Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Settling into our Reading Routine: Class Recap for 8/31

Students received their in-class Writer's Notebooks today.  Following 15 minutes of silent reading, everyone did their first Reading Response exercise.  Excellent work was done by all :-)

Homework:
* If you did not return your signed syllabus or turn in your letter, please have these for tomorrow
* (Optional) Participate in a general discussion on the class' essential question (What does it mean to be human?)

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

So ... What DOES it Mean to be Human?

As this is the essential question for English 9, I thought it might be interesting to open up a conversation about it here.  Leave your thoughts in the comments section, and let's get some discussion going :-)

Happy First Day of School!

Well, we made it through the first day of school :-)!

Today was spent reviewing the syllabus and preparing students for the day-to-day operation of our class.  Riveting stuff!

Homework:
* Return signed receipt of syllabus
* Have silent reading material for tomorrow's class
* Letter to Ms. Loud

Sunday, August 28, 2011

What Does it Mean to be Human?: Welcome to English 9!

Welcome, 9th Grade Students and Families!

I am very excited about having another year together!

As you can imagine, freshman year is a lot more rigorous than middle school. There is an expectation of strong effort, behavior conducive to a learning environment, and striving to learn wherever and whenever possible at all times.

That being said, some things never change ... I'm looking forward to having as much fun as always :-)
The "Essential Question" of your English 9 class is "What does it mean to be human?"  All work will relate in some way to that theme.

We'll be reading some fantastic literature, including Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee as well as a variety of short stories, poetry, and informational pieces.

Students will also be conducting an in-depth yearlong author project (more to come ... trust me ;-)), so be thinking about an author that you'd like to focus on.  You'll be reading four novels by the author of your choice, conducting research into his or her life and experiences, and pulling it all together into an inquiry-based project.

You'll also be doing a lot of writing (come on, now, you must have seen that one coming ...).  We'll do in-class writings of various lengths and genres, weekly papers, and interactive writing through this blog.

Every class will begin with a "Do-Now" focused on grammar lessons and skills practice.  These will be housed in a writer's notebook provided to each student, which will remain in the classroom.

Please feel free to contact me by e-mail at any time or by leaving a comment on this blog (all comments are moderated and will not show up without my permission).

I know that we are going to have a great year :-)

School E-mail: kloud@pittsfield.k12.nh.us
Blog E-mail:     katieloud1026@gmail.com