AVID NEWS

1- We are checking our scholarship and FAFSA stuff on the computers-- be sure to get the booklet and checklist from the teachers.
2- Bring us your U of O letters or emails to get credit for applying there!
3- December 17th, 12:30 pm: Western Oregon University is here to have you apply and tell you you are accepted-- yes! IF THIS IS NOT IN YOUR PLANNER OR REMINDER LIST, IT NEEDS TO BE.
TRF Forms from this year
2015 Form

Go, go Ducks!

We applied to U of O on Thursday-- please finish the application if you have not done so already. Great experience! If you get it in by today, Lorena (admissions counselor) will get you an answer before Christmas Break-- nice!
SELL PIES, PLEASE!
No homework over break-- just have a great time with your family and we'll see you on Monday, November 30th.

Assignments and Announcements

Thursday AVID, November 12^th:SEE MRS. INGERSON ABOUT QUILTING ORNAMENTS FOR COMMUNITY SERVICE TO WILLAMETTE VALLEY HOSPICE

1- OSU coming to school! Fill out appointment in counseling center, fill out application online (before December 4^th) and get information from Mrs. Eddy or Ingerson—They will be here December 11^th If you have a 3.3 GPA, they can give you an answer on that day—yeah!

2- Finish your college app essay for U of O—they are coming November 19^th. IT IS DUE TODAY, NO LATE PAPERS.

3- Pie Sales: Go sell some pie to pay for our year-end banquet and for other activities—maybe even sweatshrts if we sell enough—pie days on the way!

4- Western Oregon University: They will be here on December 17^th—12:30pm as far as we know at the moment.

5- Turn in your Bilingual Teacher Scholarship App if you  are interested in the program: deadline on November 23^rd.

We finally started the Essay!

Turn in your analysis of the other entrance essays you read and your notes on the discussion about which three students you would admit to your university: MY-U.
Start your essay! Here is what the U of O wants from an essay:

 University of Oregon application essay.

The UO is interested in learning more about you. Write an essay of 500 words or less that shares information that we cannot find elsewhere on your application. Any topic you choose is welcome. Some ideas you might consider include your future ambitions and goals, a special talent, extracurricular activity, or unusual interest that sets you apart from your peers, or a significant experience that influenced your life.
Monday is a B day-- you need to get a TRF and turn it in on Tuesday, so come get one in B-218 or download it here:
TRF from 2015
What I Know TRF, Essential Question TRF, Back of TRF

College Entrance Essay!

Here is the news from today-- what is due and when this week-- have a fabulous journey!
Monday, November 2nd assignments

College Essay Time!

The final and perfect draft of your 500-words-or-less application essay is due NOVEMBER 12th

Here are the documents we used in class:
The analysis assignment and class schedule through November 20th
Tips on Essay writing AND the essays to analyze as models and examples

Here is the prompt from U of O:
The UO is interested in learning more about you. Write an essay of 500 words or less that shares information that we cannot find elsewhere on your application. Any topic you choose is welcome. Some ideas you might consider include your future ambitions and goals, a special talent, extracurricular activity, or unusual interest that sets you apart from your peers, or a significant experience that influenced your life. If you are applying to the UO's Robert D. Clark Honors College, feel free to resubmit your honors college application essay.

First Tutorials and Grades

Thursday, October 14th, we will have our first ever tutorials of the year--yeah!.
If you have not turned in your NEW IMPROVED TRF-- please do so before class on Thursday.
Please check your StudentVue page and get any outstanding assignments to Mrs. Eddy or Mrs. Ingerson by Thursday--thanks!

Tutorials, Ho!

Costa's terms and how to question for tutorials.
Lesson from October 6th

First Assignments!

Here they are, and I hope a lot easier to access.  Thank you so much for your patience with this.
Mrs. E
TED Talk with Sugata Mitra: Build a School in the Cloud
Transcript Evaluation and OSU Application eligibility lesson
OSU Insight Resume Questions

Last Call!

AVID Students:

Final Exam/ Essay is due today, as planned.  If you bring it in tomorrow (Tuesday, June 2nd) at the beginning of class, that will be the absolute last time I can possibly accept it.  All the details are on the last post if you need to check. Thanks you for a great year!

Mrs. Eddy

Last Task-- Celebration!

Last stuff! Here is a link to the video of the district celebration and the speeches-- especially awesome is our own Gabi Tellez-- of course!
District AVID  celebration 2015

FINAL
Here is a copy of the instructions for the final essay for this class. I am so proud and excited as we finish up a really great year and your career in high school and in AVID.
Essays are DUE Monday, June 1st so that I can get them graded in time for graduation.

AVID 12

Final Exam, Semester 2

2015

For a final assessment of your accomplishments in AVID class, I would like you to write me a paper that reflects on your experience in high school and in AVID and is insightful, thought provoking and, absolutely and without question, well-written and thoroughly proofread and edited. This paper should be a lot like a lot of papers you will write in you freshman year of college: three to four pages in length (double spaced, one-inch margins) and displaying a college level mastery of academic tone and organization.

Prompt: You can reflect on any particular aspect of your experience in high school and/or AVID that sticks with you, but I suggest that one way to organize your thoughts might be to create an original metaphor for your experience and build the essay around that.  Another way to go is chronological—but that tends to turn into a less than inspiring catalog of your grades in different years, etc., that doesn’t offer you the best framework for really exploring your thoughts and feelings about your experience.

Hint: Please use an ORIGINAL metaphor—do not talk about how life is like a baseball game or how love is a rose or how the USA is like a salad bowl. Maybe AVID is a pickle? A new pair of shoes? Maybe high school is circus, a spice rack—whatever. Be original!

Another good way to go is to focus on a particular event or activity that you are involved with and focus on that—expand and explain how it is a good way to talk about how much you have learned or grown or changed or focused your energies over the last four years. EXAMPLE: A sport or a class you love: going from learning and improving to teaching and coaching little kids—use that as a tool to talk about growing up and your school/AVID experience. EXAMPLE: How do you spend your lunch time and what does that say about how you have changed over the years—maybe lunch periods can tell about a lot of things in your high school/AVID experience—maybe not!

Hint: Be sincere and original—be yourself and give yourself enough time to write and revise and edit and express your true voice. Do NOT write a formula essay!

Thanks,

Mrs. Eddy

Article to Read and Forms to Fill Out-- Almost done!

This week we read an article about why  what we are doing-- heading off to a four-year university-- is really the best thing we could be doing for our future-- great news!
NYT article to read
Questions to answer:
1- What is the thesis of this article:
2- Secondary Thesis:
3- Three key pieces of evidence:

Thursday and Friday we are at the computers to input our AVID Senior data.
Senior Data Link: coming soon

College Major Paper

Here is a copy of the handout and instructions I gave the class-- please have a final draft of the paper-- 500-1000 words, typed up and ready to hand in by the time class starts on Wednesday, April 15th.  I will get you class time on Monday and Tuesday. Thanks!
Mrs. E
Major Paper

Build a School in the Cloud? What do You Think?

Please follow the directions for this assignment:

Dr. Mitra and his Ideas and My Reaction to Them

Philosophical Chairs: Prepare!

We worked on finding articles, studying what debate is and setting up our two first Philosophical Chairs debates this week.  We had one on whether or not we should raise the minimum wage to $15.00 and one on whether we need tighter restrictions for gun purchases and tougher rules about how legal gun owners have to store and use their weapons-- both were very interesting!
Here are the parts of the assignment if you missed them:
Follow All five Steps in this Assignment:
Thursday is a work day so everyone can make sure they are prepared for the end of the grading period and then-- off to a sunny,  three-day weeknd! Have a blast!
Mrs. E

New Paths and Scholarships to Explore

Guest speaker this Friday, Feb. 27th. 

Brant Minor from NW Marketing and events 

Please don't be late to class!
Also, if you haven't signed up for the Student Paths website in your English class and taken a look at the scholarship stuff, please do so from any computer or your phone. Our English department does get a small stipend ($1.50) for every student that signs up and goes through the assessment (about a five or ten minute commitment of time). We will use the money to buy books, of course.  More information:
Three Steps to Life After High School:
Here is a site associated with a grant form Western Oregon University and designed to find out what students like you are interested in as far as opportunities after high school. Colleges really want to know what you want so that they can offer it to you. Your information will not be used for marketing or other nefarious purposes, and the site really does offer a lot of great information from students like yourself as well as links to university and scholarship sites.

1- Watch this very short video: http://vimeo.com/100939878

2-Please go to this site to register and take the short assessment : http://www.mystudentpath.com/

Explore and use the site whenever you wish--I hope you find it helpful.

videos in defense of debating skills

Debate gone wrong

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiOZsGL5gCo

Here is a more civil form of argument--about how we should argue! Follow this speaker's argument-- Should you take notes?

Essential Question: What is Michael Sandel trying to convince us to do, and how does he structure his argument? 
We will write a short reaction/reflection paper after we watch/take notes.

Why We Should Debate: The Lost Art of Democratic Debate

http://www.ted.com/talks/michael_sandel_the_lost_art_of_democratic_debate?language=en

Here is just a great example of traditional debate:

A Debate About Nuclear Power

Philosophical Chairs Topic Assignment

Here are the instructions as well as an example of the assignment you must complete-- We should have lively and engaging debates/discussions with the topics you choose--thanks!
Mrs. E
DUE WEDNESDAY, FEB 25TH-- BRING TO CLASS
AVID Topic for Debate Assignment

Friday, February 13th Instructions and Practice Tests

Today: You may work on assignments from your other classes OR use the time to take practice tests.
You may NOT simply choose to chat and/or play computer/phone games--thank you, guys. Have a great long weekend!
Mrs. E

Please go to the following sites and take the practice tests.  Remember, you will be required to complete the Compass test either on Feb. 20th, with the rest of us, or on your own BEFORE the end of February. The practice REALLY helps!
Mrs. Eddy

Compass Reading Test (.pdf format--answers in the back).

Online Compass Reading Test (you can check each answer as you go)

Link From Chemeketa's site to practice sample questions in all areas (reading, writing, math): Sample Questions

Oakland CC Practice Math Questions  and  Answers

Rules about what kid of calculators are allowed at the testing site.

Motivation to Finish Well-- together!

We will work on some skills we need in college courses this week while we take a look at what it takes to get ourselves going when we lack the energy or drive to do so. If you were absent on Monday, please complete the following critical reading exercise-- thanks!
Monday's Assignment
Here is the second part--
 writing about motivation-- you can do it on the same piece fo paper:
1- view the video here and think about the ideas: finishing together news article
2- Journal Style reflection writing:
EQ: What is motivation and how does it connect to you personally?

Write for three minutes as you consider this question—journal style write: sentences that come naturally from your thoughts—not any extra worry about correctness—but be as correct as you have the skills for being.

Scholarships!

Today we go to the computers to complete OSAC AND any requirements of scholarship app. you started on finals day (essays or short answers or requests for letters of recommendation).  If you need a scholarship to apply for and were not eligible to complete the OSAC-- here is one for you to do instead:

Scholarship for students NOT filing the FAFSA or OSAC

If you complete the OSAC, your name will show up on a list in the counselor's office and I will be able to look it up for your grade-- and the new registrar will make sure that OSAC gets your transcript, including your semester seven grades--YES!
NOTE: I feel like I need to remind you that you must do your best writing on these applications-- too short or improperly executed responses are not acceptable-- thanks!
Mrs. E

Reflection Time!

Here's what we did in class today-- please make it up right away if you were absent-- thanks!
Mrs. E

The Empire Strikes Back! (Great sound Effects for Writing!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rQSJDLM8ZE

Write a full page reflection on your grades—yes, last semester, but also in general.  Hook up your ideas to your plans and schemes and hopes and dreams for the future. Yes, this next semester, but also for the big, bright future you have waiting for you!

Semester End Check Off!

Please make sure you have everything on your AVID checklist from the beginning of the year finished EXCEPT the College Portfolio (we did not do this yet) and the AVID Senior Data (we will do this at the end of the year).
I will hand around a form to fill out this week and next so that I can give you an amazing grade for finishing these tasks.

Final Exam Choices:
Option #1 Socratic Seminar followed by a reflection paper. We would have to start on Tuesday and continue on Thursday (our final day) to get finished-- but the main part of your grade would be the quality of your written reflection with "A" grades available for participating respectfully and thoughtfully and encouraging participation of others through courtesy and respectful questioning..
Option #2: Complete and submit a scholarship application(s) during the final exam time. I will supply the application(s).