As Thanksgiving approaches this week, I am grateful for many things.  All of my students are taking time this week to reflect on some part of life they are thankful for as well.  Definitely take time to browse through their posts by clicking on a class period under the Blogroll on the right.  Meanwhile, here are the things I appreciate about each of my five language arts classes.

I am thankful for the exuberance my 2nd period class brings.  They have been reading lots of books and currently hold both the highest number of books read and the highest average per student.  Olivia M explains her book obsession.  I have loved reading their poems and memoirs.  Check out this poem by John W and memoir by Brooke P.  I love when they get excited about books and start passing them around.  Carrly I and Allison G have read Played by Dana Davidson.  Kelsey C and Macey B have been passing back and forth the mermaid books by Tera Lynn Childs.  What good books will they discover next?

I am thankful for the peacefulness that fills my third period.  All that quiet produces some good thinking and reading and writing.  Just check out what Caleb P has to say about This Dark Endeavor by Kenneth Oppel.   Many share a love of Sarah Dessen books.  Isn’t that right, Ashley P, Krystal W, and Raechel M.  Who is going to be the first to follow her on Twitter?  Carlee L wrote about the book everyone’s reading–The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner–and the author even dropped by!  I can’t even list all the students tearing through The Hunger Games series.   Trenton wrote about my current favorite nonfiction book, How They Croaked.

I am thankful fifth period gets me off to a good start after lunch.  They are reading some good books in this class.  They even said they would buy me books from the book fair for Christmas!  I can’t wait to open those presents!  They have been writing great blog posts.  Kameron D writes about the drawbacks of fame.  Brooke M  writes about the high cost of dropping out of school.  Henry S gives excellent reasons why we should all read.  You can also discover some great memoirs (like this one by Katy C) and poems.  James S captures the chaos of the hallways during passing period, and Brooke V paints of picture of where she’s from.

I am thankful my sixth period keeps me on my toes looking for good books.  Don’t let them fool you.  They may say they hate reading, but they have taken the lead in both total number of books and the highest average of books read per student in my afternoon classes!  Much of that is due to their love of graphic novels, especially Mal and Chad.  Coming soon will be an awesome blog post with contributions from some new fans.  They’ve also been writing some awesome blog posts.  Check out what Ally H says about giving fame second thoughts.  Haley H wrote about the cost of high school drop outs.  If you need some good reasons to read, check out what Logan E and Tylor B advise. I’ve also enjoyed their memoirs (like this one by Katie H) and poems (like these by Kourtney G and Austin M).

I am thankful to end my day with my seventh period class.  They make me laugh, especially when they diagram sentences on the desk.  They are also discovering which books and authors they like.  You wouldn’t believe how any books they’ve read!  I’m not sure they can, either.  I love reading what they post on their blogs.  Klayton B and  Haley G wrote awesome poems. Kasen R’s and Shawn V’s memoirs were definitely memorable.  Austin K and Diana B give contrasting views of fame.  Mckenzie R gives some good reasons for reading.