Change in US History Assignment...

UPDATE: The dates below refer to the month of September and not August. So sorry!!

Be sure to check out the 9th and 10th US History Assignments page for a change: the addition of a reading assignment on Friday, August 5th, and Monday, August 8th. This addition was made during class on Thursday, August 4th, and the assignment page now reflects what was given in class. If you have any questions please leave a comment below.

Student Inventory...

On the first day of school I asked my students to fill out a Student Inventory sheet. This was basically a way for me to get to know my students a little better. Some of the statements/questions were:

• One word that I would use to describe the person I am is...
• My favorite subject in school is...
• If I could speak any language, I would choose...
• When I get home from school, here are the things you would find me doing:
• How would you choose to teach a lesson in this class: by video, by notes, by a creative project, etc.?
• What do you feel the Lord would have you do when you graduate from high school?

Some of the answers surprised me. As to the question about the language they would choose to learn, the responses ranged from Mandarin Chinese, to Italian, to Arabic...and my absolute favorite: an Australian accent.

As to how they would describe themselves, these responses started with helpful, to happy, to nerdy, neat, and even ok.

I wasn't really surprised as to the answers given to How would you choose to teach a class. Everyone seemed in agreement on this: by video!!

But my absolute favorite fill-in the blank was this: One thing I've always wondered is... Here are few of the responses:

• Who named numbers? (Me. too!)
• Is college hard? (Hmmm.....)
• Is the chicken at McDonald's real or not? (Do we really want to know?)
• How do great authors come up with such good ideas to put into books? (I know, right? I often think: Who comes up with this stuff?)
• What will my future be like? (The choices you make today will begin to shape who you will be tomorrow.)
• What does a unicorn look like? (I have no response.)
• What does it feel like to be in space? (I think that would be pretty awesome!)

You all are a great group of students to teach and I feel so honored to be your teacher!!

Change in Physical World Quiz...

Due to extreme confusion on the 9th and 10th Physical World Quiz today we will take a different quiz over sections 1B and C Thursday,  August 28th. Be sure to study!!

Small Changes...

As we get into the swing of school I am tweaking the arrangement and set-up of my blog to better serve you. Here are a couple of updates that you will find now:

1. The classes are now listed in the order of the school schedule. This may make it easier for you as you go to look up info on your particular class.
2. Each class' "Weekly Assignment" page has undergone a face-lift with more than one week of homework assignments listed. That way you'll have a good heads-up as to what to expect. You'll also be prepared if you have to be out of school for travel or sickness.
3. A "Grade Scale" page has been added to the above toolbar next to "My Favorites." This is in case you wanted to check out what letter grade you received on an assignment, quiz, or test.

If you think of any other ways in which this blog would help you, please feel free to leave me a comment below or drop off a note to me at school. This blog is here to serve you as you seek to do your best in school. Keep up the good work!

Chemistry Assignment Change....

The Chemistry quiz over sections 1B-C that was scheduled for Wednesday, August 27th, has been moved to Thursday, August 28th. This change will also be made on the Chemistry Assignments page. If you have any questions please be sure to leave a comment below.

Sharing...

I really enjoy learning about each of my students: their talents, their learning styles, their hobbies, and even their insights. One of my goals for this year is for every student to make life applications from the subjects that we are studying together. Hence came the idea for my bulletin board: "What this class means to me"...

Parents, if you get a chance to stop in my classroom I know you would enjoy reading some of the comments that were posted. Some descriptions or goals are very general but there are some like this one...

...that are quite insightful. And remember when you read, I did ask for honest opinions.

What you ask for "ye shall receive."

I plan to ask again in a few weeks to see if their perspective has changed once we've been through a few chapters and studied more on our subjects.

So stop in a read a few. I know you'll enjoy!

Already Working...

It was a busy first day back to school today. There was so much to hand out, so many things to go over, all in preparation for another great year of school.

The 9th and 10th U.S. History class were already hard at work reading and taking notes for tomorrow's lesson. We'll be looking at key events that sparked the South to secede from the North and the Civil War to commence.

Great first day, Everyone!