Welcome to the official newsletter for all things Language Arts and Mr. Goldhammer. The purpose of this newsletter is simple: to allow parents and guardians a way to stay informed about their student's Language Arts experience and to promote involvement in his/her education. This newsletter is updated regularly and should be a great way to finally get an answer to that dreaded "what'd you learn at school today" question students so cleverly try to avoid. As "Hey Parents!" is a bit of an experiment, be sure to pass on any comments or suggestions that you may have. Enjoy.
October 13
Tue, Oct 13 2009 07:27
Well, with about 1.5 months down, I figured it was definitely time for a Hey Parents! update. As most of you know, this section of the website is dedicated to helping those folks at home stay a bit more connected with what's going on in class and with your particular student. So let's get to it:
In LA 10 Honors, you've probably noticed that your student is feeling a bit more relieved having just turned in his/her final essay on our 1st novel, All Quiet on the Western Front. This assignment marks the first, official "big" writing assignment for the year and from what I've seen thus far, most students are off to a great start. The structured writing program the high school has adopted continues to prove it's worth and this year's students show a commanding knowledge of the basics they need in order to tackle the formal, literary analysis style essays we'll be working on this year. If you have yet to sit down with your student and ask him/her what this whole "structured writing thing" is all about, be sure to do so. My guess is that you've heard them refer to Concrete Details, Commentary, and Chunks over the course of the last year and having them explain the basics of some of this language and terminology could be really useful in helping to engage them in discussions about what's going on in all of their classes.
As for what's next, today marked a big transition away from All Quiet and all of its relevant thematic discussions about war, human nature, and how we-- as engaged citizens--fit into that dialogue to something a bit older but by no means less demanding--Shakespeare. That's right, starting this week, your student will be plunging into the language of The Bard himself as we start tackling The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. Expect to see your student at home, working with the play itself, memorizing lines, and diving into all of the various thee's and thou's of Shakespeare's pen as we work through the play and explore the role of power, corruption, and loyalty not only in ancient Rome--but also as it applies to more modern times and themes. Students tend to respond very well to Caesar...especially after listening to those two whiners Romeo and Juliet complain about heartbreak for nearly an entire semester last year. While the bulk of the reading of Caesar will be done in class, students should be busy at home the next few weeks responding to the play and drawing on the text itself to support their interpretations.
Oh! and if you haven't noticed a stack of flash cards and regular, weekly studying for vocabulary and literary terms quizzes...be sure to ask 'em about that.
Now, for Creative Writing. Students in my Creative Writing class have also just gone through a transition of sorts as we have recently finished our first unit on setting and place and are just beginning to work on character. Over the past few weeks, your student has been hard at work observing the world around them, looking for the small details, and capturing it all in his/her writing. You may have noticed them working on a wide variety of assignments--writing about place, inventing fictional settings, and certainly working on a little assignment called the Fruitjournal (if you don't know about this one, be sure to ask 'em about it...for those who do, don't worry...it's almost over). Many parents are surprised to discover that their student is writing creatively virtually every day and sharing his/her work in front of the class on a daily basis...if you have yet to see anything your student has come up with, be sure to ask if you can take a peek--there's some incredible talent in this class and I guarantee you'll be blown away at what your student has come up with.
And with that, I think we'll wrap up this little update. Stay tuned (about once a month) for the latest news and as always, don't hesitate to be in touch if any questions or issues come up. Thanks for being involved!
Eric Goldhammer
Language Arts Teacher &
Department Chair
Mount Si High School
In LA 10 Honors, you've probably noticed that your student is feeling a bit more relieved having just turned in his/her final essay on our 1st novel, All Quiet on the Western Front. This assignment marks the first, official "big" writing assignment for the year and from what I've seen thus far, most students are off to a great start. The structured writing program the high school has adopted continues to prove it's worth and this year's students show a commanding knowledge of the basics they need in order to tackle the formal, literary analysis style essays we'll be working on this year. If you have yet to sit down with your student and ask him/her what this whole "structured writing thing" is all about, be sure to do so. My guess is that you've heard them refer to Concrete Details, Commentary, and Chunks over the course of the last year and having them explain the basics of some of this language and terminology could be really useful in helping to engage them in discussions about what's going on in all of their classes.
As for what's next, today marked a big transition away from All Quiet and all of its relevant thematic discussions about war, human nature, and how we-- as engaged citizens--fit into that dialogue to something a bit older but by no means less demanding--Shakespeare. That's right, starting this week, your student will be plunging into the language of The Bard himself as we start tackling The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. Expect to see your student at home, working with the play itself, memorizing lines, and diving into all of the various thee's and thou's of Shakespeare's pen as we work through the play and explore the role of power, corruption, and loyalty not only in ancient Rome--but also as it applies to more modern times and themes. Students tend to respond very well to Caesar...especially after listening to those two whiners Romeo and Juliet complain about heartbreak for nearly an entire semester last year. While the bulk of the reading of Caesar will be done in class, students should be busy at home the next few weeks responding to the play and drawing on the text itself to support their interpretations.Oh! and if you haven't noticed a stack of flash cards and regular, weekly studying for vocabulary and literary terms quizzes...be sure to ask 'em about that.
Now, for Creative Writing. Students in my Creative Writing class have also just gone through a transition of sorts as we have recently finished our first unit on setting and place and are just beginning to work on character. Over the past few weeks, your student has been hard at work observing the world around them, looking for the small details, and capturing it all in his/her writing. You may have noticed them working on a wide variety of assignments--writing about place, inventing fictional settings, and certainly working on a little assignment called the Fruitjournal (if you don't know about this one, be sure to ask 'em about it...for those who do, don't worry...it's almost over). Many parents are surprised to discover that their student is writing creatively virtually every day and sharing his/her work in front of the class on a daily basis...if you have yet to see anything your student has come up with, be sure to ask if you can take a peek--there's some incredible talent in this class and I guarantee you'll be blown away at what your student has come up with.And with that, I think we'll wrap up this little update. Stay tuned (about once a month) for the latest news and as always, don't hesitate to be in touch if any questions or issues come up. Thanks for being involved!
Eric Goldhammer
Language Arts Teacher &
Department Chair
Mount Si High School