November 15, 2019

SINCE I AM NOTICING THAT ONLY 1-2 ARE READING THIS BLOG, I AM TEMPORARILY SUSPENDING IT.  

ENG I
We finished Parts of Speech this week!  We will keep at this whole Grammar business throughout the year and trust me, if your son puts the time in, you will see improvements.  Next week, there will be a Short Story Unit test on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Please make sure your son organizes his notes and studies over the weekend.  How should he study?  Well, I am glad you asked.  He can go read over the "How to Study for the Short Story Unit Test" on PowerSchool Learning, and make some quizlets for literary terms and vocabulary words using Quizlet.com.  We will also use Monday's class to prepare for this test. I will be discussion various study strategies with them.

Next week, we will being Of Mice and Men, so please make sure your son has a copy of this by Thursday 11/21

                                                     

ENG II

We have been listening to Death of a Saleman all week.  There are so many great themes in this play, but it is sometimes a tough one to read because it is a bit dated in areas and also the main character, Willy Loman, has flashbacks and talks to himself often.  I am happy to report, though, that yours sons are all rising to this challenge and if you ask them about the play, I think they will have some interesting things to say about topics such as how parents can disappoint their children, how children can disappoint their parents, what it takes to be successful, etc.  I love how honest they all are when it comes to these types of topics!
                                                                                                    
                                                    

A NOTE TO ENG I and ENG II PARENTS ABOUT CONFERENCES 11/14

It was so nice to meet so many of you last night. I know most of you are concerned with how your son can do better in English so here is the list I gave you from Back to School Night:

• Read the texts we are reading and have conversations about them
• Make flashcards and quiz him on vocabulary words and grammar
• NHS tutoring after school on Tuesdays for extra help
• During Enrichment, he can go to The Writing Lab
• Encourage your son to see me during Homeroom or Enrichment-- I am in 302

And one more:  Encourage and remind your son to take better notes in class!  This is an area that many of them need to get better about.  

October 25, 2019

ENG I
This week we began some Grammar work beginning with Parts of Speech.  Remember Schoolhouse Rock?  Well, I told your sons that they should watch those on YouTube -- they helped us, right?  We covered nouns, pronouns, and adjectives this week.  In the past, we have noticed that sometimes students, especially Freshmen, do not think they need to study for Grammar quizzes and then they do not do well.  So, please encourage your son to study a little more for these quizzes.  Also, if he thinks I am moving too fast, please have him come see me in Homeroom 302 and I will slow it down!

Remember:  Test on Revolver Tuesday, October 29th!  

ENG II
We have been reading The Great Gatsby this week.  We will finish next week, take a test, and write essay on some of themes in the novel. Not much to report this week!  But be sure to ask your sons what they think of this novel.  I think they like it!
                   

October 18, 2019

ENG I
This week we began our 2nd writing assignment:  writing a thesis statement analyzing two points and two paragraphs developing those points with evidence and analysis.  Rough Drafts were due on Friday, and we spent time in class editing and revising. Final Drafts will be due Monday, October 21st.  You can help your son with proofreading.  Another strategy that works very well is to have your son read his paper out loud to you.  When students do this, they often catch sentences that do not make sense or that need to be worded better and maybe words that they are over-using.

                                  

ENG II
We have been reading The Great Gatsby this week through Chapter 4.  I am happy to report that I think more of them are actually reading.  There is a 2013 movie directed by Baz Luhrmann staring Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby and Tobey Maguire as Nick Carraway.  I will be showing them parts of this film periodically in class, but you might want to see if your son wants to watch it with you!  Make some popcorn and have a movie night!  Just be sure that your son is also reading the book because there are several differences between the book and the movie and some things are even left out.  And while this is actually an excellent book to movie adaptation, the book is ALWAYS better than the movie!                                                                          

October 10, 2019 -- YAY! It's A 4-Day Weekend!

ENG I
I hope everyone enjoys this upcoming 4-day weekend!  This is the perfect weekend to get the Outside Reading book, Revolver, read.  I spoke to your sons this week about taking brief notes after each chapter.

The Test for this will most likely be October 29th.  There is still plenty of time to read this book...just try to make sure that your son does not save it until the last minute.  The end of the marking period can sometimes be a bit hectic at CBA, so having Outside Reading finished or almost finished by then will be incredibly helpful.

I am very excited that I think we are finally going to have some Fall weather this week!


ENG II
We have started reading The Great Gatsby this week.  Well, half of them are reading.  I gave your sons a pop quiz on their reading of Chapter 2 on Thursday and more than half of them could not answer ANY of the questions.  I may have taught some of your sons a little lesson today.  They simply did not do their homework, and I am not interested in telling them about an amazing book that they are not willing to read.  The good news is, I think many of them got the message and I think they will be reading so they do not get a 0/15 on a future quiz.   

It's October! -- October 4, 2019

ENG I
Everyone worked really hard this week!  We completed our first writing assignment and I read some nicely organized paragraphs.  We are going to continue to strengthen those writing skills all year.  The goal is to become comfortable and confident writers, so that they approach writing without any stress or confusion.

We read "The Most Dangerous Game" this week.  It is a story that involves some themes of hunting, what it feel like to be the hunted, and surviving under incredible pressure.  You may want to ask your son about this story and maybe how he feels about hunting and testing medicines and products on animals after reading this story.  The story makes you consider what the animal being hunted feels like which might not be something they have ever thought about before.  Like all of the stories we have read so far, there is a surprise ending, so you can also ask your son about that, too! 

                                       

ENG II
We continued to work on Grammar this week:  Commas and Sentences (fragments, run-ons, and complete sentences).  We also worked on taking their interviews and turning the responses that they got into a 4 paragraph essay.  Essay are due Tuesday.  You may want to help you son this weekend with proofreading this essay.   Sometimes, it is difficult to find/catch mistakes in our own writing.  I am sure they will appreciate your help.  I also had them write a thank you card to the person that they interviewed.  They may need you help with an address and a stamp to get this to the intended person.  Thank you for your help and support with this assignment.  If you have any feedback regarding it, please send suggestions my way!

We will being reading The Great Gatsby next week.  This novel is a big hit with students and I am so excited to read it with your sons and to discuss the issues that arise in the story with them.  You will definitely want to ask your son periodically how he likes it.  Also, PLEASE make sure they have a copy by Tuesday!  You may have ordered it this summer with all the other books, but if you did not, please get it for your son ASAP.
                                                          

September 27, 2019

ENG I
During your son's time at CBA, he will be asked to read a few books independently.  We call this Outside Reading.  Your son's first Outside Reading book choice is Revolver by Marcus Segdwick.  My freshmen last year really enjoyed this book.  There is a link to the book on Powerschool Learning.  You can buy the book, get it from the library, or get an digital version.  They do not have to bring this book to class.  The test for this book choice will be at the end of October, so they have plenty of time to read it.  But, you might want to make sure they do not leave this until the last minute!

ENG II
We have been working on Grammar this week -- their favorite thing!  Ha ha.  But, they have been very good sports about it.  In fact, I told them that I lose sleep over the fact that I wish they would put in 10-15 more minutes to study grammar and I think they didn't want me to lose sleep, so they must have studied because their quiz grades were much better than I expected.

I was a little disappointed by how many of my Sophomores did not have Notecards today in class.  Please help your son get a pack of Notecards from the Dollar Store, AC Moore, Target, Rite Aid, etc.  It was listed under "Materials needed for class" and I showed you all what they look like at Back To School Night-- NOT index cards, but blank notecards with envelopes!  I really hate making things like this be about getting or losing points (it should not have to do with their grade at all), but I may have to resort to that in order to encourage them to be better prepared for class. 

Thank you to all of you that have helped your son find someone who immigrated to the U.S to interview for their first essay assignment.  They have to have 20 questions from the interview for class on Wednesday, October 2nd.  I am very excited to hear all the interesting things that they learn from the people that they interview.  I really do hope that this is a meaningful experience for them.

                                              

September 20, 2019

ENG I:
Great week reading short stories with your sons!

This week we read "The Lottery" and "The Necklace."  Both stories have surprise endings and I can tell you that none of your boys want to win the lottery that occurred in the story by Shirley Jackson.  Ask your sons why!  You can also ask them how they feel about appearances vs. reality and things that are real vs. things that are fake.  They will give you some good insight on these issues.

They need to bring their Note Cards on Monday so we can use a few minutes of class time to show some gratitude or participate in and execute a Random Act of Kindness (RAOK).  If you did not get a chance to get note cards, but have 1 lying around the house in your stationery drawer (doesn't everyone have one of those?), that is fine to send in! Also, it does not matter what is one them:  dogs, donuts, leaves, flags, thank you, hello, stripes, polka dots, etc.

Enjoy the weekend! 

ENG II:

This week we, I gave your sons the Interview of An Immigrant to the United States assignment.  So, they might need some help finding someone to interview.  It can be someone in your family, a family friend, a neighbor, someone you grew up with, went to school with, etc.  Please let me know is you do not know anyone who has immigrated to the United States.

The Assignment is on PowerSchool Learning!  Feel free to take a look at it to help your son.  They can conduct the interview in person, over the phone, on Skype, or by email.  It is our hope that this is a meaningful experience for your sons even if it takes a few of them out of their comfort zones.

                                                   

Sept 13, 2019-- First Full Week of School! And It's Friday the 13th!

ENG I:    Wow!  I am still completely in a such an energized mood after meeting you all Thursday night.  Thanks again for coming out in the rain.  I am looking forward to a productive year full of growing and learning.  Always remember, just like all of our kids walked and talked at different times, the adjustment to the expectations of Christian Brothers Academy will be different for everyone.  But I am here to help with the process!

Summer Reading Tests were taken on Friday.  So that is now behind us.  From past experience, I know that while most of the boys are reading, they might not be understanding or able to make meaning of what they read.  But again, that's what I am here for, and I promise you, there will be a significant difference in their approach to reading and writing by June!

It seems like they all enjoyed Freshman Day!

One thing I forgot to mention last night is that I grade using a points based system, so please NEVER look at percentages.  Your son did not get a 50%, he got a 5 out of 10.  There will be about 400-500 points each marking period, so the goal is to accumulate as many points as you can, and not lose that many along the way.


ENG II:  A big thanks to all of you who came to Back to School Night Thursday!  I am getting such a fabulous vibe from your sons and am so excited about teaching them this year.  Summer Reading Tests are now behind us!  YAY!  I am so glad your sons read Unbroken even though it was a challenging read for some of our guys because it was very long... I really want to tell you how proud I am of all of them for reading it.

I will review the Interview/Essay of an immigrant to this country next week with your sons!  They may need some help with contacting someone to interview, so I thank you in advance for your support with this assignment.


HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY THIS LOVELY WEEKEND!  The rain made for one dreary week.  But, let's remember that we need the rain for the flowers to grow.  Or the apples and the pumpkins!