Week 1

Is anyone besides me excited about the first day of school? I'm teaching a new class, I've got a bagful of new ideas, and I can't wait. Reading this blog, however, is like a scene from one of those old westerns where the sheriff slowly walks down the empty main street and mutters, "It's quiet. Too quiet."

On Tuesday we'll begin a conversation about how to make this blog (and other e-tools) work for you, so that we can contribute, exchange ideas and work together in new ways. In the meantime, the following tips will help prepare you for the first week IRL:

1. Get to class as early as you can. We'll need every second.
2. Bring a spiral notebook or comp book in addition to your binder (returning students will recognize this as the infamous journal).
3. Bring your summer reading notes and be prepared to turn them in. I will return them Wednesday so that you can use them on the in-class essay. (Oh, by the way: we're having an in-class essay on Wednesday).
4. Make sure you're in the right class. I don't mean according to your program, I mean according to your own heart and mind. This course demands intellectual courage and intestinal fortitude, and AP is not for everyone. Be honest with yourself.
5. The following posts (which you'll probably see before this if you're not checking the blog every hour) will provide vocabulary and poetry assignments for Week 1. There will be a vocabulary quiz on Friday, August 19, and you must have the poem memorized by Monday, August 22.

Hope you had a great summer. I look forward to exchanging ideas about the reading, and embarking together on a memorable journey. See you Tuesday.