JUNE 1 - JUNE 5
We are at the finish line for the semester! Final exams beging this week.
Here is the schedule for exams:
THURSDAY, JUNE 4: SECOND BLOCK EXAM
FRIDAY, JUNE 5: THIRD BLOCK EXAM
MONDAY, JUNE 8: FOURTH BLOCK EXAM
TUESDAY, JUNE 9: FIRST BLOCK EXAM
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10: LAST DAY OF REGULAR SCHOOL DAY FOR ALL STUDENTS. EXAM
RETAKES AND MAKE-UPS WILL ALSO HAPPEN ON JUNE 10.
For all of my English classes, we have been reviewing for the English I EOC
for the past week, and we will continue to do so this week. Students are
given detailed review packets each day of class, and we are spending our
remaining time in class going over these review packets. These packets can be
downloaded from my website. Just go to the link titled "ENGLISH I EOC REVIEW
PACKETS." These packets include review notes focusing on VOCABULARY,
GRAMMAR,and READING STRATEGIES. They also have sample passages from past
exams. As a reminder, every student taking English I must pass the state exam
with at least an 80 to meet the state's graduation requirement. Any student
who passes my class but does not score atleast an 80 on the state exam will
have to retake the state exam. Any student in this situation will be notified
once we have the EOC scores. The first day for EOC retakes will be on
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10.
By this point, my HONORS students should have turned in their BOOK REPORTS
and their RESEARCH ESSAYS. They were due by FRIDAY, MAY 29 at the latest.
Please contact me with any questions or concerns. My number is (910) 350-
2089, ext. 348. My email is dwilliam@nhcs.net.
Mr. Williamson
MAY 11 - MAY 15
HONORS ENGLISH I:
We are reading The Odyssey in class. Each day, the students read a chapter
from the story, answer some reading comprehension questions for each chapter,
and then create a visual representation for each chapter. They are also
watching a film version of the story. At the pace we are going, we will be
done with The Odyssey by early next week. We will then move on to a brief
DRAMA unit and conclude with a short unit of poetry.
My honors students have two major homework projects that are due by MAY 27: a
book report project and a short 1 - 2 page research-based essay. The
guidelines for these two projects are on my main homepage under HONORS BOOK
REPORT AND RESEARCH PROJECT.
For this week, we are pausing our grammar unit. However, we will pick up next
week with PARALLELISM and SENTENCE CLARITY.
ON-LEVEL ENGLISH I:
First block got their progress reports this week. Fourth block will get
theirs by the end of the week.
We are starting a short unit on drama. We will read a few short one-act plays
and apply our reading strategies to these plays. We will over go over
specific literary terms related to drama.
As for grammar, last week we focused on sentence clarity and MISPLACED
MODIFIERS. This week, we will continue working on sentence clarity with an
emphasis on PARALLELISM.
For our writing focus, we are finishing in class a DEFINITION ESSAY where the
students define the concept of THE HERO in relation to The Odyssey.
AS A REMINDER, AFTER-SCHOOL TUTORING IS AVAILABLE ON TUESDAYS AND THURSDAYS
TO HELP STUDENTS PREPARE FOR THE ENGLISH I STATE EXAM.
English I is a core course requiring each student to prove proficient on a
standardized test. The English I E.O.C. (end-of-course) exam measures a
student's READING COMPREHENSION and GRAMMAR SKILLS. To meet the requirements
for promotion to English I, each student must score at least a level 3 (80)
on the English I state exam. This exam is an extremely important test that
impacts each and every student currently taking English I. Everything we do
in my English I class connects to this EOC so that each day in class helps
the students prepare for the exam. THEREFORE, EACH AND EVERYONE OF MY
STUDENTS SHOULD DO THEIR PART BY MAKING PLANS TO STAY AFTER-SCHOOL FOR
TUTORING.
If you have questions, contact me at dwilliam@nhcs.net or by calling 350-
2089, ext. 348.
Thanks!
Dale Williamson
APRIL 27 - MAY 1
ON-LEVEL ENGLISH I:
We are in the final stages of our Odyssey unit. We only have about two more
chapters to read, and
then we will finalize our student-created study guides. Students will turn
these study guides in
(hopefully) by the end of the week. We have been working a long time on these
guides, and students
have been given ample class time to complete them, so this particular
assignment will count as TWO
TEST GRADES. Next week, we begin our DRAMA UNIT.
As for grammar, we have focused on APOSTROPHES and QUOTATION MARKS. We will
also go over
CAPITALIZATION RULES this week.
HONORS ENGLISH I:
We're done with "To Kill a Mockingbird." Students took their writing test
based on the novel last
Friday. I am almost done grading them all. They looked good for the most part.
We will begin our in-class unit on THE ODYSSEY this week. As we read certain
chapters from this
epic poem, students will work on in-class projects and activities related to
the story.
As for homework, my Honors students have TWO major projects to work on for
the remainder of the
semester: (1) a BOOK REPORT PROJECT and (2) a short research-based essay.
Students were given a
very detailed handout on how to complete these two projects. They also went
to the library this past
Monday to choose a book for the book report. The book has to be approved by
me. THESE PROJECTS
ARE DUE BY MAY 27.
AFTER-SCHOOL TUTORING IS AVAILABLE EVERY TUESDAY AND THURSDAY.
Contact me at anytime if you have any questions or concerns.
Thanks!
Dale Williamson
dwilliam@nhcs.net
(910) 350-2089, ext. 348
NEWS UPDATE FOR MY SECOND BLOCK HONORS STUDENTS (APRIL 21):
My youngest daughter became ill today, so I had to leave school early today.
I apologize. Originally, I was going to have my Honors students take an in-
class writing test on "To Kill a Mockingbird" on Wednesday, April 22. Since I
missed class today, I will change the test date to Friday, April 24. On April
22, we will finalize our chapter reviews of the novel. On Thursday, April 23,
we will do some prewriting / prethinking activities with thinking maps to
help us prepare for Friday's writing test. All work related to "To Kill a
Mockingbird" needs to be turned in by Friday, April 24 so I can get grades
updated and get progress reports out next week.
Thanks!
D. Williamson
APRIL 20 - 24
I hope everyone had a great weekend. What great weather we had! Beautiful!
F.Y.I. The English I teachers are working together to help English I students
prepare for the English I E.O.C. We've set up a tutoring schedule. Here is
what we have set up:
Tuesdays - April 21st, 28th, May 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th, June 2nd
Kim Williams (grammar goal 6) room 118
Dale Williamson (reading comprehension goals 1-5 with 5 having most emphasis)
room 142
Thursdays - April 23rd, 30th, May 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th, June 4th
Susan Hitt(reading compehension) goals 1-5 with goal 5 having most emphasis)
room 138
Amie Cummings(grammar goal 6) library
Please encourage your child to make plans to attend some of these tutoing
sessions.
Here's the plan for the week of April 20 - 24:
ON-LEVEL ENGLISH I (First and Fourth Blocks):
1. We are continuing our focus on "The Odyssey." By this point, we've read as
a class the following chapters: The Preface, Sailing From Troy, The Lotus
Eaters, and The Cyclops. This week, I intend for us to read at least "The
Land of the Dead" and "Scylla and Charybdis." We should finish reading "The
Odyssey" next week when we read "The Cattle of the Sun God," "The Return
Home," and "Odysseus' Revenge."
2. For each chapter we read, the students answer reading comprehension
questions based on the reading and they either create a FLOW MAP or a VISUAL
ONE-PAGER based on the reading. When we are done reading "The Odyssey," the
students will organize all of their flow maps and one-pagers together into a
comprehensive student-created study guide that will count as TWO TEST GRADES.
3. As we read the story, students are also watching a film based on the story.
4. After we finish reading "The Odyssey," students will be assigned a Greek
God to research and write a short 1 - 2 page research essay on. This will be
an in-class project.
HONORS ENGLISH I (Second Block):
We are finishing our in-class work with "To Kill a Mockingbird." Today, we
went over chapters 20 - 24. Tomorrow, I plan to go over chapters 25 - 31. We
are also almost done watching the film adaptation of the novel.
Hopefully, by next Wednesday, April 22, the students will be ready to take
one final test on the novel before we move on to another literary unit. This
test will be an in-class essay based on a topic related to the novel. It will
not be a multiple-choice test. Instead, it will be a written test that is
formatted very much like the North Carolina 10th-grade writing assessment. I
will use this as an opportunity to give my students a preview of what 10th-
grade English will expect of them. For our unit test of "To Kill a
Mockingbird," the students will be required to write a DEFINITION ESSAY where
they are challenged to define a specific concept or term in relation to the
novel. I will provide a clear guideline on how they can organize and approach
this writing assessment. Each student will just need to be familiar enough
with the novel in order to effectively use it as support for their essay's
main points. The students will be allowed to use the novel for reference
during this writing test.
In addition to this writing test, each student is responsible for turning in
the following assignments for our unit on "To Kill a Mockingbird":
The In-Class Chapter-by-Chapter Summary Book -- Due by FRIDAY, APRIL
24.
(Note: The assignments listed below technically should have already been
turned in by this point, but I am allowing a few more days. Students should
really be done with the novel by this point. If they are not, they need to
work really hard this weekend to get caught up.)
The Comic Book Summaries of Chapters 13 - 18: Due by MONDAY, APRIL 20
Ten Student-Created Quiz Questions for Chapters 19 - 21: Due by
MONDAY, APRIL
20
Handwritten summaries of Chapters 22 - 31 (Each summary should be between 8 -
10 sentenes long): Due by MONDAY, APRIL 20
APRIL 13 - 17
Sorry about being behind on updating my website. Well, spring break has been
over for several days now, and we are officially off and running into our
second and final 9 weeks. Here's an update on what's going on in my English I
classes:
HONORS ENGLISH I:
We are behind schedule with "To Kill a Mockingbird," but that's okay.
I told my Honors students that they should all do their best to finish
reading the novel at home by the end of the week. There is homework for each
chapter, and I want everyone to turn in all of the remaining homework
assignments by MONDAY, APRIL 20.
This week in class, we went over chapters 8 - 13 as a class and created short
thinking map summaries of each of those chapters. On Wednesday, April 16, the
students were given specific in-class QUIZ questions focusing on chapters 14 -
16. This was a quiz grade for the students. We went over the questions today
in class.
On Friday, April 17, we will highlight (as a class) chapters 17 - 20, on
Monday, April 20, we will discuss the main points of chapters 21 - 25. By
Tuesday, April 21, we should be able to review chapters 26 - 31 and finish
our class discussions of the novel.
Since I've asked the students to read the chapters for homework and complete
activities for each chapter, we are not reading the chapters during class.
Instead, we focus on certain elements of each chapter and look at particular
passages from each chapter that help us better understand such things as the
overall plot, themes, conflicts, character development, and author's writing
style. We are also watching the film adaptation of the novel in class.
Hopefully, by next Wednesday, April 22, the students will be ready to take
one final test on the novel before we move on to another literary unit. This
test will be an in-class essay based on a topic related to the novel. It will
not be a multiple-choice test. Instead, it will be a written test that is
formatted very much like the North Carolina 10th-grade writing assessment. I
will use this as an opportunity to give my students a preview of what 10th-
grade English will expect of them. For our unit test of "To Kill a
Mockingbird," the students will be required to write a DEFINITION ESSAY where
they are challenged to define a specific concept or term in relation to the
novel. I will provide a clear guideline on how they can organize and approach
this writing assessment. Each student will just need to be familiar enough
with the novel in order to effectively use it as support for their essay's
main points. The students will be allowed to use the novel for reference
during this writing test.
In addition to this writing test, each student is responsible for turning in
the following assignments for our unit on "To Kill a Mockingbird":
The In-Class Chapter-by-Chapter Summary Book -- Due by FRIDAY, APRIL
24.
(Note: The assignments listed below technically should have already been
turned in by this point, but I am allowing a few more days. Students should
really be done with the novel by this point. If they are not, they need to
work really hard this weekend to get caught up.)
The Comic Book Summaries of Chapters 13 - 18: Due by MONDAY, APRIL 20
Ten Student-Created Quiz Questions for Chapters 19 - 21: Due by
MONDAY, APRIL
20
Handwritten summaries of Chapters 22 - 31 (Each summary should be between 8 -
10 sentenes long): Due by MONDAY, APRIL 20
If you have any questions, contact me. Thanks!
Dale Williamson
MARCH 30 - APRIL 2:
Progress reports went home with each and every student last Thursday. Any
parent who did not see a progress report needs to contact me by either
calling (910) 350-2089, ext. 348 or by emailing me at dwilliam@nhcs.net.
Midterm exams are this WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1 AND THURSDAY, APRIL 2. Thursday,
April 2 is an early-release day. We are reviewing for the midterm this week.
Students will be given at least two detailed review packets to help them
prepare for this midterm. You can view or download these review packets by
going back to my homepage and clicking on the icon that is titled "MIDTERM
REVIEW PACKETS." The midterm counts 15% of the first nine weeks grade.
The focus of the midterm will be on the following:
• 100 MULTIPLE-CHOICE questions.
• The first 30 questions will be multiple-choice English I EOC questions
focusing on READING COMPREHENSION and GRAMMAR SKILLS. These 30 questions will
not be questions that I create. They are questions that have been used on
previous English I EOC exams. The remaining questions will be created by me.
You can go online to
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/accountability/testing/eoc/ and click
on “English I” to see sample reading and grammar questions.
• You will have to read a variety of texts and answer questions based on the
text. The reading comprehension questions will be like the ones we have done
in class. They will focus on: CONTEXT CLUES, MAKING INFERENCES, DRAWING
CONCLUSIONS, IDENTIFYING THE PURPOSE OF A WRITING, IDENTIFYING THE THEME OR
MAIN IDEA OF A WRITING, DETERMINING THE MOOD OR TONE OF A WRITING, and
UNDERSTANDING PLOT, CONFLICT, CHARACTERIZATION, and SETTING.
• There will be GRAMMAR questions. To prepare for this, just review the basic
parts of speech, know what to capitalize and what not to, know where to
properly place commas, be familiar with adjectives, and know how to properly
use end marks in sentences. Also know the difference between INDEPENDENT
CLAUSES (complete sentences) and DEPENDENT CLAUSES (fragments). Review the
rules for SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT, COLONS, SEMICOLONS, and CAPITALIZATION. For
the grammar section, you will read passages with mistakes, and you will have
to determine what corrections need to be made.
• Review the LITERARY TERMS that we have used in our class, including but not
limited to: PLOT, THEME, PURPOSE, AUDIENCE, CHARACTERIZATION, INTERNAL
CONFLICT, EXTERNAL CONFLICT, SETTING, MOOD, TONE, PROTAGONIST, ANTAGONIST,
DYNAMIC CHARACTER, STATIC CHARACTER, FLAT CHARACTER, ROUND CHARACTER, POINT
OF VIEW, FICTION, GENRE, NONFICTION etc.
• Review the basic EOC vocabulary words that we have repeatedly used in our
daily activities: TRACE, ANALYZE, INFER, EVALUATE, FORMULATE, DESCRIBE,
SUPPORT, EXPLAIN, SUMMARIZE, PREDICT, COMPARE, and CONTRAST.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact me. REPORT CARDS GO OUT
ON MONDAY, APRIL 13. NEXT WEEK IS SPRING BREAK!!
Mr. Williamson
A QUICK CHANGE OF PLAN FOR MY HONORS ENGLISH I CLASS (UPDATED MONDAY, MARCH
23):
I was trying to be stubborn and keep to our planned schedule of having a unit
test on the first 12 chapters of "To Kill a Mockingbird" tomorrow (Tuesday,
March 24). However, since I will not be in class on Friday, March 27 and
since the students are working on an in-class group project that is due by
this Thursday,March 26, I decided that moving the test to Friday, March 27
would be a better use of time. So, the unit test for chapters 1 - 12 of "To
Kill a Mockingbird" will be on FRIDAY, MARCH 27 instead of Tuesday, March 24.
NOTES FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 23 - 27
I apologize for not updating my website last week. I just never got around to
it. Anyway, let me take
a moment to emphasize a few important bits of info:
1. The midterms are set for APRIL 1 and APRIL 2 (which is next week). April 2
is an early-release day
for students, and there is no school on FRIDAY, APRIL 3. The following week
is spring break, so
students will not return to school until MONDAY, APRIL 13.
2. On MONDAY, APRIL 13, report cards for the first nine weeks go out.
3. I will give each student an updated PROGRESS REPORT by NO LATER THAN THIS
THURSDAY,
MARCH 26. Students will have until THURSDAY, APRIL 2 to make up any missed
work or retake any
tests with low scores. I can stay after school on the following days:
MONDAY, MARCH 23 (there is no late bus on this day)
TUESDAY, MARCH 24
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25 (there is no late bus on this day)
THURSDAY, MARCH 26
MONDAY, MARCH 30 (there is no late bus on this day)
TUESDAY, MARCH 31
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1 (there is no late bus on this day)
THURSDAY, APRIL 2 (there is no late bus on this day)
4. I will not be at school on Friday, March 27 because I have to attend a
conference in Raleigh.
Students will take a final grammar and reading test on Friday, March 27
before the midterm. That will
be there last major grade prior to the midterm. Any student absent on this
day will need to see me
about making up this test.
5. I will dedicate MARCH 30 and MARCH 31 towards reviewing for the midterm.
Students will be
given detailed review guides to look over and study prior to the midterm. The
midterm will focus on
three major categories: GRAMMAR, VOCABULARY, and READING COMPREHENSION
SKILLS. The
midterm will be 100 multiple-choice questions. The first 30 questions will
come directly from an
older North Carolina English I state exam. The remaining 70 questions will be
generated by me. To
get a sense of what types of questions students can expect to see on the
midterm, go to
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/accountability/testing/eoc/english1/ and click
on the
"composition" and "textual analysis" links. They will show you sample EOC
test questions.
6. The readings on the midterm will be (for the most part) texts that the
students have not yet read.
They will be challenged to read "fresh text" material and answer questions
that demonstrate various
comprehension skills. However, the Honors students should be prepared to
answer some questions
related to their novel "To Kill a Mockingbird," so they should bring their
copies of the novel to the
midterm.
7. The vocabulary words will be the LITERARY TERMS that we have been
reviewing all semester long.
Go to my home page and click on the "VOCABULARY" link to see some of these
words.
8. The grammar will focus on the following:
* Parts of Speech
* Independent and Dependent Clauses
* Run-On Sentences
* Semicolons
* Colons
* Commas
* Subject-Verb Agreement
9. The midterm is a one-shot deal. There is no retake for the midterm, so
students need to take it
seriously and do their best. The midterm counts 15% of the student's first
nine-weeks grade.
If you have any further questions about the midterm, send me an email or call
me.
Okay, now let's talk about this week's agenda. Let's start with my HONORS
ENGLISH I STUDENTS.
HONORS ENGLISH I:
Here is what we've got set for this week.....
I. Continue our discussion of the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird." This week, I
hope to cover chapters 6
- 12. Regardless of how far our class discussion gets in the novel, each and
every student needs to
be sticking to the reading schedule, which you can see listed further down on
this page. By FRIDAY,
MARCH 27, students should have read through CHAPTER 18. Since I will not be
in class on Friday,
March 27, I will not collect the homework related to Chapters 13 - 18 until
MONDAY, MARCH 30.
However, the homework for Chapters 7 - 12 is due by NO LATER THAN MONDAY,
MARCH 23.
II. I still plan to have a unit test on Chapters 1 - 12 on TUESDAY, MARCH 24.
Students will be allowed
and expected to use their novels when taking this test. The purpose of the
test is to reward those
who are keeping up with the reading and place pressure on those who are not.
It is also a way for
me to check each student's basic understanding of the novel.
III. We will begin some group work related to the novel this week. I plan to
have students complete a
variety of group work activities, including: (1) creating character sketch
posters for major /
significant characters in the novel, (2) creating their own chapter study
guides, and (3) presenting as
a group and in front of the rest of the class their own summaries and
analytical observations of
individual chapters.
IV. As for grammar, students will get notes about SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
RULES, and they will
apply their knowledge of those rules to several practice activities. They
will also receive a few more
literary terms that they need to be familiar with for the midterm. These
words are:
ALLEGORY
DIALOGUE
FICTION
IRONY
DRAMATIC IRONY
SITUATIONAL IRONY
COSMIC IRONY
VERBAL IRONY
V. Last week, I gave the students a lot of time in the library to work on a
CHARACTER ANALYSIS
essay based on a short story called "The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind."
Anyone who did not turn that
essay in last week needs to do so this week.
ON-LEVEL ENGLISH I:
Here is the agenda for my On-Level Students:
I. Last week, we read in class a short story called "The Most Dangerous
Game," and the students took
a quiz on that story. Anyone who was absent on the day we took the quiz needs
to see me about
making up that quiz.
II. On Monday, March 23, students will break off into groups of no more than
three and write a
fictional piece where they create their own new and original scene for "The
Most Dangerous Game."
You can go to the link on my home page called "English I Downloads" and
download a copy of the
assignment. This will count as a quiz grade.
III. We will also read at least two other short stories this week. There will
be in-class activities for
each story we read this week.
IV. As for grammar, students will get notes about SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
RULES, and they will
apply their knowledge of those rules to several practice activities. The
students will also begin
reviewing the various literary terms that they have learned so far this
semester.
V. There will be a GRAMMAR and READING TEST this FRIDAY, MARCH 27.
As always, contact me anytime you have any questions or concerns. My email is
DWILLIAM@NHCS.NET. My phone number is (910) 350-2089, ext. 348.
Thanks for all your support! I hope you have a fantastic week!
Dale Williamson
OLD NEWS:
NOTES FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 9 - 13:
Wow! What a beautiful weekend we just had. I hope everyone had the
opportunity to take advantage
of the sunshine and enjoy some outdoor time. Well, the weekend is over, and
now it's time to get
back to the lessons at hand. Here are our goals for this week:
HONORS ENGLISH I
1. Let me clarify this because there has been some confusion: WE ARE NOT
READING "A SEPARATE
PEACE" AS OUR CLASS NOVEL. The vast majority of the students were not happy
with the novel, so
we took a vote. The results: 20 students voted to change the novel, 6
students chose to keep the
novel, and three students did not care either way. Since we had not begun the
novel, I decided to
change our novel to "TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD." This is final. We will not
change our novel at this
point. To adjust, the student's homework for the week is to have read
CHAPTERS 1 - 6 of "To Kill a
Mockingbird" by FRIDAY, MARCH 13. In addition to reading these chapters, the
students are to
complete a homework packet that has a different activity for each chapter.
This homework packet is
also due on FRIDAY, MARCH 13. From this point on, I expect the students to
read a chapter a night
until we are done with the novel. The homework will be to read the novel at
home so we can discuss
and work with it during class. Here is the reading schedule for "To Kill a
Mockingbird":
BY FRIDAY, MARCH 13 -- Chapters 1 - 6 read.
BY FRIDAY, MARCH 20 -- Chapters 7 - 12 read.
ON TUESDAY, MARCH 24, STUDENTS WILL TAKE A UNIT TEST ON THE FIRST 12 CHAPTERS
OF THE
NOVEL.
BY FRIDAY, MARCH 27 -- Chapters 13 - 18 read.
BY WED., MARCH 31 -- Chapters 19 - 21 read.
MIDTERM EXAMS ARE ON APRIL 1 & 2.
SPRING BREAK BEGINS APRIL 3.
OVER SPRING BREAK, STUDENTS NEED TO FINISH READING THE NOVEL.
WHEN WE RETURN TO CLASS ON MONDAY, APRIL 13, WE WILL SPEND TWO DAYS IN CLASS
FINISHING
OUR DISCUSSION AND REVIEW OF THE NOVEL. THERE WILL BE A SECOND UNIT TEST ON
THE NOVEL
ON WEDNESDAY, APRIL 15.
Feel free to contact me if there are any questions about the novel.
2. In addition to the novel, we will continue our focus on GRAMMAR, READING
SKILLS, and
VOCABULARY TERMS related to the unit.
3. There will be a short reading skills quiz this FRIDAY, MARCH 13. The
reading will be based on
something that the students have not yet read. Students will read the text in
class and answer EOC-
type comprehension questions.
4. Students will also begin working in class on a new writing task related to
a story we read in class
("The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind"). This essay will be a CHARACTER ANALYSIS
essay.
ON-LEVEL ENGLISH I:
1. In addition to the novel, we will continue our focus on GRAMMAR, READING
SKILLS, and
VOCABULARY TERMS related to the unit.
2. There will be a short reading skills quiz this FRIDAY, MARCH 13. The
reading will be based on
something that the students have not yet read. Students will read the text in
class and answer EOC-
type comprehension questions.
3. Students will also begin working in class on a new writing task related to
a story we read in class
("The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind"). This essay will be a CHARACTER ANALYSIS
essay.
NOTES FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 2 - MARCH 6
HONORS ENGLISH I:
1. We will begin our fiction unit. We will discuss the short story "My
Brother's Keeper," which the students read last week in class. I also plan
for us to read at least two more short stories this week ("The Most Dangerous
Game" and "There Will Come Soft Rains." There is a short writing assignment
related to "My Brother's Keepers" that is due by WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4.
2. My Honors students should have their own copies of the the novel "A
Separate Peace." Their homework for the week is to read at least Chapters 1 -
6. The homework packet has specific activities to complete for each chapter.
I was originally going to have my Honors students read "To Kill a
Mockingbird," but I decided to change novels because several students had
already read this novel, and I wanted to teach something new.
3. The vocabulary for the next few weeks will all be literary terms related
to our fiction unit.
4. The grammar focus will be on SEMICOLONS and COLONS. We will plan for a
short grammar quiz this FRIDAY, MARCH 6.
5. FRIDAY, MARCH 6 is a half-day so homeroom teachers can try to meet with
parents and students to plan next year's classes.
ON-LEVEL ENGLISH I STUDENTS:
1. We will begin our fiction unit. We will read and discuss in class the
short story "My Brother's Keeper." I also plan for us to read "The Most
Dangerous Game." There will be a writing assignment related to either "My
Brother's Keepers" or "The Most Dangerous Game." The students will be able to
choose which story they want to focus their writing project on. This will be
an in-class writing activity that we will work on a little each day. I will
determine the due date later this week. THERE IS NO HOMEWORK PACKET FOR MY ON-
LEVEL STUDENTS THIS WEEK.
2. The vocabulary for the next few weeks will all be literary terms related
to our fiction unit.
3. The grammar focus will be on SEMICOLONS and COLONS. We will plan for a
short grammar quiz this FRIDAY, MARCH 6.
4. FRIDAY, MARCH 6 is a half-day so homeroom teachers can try to meet with
parents and students to plan next year's classes.
NOTES FOR THE WEEK OF FEB. 23 - 27
Looking at my original course plan, we are just a bit off schedule. but not
by much. We will finish our nonfiction unit this week, and next week we will
begin our FICTION UNIT.
HONORS ENGLISH I -- This week, my Honors students have been presenting their
TREE MAPS where they worked in groups and analyzed different speeches. The
presentations have been enjoyable, and the tree maps look great! For part of
their homework for the week, the Honors students are to create their own
ADVERTISEMENTS where they use PERSUASIVE WRITING TECHNIQUES to try to sell a
particular product. They can choose their product. The details and rubric for
this assignment are in their homework packet for the week. For our grammar
unit, we've been focusing on the proper use of COLONS and SEMICOLONS. We
will have a VOCABULARY QUIZ on THURSDAY, FEB. 26. I changed the quiz date
from Wednesday to Thursday so we could have another day of review. The words
are from out NONFICTION UNIT. You can go to my VOCABULARY link to see these
words. My Honors students will be assigned a novel this week. The novel will
be "TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD" by HARPER LEE. They will be given a reading
schedule. We will not begin this novel in class until the week of MARCH 9.
Students will have time to read ahead before we actually begin discussing and
working on the novel in class.
ON-LEVEL ENGLISH I:
1. A new homework packet was given out on Monday, Feb. 23. It is due by
Monday, March 2.
2. For our grammar unit, we've been focusing on the proper use of COLONS and
SEMICOLONS.
3. We will have a VOCABULARY QUIZ on THURSDAY, FEB. 26. I changed the quiz
date from Wednesday to Thursday so we could have another day of review. The
words are from out NONFICTION UNIT. You can go to my VOCABULARY link to see
these words.
4. My on-level students will work in class this week to create their own
ADVERTISEMENTS where they use PERSUASIVE WRITING TECHNIQUES to try to sell a
particular product. They can choose their product. The details and rubric for
this assignment can be downloaded from my homepage by clicking on
the "English I Downloads" link.
5. Next week, we will being our FICTION UNIT and start reading short stories
in class.
Hello, again. Just as a reminder, progress reports went out to my students
last week. The students
should have shared them with their parents / guardians and have them signed
and returned to me.
Also, the first major writing project is due this week. My Honors English I
students should have turned
in their BIOGRAPHY WRITING PROJECT today. My on-level students will turn
their project in on
Wednesday, Feb. 18.
In other news, here's the plan for the week of Feb. 16 - 20.
1. Continue with our NONFICTION unit, with a focus on PERSUASIVE WRITING.
Students will read at least
one example of a persuasive piece ("I Have a Dream") and analyze the writing
with a focus on what
rhetorical strategies the author uses to achieve his/her purpose.
2. The homework for the on-level English I students is to complete the
homework packet that I gave
them on Tuesday. You can download a copy of this packet by going to my
homework link. This is due
by MONDAY, FEB. 23. As for my Honors students, they have each been given a
green grammar
workbook. They are to complete pages 1 - 6 of the green grammar workbook.
This is due by MONDAY,
FEB. 23.
3. For our grammar unit, we will focus on identifying RUN-ON SENTENCES and
how to correct them.
There will be a grammar test this FRIDAY, FEB. 20.
6. Our vocabulary will continue to focus on the literary terms related to our
nonfiction unit.
7. Our reading skills focus will continue to revolve around using CONTEXT
CLUES in texts to determine
the meaning of unfamiliar words, author's tone, a text's mood, author's
purpose, and the overall main
idea / theme of a piece of writing.
I'm looking forward to working with my new students and their parents /
guardians this semester. Contact me anytime. My work number is (910) 350-
2089, ext. 348; my email is dwilliam@nhcs.net.
Dale Williamson
