Friday, October 2, 2009

Today is bi-week, which means that there is no football game on the schedule. Regardless, it's still ORANGE AND WHITE DAY which means that according to Ms. McMillen, you can leave third period one minute early for lunch if you are wearing our school colors.

(I will be wearing what I normally wear, thus manifesting my school spirit radiantly from the inside while clad in black on the outside. It's my oeuvre.)

That said: There is a horrible rumor going around about Senior Skip Day being tomorrow. It's awfully early in the school year to start these shenanigans, people, and you already have two three-day weekends on the calendar in the humble month of October. So let this be known: If you are absent tomorrow, and it turns into an EXCUSED absence (college visit, dental work, major existential crisis pre-approved by a parental unit, illness, slight case of death, robot attack, intervention from neighboring countries) then I might let you make up the awesome quiz I am planning for tomorrow. If not, you lose out. If you are there--regardless of period you choose to attend--you will receive full credit for a quiz that gloriously asks you mundane questions like "What are you wearing?" and "What room are you in, right now?" COME TO SCHOOL. IT WILL SERVE YOU WELL. SKIPPING CLASS IS SUCH A FRESHMAN BEHAVIOR. BE A ROLE MODEL.

Announcements!!!

1. Guidance is working assiduously to fix the transcript problems; I assure you it is not them, but a glitch that might be affecting more than just BHS. Please try to be patient, and if you feel that you are going to lose your temper, come to my room and have a peppermint. Peppermints are known to improve moods instantly (or at least mitigate halitosis.)

2. POETRY READING AFTER SCHOOL TOMORROW in my room, hosted by Covert and Hilley. Totally optional, but totally worth it. I forgot to advertise it because, honestly, I forgot that October 2 was this week. Bring a beverage; the enlightenment is free of charge. We plan to start around 2:30 and close a little after 4:00.

3. College Essay Workshop went very well, but some of you are still in denial. COME SEE ME ASAP if you need help. I care. I am paid very little to care a lot. Feel the love, people. :-)

Gifted English II: Due to lack of organization on the part of your instructor, you have no vocab quiz today. Woot! So we will review the words from 101-120, then try to finish Antigone. I also want to share some samples from Wednesday's timed writing--some of your essays were hilarious and/or insightful.

APees: MacStuff. What will happen to Lady MacDuff and Egg McDuffin? Will Malcolm turn out to be a liar or a jerk, hiding in England and eating scones and crumpets? Will Macbeth get his just desserts? Will the witches break into song again? WHAT WILL HAPPEN? OMG!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Today is Ms. Skinner's birthday! Be sure to say Happy Birthday to her if you are in her AP Gov or American Government Honors class.

Gifted English II: Now that benchmark testing is behind us (whew) we can get back to Business As Usual. Author of the Day is Michael Crichton, followed by a quick review of some examples related to this week's literary vocabulary, followed by Antigone. BRING YOUR TEXTBOOK.

AP Lit and Comp: Yesterday, we read Macbeth, Act I, scenes i-iii. We need to finish looking at the questions before we go into scenes iv-vii. I plan to read Act I and II in class with you, then assign Act III for your own reading one evening. We need to do Act IV scene i together in class, and I'd like to conclude the play together as well (Act V, scenes iii-vii) but the rest will be independent. We have other Mactivities (get it? haha) to do that will help us reinforce our learning, as well. This play ROCKS. Thanks to all who dramatically read on Tuesday--you are all awesome.

Homework: Sophys: Keep up with the Antigone questions, and study your vocabulary. APees: Please, please, please work on your college essays and applications, and keep up with the Macquestions.

College Application and Essay Assistance

Dear Seniors:

A few of you have sought help with your admissions essays and I am glad to help. A few requests:

1. E-mail me a copy as a Word attachment or imbedded in your e-mail body; leaving a hard copy on my desk means it will be devoured by my desk. Don't let the deceptively clean surface fool you; my desk is carnivorous and eats essays.

2. If you need a rec letter, and I have taught you before, either give me a copy of your resume or that form Guidance has you fill out so that I can fill your rec letter with pithy, insightful details about your time at BHS. My letters tend to read like Faulkner novels, and I will be happy to keep a copy on file for a calendar year so that you can re-use it for other purposes.

3. I do have a handy little form if you can't do the resume/Guidance thing--see me.

4. Please try to give me 48 hours to look at your essay or generate a rec letter. I am not a machine! I am just one woman! Who needs to shop! And LIVE!

Thanks, all.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

As the dog days of August draw to a sweltering close, our first week together comes to a similar conclusion. Actually, that is a terribly purple sentence. I am a frustrated novelist and sometimes I express myself in what would best be described as pedagogical forums. Moving on. . .

Gifted English II (Sophys): Since schedule changes are still in process, we will proceed with my alternative universe plans. Author of the Day is the amazing Alice Walker, after which we need to finish going over the last of the literary vocabulary terms. I have prepared a style sheet for writing assignments (that can be found on this blog, but I have a hard copy for your notebook) and a handy Guidelines for Solid Writing sheet that will be the foundation of our writing instruction. If we have time, I'd like to share a funny little piece by the comedian Steve Martin called "Writing is Easy!" that appeared in The New Yorker a few years ago. (While he isn't the guy who created the concept of finishing every story with "Then suddenly everyone was run over by a large truck" he is close in wit and cynicism. You will love it.)

APees: We are meeting in College and Career tomorrow to plan your application processes. I know that some of you have already applied, or are in the middle of applying, but this entire process can be mystifying and Mrs. Cadman is your best line of defense against the woe. A few reminders:

--If you need a letter of recommendation from me, please see me ASAP to pick up a form. I need details about you to fill out the letter; otherwise, I will write what I know about you anecdotally and it won't be very formal. "Erica is so entertaining and insightful!" doesn't read as well to a college admissions counselor as "Erica, entertaining and insightful, has served her church community for over four hundred hours and plans to study pre-law." (Erica is a fictitious creation and any resemblance to any real Erica is strictly coincidental.)

--If you would like me to read/edit/help you with your college essay, come to the Writing Center or see me before/after school.

This process may well be the most important thing you accomplish this year, and I need you to pay close attention to Mrs. Cadman's exhortations.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Welcome to the first day of school!

Every student will need to report to HOMEROOM. Alphabetical lists will be posted at Guidance, the Media Center, the 1300 building, and every hallway. If you are lost, find a teacher and see where you need to go. We will all help you. Homeroom should only last about ten minutes.

Gifted English II: Please bring your two summer reading books with you each day this week. You will not be picking up your course textbook until next week, but honestly we don't use it that much. Most of our material is either given directly to you in class or out of a paperback novel. Today's agenda:

1. Syllabus and course expectations--please share with your parents. It's a little snarky in places but that's just how I roll.

2. Distribution of the material you need for the week, including:

A. 120 Literary Terms (6 units of 20 words each)

B. The Death of a Salesman essay assignment, rough draft due Friday

C. Writing Log

3. Each of you will fill out the requisite index cards I need for info about you.

4. We will discuss elements of both works for tomorrow's check-reading test.

Please bring a pencil tomorrow!!! Author of the Day will begin Wednesday and I will explain more in class.

AP Literature and Composition: Welcome to class! Please bring your summer reading materials all week.

1. Syllabus; you can read, but I do want to go over a couple of policies regarding e-mail. Please share with your parental units.

2. Index card

3. Distribution of materials:

A. AP FRQ Questions (keep all year in your notebook)

B. Literary Terms for review

C. Madame Bovary discussion questions

D. AP grading rubric for Friday's focus paper

E. Homework for tonight (don't worry--it's fun!)

4. Discussion of Friday's paper and possible topics. Lecture elements include le mot juste, naturalism v. realism v. Romanticism, the focus of materialism and class consciousness in Flaubert's vision, and female archetypes.

Plan Ahead:

Sophomore Assembly is Thursday period 3 in the gym.

Senior Assembly is Tuesday period 2 in the gym.

I will be taking ALL of my seniors to College and Career on Thursday to go over FAFSA and college applications. This is very important for your futures, particularly considering that most colleges opened their admissions on August 1. Mrs. Cadman is the single best advocate you can imagine.

I will be hosting a travel meeting on Thursday, September 3 at 7 p.m. for my last two overseas adventures with BHS kids. During the week-long Thanksgiving break, students who are 18 or older (or seniors with parent permission) can accompany me and a small group of art lovers to Paris for the whole week. Next Spring Break is the all-ages trip to Ireland. I have a few spots left for each, so if you are interested, see me ASAP and plan to attend this meeting. My past trips have been fabulous experiences for kids; we went to Germany last spring break, and last fall's grad trip was to Prague and Vienna. Over the past ten years, I've traveled with students through Italy, England, France, and Greece, and I have loved it, but now that I'm hurtling towards forty I'm losing my mojo a little. I know international travel is expensive, but it can be really worthwhile.

If you have any other questions about ANYTHING you can e-mail me at jennifer.hilley@ocps.net OR hilleyj@gmail.com.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

REMINDER: Sophomore assembly during third period in the auditorium today. Report to your third period class first, then await dismissal.

Gifted English II: Collect HW questions for assessment. Check-reading quiz on The Stranger and Death of a Salesman. New students to the course will be reading silently during this time--you will have three weeks to catch up on this particular assignment. Afterwards, I will go over the other ten words on your first vocabulary list. Author of the Day today is Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Rough draft of your paper on The Stranger is due Friday for peer review. The vocabulary quiz will be postponed until next week due to Semi-Hurricane Fay.

APees: After we take our short quizlet on The Awakening, we are going to start our discussion of Flaubert and Chopin's writing styles. Your focus paper is due tomorrow night by midnight on www.turnitin.com. See me if you have further existential crises related to this website--it isn't perfect, but I can troubleshoot problems for you.

Also--remember that I will be hosting office hours tomorrow morning for college application conversations. We are going to see Mrs. Cadman tomorrow in College and Career during class to further shed light on your application process.