So, the photo’s not that great, but the content of it is worth its weight in gold. This is what I found when I walked into my classroom this morning. Not so impressive, you say. But, what it represents is the hard work of some community minded seniors (Lane, Bea, Rachel, Cooper, Olivia, and […]
Blog Archives
Lost in Translation, then Found
Muffled giggles from the other side of the seminar table. I walk around, find that one of my freshmen is on a page early in The Catcher in the Rye. “What’s funny, guys?” More giggles, but no response. “Seriously — what’s up here?” “Umm. We aren’t sure what ‘necking’ means.” “Oh. It means making out. OK?” […]
World War I in the classroom, through the archives, and on stage
Students in the 10th Grade European history course recently wrapped up their study of World War I. The unit highlighted best practices in education including differentiated instruction and project based learning. Historical context for the unit was covered through classroom instruction and discussion, the analysis of primary sources, and readings in the text. However, students […]
Reunion
“OK, we need some dogs–specifically, ‘a wolfish troop of watchdogs.’” “Me! Me! I’ll be a dog!” “Me, too!” “OK, but the text is clear that you’ll have to fawn on Telemakhos when he arrives at the hut.” “What’s ‘fawn’?” That fawning might be a deal-breaker on my assigning roles for our acting out a scene […]
Decisive Moments…
As the U.S. Supreme Court convenes this week to hear oral arguments on a number of important issues, the History Department launched a new elective course titled “Decisive Moments in United States History.” The course is modeled after the popular Science and Society course offered in the Winter Trimester. It is being team taught by […]
Senior Moment
Fortuitous intersection: I discovered through my English IV Honors students that those of them in AP Psychology were studying Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory just as freshmen in English read the middle chapters of Maya Angelou’s I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. (In these pages, the young girl must find her way back to emotional and psychological wholeness after a brutal sexual assault.)
Simulation of the U.K. Parliament
Last night (Thursday, 14 December), the AP Comparative Government class participated in a simulation of a House of Commons debate in the fabulously refurbished Study Hall. The atmosphere was formal and even a bit unruly as the debate heated up; much like the actual House of Commons. Students researched their assigned party positions on four […]
Getting out of the way
Last week and this, English IV Honors: Turning Toward Home met for Thursday’s class in my living room. We move here when I feel that the seminar table in Room C is too vast an ocean of oak, when I sense the students are not connecting across it as powerfully as I want for them–and […]
Overhauling the Ninth-grade History Curriculum
Dr. Delvecchio and I just finished day #2 with our new freshmen historians. We’re also on day #2 of a bit of an experiment this year. Instead of following the well-worn path of the traditional European history survey, we’re revamping the curriculum by creating thematic units that invite students to connect a “moment” in European […]
Room C Serendipity
It was Tuesday night of Portfolio week for my seniors, and I was planted at the Room C table with my laptop and my tall cup of tea, ready to help any of my English IV students who wanted a little guidance on their essay revisions. Along towards 7:30–the start of Study Hall, which is […]