Miss Moyer's English Page

Beginning of the 4th quarter! How time flies!

2010-03-26T06:42:00.000-07:00

We are one quarter away from the end of the year. Although in August the fourth quarter always seems so far away, time really does go quickly and it is here before we know it. I am hoping that spring is also here, because it has been a long winter.
So what's up in the English room? The freshmen finished Romeo and Juliet this week, and they will have a test over the play next Tuesday. I think it was a unanimous decision that Romeo and Juliet were both a bit on the dramatic side. After break, we will be beginning our communications unit, so do not be afraid if your freshmen start talking to themselves. The sophomores are coming near the end of To Kill a Mockingbird. We will finish the book next week, but will watch the movie, review, and take the test after the break. We have had some good class discussions and I think they like the book better than they thought they might. The tenth graders will be beginning their ABC books very soon. The juniors have been taking a look at some multicultural literature before heading into the big end of the year research paper. We will get going on that after break. The juniors do have independent novel studies due next Wednesday. The 8th graders have had their weekly spelling and vocab. They have also finished some writing assignments like their name reports and their nursery rhyme mysteries. They will be starting their poetry notebooks after the break.
Happy Spring!

This Week and Next Week in the Wonderful World of English

2010-02-25T19:16:00.000-08:00

We have been reading and reading and reading. The freshmen are reading Romeo and Juliet; ah, the joy of Shakespeare. The sophomores have begun reading To Kill a Mockingbird, and have been suffering through my Southern accent. Both of these will go well into the next couple of weeks. The juniors are finishing Of Mice and Men this week. I love this book. They will be watching the movie, completing a character poster, and then taking a test over the book next week. They always enjoy the book until I hit them with the end; that's when the shock kicks in. The 8th graders will be taken a parts of speech test next week as we wrap up our discussions of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, and adjectives. They will also have vocab due next Wednesday.

Classroom Update

2010-02-15T16:45:00.000-08:00

Alright, everybody, it has been a while. Here is what is going on this week in the English room.

8th grade: They are working on a writing project dealing with the bill of rights (it is actually in a conjunction with a social studies lesson). They will also have vocab due on Thursday.

9th grade: They are beginning Romeo and Juliet. This will be pretty time consuming and will take several weeks. They will have reading guides to complete in class but no homework due this week.

10th grade: They are going to be finishing up Our Town this week. They will finish watching the PBS Masterpiece Theater version of the play and have a test at the end of the week.

11th grade: The students have begun reading one of my favorite books, Of Mice and Men. They have reading guides to complete for each chapter.

Welcome to the 3rd Quarter

2010-01-19T15:28:00.000-08:00

Well, we have started the 3rd quarter. Here is what is going on this week:

The 8th grade will be continuing work on verbs, nouns, and modifiers. They will have a spelling test on Thursday.

The 9th grade have finally finished their mythology unit--snow days and breaks made it seem like it lasted FOREVER! This week we will start reading one of my favorite books, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. The majority of work will take place in the classroom.

The sophomores are continuing to work on their Essex research projects, the precursor to reading the play Our Town. They will continue to work on these projects this week and next.

The juniors are moving into the Modern era of American literature and will be reading stories by authors from the time period.

Novel/author studies due January12th!

2010-01-08T19:31:00.000-08:00

Are we all tired of the snow yet? Between Christmas break and all of our snow days, the schedule in the English classroom has been crazy. Needless to say the willingness to adapt and revise have been key. The biggest thing to be aware of is the independent novel and author study each student is doing. These were assigned at the beginning of December and are due on Tuesday, January 12th. The freshmen, sophomores, and juniors all have novel/author studies due. These are the biggest projects of the quarter and will be a large percent of their quarter grade. It is VERY important to get them completed!

November 30-December 4

2009-11-30T19:19:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that it is December already. I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving.

We are back to a full week of school and here is what is happening this week:
8th grade--The eighth graders are working on verb tenses this week. They will have daily assignments. They also have vocabulary due on Thursday.
9th grade--The freshmen are in the middle of their Greek mythology unit. They will not have any out of class work due.
10th grade--The sophomores are beginning Twelve Angry Men. The play will be a change of pace after Lord of the Flies. The will not have work to complete outside of the classroom.
11th grade--The juniors have been taking a look at the Transcendentalists and are focusing this week on the women of the movement. They will not have anything due this week, they should however be working on their independent novel/author studies. They have two books with accompanying report and projects due at the end of the quarter.

There will be a new face in the classroom for a bit. Nikki Graham is observing the classroom a couple of days a week during junior English.

Have a good week.

What's Happening?

2009-11-16T15:20:00.000-08:00

Here is what's happening this week:
Freshmen--They are starting a mythology unit. They have mythology action figure posters due Wednesday.
Sophomores--The sophomores are finally finishing The Lord of the Flies. They will be writing biopoems which will be due next Monday. They will review for their book test on Thursday and will take the test over The Lord of the Flies on Friday.
8th--They are working on verbs this week. They have vocab due on Thursday and will have their vocab quiz that day too.
Juniors--The juniors were given guidelines for their independent novel/author studies today. They will be due in January. They will also be reading a couple of Poe pieces this week.

This Week In the English Classroom

2009-11-11T16:04:00.000-08:00

This week has been a bit crazy due to the ITBS/ITED test schedule. Every class, except 8th grade, has missed at least one class period; but, we have still been utilizing the time we have had. The 9th grade took a test today over The Old Man and the Sea. They next be starting a unit on Greek mythology. The 10th graders are still working their way through The Lord of the Flies; I was hoping that we would be able to finish the book this week, but with the ITEDs yesterday and the Veteran's program today, we may have to finish Monday. The 8th graders have been working on sentences--subjects, predicates, and verb phrases. They have had assignments on a daily basis, but most get finished during class. This is a spelling week so they have their spelling tests tomorrow. The 11th grade have been reading some Hawthorne this week.

Happy November, Happy Second Quarter

2009-11-02T16:03:00.000-08:00

Well, we have already begun the second quarter. How time flies! I did not post anything last week; but do not fret, we did not have anything major happening.
This week will be a little busier. The freshmen should finish reading The Old Man and the Sea and complete the reading guide for tomorrow. They will watch the movie version for the remainder of the week and will have a test over the book next week. The sophomores are about halfway through The Lord of the Flies; their only responsibility is to keep up on their reading guide--it will be invaluable at test time. The juniors finished reading The Legend of Sleepy Hollow today. I think they have discovered that the original version is not quite the story they know. They will be watching the movie version this week and will have a comparison essay (comparing the original story to the Hollywood version) due next Monday. Last, but not least, the 8th graders will begin working on usage and grammar. They will have their vocab unit 4 due Wednesday of this week. They will have their vocab test and spelling unit 6 pretest on Thursday. They will have a grammar assignment on Wednesday that will be handed in on Thursday as well.
I am sure we are all looking forward our day off on Friday. Have a great short week.

What Is Going On This Week?

2009-10-21T10:05:00.000-07:00

This week in English, the kids are doing the following:
The freshmen are reading The Old Man and the Sea. We have been completing a reading guide as we read in class.
The sophomores are reading The Lord of the Flies. They, too, are completing a reading guide as we read.
The juniors have finally finished reading The Crucible and are now watching the movie. (We had originally planned to do that last week, but there was a delay)
The 8th graders have been working on a Fairy Tale eyewitness news report project and have script due on Friday.

The Quarter Is Winding Down

2009-10-21T09:53:00.000-07:00

The end of the first quarter is almost here. Keeping that in mind, any make-up work from absences need to be made up as soon as possible. Luckily, there hasn't been near as many gone this week. If anyone wants extra credit, I need kleenexes turned in by next Wednesday so that I can get it entered into the gradebook.
Speaking of extra credit, the kleenexes are still a possibility; but after last week, I have extended the list of item that students can bring in. With the threat of N1H1 and the regular flu, if kids would like to bring in Lysol or disinfecting wipes that would be great. If we can wipe down desks, sanitize pens and pencils, etc., then hopefully we can keep illnesses from spreading.

Weekly Update

2009-10-13T09:25:00.000-07:00

This week in English:
The freshmen have a short story test on Thursday and will begin reading The Old Man and the Sea, which will take a couple of weeks.
The juniors have a test over The Crucible on Wednesday and will begin to watch the movie.
The sophomores have begun reading Lord of the Flies, which will take several weeks.
The 8th grade are finishing eyewitness reports and have a spelling test on Thursday.

Kleenex Extra Credit

2009-10-07T10:14:00.001-07:00

The kids are always looking for extra credit opportunities. I am not real big on extra credit because usually those who need extra credit are in that position because they did not do the work assigned originally; therefore, why would I make-up extra work for them to do after the fact. I do, however, have one way for anyone to earn extra credit--kleenexes. The first year I taught, I almost went broke trying to provide kleenexes for my classroom--during cold and flu season multiple boxes are used per week. If I didn't buy kleenexes, I had students in and out of the classroom in search of toilet paper. That is why I decided kleenexes made a good extra credit opportunity; the classroom was provided with a necessary item and there was not any extra work for either the student or myself. Each student may bring up to three boxes a quarter; each box is worth 20 points. I do not care what brand they are, whether they are lotion or plain, or whether they are in a cube or in a long box; they just need to be kleenexes. (obviously they do need to be larger than travel size)

Nothing Too Exciting

2009-10-07T10:01:00.000-07:00

Nothing too exciting is happening right now in the English room. The 8th graders are working on rough drafts of eyewitness reports of a sporting event; they also have vocabulary due tomorrow. The freshmen read another Sherlock Holmes story this week and are watching The Hound of Baskervilles. The sophomores have read a couple of short stories this week and will end the week beginning to write an original short story. The juniors are still pounding away at The Crucible--a great play but it does seem to last forever, luckily the end is in sight.

What's up?

2009-09-29T16:16:00.000-07:00

Here is what's up this week: the 11th graders are in the middle of reading The Crucible, the 10th graders will be reading several short stories and completing questions, the 9th graders are reading a Sherlock Holmes story, and the 8th graders have spelling to do and are righting their theme songs. The 8th grade spelling test is on Thursday.

Pictures for the Yearbook

2009-09-27T13:59:00.000-07:00

The yearbook staff tries to get everywhere we need to be and take pictures of everything that we need to take pictures of; however, we may miss some great shots. If you have any pictures of games, performances, or special events and occasions and would like to see them in the yearbook, we would love to check them out. We especially need pictures of elementary activities, as we do not always get a heads up on them. The pictures can be sent via email or can be delivered on a flash drive, memory card, or CD (just make sure that there is a name so that we can give credit where credit is due and so that we can return anything to the rightful owner). Thanks.

Not Much to Report

2009-09-27T13:51:00.000-07:00

It has been awhile since I have posted anything. Last week was pretty hectic, but not because of school work. Homecoming is a fun time, but always a bit crazy. The kids haven't had any major assignments, just the day to day stuff. There have been some questions to go with stories and the kids have been pretty on top of things, getting them done and turned in. This week will be back to normal.

This Week In the World of English

2009-09-16T18:33:00.000-07:00

There hasn't been anything major due this week. The 8th graders have been working on a draft for their personal narratives. They do have their weekly spelling assignment and test due tomorrow. The freshmen and sophomores have been reading some longer short stories so have only had one set of questions due this week. The juniors have started reading The Crucible . They have a reading guide to fill out in class as we read, but no outside assignments due. The play will take a couple of weeks to get through.
I have resorted to bargaining with the kids. The freshmen and sophomores have been promised cookies if we can go two weeks without any late assignments. So far, it appears that it may be awhile until that happens, as three days into the deal we have had several late with their homework. The 8th graders have a deal as well; they get cookies if everyone gets a 100% on their spelling test. We will find out tomorrow if I need to add baking to my weekend "to do" list.

For Next Week

2009-09-11T15:19:00.000-07:00

The eighth graders have sentences to write for their vocab words 11-20. The freshmen have questions for "Gift of the Magi" 1-4 and 6. The juniors have questions for the Salem Trial piece. These are all due on Monday. Have a great weekend!

Due This Week

2009-09-09T17:09:00.000-07:00

Alright, all, there is work to be done. The 8th graders have a spelling test tomorrow. They also have their spelling packet and their 1-10 vocab sentences due tomorrow. The freshmen have questions due tomorrow. My sophomores are to write an ending to the story "Man Called Dead" for tomorrow and an obituary for Friday. The juniors have a comparison essay due on Friday.

Yearbooks!

2009-09-03T17:39:00.000-07:00

Yearbooks for the 2008-2009 school year have arrived. There are extras if you were unable to get an order in last year but would like one. They are $45. We are also taking orders for the 2009-2010 yearbooks. They too are $45 ( more for personalization).

Homework Due!

2009-09-03T17:23:00.000-07:00

We have a long weekend ahead and some homework to keep you busy. For Tuesday, the freshmen need to have their movie pitch for "The Most Dangerous Game" completed, the sophomores need to have their 3 wishes essay done, and the juniors need to have their 12 line devotional poems written. Have a great weekend!

Getting Into the Swing of Things

2009-09-02T17:20:00.000-07:00

Okay,we have officially been in school one full week and I think everybody is getting into the swing of things. The freshmen and the sophomores have started short story units while the juniors are looking at literature from the Puritan time period (I think they have quickly discovered that the Puritans were not the life of any party). So far, things are looking good and I am looking forward to the rest of the school year.

Welcome, Everyone!

2009-08-08T01:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, I am going to try something new this year. Computers have become a big part of our lives and so I figured I would use them to my advantage (and to yours). Here is the plan:
I will use the blog to make announcements related to the English classes, the yearbook, speech, the play, and regarding anything else I think you may need to know. I also intend on keeping everyone up to date on what is happening in the classroom--who we are reading, what we are working on, etc. There may be photos and I am hoping to share some student work. My goal is to provide parents with the opportunity of knowing what their student is doing or should be doing. I also want to give the students the opportunity of publishing their work and sharing it with someone other than me. Technology is out there, I might as well use it; and hopefully, we will all benefit.