Mr. Heidkamp

Bernie Heidkamp
Room: 3341
Email: bheidkamp@oprfhs.org
Phone: 708.434.3342

Welcome to Freshmen English!

We hope this first year of English will be a meaningful experience that helps you develop your reading, writing, discussion, and critical thinking skills. A worthwhile English class isn’t ultimately about reading big books and following the rules of grammar (although big books can be fun and the rules of grammar can help you out sometimes). It is about identifying interesting and provocative questions about yourself and the world, which you might not be able to answer completely but which you will feel confident and comfortable exploring as the year progresses. Ultimately, this class will ask you to move beyond just being consumers of the world around you and become critics and builders of it. 

That process starts with you questioning the dominant narratives — or “single stories” — that perpetuate systems of privilege and power. The best way to avoid, in Chimamanda Ngoze Adichie’s words, the “danger of a single story” is to experience the complex stories of others and to develop complex stories of our own. An essential part of being a critic of culture is to be aware of how structures of power shape the way we see the world. We need to both question dominant narratives but also look for — and build — alternative narratives that force us to see the world in new ways.

Books and Supplies
Fresh Ink, various authors (short story collection)
The Odyssey (graphic novel)
Patron Saints of Nothing, Randy Ribay
Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare
Independent reading books (student will select throughout the year)
Science fiction book circles (student will choose one of five possible science fiction novels)
Selected short stories and poetry (packets provided)
Chromebook (charged)
Pen and pencil daily

A few fun facts about me:

• I love how a good hike in the outdoors can simplify everything

• I love playing Dungeons and Dragons with my niece

• I like playing basketball, but I like watching futból (soccer)

• I keep up with contemporary music and love going to concerts of up and coming bands

• I'm a foodie who is very interested in food justice (ask me about it!)

• My wife and I have a really sweet and fun dog named Althea, who still needs to get better at coming when called.

• My perfect day is to have nothing else get in the way of reading a good book.