Everything English
UCPS English Curriculum News and Events
May 2016
Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! I hope you know that you are appreciated every, every day! Since this is the official time for appreciation, I wanted to share just a few things I have appreciated about you this year...
I have appreciated your energy. You have volunteered for projects, like the Curriculum Team, ACT workshops and scoring, Poetry Out Loud, extracurricular activities, conference presentations, and PD events.
I have appreciated your curiosity and ingenuity. You have asked questions about EOCs, NCFEs, and other testing. You have wondered about curriculum. You have thought about the best ways to reach your students and how what you are teaching impacts them. You have never stopped asking the important questions or trying new things.
I have appreciated your openness. You have invited me into your classrooms to visit, to see presentations, to conference with students, to see projects, and to co-teach. You have invited me to your PLC and department meetings. You've put up with my questions and ideas (and sometimes ask for more!).
I have appreciated your generosity. I miss students, and many of you have shared yours and allowed me to help them and answer their questions. You have shared your snacks, your sodas, and your gum. You have shared your assignment ideas and your department folders. You have shared your love of writing, your passion for books, your heart for poetry, and your delight for teaching.
Thank you so much.
Also, in the world of tangible rewards, Chic Fil A is celebrating Teacher Appreciation Day on Tuesday, May 3. If you show your ID, you can get a free sandwich. Chipotle is offering a buy one menu item, get another menu item for free special for teachers on Tuesday from 3 p.m. until closing.
Finally, please don't forget to email me your summer reading recommendations! I'd like to include a list in the June newsletter.
Have a wonderful day!
Lucy
Union County Public Library
English Curriculum Team
This will be our final meeting for the 2015-2016 school year. Please email me if you have any agenda items.
This year the team has successfully revised all of the English I and English II benchmarks and created a SchoolNet benchmark for English III. This has been a tremendous undertaking! Thanks to everyone who has attended meetings and provided feedback; especially huge thanks go to the benchmark creation teams: Lindsey Arant, Colleen Bergin, Marisa DiFronzo, Lisa Eaton, Lea Fuller, Jennifer Goodson, GaVonne Hamilton, Rhonda Hill, Hillary Miles, Jennifer Mitchell, Lisa Pendleton, Acacia Sammons, Nicole Shroyer, and Stacy Vickers.
Applications for the 2016-2017 English Curriculum Team will be available in August!
Congrats to DiFronzo!
Marisa DiFronzo of Weddington High School is being honored in two very special events this month:
Tiffany Shreves, one of her former students, who is now one of this year's seniors, submitted an essay for Union County's Sweet Salute. Of all of the essays submitted honoring the impact of an educator, Tiffany's was one of the top twelve chosen in the county. Since Tiffany's essay was one of the top chosen, Tiffany and Marisa will be attending the Sweet Salute event on the evening of Thursday, March 5. Tiffany will also receive scholarship money for college!
On Thursday, May 26, she will be attending the Student Educator Recognition Banquet with Sanam Pillai. This event honors the top 20 seniors in the graduating class, and each student honors the teacher that had the greatest impact on her life.
First Folio Exhibit
The N.C. Museum of History will host an original First Folio of Shakespeare from Saturday, May 7, through Monday, May 30, as part of a national touring exhibition celebrating 400 years of Shakespeare.
The N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh will host an original 1623 Shakespeare First Folio. Considered one of the most influential books in the world, the First Folio includes 36 of Shakespeare’s plays, 18 of which had never been printed before. Without the First Folio, all of those plays — including “Macbeth,” “Julius Caesar,” “Twelfth Night,” “The Tempest,” “As You Like It” — might have been lost forever. Compiled by two of his friends and fellow theater colleagues, the First Folio was published seven years after Shakespeare’s death in 1616.
Saturday, May 7, 2016, 09:00 AM
North Carolina Museum of History, East Edenton Street, Raleigh, NC, United States
SPCC Multicultural Festival
Friday, May 6, 2016, 12:00 PM
South Piedmont Community College, Old Charlotte Highway, Monroe, NC, United States
Summer PD from NCTE
What I am Reading (and Listening to)
The Laws of Murder: A Charles Lenox Mystery by Charles Finch: I have been reading this series about detective Charles Lenox for a while now; it's period fiction and charming as a hot cup of tea.
Edit Your Life Show: This podcast has been inspiring me, perhaps because it's spring and I'm in a de-cluttering sort of mood. If you have kids, these podcasters are full of helpful parenting hacks.
About me
High School English Instructional Content Facilitator
Email: lucy.steele@ucps.k12.nc.us
Website: https://sites.google.com/a/ucps.k12.nc.us/hs-english-curriculum-resources/
Location: Cuthbertson High School, Cuthbertson Road, Waxhaw, NC, United States
Phone: 803-673-1662
Twitter: @LucySteeleEng