She talks to wolves...

This is a summer school essay turned in by one of the Little Miss Plagiarist Pants:

"I don't really no anything about the book because I don't like reading. All I no the book is all about this half wolf and half man. He met this little boy in woods. And the book was alright. It maybe very interesting because its about half wolf half man."

Yes, that's the entire thing.

I controlled myself (barely), and simply wrote:

"You could at least have read the back of the book-- or even looked up a summary on-line!"

This "essay" was about White Fang by Jack London. They had about six weeks to read it.

I was rather affronted today when someone informed me that I really shouldn't put too much work into summer school and that I was basically just babysitting the kids who were coming. I know that I'm expecting too much from them, shooting for the moon, being an optimistic young teacher, etc. etc. However, I don't think this is a bad thing. I don't think it's bad to actually care about my job and to put actual time and attention into the construction of a summer school course. I sure as hell don't think it's a bad thing to bring preparation and optimism into that classroom of kids who desperately need my help. I really don't think she should have said what she did to me: at least she could have phrased it more as advice and less as jaded "you're wasting your time and they're not worth it" shtick.

My summer school syllabus:

Summer School 2007
Syllabus

Introduction
Welcome to Ms. [Teacher]'s* Summer School course in English! Within this packet, you will find everything you need to know about the schedule we are going to follow over the next eight weeks. You will see what we are covering and when we are covering it. You will also see that it's very important for you to attend each session and to get your work done. There are no acceptable excuses here: this is your last stand.

Objectives
Upon completion of this course, you should:

Have a better grounding in English grammar.
Be aware of resources available to improve your grasp of English grammar.
Know how to write several types of essays.
Know where a library is and how to use one.
Know what plagiarism is and how to avoid it.
Understand the basics of literary analysis.
Be able to read beyond the surface of a text (i.e., critically).

Required Materials
Each student should purchase the following texts:

English Grammar for Dummies by Geraldine Woods. ($19.99)
White Fang by Jack London. ($4.95)

Each student is also required to provide some type of folder, to be brought to every class meeting. You can use a three-ring binder or a paper three-prong folder: it's up to you. However, every class hand-out (including this one) and assignment that you complete during summer school must be kept in that folder and brought to every class. You should also keep at least 30 sheets of blank paper in your folder at all times. I will be checking that you do this for every class and it will factor into your grade.

If you would like for me to purchase the books for you, please provide me with $27.44. This covers the cost of both books and the Alabama sales tax. If you also wish me to get a folder for you, please add $1.00 on top of that.

If you instead wish to purchase the books yourself, you can ask at the counter at Barnes & Noble: they are holding the books at the front under my name or the name of our school. If Barnes & Noble runs out of the books, I will reserve them at another bookstore and advise you on where to go.

Requirements
At each class, there will be a lecture. You are required to attend, pay attention, and take notes. There will be plenty of time for questions, discussions, and reviews.

Each week, you will have a quiz. Anything we have been over in class could show up on these quizzes. You must study. At the last meeting of our class, you will have a test covering everything we've learned during the course.

You are required to begin reading White Fang during the second week of classes, although we won't begin discussing it until Week 6. You will be given a certain number of pages to complete reading each week. Even though we're not discussing it at that time, there will be questions on your weekly quizzes to make sure that you're reading.

Schedule
Please note that there is a place under each session's entry in which to write your homework. I will be checking to make sure that you write down your homework assignment at the end of each class. You should make sure you keep this hand-out in the front of your folder so you can easily see what we're doing and what your homework might be.

Week 1
Topical Focus: Grammar

Session 1 Grammar Review: Introduction
Homework:

Session 2 Grammar Review: The Basics
Homework:

Week 2
Topical Focus: Grammar


Session 3 Grammar Review: The Basics (continued)
Homework:

Session 4 Grammar Review: The Basics (continued)
Homework:

Week 3
Topical Focus: Grammar
Topical Focus: Essay Writing

Session 5 Grammar Review: Study and Conclusion
Homework:

Session 6 Essay-Writing: Types of Essays, Research Methods
Homework:

Week 4
Topical Focus: Essay Writing


Session 7 Essay-Writing: Plagiarism, Outlining
Homework:

Session 8 Essay-Writing: Constructing Paragraphs, Transitions
Homework:

Week 5
Topical Focus: Essay Writing


Session 9 Essay-Writing: From Rough Draft to Final Draft
Homework:

Session 10 Essay-Writing: Review, In-Class Composition
Homework:

Week 6
Topical Focus: Literary Analysis

Session 11 Literary Analysis: Introduction
Homework:

Session 12 Literary Analysis: Terms and Examples
Homework:

Week 7
Topical Focus: Literary Analysis

Session 13 Literary Analysis: Discussion
Homework:

Session 14 Literary Analysis: Writing About Literature
Homework:

Week 8
Topical Focus: Literary Analysis
Final Examination

Session 15 Literary Analysis: Writing About Literature; Review
Homework:

Session 16 Final Examination

*I really did have a kid this year who referred to me as "Miss Teacher." Mostly, all the kids just called me "Ms. B."