Welcome, 2020-2021 Students!

Please read this entire message as it has critical information that is immediately relevant. Thanks!

I'm so pleased to be working with all of you this year!  I know that there will be an adjustment period for all of us as we acclimate to 100% virtual learning for the first quarter.  Believe me when I say that I am by no means an expert at all things tech!  So, I promise that I will be patient with you as we move into the 1st quarter.  I try to stick to what works and what I believe has the most positive impact on learning and engagement for the most people.  In light of that, there are two programs that you will need to become familiar with very quickly:

1. CANVAS.  I assume that the vast majority of you are familiar with Canvas as it was the mode of virtual instruction from March to June of last school year.  ALL lessons and assignments will be delivered and submitted through Canvas.  I strongly recommend that you visit my Course Canvas page every day (M-F) at least once, even if there are no assignments or lessons due that day.  I will be updating the course calendar and posting scores and grades regularly.  I do give detailed feedback on writing assignments and it could be very useful for you to read my feedback on one assignment before starting the next.  I usually post two or three announcements every week to make you aware of any updates or changes and to remind you of upcoming deadlines.  I generally send those announcements through Canvas messaging as well. So, please check your Inbox every day.

Here are the links to my Canvas Courses:

AP Language and Composition (Periods 2, 4, and 6): https://gcs.instructure.com/courses/171058

Honors English 10 (Periods 1 and 5): https://gcs.instructure.com/courses/170378

Please check out my Canvas pages if you have not already.  Click on the buttons for "Meet Your Teacher," "Getting Started," and "Live Teaching Times." Weekly Lessons and links to assignments can be found in the "Months" boxes at the bottom of the page.  Currently, August 17-21 is live.  That will help you get used to the course design and help you learn a little bit about me and what to expect from the class.

2. MICROSOFT TEAMS.  This is the virtual meeting platform that we will be using for our live, face-to-face meetings.  I recommend that you download the App onto your computer or device. However, you can run the program from the browser, if you prefer.  Teams is the program preferred by GCS because of its reliable safety and security.  I encourage you to turn your cameras on during live meetings.

4TH PERIOD STUDENTS:

All students will meet with the 4th Period teachers on Monday, August 17 for an Informational Meeting to discuss the procedure for Orientation.  Orientation will take place during 1-on-1 meetings with 4th Period teachers throughout the first three weeks of school (T 8/18 - F 9/4) from 10 AM to 12 PM.  Your 4th period teacher will have you sign up for one time slot during that period.  There should be NO NEW INSTRUCTION and NO GRADED ASSIGNMENTS during this time.  However, teachers may have review activities or pre-assessments for you to complete.

If you are in my 4th Period AP Language course:

Here is the Sign-Up Genius for the 30 minute Orientation Meetings from T 8/18 - F 9/4:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/8050844ADAD29A75-1on1

To access the Teams Invite for the 1-on-1 Orientation Meetings, please follow this link to the Announcement and scroll to the bottom of the page: https://gcs.instructure.com/courses/171058/discussion_topics/590779

FINALLY... If you need help with technology or if you need to borrow technology from the school, please fill out this form and Ms. Pinyan will contact you and help you: https://forms.gle/WxX7drcZTksVi71S8. There are several days when you can come up to the school building to pick up books, etc:

• Digital resource pick up will be Thursday 8/20 and Friday 8/21.
• Juniors may pick up books on Wednesday 8/26: AP Textbook The Language of Composition, A Streetcar Named Desire (play), and The Things They Carried (fiction).
• Sophomores may pick up books on Thursday 8/27: English 10 Textbook My Perspectives: Grade 10
  

I look forward to meeting and working with all of you!

Thanks,

Walker