Week of November 16th.....

Honors American Literature:
We had a blast at the Booth Museum. It was so great and the students got to hear Sam Renken read some of his Cowboy poems. Students will now write their own Cowboy poem, essay, narrative poem or short story based on what we learned on our visit.

AP Literature:
We are going to begin our discussion of looking at Literature through a critical lens. The first approach we are going to explore is Feminism as we read The Awakening. We will read some of the foundation documents of the Feminist movement in literature.

Week of November 9th....

Honors American Literature and AP Literature:

This week, we will have our Units 5-8 Vocabulary quiz. Also, Honors American Literature will be taking our field trip on Thursday to Booth Western Art Museum.


Regular American Literature:
We will begin our discussion of Puritan poetry.

Week of November 2nd....

Honors American Literature and  American Literature:

We will continue to watch and discuss The Crucible as needed to complete our understanding of how different versions treat the themes of the play different.

AP Literature:
We will finish our first major unit by practicing AP multiple choice questions and discussing grades and rewrites. Students have about a month to pay their AP deposits for tests they want to take.

Week of October 26....

Honors American and American Literature:
This week, we will be watching and discussing aspects of The Crucible. Students will be expected to discuss the character traits of the three main characters and understand how hysteria works to create a situation like the Salem Witch Trials.


AP Literature:
We will continue our study of Heart of Darkness and Things Fall Apart by having a Fishbowl of Socratic discussion at the beginning of the week. Then, students will write a unit essay that will be a test grade over both novels and complementary texts read during the unit.

Week of October 19th....

One Book, Many Voices Author Visit

This week, we will have the author of the One Book Many Voices selection come and visit. She will read excerpts from her book and take questions from the students. Below, George Ella Lyons speaks to a group of students.

Honors American Literature:
Students will have an opportunity to go to the Booth Western Art Museum on November 12th. I have sent home permission slips. Please sign those and have your student return with $12.00 for the trip. This week though, we will begin to prepare to read and watch The Crucible by completing a DBQ on McCarthyism and The Crucible: What are the parallels? Students will have an opportunity to examine documents to answer this question.

American Literature:
We will be focusing on close reading and synthesizing information this week as we work through The Crucible and McCarthyism packet. Students will be asked to discuss some of the parallels they see between the Salem Witch Trials in 1692 and McCarthy's "witch hunt" for Communists in the 1950's.

AP Literature:
Please remember to encourage your student to take AP exams. Deposits are due to Mrs. Jones in room 177 by Friday, December 11th. You may give your payment to the front office. They will make sure it reaches me.

This week, we are starting to read Things Fall Apart as well as practicing the writing portion for the AP exam.

Week of October 12th......

Honors American Literature:
We will be discussing the sonnet form and apply that knowledge to Puritan poetry, "To My Dear and Loving Husband" and "Huswifery." Students will also have the opportunity to write their own sonnets.


American Literature:
We will focus on Hawthorne's famous novel, The Scarlet Letter. We will focus on how Hawthorne uses symbolism and get a sense of how the Puritans saw crime and punishment by writing a Point of View journal entry.

AP Literature:
Now that we have a better understanding of British Imperialism, we are going to read two pieces, "Civil Peace" and "Shooting an Elephant" to discuss the implications of British Imperialism on those colonized and the colonizers themselves.

Week of October 5th....

Welcome Back from Fall Break! I hope everyone had a great break! 

Honors American Literature: 

This week, we will be reading some foundation documents for the Puritans that give us a sense about how the Puritans saw themselves in relation to the Native Americans and other religious groups that the time. 

Regular American Literature: 

We will be exploring Puritan beliefs and discussing whether we personally agree or disagree with some of those beliefs. 

AP Literature: 

We will be completing a DBQ for British Imperialism. Although it will mostly include informational documents, it gives good background information for the time period of Heart of Darkness. 

Week of September 21st.....

AP Literature:
This week, we are going to read "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" to further our discussion of the monomyth. Students will select "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" or "The Hollow Men" and write a response. Then, we will begin our study of Colonialism as we begin discuss Things Fall Apart. Students are going to explore through the DBQ process, the causes of British Imperialism.

Honors American Literature:
We are going to focus on The Scarlet Letter this week, focusing on how the Puritans viewed law and morality. They will do a mini-research project over the Puritans.

American Literature:
Students are going to explore cultural origin myths from Native American cultures using the Chromebooks. Students will have an opportunity to work in groups and do some creative assignments with Native American oral literature as well.

Week of September 14th.....

AP Literature:
On Monday, we will review vocabulary from Units 1-4. Then, on Tuesday, students will have a vocabulary test over those four units. Students have had at least five weeks to study and prepare for the test. Then, we will read "Hollow Men" by TS Eliot and discuss how the environment and characterization connect in poetry and prose. Students will also practice multiple choice questions from a released AP exam.


Honors American Literature:
On Monday, we will review vocabulary from Units 1-4. Then, on Tuesday, students will have a vocabulary test over those four units. Students have had at least five weeks to study and prepare for the test. Then, students will have an opportunity to work on their One Book, Many Voices essay as well as their American Dream essays. I do not usually like to assign two essays at once, bu these dates overlapped. The One Book, Many Voices essay is due Friday, the 18th; the American Dream essay is due Monday, the 21st.

Students should also be reading The Scarlet Letter. We will begin our in-depth study of the Puritans next week.

American Literature:
Students are working on their essay in the lab for three days. The paper is due Wednesday. It's a test grade. Then, we will review some grammar and vocabulary at the end of the week.

Week of September 8th......

AP Literature:
This week, we are discussing how to edit and revise a poetry free-response essay question for the AP exam. Students will receive feedback and revise their previous work. Ms. Hawkins will also meet with students and discuss the requirements for the Senior Project and Honors Seal. We also had a guest speaker this week, Mr. Victor Morgan in reference to the One Book, Many Voices essay contest. Students will submit their essays on Friday, September 18th.

Honors American Literature:
As we finish our unit on the American Dream, students will work on organizing their evidence and drafting an essay to discuss what the American Dream means to them. Students will receive guidelines and feedback for writing this essay. We also had a guest speaker this week, Mr. Victor Morgan in reference to the One Book, Many Voices essay contest. Students will submit their essays on Friday, September 18th.

American Literature:
Students are beginning to draft their essays: What does the American Dream mean to you? They will have time next week to work in the lab for three days on typing these essays. They will be due next Wednesday, September 16th. The essays will count as a test grade.

Week of August 31st...

AP Literature:
This week, we are going to be discussing the impact that setting can have on a character. We are going to do some close reading of "The Things They Carried."

Honors American Literature:
We will continue our discussion of the American Dream by reading two poems about the American Dream. Students will write their own American Dream poetry.

Students can also begin to work on their One Book, Many Voices essay if they haven't started already. Students should also be reading The Scarlet Letter.

American Literature:
We are going to continue our discussion of the American Dream by reading two poems, "I Hear American Singing" and "I, Too." Students will annotate the poem and them compare the points of view.

Week of August 24th....

Honors American Literature: 
Although we are still working on the American Dream documents and concept in class, students should begin bringing home The Scarlet Letter to read. Students will have their first quiz over the first six chapters on Friday, September 11th. Although we will be working with the book some in class, I have shared resources for students to access outside of class as well to help with their reading. Please see my website for more resources.

AP Literature: 
This week, we will practice writing for the AP Exam. Students will construct a timed response to the first Free Response Question: Poetry. We will continue our discussion of poetry by discussing tone and learning the AP strategy of SIFT.

On-Level American Literature:
Students are still reading documents and discussing the multi facets of the American Dream. This week, our focus will be on rhetoric, rhetorical strategies, and Aristotle's appeals (ethos, pathos, and logos).

Week of August 17th....

Reminders:
-Please remember to complete the parent survey. Students can turn in their free homework pass form to me on or before Thursday, August 20th.
-Don't forget the 9th/10th grade Parent Night on Thursday, August 20th at 6:00 in the MHS Cafeteria.

American Literature:
We are deepening our understanding of the American Dream this week by discussing how the dream has evolved over time. We will begin discussion MLK Jr.'s Dream at the end of this week.

Honors American Literature:
We are exploring how the idea of "status quo" relates to our understandings of the American Dream. Students are reading "Keeping the Dream Alive," a Time cover story from 2012 and discussing the varying definitions of the American Dream over time.

AP Literature:
We have started the journey into the Heart of Darkness. Students are reading Section I and should finish by this Friday, August 21st. We are discussing components of the novel through the week. Students should bring some tabs to class to mark sections of their book.

Week of August 10th...

I had a great first week of school, and I hope your student did as well. 

In AP and Honors American, we continued our discussion and work with the Summer Reading texts. We will begin working on a new unit next Monday, the 17th. 

In Regular American, we began our discussion of the American Dream and became familiar with using Google Classroom. 

Please let me know if you have any questions regarding the course and your student's success in this class! 

Advanced Education Accreditation

Parents/Guardians:

Please take a few moments to complete the survey to help Model High maintain accreditation. This survey is for parents of current students only. If you have other students in other Floyd County schools, you can take the survey for each student.

Click Here for Survey

County Purpose Statement: Destination Graduation for Every Child

Model High School Vision:
Model High School will provide individualized education that addresses students' unique learning styles, cultivates independent thought, and promotes the building of character and self-discipline, enabling them to contribute to their communities in meaningful and positive ways.

Model High School Mission:
Model High School will provide a safe and challenging learning environment where positive relationships are fostered.

Model High School Motto:
Setting the Standard for Success: Destination Graduation

Overarching Goals:
1. Increase the graduation rate by actively engaging students in standards-based instruction.
2. Increase the percentage of students graduating earning a state endorsed pathway.
3. Increase the percentage of students scoring Meets or Exceeds on all Georgia Milestones.

Thank you for your time and all you do!

Summer Reading

Hope that summer reading is going well for Honors and AP students! 

Remember, you can locate all of the reading and writing assignments online (website) AND on Google Classroom. 

The work is due when we start back on August the 5th!

Email me if you have any questions! 

Week of May 18th....Finals Week!

SENIORS Final Schedule: 

5th Period

Monday, May 18th: Regular Class Period

Tuesday, May 19th: Exam During Regular Class Time

UNDERCLASSMAN Final Schedule: 

Monday-Wednesday= Regular Day of School 

Thursday, May 21st 

1st-4th: Exams During Class Period 

5th-7th: Regular Class *Review

Friday, May 22nd

5th-7th: Exams During 1st, 2nd, and 3rd 

*Students may leave after their 7th period exam at 10:40. 

Week of May 11th...

Honors American Literature:
We will continue working on our Great Gatsby project. Presentations will be Monday and Tuesday of next week, the 18th and 19th. Students should be finishing their projects and practicing their presentations.

Regular American:
We are finishing our discussion of the American Dream. Students will reflect on their papers from the beginning of the year and add what they have learned about the idea of the American Dream.

AP Literature:
We will do a short group assignments with short stories. Then, seniors will complete a creative project to end the year!

Week of May 4th...

Honors American Literature:
Whew! Testing is over for this class! We will continue to deepen our understanding of The Great Gatsby. Students will take their final quiz over Chapters 7-9 of The Great Gatsby on Monday, May 4th. Then, we will begin our work on The Great Gatsby project.

Regular American Literature:
Whew! Testing is over for this class! We will begin our study of The Great Gatsby. We will both read portions of the book and watch a mixture of the new and old film.

AP Literature:
We will be preparing for the AP Exam. The Exam is Wednesday, May 6th! 

Week of April 27th....

EOC / MILESTONE WEEK! Welcome Back! 

I trust everyone had a great break. Now, it's time to get down to testing! 

The test dates for American Literature are: 
Wednesday, April 29th and Thursday, April 30th. 

1st,  2nd, and 4th Periods will test from 8:00-10:40 both days.  

6th and 7th Periods will test from 12:30-3:10 both days. 

*Students that go to CCA will go during the normal times. All students testing will eat lunch during their regular 4th period. 

Good luck! 

Week of March 30th...

Honors American Literature:
We will begin doing some pre-reading research for The Great Gatsby. Students will learn about the author and the time period that the novel was written.

Regular American Literature:
We are beginning our discussion of Modernism. The student teacher will teach lessons about Modernism, Robert Frost, TS Eliot and Ernest Hemingway. Students will be expected to read and analyze Modernist literature and relate what they are reading to the historical time period and themes.

AP Literature:
Students will begin reading and discussing their plays in small groups in class. Students will have an array of assignments to choose from as they complete their reading.

Week of April 13th...

Honors American Literature and American Literature:

Our main focus this week will be on practicing for the EOC / Milestones. We have been delving into the standards all year in depth, but I hope that having some time to practice similar questions and writing situations will help them on the day of the test.

The test dates are: 
Wednesday, April 29th and Thursday, April 30th. 

1st,  2nd, and 4th Periods will test from 8:00-10:40 both days.  

6th and 7th Periods will test from 12:30-3:10 both days. 

*Students that go to CCA will go during the normal times. All students testing will eat lunch during their regular 4th period.

The first day, Wednesday, students will have up to 70 minutes to answer a mix of both multiple choice and short answer for Section I. Then, they will have a 5 minute break. Then, they will have up to another 70 minutes to answer a mix of both multiple choice and short answer for Section II.

On the second day, Thursday, students will have up to 90 minutes to read two passages, answer three multiple choice questionss, and write a multi-paragraph essay about BOTH passages.

Extra Practice Opportunities:
Experience Link: http://experience-ga.ctb.com/
Here students can see what the test will look like and practice sample questions. This helps students get experience with the testing format because students will be required to type. It will all be done on computer.

USA Test Prep: http://www.usatestprep.com/Member-Login
The account ID is : model
Students have their own usernames and passwords. I have given those to them this week.

Week of April 6th...

Honors American Literature:
We are starting to read and discuss The Great Gatsby. We will read and work through Chapters 1-3 together. Students will turn in their questions and have a quiz over the material on Monday, April 13th.

Regular American Literature:
We are finishing up our study of Modernism this week.

AP Literature:
Students should be nearing the end of their play and deepening their discussions about character and theme.

Week of March 23rd....

Honors American and American Literature:

This week, we are practicing the synthesis 7 point essay to prepare for the Milestone. We will synthesize two poems, "Lucinda Matlock" and "Chicago."

AP Literature:
We will begin our online Shakespeare project. Students will be working both in groups and independently for the next few weeks on this last major project.

Reminder: The Practice AP Exam will be on Saturday, March 28th in the MHS Cafeteria. We will begin the test promptly at 9. You should be done by 1:00. Please bring a pen and pencil.

Week of March 16...

AP Literature:
We are finishing up presentations on Monday for Invisible Man research. On Wednesday, we will have a Vocabulary Test over the last three units of vocabulary. Then, on Friday, we will finish up Invisible Man by taking a quiz over Chapters 14-End and discussing Blog 17.

Honors American Literature:
We will be taking a break from our discussion of Realism to take the last vocabulary test over Units 13-15, #'s 6-20 on Tuesday. We also will practice using the online testing system to make sure that students feel comfortable with the program. Students can practice at home also:

experience-ga.ctb.com

We will also finish our reading, quizzes and journals for All the Pretty Horses. We will extend our discussion of the novel next week after students have read the whole novel.

American Literature:
Our focus this week is on Mark Twain and Kate Chopin. We will continue our discussion of Realism while we practice and prepare for the Milestone/EOC.

The Milestone/EOC will be given on Tuesday, April 29th and Wednesday, April 30th. You can find more information at:

https://www.gadoe.org/Curriculum-Instruction-and-Assessment/Assessment/Documents/GM%20American%20Literature%20EOC%20Assessment%20Guide.pdf

Week of March 10th...

AP Literature:

Final drafts of the IM research paper are due. We will begin a unit on Shakespeare this week that will continue into April. Also, for those taking the AP Exam, we will have a practice exam on March 28th. Please see the flyer: https://www.smore.com/nt8j1


Honors American Literature:

We are going to begin discussing Realism and in what ways is All the Pretty Horses a Realist text as well as a Romantic text. We will be reading various things from the Realist time period as well as preparing for the open ended question on the Milestone.

American Literature:
We will move through Realism, reading some primary documents and some fiction, and discuss the themes of the period and how they relate to the Civil War. Students will have an opportunity to practice for the open ended response on the Milestone.

Week of March 2nd....

AP Literature:
We are getting back on track this week from the snow days by completing a re-write as practice for the AP Exam and giving students time to work on their Invisible Man projects. I will be glad to make comments on drafts if students will place them in their folder by Friday afternoon. The final draft is due Tuesday, March 10th.

Honors American Literature:
Students will have an opportunity to turn in their re-writes of their research paper, APH Journal #1, and/or the Romantic poetry response. We will continue our discussion of Transcendental themes by reading Walden, and discussing Thoreau's philosophies. Students will take their 2nd quiz over APH on Thursday.

Regular American Literature:
After we finish reading Walden, students will create a presentation in groups as a test grade discussing one theme that we discussed in depth. Students will work on these all week and present on Friday.

Week of February 23rd.....

AP Literature:
Students should be working on their:

• Invisible Man Research Paper
• Reading Invisible Man

Students should be ready to give me an almost completed outline for their research on Friday the 27th. If students need extra help, they should see me after school. 

Honors American Literature: 

Students are wanting to complete some re-writes of previous written assignments. They may rewrite anything they have written in this class because I want them to LEARN! I know I do grade harshly, but it is only to make them better writers and to prepare them for their future. All rewrites are due by February 27th. They can rewrite the research paper, the Romantic Poetry Response and/or their All the Pretty Horses Response #1. 

Students should be reading All the Pretty Horses and write their 2nd journal by Friday, February 27th. If they need any help, they can always come after school and ask any questions they may have. 

In class, we will be discussing the tenants of Transcendentalism, Emerson and Thoreau. 

Regular American Literature: 

We will continue our discussion of Romanticism and Transcendentalism in reference to Into the Wild. The students are doing a great job relating the themes of the novel to other works and to themselves.  

Week of February 16th....

AP Literature:
We are fast approaching exam day, Wednesday May 6th! In class, we are taking more time to focus on close, detailed reading as read Invisible Man and other texts. Students will have an exam over the next section of Invisible Man, Chapter 10-13.

Honors American Literature:
Outside of class, students should be reading All the Pretty Horses. Students will have their next quiz on Friday,  February 27th over Section II of the novel. In class, we are going to focus on Romanticism and Gothic Romanticism this week. Both topics relate directly to the themes in the novel, All the Pretty Horses.

Regular American Literature:
We have just finished our book study on Into the Wild. Students seemed to really enjoy the text and could relate well to the themes. Now, we are going to connect those themes to American Transcendentalism. We will be studying Emerson and Thoreau, as well as Walt Whitman.

Week of February 9th...

AP Literature:
We will focus on close reading strategies for Invisible Man, including imagery and diction. Our main focus will be how can we use what we know about diction to determine tone. We will take our first quiz over Invisible Man on Friday, Chapters 1-9 and Blog #14.

Honors American Literature:
This week, the student teacher will  introduce Romanticism and discuss themes of the literary movement. Students will read poem selections from Walt Whitman and Longfellow and discuss the differences between fixed and free verse along with the themes of the poems.


Regular American Literature:
We will finish up Into the Wild. Our discussion with focus on the themes of the book and how they themes apply to us.

Week of February 2nd...

AP Literature:

Remember, this week we will taking a field trip to MLK Jr. Historical Site in Atlanta as we prepare to read Invisible Man. Please remember to complete Blog #13. This week will be devoted to preparing for the AP exam. We will do MC questions and practice Question 3, as well as view and discuss samples.

Honors American Literature:
This week, we will focus on close reading strategies and how to approach the novel, All the Pretty Horses. On Friday, you will have a reading day.

Regular American Literature:
This week, we will finish with Chapter 10 and take our 2nd Quiz for Into the Wild.

Week of January 26...

AP Literature:
This week, we will read Trifles and discuss the elements of drama. We also have a Vocabulary Test for Units 9-12 on Wednesday, the 28th.

Honors American Literature:
We will turn in our major research project on Monday, the 26th. Also this week, we will take our Units 9-12 Vocabulary Test. Students will have time to study and prepare on Tuesday. Also, we will begin All the Pretty Horses near the end of the week in class.

Regular American Literature:
We will continue our study and discussion of Into the Wild. Students will complete their questions and journals.

Week of January 19th...

AP Literature:
This week, we are going to work on some strategies to revise our last essays. In particular, how to organize a literary analysis essay.

Honors American Literature:
We are coming to the end of our Research Paper project. The research paper is due on January 26th. We will be working on Peer Editing and going to the lab for students to type this week.

Regular American Literature:
We will look at "To Build a Fire" in reference to Into the Wild and discuss how Chris admired the ideas of Naturalism. We will continue to read Into the Wild.

Week of January 12th...

This semester, students will be working with a student teacher from Shorter, Mr. Goodrich. He will be teaching and co-teaching most classes this semester through May. If you have any questions, please email me. Thanks!

AP Literature 

This week, we will turn in our Formal Response for The Awakening. We focused on analyzing poetry last week, and we will write a AP-style response over the poem your group analyzed. We will begin reading short stories this week and analyzing elements of short fiction.

Honors American Literature

We are still working on our Research Project. Students have selected a topic and researched their sources. Students compiled an Annotated Works Cited and turned it in last Friday. This week, we will work on organizing notes, creating an outline, and citing sources in the paper using MLA. Students have two work days in the lab.

American Literature

We will continue to read and work through Into the Wild. We will work through chapters 4-6 this week. On Friday, we will have a Quiz over chapters 1-5.

Week of January 5th...

AP Literature: 

This week, we will read a short critical piece and begin the formal response for The Awakening. We will also be reading some poetry selections from the Blue Book. Bring the Blue Book each day.

Honors American Literature: 

Research Paper Time! We will work on the research paper almost the entire month of January! This week you will be choosing your topic and collecting your sources and notes. We will have three lab days this week for you to get started.

Regular American Literature:

We are going to start 2015 off right with a book study. We will be reading Into the Wild together in class and completing activities for the book.