - O'Connor, Walker, Pushkin, O'Brien, Greene - and one overall short answer question. This is going to be your last grade of the year.

English IV

Many of you were able to get a lot of good work done for me today in order to get yourselves to a very good place. I'll have everything graded and returned for you next class. A lot of you were able to construct your theme books today and even get started on the content. Next class our goal will be to finish these pieces. You'll have access to the computers to print pictures as needed and to do your stencil for the theme statements. Hopefully everything will get finished on this on Friday and you'll be able to go into the last week of class with everything done!

Homework for 14 May - A Day

Remember that I will not see you on Wednesday due to DPS being closed for the demonstration in Raleigh. All of this work will be due on Thursday!

Russian I

Today we started working on our final assignment of the year - Office Romance / Служебный Роман - a film about romance and the workplace in the Soviet Union. Today you should have been able to answer questions 1, 3, 4, 5, and 6. Next class we should be able to finish Part One. After each part of the film we will spend time reviewing grammar and building sentences to discuss what has happened.

Be focused on making test corrections in order to prepare for your final exam. I'll remind you that you all also have your study guide for the final exam. Use this to prepare yourself now!

Advanced Russian

Today we began working on our end of the year speaking assignment and I have to say that I'm excited for what you all will do. If you are taking the AP English Language and Composition exam I will ask for a written version of what you would say related to your grammar topics in advance of the 23rd. This way I will be able to give you grades for some of the work and exempt you from the other pieces.

You also got your final study guide today - this includes your topics for your examination on Thursday, so it's a good thing to use in order to guide what you need to do. Remember that on Thursday you will have your Chapter Seven (Russian II) or Chapter Nine (Russian III) Examination. Be ready for this test!

English IV

I was very happy that so many of you were able to complete Project 3 today and get it submitted. Some of you were also able to make up for lost time and get some former missing work turned in. I will have your grades updated by the end of the afternoon. For tonight, continue reading and working through any missing work. If you still need to submit Project 3, you should aim to have that done at the beginning of class on Thursday so that you can move on to your theme project.

Remember that Thursday really is the last day of working on these projects. On Monday we'll review the NCFE Practice Test and then have novel presentations for anyone who is interested in earning extra credit.

Homework for the Weekend - 11 May 2018 - B Day

English IV

Over the weekend you should all stay focused on your novel projects as we will be submitting work at the end of class on Tuesday. I will be collecting your close reading passages as well as your style analysis paragraphs. Remember that for this work you are writing a paragraph which examines and explains how the author writes. Your close reading of your two passages will give you the details that you need in order to complete this work. Please use the style analysis outline sheet to complete your paragraph or to make sure that you have all of the required elements.

On Tuesday I'll go over the elements of the final project and then we will work to complete that next week. As a reminder, your final day of class for a grade will be on Tuesday the 22nd. On this day we will complete all of our novel work and present our final projects for extra credit.

AP English III

Many of you must have come down with something today since our class was a bit light in the attendance factor. Be aware that our story today will be part of the final unit test which will fall on the last day of class - 5/24. You're going to have about fifty multiple choice questions covering all of the stories in our unit, so be sure to get the notes from a classmate today if you missed class.

For next class we will have our final reading assignment of the year - it's Graham Greene's "The Destructors". This story can be found at this link. For this story, it'll be very productive to consider the reasons why these boys are acting the way that they are. You may want to go back and look at the photos of London after the Blitz in order to understand the environment in which these boys live. Consider the ideas we discussed today around change because of war, and consider the idea that you can be a victim, even if you're still alive.

On Friday of next week we'll have our end of the year party. Please start to consider whom you will be for this party (maybe your top three) so that we can determine our characters on Tuesday's class.

Homework for the Weekend - 10 May - A Day

English IV

As a reminder we will be done with the fourth quarter on 21 May which is in three classes. The 21st will be the day that you will have the option of presenting your final project for extra credit. The final project will count as a test grade. I'll have the details for you on Monday, but you already have a rough sketch of the project on your overall novel assignment sheet.

Over the weekend you should all focus on completing your close readings and your style analysis paragraphs. I saw that some of you had drafts of this work, and I was very glad to give you feedback on your work. Remember that you should complete the close readings first as that will lead you to the ideas for the writing assignment. Be sure that by the end of our workshop on Monday you have turned in your third vocabulary card, close readings and annotations, and style analysis paragraphs. Feel free to work on this over the weekend in order to get a jump on next week.

Russian II/III

Most of the Juniors in the room were out taking the AP Environmental Science examination so be sure to get the notes you missed. Thankfully, most of you have me tomorrow for English. Today we reviewed the concept of combining sentences using , что / , чтобы - as you can see these words are close, but have some clear differences. Here's some information about the concept and it's also in Chapter Nine. You might want to stay after class tomorrow or at lunch to review with me. For homework you have your translations at the end of the chapter. Complete half of them. As Kendall said today in class, focus on vocabulary. Без слов, грамматика - ничего!

Your unit examination will fall on the 17th of May. This is the last test grade before the end of the year. You will have your last project grade on the 23rd of May (LDOC) and that is our speaking assignment. Do some work this weekend to plan for your character - we'll make selections on Monday in class since we should all be together. If you need to rewatch any of Летят Журавли check it out on YouTube by searching for it with MosFilm (the production company).

Russian I

Today you had your Chapter Three examination. I'll have these graded and entered in PowerSchool as quickly as possible - likely by the end of the weekend. Make sure that if there were sections you felt unprepared for, that you immediately schedule and study for a resubmission. I will only be offering resubmissions in a small period of time. 

Over the weekend you should start to prepare yourself for your final examination. You have your study guide and your textbooks which are two of the most important things to start your journey. As I said to the II/III's - focus on vocabulary!

See you all on Monday! До понеделкика!

Homework for 9 May 2018 - Victory Day!

Yay for Victory Day! I haven't watched any of this year's parade through Moscow, but I'm definitely looking forward to it! Here are some things for you to do, maybe as you watch the parade too.

AP English III

I think that we had a really productive class today focused on Orwell and his interesting use of compare and contrast to build his arguments around shooting an elephant and imperialism. Remember that in today's class we kept going back to key examples and devices and how they worked in conjunction to build arguments and attitudes. This is key to your rhetorical analysis. Do more with less! Build connections and consider the prompt at all times!

Tonight, you should finish your reading of Tim O'Brien's "Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong". For this story, you will want to think about the idea of truth versus Truth. How can a story be True when it's not really true? Think about what a character like Mary Anne Bell symbolizes on many levels. What about her change through the course of the story? I'm excited to see what you all think of this one.

Don't forget too, 4B has no Get Out Of Jail Free cards remaining. The story is linked in the previous blog post. Read and annotate well!

English IV

I think that everyone has a pretty clear understanding of what needs to be done in order to accomplish project three with the use of the writing outlines. Remember that on Friday we'll have our sample NCFE for grades (effort and accuracy) and then get to the library for time on our novels. Friday should best be spent focused on close reading and writing. Some of you (hopefully many) will be able to submit your Close Reading/Style analysis and vocabulary by the end of class on Friday and just make edits next week.

Happy Victory Day! 8 May 2018

Happy Victory Day! May the freedom we have from fascism never fade! I'm very proud of the work that you all did today to celebrate our Russian holiday. Hopefully you enjoyed the пельмени and квас today in class. Here are your reminders about what you accomplish.

Russian I

Remember that next class you're going to have your Unit Three examination. You have a study guide for this exam. Remember that the main skills in Unit Three was creating and using adverbs as well as creating plurals in the nominative case. You will also see questions related to cases, verb conjugation, and some other fundamental skills.

Don't forget to study your culture notes related to the Former Soviet Republics. There will be several questions related to that on the exam too!

Advanced Russian

On Thursday we're going to start finishing the final elements of our grammar units before we start preparing for our final speaking activity. The final speaking activity will fall on Wednesday the 23rd which is our last A-Day of the year. Be sure that you've watched the film and that you've considered which of the characters you feel like being for the final speaking.

I would also spend some time reviewing your new grammar topics and vocabulary. Many of you did much better on your double negation work, but there is still some work to do related to the cases.

English IV

I'm very proud of the fact that almost all of you are ready to go with Week Two. Many people got everything checked off today. If you are still lingering with your novel project I would ask that you start to spend time at home to make up for lost time. Remember that for each week you only have to show me one reading log (except week three), one vocabulary card, and then the one required project.

Next class we will have time for our Practice NCFE. For this you'll get an accuracy score as well as an effort score. Be ready for this practice for our final examination. We will also spend time in the library to work on our novel projects and complete our close reading tasks.

Homework for Monday - B Day - 7 May 2018

With the conclusion of today's class you only have FIVE remaining classes with me. Just a reminder that every minute counts!

AP English III

Today's class focused on "The Shot" by Alexander Pushkin as a look at how war can change the way that people view themselves and others. It is clear that Silvio has a very different outlook on life in the end of his life versus the beginning. I would contend that his experiences in war and as a veteran contribute to this change. Tonight, we'll be looking at another person who undergoes a significant change due to his experience with "war".

For Wednesday, read and annotate "Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell. This text is located within 50 Essays or it is available at this link. As you read and annotate, consider the following ideas and questions:

1. What does the elephant symbolize? How is it both itself as well as something greater?
2. Who has the power in Orwell's life? Why is this important considering the larger point that he is making about power?
3. How does this text relate to our larger ideas around war and its effects on people?

For Friday we'll be looking at "Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong". It's a longer story, so I'm posting it here in case you want to get a head start on your assignment. 

English IV

Today we started to look at some choice literary devices which you may see on your NCFE before getting back to Young Frankenstein and our novel projects. During this week we should all be finishing the required task for Week Two and getting started on the close reading and author style analysis for Week Three. At the beginning of next week I'll be collecting your paragraphs on Author's Style as well as your annotated passages. Be sure that you are actively working on this!

On Friday we'll have our practice NCFE. Be sure that you are preparing by using your study guide and your review sheet. Hopefully after we take our practice test on Friday you will see how prepared you are!

Homework for the Weekend - 4 May 2018

English IV

Looks like a lot of you came down with something today. Something I think we call SeniorSkippitis in the teaching/medical field. Of course you all have the power to make your own decisions, but I would like to remind you all that missing a class means that you've missed a chance to work on your novel projects.

Today we focused on our literary terms review as well as the film Young Frankenstein before going to the library and working on our novel projects.

By the end of next week I'll be collecting your work on the two important passages. And we will then start the final project. Remember that everything will be collected and graded by the 21st as this will be the last day to submit work for Quarter 4.

Advanced Russian

We've got Victory Day celebrations coming next week! Make sure that if you need to go back and watch any of The Cranes Are Flying - do so before we see each other again on Tuesday. I would like to collect your viewing guides then. Also, if you didn't have exercises to show me today, I'll check those on Tuesday as well.

Don't forget that we'll be doing our final speaking assignment centered on this film. Think about who you'd like to be (top three) and start planning around that character.

Russian I

Next week we'll have our Unit Three examination. Be sure that you're using your study guide to prepare for what is coming. We also have Victory Day coming up on Tuesday. Over the weekend, spend time studying and reviewing for the exam! We won't be really reviewing on Tuesday because of our holiday celebrations, but I will have some time built in for questions.

Homework for B-Day Students: Weekend Edition - 3 May 2018

AP English III

Lots of big things going on in AP English Land my lovelies. Let's go over them one at a time.

1. You have been given your AP Practice exams as well as strategies and suggestions for each of the sections of the test. We are not going to talk about the AP Exam in class from this point forward.
2. Resources - As I said today in class there are several great online resources for you to use as you are preparing for the exam. First, there's appass.com - this gives you a score calculator as well as areas for studying. I would use the calculator to see where you stand right now and to see what you need to get the score you want. There is also this resource which goes over the fifty-five most common rhetorical devices on the AP Exam. You know most of these already!
3. Your test will be held on May 23rd in the morning session. This is a make-up day since school will be closed on May 16th.

If you have individual questions about your essays and your performance, I am more than happy to speak with you outside of class.

Now, on to the actual class information. We did not have a chance to take a look at our source pack today in class around war. If you haven't yet had the chance to look at that, please do so before the weekend. I also have reading for you this weekend - Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin's "The Shot". Read the story with the following questions in mind.

• What is the relationship between the various characters? How do these different characters react to war?
• How does the age of the character affect their psyche and attitude?
• What is interesting about the way in which the story is told, especially in terms of its organization.

English IV

At this point, most of you have worked through week two of our novel projects and you are going on to week three - focused on significant passages which really represent the book as a whole. Over the weekend you should continue reading your novels and decide on your two important passages. Remember that you want to use the resources I gave you today in class in order to determine the author's style and find significant literary devices or main ideas in the passages you have. This is a project focused on close reading - doing this well will make the final project very simple!

Homework for A Day Students - 2 May 2018

Russian I

Today we had some fun in class singing a great folk song to get into the spirit of the Spring Holiday in Russia! Hopefully the song got stuck in your head and you're singing it through the day. After that we spent our time reviewing our adjective and noun declensions to go into plurals from singulars.

For tonight, stay focused on the study guide as we are preparing for the unit examination on Thursday of next week. Make sure that you can do all of the tasks on the study guide, and make sure that you can do them well.

Furthermore, today if you saw missing work on your progress report make sure that this is done this week! You will not have a chance to make up assignments after the unit examination.

Russian II/III

We also spent time getting in the holiday spirit today! Good job my русский хор! Tonight, focus on finishing your exercises. We were able to work through a good review of prepositions as well as a good review of using genitive case in the singular versus in the plural.

For tonight make sure that you are ready for Friday! We will reassess on the double negative in Russian and we will be checking exercises. Be sure that this most recent set is complete before we take our reassessment on Friday!

English IV

Many of you are moving through week two and three now! Good! I think that everyone is really done with Week One. There are a few exceptions, however. Right now you should all be focused on reading your books in order to discover your important passages as well as information about the characters.

I gave you several great resources today to help you work through project three - the style guide as well as the literary devices list. Be sure that you are using this to review for the NCFE and prepare your project work.

Lastly, remember that we will take a practice NCFE next week on Thursday.

Homework for B Day Students - 1 May 2018

Happy Holiday Students! Today is the 1st of May - The Holiday of Spring and Labor in Russia. Make sure that you celebrate this holiday by spending some time outside. Tomorrow I'll be dressed as a Russian peasant to celebrate. Here are your notes and reminders for tonight.

English IV

Keep working on your novel projects kids! Remember that we're cutting project four so that we can focus on project three, which is the most important project to prepare for the final one. Check on PowerSchool for any missing scores or zeroes. I think that after today most everyone is good to go on Week One work, now be sure that we keep our focus on Weeks Two and Three. Keep reading. Keep thinking. Keep working!

AP English III

We've had two really great classes focused around stories that look at family in a very different way. I especially enjoyed the ideas that we saw today that looked at the connection between characters and tone. Remember that tone is a great device to focus on as we prepare for the AP Examination.

For tonight there's no reading for class discussion, but there is reading of documents to prepare for the next part of the unit. Consider this as both a chance to brush up on our synthesizing skills as well as our abilities to "read" various types of texts. Be sure that you watch the video as well which is given on your assignment sheet and at this link. Complete the questions on the cover sheet as sentences or as bullet points.

Also, be sure that you're finishing the AP Practice Exam. I want to have everything back to you on Thursday.

Homework for A-Day Students: 30 April 2018

English IV

Today was the beginning of our third week of our independent novel projects. Remember that since we are coming so close to the end of our year together, I have cut the fourth project from the list. For this reason, project three will count double.

Please check PowerSchool as it relates to any missing work. By this point you should have everything in for week one; most of you got started submitting work for week two today. By Friday, you should hopefully have most all of week two complete as well as some of week three.

For the week three project we are submitting a close reading of important passages from the book. Remember that you need to copy the passage (less than a page) and perform a close reading where you find: literary devices, main ideas/themes, information on characters, and vocabulary. Then, you'll write a summary of the passage as well as a description of the author's style based on the passages. All of this type of work and thinking will prepare you well for the NCFE since we have many questions related to author's style.

Continue reading and thinking! I'll see you all on Wednesday.

Advanced Russian

We are moving on to exercises as we begin to finish our last units of the year. Russian II - Focus on the exercises 7.8Б, 7.9, and 7.10. Your goal is to review the use of genitive case, the use of count versus non-count nouns, and new vocabulary that triggers the genitive case. This information will be on your reassessment on Friday - so practice and prepare. Russian III - Focus on the imperative mood in Russian through exercise 9.9. Remember the process that we worked through today as we formed imperatives.

Be sure as well that you spend time reviewing your quizzes and the notes that we took around double negation. This was a big weak point for many of you that I hope became clearer today. You'll reassess on this topic on Friday! Be ready!!!!

Russian I

Today I gave you all the study guide for your unit examination. Be prepared by studying and reviewing your work and your quizzes. Remember too that you can resubmit your quiz by Friday to earn back points on anything that you missed. For next class you should focus on completing your reading homework from last week as well as learning your irregular plurals. The information on plurals is key to the test next week! Review and be ready!!

Homework for B-Day Students: 27 April 2018

AP English III

I was really satisfied with the conversations that we had today around Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard to Find". I especially liked our discussions focused on the grotesque and O'Connor's larger points about the society in which she lives. Continue to show this same level of thoroughness as we continue to work through this unit.

For the weekend we will be reading and considering Alice Walker's "Everyday Use". In this story, pay close attention to the idea of family and relationships. You may also find it useful to look at the main symbol of the story. These first two stories are meant to focus on The South as an idea as well as Family as an idea. We'll spend some time at the end of class on Tuesday comparing and contrasting the two authors, so be sure that you are prepared for that.

English IV

Some of you were able to get a lot of things done today in class including revising your essays, author projects, and test corrections. Good work there! Some of you still have missing work that needs to be turned in. Please spend time this weekend to check in with PowerSchool - if you see that an assignment is marked with a zero or with no grade, it needs to be turned in ASAP. We are coming close to our final few classes and things need to be done quickly so that you can get your credit.

Homework for A-Day Students - Weekend Edition - 26 April 2018

Russian I

I hope that all of you felt prepared for your quiz. I'll be grading them over the weekend and getting them back to you next week. Now we have to move on to learning our irregular plurals before we end Unit Three.

For this weekend you're doing a bit of reading and vocabulary analysis in order to brush up on your skills. Read the car advertisements from Russia's CraigsList - motolok.ru and answer the questions at the top of the page in English. Use evidence from the advertisements. At the bottom of the page there are questions on vocabulary use in the advertisements. Answer these questions in English or in Russian based on what the question asks for.

Advanced Russian

Today we also had a quiz; some of you did not finish in the allotted time, so it is important that you return tomorrow to finish your quiz. For the weekend, I would like for you to spend time with the new grammar concepts that we have to finish our units.

Russian III is focused on imperative formation from verbs - to practice, use exercises 9.9 and 9.12 to review the concept. Russian II is looking at the use of adverbs of quantity and the genitive case - for practice you have exercises 7.8Б and 7.9.

I expect that on Monday I will be able to check and see that you've made an effort to complete half of the exercises. This will help us to review the new concepts.

English IV

We did not have class today because of the senior meeting. This means that when you come to class on Monday I will need to see work for Week Two of our Independent Novel Project. Be sure that you have a reading log from the weekend, a vocabulary card, and your character chart complete. We'll take some time on Monday to review the different literary devices at play too!

We are quickly approaching the end of the year! You will only have NINE classes left when we return next week! Make it count!

Homework for B-Day Students: 25 April 2018

English IV

Today there were many of you who were absent and missed a day to get some of your novel work done in class. As a reminder, our novel projects are the majority of what we have to do from here to the end of the year. It would be a bad decision to not get this work done and then leave yourself with the last few classes to get caught up.

Friday is a bit of a bonus day for us because of the senior meeting tomorrow. It is important that by Friday you have submitted all of your work for week one and moved through most if not all of the work for week two. Your week three and four projects are a bit more time consuming - and all of this leads to the final presentation.

Be sure that you are crossing the finish line with power and authority, not just hobbling over the line.

AP English III

Today we finished our practice exam. I will have all of the essays graded and returned to you next week. All of you know what I'll be doing this weekend! Be sure that you have read and annotated Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" in advance of our class on Friday. The .pdf file of the story is linked in the previous post. Annotate the story or take notes as you read. It is important that you consider the details around O'Connor's use of language (especially her word choice) as you read.

We'll be spending a lot of time with the story on Friday and we're going back to coin tosses! It's important that you are prepared for Friday's class!

Also, don't forget that Friday is the last day to submit any missing work for this most recent unit. You should also speak to me about making up time for your practice examination if you missed one of the days.

Homework for A-Day Students: 24 April 2018

Russian I

Today we also spent time learning about World War 2 - but we kept our focus strictly on St. Petersburg and the siege. Hopefully you were interested by some of the cultural information we learned today. Next class you will also have a quiz - to prepare, be sure that you can do the following:

• identify the part of speech of a word
• know the seven letter spelling rule
• identify if an ending is hard or soft
• change a word from singular to plural in the nominative case for all genders

Today's warm-up was a good idea of what you need to be able to do on the quiz on Thursday. Make sure that you also have your homework to be checked!

Advanced Russian 

Today we spent some more time in World War 2 along with Veronika before going to some culture related to the war. Next class, after our quiz, we'll have more time to speak about culture.

As a reminder, you will have a quiz and homework check on Thursday. For Thursday be sure that you can:

• identify the needed case for given situations
• identify the part of speech of a word
• activate case declensions for nouns, adjectives, and possessive pronouns in all cases
• know several common irregular genitive plurals
• navigate the idea of double negation in Russian

All of you will take the same quiz on Thursday. Make sure that you also have your homework to be checked! This will then move us on to our last final grammar topics of the year before we start our final review for the exam at the end of the year.

English IV

As I said today in class we will not really be meeting on Thursday due to a senior meeting. So, work for our projects will be collected next week. However, it would still be a good idea to have work ready for me on Thursday. If you are missing anything from week one, that work has now become a zero. You can remove the zero by turning in the assignment.

Be sure that you read and complete your vocabulary card before we start class on Thursday. Show it to me and get it cleared before we leave for the class meeting. You can also begin on your essay revisions or finish any test corrections you may still have. The last day to turn in anything related to the Frankenstein unit will be on May 2nd.

Absent from AP Practice Exam?

AP English III Students:

If you were absent today for the practice exam you will need to make up the time on your own. I will be doing multiple choice make-up administration on Tuesday - 4/24 - in the morning. I will be doing the synthesis essay on Wednesday afternoon. For the multiple choice you will need THIRTY minutes. For the synthesis you will need FIFTY-FIVE minutes.

Have everything completed by the weekend so that I can return your work on time.

Also, if you did not have annotations for me of the book today or your vocabulary cards these are due the next time that I see you. If you forgot it today, make sure that I have it on Wednesday for credit.

Homework for Monday - B Day - 23 April 2018

AP English III

Today you all received back a lot of graded work - basically everything in PowerSchool up to this point. If you were absent, then vocabulary cards and annotation checks of the whole book are due on your next day in class. If work is not received by the end of the week, it will be put in as zeroes.

Next class we will complete the Practice AP Examination by completing essays two and three - the rhetorical analysis and then the argumentative essay. I will have everything graded and back to you at the start of next week.

For Friday, make sure that you have read and annotated Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard to Find". As you are reading, pay particular attention to the way in which O'Connor uses imagery, diction, and irony. Also notice the way in which she works through the idea of family. There are a lot of interesting elements related to the setting too; though this may be considered under your analysis of imagery.

English IV

Many of you were able to get a lot of great work done today and I applaud you. If you did not become a "Pretty Princess" for the week, make sure that whatever is missing is turned in to me by next class. Please check PowerSchool for any missing grades or assignments.

Next class I'll be giving you all back your essays and building in some time in class for us to revise them toward a new grade. You'll also have time to spend more time with your books. We'll check in on the character project next class and make sure that you are moving toward completing that by the end of the week.

Homework for the Weekend - A Day - 20 April

English IV

Many of you were able to accomplish everything for week one of our independent novel projects - congratulations to you! If you did not complete something, please make sure that it is ready for me on Tuesday of next week. By that point I should have your essays graded and returned to you.

For the weekend, continue reading your books and working on your character charts. I hope that you are all getting to the point where your novels are engaging and keeping you interested. Maybe you've also started to pick up on the larger message the author is giving you. Don't forget to do a reading log for each time you read!

Russian Language - I hope that you all felt prepared with your field test today. I'll let you know your results once I receive them!

Advanced Russian

Next week on Thursday we will have a quiz on plural declensions in all cases. On Tuesday we will do a bit of review and watch some more of The Cranes are Flying. Please make sure that you have completed your review exercises on the more recent topics so that you are prepared! Remember that you should have completed exercises on translations and with new vocabulary in Chapter Seven and Chapter Nine.

Russian I

You will have a quiz next week as well on plurals, but your plurals are only in the nominative case. The other classes are doing their quiz on all cases. We've now reviewed many exercises related to forming plurals. Be sure that you have completed these and that you can show them to me on Thursday of next week - the day we'll have our quiz. On Tuesday we'll be doing a lot of review around plurals in all of the different parts of speech.

Homework for B-Day Students: 19 April 2018

I hope that you've all had a good week for me. Here are your reminders to take you on into the weekend!

English IV

I hope that you all enjoyed the session today with our college admissions counselor. Hopefully what he said gave you some ideas to consider for what your plans will look like next year as well as beyond that. From there, we spent time working with our novels more before ending the day. Make sure that by this point you have submitted your novel work for Week One. This includes a reading log, a vocabulary card, and your author project. If any of this work is missing, zeroes will be entered after the weekend.

I should also have your essay at this point. If you have not turned in an essay, you will be missing the chance to get feedback on the first attempt and you will only have the second attempt for your score.

All project and essay grades will be in by the end of the weekend. Please check PowerSchool on Sunday for updates.

AP English III

Today was a great opportunity for us to spend some time in small groups learning about our future authors in our unit and important information related to them and their writing which will be important for us in our unit. If you were not in class today, you should get the notes from a classmate or request the slides from me via email. You will be excused from today's in-class work and grading.

Next week we have our AP Practice Exam on Monday and Wednesday. As a reminder, you also will be turning in your copy of Invisible Man on Monday to be checked by me for a final annotation check. This is worth ninety points. You will also submit a final set of vocabulary cards on Chapters 20 through the Epilogue.

By Friday, you should read and annotate our first story of the unit, Flannery O'Connor's "A Good Man Is Hard To Find". As you read, you should annotate for a look at how she builds characters in the story. You may also want to consider family as a larger motif in the story as well as setting. There is a pdf of the story here which you can read and annotate.

Homework for A-Day Students: 18 April 2018

Russian Students

Next class we will meet in the library for our Russian language field test. The test will cover listening and reading skills. Remember that the test is not for a grade, it is merely a chance to see what your skills are like and what you can do with the language. I look forward to hearing your feedback on the test.

Russian I

For tonight and on to the weekend you should prepare for a quiz on forming plurals in the nominative case. We've gone through the regular system quite thoroughly by this point - I think that most of you have it down. Continue to focus on learning your vocabulary! This will really help when it comes to forming plurals as well.

Your quiz will fall on Tuesday next week. Remember that I'll also be checking for your homework on that day.

Russian II/III

You will also have a quiz on plurals next week, but it will cover plurals in all cases - including the genitive plural. After our days of review, I think that you all also have a good understanding of how to complete these declensions. For tonight, you should continue to focus on your exercises that I mentioned in the last post. We will have time to review these on Tuesday and keep learning about our new grammar. I'll spend more time with Russian III on Tuesday, so that we can start to get an idea of how to form imperatives a bit more clearly.

English IV

Today we had a visit from a college counselor to go over an option that some of you may not have considered before. I hope that it was helpful for you. Make sure that you have completed your first week worth of work for your novels. I should have an author project, vocabulary card, and reading log from you. These grades have been entered on PowerSchool if you have completed them. Once that is done, you can start working on your character chart, which I outlined today in class.

Homework for B-Day Students: 17 April 2018

English IV

Today in class we hopefully had time to complete and submit essays. If you did not print and submit an essay today, it would be important for you to turn in your printed essay and rubric to me next class. I'll be grading them this weekend and returning them to you so that you have the chance to resubmit your work! As I said today in class, don't stress making your essay perfect, it's really just a rough draft.

After that, you will want to be focused on your book projects. If you did not turn in your reading log, vocabulary card, and author project today, then make sure it is in to me next class.

AP English III

I hope that all of you enjoyed your mural projects today. I was happy to hear from you as you presented your work to your classmates. Make sure that you are using this time to go back to your book and check in on your annotations now that you know more as to what these motifs are doing in the text.

I will begin checking your blogs next class. Be sure that they are complete and shared to me via email.

On Monday, I'll be checking vocabulary cards and final annotations of Invisible Man. Be sure that you are ready for this date! Next class we'll be starting on our short story unit.

Homework for A-Day: 16 April 2018

English IV

Today in class we spent most of our time finishing our essay assignments and completing work for the first novel check-in. There were many of you who did not complete the novel work, so that should be your priority for tonight. Remember that you need to show me one vocabulary card for your reading this week, a reading log of your reading for the week, project one - which is really your choice. I suggest that you complete the author study to begin.

Secondly, if you did not turn in your essay today, make sure that it is complete and a hard copy handed in by next class. I will begin grading these soon with the goal of getting them back to you so that you can resubmit them to me. Don't miss this opportunity to work on building your grade.

Next class we will spend time with our novels and have a college counselor coming to visit with some options to consider for next year.

Advanced Russian

Presentations of your projects are happening next class. Be prepared. Remember that you have an option that you can submit your presentation via recording (just have your recording ready to be played for me) or you can do it live. No matter which you do, be sure that your project work is complete for this checkpoint.

Additionally, you have some exercises to take you through the new concepts we began to learn today. Russian II is focused on words related to quantities. Work through exercises 7.9 and 7.10 - remember the rule about using genitive plural versus genitive singular. Russian III is focused on commands/imperatives. Work through exercise 9.12 for time to review the process of forming commands. Be sure that you use your textbooks as you work for reference!

Russian I

Now that we've had the chance to review the regular plural system, the main thing left for us is to take a look at the irregulars. We'll get started on that next week. For tonight, I want you focused on finishing your learning of the regular plural system. So, complete exercises four, all the way through. In this you will want to check the gender, then make the change to plural.

We'll review this next class for completion and do more with our packets to review! If you are interested in making corrections to your quiz, those are due by Friday of this week.

Homework for the Weekend - 13 April 2018 - B Day

English IV

This weekend your assignment is much the same as your A day colleagues. Make sure that you are spending time this weekend reading your novels, adding to your reading logs, and working through one of your projects. As a reminder, the first project and work check-in will be due at the end of class on Tuesday.

Furthermore, you'll also have Tuesday to finish working on your essays. It would be important that you spend time this weekend using the rubric to make edits and to ensure that you are earning as many of the possible points in each section of the essay.

AP English III

We did it! We finished Invisible Man. Now it's time for us to move on to our assessment work. Here's an outline of what will be going on for the next few classes. On TUESDAY we will have our mural construction and presentation day. This will be the day that I check your blogs and take a look at the murals that you present to me and your classmates. You received the rubric today. Use this to guide your work. Also, RESEARCH PAPER RESUBMISSIONS will be collected on Tuesday. I will not accept these late. You must turn in your resubmission on time.

On THURSDAY we will begin our final unit of the year on short stories. We'll review the authors and the different stories that we will be studying in the unit. I think that this will be a fun way to end the year and to expose you all to some authors that we haven't had time to see yet this year.

MONDAY and WEDNESDAY of the following week (23rd and 25th of April) we will have our AP Practice Exam. I'll also collect final vocabulary cards and check annotations for Invisible Man. Make sure that you take this time to prepare for these final assessments.

Homework for the Weekend - A Day - 12 April 2018

English IV

Over the weekend it would be most important for you to focus on reading in your novels as well as work on your essays to complete them. Many of you were absent today from class due to a field trip; in this case you should spend time this weekend making up for time lost in class.

As a reminder at the end of class on Monday you will have due the following: your reading log for your book, one vocabulary card, your first project on your book, and your essay.

Make sure that you are working hard to complete everything in a timely fashion and so that everything is done well! If you need help, see me ASAP.

Advanced Russian

Today in class we dove into the use and formation of the genitive plural and spent time in the lab working on our projects. As a reminder, your projects are due on Wednesday. You can present live to me, or you can present a recording of your work if you would rather.

For tonight, in terms of practicing what we have been learning, you will need to complete exercise 7.1. Do it exactly as we did today in class - figure out the case that is needed, then put the word in the singular and plural version of that case. Make sure that you are using your resources (your textbook and notes) to work through your declensions.

Russian I

We took a quiz which will be graded and returned to you after the weekend. Make sure that if you did not feel confident and prepared on that quiz that you continue to study and review so that you can reassess. We then moved on to learning about the system of creating plurals using the regular system for nouns, adjectives, and possessive pronouns. With this information you should be able to complete Exercise 3.1. For this, take the word, identify if it is hard, soft, or an example of a spelling rule. Then, make the word plural.

Some of these words are irregular. As we review this exercise on Monday we will also review some of the irregular plurals and how they operate.

Homework for B-Day Students: 11 April 2018

AP English III

Today we had a really productive day working through some of the last chapters in Invisible Man and making some big understandings of how TIM is finally breaking through some of the cycles that have trapped him through his life. Good work on being engaged and thoughtful in the work that we were doing today in class. Tonight there are a few things that you can work on in preparation for Friday.

1. Continue to revise your essays. Final revisions MUST be submitted by Tuesday the 17th. If no paper is submitted, the grade will stand. I am available for conferencing before school and quickly after school for your essays.
2. Read and annotate the Epilogue. We'll read it aloud in class on Friday to finish our study of the novel, but reading it in advance will help you a lot on Friday.
3. Complete your last set of vocabulary cards (20-Epilogue) which will be collected on Thursday next week.
4. Finish annotating the book - Final annotations will be done on Thursday as well.
5. Plan for your mural and finish updating your blogs - Mural construction will occur on Tuesday. Be ready with any materials that you may need!

English IV

We also had a very good day today as we began our novel projects and continued drafting our essays. As a reminder, on Friday we will be finishing essays. You are expected to have a five paragraph essay which clearly states which way is the best way to show the particular character that you are studying. Make sure that you're clearly thinking about and discussing strong details to make your argument around showing either Victor or The Creature. Explain how ways that we have seen the character previously are either accurate or not. Keep your main idea at the heart of your essay.

Homework for A Day - 10 April 2018

English IV

I was happy that a lot of you got started in earnest on your novel projects today and then, when we were in the lab, you were staying focused on your writing and drafting. MANY of you were absent today. So many that I think that there was a field trip that I forgot about. Anyway, if you were absent you missed the beginning of our novel project as well as a good day for working on our essays. As a reminder, your essay on Frankenstein is due to me at the end of class on Thursday. Be ready for that! If you need to keep working tonight, do so!

Advanced Russian

Tonight you should focus yourselves on your projects, as well as your review of cases and plural declensions. For your projects, start putting together your writing. Next class we'll go to the lab for editing and to create visuals. For your grammar homework, I want you working on Exercise 1 in Chapter Seven. In this exercise determine WHICH case needs to be used. Then, use that case in both the singular AND the plural. If the case used is Genitive Plural, skip the plural formation. We'll focus on Genitive Plural in full next class.

Russian I

Next class we will have our quiz on forming and using adjectives in Russian. Use your dominoes as well as your notes sheets to prepare and practice your task. Additionally, we finished watching the first episode of our show today. Complete your paragraph tonight, or Thursday after your quiz, and get it in to me for your culture grade!

Back to It - 9 April - B Day

Welcome back everyone! We're pushing straight through the end of the year from here on out. Everything that we do is meant to prepare us for our final or AP examinations. Be sure that you are here to work hard and complete the year in style.

English IV

This week our goal is to finish our essays on Frankenstein and the depiction of either Victor or The Creature. I'll be going through your drafts today and giving feedback; then we'll be working on completing the full drafts for the rest of the week. This will be one of your last major grades for the year. Be sure that it shows the way in which you have grown this year as a writer.

AP English III

We didn't really have enough time to work through our chapter set today with the quiz, the returning of the research papers, and the discussion of the mural assignment. Be sure that you are ready to finish discussing this set on Wednesday. You should continue reading tonight and complete Chapter 25. We will read the Epilogue aloud in class on Friday, but you should read it on your own in advance.

For this evening the main priority is reading, annotating, and beginning on the resubmission of your research papers. For the most part they presented clear arguments, but in some cases I did not see enough explanation or organization of the paper to make it completely prove the case that you were trying to state.

Additionally, you should be completing your motif blogs. Your final "synthesis" post is sort of your thesis for your mural: What's Ellison's purpose behind this motif? What is its meaning? This is the central question that you will explain through your use of quotations and imagery. Remember that you'll only have 45 minutes to construct the mural and then about 3-4 to explain it to your classmates during our gallery walk.