2 April - Kicking Off A New Unit

English 11

Today was all about new beginnings as we kicked off both Quarter 4 and Unit 4 - Drama and Character. In this next unit we'll be studying dramas and a few short stories in order to investigate the ways in which authors create meaning through characters. We're going to see how characters are representative of ideas, so when characters are having discussion and conflict, it's more ideas that are having discussion and conflict. All of this will help us to further understand themes and messages and the ways in which they're created.

If you have any work to complete for Quarter 3, now is the time. Please see me by Friday Lion Time to avoid any last zeroes. Remember that in Quarter 4, your grade is the grade that's reported! Let's play hard here at the end to ensure we finish the year strongly. 

We've got two major assignments that we'll be working on throughout the month of April. Our Drama Project and our SOL Reading Review Bank. I think that the Reading Review Bank is one of the most important assignments you'll complete all year. As we read we'll be scrubbing to review literary devices because that's the bulk of your SOL Exam. Once this is complete, turn it in! Use it to prepare and study actively for our exam.

Outside of that, be reading your new plays! Study for your upcoming Vocabulary Examination. I'm excited for class on Friday! We'll be reading and getting into our characters in our dramas. I'm excited to see what we come up with!

14 February - Happy Valentine's Day!

English 11

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! It was a space full of love today as we did so much fantastic work. We had a bit of a split class with half focused on writing and half focused on reading. Here's our overview.

We started, as we often do, with some grammar. The grammar corrections were based off of some of the errors that I saw in your last letter practice. The major things are comma usage, capitalization, and run-on or fragment sentences. I hope that the feedback and practice was helpful for you. From there, we moved into developing our Game Plan for WorkKeys on Wednesday. Turn in your plan. Take a picture and upload that or show it to me when we're in class on Wednesday. I want you to each have a plan for the night before, your packing list, and what you'll do with your time when you write.

After our writing preparation, we moved into reading. We looked at two texts today - "New York Day Women" by Edwidge Danticat and "Anchorage" by Joy Harjo. I loved sharing a piece about my hometown in Alaska. The readings are posted as are the read-alouds. We didn't have as much time as I would have liked with the texts, but we did come to some good understandings.

If you were absent, be sure to review the post and the recording. I do want your Game Plan for Wednesday, even if you were absent today. Over the weekend, focus on preparing for your writing test. If you need more help, I'm here during Lion Time on Wednesday for it. Enjoy the long weekend!

17 January - End of the Week

English 11:

We had a really great day today in English 11 to finish out the week. It was a filled day where we worked on a few different skills. We also took some time for reading and group meetings. Some of you were absent today, and you were missed! Your groups will be waiting to submit the group contract until next class when you're with us.

We started the day with a bit of grammar and talked about combining sentences. We reviewed the ways in which we can combine sentences and the sticky bits about some pieces of punctuation and their usage: Remember that colons are only used when the second sentence directly adds on to the first. Try applying some of these strategies as you're writing. We'll keep working more on this soon. From there we did some review of narrative elements and then began to apply them to our books. These are the terms that you'll be asked about on your Virginia Reading SOL, so it's important that we learn them now!

I'm really enjoying watching you all collaborate and read in your groups. It warms my heart! Next class you'll have a quiz on your books, so the best thing to do is to read in order to prepare. Weekends, especially long ones like this, are great for us to read. At the very end of class, we finished our last five vocabulary words. We'll practice and review next class.

Remember that the end of the grading period is right around the corner. If you're missing your letter or reading test from Unit 2, please make a Lion Time pass to settle that up. You can submit your vocabulary project whenever you'd like. All grades will be finalized on January 29, so don't wait! 

12 March - Writing, Feedback, and Invisible Man

AP Language and Composition

Pretty simple and straightforward day today in AP Language with a day focused on our research and our writing. We started off class with some time to dig into sources and our research write-up document. This document is super important as you are farming your sources and constructing your final synthesis sourcepack to support your presentation. Remember that part of working with the sources is to write about them in order to determine their possible use in your work. If you think that you can use the source, then put it in your sourcepack. We'll be checking on reading skills soon, this Annotated Bibliography is designed to help you develop those skills.

We also spent time today discussing our writing skills. Some of us are showing some growth, others maybe are still hitting speedbumps. Let's make sure that we're focused on pushing forward and solving problems. Use your class time and Lion Time effectively. A writing conference is key! Let's set a goal and accomplish it together. Remember, we have just nine weeks until the AP Examination!

Don't forget your reading and discussion board posts for Invisible Man. Next class we're looking at Chapters 20-22. This is a really important section of the novel. Trigger Warning: There is police violence in this section. Read, annotate, and think. I'll look forward to seeing you on Thursday. 

8 March - Happy International Women's Day!

AP Language

Great day in AP Language today as we went into and out of Plato's cave in our study of "The Allegory of the Cave." After reading and studying this text, you're not going to see things the same way again. This text helps us to consider ideas like perception, reality, and if what we are seeing or perceiving is really real. I was glad to see the various connections that you all were able to make between this text and our novel, Invisible Man. These connections will be incredibly huge as we work through the final section of the novel and TIM's conclusion on his quest for truth.

Over the weekend, focus on reading and research. You should be working through Chapters 16-19. Don't forget your discussion board post. It's also important that you're taking time daily to review your research. Continue to use the Research Write-Up Document. Collect sources and process them through an Annotated Bibliography - if you can see use in a source, go ahead and write about it and put a key excerpt in your sourcepack. I'll look forward to seeing you on Tuesday for some feedback on our last essay and some more discussion around Invisible Man.

4 March - Timed Writing Day!

AP Language and Composition

What a Monday in AP Language land as we had a simulated examination task with another practice FRQ 1. Today we discussed the factors that should be considered when planning a monument. Esoteric, right? Sometimes these synthesis prompts are strange, they can seem hard to argue, but I think that we can all eventually find a way in to the conversation with the sources. I'm looking forward to seeing what you put up today - what you found in the mines.

This task is important because it helps us with our eventual task in this unit and in this class - the synthesis argument. How's your research coming? Have you finalized your research question? Begun to curate sources? Written an Annotated Bibliography entry or two? Keep in mind that these related tasks do help with the skill development to write a solid synthesis essay. Come in to Lion Time or visit after school in March for help with these essential tasks.

For Invisible Man, we're at a bit of a choose your own adventure spot. This section of the novel is pretty straightforward. TIM is in his Brotherhood section of the novel (Chapters 12 to 19). Consider the cycles that we're continuing to see as they assert themselves. I've posted a discussion board for your key takeaway from this chapter. Follow the instructions and complete the post as you read through this section. There will be another discussion board for the next section of chapters.

For tonight, we have a bit of a sidetrack with Greek philosophy and connections to Invisible Man and life in general. Enjoy Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" - the cartoon posted below may be helpful as you read on your own. We'll read it again in class together on Friday, so be ready and annotated!

27 February - Kicking off Research Projects

AP Language

Wonderful day today opening up our research work and topic development. Mrs. Friedman came down from the library to tell us about our database tools, key word searches, and Boolean terms. We got into coding language and defining ideas and remembering that research questions are usually always in flux. Use your research write-up document to start to collect and analyze your sources. Remember that as you find key sources, you should process them with an Annotated Bibliography entry. As you write these entries, you are displaying your reading comprehension, interpretation, and application. Remember this as you write.

Next class we'll be looking at Invisible Man - Chapters 11 and 12. This is a confusing section with the hospital, the machine, and the idea of a new identity for TIM. Consider how there are some key symbols and cycles at play in this moment. Use your motif tracker to help you understand. 

14 February - Happy Valentine's Day!

AP Language and Composition

Today we spent some time with Brent Staples and his article "Just Walk On By: Black Men and the Public Space". I appreciated the connections that you all were making between this text, Ellison, and all the way back to DuBois. I really like the way that Staples acknowledges alternative perspectives, confronts his audience, and crafts a message for them. Consider this as you write your own arguments.

From there, we looked at our Research Questions and refined them through the lens of the problem statement. Remember that you don't need to be looking at a "problem" per se - you could be looking at the problem of not knowing something and its effect on you or society. No matter what, be sure that you are focusing on being specific in your scope and focus. Use today's slides and assignment to refine and then post in the discussion board. Be sure to get and give feedback in the discussion board.

Next class we're headed back to New York and TIM's adventures. We've got more of the city in Chapter 8 and then a few key conversations in Chapter 9. Enjoy your reading! Try to make sense of what you can. Be sure to refer to your motif charts. See you Friday!

8 February - Writing Argument Day

AP Language and Composition

We did something brand new today! We did some team work writing to lean into our skill for the quarter, argumentative writing. In this quarter, you'll be presenting argument based research on America, and on the AP Exam, you'll complete two argumentative FRQs. As I love to say, it takes time and constant effort to develop these skills. So we need to start now and be intentional. I hope that you enjoyed the chance to work with new people today in the room. You'll see them again soon.

For next class - Monday - we have Chapters 5-7 of Invisible Man. In this section, TIM says goodbye to the South and heads to New York. As Ella would say, "Drop me off in Harlem." Watch his scene at the chapel in Chapter 5 and try to understand what you can about The Founder. It's important to note the impact the story has on TIM. In Chapter 6 he says goodbye to Dr. Bledsoe; it's an intense scene. In Chapter 7, we have the return of The Vet. Remember my video channel is available as a guide to help with processing chapters.

All the best for the weekend! Enjoy!

29 November - Ending Unit 3

AP Language

We crushed it today. My goodness. We had a fantastic seminar on Sullivan's "What Are Homosexuals For?" and considered key connections back to our larger unit on The Great Gatsby. I was glad to hear connections to the idea of fantasy versus reality, truth, identity, and the power of the past and society to dictate a person's actions. Sullivan's piece is one to keep hold of as we move on into our next novel unit. There will continue to be productive connections and conversations to be had.

We ended our day by looking at our last writing assignment and feedback. It is important that you dive in deeper to your analysis of language in your selected passages. Explain small details, show what they mean, and explicitly connect them to other pieces to show how everything builds on the argument. Revising your writing assignment from Chapter 8 is a great way to prepare for Friday's timed writing! Use the sentence frames provided in the slide deck for today's class.

For Friday, have your passage ready. You'll have to copy and paste the passage into your essay document on Schoology. You will have access to the passage as you write your essay. The passage can be one that we looked at before in class - this may be a great support for you! Consider the work we've done with our precis, formative writing assignment, and discussion board as support. Remember that your visual and artistic questions will be due next week on Tuesday.

27 October - Feminism and Weekend Time!

AP Language

What a great day to end the week in AP Language. We dug into Deborah Tannen and looked at the marking of women, the ideas of power, politics, and access, and of course feminism. This is another article that we're going to come back to a few times this year as we consider the roles of women in the texts that we read and the roles of women in our American society. We flexed our precis muscles at the end to get ready for our next round of FRQ 2 - Rhetorical Analysis. Remember how our work in class will always support the development of our skills.

Over the weekend, there are two chapters to read because they work together very well. Chapter 4 and Chapter 5 give us the opportunity to learn a LOT about Gatsby, Daisy, Nick, and the world of the 1920's. Pay attention to the idea of the past. We'll be building a timeline, so you may want to pay attention to what happens when in the lives of the characters.

Remember that revised projects are due by the 31st of October. I can give a bit of flex time if needed, but the majority should be submitted by then. Remember to focus on your audience, purpose, and message slides. Accomplish the goal of the rubric. Come to Lion Time or after school to conference. 

25 October

AP Language

Solid day today in AP Language as we had our first synthesis day. As we keep reading through The Great Gatsby we will gather our thoughts every three chapters. Today we discussed most of the major ideas in the book and the key arguments that Fitzgerald is presenting to us. Keep using our key passages, our annotations, and our conversations to track these major developments.

We also discussed our final project on The Great Gatsby and the tools you'll use to complete it. Track the motifs as you keep reading. Notice how the ideas build on each other in order to accomplish a full argument. Work with friends to track ideas - it makes life easier. At the end, we'll build a visual of the motif and write about a key passage in which the meaning is developed. 

For next class, read and annotate Deborah Tannen's article "There Is No Unmarked Woman". Think about the women we've met in The Great Gatsby. Consider their roles and the way in which they're marked. Don't forget that project revisions are due by 10/31. Remember to give me your rubric and resubmit the project on Schoology.

17 October - Away at a Conference

AP Language

Sorry to be "away" today, but learning calls! I'm spending the first part of the week at an Instructional Coaching conference. It's been a good opportunity to work really closely with Mrs. Hanson and to get more into the learning part of my new role in the school. I'm looking forward to seeing you all on Thursday in class and to see the fruits of your labors from today.

Today's class is focused on Chapter 1. You're working totally focused on Chapter 1 today in order to understand the structure of the chapter, the way in which tones fluctuate, and key elements of the narrative like conflicts, setting, and character. At the end of class, you're focused on analysis of a Chapter 1 Key Passage. As we go through this book, we'll be doing a lot of analysis of key passages. Focus on using the given sentence starters and the earlier conversations to put together a deep and focused analysis. Use the sentence starters I've given you! You're struggling with depth of commentary, and these will help get you there.

If you missed the timed writing, please schedule a make-up. I'll be hosting a session on Wednesday after school. As always, reach out with any questions or concerns. Enjoy Chapter 2 for Thursday's class!

4 October - Timed Writing on Deck!

AP Language

Today was a filled day in AP Language land as we wrapped up Unit 2 and prepared for Friday's timed writing. You'll be writing an FRQ 2 which requires you to read and then write an analysis of a text. How does the author convey their argument to an audience? The process we've worked through in class - from SPACECAT to PRECIS to ESSAY - is the one we'll employ on Friday.

Remember how you'll be scored and what the requirements are. I'm looking forward to seeing your first attempt at this type of essay. Review previous recordings and the resources we've reviewed. Prepare by doing and engage in meaningful review. Remember if you're missing anything from the unit, to complete it by the end of the weekend. I should have projects ready for you next week!

2 October - Happy Fall!

AP Language

Great work today in class everyone, we are engaging in some great skill building and review to prepare for our timed writing on Friday. Today's class looked at a few important concepts. First, we discussed grading on timed writings - we looked at the scoring guidelines, sample essays, and a prompt to understand not only the task but how we'll be assessed on it. After understanding the task and the requirements, we went back to the precis. The precis is the key to writing that introduction/thesis to FRQ 2 and starting off well. Keep practicing with the precis to prepare for Friday's timed writing. 

I would recommend that you continue to write precis and review our readings through this unit as a means to practice, study, and prepare for Friday. All of the readings are posted in Schoology as well as all of our slides. Don't forget the recordings too. Looking forward to Wednesday and the last class of Unit 2.

26 September - Substitute Day - Jury Duty

AP Language

Sorry to be away from all of you today serving my civic duty to serve on a jury. It's my first time, so we'll see how it goes. I had a heck of a time figuring out where to park and how to walk over here, but I made it to court. I hope that you all enjoyed the day with each other to collaborate and communicate. Apply feedback to your projects and make your finishing touches. Please submit your projects to Schoology so that I can review them and get you feedback. 

We'll be looking at our last reading of this unit next class; it's Mario Cuomo's 1984 Democratic Convention Speech. On Schoology there's a link to a recording of the speech and you should have a handout copy from the substitute. Read, annotate, apply a strategy, and consider connections between this text and the others we've studied so far.

Our next unit will be focused on The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I'll give you a school copy, but if you like to write in your books, you'll want to purchase your own. It's a great text. I'm excited to share it with you all.

See you next time, I hope!

19 September - James Baldwin's Letter

AP Language

Today was a great day in class because we spent time with James Baldwin, one of my favorite authors. Today in class we really focused on our Reading Interpretation skills as we discussed alternative perspectives, lines of reasoning, compare/contrast, and the creation of a message for a particular audience. I loved seeing the engagement in the text and with the ideas we discussed today in class. I hope that all of you are seeing the connection between the work that we're doing in class and your first project, What's the Situation, remember that we're asking you to determine and explain elements of PEWCAM. Follow the rubric as you create your slides and remember, audience drives purpose and message!

We'll have some more time on Thursday to continue working on projects. For tonight, read Gloria Anzaldua's "How to Tame a Wild Tongue" -- it's a complicated text, so try to derive what you can as you read. I would recommend reading and analyzing the sections. Try to determine a main idea or argument for each section and bring questions for our work on Thursday! The PDF is posted in Materials.

13 September - Wacky Wednesday!

AP Language

Today was one of our first days to do a few things - let's outline them here. First, we got into our new vocabulary books. We worked with List One and began to organize the words by their apparent tone. We discussed the fact that some words are ambiemotional (they can be positive or negative based on the context). From there, we did a quick practice with SPACE CAT and applied some of the structures that we have been learning and practicing with in the classroom.

We ended our day with a project workshop. Over the weekend and these evenings, you'll want to keep working on this project to keep meeting your goals. Remember that you'll want to start with audience(s) and let that drive the rest of the project. Collect information for citations and we'll take care of those next week. Next class will be feedback from the Benchmark Exam, the Reading Inventory, and Picture Day! Be ready for all of those things ahead of us!

18 April

English 10

I was very glad to be back with you all today. I'm still going through some challenges, but they're reaching some closure, and that helps with healing. Thank you for a really great class today. We began our reading of Persepolis by analyzing and reading Chapters One and Two. We'll study a few chapters every day of class. I was glad to see everyone reading and enjoying the story. The whole book is in two parts, but we're just reading Part One.

We focused today on characters and conflicts. We also dipped our toes into allusions since the book is filled with them - mostly history and culture from Iran. 

Be sure that you've completed the EdPuzzle on Iran. If you need a code, it's ficrova - I'll be checking EdPuzzle again and updating grades. Next week we'll have a grammar test, so be ready with some NoRedInk practice. See you Thursday for another round!

7 November

AP Language

Lovely day for feedback in AP Language today. We updated our score sheets, saw a bit of growth, and reviewed targeted feedback for our next writing assignments. Keep in mind that the feedback you get is derived right from the work you've done. Take a look at the rubric you received and the work you did. Do you see the feedback in your work? You may want to annotate your work in order to prepare for your next attempt. We'll be doing a timed write again soon to resubmit these writing skills.

Tonight your goal is to complete Chapter 6. Read and annotate for more information about Gatsby and his past. Your timeline will be a helpful tool here. Also, be sure that you complete your motif tracker as you are reading. Keeping up with this assignment bit by bit will really help you. Consider why Fitzgerald organized the appearances of the color in this way. How does it help him to make an argument about an idea?

AP Research

Today was our kickoff for Unit 3 - Method, Approach and the Design of Scholarly Inquiry. This unit is the make or break method because it's what distinguishes the pass from the fail. You have to have a means to answer your question and you have to be able to explain and justify each part of that plan. I think that a lot of you are now seeing a new way to use your existing work, be sure to keep paying it forward as we move forward. 

For tonight, you should complete your Expert Advisor Research - find one potential expert in your field. Research them. How may they be helpful for you? This is a great chance to try to reach out and get additional help - for some of you it may be a chance to get ready for your futures. We'll discuss these people next class as a means to discuss ethics and proper work in our field. Also, keep writing. Use the plan and sketch your outlines. Putting the content together helps!