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Whew! That was a busy two weeks in AP Seminar! I hope your students have shared their successes with you. We have completed a full practice run of the first AP performance task--an individual research report (IRR) followed by a team multimedia presentation (TMP). I think everyone learned a lot--how to better narrow a research question, how to have the tough discussions about what to cut and what to keep, how to make sure your research isn’t full of holes, etc. Students will receive scores for the both the IRR and TMP on Monday. Those scores will count for now, but as we continue to hone our skills, they will have opportunities to replace and improve them.
This weekend they are working on a practice essay to prepare for the end of course exam. The exam in May will have two parts: part A asks them to read and analyze a piece of research; part B asks them to read four pieces of research and find a common theme for which they can make an argument. I really like the assessment because I think it measures students’ ability to think critically about a text and then extend that thinking to their writing. This weekend is their first stab at part B. We will discuss the results on Monday and then do one “for real” next week. As always, this is something we will return to multiple times and students will have many opportunities to improve and replace their score. My goal for them is consistent, high quality critical thinking and writing by the end of the semester. We are also starting a unit on Monsters this week (Halloween appropriate!). Students will use that very loose term to consider what monsters they see in our world. We will start by looking back into history--all the way back to how early explorers drew maps and created monsters in the margins when they didn’t know what was out there! Then we’ll move to some literature examples like Medusa. Finally we’ll get to present day and talk about what we monster-ize. I think the students will really enjoy it. Last year this theme produced an incredibly wide variety of research topics. Have a great weekend! I’m looking forward to seeing many of you at conferences and I still have spots available if you haven’t signed up yet.
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The upcoming two weeks are important assessment weeks in AP Lang. Students have been practicing a number of skills, and this is their chance to show me what they know!
Tuesday, they will write a timed, constructed response on James Baldwin’s A Talk to Teachers. They have already written two that I’ve scored, and we have since written a number in class for feedback only. Students have been encouraged to read the piece carefully and take notes on the piece in their notebooks. They will have time in class to compare notes with peers on Monday. Please ask them to tell you about this piece and their preparation. For the rest of the week, we will work on reviewing and preparing for the other two assessments coming up. Their Synthesis essays on education will be due on Monday, October 30. Students are working on developing an authentic, research based argument as well as a strong argumentative voice. We used this and this as our models. At this point, I’ve talked to almost every student (I’ll talk to the last 4 Monday) about their rough drafts and given them some feedback about revising and strengthening those drafts. Students can come to AA this week to work with former AP Lang students on revision; we will also do some revision work in class. If you’re lucky, they might even share their essays with you!! They’re chosen some excellent, education related topics. We will also be prepping for a second try at an annotating assessment. On Wednesday, November 1, students will receive a new text in class that they will read and annotate for a score. They did this in the last unit--and they were pretty successful!--but now we are going to see how they do with a slightly more challenging (older) text. To prepare between now and then, students should be reviewing their annotation notes carefully, coming to see me before school if they feel they need extra help, and engaging fully in the practice time in class. With all of these assessments, please encourage your students to come see me and ask for help if they are unsure of their skills. I want those assessment days to feel like victory laps--they’re just showing me how they’ve improved! I hope to see many of you at conferences this week. Meeting parents helps me learn so much about my students.I know I still have conference times available. If you can’t make it, always feel free to reach out to me via email. This is a big week in AP Sem--our first big essays are due on Monday! Students have been hard at work on their Individual Research Reports, and I’m excited to read the final drafts they’ll be sharing with me on Monday. Please ask them to share those with you this weekend!
We will spend Monday and Tuesday moving from the IRRs (Individual Research Reports) to TMPS (Team Multimedia Presentations). Students will work with their small groups to sift through the information they gathered individually and come up with a solution or answer to the question they posed at the beginning of their research. This is a challenging and messy process as they have to negotiate with their group members to create an argument that is cohesive rather than simply a summary of what each member researched. In addition to their argumentation and presentation skills, students are being assessed on their ability to work effectively in a group. I encourage you to chat about this process with your students; some work very naturally and easily in groups, but others struggle. Often, I find that strong students struggle the most because they are hesitant to trust their group members. This “soft” skill, though, is one that will be invaluable to them as they move on to college and their careers someday. The more we can practice it now, the better! By the end of the week, students will have completed the presentations and will have access to their videotaped performances. We will watch them, reflect on their performance and reflect on the group process as a whole. Students will receive two scores for these assignments. One will be their holistic score on the 4 point scale they received with the assignment and will “count” toward their grade. The other score will be on the AP rubric that will be used to assess their work in April by the College Board. This score will not count this time, but I will urge students to use it as a way to zoom in on which skills they need to improve prior to their AP assessment. Please encourage your students to work hard in class this week! They are always welcome to work outside of class on group projects, but that is very challenging with such involved students! They have lots of class time to work, and if they are managing their time wisely, they should be able to accomplish most of their work in class. Last thing! I received an email from my daughter’s kindergarten teacher this week asking for various donations and supplies, and I added a few things to my shopping list instantly because I’m more than happy to do anything to make her life with 25 five year olds a little easier!! It occurred to me that perhaps some of you would have the same response! Please do not feel obligated, but if you’re willing, here are few things that would make our life in 266 a little easier: --Hand sanitizer --Kleenex --Gum --Books for our class library (I’ll take any donations! Books you’ve read and no longer want are always appreciated. Or, if you are like me and love to buy books, here is a list of books that have “disappeared” from my library over the years plus some new ones I’d love to share with kids: http://a.co/5cAcQaC) Have a great weekend and Go Green! Hello and happy game day! This Spartan is feeling a little nervous, so I’ll distract myself by giving you an update on what we are up to in AP Language with our second thematic unit: Education.
This week we will dive into a week of solid reading and writing workshop time. This week’s reading challenge is to read pre-20th century complex texts. We will read a number of things to practice, but the one we will focus on the most is Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Education.” Students who need extra help will have access to my guided reading videos on Google Classroom. These allow students to read along with me and watch as I model how to annotate. Feel free to read it yourself and continue the discussion at home! I'm sure they'd love that :) For writing, we’ll be focusing on our first major essay. Students began researching topics of interest last week. This weekend they should be forming their research question. We have talked a lot about the need for them to begin with an actual question--not a topic, not an argument! Students need to go into the research process expecting to be surprised by what they find and prepared to change course if their research reveals something unexpected. Please ask them to share their research questions with you this weekend. As they work in class, I’ll be meeting with students individually to assess the language and vocabulary sections of their notebooks. On Friday in class we talked about what students need to demonstrate in that conference to earn an A. Please ask them to show you their vocabulary sections in their notebooks as they prepare this weekend. As always, beyond our reading and writing skills, we are highly focused on students managing their own time and directing their own learning. On Monday I’ll be sharing the plan for the next three weeks with students. I’ll show them which practice assignments will help them prepare for the unit assessments. Their homework Monday night will be to make a plan for themselves for what they need to focus on over the course of the next few weeks. Last thing! I received an email from my daughter’s kindergarten teacher this week asking for various donations and supplies, and I added a few things to my shopping list instantly because I’m more than happy to do anything to make her life with 25 five year olds a little easier!! It occurred to me that perhaps some of you would have the same response! Please do not feel obligated, but if you’re willing, here are few things that would make our life in 266 a little easier: --Hand sanitizer --Kleenex --Gum --Books for our class library (I’ll take any donations! Books you’ve read and no longer want are always appreciated. Or, if you are like me and love to buy books, here is a list of books that have “disappeared” from my library over the years plus some new ones I’d love to share with kids: http://a.co/5cAcQaC) Have a great weekend and Go Green! |
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