Category: Blogs

Today my students submitted scheduling requests to their counselors for junior year.  Some of my students shared that while they want to take AP Language, they are afraid of the work load.  For many, this is a legitimate concern – after all, students these days have a lot on their plates.  But, for a lot of my students, they just don’t want to do the work – and that’s a shame.

I am reminded of a story a former colleague of mine liked to share at 8th grade commencement.  He used to expound on the lessons his grandfather used to teach him about the value of hard work.  When my colleague was a young man, the same age as the students he was talking to, he lived on a farm.  Anybody with any experience having lived on a farm knows firsthand just how much work is entailed on a farm. Being a city girl, I could not relate to the experiences he shared of working on a farm, but I certainly was no stranger to working hard.  In fact, at one point during college, I worked three jobs and went to school full-time.

Here’s the thing… kids these days are tired of “When I was in high school…” stories told by the adults in their lives.  The comparison is outdated.  The truth is, high school IS much different from when I attended, and certainly much different from when our parents attended.  To be cavalier about this fact is, frankly, dismissive and insulting to our students.

A lot of our students ARE busy.  As an adult, I can’t help but admire the way our students strive to pack in every last opportunity to experience all that high school has to offer.  However, it does come with a cost.

In a perfect world, each opportunity is chosen by the students themselves. I could go on about parental pressure and societal pressure, but the fact of the matter is, those pressures will always be there.  My hope is that students figure out a way to navigate their desires in the midst of all those pressures, because life is too short to march to the beat of another person’s drums. To be busy doing something you love is much easier to handle compared to when you are busy doing something because you feel like you “have” to do it, or when it’s something you feel like is a waste of your time.

Recently a student wrote me a note about how they were struggling with the work load in school. As a teacher, I pride myself on being aware of the many plates my students are juggling.  I don’t believe in “busy” WORK (most of my students know this about me).  However, I do believe in taking ownership of the CHOICES we make on a daily basis.  The choice to stand in the back of the room and chat with friends, rather than take the time in class to work on annotating skills.  The choice to play on your phone, rather than catching up on reading To Kill a Mockingbird.  The choice to make excuses about missing work or being tardy, rather than holding yourself accountable. I pride myself on offering students authentic opportunities to engage and develop the skills that will prepare them for their lives after high school. And, because I know how busy you are – and I do not want to waste your time.

Even though I am not a high school student, I understand being busy.  Outside of teaching, I am learning a new curriculum for ELLs. I am taking two graduate classes in pursuit of my ESL endorsement.  I am trying to find more ways to incorporate technology effectively in instruction (a passion of mine). I am teaching ASAP after school twice a week.  I am on the leadership team.  I am in the stands, on the bleachers, or at the play supporting my students outside of the classroom. I could go on, as our students might, about everything I have to juggle, on top of, or outside of,  my responsibilities at work, but you get the idea.

The thing is, we have to make it easier on ourselves – and the EASIEST way to do so, is by making fewer excuses – and making better choices.

Don’t get me wrong.  I do it too! There I days I CHOOSE to binge-watch Grey’s Anatomy for the third time, instead of writing my grad school paper.  There are days, when I CHOOSE to spend time toggling between various social media apps (who waits for notifications?!), instead of working out. There are days when I CHOOSE to spend time with my cats, instead of grading papers.

Sometimes we need to take a break from being busy.  But, as an adult, I am aware that some choices come with a price – and sometimes that price is feeling stressed and overwhelmed.

And, if I am honest with myself, then I know that I could make better choices – manage my time better so that I could plan for how I am going to juggle all the things I have on my plate.

I guess the point of this blog is to let my students know that while I understand where they are coming from, I, too, have a choice. And this is what I choose: I choose to believe in accountability, believe in committing to high quality work, and believe in your potential.  What I will not choose to do is accept excuses. Because in doing so, I will have failed in my responsibility as your teacher.  I believe in work worth doing – and I will not waste your time.  You shouldn’t either.

CHOOSE wisely.

P.S.  For advice on how to manage your busy schedule, I recommend this article or this old blog post of mine.

As students begin to embark on the testimonies presented in To Kill a Mockingbird, we used Nearpod.com in lieu of doing an article of the week packet.  Students were exposed to the same information, just in a different medium.  As a result of this interactive forum, students were engaged the entire hour in what they were learning!  Below are a few snapshots of students’ testimonies about today’s learning experience:

• kept me engaged
• we should do this more often
• had a great time with this new method of learning
• engaging and interactive
• forces me to think quicker
• allows us to go more in depth on a topic, which helped me to understand it better
• we should do this more because it gives us the opportunity to work with technology, which will help us fit in and excel in the real world

When it came to student engagement, 78% of students polled shared that they were engaged 90 – 100% of the lesson, the remaining 22% said they were engaged for 75% of the lesson.

The next step… to have students create their own Nearpod learning experiences to share with the class.  I can’t wait!

This was such an exciting week in our classroom!  I was able to tie in something I am passionate about, TECHNOLOGY, with instruction to maximize student engagement with what we are learning!

Of course, as always, one must examine the purpose behind incorporating technology into classroom instruction.  While I haven’t read the book yet, I can’t wait to pick up Liz Kolb‘s book Learning First, Technology Second!  I have a feeling that it will mirror closely my own philosophy on the use of technology in the classroom.

So, last Saturday, March 3rd, Ms. Pniewski and I attended the “K-12 Teaching with Technology Forum” at Oakland University.  (Thank you to Mr. Martin for letting us know about this conference back in November!)

Among the topics/sessions offered:

• Formative Assessments with Technology at the Secondary Level
• 21st Century Information Literacy for Students and Teachers
  App-Books and other Digital Tools to Support Early Literacy Development
• Staying Abreast of Tech through Collaboration with Student Interns
• New Digital Literacies and Learning Curriculum for Teacher Candidates

Armed with new knowledge, I set out to apply what I learned this past Saturday into my instruction during the school week!

Featured Three:

• Nearpod.com
• EdPuzzle
• Video Ant

Nearpod.com: This past week I used nearpod.com in two ways.  First, with my honors language arts classes, I used this technology to share with students some background information on Harper Lee and the story behind how To Kill a Mockingbird became published.  One student wrote, “I loved what we did in class today!!  What a fun way to learn about a topic that isn’t always super exciting to learn about.”  Then, with my ELLs, I used nearpod.com to help with guided notes. The notes really helped students connect the elements of the hero’s journey (the 12 stages and the 7 archetypes) with our own stories.

EdPuzzle:  Also this week, I used EdPuzzle with my ELLs to work on listening skills.  Students watched a video on the elements of a hero’s journey and were asked to respond to quiz questions, polls, or short answer questions throughout the video. It was a really cool way to get students to engage with the new material, while working on a necessary skill, listening closely.

Video Ant: I just started playing around with this new technology.  The premise behind Video Ant is that users can annotate videos.  Shout-out to  my students who allowed me to record their Civil Rights Mini-Research Projects so that I could play around with Video Ant!  Here is one example of Video Ant in action.  My goal is to have students record videos of themselves and then have their peers annotate their videos.  Still a work-in-progress but I am excited!

Special shout-out to Paul Morsink (Assistant Professor @ Oakland University, Department of Reading and Language Arts) and the Technology Advisory Committee for the Forum.  I can’t wait to attend next year’s forum!

I would like to take a moment to share a couple of students’ reflections from their reading, thus far, of To Kill a Mockingbird.  Students were encouraged to “include inferences, connections, roadblocks, and/or an analysis of rhetorical/literary devices” in their reflections. Enjoy! 

In To Kill A Mockingbird, there were many roadblocks that I met when I first started reading. The first one I met was the old slang and language used. A lot of times, in dialogue, Harper Lee wrote in the tone and slang of the character imagined. When I understood the slang, it added a lot of effect, but when I didn’t, I was extremely confused.

    Language used in some cases was also very confusing for me. A term I also questioned in my “burning question” for chapter one was the use of “my senior” or “my junior.” I theorized that this was used as a comparison for age, but didn’t exactly figure it out.   

    A character I can really relate to is Scout. Scout is the youngest girl in the family and I know how that is because I’m also the youngest girl in my family. I can relate to her mostly because she is very inquisitive and is outgoing. She’s always being kicked out and shooed away by her older brother because of her age. She never means any harm but somehow manages to get in trouble. I like her a lot as a character right now, but I don’t know what will happen later on in the book.

    Although I like the Finch family, I really want to know about the Radleys. I’m interested in how each Radley is and if they’re actually vicious and scary like people assume. Right now I feel like the story is kind of dry, but I can tell something interesting is coming.

    One character I didn’t like was Miss Caroline. She was very traditional and I don’t think she was fit to be a teacher. I know that the teaching system was different in the time the book was set and hitting children with rulers and putting them in a corner was probably common, but she came off as rude and close-minded. I liked that Scout would keep standing up to her because it shows Scout’s bravery and true character.

    Scout is also very inquisitive, as I stated before, and when she found the gum in the tree, I didn’t really understand why that was included. The situation was never brought up again (so far) and has had no significance to any of the characters from the book. I thought that one of the Radleys would come out and find them taking it, but nothing happened and the gum was perfectly fine.

    I think the Indian coins might be brought up as an important factor later on, and the fact that Scout finding the gum wrapper led to that, makes that situation significant. Hopefully, something interesting will rise from one of the two of those situations.

    One last question I have is this; how does the book deal with racism? So far, the only racism is the fact that the Finches have a slave, but the slave has no significance to the story. I predict that the Radleys will be black, but it hasn’t been mentioned yet. Surely, this book will deal with better themes within the next five chapters and beyond. – Jenna D.

I am very curious to find out who Boo Radley is and what role he plays in the book. I forget if it explains why they call him ‘Boo’, but I think they call Boo because he lives in that house like a ghost. I feel like he or his dad put the gum in the tree to try to be nice to Scout and Jem. Also, I understand that the children think that the house and the people in it are creepy, but what makes them so creepy? If they never come out of the house, how will the Radleys hurt the children?I am curious to find out more about Boo Radley, his family, and his life.

I have a question about Calpurnia. This book takes place in the ‘50s, ‘60s, right? That would mean slavery is outlawed. However, Atticus said that they were very poor. If Calpurnia helps them out in the house, but she’s not a slave, then wouldn’t she have to be paid? Why would you keep around the cook if you’re poor? Anyway, I really like Calpurnia. She is very stern, but she also is very educated. I wonder what her role will be later in the book.

Dill seems like a cool and mischievous kid. A couple of my friends have read this book before, and they said that Dill was annoying. So far I think he’s pretty okay, but I want to know where that opinion came in. I wouldn’t be surprised if he does something really stupid later in the book. Or maybe he is that one character whose sole purpose is to be annoying and end up screwing everything up.

The only reason I don’t loathe Miss Caroline is because we share the same name. Also, it seems like she is under a lot of pressure. When it said that she put her head at the of the chapter I felt bad for her, unlike Scout. I can understand why she would be frustrated. The book said that she was only 21, so this had to be her first year teaching, and she was already yelled at on her first day. However, I thought that is was completely ridiculous that she got mad at Scout for being able to read! As a teacher, she should be impressed that one of her students is already intelligent enough to read and write. This just goes to show how learning has improved over the last 50 years. Nowadays, students who are above their level are more challenged and congratulated for being above the expectations. If Miss Caroline wanted to be miffed at Scout for being smarter than her expectations, that’s fine. But slapping her hands and sending he to the corner was wrong! Furthermore, wouldn’t it be better to have a student that was above the expectations? That way you could focus on the students who actually need help, rather than trying to bring down the excelling students. One less person you have to teach! Lastly, how is learning to read a different way better? If you can look at the words on a page and comprehend them, congratulations! You passed! That is my opinion, and it looks like the only thing Miss Caroline and I have in common is our name. – Caroline G.

I want to thank 10th graders Jenna D. and Caroline G. for their candor in their entries, and their willingness to share their work.  Thank you Ladies!

The new semester started on Monday and I don’t know about you, but I am so excited!  My students made incredible gains last semester – and I can’t wait to see what students will accomplish during second semester.

My vision for students in my classroom is three-fold:

• Students should take ownership of their learning.
• Students should hold themselves accountable to a high standard.
• Students should have integrity in their thoughts, words, and actions.

It goes without saying that as their teacher, I have these expectations for my students.  However, it is not enough.  Students also need to believe in the importance of owning their learning, holding themselves accountable, and demonstrating integrity in every facet of their life.

To help guide them on their journey, I have included this semester’s Academic Integrity Contract.  It is vital that students shift their focus on learning, and stray from the paralyzing shackles of “getting good grades.”  If students are learning, the grades will happen.  But if students are not learning, or are developing bad habits and cutting corners,  all the “good” grades in the world will fail to prepare them for life after high school.

Integrity is not just a buzzword people use to define good character – it is a way of life.

This past Friday I shared with my students one of my favorite blogs entitled, “What Students Really Need to Hear.”  Written by Chase Mielke, a previous Michigan Teacher of the Year nominee, Mielke shares his innermost thoughts about what he wishes students knew about school and learning.  It is an entry I could have easily written myself – and certainly one of my favorite pieces to share with my students.

When I asked my students why they thought I shared this blog entry with them, here’s what students had to say:

• to encourage us to not give up, to work harder, and to show us that it’ll be worth it – M.J. (1)
• so we can get motivated to do more in school – H.M. (1)
• because you care for us and want the best for us – R.M. (3)
• because you want to show us that you care – E.Z. (3)
• to open our eyes more about the real world and to point out the fact that teachers are helping us for the benefit of our future – R.A. (2)
• to show us that school is not only about learning lessons, but also about challenging yourself and preparing us for the harshness of life – K.J. (2)

Of course, in English- teacher fashion, I asked students to:

• annotate (talk-to-the-text)
• examine author’s purpose
• connect with the text
• examine point-of-view/perspective
• examine words in context
• cite evidence from the text
• examine author’s craft (call to action)
• complete a rhetorical analysis of the effectiveness of the author’s claim

However, since being reflective has always been part of our practice in LA3, I also then asked students this question, “What would it take for you to take (more) ownership of your learning?  What does “ownership of your learning” mean to you? Explain.”

Students responded by saying:

• Ownership to learning is putting in that extra work or being persistence towards your education. You just have to be responsible and take responsibility for your learning. – C.N. (2)
• To me ownership of my learning means to take a stand and own up to the mistakes that I’m making, mistakes which are preventing me from learning. – M.K. (2)
• Ownership of good learning is no more excuses. Reflect, observe, pay attention and LEARN. Learning is key and must be taken seriously. – R.B. (3)
• To take ownership of your learning is to not have people tell you to do your work, you do it yourself without getting told to. – T.R. (3)
• “Ownership of your learning” means holding yourself responsible for the work you do and your attitude in class. – A.A. (1)
• My ownership of learning is to give my all because at the end of the day, it is gonna pay off. – N.A. (1)

After all that *whew* students were given the opportunity to write their own entry, “What Teachers Really Need to Hear” – here is what students wish teachers knew …

Students wish their teachers knew that:

• they really do care about how they do in school
• not all teachers care about them and it makes it hard to learn when they don’t care
• take their phones – they need help to stay focused
• they wish they could focus on learning, but the stress of keeping their grades is sometimes what causes them to take short-cuts (like giving up, cheating, copying, or not even trying)
• school is VERY different from how it was “back then”

As students prepare to embark on a new semester, it is important for students and teachers alike to take a step back and focus on the big picture – and that is, ultimately, preparing our students to be successful for their lives beyond high school. It takes a village – but together, we can make it happen.

Yours in education,

Ms. Sabbagh

Semester One’s Language Art 3 Final Exam is a district-created SAT style test which assesses students on the skills we have been developing throughout the course of the semester.  Students should link their 8/9 PSAT scores, through College Board, to Khan Academy, which will in turn provide them with a tailor-made SAT test prep program. In preparation for their final exams in Language Arts, students are encouraged to practice on Khan Academy.

• LA 3 Final Exam Study Guide
• Why Khan Academy?

Happy New Year!

As a tenth year teacher, I often reflect on my role in my students’ lives.  Ultimately I strive to empower my students to find their voice – whether it be in writing and/or speaking.  The primary means I am able to do this is through the essential questions which guide our text selections and classroom discussions.

For the last two card-marking periods, we have asked two tough questions:

• What compromises of my integrity will I make in order to be accepted?
• When is loyalty to oneself more important than loyalty to a friend/family member?

Breaking these questions down has allowed our students to really examine what they prioritize in their lives.  Dissecting ideas like compromise, integrity, loyalty, and acceptance are a vital part of character development, especially at this stage in our students’ lives.

Next week, students will be asked to write on the argumentative prompt: Should teenagers have the right to make their own medical decisions?  In anticipation of this prompt, this week’s article, borrowed from The New York Times, provides various types of evidence for students to draw from. The film adaptation of Jodi Picoult’s bestselling novel My Sister’s Keeper offers students another lens through which to examine the themes of this unit. For the argumentative prompt, students will be asked to cite evidence from both the AOW and the film to support their claim.

After that, we will review for the final exam by practicing SAT-style questions through Khan Academy.  And that will wrap up Semester One. During semester two, students will shift to delving deeper into examining author’s craft, specifically by beginning to learn how to write a rhetorical analysis.

It is my philosophy that with education, it’s like Bill Cordes says, “You only get out what you put in.”  I have high expectations for all my students – and strive, daily, to help them maintain those high expectations for themselves as well.  Every day students are in a position to make decisions, positive or negative, which impact their learning.  It is my aim to help make their time in my classroom one in which they can see the value in what we are learning and in the skills we are building.  But, ultimately, the choice is theirs, and it is my sincere hope that they choose wisely.

Yours in education,

Ms. Sabbagh

Students have been very busy this past week in Language Arts as they gear up to demonstrate what they have learned this card-marking period in regards to author’s craft and citing textual evidence.

This past week students:

• annotated several articles in preparation for their argumentative essay
• assessed their ability to identify the strongest argument with daily exit tickets
• completed brainstorming webs during their pre-writing
• closely examined different excerpted evidence and assessed which was the strongest, and defended their response
• lastly, begun work on organizing their ideas from their brainstorming into an outline (due at the start of class on Monday, December 4th)

Next week students can plan on:

• composing their first draft
• completing exercises regarding incorporating transition words and phrases
• peer-reviewing each other’s drafts using an argumentative rubric
• typing the final draft of their argumentative essay

Students interested in receiving one-on-one help can stay after school on Wednesday, November 6th with Ms. Sabbagh.

Happy Writing!

One of my former students posted a gritty video on Instagram of him working out.  In the video, he commented about how, if you want to see results, you have to be willing to do the work.  Sure, Z used some colorful words to get his point across, but it got me to thinking… if we know that hard work = results, then why is working hard EVER considered optional when it comes time to learn? 

Today’s PD served as a reminder that teachers are always charged with thinking about instruction and best practices.  We try our best to help students see purpose and meaning in what we are doing and learning in class.  But even if a teacher does it all – has the instruction, has the best practices, has the activities planned in such a way as to maximize student learning, there is one factor that they have no control over, and that is, the student.

In a world inundated with educational buzz-words, student engagement is perhaps, arguably THE most important.  Student engagement helps students when it comes time for them to learn and create.  Without student engagement, students often times do not see the point or the connection of what they are learning to their own lives or to their future.

I guess that’s where TRUST comes into play.  You have to trust that I am doing what is best for you. You have to trust that there is a bigger picture.  Granted, I do my best to show you the game plan beforehand, but when the coach asks you to run the play, you have to trust he knows what he is doing, and that what he is doing is in your best interest, and in the best interest of the team’s future success. Please, students, trust me.

Vince Lombardi once said that, “The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.”

As a teacher, I want nothing more than for my students to find success, both inside and outside the classroom.  As your teacher, I will do my very best to make the learning relevant, rigorous, and reflective.  And as a student in my classroom, I am asking you to be responsible for working hard and being engaged.

Imagine, then, the success we can accomplish together.