Welcome Back, 2018-19 Tigers!
Message from Ms. Kellum:
Summer is over! How did that happen?! It's so weird how it takes so long to get to summer break, but it then goes by so quickly. I do hope you enjoyed your summer, and I do hope you've read your summer reading assignment! This is our second year as a one-to-one school; I hope you had a good experience last year, and I hope you're ready to learn more this year. Technology is everywhere, and you'll find it in my classroom this year, too. I am always open to new ideas, so if you find any cool technology, please let me know! That being said, we will still do some things "old school," like annotating in actual books and even use a pencil from time to time!
Welcome to the wonderful world of English language and literature! Dr. Seuss said, "The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.” Reading is really the portal to ALL knowledge. With knowledge, the impossible becomes possible. Sadly, "According to a study conducted in late April by the U.S. Department of Education and the National Institute of Literacy, 32 million adults in the U.S. can't read. That's 14 percent of the population. 21 percent of adults in the U.S. read below a 5th grade level, and 19 percent of high school graduates can't read" (Huffington Post, 2013). Literacy (the ability to read and comprehend) is THE key to a successful society.
Very few other disciplines offer a chance for someone to travel to a foreign country, watch a Roman dictator fall from power, solve a murder mystery, or witness a friendship grow. Literature does this. When you read a novel or a short story or a poem, you get to assume the life of the characters. It is a magical way to learn about life, love, death, and a million other things. I hope you will join me, and I hope that you will be inspired to read more.
~Ms. Kellum