The Hughes News
Sophomore Honors English Newsletter ~ April 2018
LONDON CALLING--A Week in Review
PARENTS AS CONSULTANTS
Wants vs. Needs
For our last term, the sophomores and I will be taking a look at the difference between wants and needs--and what happens when an imbalance exists between the two.
Whether it means an old, reliable bicycle or a palace filled with gold, there are many ways that our possessions can represent our values and priorities. Many writers have explored why people sometimes want more than they need. This unit has been designed to allow [students] to consider a range of factors that influence how people decide how much they own (Pearson).
The unit starts with us asking, "Why do people acquire more than they need?" We will also watch THIS VIDEO about 14-year-old Hannah Salwen who convinced her family to sell their home and live on half of their income.
Whole-Class Reading Experience
While we have studied many texts together this year in our online anthology (i.e., Pearson), we will be reading our first full novel together this term: F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby! Keep in mind, your student has already read at least seven books this year, so The Great Gatsby is his/her eighth! However, this will be the first time we are all reading one full-length novel at the same time, which is exciting.
Gone are the days when we English teachers showed movies to go along with the texts. (After all, it's tough to convince the Powers that Be that we are meeting standards while watching a movie.) However, there is something magical about watching students--nearly a century later--see the relevance of Fitzgerald's colors, characterization, conflict, and consumerism of the 1920s! We will view the 2013 film adaptation together in class. You can watch THE TRAILER here.
Because this is our first--and only--movie together, the students are excited. We'll even have popcorn and water to enhance the movie-going experience!
Term 3 Grades
Report cards will go live in IPASS at 2:15 pm on Wednesday, April 11th.
Nevertheless, Parent/Teacher conferences are scheduled for Thursday, April 5th, from 6-8 PM. While teachers are happy to share snapshots with parents about student progress, final grades won't be available until the following week. So, grade-wise, the snapshot will be incomplete.
And if waiting in our deli-like line doesn't appeal to you, feel free to email me at beth.hughes@wpsk12.org for an update on your how your student is doing--beyond the numbers you can see in IPASS.
THE ART OF REPETITION
It’s none of their business that you have to learn to write.
Let them think you were born that way.
~Ernest Hemingway
Most honors students enter my classroom in the fall with the ability to craft organized, error-free writing. Which is fabulous. However, most students don't have the tools to take their writing to the next level. (And based on the Traits of an Honors Student, taken from the Honors English course description in WMHS' Program of Studies, honors students are already supposed to be writing on a more sophisticated level than their college prep counterparts.) One of the tools we recently emulated is Repetition, which is a "rhetorical device writers use to make their point clearer and more memorable" (Your Dictionary).
After looking at some fabulous examples in literature, the students set out to make this sophisticated technique their own. Take a look at some of their publishing!
- Writing can be a challenge. People need a challenge. A challenge is what helps people grow.
- It’s going to get better. Everything gets better in time and I plan on doing whatever I have to in order to make it better. I will force it to get better.
- We played for our families. We played for ourselves. But most importantly, we played for each other in the championship game.
- I couldn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe the vibrant colors right before my eyes. I couldn’t believe the delightful aromas filling the air. I couldn’t believe the overall sensation and feeling of safety. I couldn’t believe I found home.
- We waited not knowing what would happen. We waited not knowing if we would be happy with the results or not. We waited not knowing if the list would destroy friendships or bring people closer together.
- I don’t like running, I don’t like it at all. I don’t want to like running, I don’t want to like it at all, yet all I do is run.
- We’d get to see ball games, we’d get to see Broadway shows, we’d get to see some museums and we’d get to experience anything else New York has to offer.
- He fell hard. And he fell fast.
- Green is my favorite color. Green is the color of the trees. Green is the color of the grass. Green is the color of the land we call home.
- What’s outside the window? A thousand possibilities. What’s outside the window? A land far away. What’s outside the window? Anything but here.
- Tonight, we fight for our fathers, we fight for our mothers, we fight for our sisters, we fight for our sons, we fight for our daughters, we fight for our future. Tonight, my friends, we fight for our freedom.
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