Finals Week

This is a big week at OACP.  English finals for all stduetns are on Wednesday, December 21 during class time.  We are on a normal schedule all week.  Students in all grades had a review day last week.  They are allowed to use notebooks on the final, but will be expected to complete their final within the class time.  All students hav ea review document on their Google Classroom account to refer to if needed.

On Thursday, the 9th and 10th graders will walk to the Fallon Theater for a private showing of the new Star Wars movie.  Parents, please turn in your child's permission slip this week.  Also, we could use about 5 boxes of candycanes.  If you are able to send some in with your student, we would appreciate it!

Finals Prep

We are in the last two weeks of the quarter and the semester, a time when every grade counts.  If your student is missing any grades, please have him or her come talk to me.  It is not too late today to correct it, but it will become too late very shortly.  I want to see all students getting good grades, so don't let your student end the semester with missing work.

This week the ninth graders are presenting their plot diagram posters from their American Romantic short story.  We are learning a lot and the discussions about the interpretation of the literature have been very impressive.  Tenth graders are continuing reading A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.  We are doing all reading in class and will finish next week, just in time for our final.

The English final for all grades is on Wednesday, December 21.  This is a one day final that will be part multiple choice, including vocabulary and grammar, part reading comprehension, and part essay and written response.  I will go into more specifics with all students in class this week so they have time to prepare for next week.  To encourage thorough note-taking all year, students are allowed to use their notes on all tests and on the final.

For all students, there are still grades to be earned, like the book report on Wednesday, December 14.  Please encourage your student to work hard and finish strong.  Have a great week!

Reading Projects

Ninth graders are working on their American Romanticism Short Story Project.  All groups are reading their story in class, but students can do their vocabulary at home.  Students will have until the end of class Wednesday to complete their story.  They will complete vocab, a character map, and an attribute web independently, and a summary and a plot diagram storyboard as a group.

Tenth graders are starting to read the novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.  They have vocabulary words and should expect unannounced comprehension quizzes. Vocabulary quizzes will be announced.  No notes are allowed on quizzes, so being prepared is important.  Because we will finish this reading very close to our final, the content of this book will be covered on the final.  

All students have a book report on December 14 and should be completing books this week to be ready for that in-class assignment.  Have a great week!  

Challenging Reading

Welcome back!  Hopefully you all had a nice Thanksgiving break.  Students in all classes have an in -  class book report on Wednesday, December 14, so all students should have chosen their book and be working towards finishing it with their home reading.

Tenth grade students are wrapping up our Shakespeare study this week with a discussion of heroic actions in Hamlet and famous lines from Hamlet.  Students will also participate in a brief soliloquy project this week before moving on to our next book.

Ninth grade students finished reading Bartleby, the Scrivener by Herman Melville and identified the elements of the narrative arc or plot diagram.  They will get a new American Romantic story to read this week with a group and will identify the same elements before presenting to the class.

In both grade levels, students have been engaged in challenging reading.  This reading has offered rich discussions and exposes students to a different style of literature that will broaden their base as a reader.

Final Draft Writing

This is the start of a short week, but even so, all classes had final draft writing to turn in today.  We spent time in each class color-coding our writing according to elements in the rubric.  All students have worked on these for the past several weeks and this should be their best writing.  Students will get several grades from these final drafts, an MLA grade, a grade for the outline, organizer rough draft and peer review, and a final draft grade.  Grading these takes time, but hopefully grades will be entered in the next two weeks.

We have been reading American Romantic short stories in ninth grade and reading Hamlet in tenth grade.  Both texts have a more complex style, making them more challenging reading; however, students have been able to write, discuss, and even act out what they are reading and it has been valuable exposure for the students.

There will be no assigned homework over the break, but all students have a book report on Wed. Dec. 14, so books should be completed before then.  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
 

Rough Drafts

All students turned in a printed rough draft in class today.  Ninth graders are writing a research paper on a college of their choice, 4-5 pages, MLA format with citations.  Tenth graders are writing an argument paper, 3 pages, MLA format, minimum of two citations.  Argument papers should include a claim, reasons, evidence, counter claim and rebuttal.  All students who had their work ready completed a peer review in class. This peer review paper should also be handed in with the final draft next week. The peer review is helpful in the revision process.  We will not have any more time in class for these papers, so students should be working at home to get this completed.

In each class there were students who did not have this draft completed.  These students are responsible for completing the peer review on their own to turn in with the final draft, due Monday, 11/21.

This week in class, we will shift back to our reading for the rest of the week.  Ninth graders will read a short sotry from the american Romantic movement, identifying th eelements of plot.  Tenth graders will continue reading Hamlet, Act 3, scenes 2-4.  Should be a great week!

Reading

This week, ninth graders are working on a group project during class time, the American Romantic Author project.  Each group was assigned an author from this literary movement and each group member will research the answer to a question.  Groups will share their product and oral presentations with the class on Wednesday.

Wednesday is also the book reprot day for all grades. This will be a one question essay response on the book each student selected in early October.  This assignment will be completed in class, with students given 30 minuets to respond.

Tenth graders started reading Hamlet today in class.  We will focus on Act 3, so we got character information in class and read parts of Acts 1-2, learning the overview of the plot.  We will work on Hamlet until Thanksgiving break. All students will get a chance to "act" out this play (or read character lines in front of the class), an assignment some are looking forward to and some are dreading.

Conferences with ninth grade parents are ongoing this week.  Thansk you for signing up and sticking to the schedule. Have a great week!

Conferences

After five days of dressing up with Spirit Week last week and Halloween today, we are ready to get back to uniforms.  This week, all classes are preparing for major writing assignments.  Ninth graders have a college research paper due on Nov. 21, with deadlines along the way for their outline (Nov. 2)  and rough draft (Nov. 14).  We will spend some time each week writing this paper, but some will have to be done at home.  Tenth graders also have a paper assignment, an argument paper also due Nov. 21. They will also have a rough draft due Nov. 14 for in class peer review with time to make revisions.

For reading, ninth graders have learned about American Romantic authors and read one short story from this literary movement today.  They will have chances to read others and compare in the coming weeks.  Tenth graders have been reading Shakespeare, starting with sonnets.  They are analyzing the sonnets for both form and meter as well as meaning.

This week we start Parent Teacher Conferences.  I look forward to meeting with the ninth grade parents.  Tenth grade parents, please  email me if you have concerns.  I'll be happy to work with you.

Starting Second Quarter

Welcome back from Fall Break!  We are now one day into the second quarter.  All grades have an in class book report coming up on November 10.  All students should have declared their book and should be reading to be ready for this assignment.

Tenth graders are studying the writing of William Shakespeare, starting first with sonnets.  We will read several sonnets this week, looking at form and meter and analyzing the meaning of the poems.  All work on this will be done in class.  Ninth graders have some IXL work to start off the quarter.  They have three standards on comma rules to review and show mastery.  They will begin studying the American Romantic literary movement by reading short stories from this time and looking at the plot diagram as it applies to each story.  We will also learn about authors from this literary movement.

I look forward to meeting with ninth grade parents at Parent Teacher conferences next week.  Check your email for info on how to sign up.            

End of First Quarter

And just like that, the first quarter is coming to an end!  For students that means many assignments as we finish the quarter strong.  Tenth graders have three IXL standards due Tuesday by midnight.  They also have a restaurant review due in class Wednesday morning.  Students need a printed hard copy and their highlighters because they will go through their writing with the rubric to assess themselves before they turn their paper in.  Many students come to class without their work ready to go.  All classes have been warned, their work will be counted late if they are not prepared with their assignment printed when they walk into class.

Ninth graders are completing their Great Little Madison creative writing this week.  Their writing is due when they walk into class on Tuesday.  We will make a study guide for the test in class to prepare.  Ninth graders will take their test on this biography on Wednesday, using the notes they took as they read.  Thursday we will have a chance to share our writing with each other in class.  This will be a good chance for all students to get ideas from their classmates and to see ways they can improve and to celebrate the good things they are doing as writers.  Any ninth grader who wants to bring a snack for the class to enjoy as we share our writing may do so.  I'll provide plates and napkins.  

This week will be busy getting everything finished,  but after this week, students (and parents) can relax and enjoy their Fall Break!  Have a good week and encourage your student to finish the quarter strong!

Writing Assingments

This week we are writing to evaluate and judge in the tenth grade.  We are writing restaurant reviews, so if your tenth grader asks to go out to dinner and starts taking notes, that may be why!  We started today by reading and annotating restuarant reviews from newspapers.  We will chooese our local restaurant and consider many areas of focus.  Students will also practice their word choice and sentence flow with this assignment.  This will be due next week.  Also, thank you to the parents who came to see our Heroic Journey presentations.  I also appreciate your questions for the groups!  

In ninth grade, students are finishing the biography of James Madison and working on a creative writing task that goes along with the book.  The writing will be due next week and we will have some itme in class each day to work on it.  A hard copy of the writing is due at the start of class next Tuesday.  We will be marking the final draft before turning it in. We will also have a test on this book next week.

Have a great week!

Graded Assignments

This week we have several big graded assignments in all classes.  Tenth graders are presenting their Heroic Journey group projects to their peers for feedback on Tuesday and to a parent audience on Wednesday.  Parents, please come!  These will be held in the English classroom.  Your student will know their order in the line-up by Tuesday.  (10 White begins at 9:40, 10 Blue begins at 11:10, both for about an hour) After these presentations, we will have our first in class book report on Thursday.  These will always be the last Thursday in the month.  All students should have finished their books by Wednesday.  Many students finished earlier in the month and hopefully have started on their October book already!  The project and the book report are both test grades,

Ninth graders turned in their vocab study guides from last week and took a vocabulary quiz today.  They began reading chapter 7 today with a study guide to fill out as they read individually.  Ninth graders also have two IXL standards due on Tuesday of this week, J.1 and J.2 on sentence fragments and run-on sentences.  Ninth graders will also have an in class book report on Thursday.  The only preparation needed is to read the book.  Students may refer to their book if they have it in class, but it isn't necessary to have it to complete the book report.  This is a week with many  graded assignments in all classes.  This is a good time to bring grades up or maintain grades with quality work turned in on time!  Have a great week!

Reading, Reading, Reading

This week, all students are doing many reading related assignments inside and outside of class.  The tenth graders are finishing a book club book where they have identified the twelve stages of the heroic journey.  They will turn in notes in class tomorrow, then begin working on a presentation to show how this pattern is shown in the book they read.  They have been having discussions along the way and after the reading is done, they get to use their creativity and their knowledge to make a multimedia presentation.  Today we created our rubric, then groups will start working on their presentations.  We hope to have an audience full of parents for our presentations, which will be next week, on Wednesday or Thursday.  Watch your email for information on this event!

In ninth grade students are reading a biography of James Madison and summarizing chapters as they read. We are currently reading about the writing of the Constitution and the many difficult decisions that were considered in that process.  Students took their first vocabulary quiz today and made an organizer for next week's quiz.

Students in all grades will also have their September book report on Thursday, September 29.  This is their self-selected book from their reading log. This book report will be a one-questions essay done completely in class.  Check in with your student to make sure his or her book is completed before this date.  Once the book is done, students should choose their October book and get reading on that one! Have a great week!   Keep reading!

Book Clubs

In English class, we have shifted from writing to reading in all classes.  In tenth grade, we have learned about the Hero's Journey pattern in literature.  After learning the 12 stages, the students were put in book club groups to read a book that follows this pattern.  Students are identifying the steps in this journey as they read.  They will complete their books next Tuesday, 9/20 and begin creating a presentation to share with the class and parents.  Date and time to follow.

In ninth grade, we finished the Introduce Yourself narrative projects and we are starting to read The Great Little Madison, a biography of James Madison.  We made vocabulary study guides for a quiz next week.  We will begin with chapter one on Tuesday.  We will read a chapter each day, then summarize and discuss.  We will have a writing task, a test, and several quizzes as we go through this book.

Even with the increased reading in the classroom, home reading is still required.  All students have an in class book report on Thursday, September 29.  The only preparation needed is to read the book and students may use the book when they answer the question on that date.  Have a great week!

Project Presentations

Thank you to the tenth grade parents who came to the "I Remember" poetry sharing!  The students were thrilled to have so many parents and younger students to come listen to them.  Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to come listen to what the students wrote.  This week, tenth graders are working on forms of writing and we will begin learning about the Heroic Journey as it appears in literature.   This is the start of a new project, so in a few weeks, we will invite you again to come listen to what we've learned about this pattern.

We look forward to having the ninth grade parents come Wednesday and Thursday to listen to the students present their Introduce Yourself narrative speech.  These are short speeches, from one to five minutes, but they will go end to end.  Ninth graders turned in their projects today.  The covers look fabulous!  They are also getting a grade on their organizers and a grade for their MLA basic formatting.  Thank you for helping get their biographies done.  I look forward to listening to these speeches!

Check out the homework tab above for this week's homework.  Keep reading and have a great week!

Narrative Projects

In English class, all classes have been working on narrative writing.  They have also learned the basics of MLA format, which is the standard format for English and literature classes.  The tenth graders are presenting their "I Remember" poems this week.  Parents, you should have received and email with times for each class.  Feel free to bring grandparents or other family members who are available at that time. Please come and listen to these wonderful narrative poems.  The tenth graders had a review on sentence fragments and run on sentences have some IXL work to do this week.  After presentations, the tenth graders will begin learning about the Heroic Journey and how it is expressed in literature, both ancient and modern.

The ninth graders are finishing their Introduce Yourself narrative project.  They have worked hard to write five essays about themselves, some on assigned topics and some self-selected topics.  They will make a cover in class on Thursday.  They may want to bring in a pciture of something from home for this task.  They will have an oral presentation to deliver to their classmates that they will prepare after Labor Day.  Soon we will start reading a biography of a founding father.

We are accomplishing many goals in all classes.  I appreciate the students' hard work and cooperation in class each day!  Have a great week!

Foundational Writing Skills

The second week of school is off to a busy start.  The signed syllabus slips were due today for all students.  If your student forgot, they have one more day to get it in, for a 25% reduction in their grade.  Also, parents, thank you for those who signed the reading logs.  Those should be signed each weekend.

This week we are focusing on foundational skills in both grade levels.  In ninth grade, we learned the basics of MLA format.  This is the format they will use for all their English writing, so it's good to learn it early on.  We are applying this with our Introduce Yourself Narrative essays.  Students should have their first three reflective essays done by the end of this week.  We are spending time in class working on these essays, but many students will want to perfect their essays, which will require more time outside the classroom.  This project is due Tuesday, September 6, including the biography which is about your student, written by someone else.

Tenth graders are writing poetry, which is challening them to use precise word choice.  They are focuing on the small moment and choosing words to accurately descirbe their memory.  This week, tenth graders will apply the skill of selecting strong verbs in their writing.  They will also review MLA formatting basics.  Their "I Remember" poem is due this week, Thursday, August 25.  They have class time Monday and Tuesday, after that, they are on their own to complete their poem.  They have a rubric to guide them as they write revise.

It was a pleasure to meet so many parents at Back to School Night last week.  Thank you for attending and for supporting your student's education!

First Day of School

We survived the first day of school!  Actually, it was a great day in the English classroom.  All students read their course syllabus and have the assignment to explain it to their parents and get it signed.  This will be their first quiz grade, due back next Monday.  All students need to have their 100 page spiral notebook in class on Wednesday.  We will start putting tabs on them to make our resource journals. All students should start their home reading logs tonight.  This assignment is to read a minimum of 20 minutes (distraction-free!) each school night.  The first book report is September 29, so they should choose a book and get it read before that date.  Even when they finish their book, they still have the assignment to read each night.  This is a proven correlating factor in students who perform well on college entrance exams, so it is worth the effort.  

This week we will begin narrative writing in both ninth and tenth grades.  We will also try to get everyone matched up with a book they enjoy and get the resource notebooks made.  We are really getting the school and class procedures down this week and hope to be in full swing very shortly.  I enjoyed every class today!  It was good to see the familiar faces of the returning students and we have some delightful new students as well.  I even have some former fifth grade students, something I love!  If you have any questions, please email me.  Have those students get some rest, if they are anything like me, they will be tired tonight!

OACP Supply List, 2016-2017

Oasis Academy College Prep

Student Supply List, 9th - 10th Grades

2016-2017

1 Binder with student information provided by Oasis

Individual Supplies:  These will be used by you, so choose what you like to work with.

• 2 additional 3-ring binders with divider tabs, used only for math and science
• Loose leaf college-rule paper for all binders
• Graph paper for math binder
• 1  spiral-bound college-rule notebook (not a composition book), with at least 100 pages and a pocket folder.  Can be one or three subject, used only for English
• 1 Composition book, used only for Science
• Pencils, standard or mechanical with extra lead and erasers
• 4-6 Pens, blue or black ink

• 1 set 8-12 colored pencils
• 1 set of 4 multi-colored highlighters

• Metric ruler, scissors, compass, and protractor
• 1 scientific calculator (examples are TI 30 or Casio fx-260, must have trig functions, logs, and fractions)
• Apron or lab jacket (recommended for Science)

Shared Supplies:  These items will be turned in on the first day of school and stored at school for use throughout the year.

• Standard pencils - 1 package of 20-24
• Glue sticks - one package of 3 large
• Kleenex - 3 boxes
• Toilet paper - 1 package
• Cleaning wipes - 1 package
• Paper towels - 1 package
• Disposable surgical gloves - 1 box
• Last name A - M:   1 container of Hand sanitizer.
• Last Name N - Z:  1 box of zip top bags, any size.

Feel free to email if you have questions.  jstockard@oasisacademyfallon.us

End of the Year Projects

Now that testing is over with and class finals are complete, we can start some really fun, intense learning with our grade level cross-curricular projects. Each grade has a task and a group.  Each grade level will present their findings and we'd love to have parents attend!  Ninth grade will be Monday, May 16 from 9:30 - 11:00 in the Hangout room.  Tenth grade will be Tuesday, May 17, from 9:30 - 11:00 in the Hangout room.  The ninth graders are doing a presidential project, evaluating modern presidents and looking at different policy decisions and how that impacted our country.  Tenth graders are using their reasoning skills, historical research, and forensic knowledge to evaluate a cold case, looking for leads as to where solving the case went wrong.  These projects are allowing our students to build on concepts they have learned this year and to collaborate with different students.  They have a tight timeline to complete the task, but this is all they are doing in their core classes each day, and they have a team working together.  They will need to stay on task, and ninth graders need some supplies like glue sticks, sharpie markers, and colored pencils to make their display board look really good.  Thank you for your support, we hope to see you at our presentations next week!  

End of Course Exams

It's the first week of May, which brings another round of testing.  This week the 9th and 10th graders have the End of Course Exams in English Language Arts and Math.  They have two sessions of each subject, taken over the course of three days this week.  These tests start at 8:00 am each day, so please be prompt to school this week.  The End of Course exams are given by the State of Nevada and replace the HSPE tests of a few years ago.  They need to be passed during each student's high school years.  This is the first year they are using the full test with the current scoring.  They were given last year, but the scoring was different than it is this year.  I am not sure when the results will be available from the state, but if for some reason your student doesn't pass one o these exams, they will have a chance to take it again next year.

Because of the testing, I will not meet with some students much this week.  All classes will have their April/May book report in class on Thursday, so be prepared for that by completing your book.  The fourth block is working on their biographical narrative about their most important relationship, which is due Wednesday night submitted on Google Classroom.  

A lot of the students are dragging.  Try to get enough sleep and healthy food, especially on testing days.  Keep working hard, students! There aren't many days to go, but each one is important!  Let's make it a great week!

Class Finals

Now that our ACT Aspire testing is done, we have class finals to look forward to this week.  Tuesday is the English final for all classes.  This is an in class final, lasting one class period.  Students are encouraged to use their resource journals and have known this all semester as we take notes.  They have been creating their own resource.  Students also made a review Jeopardy game last week which we played in class today.  The final will cover the books we've read this semester, plus vocabulary, language use skills, and figurative language interpretation.  Students will do well to be very familiar with their journals because time will be the limiting factor on this final.  There is one class period to complete this.

Take time to study and prepare.  Get some rest and be ready to do well on this final this week.  We will continue to learn and work after the final in a cross-curricular project, which will be assessed separately.  Good luck as you prepare this week!

Testing

This week we are taking the ACT Aspire test.  This is a new test fo rour school, taken in grades 3-10.  It will give good data about individual student progress as well as data for our school as it relates to other schools in our state.  This test is taken on the computer, so no bubbles to fill in with number 2 pencils, which is nice.  After a few hangups with the secure login, everyone was able to get on and take the test.  It is timed, which is different than CRT testing, and most students were able to finish without the panic last-minute issues.  Hopefully with it being computer based, the feedback and scores will be back quickly.  Ninth grades will take English Language Arts and Math this week, on Monday and Tuesday, while Tenth graders will also have a paper/pencil Science test, extending their testing week until Wednesday.  Thursday will be make-up testing.

In ninth grade, we are working on essays related to our books this week.  First block is writing what we affectionately call the Happiness Essay, determining factors required to be happy and deciding if their chosen book character achieved happiness in The Great Gatsby.  In fourth block, we are finishing Of Mice and Men and writing a biographical narrative about an important relationship.  We have focused on writing strong theses and I have met with each student about their thesis statement.  So now we are down to the fun part - the writing and revising.  With our reduced class time for testing, some of this work will need to be done at home to meet the deadlines.  Because of their additional testing, tenth graders have reduced class time this week.  We will be discussing The Metamorphosis that we just finished and we have one poem to analyze if we get time.  We will also be reviewing for our final at the end of this week.  

Reading Progress

Today we jumped right into class with reading our books.  Each class is making progress with the reading.  In all classes we have been keeping notes about what happens in the book, but also looking deeper at what inferences can we make about what is happening and how that might help us understand what comes later in the reading.  We are analyzing characters and making predictions based on what we read. a key skill in literary analysis.  In each class we are writing every day, making connections to what we read and making the text come to life for us as readers.  We have had great discussions in each class.
In first block, as we reviewed chapter 7 of The Great Gatsby, we discussed and wrote about what forces were accelerating a specific character and what forces were decelerating the character.  We talked about forces like fear, jealousy, money, greed, love, and power.
In second block, with The Metamorphosis, we learned a real life fact about the author Franz Kafka, that as he knew he was dying, he asked a friend to destroy his writing after his death.  The friend decided not to honor Kafka's wish and had the work published, several novels and other publications.  We talked and wrote about if this was an honorable decision or not and gave our reasons.  There is a lot that we don't know about that situation, but we had a lively discussion today.  Second block also took a vocabulary quiz today and has another coming up on Thursday.  The tenth graders have one IXL standard due today as well, G.1, on capitalization.
In fourth block, we talked about a time when someone convinced us to do something and a time we convinced someone else to do something.  We tried to decide if the other person changed our mind or if we just gave in.  Then we read Chapter 3 in Of Mice and Men, where there is some convincing going on.  It gave us a nice connection when we read about Carlson trying to convince Candy to shoot his dog because it is old and smells bad.  Also, a lively, interesting discussion that I wish we'd had more time to pursue!
We have testing coming up next week, so our schedule will vary to accommodate our test taking week. Have a great week!

Reading, Reading, Reading

This week, we are doing some serious reading in all classes.  First block is reading The Great Gatsby.  We are half way though the book and we are finding some serious symbolism and enjoying making the connections to our day.  The class time is too short, if only we had more time to read and discuss together!  We will start a writing task in conjunction with this novel this week.

In second block, the tenth graders are starting The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka this week.  We learned about the author and some good background information today, plus made a study guide with vocabulary words for an upcoming quiz next Monday.  We will learn about existentialism and surrealism in literature (and art) as well.  This novella is an interesting read with many applications to life today.  Hopefully the students will see a new way of looking at life and people through reading this book.

In fourth block we started reading Of Mice and Men today.  We started with the audio version and will move into small group and individual reading later on.  We focused on the characters and setting of the opening scenes of the book.  We are analyzing the character's early actions to see if pattern develop as the book continues.  Fourth Block also has 2 IXL standards due on Tuesday, K.1 and K.2.

In all classes, students will need to be prepared for the April book report at the end of this month.  The books we are reading now will be on the end of the year finals students will take, which seems like a ways off, but it comes up quickly.  Have a great week and make time to read!

Shakespeare, Gatsby, and Background Knowledge

This week in English is the last week before spring Break.  We are completing all kinds of exciting tasks in each class.  The 10th graders and working on a Shakespeare soliloquy project.  They will present a soliloquy of their choice to the class, with the context of the play it comes from.  Students will read the soliloquy and are also finding a video clip of it as performed on stage.  We will enjoy learning more about these famous passages and watching these on Thursday in class.

The first block of 9th graders are reading The Great Gatsby.  We will read through chapter 4 this week and finish when we return from Spring Break.  We are enjoying the story and watching how the characters interact.  It is interesting to watch their actions and their intentions.  The fourth block of 9th graders presented their background information in preparation to read Of Mice and Men.  We will have a writing task this week and start reading the day we return from Spring Break.

On another note, I have several parent teacher conferences scheduled this week and I look forward to meeting with you.  Have a great week!

Book Reports, IXL, and Parent Teacher Conferences

We felt the effects of the Spring Forward time change today!  It's rough to lose an hour, for teenagers especially!  However, we worked through it.  In first block, we are creating group presentations about one aspect of the 1920s to share with the class before starting The Great Gatsby.  We selected topics last week, created our rubric today, and organized our research.  We will present on Wednesday, so this is a real quick project.  In 10th grade we are working on writing a clear, debatable, and narrow thesis as a claim in argumentative writing.  We are arguing the merits of reading Shakespeare in high school.  Believe it or not, the English teaching community is divided on this one, so we are all taking a stand on our position and backing it up with evidence.  This paper will be due next Monday, with a peer review in class on Wednesday.  In 4th block we are working on critical thinking skills as we read and going back to the text to find support.  We have read some interesting passages and are looking analytically at how to interpret the text as we read.  We will start this week to build background knowledge on Of Mice and Men, which will be our next novel.  

All classes will have the March book report on Wednesday, March 23.  Some of the students are not even half way through their books, so there should be some serious reading going on.

All classes also have IXL standards due on Wednesday, March 16. There will be no more class time given to complete these, so make sure your student completest them at home.  No late work will be accepted, even with an absence because of the length of time given to complete this work.

Lastly, this week is parent teacher conferences and I met with several lovely parents today.  I love sharing progress at this time of year because so many students have grown by leaps and bounds.  It is exciting to see the growth in the abilities and their readiness for the next year.  I look forward to meeting with the rest of you this week and into next week as well.  Have a great week.

Shakespeare and Reading Comprehension

This week in tenth grade English we are continuing with our interpretation of Shakespearean sonnets. As a class we have learned about the format of different types of sonnets and how to analyze them for figurative language and meaning.  Students have worked as a class, in large groups and in small groups to read, interpret, and analyze various sonnets, so they are ready for a quiz, coming this week.  We will also prepare for an argument writing assignment on the merits of studying
Shakespeare in high school, also coming later this week.

In ninth grade we turned in playlists and book cover art, sharing them with a Gallery Walk.  This week we are focusing on some solid reading comprehension testing strategies and written response question strategies for the testing we will have in a few weeks.  We are also preparing for a suffix quiz, coming up next week.  All students should complete their study guides to be ready for the quiz.  Those vocab quizzes should be a slam dunk, no surprises as to what is on them, but students often are unprepared, which results in far lower grades than they should have.  Please encourage students to prepare.  It often takes many nights of study to really learn the word parts.

Take time to read and write every day!  Have a great week!

Leap Day, Essays, and Playlists

We started this week in English class, with Leap Day.  To commemorate this day, we started by looking back at where we were four years ago and how far each student has come since the 5th or 6th grade.  Then we looked ahead to the next four years to make predictions of where we might be.  After that, we were ready to write to inquire and explore this topic.  Each student worked independently to consider what might be happening for them in four years and what may have already happened.  It's pretty exciting to think about!  We shared some plans and agreed that even if the plans change, having a plan is a really good way to have a direction in life.

In other class activities, the tenth graders worked on writing an interesting thesis statement and worked on their compare/contrast essays.  Those are due tomorrow and as always, I have loved seeing the depth of ideas evolve throughout the writing process for them.  We have some excellent writers in this class and I'm glad they are pushing themselves to improve!

In ninth grade, we started working on Protagonist Playlists today.  This was really a fun way to bring in character analysis, theme analysis, plot analysis, and comparing a text with a song, which is a form of poetry.  The students are each responsible to find three songs and then will put them in order of the events of the book with their group.  They will add a visual element tomorrow and be ready to share their work on Wednesday in class - a fun way to wrap up our reading on the theme of courage!

We are ending the third quarter, so make sure your child keeps reading and keeps working hard on these last few assignments of the quarter.  Everything counts!  Have a great week!  

Tests this Week

This week in English class, both 9th and 10th graders have tests on their books.  Actually, this is a big week for grades for all classes.  Especially as we are near the end of the third quarter, these grades are important.  All classes will have the February book report in class on Thursday, Feb. 25.  In ninth grade, we will have a figurative language quiz, a book club essay test, and the Book club comprehension test.   The essay test will be done largely in class, but can be completed at home.  The  tenth graders did a great job on their Animal Farm presentations to the eighth graders.  They presented to our class today and we had some time to play the games, which was  a nice review for their test on Wednesday.  They also have their Compare/Contrast essay due next
Monday on Feb. 29. So all in all, there are a lot of important grades coming from this week.  Please be ready for these assignments.  We have gone over the calendar of assignments in all classes, so hopefully no student will be surprised by these assignments.  Have a great week and make time to read!  

Book Projects

This week in English class we are working on tasks related to books we are reading.  In tenth grade, we finished Animal Farm and we selected group projects today.  We will work on these and share them with the middle school students next week.  Each group chose either a written, creative, or dramatic way to share information about a topic relating to the book.  Some of the topics are themes of leadership, literacy, rights and oppression, or historical information about the author, the elements of the plot, or how this book is an allegory for the Russian Revolution.  We generated questions before choosing topics and projects, so we have some real interest in the information we will gather this week.  We also had a great first day as a combined sophomore class, with 26 students.  It allows for many ideas to be shared and more variation in student groups.  I'm excited about working with this wonderful group of students all together!

In ninth grade, we practiced character analysis by writing bio poems for the protagonist of our book.  We actually started by writing them about ourselves, then moved into writing about the character.  It warmed my heart to watch every student in the 4th block class consult their book to find character traits as they wrote their poems!  This is the time of year when students exhibit growth, as I saw during this learning activity today.  Bio poems are due on Wednesday and we have a vocabulary quiz on Wednesday as well.  We will finish our books at the end of next week, then we will have some culminating activities before taking a final test on this book.

Upcoming Reading Assignments

This week in English the tenth graders finished reading Animal Farm.  They will read some different texts to compare to the book and begin a comparative writing assignment.  They will also select a project to extend their knowledge of the book.  We will have a test on this book after the writing and the project are complete.

The ninth graders continue to read The Red Badge of Courage or Iron Thunder.  We have focused on eight types of figurative language and we are searching for examples of each type in the book as we read.  These figurative language examples will be on their final test.  We are also selecting new vocabulary words for a quiz next week.

All classes will need to select their February book for their in class book report.  This will be on the last Thursday in February, Feb. 25.  Keep reading this week!

Reading Assignments

This week in English, both classes are reading literature.  Ninth grade is reading either The Red Badge of Courage or Iron Thunder.  Both are Civil War books dealing with similar themes.  The ninth grade classes are having vocabulary quizzes on Tuesday, covering words from the first few chapters of their books.  Ninth graders will also have a Root Word quiz on Thursday, covering all 15 roots.

Tenth graders are halfway through Animal Farm. They will need to be prepared for both a vocabulary quiz and a comprehension quiz next week.  Both classes will complete their January book report in class this Thursday, Jan. 28.   We are reading four books in four months and will have a one page assessment on each book.  This will count as a test grade.  The books should be appropriately challenging for the students.  If any student needs help selecting their February book, I will be happy to help.  Keep reading!

Starting New Books

In all classes we are preparing to start reading new books.  Tenth graders will read Animal Farm and are preparing by researching different revolutions.  They will present their information to the class this week.  Ninth graders are reading either Iron Will or The Red Badge of Courage.  They are preparing by sharing their knowledge of the Civil War and their opinions about war at this point.  We will compare after finishing the books and see if they have shifted opinions on any of the topics.  Along with reading the books, there will be some writing assignments and some other texts we will read, poems, articles, fables, etc.  This will provide a broad base of knowledge and topics covering the same theme.  

At the end of these reading projects, there will be presentations where we will invite families and younger grades to attend.  More information on this in the weeks to come.  

Have a great week!

Welcome Back

We started the new semester today, welcoming three new freshmen, with one more coming later this week!  In English class, we got a chance to share some of our experiences in writing by writing a Top Ten list.  Each of those entries on the list then became a possible topic to use for further writing.  Today we wrote to express and reflect, as well as to analyze and interpret.  As the week progresses, we will prepare to read books in both grades.  Ninth graders will be reading Civil War books in book club format, and tenth graders will be reading Animal Farm by George Orwell.  In preparation for reading these books, we will talk about allegories in tenth grade and symbolism in both classes.  We will choose vocabulary words from each book to enhance the reading experience.  Both of these reading selections will be accompanied by writing tasks.  We hope to have a display to share with the middle school students and parents.  Be on the lookout for an invitation to see the finished products.

Please start the semester off strong by organizing after-school time so that students have enough sleep and enough time to do quality work at home.  It makes a difference!

Have a great week!  Please contact me via email with any questions.  jstockard@oasisacademyfallon.us