Please post your responses about what you will do better in the second quarter here....
Also, please check the portal after 5:00 pm for your other assignment.
Best,
AK
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A Class Blog for the English 9A Class At Berwick Academy
17 comments:
What causes us to pass or fail a class? EFFORT. Effort is the key to success. Therefore, in order to do better in english, I need to put more effort into everything I do. Whether it is a journal prompt, or an analytical essay. But the thingd that really distinguish ourselves and our efforts are being involved in class. Being able to speak up and share my opinions. Another goal for english is never coming another day unprepared.
-Hallie
In the second quarter I will really try harder to work for comprehension so I can take more out of English 9A than I am already taking out of it. I feel that I need to try more to match the effort my fellow classmates and teacher put into this class in order to have a better quarter. I will also willingly do more assignments in the class and offer more ideas to everyone.
~Izzie
PLEASE DONT PAY ATTENTION TO MY OTHER ENTRY!!!!
"When I ripped my suit off in Manhattan, I knew I wanted a life I cared about. When I was bewildered and bruised in Bondi, I knew I was not beaten. When I was disillusioned and deflated on a construction site, I knew I would aspire to more. When I was exulted and elated in Oxford, I knew I had discovered what I loved."
I think we can all use this as a rubric to the second quarter. This quote applies to more than just school, it also applies to life. In life we need to make mistakes to find what we're good at and what we aren't. Obviously there's room for improvement everywhere and we use our failures to guide what we want to do in life and in school. Once I've gotten feedback, I can improve and use that to guide what I'll do better. I think the message from this quote relating to school is that we will make mistakes and also make good decisions that guide what we do.
~Izzie
Hallie and Izzy thank you for publishing your entries first--never an easy task.
I fully believe that your words will help everyone craft better responses. However, I would encourage you and everyone else to give even more to these responses--one of the goals of this exercise is to work on depth of thought within our writing--so I would encourage you to extend your thoughts even further.
Example: When Hallie writes, "Another goal for English is never coming another day unprepared."
I would add onto this honest thought by expressing what you will do in order to accomplish this goal but also consider the question what is the difference between being unprepared and underprepared--is there one.
Two more things:
1.) Please start your response with your epigraph from Jamies Kapteyn's speech.
2.) Always spell check and proof read your work. Example; is this correct: english
Let me know what else I can do to help.
Best,
AK
"What at first seemed groundless and faint became absolutely rooted and fine"(2). James Kapteyn
Every day we come into English 9-A. Except Thursday's, these days are darker, and deep literature deprived. We talk, we argue, we laugh, we cry, sometimes with sadness sometimes with joy. Some like to talk and some like to listen. Everyone makes comments about that days conversation whether it's in your head or out loud. When one says something most of the time were going to forget about the second we walk out of the room. The comments that leave us speechless, the ones that make us cry, the ones that force us to think are the one's we will remember. Sometimes it won't be till later when a trigger is pulled and we will remember one day in Freshman English class that someone said something and everyone else LISTENED.
The first time we see proofs in Geometry, confusion will utter around the room, but soon enough we will be able to do them in our sleep. Yesterday I was 6 years old, afraid to get on the bus with out my sister, today I am 14 years old and I got a shot and didn't cry (true!) I take the bus every day to and from school, I have grown from the fear, it seemed so scary and unclear at first and now its a fine line to and from home. WE need to be able to take information and listen to it, and not panic and just let our brains process, step back and look at the bigger picture. We will understand at some point, or maybe that piece of knowledge was never meant to be understood. Sometimes it's important and right to get in the way of the stream and question its flow, and test its waters, but sometimes its better to just let it flow like its supposed to . WE need to collectively sharpen our observation skills and LISTEN, let them talk and listen, before we jump to a conclusion. I need to trade in my own talking sneakers, in for a sturdier pair of listening boots, they'll last longer. I need to put on others glasses and see from their point of view. It's my turn to listen to myself talk.
Eliza
“Because the seal symbolizes a strength that we value, and in valuing that strength in that way, we are confirming our own contribution to the very future of that strength”
-J. C. Kapteyn
I believe this quote is very deep. You can interpret it in many different ways. At the same time, it has one simple message – to me it says that we have strengths that we know of or don’t know of and if we know what they are, we value those strengths. If we don’t know what we are, we need to find those strengths because when we do find them we will realize how important the strength(s) are to us and how lucky we are to have them. By making those strengths important to us, they become more alive and not random actions or words that we can put together to create something amazing. As I try to explain what this quote means, I realize that J. C. Kapteyn has said it pretty much as simply as possible.
This quarter in English 9A I want to first find what my strengths are, or at least try to find out what they are. I don’t mean that I want to find all of the strengths that I possess as a person, but I want to find my strengths in English class as a 9th grader. By not knowing what my strengths are, I do not know what I am great at. If I know I am good at writing analytical essays, then after I finish writing an analytical essay, I can feel good about myself because I accomplished a piece of writing that I know is a good evaluation of my work. If I am struggling at writing creatively, then I will know that I should keep practicing and I will have something to strive towards – being better at expressing myself creatively. Once I finish writing a creative piece, I will be able to feel accomplished because I was able to overcome a challenge to me.
After I find out what strengths I possess, I will not only begin to practice my strength to make them even better and by honing them to be the best they can possibly be, I will also work on perfecting my weaknesses in English. -349 words.
Epigraph "The motto in asking us to live up to Deerfield's past, includes us in the ownership, even the responsibility of that glory. It is our heritage we are to be worthy of"(7,8).
To live up to past classes we, or I, need to take responsibility for making that class great. I can't rely on other students to make our classes great. This can be accomplished by preparing thoughts to share in class, and also listening and building off of other students’ ideas. I can only be worthy of a great class if I contribute to what makes it great. In class I need to share my thoughts and make them my own. Instead of quoting from the book or repeating what someone had already said, I need to have thoughts that are truly mine.
Maddy
"Because when I was a student here I learned that I could be worthy of somthing great" (8).
In English 9-A I am finding that it is allowing me to have the oppurtunity of somthing great in the future ahead for me. I can be a great writer someday, or a great speaker all because of what English 9-A has done for me. I've learned to become a more symbolic thinker instead of always thinking on a literal level and this has really helped me in my reading. All because of English 9-A. I can do all these things I wouldn't be able to do if I was not in English 9-A.
-Ricky
"We are confirming our own contribution to the very future of that strength." We must prove to ourselves and others our own devotion and commitment to our community and/or English 9. I show the show commitment in the effort and thought I put into my writing. We all individually must prove our devotion to the things we love and are passionate for. I personally must be constantly confirming my contribution to English 9. If I do not do so, what am I doing for English 9 and what is English 9 doing for me?
“The first step to strength is humility.”- James Kapteyn.
Only we know what follows this first step. With this first step taken, I have taken hold of humility, and now I reach for confidence, self-awareness, skill, and inner strength. The goals we put forth become our dreams, and we can choose to fight for them, or to leave them alone, undusted, and forgotten. The time from September 11 until now has been trying and surprising; it has been challenging, intriguing, and defining. School teaches us how to reach for the stars; life teaches you how to capture them. In these next weeks to come I will lead, I will work harder, and I will succeed on the two levels of literature.
“Be worthy of your heritage…That is why I came back.”
–James C. Kapteyn at the May 23, 2009 Baccalaureate of Deerfield Academy
Berwick has done so much in the past, not just for the school community, but for us, its students, as well. Berwick has given so much to us, and does so every day, day to day, month to month, and year to year. The school goes out of its way to make me, a single and most likely unimportant person, feel like a valued member of a special and unique community, which makes me want to come back here year after year.
This is why we must treasure our heritage. We are the successors of students who were great enough to come to this school. In all the years, I have been here, I never feel like the school doesn’t want me to be anything less than the most valued community member I can be, and this makes me feel like I want to give something back, so I really can be a valued member. I guess I’ll start with English 9-A. Give back something, be the person the school wants-scratch that, knows, you can be, then you will be someone. Then you will have done something.
And you will come back.
"Sure I could bang nail, I could ban nails with the best of them, but, when it came to building houses, I simply didn't have the vision to foresee the shape of things to come"(7)J.Kapteyn.
This quarter, I need to work on not procrastinating on assignments- especially papers. To do this, I need to start looking ahead to longer assignments that I know about, and if I have time, starting them before they are immediately due so that I can put a better effort in.
It doesn't matter if I can produce satisfactory work under pressure, I need to work on putting a lot more quality time and effort into my assignments so that I can go from making average work to quality work. Quality work will come if I just slow down, take my time, and don't rush through everything just trying to get it done.
By starting an assignment early, in addition to giving myself time to get it done, I am also giving myself time to come up with whole, fully developed ideas and to ask for help if need be. By asking for help I would be actively trying to get my work to improve instead of slogging through it and just trying to get by.
Even though I can't see the future, I need to work on starting long running assignments started ahead of time to avoid crunch time. If I do this, then my ability to write will improve greatly because the cogs of my brain will be able to turn more effectively and efficiently and help me to have a more productive, and lucrative second quarter and and really the rest of my life.
“…to be immersed in the massive strength of Deerfield Academy is to feel small just as it is to feel huge” (7).
We are all small minds and parts of a larger, more unique English 9-A class. We are all immersed in something whether it is academics, sports, the arts, or even Deerfield Academy. The activities that we immerse ourselves in should not take away from the feats we accomplish in English 9-A. As Mr. Kasprzak said, “…class should not end when the bell rings” (ABK). I do not believe that it does; I believe that each class is carried on throughout each of our lives in different ways. As long as you cannot just remember but act on something you have learned about in class, then you have done your job as a learner.
As a class and individual students of English 9-A, we have come far, but there is still a long ways to go. Our symbolic way of thinking has been extraordinary, far more insightful than I have ever seen. But just because we are at a pretty high level of thinking does not mean that there is not any room for improvement. There will always be room for improvement, no matter how perfect we think we are. To improve we can read closer and deeper into the words we see or hear to find other meanings or ways of looking at them.
When Kapteyn writes, “…to be immersed in the massive strength of Deerfield Academy…” (7), it reminds me of our class. English 9-A needs to be immersed in the strength of our class. The strength of Berwick Academy and the unknown strength of ourselves.
-Abby Martinen
"My name is no more nor no less important than anybody else"
When realizing that your opinion or your statement is equally important to others, it helps you gain a new outlook and perspective on not only English 9 A, but life. Life takes places in this epigraph, because recognizing that what other people say and do is important, will give you a better chance of succeeding in that more thoughts will be contributed to your one thought. Two brains are better then one. Another reason that making other peoples thoughts as equally important as yours, it gives other students the chance to actually say what they're thinking and for us to respond induces richer thoughts and perspectives for them. In all, this quote is incredibly important to the way you live your life, because the better perspective you have, the higher chance you have to succeed.
-Conor McFarland
"I simply didn't have the vision to foresee the shape of things to come."
I do not know what is to come in English 9-AK. I am not the teacher, I do not have a course sketched out to follow through, I do not know what to expect. However I do have the ability to try my hardest to be the best I can be in English 9-AK. Mr. Kasprzak is the 'boss' he has the ability to see unto the year to a certain extent. He can visualize the house not only before it is built but while it is in the process of being built as well. He can see us all learning and becoming deeper English students. Is Mr. Kasprzak creating an English scholar in each one of us? By helping us to put pieces together we become deeper English students; like the house we are slowly being put together.
"And when I was back on Albany Road with a smile in my heart, I knew I was charged with purpose and I knew I was at last worthy of the expectations that were planted in me when I sat where you sit."
During the second quarter in English, I need to smile more. I need to smile more because I love what I do--I love teaching high school English, and while it is an honor I dream not of--it is nonetheless more than just a vocation for me, it is a passion, a calling, the thing I am charged with doing. As a result, I get caught up in trying to make everything a matter of life of death, and I forget that school must be fun, that laughter is essential--and most importantly, I must realize that we remember what we enjoy. Thus, I need to work on making English 9 a more enjoyable place. I must realize that success will come not just through hard work, dedication, and a desire to be worthy, but that it is also born out of being human, and allowing students to be human--simply, I need to smile, they need to smile, we need to make our pursuit of knowledge enjoyable in order for it to be unforgettable.
However, I also need to be worthy of the expectations that come with be a teacher--I must work harder, I must have more purpose and structure in regards to the assignments that I ask students to do and make sure they know the reason why we are doing them.
I look forward to this opportunity, I look forward to sharing this second quarter with the mighty and memorable English 9F class of 2009-2010, the only English 9F class that Berwick academy, that the world will ever know--there is no doubt that there legacy has the possibility to be a great one.
"And when I was back on Albany Road with a smile in my heart, I knew I was charged with purpose and I knew I was at last worthy of the expectations that were planted in me when I sat where you sit."
During the second quarter in English, I need to smile more. I need to smile more because I love what I do--I love teaching high school English, and while it is an honor I dream not of--it is nonetheless more than just a vocation for me, it is a passion, a calling, the thing I am charged with doing. As a result, I get caught up in trying to make everything a matter of life of death, and I forget that school must be fun, that laughter is essential--and most importantly, I must realize that we remember what we enjoy. Thus, I need to work on making English 9 a more enjoyable place. I must realize that success will come not just through hard work, dedication, and a desire to be worthy, but that it is also born out of being human, and allowing students to be human--simply, I need to smile, they need to smile, we need to make our pursuit of knowledge enjoyable in order for it to be unforgettable.
However, I also need to be worthy of the expectations that come with be a teacher--I must work harder, I must have more purpose and structure in regards to the assignments that I ask students to do and make sure they know the reason why we are doing them.
I look forward to this opportunity, I look forward to sharing this second quarter with the mighty and memorable English 9A class of 2009-2010, the only English 9A class that Berwick academy, that the world will ever know--there is no doubt that there legacy has the possibility to be a great one.
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