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SY19-20 MYP English 1

Instructor
Jorie Pesce
Department
English Language Arts
Terms
2019-2020 School Year


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_Week 8- Remote Learning English I

Dear Students & Families, 
 
I hope you've been able to safely enjoy the beautiful weather this weekend. With all the continued uncertainty and unrest in our country and city, I recognize that this time is stressful, unsettling, and scary. Please know that I'm always thinking about my students and our Amundsen families, and I'm here to support you! 
 
Now more than ever, the voices and stories of our amazing students need to be heard! I'm looking forward to reading and providing feedback on personal narratives early this week. Students, who turned their drafts in on Friday or over the weekend, can expect feedback by Tuesday. Those who need more time, I will happily grant extensions, but please understand that your feedback may be delayed to later in the week. 
 
I can't wait to see how students finalize their stories this week! Remember: the deadline for the final draft and all previous work is Monday, June 8th. 
 
What comes next? After Monday, June 8th, students can still engage and extend their learning until the end of the school year. I am posting a creative project that is extra credit and due June 11th. Our last Google Meets session will be Thursday, June 11th and our last optional book club will be Friday, June 12th. 
 
This won't be the last time you'll hear from me. I will send out suggestions for summer reading/learning for those families and students interested. However, this will be the last week of lesson plans and graded work for the school year. 
 
It's been an honor and privilege to teach my students and partner with the families this year. Please reach out with questions and concerns. Stay safe, everyone!
 
 
Sincerely,
 
Jorie M. Pesce
 
English Teacher - MYP English 1 & Transitional ESL 1
English Learner Program Teacher (ELPT)
Amundsen High School
5110 N. Damen Ave., Chicago, IL 60625

Pesce Week 7- Remote Learning English I (1)

Hello Students & Families, 

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! I hope everyone is doing well. I continue to think of all my students and their families during this time. 

I wanted to get the plans for next week out early. Students are under no obligation to begin work early, but I had requests from some students who are eager to start writing over the long weekend. All of next week's resources are up on Google Classroom as of this afternoon. Next week, students will write their first drafts of the personal narrative assignment. The following week, they will finalize their narratives. 

I want to encourage all students, if able, to write a narrative next week. Even if you haven't been engaged recently, this is an assignment that you can do! Plus, it's very therapeutic to write and be creative, expressive, and reflective during this time. I wrote my own narrative as an example and found it to be a healthy distraction!

Just a reminder: the final deadline for the personal narrative (and all English work) is Monday, June 8th! 

Thanks for all the support at home, families, and for all your hard work, students! 

Best, 

Ms. Pesce

[email protected] 

 

Week 6- Remote Learning English I

Hi Students & Families, 

I hope this email finds you and your loved ones well. I continue to be very proud of my students, who are engaging in our lessons despite the challenges and uncertainty we face in our world. The district officially announced that the last day to complete work for underclassmen is Monday, June 8th. This means we have 3 weeks to wrap up our personal narrative unit. I'm looking forward to helping students craft and finalize their narratives in the coming weeks!

Attached is the lesson plan for this week. As always, we couldn't do any of this without your help and support at home. So, thank you! Please reach out with any questions or concerns. 

Best, 

Ms. Pesce

English & ESL Teacher

[email protected]

Week 5 - Remote Learning English I

Dear Students & Families, 

I hope this email finds you well on this rainy morning. Wishing all the mothers, grandmothers, aunts, and mother-figures a very special day today! I continue to think of all my students and their families during this difficult time. Please know that the health and safety of Amundsen's families and students remains our #1 priority. We're here for you, so please reach out and communicate with me if you, as a student or family, need extensions, support, or have questions. 

The English 1 Team is working hard to maintain consistent and simple weekly plans that are still engaging, skill-based, and differentiated. This week, students begin reading personal narrative exemplars, review the rubric, and brainstorm topics for their writing. I even decided to write my own personal narrative alongside students! I can't wait to read and provide feedback for the creative student writing in the coming weeks.

Lastly, students have been given the opportunity to join me for an extra credit book club from May 12th until June 12th. The book is I'm Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika Sanchez. If students want to participate, I asked that they complete this Google Form. Students may use an electronic copy of the book from the CPS library (I will send it to them) or purchase the book. Joining the book club will be a fun way to stay engaged in reading and discuss the book in a smaller group! 

Parents and guardians, thanks again for your continued support at home. We truly couldn't do it without you! Students, hang in there and focus on finishing strong! 

Sincerely, 

Ms. Pesce

English 1 Teacher

[email protected] 

Pesce - Week 4 Remote Learning English I.docx

Dear Parents and Guardians:

 We hope this message finds you and your family well! We want to begin by thanking you for signing up to speak with us about your child’s progress.  We value your partnership!

 Parent Feedback

We also want to thank you for your constructive feedback about how remote learning has gone for you and your child. 

 We will implement the following feedback immediately:

  • Fridays will now be Independent Work Days, which means no new work will be assigned.  Students may choose to use this day to catch up on previous assignments or extend their learning.
  • We will no longer assign work in No Red Ink or Membean; however, these platforms are full of perfect extension activities for anyone looking to extend their learning. 

New Unit Starting May 4: Personal Narrative!

In this unit, students will write a Personal Narrative, which is an essay about a specific occurrence in a writer’s life. We ask that students please prioritize the Live Google Meet on Thursday, May 7th, so they can receive important information for our new unit.  

Why did we choose this unit?

  • Students will exit 9th grade with a polished narrative they can later revise as a personal statement for college applications and/or scholarships. 
  • In addition to identifying and analyzing elements such as theme, characterization, and word choice, students will create them in their own writing.    
  • Creative writing can have a significant impact on our mental health; it has been found to boost mood, enhance well-being, and reduce anxiety. 

Weekly Overview

You mentioned how much you appreciated that our curriculum followed a predictable structure each week. 

With that in mind, here’s how we organized the weeks of this unit:

Monday

Read & annotate an anchor text (a short story chosen for how the writer utilizes the skill we are learning that week).

Tuesday

Evaluate how the writer uses the skill by answering specific questions.

Wednesday

Practice & apply skill through writing!

Thursday

Practice & apply skill through writing!

Live: Google Meet or Recorded Mini-Lesson

Friday

Independent Work Days (Catch-up or extend your learning)

Every Sunday evening, we will continue to send you the weekly calendar with specific instructions. Daily instructions, reminders, and assignments are posted on Google Classroom for students.

 

Amid this pandemic, the adage about it taking a village to raise a child has never been more true.  We are here for you and your family!  Please continue to reach out with any questions or concerns.  


Respectfully, 

Ms. Pesce and the English 1 Team

Remote Learning Week 2_ 4_20-4_24

Good Morning!

I hope this email finds you and your family safe and healthy. I know the Governor's announcement about school closure through the end of the year feels heavy. Personally, while not entirely surprised, I still felt shocked and sad from the news. I will miss seeing you all in person, but I'm so grateful we still have time to learn and grow together as a class remotely. As we learn more about what this means for our school, we'll update students and families. 

In other news, the first week of remote learning went well! 76% of my students were either engaged or communicating with me during Week 1. I'm so proud of you all! I loved seeing students on Thursday during our "live discussion" and they gave me great feedback. Some students expressed that it's hard to establish a routine and structure their time. So, in addition to providing the Week 2 plan and online access codes documents, I've sent students organizational resources that give examples on how to structure/prioritize time. As always, I'm here for students and families, and love hearing from you!

With gratitude, 

Ms. Pesce

[email protected]

Remote Learning Week 1_ 4_13-4_17

Dear Students, Parents, and Guardians:  

We hope that you are well and WE MISS YOU SO MUCH!  Amundsen’s Remote Learning Plan goes into effect on Monday, April 13 and remains in effect until we return to school.

Here’s what Remote Learning will look like for English I:

  • By 8 a.m. every Monday, we will provide you a weekly summary of assignments on Google Classroom.  We will also post the weekly summary to our webpages on the school website at amundsenhs.org. 
  • Our “office hours” are 12:00pm-1:00pm daily.   We’re available via email, Google Chat, or Google Meet.  We are here for you! We want you to reach out to us! 
  • Every Thursday from 1:00pm-2:00pm, there will be a live activity on Google Meet. 
  • All assignments will be submitted through Google Classroom.  Here are the codes for each period in case you still need to get access:
        • 5th & 6th periods: sequexs

Please remember the following about Remote Learning:

  • You are encouraged to do all of the assignments provided to you by your teachers during this time.
  • Your grades cannot be negatively impacted by work you completed or did not complete after March 16.
  • We will provide you with feedback on a weekly basis so you can make necessary corrections and revisions to achieve proficiency or mastery of the task.
  • We are also allowing you to make up work assigned prior to March 17.
  • Although grades are important, we are encouraging you and your families to keep up with these assignments to make sure you don’t fall behind academically. 

 None of us have ever experienced anything like this and we know we will need to make adjustments as we go.  With that said, please give us feedback on what we can do to better help you. We’re here for you! When you reach out to us, it makes our day!

 Please let us know if you have any questions!

 Ms. Pesce