Read the Wall...

The Wall of Truth

One of the greatest blessings of teaching at a Christian school is being able to boldly share my love of Jesus with my students!  In a teacher's life, every school year brings the opportunity to hone her craft, do things better, make more of a difference in her students' lives.   

While I craft lessons that incorporate reading, writing, listening, and speaking (you know, all of those standards that our students need to master), I also have the opportunity to point our students to the truths that are found in the Word of God.

This year, I wanted to find a way to make the Word of God and the truths found in the Bible become a part of what we are doing every day - in a more intentional and bold way. I wanted to do this better and bolder than I had done it before. So, in an effort to make this a priority for me and for my students, I have covered the front of the classroom in Biblical Truth!

As we discuss plot and setting and theme and characterization, we make connections to Biblical truths. As we write sentences that demonstrate a variety of sentence structures and grammatical elements, we make connections to Biblical truths. As we read novels that explore that journeys of characters through life situations that might mirror our own or through historical periods that have changed the world, we make connections to Biblical truths. 

I have been so encouraged by the discussions sparked by the wall of truth; I can't wait to see what connections my students make next! 

Live Worthy. Bear Fruit. Grow in Knowledge

As I start another school year, my eleventh at Upland Christian Academy, I am looking forward to all that God has planned for me and for my students. I know that we will be studying great short stories and novels. I know that we will be making connections between those literary works and the Biblical Truths - Creation, God, Mankind, Moral Order, and Purpose. I know that we will be writing short literary analyses and longer essays, using the writing process to hone our skills. I know that we will learn new vocabulary words as well as Greek and Latin roots to build our ever-growing vocabularies. I know that we will work together to complete tasks - and work independently to complete others. In fact, I know what I have planned for me and my students. What I don't know - and what I am looking forward to - is seeing what God has planned. 

How is he going to use my plans to grow His kingdom? 

On my heart as this year begins is Colossians 1:9-14. May the Holy Spirit fill my students with a desire to live worthy, bear fruit, and grow in the knowledge of God. 

English 7 - The Phantom Tollbooth

Going Beyond Expectations with Milo!

Can it be? Is it that time again? Time to travel BEYOND EXPECTATIONS into the LANDS BEYOND with Milo, Tock, the Humbug, and a cast of extraordinary characters in Norton Juster's novel The Phantom Tollbooth! Filled with puns, idioms, and word play, the essence of this novel is the love of learning, the journey of discovery, and the extended metaphor of the importance of WISDOM. We are going to enjoy all of that AND explicate, analyze, and learn about language and writing!

Milo and my students are beginning their journey together...

"The little car started to go faster and faster as Milo's brain whirled with activity, and down the road they went. In a few minutes they were out of the Doldrums and back on the main highway. All the colors had returned to their original brightness, and as they raced along the road Milo continued to think of all sorts of things; of the many detours and wrong turns that were so easy to take, of how fine it was to be moving along, and, most of all, of how much could be accomplished with just a little thought."

So, let's get those brains whirling with activity so that we can discover with Milo just how much we can accomplish with "just a little thought"!

Oh, and if you've never read The Phantom Tollbooth, I encourage you to pick up a copy and settle in for a great read. While this is a book marketed for children, it is insightful and thought-provoking for readers of all ages!

English 8 - Argument Essays

The month of February was filled with writing! The eighth graders wrote their Argument Essays, choosing from a variety of topics. The students were nine given statements with which to agree or disagree, including:

The school day should start later for teenagers.

All junk food should be banned on school campuses.
Cellphones can be educational tools. 

The most popular essay topic was "the punishment for texting and driving should be the same as it is for drinking and driving."

The students worked through the writing process: pre-writing, researching (including on-line articles), drafting, editing, revising, revising, and more revising! They also had to create an online survey to gather data which they then incorporated into the body of their essay. 

The students exceeded my expectations with their passionate arguments and critical thinking. 

Next up? A journey into the past: Across Five Aprils and the American Civil War. 

 

Thankfulness

Colossians 2:6-7 

"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness."

 

It's hard to believe that this weekend marks the end of the 1st trimester. One-third of the school year is already over! Wow.

So, in looking back over the last trimester, I have found that I am incredibly thankful.

I am thankful that I have the opportunity every single day to live my life rooted in Christ. 

I am thankful that I teach at Upland Christian Academy.

I am thankful that I work with men and women who love the Lord and share Him with their students and each other every day!

I am thankful that I have the opportunity to teach 6th, 7th, and 8th graders this year in subjects that I love: English Language Arts and Bible and Study Skills!

I am thankful that I got to teach a mini session of Crafty Art.

I am thankful for students with whom I can laugh and be silly and pray and be serious!

I am thankful for students who work hard to learn new things every day. 

I am even thankful for students who don't want to work hard to learn new things every day. 

I am thankful for those moments when my students shine in unexpected ways, when they express their learning so clearly and thoughtfully, and when they surprise even themselves that what we are learning in school "really matters."

I am thankful for a Lord whose mercies are new every morning - after all, I teach junior high!

As we enter this season of Thanksgiving, my prayer is that my students also cling to a spirit of thankfulness, strengthening in their faith, and living their lives in Christ!

 

Let it Shine!

Our school verse this year is Psalm 119:105: "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." God's Word is to light our path as we LET IT SHINE for Jesus! There is nothing greater than serving our Lord, and I am so excited to meet our new students and catch up with my returning ones! My prayer is that Jesus shines through me in a powerful way this year, and I also pray that my students grow in their love for the Lord and in their desire to shine for Him!

It is shaping up to be a great school year (and we haven't even started yet)! Upland Christian Academy is implementing 1:1 iPads in grades 6-12, embracing the benefits of technology and combining those with our high academic standards. After using an iPad and teaching with a smartboard last year, I am excited to take that to the next level with my students. Last year, there were so many things that I thought, "When they all have an iPad, they will be able to _____" Yeah! That moment has arrived! Bring it on!

Counting down: 6 days 'til school starts!

Putting it all Together: _Across Five Aprils_ and the Civil War

Wow! My 8th graders have worked so diligently to put together their culminating projects for our Across Five Aprils and the Civil War unit. Rather than a unit test, they are demonstrating what they've learned through eight required learning "pieces."

These include:

1) a dialectical journal on one of the significant passages, 

2) a poem imitating Walt Whitman's "I Hear America Singing" in which the students are expected to show prominent images of the novel and the war, 

3) a map of the Union and Confederate states along with paragraphs on the significance of three battles fought in both the novel and the war - bridging history and fiction, 

4) a "Rank of Importance" in which the students determine the five most significant events in the life of the protagonist Jethro Creighton, and they defend those choices, 

5) a mini research essay on a significant person, place, or event from the Civil War era, 

6) an analysis of a piece of Civil War art, connecting art, literature, and history, 

7) a choice piece of either "Twitter Tweets," a movie soundtrack playlist, or a photo/word collage, and

8) a Reflection of Learning in which the students reflect on what they learned, how they know they learned it, and how they might use this information in the future. 

I have enjoyed the creative process with them, as they have worked to produce these pieces over the course of only three weeks. One of my goals was for their projects to be designed, created, and put together at school - without any outside help. I wanted these projects to genuinely reflect what my students have learned about literature and history. In order to do this, with limited class time, I have encouraged students to stay after school all week to use the computer lab and my classroom as a working place. The collaboration and camaraderie that I have seen as students encourage one another to do their best has been one of the highlights of my year! I am so excited to put these final projects on display at our annual Achievement Expo this Thursday, May 22nd! 

Above: Students working to complete their projects. 

Culminating projects demonstrate thoughtful analysis and synthesis of what they've learned during this historical fiction unit. 

Nothing is tidy around here this week! Paper, adhesive, scissors, notes, novels, and creative juices are everywhere!

Knowledge is powerful stuff! :)