SANTA MONICA HIGH SCHOOL

1. SANTA MONICA HIGH SCHOOL ENGLISH

2. WHO ARE WE?

3. ENGLISH TEACHERS

4. WHAT DO WE TEACH?

5. “COMPREHENSIVE ENGLISH” • READING SKILLS • BOOKS • WRITING SKILLS • TYPES OF WRITING • RESEARCH • SPEAKING • CREATIVE WRITING • LINKS TO OTHER SUBJECTS • LINKS TO THE REAL WORLD

6. READING SKILLS A few samples: How to use Latin roots to figure out new word How to “mark up” a text. How to recognize and interpret a metaphor. How to detect irony.

7. BOOKS • Balance between old and new, between the “canon” and the multicultural, between men and women. • Balance between fiction and non-fiction • Outside Reading programs • Summer Reading “A book is a ‘classic’ not because it’s old, but because it’s always new.”

8. WRITING SKILLS A few samples: • Using ink, full name, correctly capitalized title. • Varying the length and structure of sentences. • Using graceful transitions between ideas and paragraphs. • Providing specific evidence and examples

10. TYPES OF WRITING • ESSAYS ABOUT LITERATURE • AUTO/BIOGRAPHICAL NARRATIVE • PERSUASIVE ESSAYS • RESEARCH ESSAYS • RESEARCH/PERSUASIVE ESSAYS • S.A.T.-STYLE ESSAYS • JOURNALS • READING LOGS • OTHER “WRITING-TO-LEARN”

11. RESEARCH 9TH -12TH GRADE SEQUENCE OF RESEARCH AND DOCUMENTATION SKILLS BEGINS NEXT YEAR The object of this addition to our curriculum is to prepare our students for one of the most common kinds of college writing.

12. SPEAKING • Class lessons & discussions • Reports, projects, recitations, readings • Socratic seminars

13. CREATIVE WRITING • LINKED TO LITERATURE AND/OR • UN-LINKED

14. LINKS TO OTHER SUBJECTS 9th grade - English and Freshman Seminar 10th grade – English and World History 11th grade – English and American History 12th grade – English and Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, History, Cultural Studies, Sports

15. LINKS TO THE REAL WORLD • Assemblies – e.g., Downbeat 720 • Nights at the theater & other field trips • Correspondence with other parts of the U.S. and other countries, like Russia • The California Lit field trip to Steinbeck country • Every day in every class of every English teacher

16. WHAT ARE THE SPECIFIC ENGLISH COURSES TAUGHT?

18. Should my child take college prep or honors/ap?

19. Do english teachers help students with their personal statements for college applications?

20. Yes, it’s our policy: In all senior English classes, both elective and AP, there’s a unit on writing the college personal statement, completed in early fall before application deadlines.

21. When’s the exit exam, and how do you prepare students for the language arts section?

22. The Exit Exam (CAHSEE) is next Tuesday and Wednesday, March 17 and 18. Tenth-grade teachers have state-prepared books to use with their classes to help prepare students. In addition, our regular 9th and 10th grade curriculum is geared to the standards that are tested by the Exit Exam.

23. How does the english department help struggling students?

24. HELP WITH ENGLISH WORK • ELD sequence • Tutorial blocks • Freshman Seminar blocks • After-school tutoring programs • House intervention programs • Individual teacher attention outside of class hours • CAHSEE prep

25. Are you stuffy old english teachers down with the latest technology?

26. Indeed we are! . . .Elmo / Laptop / ProjectorHomework & handouts on-lineTurnitin.comWikisBlogs

27. What books should I get my child to read?

28. WHATEVER WILL ACTUALLY GET READ! • Any book your child WILL actually read is a good book to get into their hands. If your child will read classics or other high-quality books, great! But don’t insist on quality if it discourages reading! Make reading fun, easy, and perhaps practical. Some often overlooked categories that appeal to high school students are: • GRAPHIC NOVELS (COMIC-BOOK STYLE)HUMOR • SCARY/HORROR/SUSPENSE/MYSTERYBOOKS OF QUOTES OR OTHER “SMALL BITES”SHORT AND SHORT SHORT STORIESBOOKS WITH MOVIE TIE-INSCELEBRITY BIOGRAPHIES – SPORTS, MUSIC, TV/MOVIESSELF-HELP BOOKS POETRY OR NOVEL-IN-VERSEFICTION BOOKS THAT ARE “BELOW STUDENT’S LEVEL”BILINGUAL BOOKS