Journal 1-3

English 11

I got so excited today that I forgot to collect homework in 3rd period and I almost forgot the quiz in 5th! We're discussing "The World on the Turtle's Back," and I asked students to find, copy and cite six examples of opposition in the myth. Today, we were supposed to have a short quiz and then spend the rest of the period discussing the piece. At the end of the period, I was going to collect their examples. 2nd period ran like clockwork; I ended right on time. 3rd period I ran a little short and forgot to ask for their homework! 5th period, I was so wrapped up in NOT FORGETTING HOMEWORK (like a neon sign at the back of my classroom) that I almost forgot the reading quiz! I feel like I need to take a deep breath at the beginning of class and CALM DOWN.

reflection
Before all the business with forgetting my stuff, we did a really great mini-lesson. Students have their quotation paragraphs due Friday, and I want to make sure they know how to punctuate their work. We went through a short set of general rules for punctuating (no exceptions, just the basic stuff) and then I asked them to apply the lesson to everything they do from now on...in all their classes. 2nd and 3rd period looked very serious. 5th period was divided once again - the girls had some clarifying questions while the boys sought to distract me with off-topic questions. I didn't have the students reflect after this quiz like I did with the quiz on Monday, but I've been thinking about the quotation paragraphs and the essay that's due Friday (by the way, I assigned an essay) and I'm not sure what I want to do. I think I'll have the students answer a few questions on the back of their paper: Did you use evidence, why? Did you plan your paper, why? Did you put forth 100% effort, why? Do you think there are any avoidable errors on your paper, why? It's not that I don't think they're taking my class serious, but I do want to know their thought process as they write. I may also have them do a journal - what did you like/dislike about this essay assignment? I'm not sure...I'm still playing with ideas.

English 12
In class today, we had a mini-lesson, which went well, then we continued our discussion of the essay from yesterday. This class is already veering towards chaos. I can feel them slipping away from me. One of my students stayed after class and talked to me about the wildness; another student approached me yesterday after school for the same reason. I'm going to have to lay down the law for these guys. I did it on the second day of school (a week ago tomorrow), and it looks like I'll have to be strict for a while. Mohawk boy is the worst. He sees an opening and takes advantage. Stubborn Boy is a subverter; he and his friends Dragon Boy and Dyed Mohawk Boy spent a lot of time whispering back and forth. When I called them on it, they complained that they shouldn't have to pay attention because they didn't understand what we were doing. We were discussing ways that we weren't going to be like our parents. I need to find a way to keep the fun in the class, but in such a way that emphasizes that I'm serious about running class.

reflection
The mini-lesson (varied punctuation) went very well. Students who might not have said anything last year (like Pony-Tail Girl) were right there volunteering to write on the board. I awarded five extra credit points to the people who really took the assignment seriously. We moved on to discussing the essay from yesterday. I had thought that students would complain that it was all one paragraph, but it didn't seem to faze them. Even though we've written lots of essays in the past, I know that some students would still write in a single paragraph if I didn't remind them otherwise. We did have the issues with discipline...I reflected above that I have to find a balance with this class. I have to do it soon. The same thing happened with my senior class last year and I paid the price all year. I don't want that again. I think tomorrow I'm going to give exit slips to the students and ask them to write down how they think class went and why. Maybe that will work...