On May 3rd, Daniel Wang and Skylynn Thangwaritorn received the two highest awards out of 100 entries, first and second place respectively, in the 2012-2013 Shakespeare Poetry Competition, sponsored by Mercury Stage and Theater Company in association with Torrance Performing Arts Consortium and South Bay Conservatory. Congratulations!
Click here for interesting acronyms and abbreviations explained!!
Click here for help with spelling. He's so fun; notice, however that he does not put his periods inside of his quotation marks. That does not make him wrong. His method simply is not MLA format.
Thanks for the two above links, Rishita!
CST Schedule -- click here.
CST Tests
April 30-May 24
Become a Golden State Scholar by earning qualifying scores on 6 of the following CSTs:
- US History
- English (grade 9, 10, 11)
- Geometry, Algebra 2 or Summative Math
- Biology, Chemistry, Earth Science or Physics
- Any two additional exams (i.e. an additional CST in English, math, science or world history)
Contribute to West High’s success:
· CST scores, along with CAHSEE results, determine our API score, which givesyourGPA credibility.
· CST scores help schools qualify for other honors such as California Distinguished Schools and National Blue Ribbon Schools.
Your CST scores help you in the following ways:
· They can be used as part of the criteria for determining appropriate class placement, including honors and Advanced Placement courses.
· They can be reviewed by any agency looking at student records, including colleges and universities
· They can be combined with additional Early Assessment Program (EAP) scores, which may result in exemptions from placements tests at California State Universities and community colleges.
· They are used in the English Language fluency re-designation process.
· They can be used when schools/districts apply for grant money.
DEAR PARENTS:
Please monitor your student's work.
Never passively rely on progress reports. Paper progress reports are a means of random spot checking and cannot catch all failures to submit work. Do not rely exclusively on ParentConnect -- a tool that can only tell you that a problem already exists. Frontload support by using my "Daily Agenda" page to monitoring work. Never ask if a student did the homework. Ask to see it.
Let's not allow this year to be wasted!!
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NEW: Please click on "Reading" or "Links" to find the CA Department of Education's tool for suggested reading material per grade level groupings.
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Library tutors are available for many subjects every lunch and after school Monday-Thursday. Unfortunately, our library is closed for independent student use on Fridays at lunch, but this is not the case for other high school in TUSD. If this is a problem for you, please mention to our administration that our library should be open at lunch on Fridays, too!
My students should request the following tutors for English.
If you can't remember their names just mention that you are an Elwood student and I'm sure they will try to put you with one of the following:
Kiana Schmitt
Chuck Driesler
Catherine Sun
Matthew Mizuta
Laura Shin
Please keep in mind that these are my former honors students, so they may not know exactly what it is that you are doing; therefore, be sure to bring all relevant handouts. They have not, for example, done Book Logs!!
But they do understand my expectations quite well and how to move through directions.
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WELCOME TO MRS. ELWOOD'S WEBSITE!!
Please save this address to your favorites for regular visits. Everything that is listed on the agenda for each day in class will be on the online daily agenda page. You will always know what we did in class and what is due. Please double check the agenda before emailing a question to me. If I receive a question that I think may come up for several students, I will make an adjustment to the daily agenda that will solve the quandary.
When students are absent, they need to check the agenda, so they know what to bring to next class. If students are well enough and have the necessary materials available at home, I encourage them to get the work done. I expect students to return to school having already checked the agenda. I do not want to hear: "Did we do anything yesterday?" Of course we did. I want to know that students need a particular handout or clarification of a particular piece of information.
Parent Connect is certainly a useful tool, but the daily agenda is the most important place to visit. The grade program only tells parents that there is a problem after the fact. Frontload support and follow the daily agenda.
PARENT EMAILS:
Please email the following information to me from your preferred email address.
Student's legal first and last name
Student's grade
Period student is in my class
Parents -- Please send me your formal name, including your preferred title (Dr./Mr./Mrs./Ms/Miss).
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If you have a smartphone or another type of phone that has a tracking component, you may be at risk. Click on the link to see a startling ABC News clip. Click here. Pass the word!!
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The counseling office does not have access to your eTUSD password or user information.
If there are any issues with eTUSD, please email tfl@etusd.org or contact Rob Johnson in IT.
Ms. Foster (in the counseling office) can assist you with ParentConnect and Naviance accounts.
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LIBRARY BUSINESS:
1) Lost books are brought to the library and the attendance office. Check frequently, since you will not know when a lost book may be turned in. If your book is covered, the library staff will keep it at the front counter for at least a week or more.
2) Do NOT store papers and pencils inside your textbooks. This breaks the binding.
3) If your book covers are falling apart, or if you still haven't covered all of your books, the library has covers for 25 cents. You can also use a paper bag or some other type of sturdy paper. The library staff will show you how to cover your books if you need help.
SOMETHING NEW: Check out the library web page! Click here.
You can also access this site through "my courses" on eTUSD or on the West High home page with the brown tab on the right. Be patient; it is a work in progress.