Spring!

ELA 11

Photograph: Chris Radburn/PA

Today we took care of some housekeeping--students handed in their extra credit passes and their Fahrenheit 451 books. Because our time was short, I decided to read a bit of Hunger Games since we didn't have our scheduled Friday read aloud because of Spring Break. We're finally getting to some more interesting scenes and the plot will thicken.


Over the next week we will do a mini-unit on the short story. Because kids often don't have much opportunity for choice, they will choose the short stories they will read and study. We will use an older literature anthology we have in class, Adventures in Appreciation. Plenty of time will be allowed in class for students to finish their work, provided they use class time wisely. With spring in the air, this might become more and more difficult as the weeks go by.

Exam grades have been entered and I will be grading the dytopian projects over the next few days. Look for them to be posted on Skyward.

AP Language
 Today we went over the exam essays. Because this is the same format for the AP Language test, I want to be certain that students know why they received the score they did. I will read aloud a few strong responses.
Students will have time to begin tonight's homework: reading and annotating "Shooting an Elephant" by George Orwell. It is a complex essay that will take some time to analyze.

Later this week we will start our last unit before the seniors leave: Silas Marner. This short novel is a beloved classic with some very relevant messages for us today.