end week 1

Here are some things I am listening to this weekend:

Also, I'm reading essays & big quizzes, celebrating G4's Ninja Fest with a barbeque, dusting off a guitar or 2, hanging w/ the family & friends.

Now, I wonder if anyone is reading this, so I will offer up some bonus points for those who are.

In the comments section below, write a minimum 100-word mini-manifesto about your take on public education. We discussed this briefly, inspired by Erica Goldson's valedictory speech.

I would like to read what you have to say, so the 1st 10 who state and support their opinion will earn 10 bonus points each.

(I also reserve the right to assign bonus points to anyone who writes a good response after those 1st 10.)

Think at the "macro"about the goal of public education, what we do with it, why our country has a 12-year mandate for all of us.

Think at the "micro" level about that which you hope to get out of this experience over the next 2 or 3 years.

BONUS OFFER EXPIRES AT 12:00 AM MONDAY 16 AUGUST.

(That means, "submit before the end of the day Sunday 15 August")

4our

Alter Bridge, Blackbird

This is Creed-minus-the-singer, which is a good thing. Later they needed or wanted money & brought Scott back, but for my money Alter Bridge > Creed.

As for English class . . .

You all wrote.

Juniors did the AP-open-question writing, from '74, '78, '94' or '04; you each had a choice of two & almost 24 hours to prepare, so my guess is that you did well. Oh, & you will read Sonya Jongsma's essay over the weekend . . . it's titled "Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: Friendship, Alienation, and Relationship Dynamics." You'll evaluate it, & we will discuss this 1st take on "theme" Monday.

Sophomores chose either a person or a moment from history to explain. I bet you all did pretty well, too.

I enjoyed this first week back, & I will enjoy this first weekend back.

I hope you do the same.

Be cool.

thr3e

Frankenstein, 1931-style

Juniors took a big quiz and prepared for the writing to come tomorrow, AP-style.

Sophomores prepared for the writing tomorrow, CAHSEE-style.

In other words, a lot of time pre-writing.

Speaking of which, I was busy all day, but if you're a junior night owl and checking this after 21:20, you can go over to the teacherweb site and review the prompts.

Be cool.

day too

Jeff Beck: performing this week . . . Live at Ronnie Scott's

I'm not going to go on a diatribe about just how phenomenal a guitar player Jeff Beck is, but if you want to hear it sometime, please ask.

Today we started our "Do Now . . . & Then" pages, which will be collected every few weeks and comprise the "participation" points for the class, and we read some quotations about education, heard some real insight from folks who have been through the home-school, private-school, and public-school worlds.

Good stuff all around.

Her name is Erica Goldson, and you can find the full text of the speech online and the video on youtube.

You should check it out.

As for tomorrow . . .

Juniors: a few questions about Frankenstein tomorrow, then prep for AP-style writing.

Sophomores: prep for timed CAHSEE-style writing.

Oh, and be cool.

day one

Music: Phineas & Ferb Soundtrack . . . perhaps the best song to open a school year: "Today is Gonna Be a Great Day"

Another successful year begins.

Today we did intros, and you learned about me and the class, while I learned about the books you read and the music you like, among other things.

Remember to get your "ALHS Department Policies and Practices" signed by Monday 16 August.

And perhaps most important . . . don't forget ALHS Academic Vocabulary Bingo.

be cool . . .

title

The title signifies a few things.

As a teacher, I will emphasize the importance of using active voice in your writing.

As a father, I try to teach my kids to be active physically, mentally, emotionally.

As a human, I hope you all use your voices actively.

So let's get started . . . tomorrow.

Welcome back, ALHS.