ATTENTION

TO ALL MY STUDENTS AND PARENTS,

DUE TO THE CURRENT LACK OF A TEACHER'S CONTRACT FOR THE SECOND YEAR IN A ROW, I WILL NOT BE UPDATING THIS BLOG.  IT IS MY SMALL WAY OF PROTESTING THE WAY THE WALTHAM EDUCATORS' ASSOCIATION HAS BEEN UNFAIRLY TREATED BY THE ELECTED SCHOOL COMMITTEE OF THE CITY OF WALTHAM.  THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE HAS CHOSEN NOT TO NEGOTIATE WITH THE W.E.A.  THIS IS UNFAIR TO THE TEACHERS, STUDENTS, AND VOTERS OF WALTHAM.  IF YOU WISH TO VOICE YOUR OPINION TO THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE, PLEASE EMAIL THEM DIRECTLY.  YOU MAY FIND THEIR EMAILS AT THIS WEBSITE:

http://www.walthampublicschools.org/sc.cfm

THANK YOU,

JOHN HACKER

Week of January 17, 2012

Midterms for all students are this week.

We will continue with all of our novels at the end of the week/beginning of next week.

Thanks,

Mr. Hacker

Week of January 9, 2012

Happy New Year Everyone!

I hope you all celebrated the holidays with loved ones and enjoyed the company of family and friends.

Sophomore C-1 classes have started reading JD Salinger's classic The Catcher in the Rye, the story of Holden Caulfield, an angst ridden teenager deaing with his emotional issues.  Students will be finished with the first third of the novel (Ch. 1-7) by Monday and will have a quiz either Tuesday or Wednesday depending on the class period.  Students should also be tracking Holden's "symptoms" as they prepare to write a paper titled "Diagnosing Holden."

Sophomore Honors are reading John Steinbeck's classic Of Mice and Men and will be finishing at the end of this week.

Freshmen finished reading The Hobbit over vacation and will begin review work for their test this week.  They will also be preparing to complete a project on the novel, which is included in each student's novel packet.

Mr. Hacker

Week of December 19, 2011

A Very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to All!

Look for new updates in 2012!

Week of December 12, 2011

Hello,

This time of year is very busy.  Just a reminder that this Friday, progress reports will be available on edline.  Please keep an eye out for that.

The sophomore Honors class completed their work on The Alchemist on Friday by handing in their projects.

C-1 sophomores finished Of Mice and Men on Wednesday and Monday (today) by taking the unit test and passing in their George Letter assignment.

Freshmen began The Hobbit last Monday and have finished up through chapter four for today (12/12/11).

A very joyous holiday season to you families!

Week of November 28, 2011

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone had a restful Thanksgiving.  Now begins the festive holiday season (my favorite time of year).

Sophomore Honors are steadily marching forward, reading The Alchemist.  We will be having our quiz on part 3 of The Alchemist next Monday and the culminating project is due next Friday, December 9.

Sophomore C-1 classes have finished reading Of Mice and Men and will be taking a quiz on the last two chapters today or tomorrow.  We will be completing a writing assignment and a test on Of Mice and Men next week.

Freshmen are working on their essays for Odysseus and Luke Skywalker.  The essays are due next Monday.  On Tuesday, we will begin preliminary work for JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit as a culmination of our "Hero" unit.

Mr. Hacker

Week of November 21, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope all your families enjoy this wonderful holiday in happiness and harmony.

Sophomore C-1 students will complete reading Of Mice and Men over the break while Sophomore Honors students will continue work in The Alchemist.

Freshmen are continuing to work on their essays comparing Odysseus and Luke Skywalker.

Happy Holidays!

Mr. Hacker