The Hughes News
Creative Writing II Newsletter ~ Sept. 2021
ABOUT TEACHER-LADY
I shared this flipbook with your student but wanted to reach out to you separately. My name is Ms. Hughes, and I’m a technology-loving, high school English teacher whose mission is to reintroduce her students to the love of reading through authentic, real-world tasks. This is my 25th year as a high school English teacher and 21st year at WMHS.
Now, before you try to do the math to figure out how old that makes me, I’m 25.
Or at least, my husband, Eric, says I don’t look a day over 25, and that, my friends, is why I’ve been married to that smart, smart man for 26 years. We have three children: Anna (a senior), William (a sophomore), and Bella (a dog). We purchased my childhood home 14 years ago and have been renovating it ever since. #moreprojectsthanmoney
I dabbled in higher education and management before becoming a high school teacher, and I feel Blessed to have stumbled onto something that I absolutely love. Yates had it right: “Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.” And I’m grateful to those students and colleagues who have kept the fire in this Lifelong Learner ablaze!
I look forward to working with you and your student this year!
Our Virtual Classroom
Virtual Classrooms are all the rage right now--not only because they look cute (Think: HGTV for Google Slides!); they also corral all of the resources that students (and parents/guardians) will regularly access throughout the year. Take a tour of our Virtual Classroom by clicking on the image below. In addition to the resources on the whiteboard (e.g., our syllabus, our current HW calendar, my pledge to your learner), move your mouse around the space to find the 20 (!) other hyperlinked resources. Once your cursor turns into a hand, click away!
OUR CLASS SYLLABUS
Click HERE to view the Syllabus for English this year. I shared this with your students during the first week of school.
I am entrusted with helping your student meet 44 (!) English Language Arts standards this year--standards that are grouped in the following strands:
- Reading (i.e., literature & nonfiction);
- Language (i.e., grammar, usage, & vocabulary);
- Writing (i.e., Argument, Informative, & Narrative modes); &
- Speaking & Listening (which includes digital media).
HERE are some of the ways your student will be meeting those standards.
GOOD WRITERS ARE READERS.
Any writer will tell you that Reading is the Inhale and Writing is the Exhale. Good writers are good readers. Period. In addition, the average college freshman is assigned 600 pages of reading per week? (It's 600 pages per class per week at the Ivies!) So, to help your writer improve their craft--while increasing their stamina and fostering lifelong reading, your student will select and enjoy one book each term this year. And I've made it easy by curating a (self-funded) classroom library that currently houses 2,800+ titles!
Research has long-supported that reading just 20 minutes a day is critical for your student's success. That feels like an eternity to my two kids at home; however, we'll get the ball rolling with 10 delicious minutes of reading at the beginning of each class. And when that timer goes off, someone almost always says, "C'mon! I was at a really good part!" The result? Students are excited about picking their books back up later in the day.
Ask your student what titles they plan on reading this year. Even better? Share some of your favorite titles with your reader. Full disclosure: You might get an eye-roll initially (unless that's just what happens in the Hughes Casa?), but chances are, your suggestion will most likely make the list. After you leave the room.
STAYING CONNECTED
As a connected educator, I used to manage private social media accounts and public ones. However, I quickly realized that if I'm teaching the students to be responsible with whatever they post online, I should let them see me doing the same.
In that vein, students are welcome to follow me online. (I don't follow students back until after they graduate--and even then, I'm selective.)
Parents are encouraged to follow me as well on Twitter, Instagram (school pics & family shenanigans), and Goodreads!
Finally, you might want to bookmark and/or follow our class website as well for easy access to class information and to stay current with the content. The PARENTS tab has a slew of resources to help parents/guardians support their students at home.
How to Contact Me
Email: beth.hughes@wpsk12.org
Website: msbethhughes.org
Location: Wakefield Memorial High School, Farm Street, Wakefield, MA, United States
Phone: (781) 246-6440
Twitter: @msbethhughes