Day 5
Friday, March 24, 2017
Before School 7:10 – 8:00
I print handouts and run a few copies. We are short a few teachers today (subs) so I make sure to check around the halls a little more and keep an eye on my areas.
First Period English 2 Inclusion 8:00 – 9:30
It’s a good morning. Kids are present and happy. One student even begins with, “I can tell this is going to be a good day!” Ok, then! We read SSR and kids are loving books. We talk a bit as we get ready for the main lesson and we come around in our conversation to a situation in one of our communities involving a death and a bunch of police cars. A few students share that they know what it was and who it was from Facebook. A kid from our school, it was his dad who was killed. No one really knows a lot. We talk about it all for a little while because it’s a big deal and this kid is one of the sweetest people in our building. It’s awful. Again, not a planned conversation but we cover some serious stuff and send out our thoughts to the student who is hurting right now.
We move on to our lesson and we are continuing where we left off yesterday with planning our essays. Yesterday the kids brainstormed one character and found quotes from the text to support their claims. Today, we set up another brainstorm chart in our notebooks and kids work alone or with a friend to gather more notes for the other character. We share and discuss. We don’t get to the next activity that I had planned because of our earlier conversation, but it’s ok. We’ll pick up here Monday. I encourage kids to read in their books. They draw on the smart board a little as we wait for the bell to ring.
Homeroom 9:40 – 10:00
I have Michael Franti playing and the kids like the music. I chat with a few of them and then pass out library fine reminders. We jam and chill.
2nd Period AP Literature 10:00 – 11:30
We finish reading Act 3!! It’s way fun. Kids volunteer for their roles and we set the stage in the classroom. We read aloud and clarify/discuss as we go. We add Polonius to our Hamlet Body Count list on the board. We are sad to see him go. We review at the end of Act 3 and then watch these scenes in the film versions. It’s horrifying. Murder. Hamlet screaming at his mom. They are horrified but really into the play. We are making good progress. We will finish next week!
3rd Period English 2 Inclusion 11:35 – 12:55
We read SSR. Kids are a little wild as they come in but reading SSR first usually settles them down. We complete the other brainstorm chart and since this group has been a little less focused. I give them an 18 minute timer on the board so they can keep track. I circulate and help. I remind them of their time often so they keep working. We discuss the brainstorm and share.
This class does move on to the next activity. We keep interactive notebooks, so we often use foldables, colors, etc. to make topics more hands-on. Students get six strips of color coded paper. They cut out all the little pieces while we listen to some happy Michael Franti. These pieces are the parts of their essay. We arrange the two sets of strips and glue them down to visually represent the two ways you can organize a compare/contrast essay. We discuss both structures and get them pasted into our notebooks. We will pick up here Monday and students will choose which organization they would like to use for their essays. We are about a day behind on all this, but it’s good. I think it’s important to take your time and work through things instead of just rushing around to cover/do stuff just because. It’s a good class and a positive ending to the week.
4th Period – Planning
Wil and I meet with our BHB students and go over notes we have for their first episode. They listen and we brainstorm ideas and tell them what to work on for about 30 minutes. They go on to the media center to get to work. I check in at the main office and say hello to the guidance counselors. I wish people a happy weekend. I see some yearbook kids in the hallway and ask them what they are doing. The yearbook is due Monday and they are working on teachers and favorite students page. I tell them I have planning, but that I would love to go find one of my favorite kids! We look up a student from my 3rd period and I grab her out of her 4th (it’s maybe 2:45…so I’m not busting in the middle of class) and ask to borrow my kid. I tell her she’s my favorite person today and she grins!! We take our picture and they ask her why she likes me. She says I am high energy! The yearbook girls go on their way and I stop in and chat with our brand new teacher. We talk about all sorts of things and then it’s 3:00 and my little comes in.
After School 3:00 – 5:00
My daughter and I continue our have a good weekend tour by heading all the way across school to talk to one of my friends in the CTE department. We chat about lots of things and she gives us ice cream! Finally back in my room, I start to clean up. Literally clean. Paper towels and Method multi-purpose spray that I keep hidden in the closet….it just smells so much better than the school grade stuff. My daughter colors on the smart board and I clean, pick up track, wipe desks and tables, and pack my things. I head out for tacos and leave my room pretty neat. I know this will make me happy when I walk in on Monday.
It's been a good week, after last week, with two nights of registration until 7 p.m., this week feels really awesome. I am happy about the progress my sophomores made with writing, and we are getting through Hamlet at a good speed. I have a backpack full of papers that need to be graded, so I hope to settle in at some point this weekend and get this done. I also need to work on my National Board renewal this weekend. I have planned a lot but need to start writing this weekend. If you read all these, thanks! I hope you enjoyed a week in my classroom.
No comments:
Post a Comment