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The July/August See Beyond Magazine has been published.
Four West students have articles in this edition!
Check it out!! Click here.
Four West students have articles in this edition!
Check it out!! Click here.
GREETINGS ALL
As of 2:40 pm on Tuesday (8/25),
students (and a parent) were sent an email (BCC)
explaining our Zoom class and where to submit papers.
If you didn't get the email or if you have any problems, contact me.
AP Students: Submit essay in your eTUSD class before class tomorrow.
For scheduling questions, call the office at (310) 533-4299.
From Mon. to Wed. (9/31-9/2), a virtual office will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Click this link: West High Virtual Office.
To access the WHS Virtual Schedule, click here.
As of 2:40 pm on Tuesday (8/25),
students (and a parent) were sent an email (BCC)
explaining our Zoom class and where to submit papers.
If you didn't get the email or if you have any problems, contact me.
AP Students: Submit essay in your eTUSD class before class tomorrow.
For scheduling questions, call the office at (310) 533-4299.
From Mon. to Wed. (9/31-9/2), a virtual office will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Click this link: West High Virtual Office.
To access the WHS Virtual Schedule, click here.
2020-2021 AP Lit Summer Assignment
VOCABULARY -- Quizlet and Paper Copy
July 5 -- The Quizlet and hard copy vocabulary lists are exactly the same, except that Quizlet has, without notifying me, changed the word "faggot" to a series of asterisks. In the context of "Paul's Case," a faggot is "a bundle of sticks or twigs bound together as fuel." Quizlet will not allow me to fix this, so I have asked them to do so. In the meantime, you will have to understand that **** represents the word "faggot." In all my years of teaching, I have never seen such ignorance.
July 7 -- A Quizlet rep told me that since she cannot override their censorship settings (although she didn't call it that), I could just add an asterisk to the word and the system wouldn't recognize it. So now I'm battling an inanimate computer function that cannot intellectualize concepts or nuance. Here is my response: Drawing undue attention to this word with an asterisk is inappropriate. Faggot is not profanity. Students need to be educated about language, not taught to fear or hate it. I also do not appreciate that this happened without my knowledge. No one from Quizlet alerted me to the hijacking of my vocabulary list.
How can I teach students when the resources I count on and tout don't even communicate the sabotage done to my curriculum? Nonetheless, I do thank you for your help and will use the asterisk even though I object to it. And I will speak with my students about the problems inherent in censorship.
I found a few typos and have uploaded a new version of this story. If you already printed the other version, you do NOT need to print the revised one. Mea culpa.
STORY -- Click here.
- Learn the vocabulary for Willa Cather's "Paul's Case" before reading.
- Be prepared to take a quiz on this list when school begins.
- Use the instructions sheet to access prompt choices and essay requirements.
- Have the essay completed, edited, printed, and ready to submit on the first day of school.
- Bring a paper copy of "Paul's Case" to class.
- Use ONLY the version of the story provided below. Some online copies are different.
- Be prepared to discuss Cather's story in great detail.
- Email me if you have any questions.
VOCABULARY -- Quizlet and Paper Copy
July 5 -- The Quizlet and hard copy vocabulary lists are exactly the same, except that Quizlet has, without notifying me, changed the word "faggot" to a series of asterisks. In the context of "Paul's Case," a faggot is "a bundle of sticks or twigs bound together as fuel." Quizlet will not allow me to fix this, so I have asked them to do so. In the meantime, you will have to understand that **** represents the word "faggot." In all my years of teaching, I have never seen such ignorance.
July 7 -- A Quizlet rep told me that since she cannot override their censorship settings (although she didn't call it that), I could just add an asterisk to the word and the system wouldn't recognize it. So now I'm battling an inanimate computer function that cannot intellectualize concepts or nuance. Here is my response: Drawing undue attention to this word with an asterisk is inappropriate. Faggot is not profanity. Students need to be educated about language, not taught to fear or hate it. I also do not appreciate that this happened without my knowledge. No one from Quizlet alerted me to the hijacking of my vocabulary list.
How can I teach students when the resources I count on and tout don't even communicate the sabotage done to my curriculum? Nonetheless, I do thank you for your help and will use the asterisk even though I object to it. And I will speak with my students about the problems inherent in censorship.
I found a few typos and have uploaded a new version of this story. If you already printed the other version, you do NOT need to print the revised one. Mea culpa.
STORY -- Click here.
“Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.”
Anton Chekhov
Anton Chekhov
How is your pronunciation of commonly mispronounced words? Try this quiz; click here.
Although I am not a fan of their silliness, this is a great list of words to review. Ignore their comment that you should only be mostly proficient at these words so as not to appear as if you have a PhD. What a strange comment.
Although I am not a fan of their silliness, this is a great list of words to review. Ignore their comment that you should only be mostly proficient at these words so as not to appear as if you have a PhD. What a strange comment.
Check out these interesting video clips from Merriam Webster's website:
Where did the ampersand come from? -- Click here.
Is "none" singular or plural? -- Click here.
Where did the ampersand come from? -- Click here.
Is "none" singular or plural? -- Click here.
An article on challenging interview questions: Click here.
"LIFE SAVERS for New and Student Teachers! Part 2" focuses on the information void. You don't know what you don't know until you know it--and that could create a problem later. Learn how to deal with parents and students when conflicts arise.
Enjoy and please share these helpful suggestions and warnings with others!
EXCERPT: "Parental disapproval of your decisions doesn't make you wrong. Sometimes, parents have baggage from their own unfortunate high school experiences. Or they harbor guilty feelings for less than stellar parenting. Sometimes, they take frustrations they feel towards their children out on teachers. And sometimes, you might be in the wrong" (44).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine May/June 2019.
Enjoy and please share these helpful suggestions and warnings with others!
EXCERPT: "Parental disapproval of your decisions doesn't make you wrong. Sometimes, parents have baggage from their own unfortunate high school experiences. Or they harbor guilty feelings for less than stellar parenting. Sometimes, they take frustrations they feel towards their children out on teachers. And sometimes, you might be in the wrong" (44).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine May/June 2019.
Having perhaps the last student teacher of my career this year inspired me to provide some advice to all the newest members of this profession. "LIFE SAVERS for New and Student Teachers! Part 1" focuses on the start up. Enjoy and please share these helpful suggestions and warnings with others!
EXCERPT: "Allow me to help you . . . free up some brain space for the many things you will need to think about" (32).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine May/June 2019.
EXCERPT: "Allow me to help you . . . free up some brain space for the many things you will need to think about" (32).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine May/June 2019.
As talk about differentiated instruction becomes deafening, consider how so much personalized instruction might disparage or damage students. We have coddled students into needing safe zones in college. "You Deserve My High Expectations" explores an alternative view.
EXCERPT: "It's good to acknowledge that some people have a greater knack for certain subjects. But that does not mean that those not so naturally blessed cannot make the leap" (35).
EXCERPT: "If I am going to nurture my growth mindset [as a teacher], I must be allowed to support students in their effort to become the successes I am trying to believe they can all be" (36).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine May/June 2019.
EXCERPT: "It's good to acknowledge that some people have a greater knack for certain subjects. But that does not mean that those not so naturally blessed cannot make the leap" (35).
EXCERPT: "If I am going to nurture my growth mindset [as a teacher], I must be allowed to support students in their effort to become the successes I am trying to believe they can all be" (36).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine May/June 2019.
"Headbutting Bias Be Gone!" provides a teacher's view regarding the challenges of the uninformed, ill-informed, and how culture is reacting to all the chaos: another form of bullying.
EXCERPT: "You can't agree with everyone, but at least be willing to listen. Don't let a single voice be silenced by mob-think--even when you agree with the mob" (45).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine March/April 2019.
EXCERPT: "You can't agree with everyone, but at least be willing to listen. Don't let a single voice be silenced by mob-think--even when you agree with the mob" (45).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine March/April 2019.
Are you the polite quiet child (or adult) in class or at work? Are you dealing with those difficult people? "Cat Got Your Tongue? Still?" is a discussion about this challenge.
EXCERPT: "Being a sheepish, quiet little soul may have been endearing when you were little--it may even have been required--but it frustrates the heck out of people dealing with you now" (41).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine March/April 2019.
EXCERPT: "Being a sheepish, quiet little soul may have been endearing when you were little--it may even have been required--but it frustrates the heck out of people dealing with you now" (41).
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine March/April 2019.
Regardless of where you are in education or the job market, read my plan for preparing to prepare for college, internship and job apps. Follow this process in order to have something valuable to say when you write your college essays or walk in to an interview. "Winning the Scholarship Game."
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine January/February 2019.
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine January/February 2019.
Dealing with parents and administrators who want to rescue students from reasonable consequences adds another layer of complexity to grading. I understand the importance of nurturing self-esteem but to do so at the expense of growth is detrimental. To do so falsely merely inflates ego. Let's return to realistic grading that reflects high expectations in order to help students develop character and resilience. Read "You Can't Flunk My Child" for examples of the grading quandary.
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine November/December 2018 edition.
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine November/December 2018 edition.
As school begins once again, I am increasingly concerned about bullying. We published a student and a teacher perspective on this difficult subject. Brandon Harrison's "People: An Unavoidable Aspect of Life" tells about his struggles and adjustment to the bullying he faced and I offer my take on steps away from such torment in Bullying: The Final Frontier."
These articles are available in See Beyond Magazine September/October 2018.
These articles are available in See Beyond Magazine September/October 2018.
I have been concerned about the loss of vocabulary lists in English instruction. Some say that memorizing words doesn't lead to retention. Perhaps, we need a slightly different approach. Check out my view in "Drench Them in Words."
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine July/August 2018.
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine July/August 2018.
Where did all the grammar go? I offer my theory about this dreaded subject in See Beyond Magazine for April: "Ah, Shucks! Don't Mention It."
EXCERPT: "Have you ever felt like a square peg looking sorrowfully over a vast landscape of round holes? Nearly twenty years ago, I experienced this feeling quite unexpectedly in regard to teaching. During my first year, an esteemed colleague mentioned, 'I don’t teach grammar because knowing what a noun is doesn’t make someone a better writer.' I wasn’t brave enough yet to say, 'But learning the units of language does make a person a better editor, which leads to better writing.'"
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine April 2018.
EXCERPT: "Have you ever felt like a square peg looking sorrowfully over a vast landscape of round holes? Nearly twenty years ago, I experienced this feeling quite unexpectedly in regard to teaching. During my first year, an esteemed colleague mentioned, 'I don’t teach grammar because knowing what a noun is doesn’t make someone a better writer.' I wasn’t brave enough yet to say, 'But learning the units of language does make a person a better editor, which leads to better writing.'"
This article is available in See Beyond Magazine April 2018.
I had fun writing "First of All, Do Nothing" for the March See Beyond Magazine.
EXCERPT: Over the course of many years of teaching, I have made this observation: "Times have changed. People have become enlightened, wiser, softer. But is all this wisdom all that wise? Are we producing a generation or more of people incapable of shrugging off hurt feelings?"
Let me know what you think! And please enjoy the excellent variety we have to offer you this month!
See Beyond Magazine March 2018 Edition
EXCERPT: Over the course of many years of teaching, I have made this observation: "Times have changed. People have become enlightened, wiser, softer. But is all this wisdom all that wise? Are we producing a generation or more of people incapable of shrugging off hurt feelings?"
Let me know what you think! And please enjoy the excellent variety we have to offer you this month!
See Beyond Magazine March 2018 Edition
To hear Victor Borge's punctuation system, click here.
This is a great association for everyone interested in grammar: ATEG
(Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar).Find them on
FB: Click here.
Find their website: Click here.
(Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar).Find them on
FB: Click here.
Find their website: Click here.
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REGULAR SCHEDULE
0 7:00 – 7:54 1 8:00 – 8:57 2 9:04 – 10:01 3 10:11 – 11:10 4 11:17 – 12:14 12:14 – 12:49 Lunch 5 12:56 – 1:53 6 2:00 – 2:57 |
LATE START Teachers Talk together on Tuesday / MOST TUESDAYS
0 7:00-7:45 7:45-8:45 Faculty meeting 1 9:00-9:47 2 9:45-10:41 3 10:51-11:40 4 11:47-12:34 12:34-1:09 Lunch 5 1:16-2:03 6 2:10-2:57 |
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RALLY SCHEDULE
SOME FRIDAYS 0 7:00-7:53 1 8:00-8:51 2 8:58-9:49 3 9:59-10:52 4 10:59-11:50 11:55-12:24 Rally 12:24-1:01 Lunch 5 1:08-1:59 6 2:06-2:57 |
WORKSHOP SCHEDULE
WEDNESDAYS / THURSDAYS 0 7:00-7:54 1 8:00-8:51 2 8:58-9:49 3 9:59-10:52 10:59-11:28 Workshop 4 11:35-12:26 12:26-1:01 Lunch 5 1:08-1:59 6 2:06-2:57 |
Do you want to practice grammar?
Try these True / False quizzes. Answers are provided with explanations.
Click here.
Try these True / False quizzes. Answers are provided with explanations.
Click here.
Here is a fun article titled, "The Most Interesting Books of All Time, as Voted by 125 Famous Authors": Click here.