Substitute Day II

Hey guys- I'll make this short, since most of you know what I've got to say anyway: Friday's the distribution date for the December PAW PRINT, so I'm putting together what we've got today- if all goes well (and I'm sure it will), we'll begin folding tomorrow.
I don't know how many times I have to say the word "deadline" before it registers, but here's hoping this time's the last. The deadline for all articles is today at noon. Those with nothing turned in will receive a zero for this assignment. The following people are treading dangerous ground: Felipe, Isela, and Mariela.
Desiree and Tatiana- I've left a hard copy of your article, with my suggestions in italics, with the sub. It needs work, but I'm confident you can give me something workable during class today.
Frankie and Charles- you've got a good article; all it's missing is a good, relevant quote from Mr. Nichols. (Also, since this will be most readers' first introduction to him, it may be a good idea to explain his presence here at Gunderson- why is he here, what is his function, etc.)

E-mail all finished articles to ghspawprint@gmail.com (again, by noon today).

Last, there are a couple of pictures I've got that I don't have names for. I wasn't able to upload them, so here goes my best try:
Justen- I need names for the members of the after school band: the drummer, bass player, and one guitar player (I know Steven Castillo is the other guitarist).
Selina: Who was the basketball player you shot pictures of yesterday?

Now. If you've all turned in something that works (and if I haven't mentioned your name, your golden), then it would be awesome if you'd all begin to brainstorm ideas for February's paper. The problem that we're continuing to encounter is that of being assigned articles and losing interest in them. If we begin thinking about topics now (think Valentine's Day, a new semester, spring sports, etc.), maybe we'll have a better idea of what kind of stories work for the next issue. I think the process of making a questionnaire beforehand worked well this time- begin to think of questions we might distribute at the beginning of next semester. There's a post-it easel pad on the side wall- make good use of it.

I love you all with most of my heart.

Substitute Day!

Good morning my lovelies. I'm terribly sorry for the absence- I'm at the district office taking a SDAIE training class. Wish you were here. But since you're not, I've got about 10 minutes to tell you what I expect of you today. Now it's 5 minutes, because I just spoke with Mr. Karosen.
First, I know this goes unsaid, but with the exception of stay-at home-moms, substitute teachers have the hardest job on the planet. Be nice to the gentleman in the front of the classroom.
Second, I meant to put a flyer on the server requesting interviewees for our gangs of gunderson story, but I ran out of time. It would please me to no end, and earn tons of PAT in the future, if you, as a class, could put together a good-looking product to lure kids into interviews (keep it appropriate).
My suggestion would be to use Pages:- the "band poster small" template would work well, I think. Include the following:

*an attention-drawing picture
*the purpose of the interviews
*who we are looking for
*assurance of anonymity for interviewees who request it
*any other information that you think is necessary.

When you've agreed on the flyer's look and content as a class, submit a draft of the flyer to my drop box. One of you, at least, should know how to do this. Break a leg. I'll be looking at it this afternoon.

ps. If you want to comment below and keep me company, that would make me smile.

Michael Mantione

Michael Mantione came into my classroom the day of publication, as the first person to respond to our spirit day coloring contest. He presented a black and white drawing which he'd titled, "The Gunderson Pandas!" I know that Mike is a senior, but very little else.
Anybody got the inside scoop on M.M.?

Meet Mr. Thompson!

Why I Teach What I Teach: I love language and literature, and I used to teach Spanish when I lived in Mississippi- I felt pretty confident teaching it there, where I was the only semi-bilingual person for three counties- but I think I'd feel like something of a fraud teaching Spanish, which is my second language, in a state where a large percentage of the population is made up of native speakers. So it's English.
What Scares Me Most: Finding out that everything- that all of my struggles and all of my accomplishments and all of my attempts to treat the people in my life well- that it's all meaningless in the end.
What Makes Me Cry: Animal euthanasia- particularly when it's the end result of human stupidity.
What Makes Me Laugh: Flight of the Conchords.
Guilty Pleasure: Old movie musicals, specifically The Sound of Music.
Biggest Influence: My Mammaw Thompson.
Most Embarrassing Moment: When I was a kid, my dad tried everything in his power to make me an athlete, signing me up for a soccer team or a basketball team every year. I didn't mind soccer, because I could play defense and almost never see any action- I could just stare at my feet and talk to myself for minutes at a time. Then during a big game one Saturday afternoon, the other team's forward started to run straight at me out of nowhere. I was entirely unprepared, so I screamed as loudly as I was able to- it seemed like the thing to do at the time, and it brought the game to a halt for a few minutes while my coach and the referee tried to determine what was wrong with me. Honestly, I wasn't all that embarrassed by it, but my dad was- I never had to play an organized sport again.

News about News

So here we go. I've ok'd interview questions for Felipe, Char-less, Isela, Taryn, Mariela, Rajdeep, Selina, Justen, D-Rey, and Tatiana. Excellent. Now it's kind of a waiting game while we wait for staff to respond. Perhaps we shall harass them more. Those of you who have yet to turn in questions to me, no coffee for you until I see them. All right. Good.

The Carbon Copy

Selina has stepped up to bat with an e-mail to Coach Daley, and Taryn, as already mentioned, is on top of things with Ms. Catching. I have yet to receive a carbon copy of an e-mail from anyone else. I'm willing to accept this as an odd thursday the thirteenth phenomenon, but will expect everyone to work on their introductory e-mails- even if you know the staff member personally- during the first ten minutes of class today. No coffee 'til I see it. Go.

Thursday Thursday

Michelle is on the lookout for teachers who perhaps don't show a lot of obvious spirit- the idea is to balance out her article on school spirit with teachers who display their enthusiasm in different ways; maybe they're more reserved, or introverted, but this doesn't mean they don't love the school. Think of a teacher or two who fit this description and let her know.
Selina offered up an idea for a feature on alternative post-secondary options for graduating seniors, and Justen proposed his own idea of interviewing GHS alumni regarding their current life situations. What if we combined these proposals for a continuing piece featuring alumni who've chosen not to follow the traditional college route? Just a thought- any takers?
Taryn is a rock star, and has already corresponded with her contact. Today I'd like for the rest of you to follow suit. Here's what to do:

1. Decide on who your faculty contact will be. If you're having difficulty with this, ask me.

2. Send that person a brief, professional email requesting an interview- if they are staff, their email will look like this: first_last@sjusd.org
***cc all newspaper-related emails to me: john_thompson@sjusd.org This will be a part of your grade!

3. When you get the standard bounce-back email, reply to it. Your reply need not be long and complicated- this is just to verify that you are a living, breathing human being.

So this is what I'm expecting, for those of you who are confused: Continue writing entries, commenting on others' blogs, and responding to any comments you recieve from either me or your fellow reporters. You should have a minimum of 5 blog entries by the time I click through my gradebook this weekend- at least one of which should be a rough version of your assigned article. Contact your interviewee/s and ensure that I have a copy of any correspondence in my mailbox. Lastly, have fun!

I'm not gonna diss you on the internet

Good morning! Most of you are making great progress on your prospective newspaper articles, though I've yet to hear much at all from some of you (and don't think I haven't noticed your bloglessness, Francis). If blogging is simply not the thing for you, speak with me at the end of class today and we can make an arrangement in which you turn in a daily journal to me.
A few items have popped up in your posts that I don't have the expertise to address. Mariela has some leadership questions that I'm sure could find their answers from within this class, and Taryn continues in her search for new classes offered at GHS. You might also head over to Isela's comments, where we've begun a lively conversation on what does and what doesn't qualify as news. Feel free to agree or disagree with anyone and everyone.
Some housekeeping items: If I comment on your blog entry, reply to me on your comments page, not on mine- that way the whole conversation is in one place, and we don't have to bounce back and forth. Comment on my blog if you have a question or comment related to (a) my most recent entry or (b) something I haven't addressed elsewhere. And finally, though I don't know that it will ever happen, I have to be open to the possibility that these assigned blogs will be seen by one or all of my superiors, so I'd appreciate if we'd all keep that in the back of our minds. Be conscious of the language you use, proofread your posts, and try to refrain from calling your colleagues "hoes." You're all lovely. See you in class.

First Entries

The lovely Taryn has been so kind as to suggest that, as I've assigned my journalism students two blog entries, I should write a second as well. Fair enough. I like what I'm seeing from those of you (Taryn, Felipe, Mariela, Tatiana, and D-Rey) who have taken up the challenge of these blogs- a lot of good ideas, and a good understanding of the kinds of things I'll be looking for in a lead paragraph.
To the rest of you (including both editors in chief, ahem): shame.
Your grades will reflect appropriately.
A few general comments: It's great that we're commenting on each other's blogs; try to ensure that the comments you make are constructive- that is, they help the blogger to better approach his or her subject. "Good job" doesn't cut it- what has the writer done well? What questions do you still have about the subject? You should have many at this point, as we've only begun to work on our lead paragraphs. So. We have a lot of work to do. Get on board. Slackers.

Welcome!

As part of our journalism course for this year, each of you will be keeping a blog in order to suggest stories and features for the Paw Print.