Dear Classmates,

            This is a very odd night. The next time that I will be doing homework on a school night I will be in a state very far from here. It is a sad time because I must move past the bubble that has raised me. However, there is a touch of excitement in the air because we are all opening a new chapter of our lives. I have enjoyed my 12 years in this community very dearly and I could not possibly dream of a better place to spend my childhood. I have been so fortunate to spend my school career with 152 of you. We have grown together, learned together, been challenged together, and now we must all split apart. I just wanted to let you all know how much I have enjoyed my time in the Chagrin Falls School District. I have made friendships that I am sure will last a lifetime. There is a definitely a reason that Chagrin Falls gets highly rated by US News and World Report. And in all honesty, Ms. Serensky I think you deserve a lot of credit for that. One of the reasons your class is so unique is because you are willing to put in just as much work as we do. In my opinion, that is why you are able to achieve such great results with your students. You build a level of respect from the very first week. And although we act like we all do our work because we are scared of you. I think really we are scared of disappointing you. We know how much time you willingly invest in our education and we absolutely hate seeing you upset with us. Why else would somebody write a 30 page datasheet? Also, I think that we will not truly understand how valuable our two years have been with you until we are in the middle of our college career. You have truly taught us how to learn and how to think. And for me, you have taken me from someone who absolutely hated writing, to someone who secretly looks forward to crafting a well-written essay. Thank you very much to all of you my fellow classmates, and thank you so much Ms. Serensky. You have all made this an unforgettable high school experience for me. 

Farewell :'(

Dear my fellow classmates,

            It has been quite an honor to have the opportunity to learn from you and learn with you for the past two years. If you reflect on the progress we have all made as not only writers, but also as thinkers it is truly remarkable. We have had the good fortune to be guided by a revered and esteemed commander who although military like in her orders, always keeps our best interest in mind. She has pushed us all and challenged us in ways that we never expected. But of course, this has only made us grow stronger as individuals and as a group. We have all had our arguments in class discussions but it is a testament to the character of each of us that we can all remain on friendly terms outside the classroom. Someone once said that you will learn more from your peers than you do from your teacher and I think they may have actually been onto something. It has been a very unique experience these past two years being surrounded by so many intelligent people. I have enjoyed tossing ideas out into the discussion and having people either affirm my beliefs or absolutely tear them to shreds. Ms Serensky once told us that she does not want to teach college because she thinks that the senior year English class is truly a special gathering. I think she is exactly right, we have all grown up together in this small town and now we all have become prepared to move out into the real world. I hope that you all will not forget the foundation that we have built together and I look forward to reminiscing on our time in AP English over the many years to come.

Sincerely,

Thomas Donley

I hope this is not how you feel about us leaving.

You Have To Do It

Top Ten Reasons You're Decision Should Be SO Easy!

10.  You would never get to hear stories about Aunt Bobbie.
9. Ms. Serensky will forever remain as the intimidating teacher at the end of the third floor and you will always walk in fear when you pass her room.
8. You could try to formulate your own dream team.
7. You will be able to sit and laugh when you go on college visits and students complain about their English class. True story: I met a freshman at a prestigious school and he was all worked up because the day before his English teacher tested him on why the publication date of the novel they were reading was significant. This is one of the easiest questions ever!
6. You will always dread having to write papers and do analysis writing of any kind. When I was a sophomore I absolutely hated it, but no longer.
5. Your name will not come up on a google search because you will not have a blog registered to you.
4. You will never experience the joy of pulling an all nighter to work on a data sheet.
3. You will never fully understand the concept of practice makes perfect. It is true.
2. You will be scared to death of college English because you will never have the experience of working like you are in a college class. And you will never be able to be taught by someone infinitely more intelligent than you are.
1. You will feel like you never really challenged yourself in English and you will have a sense of regret when it comes time to leave on senior project. English is useful in every type of profession.

Literary Analysis of the patients medical history

Peering Over My Shoulder

McMurphy:  ‘“Chief, I’ll be d***** if I ever saw anything so slow!”’ (Kesey 249)

Jack:  ‘“Oh that is nonsense; you are always talking nonsense.”’ (Wilde 42)

Maxine:  “Imagine opening your eyes and seeing something like that first thing in the

                 morning.”’ (Lahiri 128)

McMurphy:  ‘“You know—that old clock up there puts me in mind of the targets at the target range at Fort Riley.”’ (Kesey 104)

Maxine:  ‘“That’s one way of putting it.”’ (Lahiri 135)

Jack:  ‘“May I ask then what you would advise…to do?”’ (Wilde 14)

McMurphy:  ‘“Can’t you even ease down the volume?”’ (Kesey 105)

Jack:  ‘“Well, I don’t see how I could possibly manage to do that.”’ (Wilde 15)

McMurphy:  ‘“do you want to know what I think? I think you are being very selfish.”’ (Kesey 106)

Jack:  ‘“Well, I won’t argue the matter. You always want to argue about things.”’ (Wilde 15)

McMurphy:  [looking at my essay] ‘“Is it a workable idea?”’ (Kesey 111)

Jack:  ‘“Nothing!”’ (Wilde 17)

McMurphy:  ‘“I’m rather enthused about it myself”’ (Kesey 111).

Jack:  ‘“My dear fellow, the sooner you give up that nonsense the better.”’ (Wilde 42)

McMurphy:  ‘“But I tried, though…didn’t I?”’ (Kesey 125)

Maxine:  ‘“Why on earth would they mind?”’ (Lahiri 129)

Jack:  [readdressing my essay] ‘“It pains me very much to have to speak frankly to you… but the fact is that I do not approve at all”’ (Wilde 48).

McMurphy:  ‘“Y’Know I was beginnin’ to think we might never get down to it.”’ (Kesey 273)

Jack:  ‘“I fear there can be no possible doubt about the matter.”’ (Wilde 48)

How I will feel during the AP test!