It’s hot and humid outside and the leaves haven’t begun to fall just yet, but that means it’s time to start the 2022-23 school year. My schedule this year includes English 10 and Honors English 10. This is a particularly special year for me because I’m returning to the classroom after spending the last year at home caring for my twin baby boys.

All of our English classes began the school year with some community building activities and an introduction to the routines and resources that will be a part of our class. We also started by discussing the power of words and some of the bizarre oddities of the English language. For example, have you ever considered the words driveway and parkway…shouldn’t they be reversed?

After some testing to establish reading and writing baselines, English 10 will be launching a unit called The Power of Communication. Our anchor text for the unit is a graphic novel version of Animal Farm by George Orwell. We’ll also have some interesting poems, short stories, and essays to read that address this essential question: why do words matter? The primary assignment for this unit will task students with crafting their own campaign for an issue of importance to them and using words to advocate for positive change. In addition to the learning activities associated with our unit, students will complete vocabulary, grammar, and punctuation lessons.

Honors English 10 will also conduct reading and writing baseline testing, then we will tackle a unit called Sculpting Reality. The anchor text for this unit is the William Golding classic Lord Of The Flies. Students will use this essential question as guide through our unit: how do reason and emotion help us understand the world? In addition to poetry and short stories, students will read essays and speeches that relate to the unit’s essential question. Ultimately, Honors English 10 students will write analytically about these texts, especially Lord Of The Flies. They will also have a chance to consider how the story would be different as they debate which character would make the tribe’s best leader.

Parents and Guardians, if you’re looking to connect with your child about our English class and you want more than a “It’s okay” or “It’s good” answer to your questions then feel free to ask these questions below about the start of our school year:

• ALL CLASSES – What did you include in the hexagon identity that you made in class?
• ALL CLASSES – I heard you’ve read some poetry in class, which poem did you like best? Why?
• ENGLISH 10 – So one of your unit’s EQs is why do words matter, which seems like an important question. What are some of the answers to this question that you’ve uncovered in class?
• HONORS ENGLISH 10 – So one of your unit’s EQs is how do reason and emotion help us understand the world, which sounds really interesting. What answers to this question have you uncovered?