Welcome to second trimester!

Hello, students!  Welcome to your Honors English IB class and your second trimester of blogging.  We have a few changes this trimester in regards to blogging, which can be found on the sheet provided in class.  But first and foremost, we are reducing the required number of blog posts to one per week.  We are also going to provide you with  multiple blog post topics, so you should never say, "I don't have anything to blog about."

Since today is the first blogging day of the new tri, you have a couple of tasks with your blog:

 1)  On my blog page, you need to click on "Enter your blog information here" located on the right-hand side near the top.

2) Enter your blog information.  (To do this you need to log in to Google, go to Blogger, and click VIEW BLOG).  Your URL is what you see in the top window.  It should NOT look like this:
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=8841072407200182#editor/target=post;postID=9509676772139
If your URL has the word "blogger" in it, you are in edit mode.  Your URL should look something like this:
http://brossclassroomz323.blogspot.com/
Enter the information and your class period.

3)  Log in to Goodreads.  Enter what book you are currently reading and update the page number.  Also, update your reading goal if needed.  (You may still be working on your reading goal from last trimester, and that is okay.  But if you exceeded it, please set a new one).

4) Friend Mrs. Bross in Goodreads.  To do this, click on the drop-down arrow to the right of your name.  Select "Friends."  Then,  on the right-hand side go to "find by name or email."  Type in "Mandi Bross."  I am the only person with that name on Goodreads, so it should be fairly easy to find me.  Friend a few other people in the class as well.  I can't WAIT to see your updates.

5) Your final task: write a new post!  Your topic idea can come from the handout provided to you today in class.  Or, you can tell me what your favorite book was from last trimester and why you liked it so much (you could even make it like a book review for your peers).  Aim for a solid two paragraphs and show me that you can do at least one of the following: insert a hyperlink to a webpage, article, etc.; insert a video; or insert a picture.

Once you have accomplished all of the following, I would like you to spend the rest of the class time exploring Goodreads, especially checking out your recommendations and adding books to your "Want to read" list.  If you don't have recommendations yet, spend some time going back and rating books you've read in the past so you can get recommendations.

Ready to Return

As I write this, I am getting ready to return to teaching from a five-month long maternity leave.  I am so excited and just a tiny bit nervous, since I have two children at home now.  I used my leave to catch up on a lot of reading, and I have to say that I probably spent more money than I should've on books (although any money spent on books is money well spent!).  Perhaps I need to do a better job utilizing the library's resources...

One of the books that stuck with me the most was The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.  Full disclosure:  I did NOT want to read this book AT ALL because I'd heard it was sad.  Honestly, I don't like to read sad books.  I have never been a Nicholas Sparks fan for this (and other) reasons. However, I like to be familiar with what my students are reading, and for this reason, I read the book.  And yes, it was SAD.  I read it on vacation in Disney World, and I cried my eyes out at the end (even though I could see the plot twist coming from a mile away).  I do have to say that I was impossibly drawn to both main characters.  Their voices were so distinct, witty, humorous, and engaging, and because of this, I couldn't stop turning the pages.  I've always been amused by kids who speak in a way that makes them seem older than what they are, and the protagonist(s) of this book are exactly like that.  Effective characterization occurs when the reader feels like he or she has a relationship with the characters in the book, and that was exactly how I felt.  But again, it was WAY too sad for me. 

I am currently 70 percent of the way through Allegiant (the final book in the Divergent series), and I was so excited to read this book, as I loved the first two.  And...I have been a little disappointed.  The book is written from the perspective of two main characters, and honestly, I forget who is narrating the chapter I'm reading because their voices sound exactly the same.  Is anyone else reading this book?  What do you think about the two different narrators and perspectives?  I would love to know your thoughts! 

Keep reading, and I'll talk to you again soon!