Honors English Class Ideas

Honors English Class
(Joy & Cherise)

Background:
As our school grows in size, prominence and reputation, it is important that we offer courses and curriculum that can more appropriately meet the needs of our highest-level students, many of whom are eager for a challenge. We want to also be sure to prepare them academically so that they will be able to experience success wherever they may go after high school. To this end, it will expose students to canonized literature while also allowing them to discover postsecondary options.

If possible, the class may be offered as a 2-hour block class. If so, it will simultaneously explore topics around college-readiness, including: study skills, the college application process, varieties of colleges and civic responsibility.

Ideas for Curriculum:
-Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
-Othello by Shakespeare
-Savage Inequalities by Johnathan Kozol
-Slam Poetry (using Def Poetry, Youth Speaks and UC Berkeley's Poetry for the People)

Essential Questions:
(These are also referenced in the earlier post, entitled "Essentials for Motivating Students")
-What are the benefits of knowing how to write and speak for various audiences?
-How can the themes and ideas that we are studying be translated into valuable meaning for my life and worldview?
-How does the literature we are reading reflect elements in my life?

Statistics & the Prison Industrial Complex

(Group: Ramel, Hillary, Dawn)
Our group began creating a unit that merged social issues/justice/studies with statistics. Our essential questions are:
1. How are statistics constructed?
2. Who benefits from incarceration?

One of the ultimate objectives is for students to think critically about the system, and for this to be an avenue to understand statistics. Other objectives and assessments revolve around research, persuasive writing and debate.

Motivating Student

The most important thing is for our students here at B-Tech to know what we are trying to do for them that will make learning fun. It is my belief that they must come to school with the desire to want to succeed and to know that all of us are working together for their good.
(1) One must come with the necessary equipment to work with such as erasers, pencils, pens, rulers, notebook, calculators, scissors, and etc.
(2) One must want to learn and to put forth their best effort.
(3) One must understand that what they don't understand and be willing to write it down.
(4) One must be willing to do a task successful more than (7) seven times.
(5) One must understand that any example written on the learning board is for their continuous reference point of study.

Essentials for Motivating Students

As we try to motivate students, there are a number of things that I think are essential if we want to promote their growth and self-discovery:

1. We must provide clear directions and models for what we expect them to accomplish. I believe that if they can have a preview of what learning the day's lesson will allow them to do, we will have greater success with engaging them.
2. We must set high expectations and stick to them as best we can.
   
3. It is crucial for students to be able to answer some essential questions:
1. What are the strengths that I bring to this class that can enhance the learning experience for everyone?
   
2. What are the benefits of knowing how to write and speak for various audiences?
   
3. How can studying literature enhance my experience of life?
4. How does today's lesson relate to my life?
5. How can the things that I learned today be translated into valuable meaning for my life and worldview?
   

Motivating Students

Motivating students is challenging and laborious when we (the teachers) are not motivated.  At least, I am not motivated to teach.  I am motivated to finish the year, spend the mornings in bed for a while, smile at the sun because it's shining and I have time to do so, go to the beach, spend afternoons laughing with my children.  I am motivated to leave this time frame and enter another where I do not have to run the course of a schedule.  I can cook because I still have brain cells left at the end of the day to think of a meal.  Or I can cook dinner in the morning because I feel like that.   I don't know how to motivate students when I feel like this.  So, I give them more smiles, hugs and reasons to relax.  Maybe if I give them a semblance of tranquility, they'll give me some  back and I'll be motivated to return in two months :) 

Thoughts on Next Year

Next year I will be much more fearless in integrating technology in the classroom.  I would like to continue with blogs, but I'm not totally sure about Blogger.   I would probably try Word.Sound.Life, in order to encourage larger community discussions.   I love the idea of having them do research, presentations and writing, using technology.  I think blogs offer a relatively quick and simple space for doing all of these things.  As a teacher supporting student writing, however, I must also think about how I can use this space to help with revision and writing skills. Depending on the resources I have next year, I would like to do some things that are more extended and more intellectually challenging.    

Maybe this will be useful to somebody...

SENIOR FINALS
6/3/2008 Tuesday- 2nd and 4th Period
6/4/2008 Wednesday- 3rd and 5th Period

FINALS WEEK 6/7-6/13
Mon, Tues, Fri: Friday schedule (First period does not meet)
Wednesday: 2nd and 3rd period finals
Thursday: 4th and 5th period finals

B-TECH GRADUATION
June 5th at 5:00PM