Friday, September 25

 Please refer to Canvas for our online learning content. I will post daily updates here starting next week.

Letter to Freshman Regarding Online Learning

 Students and Parents –

First, I would like to compliment this year’s freshmen. Thus far they have been wonderful to work with – bright, diligent, hard-working, and kind. I’m really bummed out we’re going to have to spend the next two weeks learning online, especially because were just about to enter a really critical part of our trimester and I have enjoyed the day to day interaction with the students very much. 

Second, I want to emphasize to the students that they are responsible for what we do the next two weeks. While it is less than ideal circumstances, they are expected to work daily, turn stuff in on time, and be completely caught up when school begins back up after October 9. Do not treat this like a two week fall break. Due dates will be adhered to and important content will be covered. Remember, I am always here to help you. Call the school or email me if you need help.

Third, we will have a class meeting on Friday, September 25 on google meet to discuss the end of trimester final project. Join via your csddocs account. Period 3 will meet at 11:00 AM. Your meeting code is bairdenglishperiod3. Period 5 will meet at 1:30 PM. Your meeting code is bairdenglishperiod5. Both of these meetings occur during time we would normally be having class. I think these meetings will last around 20 minutes. It’s important you attend so that you understand the expectations for this project. Please read through the material and do the assignments on Canvas on Thursday in order to prepare.

Lastly, we will begin To Kill a Mockingbird on Monday. If you need a copy of the book, please come into school and get a copy from the library. This is also true of those of you that still need a Chromebook. 

Thank you for your efforts thus far. Please let me know if there’s something I can do to help you during this time.

Thank you -

Mr. Baird

Tuesday, September 22

 Happy Hobbit Day! This is the day we celebrate Bilbo and Frodo's birthdays. Hey, if you don't know, now you know.

English 12A: Today our focus was on using short, one-syllable words. We read the essay "The Case for Short Words" and put this writer's advice into practice by crafting a composition ourselves that's composed of monosyllabic words. We'll complete and share the pieces in class tomorrow. Work on it tonight if you're going to need more than 20 minutes to complete it tomorrow and read for 20 minutes tonight. 

English Honors 9A: Today we read the short story "The Necklace" and took an exam on the literary concepts we have studied and applied thus far to short fiction. We also went to the library and checked out copies of To Kill a Mockingbird. Read for 20 minutes tonight.

Friday, September 18

 English 12A: Today our focus was on exploring the This I Believe website https://thisibelieve.org Your task is to read five essays from the website and write a reflection on each one as a way to gain an understanding of what an effective This I Believe essay looks like. This is due Monday. You can find this assignment on Canvas. Your homework is to read for 20 minutes as well. 

English Honors 9A: Today our focus was two-fold: one, we practice ironing out some issues the class is having with citing textual evidence; two, we covered different conclusion techniques to try. Take the quiz on conclusions this weekend and read for 20 minutes for homework.

Thursday, September 17

 English 12A: Today our focus was on our end of the trimester This I Believe final project. Go to Canvas and find the This I Believe module that is below this week's module. Today our focus was on reflecting back on people, events, and things that have shaped an influenced a personal belief or core value that we hold. We then crafted a dozen or so potential belief statements that may be the seed of a future essay.

English Honors 9A: Today we did an activity called Think/Write/Talk, which we used as a vehicle for practicing academic discourse while discussing the two most recent short stories we read. You can find the questions we used in a PowerPoint on Canvas. Read for 20 minutes for homework tonight.

Tuesday, September 15

 English 12A: Today we spent time editing your college application essays using The 10% Solution. We will continue this tomorrow in class before submitting your final draft to Canvas tomorrow. Read for 20 minutes as well. 

English Honors 9A: Today we focused on how an author will use multiple literary devices and concepts to develop a story by reading Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery." You can find it on Canvas. Read for 20 minutes tonight.

Monday, September 14

 English 12A: Today we learned how to edit using The 10% Solution. The notes and the powerpoint we used in class are on Canvas. Tomorrow in class we will apply this editing technique to our essays as we finish up the essay project and finalize our drafts. Read for 20 minutes tonight.

English Honors 9A: Today we focused on using textual evidence in a body paragraph to support a thesis. We read Chapter 3 of the book They Say I Say, took notes on how to quote, and then did some practice. We then worked on an assignment in Canvas for "Raymond's Run." It is due Tuesday. Read for 20 minutes tonight.