September 13, 2013

Post date: Sep 13, 2013 6:32:05 PM

I don't know what happened yesterday, but I neglected to post. Sorry if that caused any confusion for people. I was so intent on getting to play practice and then to Sioux Center that I forgot to sit down and reflect. I purchased several needed items for the play - paint, brushes, tarp, drills, etc. I feel much better situated for tomorrow's set construction. I hope we can get a lot of it up and ready for next week's rehearsal.

In Literature 9 for the past few days (actually for the week) we've really been focusing on finding the main idea. I think (or hope) that the steps we've been going through are helpful. Today was a cumulative worksheet where we wrote a main idea based on an assigned passage. We then worked on our first "Museum Walk" for our Six Word Memoirs. I truly enjoyed this project. We have some incredibly creative students. I'm anxious to read their explanations.

In English10 we've been working on distinguishing between subject (nominative) and object pronouns. We're still going to work on this next week as it can be a confusing process. Yesterday we finished our study of propaganda techniques. As a speaker we can use those techniques to convince others to see things our way, and as listeners we need to be prepared that so many people are using those techniques on us. We compared the various strategies to things we see in advertising and politics. I'm amazed at how many connections were made from the commercials we watch and the propaganda techniques used. On Friday they took a unit test. I truly warned them that this test was not easy, but as I watch the wheels turn in their head, I can tell that they're struggling. I hope the scores represent what I know the sophomores are capable of.

In American Literature we started to discuss the play The Crucible. Arthur Miller's play, set in Puritan times, reflects the panic people feel when we're unsure of what is going on around us. We are trying to show the comparisons of the witch hunts to the Communist Scare of the 1950's. We only saw about 1/4 of the movie, but I think the interest is peaked. Another aspect of watching the movie is using Today's Meet. The kids can ask questions while watching the video. This will allow me to respond without having to interrupt the entire class's attention.

Midterms are on Wednesday, and that's mind boggling. I know I haven't posted anything to JMC, but most students have received their papers. I hope to get completely caught up this weekend. A lofty goal I'm sure, but I have to catch up sometime - don't I?