Reading, Writing & Making (sense)
U School Humanities
What are you Thankful for? (November 22 - December 5 2015)
Thanksgiving is on November 26th. Before you get set to eat lots of turkey, spend time with family & friends, or go the mall on Black Friday; you should Go Hard and make sure you're on track in completing the Making Myths Unit.
Stating December 2, 2015 students who are not on track with their assignments will remain at school during Independent Learning time on Wednesdays to make up any missing work.
Below is important news you can use.
1.01 Making Myths Deadline November 29th
The deadline for submitting the best draft of your own mythical narrative or graphic story is November 29th.
Students should be moving close to completing the Making Myth unit. Students will demonstrate Higher Order Thinking and Performance tasks in: ELA.5 Writing Narrative, ELA..1 Reading Literature and HIS.2 Analyze Perspectives.
- Students are ahead of track if they are on activities 1.13 - 1.19 ( 1.19 HOT Task: Final Draft of Your Own Myth)
-Students are on track if they are on activities 1.08 - 1.12
-Students are behind track if they are on activities 1.01-1.07
1.05 HOT Task: Compare and contrast two myths is past due)
You can check out all the activities of the Making Myths Unit Guide by clicking on this link.
DAP Goal Setting - Why time is so important at the U School
Are you meeting your daily goals?
More students are doing much better with the routine of setting their Daily Action Plans.
Big props to the 10th grade group B for 85% of the class completing their DAPs at the Mid Week check point last week, and 10th grade group C also get props for showing a 50% growth in completing their DAPs.
Students who are making the most progress and meeting their goals are the students who are consistently completing their DAPs everyday.
Don't forgot to complete your DAP.
Looking for some more inspiration check out the " The Kid President" - Letter to a Person on their first day here.
On Demand Wednesday: Power of Storytelling
Students were assigned an ON Demand Task/ Test based on reading the graphic comic from Yes Magazine the Power of Story Telling.
Students were provided the opportunity to demonstrate their reading, and critical thinking skills, with this engaging assignment about the power of stories.
Students who did not submit this On Demand task/ test will receive a Missing grade.
Check out the link to the On Demand Task/. Test here:
Shout Outs
Awesome Sauce & Kudos to 10th graders, Will F. Jamira R, and Kasson J for highly exhibiting the U School Core Value of Persistence.
Shout out to 9th graders Melannie G., Sara M., and Fayana L. for the DEEP thought and persistence they consistently show in Humanities.
BIG shout out to Quran K., Diamond T., Wilmont D., and Solomon G. for spending their Saturday having important conversations with other young people!
Outside the U School
Friends' Central Visit:
On Saturday, November 21, 4 students from The U School participated in a Diversity Conference at Friends' Central School in Wynnewood. Quran Kelly, Diamond Thompson, Wilmont Dubar, Solomon Gay, Mr. McGeehan, and Ms. Date spent the day with students from public and private schools in the Philadelphia area, discussing issues of diversity and identity.
These students had powerful conversations that should continue at The U School and beyond. We hope to host a follow-up event in the Spring at The U School that will involve more U School and Philadelphia public school students in similar conversations.
Shout out to Jon G. and Kris S. for their consistent attendance and engagement at the Open Windows after school program. David A., Solomon G., Jacob S., Melannie G., Navi H., Anthony J., Dajahana P-J, Donnetta R-K, and Jalil C. for also attending the program multiple times!
Open Windowns Moore College of Art
On Tuesdays after school, students have been exploring technology and creativity in a program called "Open Windows". This program is facilitated by Matthew Kalasky, who works in the Galleries at Moore College of Art. Our last two meetings took us on trips to two of our local colleges - Moore and Temple. We visited the reForm exhibit that showcases items from the closed Fairhill School and gives a vision for what our education system could look like. The following week, we visited an animation class at Moore to interact with students and teachers who animate films and video games. At the end of our year together, we'll create an exhibition at Moore. Students who consistently attend and participate in the program will have a chance to keep the iPads we have been using at the end of the program!
Our next meeting is Tuesday, December 1 from 4:00-5:30pm in Ms. Date's room. We'd love to see you there!
Tuesday, Dec 1, 2015, 04:00 PM
U School 2000 N 7th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122
Humanties Team- Check Us Out: Then & Now
Samuel Reed Then & Now
I teach my students at the U School to read write and make -sense of the world-. My passions include arts in education, media literacy and understanding youth culture. I blog for the ‘Philadelphia Public School Notebook’ and published an article titled, ‘Connected Learning and the Rules of Engagement’ for ‘Heinemann’s Digital Campus’. I organize Boys.Write.Now and Girls.On.Fire, Art and Writing Workshops, and I organized a 2013 Cardboard Challenge in Philadelphia. I have been fortunate to live and travel abroad to such places as Botswana, Kenya and Russia.
Charles McGeehan Then & Now
I've been teaching in Philadelphia since 2010, and I have worked at 5 different schools, both charter and public. I am so excited to be at a place like The U School, where I see myself working for many years to come.
I grew up in Media, Pennsylvania, about 15 miles from our school. Both of my parents were teachers for many years - but I didn't always know I would follow in their footsteps. I grew up loving sports, and going to lots of high school, college, and professional games with my Dad. I went to UNC-Chapel Hill, and spent a lot of my time going to basketball games.
Rebecca Coven Then & Now
My interests include creative writing (especially poetry), social justice education, and increasing college access. Prior to moving to Philly over the summer, I lived in New York where I worked in education research and volunteered as an essay coach for a nonprofit organization focused on supporting students through the college application process.
I co-authored a guide called "In Search of a Match: A Guide for Helping Students Make Informed College Choices."
Contact us
Website: www.uschool.org
Location: 2000 N 7th St, Philadelphia, PA, United States
Phone: 215.684.3266
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uschoolphilly
Twitter: @uschoolphilly