Mr.

Ta's English II N 1
Mr.Ta's Newsletter
Volume 1, Issue 1 May 2014


































I NSI DE THI S I SSUE
1 Welcome
1 What to Expect
4 More




Welcome Parents!
I am happy to welcome you to English II at Blank High
School for the 2014-2015 school year. My name is
Mr. Ta and I am very excited to embark on this
wondrous literary adventure.

To briefly describe myself, I was born and raised in
Southern California, hailing from the San Gabriel
Valley. After receiving my bachelors degree at the
California State University, Long Beach, I attended
UCLAs Teacher Education Program for my Single
Subject Credential and Masters of Education. I chose
UCLA because of its focus on Social Justice and
dedication to serving underprivileged, multi-cultural
areas. As the youngest son of Chinese immigrants who
grow up in a diverse area, I am fascinated by
linguistics, culture, and the evolution of language, and
my instruction will reflect these passions.

This years course of study will focus on the Common
Core Standards required for 10
th
grade English
Language Arts with specific attention exploring the
themes of identity, social class, and racial inequality.
In accordance with those crucial themes, we will be
reading and discussion literary text such as Sandra
Cisneros The House on Mango Street, Zora Neale

Summary of the Class
We are entering into a long, arduous journey of
empathy, social justice, and excellence. Through the
study of crucial issues and constructs such as identity,
racism, social class, oppression, language, and culture,
we will build comprehensive reading and writing skills
and strengthen our critical thinking and problem-
posing. Following a student-centered model, students
will become more autonomous and active participants
in their education. We will engage in global and
community-based research, discussions, and texts that
will further develop a critical mind and challenge social
and cultural misconceptions. Students explore and seek
innovative methods of improving the community and
the individual.
What to Expect
At the end of this course and following the Common
Core Standards, you will:
be prepared with the knowledge and
experience to begin improving the well-being
of individuals, families, and working/social
environments.
be analytically skilled to identify and
comprehend the destructive patterns of
institutionalized poverty, discrimination and
oppression (using scientifically valid research
methodologies and critical analyses to
investigate), assess and change aspects of
competing economic, political and social
systems.
engage in community-based research on social
issues, focusing on those variables affecting
individuals, families, groups, organizations and
communities in South Central Los Angeles and
beyond.
develop the ability to cite evidence from
informational and literary texts to support
analysis of what texts say explicitly as well as
inferences drawn from the text.
be able to analyze the development of complex
characters and themes over the course of a text.
write argumentative essays, informative and
explanatory text that have some relation to
historical events or other disciplines, and
narratives that span from interior monologues
of literary/historical characters or personal
journeys.
engage in thought-provoking collaborative
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