Substitute's Report - December 6

Hi X,

I had a great day and I appreciate the thorough notes you left me. I recorded attendance in the book and on Winschool as you asked but when a student was absent I just left it blank in the book so you could enter the number of the absence. I see that you are keeping a running total for each student. Here's how the day went:

Period 1: English

What a great class. We worked through the questions on the last page of the Study Guide as a class. We had a great discussion and I think that they have a better understanding of some of the terms (rhetoric, satire, juxtaposition, irony...), as we discussed examples from the book and from the 'real world'. Also to note that Allison copied and returned the notes you left for that purpose.

Period 2: Theory of Knowledge

Started with a discussion of Kuhn and made some connections to the History class I taught them yesterday. Essentially how the Enlightenment was a major paradigm shift and how this idea of linear progress still holds for many. The students took down the first page of notes and then we discussed each point. Sorry to not have gotten further into your notes but the discussion was good and I think that you will have a good base on which to develop the concept further as the kids seem to get it.

Period 3: Religion

You were right about this class not minding to take notes. After the first board of notes, which was the first two headings from your sheet, we discussed whether 'man' was essentially good or evil. The discussion was really good with a lot of students contributing. We never got back to the notes but I think that the class was well spent as we talked about the morality or responsibility we have to one another. So what is it that would lead one person to jump under a subway to save a stranger and another to take a picture with their phone as someone bleeds to death in the street. That kind of thing.

Lunch

- Duty . Done.

Period 4: Prep

Period 5: English

This class is a handful. I sent X out as he wouldn't shut up and was getting out of his desk. It was obvious that he was frustrating the other students. I let him after about 10 minutes but there was no repentance and I probably should have just kept him out there. Surprisingly we were able to go through all four themes on page 7 and I think that they students will do OK on their test. It's a weird mix as some of the students were really engaged and had good examples while others acted like five year olds. I have a 2.5 year old boy at home so I have lots of patience. So, in spite of the pockets of chaos we had a good review period. Also, X needed a copy of A Christmas Carol so I gave her one. The book number is 11692.

So, a good day with a fair bit of learning happening. I apologize that I didn't administer as many notes as you might have liked but I think that the discussion was valuable in both cases.

If you have any questions about my work with your classes please contact me at the coordinates below.

Cheers,

Kevin