Robert Hancock Blog 26

Overall I felt you were a great English Teacher. You introduced new ideas and writing styles that I hadn't been exposed to before. I felt you prepared us for the test as best as any Teacher could and I felt like I nailed the test. Honestly I can't think about what I would change that could make your class all that much better. You could focus a little more on the smaller parts of the test that tripped us up for a lot of the year, like the foot notes and how to properly read and decipher them. I enjoyed the Socratic seminar pieces but, I felt like we did to many. We spent a lot of time on it and while some people seemed to participate and do well with it there were quite a few who seemed like it was completely going over their heads. And I know that me and some friends would ask each other why we were doing the Socratic seminars, they didn't see the benefit to analyzing the pieces and honestly  I didn't see much use to them either but that may be because I already am proficient at analyzing and deciphering pieces so the practice was little unnecessary.
Even then I enjoyed the year and thank you for preparing me for the AP Exam and wish you a happy and relaxing summer.

Robert Hancock Blog 25

I deal with stress by doing what i find enjoyable in the brief moments I have between preparing and studying for classes. I watch YouTube videos, I read a book or maybe I play video games with friends on a friday. I stress over tests but also I try to keep a positive outlook on this time of the year. I remain confident in myself and no that what happens happens. I relax when I can and work when I need to, winding down often, even if for a brief moment before I need to get to work. I stay in touch with friends, and we are able to keep each other semi sane during finals week. Giving the week a sense of normality instead of allowing the fear of the final to germinate and cause undo stress. We just look on the bright side of what is going on. we don't stress over little things.

Tabbi Coffman 26: Reflections

Tabbi Coffman 26: Reflections

When I went in for the AP test I didn't feel worried I felt done. Done with AP test and done with this year. This doesn't mean that I didn't try my best on the test, but it definitely means I'm glad it's over. As happy as I am about being done with AP tests I am still sad to be leaving your class.

Most days in your class were low key and relaxing. Not to say that your class was not challenging because at times it was for me, but I never felt that this class was going to destroy all happiness in my life. Concerning whether or not I felt prepared for the test, I felt very prepared. The multiple choice felt easy because I annotated the passages instead of just reading and I remember the types of questions that you went over. Especially the questions that concerned note-notes. All I could think was “ahaha I know how to answer you, you tricky little shit!” So for that whole section I felt confident, but now comes the part where I give creative criticism. For the multiple choice I think something helpful for next year would be to talk about the types of passages. I noticed a pattern with the types (which has already left my brain for the most part) the first passage would usually be a serious piece, one would be about pop culture, one would have the footnotes etc. I think a good way to help with the multiple choice would be to explain how to read each type so you could answer the mc questions more effectively.

For the writing section, I was scared. I was worried that since I was in fourth period that I never got the full effect of sitting down and writing an essay straight. During the test though I realized this didn't effect me at all. Also the essays felt a little bit easier on the test than they did in class. Practice makes perfect, I guess.

Now for the most awkward part of this blog post, my thoughts in you as a teacher. I liked you as a teacher. Like I said before your class was never something that made me want to quit life, which is a compliment. Especially considering that you were able to teach everything you needed for our success. I wish all teachers could teach everything without being down our throats. So keep up the good work. I had fun in your class and at lunch in your room and I felt prepared for the test. Gold stars for Logsdon.

A reflection of myself in the class, I don't think I was a particularly good student. I know I wasn't. It wasn't personal and it wasn't a reflection of how I am as a student overall. I have no excuses or explanations for you (or Mrs. Jaquith) other than I'm sorry. If I could go back I would make sure to actually get the reminds, and do all of my blog posts on time, and upload all of my essays in time. I feel like my grade really suffered because of my lack of motivation to do what I was supposed to do. I want you to know that it had nothing to do with you or your teaching, it was me.

Overall I loved your class and I can definitely see myself popping into your class senior year :)

Tabbi Coffman 25: stressed øut

Tabbi Coffman 25: stressed øut

My biggest stressor in life is my procrastination. I have the time to do my work, and I'm capable of doing my work. But there's this mean little voice in the back of my head that says, “don't worry you'll have time to do it, you can [insert literally anything but my responsibilities] instead!” and then I do it! Every time I'm like I shouldn't have done that now I'm angry and stressed and out of time. But I do it every time. EVERY TIME.

So the first way I relieve stress is to actually do my work. I do my laundry, my homework, and anything else that I should. I know it sounds counter-productive, but it helps. It takes the burden off.

Now when I'm left with residual stress, I do have a couple things that make me feel better. This usually involves shopping. New clothes, new shoes, lush bath bombs. Honestly lush bath bombs are wonderful and I wish I could buy all of them forever and ever. Also I like to re-watch my favorite movies, like the ENTIRE HARRY POTTER SERIES. Also, if possible, I like to travel. I'll beg my Mom to take us to Charleston and spend a week unwinding on the beach. Or I guess my final way is to stress bake. I really like making cookies or cupcakes when I'm stressed.

Tabbi Coffman 24: List

Tabbi Coffman 24: List

Successes: I am pretty sure I did well on all of my AP tests. I have also successfully kept up with my relationship. I packed up my house and I'll be able to move at the end of this year. I am also NOT going to get any C’s!

Failures: My inability to turn in late work. That's a HUGE failure. Also my inability to study to save my life. That's my biggest flaw as a student. I cannot study. That's the struggle with being a “gifted child” no one teaches you how to study and you pretty much didn't have to study until it's kind of too late to form those habits.

Lessons Learned: Reminds are helpful and I should never give up on trying to get then to function.

Risks Taken: Dropping AP Calculus. This was so stressful for me because it was the first time in my life to drop a class. It was painful to do and not exactly worth it either. Oh well.

Summer Plans: I am getting a job, but other than that NOTHING. I am very, very excited!!!

Senior Year Goals & Plans: I want to get straight A’s. I REALLY WANT STRAIGHT A’s. I plan to stay organized all year and keep up with everything EVEN IF IT KILLS ME. It's worth it. I am going to do this by having an agenda and a calendar and a checklist and reminders on my phone and my mother breathing down my neck. It is going to happen. I'm also excited because my challenge class is going to be AP Chem and everything else is challenging but nothing impossible. Wish me luck!!!

Blog Post 25- Gloria Pulley

Oh my, there are so many different ways that I deal with stress, some good and some bad:

1.      I run. I run a lot.  Running releases happy chemicals that make you feel good and fuzzy inside.  It also makes me sleepy and really hungry but that’s ok because like running… though the sleepiness isn’t that good when you have butt ton of homework and you need sleep still and this is why I’m crazy. 

2.      Coffee.  Like seriously I don’t know how I would have survived this year if I didn’t have my coffee because most days it’s actually what calms me down.  A normal Gloria is better than a squirrely Gloria.  But yeah, it’s best use it when it’s two in the morning and you have a paper due that day that you haven’t started on and everything comes together in a panic induced, caffeine infused, masterpiece.

3.      I cry.  There are tear stains on my papers because I lose it sometimes (I will actually stress myself into a migraine).  Everyone cries, so why deny it. 

4.      Yoga. Which is actually quite hard I found out.  Like mad props to all you ladies out there who are great at yoga because I mostly just fall a lot.  But at least I’m calm while falling. 

5.      Music.  Lots of music.  Y’all already know I’m always listening to music and that’s because I’m always stressed. HA

6.      I watch Netflix or PBS or listen to podcasts because I’d rather learn about something interesting than stress about stupid things. 

7.      I don’t check my infinite campus all that often.  Why? Because usually when I get all worked up over a test or something, I’ll check it and see that the grade isn’t in and I’ll stress even more.  So don’t do that kiddos.

8.      I procrastinate on a certain homework assignment by working on other homework assignments.  It’s bad.

9.      Lastly, I sleep.  This is why I have a messed up sleep schedule.  

Blog Post 26- Gloria Pulley

Hmmmmm well since you asked…

·         The writing book that we read at the beginning of the year was very helpful for me personally because it laid out what rules of writing I could break (yay) and how not to sound like an ass while writing.  But to make it a bit more effective, you could have students practice writing a short passage after each reading where they begin to use the skills that they read about.  Maybe even have a specific blog post dedicated to writing a short story using all the new stuff. That would be pretty fun, and you could probably use that for that makeup blog post. 

·         Before the test you mentioned that a satire essay is due to appear at any time, and since it wasn’t this year it could be next year.  Therefore, I feel like you should spend a bit more time on satire, maybe dedicate two monthly essays to it. And definitely read more satire in class because tbh A Modest Proposal might be one of my favorite pieces of literature behind the Island of Dr. Moreau and Politics and the English Language (I love me some sassy Orwell).

·         General rule, don’t have practice multiple choice and/or essays on a Monday or Friday.  If it’s on a Monday they will hate you because they aren’t ready for that.  If it’s on a Friday, they will hate you because they are too done for that. 

Blog Post 22- Gloria Pulley

Idk I never really wanted to be a certain character because the most important part of any plot line is conflict and I’m just not about that.  However, if I could be an actress I would probably my Tatiana Maslany because she is hella awesome.  Recently I started watching Orphan Black, which is basically just one big fiasco where a bunch of clones from a super-secret experiment find each other and have to escape the various threats from their creators. But the part that I find most impressive is how she can play sooooo many characters and switch back and forth between them, making them all seem so individual.  Here’s a little run down of her awesome acting ability:

Sarah: a child of the foster system, Sarah and her foster family fled Britain when she was young for mysterious reasons and moved to Toronto (I think).  After living a scandalous life of crime and such she encounters the first of her clones and from that point she meets many of her other “sisters.”

Cosima:  she’s the science nerd of the group and is tasked with figuring out their genetic sequence in order to combat a defect that will slowly kill them all.  She’s a bit of a wild child, as well, with her dreadlocks, flowy hippie clothing, and her love for women. (Also props to this show for representing the LGBT community)

Allison:  the snappy, type a, soccer mom… who always packs a pistol and may or may not run a suburb wide drug ring.  She can also get a little emotional at times, often acting impulsively and violently (like when she tied her husband to a chair and dripped hot glue on him).

Rachel:  the queen of all that is evil.  She’s the head of the Dyad Institute, a powerful corporation whose main goal seems to be causing havoc in the lives of all the other clones. But she’s also tortured by horrible childhood memories of her parents being burn alive in their lab.  She gets what’s coming to her.

Helana: probably my favorite character.  She was raised in a Ukrainian religious cult and was told that all of her “sisters” were abominations.  On several occasions she violently murders people but she’s also really good with children. 

Then there’s a few more minor clones, most of which die but yeah. 

So yeah I tried not to make too many spoilers.  Titiana Maslany is a goddess.

Blog Post 24 – Gloria Pulley

I vividly remember my sister having a panic attack in a bathtub, fall of her junior year.  Don’t ask why there was a bathtub.  I think this kinda sent me the wrong message of what my junior year would be like.  Or maybe she was right, idk. 

The most important lesson that I’ve learned my junior year is not give two shits if I’m imperfect.  Let me elaborate a bit and point out my “failures”

·         Missed the National Merit Scholarship cut off by two or three questions.  But I really don’t care because national merit gives out really crappy scholarships to begin with.  what’s $2,000 when you’re drowning in student debt J  (finance Logsdon, I know you’re going to say that $2,000 makes a big difference, but fretting over the fact that I didn’t get one scholarship isn’t worth it)

·         Some ass hat stole my sketch book so I couldn’t apply for GSA.  Oh well, I hope they enjoyed looking at my doodles while they burn in hell. 

·         I didn’t get into GSP.  Oh well, now I have a summer.

·         I did a stupid and kept running on a broken tibia so I could keep my varsity spot for cross country and you know what that was a horrible idea.  Don’t try to please others if it’s causing you actual physical pain. 

·         Lost one of my “best friends” because I am “a burden that can’t make them happy”….  I honestly could care less what you think I am at this point. 

So yeah, this is short list of my failures.  I think I am just so emotionally and mentally fried by this point in the year that I don’t care. So instead I’m going to focus on my successes because that’s what a person should do.

·         I like my GPA.  It’s really awesome. 

·         I have a mentor for my senior mentoring project and she’s apparently really cool.

·         I socialize more through my endless supply of cat gifs and memes.

·         My leg is really awesome again and running is great

·         I have an awesome running playlist.

·         I have a very good idea of what I want to do in college and where I want to go (Canadian anthem plays in the background)

·         I have two very fluffy babies/ dogs romping around my house and they’re so fun to hug (even through I still miss my sweet baby Poncho)

·         I have coffee

It’s a beautiful life my children. 

Right now I’m just really looking forward to summer because like who isn’t.  I have plans to be super productive like getting my college essays out of the way, reading a bunch, teaching myself biology and starting on my mentoring project, going to God’s Pantry to volunteer, moving and painting and fun things, running, going paddle boarding, getting a job at a plant nursery… yeah I have a lot planned. But right now I don’t really that much planned out for senior year.  I mean I sorta know my schedule, and have my mentoring mapped out, and I know I have to apply to colleges, and all that, but in terms of specific goals… well “that’s where my ideas begin to die out” -Alex Schule  

Blog 26: Ahmed

Well first of all, I'd like to say good job. I mean you took some crappy writers(myself and others) and made some half decent writers. That takes some serious skill. To focus on what I saw as ineffective was that time you had us read several different paragraphs and than try to mimic another persons writing style, that didn't help me very much. Something that I remember as being not fun, but I see was pretty helpful was when you had us brake down an analysis paper into different sections, I liked how you had us try to revise it, that gave me an understanding of what I needed to start considering in real time as I wrote. Something else I had a problem with is that we didn't look at Socratic Seminars very oftenly, I'm not saying that it should happen every week or month, but that maybe introduce it at the beginning of the year, and use it every hear and there, so it doesn't get forgotten. My last thing would be that it would be helpful to be reminded of our finals throughout the year, as it seemed to have blindsided me both semesters.

Blog 25: Ahmed

Well I usually have to stress reliving paths, either working out and running a whole lot, or just letting it all simmer and build up. Now for this year I went with the let it simmer and build up route. It didn't seem to work very well, but after the tests finished I ran alot. Thats my way of saying I was stressed out. Oh, another thing that I'd to kind of relive stress was to pretend that I didn't have any, now I'm not sure how helpful that really was, but I know that it made sure that I didn't get so stressed that I became unproductive. SO if I had to say whether or not my route this year was efffective I'd have to say that it was mildly effective in the short run, but in the long run not so much. So what I'm saying is that come next year, I don't care how little time I have. I'm going to find time to run.

Blog 24: Ahmed

Well the thing I'm glad that I got in order was how to study, I'm not saying I didn't know how to study, I'm just saying that there was a lot of room for improvement. I'd say that my biggest academic success this year was doing my work on time(maybe not for blogs or German), that is something that I have always had trouble with doing. SO I'm glad that I was able to do most of my work on time. That segways to my greatest risk taken. My greatest risk was keeping a solid D up until now, becasue of just how much work I didn't turn in. Now I haven't yet figured out how thats going to turn out since I spent most of today doing my German work, I'm just crossing my fingers that he gets to grading my work. That is definitely one of the mistakes I made. This summer I plan on working, running, working on my mentoring project, and chilling out. I'm also probably going to go up to Pittsburg and North Carolina sometime during the break. For next year I'm planning on just doing my work, joining a couple of clubs, and hopefully getting some smooth sailing. How? That sounds like something to think about in a month or two.

Allie Gregory Post #26

          I'm fairly confident that the most helpful thing, for me, that we've done this year was the book about writing that we read and worked with. All my English classes in the past have taught me grammar, but I've had very few lessons on style. It was interesting to see what he recommended as good writing. It was particularly interesting how different his recommendation was from how I've been taught to write. I tried to take it to heart.

          I also felt like I benefited from some (key word) of our peer critiques. There were multiple times this year that we would get to my essay and I wouldn't hear a single useful thing. People would say some nice things. Sometimes people would say it didn't quite make it. But there were multiple occasions that I never really got a clear why and therefore wasn't able to fix anything. That being said, I also tried to incorporate some of the more useful feedback I got into my essays and felt better for it. I consider some of it very helpful to my writing and I definitely appreciate having done those. 

          I don't know that my writing has improved dramatically over the course of this year, but I do feel like I've gotten the chance to try some new things with it and I've liked that. I think it's been good for my writing even if maybe I've far from perfected it. Basically, and I'm sorry if this isn't all that helpful, I approve of what the class is doing. Thanks, Mr. Logsdon.

Y2K 26

I loved your class. It was a place where I could enjoy myself and enjoy learning about English. I understand so much more about rhetorical analysis and I've come to appreciate interpretation, argumentation, and style.

I know some people don’t, but I liked the socratic seminars, and if they came up earlier in the year it would be very very helpful. The interaction between purpose and rhetoric in the questions was difficult for me to grasp but ultimately helpful. I loved the Trimble book especially - it liberated and lightly structured at the same time, with theory rather than rules.

One thing that I couldn’t get much out of was the peer reviewing of essays. It probably took me way too long to understand grading - a just-me problem. But on the other hand, I didn't really understand how to use the advice that was given to me through these sessions. I remembered it, maybe, but not while I was writing. Perhaps if we were given an opportunity to rewrite our essays with feedback it would help - to really be able to apply it, make our essays better, and build a foundation for when we actually take the test. Also, the fact that our essays count as grades in the grade book make it harder for people to submit their essays without edits and thus also make it harder for people to receive input about the true quality of their writing. Some more practice writings would have helped me get more comfortable with the essay and not be scared of it. I definitely reaped more benefits from this activity later on in the year and I still think it's a really good practice, but that it might need some more elements.

The blog posts get a first place ribbon for sure. I had never heard of them before your class but that ought to be rectified. I got to know myself better and develop my own style of writing, not limited to the academic sense.

Mr. Logsdon, your class is one of the best classes I've been in! Honest.

Blog Post 26- Hannah Price

I think the most effective thing in AP English was the group grading papers. Although, it was hard to hear your work or paper critized, I feel like it was very beneficial. When you hear the same thing from multiple people opposed to just one person (the teacher) it helps you reflect more and figure out how you can change it. Another thing I though was very effective and wish we did more of was, looking at our starting sentence or paragraph and editing it  sentence by sentence and high lighting which words were verbs, etc. This really emphasized what words you were using too much and it also forced to you to think. I don't think the vocabulary quizzes were very effective. I know that  cramed the words at the last minute, and though i might have dont well at the time , as soon as we finished the test or quiz I forgot it.

Aditi Lohe blog post #26

I had a great time in your class this year; it was a nice balance between work and fun. We did a variety of activities in your class that helped us learn how to mature our writing techniques. Some that I thought were effective were:
-going over our essays in class as a group
-doing the analysis sheets
-the socratic seminars (though i think we should have done these all throughout the year instead of just at the end)
-reading essays that were nines

Something I do think you should change is how you organized the amount of time we went over each essay type. I think that in the first semester you should set a certain amount of time to go over and learn about each of the essays individually and how to approach them. However in the second semester, I think you should alternate between doing the three types of essays in a cycle; this way no one will forget how to write an analysis or synthesis essay by the end of the year. And lastly, I think you should give practice multiple choice tests and essays more than just once month. this will help to better prepare your students because the AP test will always be on their mind, whereas sometimes for us, I would laze off. However all in all, I thoroughly enjoyed your class and I am thankful to you for all I have learned!

Y2K 25

Usually, I do two things simultaneously to "deal" with stress: 1. avoid it altogether. 2. stress about stress.

My stress relieving activities vary quite a bit, but they all serve the purpose of distracting me from what I’m supposed to be doing: ranging from fussing over my fingernails to strumming the guitar terribly to screaming at the top of my lungs (hmmm I just realized that most of these things are somewhat destructive in many ways). All of these methods are really quite effective in preventing me from focusing on what I need to do, and they tide me over until I reach that threshold where I can’t stand it anymore and I just work on whatever it is and finally stress actually works out and does what it’s supposed to do and makes me productive. (Except, haha, about that…)

More than the things that I stress about, I hate stress itself. I hate the tension, the anxiety, the irritableness, the feeling of being Atlas on his mountain. But one thing that really calms me down is the fact that it's all going to pass. Time slips by a second at a time and soon the deadline will loom but also lose all importance. So just work hard now and wait for that moment.

That's probably why I also stress about stress. Stress isn’t good for you, it makes me get stomachaches, makes me think about getting old, makes me irritated and not a fun person to be around. Sometimes I stress about not stressing, like when I didn't start studying in earnest for the APUSH test until a couple days beforehand. I knew that I was going to freak out later but my mind must not have really registered that. And even though maybe my body was doing a good job of dealing with pressure by not stressing, I was not helpful.

Allie Gregory Post #25

          How am I managing my stress? I'm not... Just kidding, I like to think I'm managing at least a little. I've been running some more which is helpful. I think. I'm not absolutely positive that the idea of cross country itself hasn't stressed me out more than I would be otherwise, but the actual running part is nice. 

          Honestly, some of my calmest moments are driving. It can be very stress-relieving for me to just listen to the radio and drive around, preferably with the windows down and the heat up. I'm not entirely sure why, but I just really enjoy it, and it helps my mental state. Not that I just drive around with no place to go, but I do relish in the time I spend going places. I know a lot of people just want to get there and would probably teleport if they had the option, but not so much me. I just really like driving.

          Also just music alone is nice. In general, music tends to put me in a better mood. Though I usually prefer the variety of radio, I recently have gotten really into Hamilton. Either way I sing along to everything and it rarely fails to lift my spirits. It gets my mind off of things -- super duper helpful.

          I try to not get to stressed out about things. I try to be level-headed and accepting of things I can't change. And though I think I do a decent job sometimes, I also know I cancer pretty worked up. So I sing and drive and hang out with my family, and all in all I've yet to have a complete psychotic breakdown.

Blog Post 25- Hannah Price

To get through these last two weeks of school, I make sure I'm very focused. I try to be focused on my grades and everything that is going in or missing in the grade book. This really helps because it helps you become aware. I also love to listen to a lot of music. Music helps out a lot. Music calms me down and sometimes helps me focus on my work even better. Not always, but sometime I go to the library and I feel that helps me focus more opposed to my bedroom. I try to limit my tv, phone , and computer watchng etc. because I can easily find something to distract myself for hours. Lastly I just keep reminding myself that I am in the final tretch and once I get done with these two weeks of school its over and i have just one year left.

Y2K 24

This was a very long and a very short year. Every day went by in the usual haze but the actual year trickled by. That wasn’t a bad thing, not really. I got to enjoy the best parts more and the worst parts more. Hopefully I’ll remember them.

Successes? Academically I succeeded. I also became a lot closer to my friends and I made new friends as well. I also became a lot more active in debate, active in the community, active to a fault. I pushed a lot of boundaries, and seized a lot of opportunities: ancient Greek and debate especially.

Failures? Well there are plenty of those. Mostly I failed to really recognize what I could feasibly do, failed to further develop a relationship with my cousin and my family in general. One of my greatest regrets.

Lessons learned. A fickle title, if you ask me. But I did learn how to not totally overreach myself. It’s possible to go on four weekends trips in one month, but it’s not fun to see the aftermath: makeup homework haunting you in winged . I also learned a lot more about myself, bad things and good things. Mostly that I take things for granted, and that I didn’t work as hard this last part of the semester as I should have, and also PLEASE DON’T PROCRASTINATE IT’S NOT WORTH IT!

Risks taken: I’m not really sure what this could mean… I guess I don’t have limits, in a stupid and flighty way. Nothing worth/that I should mention/ing though. Mostly involving trolleys. I’ve taken risks with relationships, of which the good kind I’ve found are generally more rewarding than not - a success.

Mistakes made: overthinking everything. EVERYTHING. Priorities too.

Summer plans! Yay! I will attend a couple of summer camps (GSA, church camp, debate) and also try to hash out most of the hard part of my mentoring project. And enjoy the outdoors, and the sunshine, and the butterflies, and killing mosquitoes, and reading so so much, yes.

What do I want for my senior year? I want to become a more disciplined person who is able to sit down and complete her homework and not worry, also someone who isn’t afraid, and also someone who can take care of those around her instead of being taken care of.

My goals? The way I normally try to reach them: fantastically (in the second sense of the word) and then crashing down to earth and then doing it the simple way. Basically the least efficient way possible. Planning the way to reach the goal of planning the way to reach my goal is key.

I don’t think I’ll miss you at all, junior year. It’s scary that you’ve already passed but also I am so glad that you have. Bye.

Blog Post 24- Hannah Price

Junior year has probably been one of the toughest years thus far. I wouldn't say the classes were any harder, but I feel like junior year is about juggling a lot of things at one time.

My success this year are that my ACT score went up, I'm happy with my grades, and I didnt procratinate as much as I did years prior. Another success was getting more involved. I tutored at after school math, got involved in beta club, and did carnagie center tutoring

I wish I had worked harder and focused on the ACT even more than I did. The ACT really snuck up on me and I didn't prepare as much as I could have and should have. Another thing I'm not happy with is AP Physics. That class was the hardest class I have ever taken, hands down. I think I did try my best at the class, and  made a effort to learn and understand it better.

Blog Post 26: Isabel Bandoroff

I enjoyed that our English class was focused on the test. As you said, you taught to the AP test, and I like that. Some classes are just a regular Physics or History class with a huge exam tacked onto it, and the teachers just teach, sometimes forgetting the exam. But in AP lang, I was truly prepared for the AP test. I liked that we spent so much time on the essays because we had to forget everything we thought we knew about writing and become better. I do wish that we had spent a little time on the multiple choice. After we took the tests, we were given opportunities to look at questions but this would have been helpful for me: as a class, we read a passage and dissect it. We go through the questions and pick the answers and see why they're correct and how we arrive at those answers from the reading. The multiple choice is easier but I would have benefited from that activity. I hated the vocab quizzes a lot but I suppose they were helpful... I enjoy doing socratic seminars but I don't see how they helped me with the AP test other than practice interpreting and analyzing pieces. Maybe that's a personal thing, but the connection to the Analysis essay wasn't as strong for me. I also think the word count limit for responses should be shortened because often times I didn't have 150 words worth and mine would get repetitive. Thank you for teaching us and I think it was a beneficial and successful English class!

Isabel Bandoroff: Blog Post 24

Looking back on Junior year, I can't really tell if it sucked or if it was awesome... But a lot happened and there were awesome and sucky parts. School for me was not really a problem this year. I haven't struggled to maintain my grades, I would even say that at times, I coasted through the year academically. I'm not sure why this is, but it was probably due to my schedule. Being in AP Spanish cut down on my stress and studying for that class because it's just practice, there's nothing new to learn and taking Sociology was basically a study hall every day. My classes were harder but I had less work, and really only found myself freaking out on the nights before APUSH Unit Assignments were due (some of my biggest mistakes were probably leaving those for the night before). But I would say school wise, it was a success. So that leaves the social and extra-curricular aspects. My relationships and outside of school activities have been my #1 source of stress this year. On the bright side, my obstacles in these areas have taught me so much, and I feel like I have grown a lot as a person. A major thing I have learned is that I need to be responsible for my own happiness, I have to be the one to control it. For so long, my happiness has been dependent on others: friends, a boyfriend, etc. And I have gotten seriously seriously hurt by letting other people's actions define my own feelings so much. I have learned to only let my emotions be affected by what I can control and what I have power over, and to not let other people or love get me down so much. I've dealt with a lot of obstacles and heartbreak this past year, especially recently, but it has turned/is turning me into a better, and stronger person. My struggles have brought me closer to old friends and to God, which I am very grateful for. I have also learned the power of anger and the importance of forgiveness. Okay a brighter topic, summer!!! This summer is going to be awesome (I hope). I'm participating in the Lexington Sister Cities Program and will be hosting an Irish student and staying at their home in Ireland. For a while, Ireland has been the top place on my list of where I want to travel and I can't wait to explore it. Besides that, I'll be playing soccer and reading and missing CVT a lot. I want Senior year to be simple. I don't want to be drowned in stress or drama, I want to have fun and be happy. But we'll see. I plan to reach my goals by working hard and getting my college shit over with as fast as possible.

Aditi Lohe blog post #25

Yes, this time of year is always very stressful with AP tests, EOCs, and finals. However, even though many ask how i handle my stress, the truth is that i honestly don't. I seriously i have no clue what to do with my stress and it has a huge effect on me. I always end up curling into a all in bed and trying to ignore all of the pressing assignments. But this has also proven to only make things worse because i end up not getting any rest because i am constantly worrying and at this point, i have also wasted a couple of hours. i highly recommend you do not use my technique for "dealing" with stress. I do not know how to mange all of my stress so i need some help too.

Aditi Lohe blog post #24

Junior year has been stressed by practically everyone that it will be the toughest one of our high school career. With college talks, ACT's, SATs, and so many other things, it has been slightly overwhelming. However I actually enjoyed this year quite a bit. Junior year flew by and my issue was that i was never prepared for what was coming. I procrastinated and lost motivation to work so i need to make sure i don't do that again. But overall, I had a great year. I made lots of new friends, did interesting extracurriculers, and learned a lot. For this summer, I plan to get a job and also work on my senior mentoring project. I am trying to get 100 hours of the project in before senior year starts. During senior year i will mainly jst focus on maintaining my grades and and staying up to date with all of the colleges i plan to apply to.

Thomas Werner assignment 26

I felt confident going into the AP test. I feel like I was prepared well.

What was effective was all the practice timed writings and getting feedback on how I did. That allowed me to pinpoint bad habits in my writing and fix them, as well as discover what I was effective at and allowed me to be confident about those things and use them more.

What I would have liked to done more of would be to have more focus on the time aspect of the writing. That was the only thing I was worried about on the test, if I would run out of time or not. I think there should be more emphasis on the time portion of the writing, and not let us edit/take it home as much as to put more focus on getting our ideas out and well put in the appropriate amount of time. I would suggest this be more implemented later in the year, after students have had the extra time to write, to explore and develop their writing without the stress of time until later.

assignment 25 thomas werner

Stress is an incessant, universal issue. Everyone gets it. Especially in times of the year when we can be overwhelmed, such as the last couple weeks of school, it can even seem hard to breathe.

However, there are ways of coping with it.

Mine is simply to make a list. I make a list of everything I have to do, and keep it at the ready. I’m not quite sure why, but this does wonders for handling stress. Maybe it’s due to a visual representation of all the work, showing your brain that there are a finite number of things that can be checked off one by one and then you will be done. Who knows. But when you can strike something off the list, it’s so satisfying and then you’re jonesing to finish the next thing. Maybe it’s due to allowing your brain to take one one thing at a time and chisel down the work. Who knows. But I know, the list works.

assignment 24 thomas werner

Junior year has definitely taught me a lot about life. It feels like I have begun to remove the cushion between my decisions and the real world. I finally feel in control of my life, in the sense that I can both make choices to propel me to success at the same as make choices that can seriously hamper, ruin, or even end it. It’s a sense of harsh freedom.

One of my biggest successes been the relationships i’ve made and strengthened. Without these people I would be completely lost. Another success is the steps I’ve made to begin making a difference in the world, such as helping found Side by Side news.

My failures have been my failures to take risks. I have been very lucky to have some of the best things I could ask for come naturally, but there could be so much more if I step out of my comfort zone more and stop letting gravity win.

Last blog post :( :( :( Annie Deitz (26)

This is my last blog. :(
This is so sad. :(

I'll just jump right into it. Like many others will likely say, the writing with style reading was super helpful. I'm really glad that the sophomores will be reading it over the summer, I think it will help them out a lot.

Oh god you're going to teach the sophomores next year. They're going to be juniors. That's so weird. What if you like them more? Ahhhhh.

Sorry, you can ignore my end of the year nostalgic sentiment. I tend to get over emotional.

I (personally) didn't find the vocab first semester all that much. It turned out that I just crammed before every test and then forgot everything the next day. In my own ACT prep, I found it more helpful just to study different roots and prefixes. But then again, that's just my personal preference.

I know we touched on this in class, but I think that you should change the Socratic seminar format a small bit. Maybe do them throughout the entire year. Also, the three different types of questions confused me the entire time, but then again I am generally confused.

Loved the blogs. Best homework assignment of my high school career.

Which brings me back to the fact that this is my last blog post. And I'm really upset about that. I'm really going to miss this class. Thank you, Mr. Logsdon, for being such a great teacher and a great person. I've thoroughly enjoyed being in your class in fourth hour, and I really think you have helped me improve as a writer.

Blog Post 25 annie deitz

This was written a tad later than the prompt intended, but I can vividly recall the extreme amount of stress that I had to deal with. And by deal with it, I mean I didn't deal with it, I don't know how to deal with stress, I just let it consume me until I am a giant ball of anxiety for the rest of all time. So yeah. Not necessarily great. Usually I "deal with it" by yelling at my younger brother or throwing my things across the room. I've heard that coloring is supposed to relief stress. It really doesn't for me. I find it enjoyable, but my hands also shake when I'm trying hard to keep steady, and so I end up drawing outside of the lines. And then I get frustrated, and then I'm even more stressed than I was before I began coloring. Sometimes I go for a run, but generally my most stressful moments occur at midnight, when it's too late to run. Also I don't like running, despite the fact that I'm on the cross country team. Hmm. Oftentimes when I find myself in a stressful situation (especially one in which I am expected to do many things in a short amount of time) I take a nap. Which is a great idea, because rather than actually fixing the issues that cause the stress, I procrastinate and end up being even MORE stressed than I was originally. So yeah, if you read this in order to find new ways to deal with your stress, sorry. You definitely shouldn't be taking any type of advice from me, especially about dealing with stress.

Holden Huffman Blog #26

This year in English has been pretty awesome.  Most things that you did to teach us were very effective and helped me grow.  I feel like my writing has improved significantly since being in your class and I find myself using the techniques you taught us every time that I write.  One thing that I really liked about your teaching was the amount of practice writing/class grading that we did.  I was able to begin seeing a lot more of my flaws in writing because of this (cough, cough...development) and I now am more concious of the choices I make when writing.  One thing that I wasn't a big fan of was the Socratic Seminar.  While it did help with my analysis of writing, I didn't find it to be too helpful with the AP test or anything else that we did in class.  It also put us in a very "forced to talk" environment, which put more pressure on us to say something.  I find situations like this to be stressful and in turn I don't talk as much.  Overall, though, I loved this class.  The way that you approach teaching is awesome and I thank you for being such a great teacher this year, Mr. Logsdon.

Nathan Dutch Assignment 26

I would like to start out by saying that I really think that you did a good job of preparing us for the AP test and more importantly improving our writing skills. I feel as though I have left your class with significantly improved writing skills that will be useful for the rest of my life. I think that unit in the beginning of the year looking over Trimble's book was great and most of the most effective areas of the class. I learned a lot about how to write for others and not for yourself and that was a crucial skill on the AP test and will be a crucial skill in life. One thing that I would have liked to change about your class although was I would like to receive more essay feedback from you yourself. I didn't think I or my classmates were familiar enough with the essays and grading procedures to give helpful and accurate feedback. I think that less class discussion and more one on one conferences would go a long way towards preparing us for the AP test. Thank you for a wonderful year of learning, improvement, and laughter.

Nathan Dutch Assignement 24

I would say overall junior year was a success. I managed to take 6 AP classes and 6 AP tests without killing myself for starters. but what really surprised me was the fact that I honestly had less work this year than I did as a sophomore. I think I was most proud of myself for keeping up with U.S. History readings and chapter questions unlike last year in World History and it really paid off on the AP test, where I felt confident as could be. The one class I definitely could have done a better job in was AP Spanish. The entire class really was just practice for the AP test and I spent most of that time on my phone or sleeping. It showed on the test. This summer I'm hoping to take lots of time to crush my mentoring project and get my hundred summer hours out of the way making my senior year far easier. Senior year will be lots of relaxing and just enjoying life.

Blog 26- Tori

Okay. I think just about everything was helpful to me. After the fact, I realized I would've liked to have started doing the group discussions and analysing passages, because that helped me understand the rhetoric piece we had to write. So maybe start those right at the beginning?

I like the timed writing, and especially the grading. It put everything in perspective.

Another thing I would've liked, is to not have the timed writings blocked off. Like where we did just rhetoric, and then just analysis, and then just synthesis. Maybe putting them on a rotation would help? Like, here let's learn about rhetoric, and write one, grade it, talk about what would be better to do. Here's analysis, write one etc.

This also may be a just me thing, but I like lists. Before the test I made lists of specific things I need to make sure I have on each of my pieces, and maybe say specific things, when you're teaching them, that people need to have?

These are just nitpicky things. This year was great and I felt extremely prepared for the test. It was all helpful, and I don't think any of it felt unnecessary.

Thanks for being a cool dude, and a great teacher. Hope I passed the test lol

Blog 25- Tori

Stress.

I have so much stress. So many stress levels.

So when I'm stressed, I read Harry Potter, I watch 8 Mile, and I listen to music.  I listen to The Cure, and Jack's Mannequin, and Jimmy Eat World to decrease stress levels. If I'm way stressed, I listen to Eminem. Sometimes I workout, but that can sometimes make it worse, so I don't do that a lot.

These are pretty effective, the amount of anxiety I have about everything needs effective methods to handle.

Music really calms me down, so that's what I use the most.

Yup, alrighty. Stress. Yippie.

Blog 24- Tori

Lessons learned: don't procrastinate. Go above and beyond,  because while it may totally suck right then, it will pay off at the end of the semester, and for the tests. Don't rely on teachers giving you a second chance because you should've done it the first time.

Sucesses: taking more chances, and not being so afraid to go for things I want.

Failures: trying harder at some things , than others and having uneven success and failure rates.

My junior year was pretty cool. I branched out and made new friends, I let myself go and have fun. I read more, and tried more things. My anxiety lessened and I was able to do the things I wanted. I made a lot of memories this year.

Over the summer I'm going to read books on my to read list, I'm going to listen to the top 20 rated albums of all time and try to memorize them, I'm going to watch as many of the most top rated movies as I can. I'm going to work out, make money, and hang out with friends.

I'm gonna make memories.

For my senior year, I want to continue to branch out, and I want to work my ass off to boost my résumé, and get into college!

Thomas Winterton- Post 26

What you did well
-I appreciated the writing practice we received on timed writings. I feel it helped me with timing and also made me a better writer when we graded them. Allowed me to hear the critiques of other people and apply those to my AP test.
-I really appreciate Life Lessons with Logsdon. Especially the tid bit about how debt isn't necessary and such. It shows you care about your students or at least care alot about looking like you care, which doesn't really matter because the students will perceive it as caring nonetheless and this will better engage them.
-My favorite aspect of your teaching was the confidence you helped instill in us through the benchmarks and the AP score graph that broke down what you need on the MC and essay portions to see what score you got. I was able to walk into the AP test knowing I was a better writer than the average person who took that test, and that I would get an above average score. That confidence in itself helped me stay calm and that calmness translated into better, less frantic writing.

Your job was to get us to pass that test and I would say you did that marvelously.

What could be improved
-I personally enjoyed your class and understood that on the days where we had to read benchmark after benchmark, that it was a cumulative process and we had to do it, so that is not so bad. I would say I probably would've liked spending more time writing essays. And more toward the end of the year, the chance to write an essay to a prompt that I am not the best with like synthesis or whatever an individual struggles with to help get the last possible improvement.
-Ummm... Not really sure what else to improve on aside from dirty little nit picks.

Thank you Mr. Logsdon for helping me become a better and more confident writer as well as being a cool teacher, I am sure I am not alone in saying this but credit should be given where it is due. Enjoy summer break!!!

Thomas Winterton- Post 24

My successes for Junior year are as follows, I've recovered from my knee injury and proved to myself that I can perform at a high level again, along with winning a state championship. I also feel very confident about my performance on my AP tests I took this year. I rekindled an amazing relationship with someone I truly care for. And I am preparing for college and being responsible about saving money for the future.

I would say some of my failures would be that I got my car towed and got into a minor accident. That I've dropped the ball in some of my classes this past semester in some of my classes. I wish I applied myself more a little bit, and I also wish that I was able to save my relationship with my dad. But oh well, hakuna matata.

This summer I will be life guarding and I will really enjoy it. I like helping people and making money, so win win. I will also be doing my summer mentoring project which im still a little shaky on.

I want my senior to be relaxed, but I want to stay consistent with my work.

Allie Gregory Post #24

          Junior year... It's been interesting. To use the phrase "never a dull moment" would be lying, though I suppose it's been rather eventful. To be cliche, let's say it's been a year of firsts. (I think it'd be hard to go a whole year without doing new things, but I guess this year is no exception? Yay me.) cross country was technically my first high school sport. I got an Instagram so first social media. First party, first date, first caving expedition, first college visits... So that's been fun. Ish. There have been ups a downs to be certain.

          Successes? Yes, here and there. I'm rather proud of the breeze that calculus has been for me. Even though I never got good at cross country and my tendinitis made the season even more of a struggle than it would have been normally, I'm happy with what I did. It's far from something I regret. I think my time management has made some serious improvement, which is something I desperately needed. Not that it's great now but baby steps. Generally I would say class and my grades have been a success, but we'll see about that after finals.

          Failures? Yeah, I guess there have been those too. I don't really know why I'm admitting this (probably because I don't really think anyone cares), but I wish I'd gotten out more. And I'm not saying I hide inside all the time because no that's not me. But the adventures I go on are with my family. And when I hang out with people it's just sometimes a couple friends. I think that's just the kind of person I am and the kind of friend group I have, but I sometimes wish I got a little bit more of what I imagined high school to be like. I wouldn't mind trying to be a real teenager every once in a while... But yeah, that's my biggest regret/failure of this school year. 

          To be perfectly honest, all I want to do this summer is boat, fix up the farm, finish up the last bit of my room redesign, and finish my book. I'd also like to see Hamilton on Broadway, but since that's a virtual impossibility, I'll put it on some kind of maybe list. I have a bunch of real plans (camping, trip to New York, two mission trips, numerous college visits), but I'm determined to work in as much as I can of my own goals. (And they asked me why I rejected GSP. Maybe my priorities are screwy but I have them.) I'm excited about this summer and what I can get done. I'm excited to unwind and not be stressed all the time. Oh, and I'm excited about my mentorship. I'm working with the Lexington Opera Theater as an assistant stage manager and I'm super pumped about that. So, yep, lots of plans this summer.

          Senior year will hold its own challenges I'm sure, but I'll handle them as they come. I plan to get As if I can. Pass my APs if I can. Publish my book. And maybe get out more, but, you know, we'll see.

#26 EJ

I'm not asking for what you "liked" or what was "fun" but rather what was effective.  I know not everything connected with everyone and with 97 students I will get a plethora of responses.  Though I am asking for honesty I'm not asking for a tongue-lashing nor do I expect "all sunshines and rainbows." I know I'm flawed but I also know that I am effective.  I want to minimize my flaws and increase my effectiveness.  I need your help to do that.

We've come to the end of the road. And it's been a damn rough year. This class has been relatively simple as compared to some of my other classes. While you prepared us so well for the AP test, when it came time for me to take it. I freaked and realized I shouldn't have taken it, because I will forever and always suck at English. It just isn't my thing. 
I feel like if we focused more on the year-long project, I would have been better prepared on this PSA I'm scrambling to finish. I honestly don't have any comments.
Well, one thing I appreciated was how well you prepared us for the ACT. I somehow managed to get a 31 in the English section (whoop whoop!). But of course reading was a 28 :(, I still can't answer the purpose questions.
Next year I'm moving on to BCTC and taking on class all about essay writing, and another about public speaking. Two things I suck at the most.

Assignment 26: Help! I need somebody. Help!

I wanna be better in all things.  It's easy for teachers to get stuck and comfortable in patterns and activities that are completely legitimate but perhaps have become stale and even ineffective.  Throughout the semester I've asked that you work hard to prepare for the AP Language and Composition test.  I taught to the test.  I'm sorta fine with that.  As I've said, I believe that the skills the test assesses are important and some of the most important skills you will develop in your lifetime - the ability to think, process, synthesize, and argue.

To that end I've tried to develop every assignment to focus on one element of the test and hone those skills required for success.  Now that you've taken the test - multiple tests (ACT, PSAT, AP) what suggestions do you have?

I'm not asking for what you "liked" or what was "fun" but rather what was effective.  I know not everything connected with everyone and with 97 students I will get a plethora of responses.  Though I am asking for honesty I'm not asking for a tongue-lashing nor do I expect "all sunshines and rainbows." I know I'm flawed but I also know that I am effective.  I want to minimize my flaws and increase my effectiveness.  I need your help to do that.




Minimum of 150 words - due on Sunday, May 22nd at 11:59 pm

(Last day to turn in make up assignments 24-25)