Hello, again!

Hey everyone!  I have created a new blog to document my year (or more) in South Korea.  If you're interested, check it out and tell your friends!  I miss you all (my students) sooooo much!  I even miss you driving me crAzy! :)

Here is the blog link:

www.oneifeed.blogspot.com


I hope to hear from you soon!

Miss Umin

What's Up!?! for 5/14-5/18

Hey everyone!


I can't believe this will be our last full week of school together :(


As some of you have already heard, this will be my last year teaching at New Riegel.  I am going to be heading overseas to teach English in either Korea or Japan (I will keep you updated with more specific details soon!).  Though I am extremely excited about this next chapter in my life, I am also extremely sad to be leaving the amazing people I have met while at New Riegel--I will miss ALL of my students and colleagues :(  


I will be creating another blog or site that I will keep updated while abroad with pictures and stories.  When I do this, I will post the link on this blog.


Ok, to stop focusing on the future and focus on what's going on now...check out the information below to see what each class will be doing this week:


7th grade
This week, the 7th graders will be finishing and presenting their persuasive projects in which they created an invention, designed a new business, etc.  They will be presenting their posters and speeches--this will be fun!  I'm noticing they are pretty interested in, and good at, being persuasive! :)


8th grade
This week, the students will be continuing their multi-genre project over the Hazelwood High Trilogy.  Throughout the week they will be reading, taking quizzes, and turning in artifact projects over the novels.


9th grade
This week, the students will be performing monologues and soliloquies from William Shakespeare's plays.  I am very excited to see how they do!

What's Up!?! for 4/30 - 5/4

Hello again :)


The end of the school year is getting closer, but we are all still working hard!


Here's a look at what we will be doing this week:

7th Grade
This week the 7th graders will be starting a unit over persuasion.  So far, they seem to REALLY know a lot about persuasion in the media.  


In this unit, the students will be learning different methods of persuasion.  Also, they will be learning how to identify their purpose and their audience, and how to choose which persuasive techniques will work best on that audience.  








8th Grade
This week, the students have somewhat of a hodgepodge of lessons.  We will begin the week with watching the film, Evan Almighty, and identifying its theme and how that theme is developed from the beginning to the end of the film.  On Tuesday (5/1) the 8th graders have their Science OAA tests.  


Then, near the end of the week, the student will begin a unit over the Hazelwood High Trilogy (a 3-book series).  The students will be working on this unit until the end of the school year.






9th Grade
This week, the 9th graders will conclude their unit over Ayn Rand's novel, Anthem.  


Then, the students will begin a short unit over one of my favorites:  William Shakespeare!




I hope everyone has a great week.  Oh, and don't forget:  Prom is on Saturday (5/5).  I will be there chaperoning so...see you soon! 

What's Up! for 4/23 - 4/27

Hello again :)


This week, as always, is quite eventful.  Check it out!


Random:

William Shakespeare's birthday is this week!

(Monday, April 23rd---yay!) 

7th & 8th grade:

OAA testing will also be this week for both 7th and 8th graders (Tuesday, Thursday).  The 8th graders will have an additional OAA test next Tuesday (May 1st) but the 7th grade will not.

9th grade:

The 9th graders will be finishing the novel Anthem this week.  Watch out for a test over the novel sometime early next week (Tuesday is estimated date as of now)!

Utopia

The 9th graders are currently reading Ayn Rand's novel Anthem. This is a dystopian novel that focuses on people who have tried to create their own "perfect" utopia but, in reality, it is an imperfect dystopia.  I had the students create their OWN utopias, and below are the results...

BREAKING NEWS.....!!!!!

I have some VERY exciting news...


Last week, I sent out letters that the 9th graders wrote to the Nobel Peace Prize winner, and author of the novel Night, Elie Wiesel.  After reading his novel, the students wrote letters to Wiesel explaining how they felt about his novel (which gives life to his experience as a Jew in a concentration camp during the Holocaust).  


Just today, the students received a letter from THE Elie Wiesel (signature and all) expressing his gratitude to the students for their kind words and caring hearts.  I am SO proud of the students for taking the time to write the letters, and I am extremely appreciative that such a great, well-established man such as Elie Wiesel would take the time to write back to the students.  Great job 9th graders!  


Below is a picture of the letter so that all of you can see and share in our excitement!

What's Up for 4/16 - 4/20

The students are going to be very busy this week :)


7th Grade
7th graders will be prepping for the OAA tests which they will begin taking next week (I know, eeek....they've come so soon!).  The will be be reviewing literary terms and application of these terms.


8th Grade
8th graders will be finishing up their presentations and reviews of their persuasive speeches (which have been great, by the way!).  They will then, like the 7th grade, be prepping for the OAA tests through reviewing and applying literary terms.


9th Grade
9th graders will be presenting their utopian shadow boxes (which have looked amazing--pictures will come soon!).  They will then be continuing their reading and studying of the novel, Anthem.


I hope everyone has a great week!

What's Up for 4/10 - 4/13

Welcome back everyone!  I hope you all had a great spring break!
Below is a description of what each class will be working on this week:
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7th grade
This week, the 7th graders will be writing personal narratives (much different than their analytical essays from last week) about a place in America that has inspired them.  Then, they will be submitting them into a contest for a chance to win great prizes including a Nook or $10,000 savings bond!


8th grade 
This week, the 8th graders are going to polish their persuasive speeches through learning about and applying presentation skills.  These skills include aspects of body language, voice, eye contact, etc.  I am sure they will do great once they present their speeches at the end of the week!

9th grade
This week the 9th graders will be creating their own utopias (to aid in their understanding of dystopian literature, the genre of the novel they are reading).  They will be making shadow boxes that capture a glimpse of their utopia including rules, consequences, people and scenery.  I'll post pictures once they are finished!
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So, did anyone do anything really cool over spring break? If so, please share below in a comment! 

Keep Going...then have fun!

So, as we all are aware, Spring Break is almost here (Yes, only 2 days left!).  However, I want to encourage you all to keep pushing yourself until the final bell rings on Wednesday--just because it is almost break, doesn't mean you should almost break your grade by thinking you're on vacation already!


This week, all the students should be working very hard:

• 7th grades will be completing some practice OAA tests to prepare them for the actual OAA that they will take at the end of April.
• 8th graders will be continuing work on their persuasive speech, creating PowerPoint and notecards to aid in their speech.
• 9th graders will be continuing their Literature Circles--looking into themes, connection, character development, etc. over Ayn Rand's dystopian novel, Anthem.

Now, once that final bell on Wednesday does ring, consider the following inexpensive ideas for some great fun over Spring Break!...(sites where these ideas were found are listed at the end of this post)

• Get Artsy!  One of my new favorite sites is Pinterest!  This website will give you TONS of awesome ideas from how to make t-shirt scarves, to creating awesome artwork for your wall, to designing your own t-shirts.  Look up some ideas and try them with your friends!  (Seriously, they have the BEST ideas for artsy, fun crafts--I even tried making some t-shirt scarves with friends...so fun!)
• Dance Party--enjoy some great music and fun with having friends over, along with lots of snacks, and just dance!
• Cook!  Everyone loves trying great food so look up a random recipe and recruit friends or family to help you try to make it.  If it turns out well, you get a great treat, and if it doesn't then you at least get a fun experience.  
• Board Games!  Have a day/night where you get out all of your board games and play them with your friend or family.  To make it interesting, have a special prize for the person/team who wins the most games!
• Explore!  With friends or family, go on a walk or bike ride to somewhere you've never been.  Exploring new places will make you feel like you're taking a mini vacation, and it will be a little adventure as well!
• Volunteer!  Though most people think it won't be fun, it is surprising how most people enjoy volunteering when they actually do it!  Try working at a soup kitchen or an outdoor volunteer opportunity such as Habitat for Humanity.
• Bedroom Makeover!  Sometimes change makes us feel refreshed.  So, with the help of a friend, rearrange your bedroom--it will be fun and make you feel like you received a brand new room!

I hope everyone has a great break!

Sources:

• http://pinterest.com/
• http://teenadvice.about.com/od/entertainment/tp/things_to_do_during_high_school_spring_break.htm
• http://www.sheknows.com/parenting/articles/814008/12-tv-free-ways-to-keep-your-kids-busy-over-spring-break-1

Jeopardy

LA9:

Did any of you watch Jeopardy tonight? The Final Jeopardy question was about a dystopian novel we discussed today while taking notes . See if you can figure it out:

[[  "Books leapt and danced like roasted birds, their wings ablaze with red and yellow feathers" is a line from this novel.  ]]

Hint: it's a novel about burning books!

Mansfield Reformatory

Recently, I took the NR 9th graders to the Mansfield Reformatory.  We had been nearing the end of a unit titled Preventing the Past:  Patterns in History, which began with research on the Holocaust, reading NIGHT by Elie Wiesel, then researching and connecting modern topics to this such as genocide, human trafficking, racism/sexism, etc., and on to looking at methods of reform as ways to prevent pattern of the past.  


While at the Mansfield Reformatory, we observed the name, outer structure, inner structure, and daily schedule and expectations in order to analyze how these were used to reform prisoners and if they were effective methods of reform.  


Overall, the field trip was great!  The Mansfield Reformatory is such an interesting historical place with amazing architecture, tons of history, modern connections (Shawshank Redemption, Air Force One, and even a Lil' Wayne music video have been shot in the Reformatory) and more!  Did I mentioned that the cells, 600 of them, make the the largest cell block in the world?!?!  This has put the Mansfield Reformatory as #27 on the Top 100 Things to See Before You Die!  We can now check that one off!


Check out some of the photos from our adventure:

Scene from Shawshank Redemption

Eric in a coal-burning nook.

Austin looking down from one of the rows of cells.

Brittany in a cell!

Giant cell block.

Yes, Ethan, that IS an electric chair! Eek!

Me, inside of a cell!  Don't leave me here, please!

An elevator in the chapel.

Old books and records from the hospital and library.

Our tour guide explaining that all inmates were required to take showers on Saturdays.

Field Trips = Great Success

On Thursday, March 15, I took the 7th grade class to the Toledo Museum of Art.  Being my first field trip since I have been here at New Riegel, and especially because I was going to be taking 7th graders to a quiet, fancy museum with expensive breakables, I was extremely nervous.  I had high hopes and numerous educational goals for the trip, but I was still nervous.  


"What if something goes wrong?  What if the students aren't inspired or interested in the artwork?  What if the students come out with no gain towards the educational goals?"  These were only a few of the many thoughts keeping me up Wednesday night.


After much over-planning, I started my morning with a soy latte to give me energy and soothe my nerves, then came to school mentally prepared for whatever outcome the field trip was going to give.  Let's just say WOW, I was surprised...


The field trip was incredible!  :)  The students were energetic and excited, yet quiet and respectful.  I can't explain how thrilling it was to see students standing in front of a piece of artwork, taking notes, discussing its details, explaining what it makes them feel and think of, etc.  Those moments alone were inspiring to me!  At one point, when I asked a student if he was finished looking at/taking notes of a particular piece, he replied, "I'm done, but I don't want to be done" with passion and sadness in his eyes.  THIS is what field trips are made for--to not only fulfill an educational goal, but to also ignite a passion and respect for something unexpected, and to expose young people to art, different cultures and different perspectives.  


It's interesting how things work out.  My original goal was for the students to come home with more knowledge and understanding than before they went to the museum, but it ended up that they weren't the only ones.  I, too, came home with more knowledge and understanding:  I realized that all the stress, time and insanity of planning the field trip was beyond well-worth it.  The moment when you see your students excited to learn, explore, and engage in something new, especially art/culture, is the moment when you're reminded why you chose to teach in the first place!

Hello all my hard-working 9th graders! 


I'm very excited to check out your new blogs and see the progress you make throughout your research projects for Patterns in History:  Preventing Repetition of the Past.  


Below, please post the url for your blog.  I will be checking in throughout the process to see changes and updates you are making.  Good luck and don't forget to play around with Blogger to see all the great features it is capable of! :)

This week!

Hello everyone!  I'm really excited about  what the students are doing this month and next.  Being inspired by Black History Month, I put together units that explore modern, common issues of stereotyping and discrimination while encouraging students to find ways to prevent these problems.  Hopefully, by the end of the units, the students will have a better understanding of the similarities we share with people who may look different than us.  Here's a little outline as to what we are doing in class this week:


LA7:  This week we will continue their unit on Good vs. Evil by looking into how an author establishes a style and also how they create a representation of "good" or "evil" in their work using characters (archetypes), setting, poetic devices, etc.  We are reading poems from both Edgar Allan Poe and William Shakespeare....opposites!


LA8:  This week we will be continuing our Breaking Barriers unit by looking at the similarities and differences in  struggles among different races.  Along with this, we will be having an African American guest come in to speak to the students about his experience as an African American in America and in South Korea. 


LA9:  This week the students will begin their unit titled, Patterns in History:  Preventing Repetition of the Past.  They will be creating their own blogs (which they will share with you on here) and create artifacts that explore the modern application, and comparison with the Holocaust, of their topics which are:  Racism, Sexism, Totalitarianism, Genocide, and Human Trafficking.


Stay tuned for more updates! :)

NIGHT--life-changing moments

LA9:


In Night, Eliezer has a life-changing experience that brings him to tears:  he has to watch a young, beautiful boy die slowly through being hanged.  On top of this, once the small child is dead, he must walk by him and stare at his face.  This experience is something he will never forget.  We see that by experiencing this, Eliezer is more thankful for what he has, more appreciative of the little things in life, and has probably also changed in a lot of other ways.


In life, we all have experiences, though maybe not as drastic as this one, that change us forever.  Below, please tell us a short summary of a life-changing experience you have had--it doesn't have to be sad, it can be something that inspired you or made you happy as well.

Check this out:


LA9:  This Holocaust museum website will help provide you with many interesting and useful resources including biographies, pictures, webquests, etc.


  http://www.ushmm.org/

Hey everyone!  This is my new blog :)  From now and on, I will be using this blog to update you on what's going on in class, provide you with interesting topics to be discussed, and sometimes share useful & fun sites and sources to explore when you have a spare minute.  Enjoy, and keep an eye out for updates! <o>