First of all, let me say it formally here: I am so very proud of you for taking and completing the course. I'm excited that you've taken the exam and have some time to take a deep breath. More importantly, realize that the pressure is off. We still have a few more assignments to round out the year, but I'd like our concluding activities to be reflective and pleasant.
On that note, consider this your swan song--here, in your comment (worth 15 points, but completion credit only--no rubric!) tell the 2013-2014 APE group what you wish you had known/done/realized/understood.
If you wished you had taken your work more seriously, say that. If you wish you hadn't freaked out so much, say that. If you'd like next year's bunch to known that they WILL evolve as readers and thinkers, tell them that. Think about when you were in the trenches--what did you wish someone had told you?
There's nothing like a Monday morning quarterback, and nothing like a May 10th APE student.
Comment below, lovlies.
aaayyooooo! First I just wanna make a shout out to the beautiful, Katie Queenan. Don't stress yourself out too much, you will get a 95 in the class and will definitely get a 5. Calm down. I love you. To everyone else: AP English has been my favorite class all year. Ms. Rouleau is beyond awesome and is such a great teacher. She may surpass Mr. Murray in the English teacher awesomeness department. She is great, so only make fun her a little. She really cares about you and developing your skills. Furthermore READ THE BOOKS. the books are for a specific reason. They are chosen to give you a broad background to take the exam. As you will find out the essay questions require you to know novels. Also, the multiple choice is not a big deal, though it may seem ambiguous, it really isn't that tough. You will be prepared, don't worry. Writing a Q3 is definitely manageable on a free period. Also Ms. Rouleau is terrible at updating edline, so that 68 you have, well you'll end up with an 87 for the quarter...no worries. Though the three hour midterm seems a bit evil it is actually very helpful. SHMOOP is wonderful, and not blocked on the school's computers....use it! Make sure to do the summer work...ITS JUST COMPLETION CREDIT. oh and this is totally unrelated but YOU NEED TO FINISH THE MAJORITY OF YOUR COMMON APP IN AUGUST. the website opens august first and you will hate your life if you don't do it in the summer. I love all of you dearly. SNAP CHAT ME. and helleeerr Kervin! (and Kristina...I don't actually know who is going to be in AP English...) So if you need any help with anything, just let me know! AP English is awesome...and the exam isn't even that hard. loveee youuuu
ReplyDeleteWhen I first entered AP English I did not expect it to be as rigorous a course as it proved to be; during the beginning of the year at least. That being said, I wish I knew beforehand that AP would not be as bad as it appears to be at first. After awhile, you will get used to the work and learn to improve your writing after a weak start. Although there will be much work to do, in the end it will be worth the time and effort. After preparing for a year, you will be prepared to take the exam. You have to try your best and not give up when at times you feel yourself unable to complete an assignment. Listen to what Ms. Rouleau tells you to revise on first drafts and from there you will create a better paper. Also, it is recommended that even during the end of the year that you do not lose your focus. Study what Ms. Rouleau tells you to study and keep an organized binder so that you do not lose your important notes and handouts. Most of all, do not stress; the hardest part of answering a prompt is over once you jot down notes and begin to write your paper. In some cases it is advised to have a thesaurus on hand so that your word choice in essays does not appear to be bland and repetitious.
ReplyDeleteSup future pioneers! First of all, congrats on the decision to take AP English. Sometimes you might have moments why you wonder why you did it, but it is honestly so worth it. Now, onto my advice. Do the summer work, but don't stress about it, because it's completion credit. So... free points! Any time there's a completion credit assignment, make sure you do it because those are easy A's. The first few months of AP will be hard, because you'll be writing a lot more than you're used to. Don't take Ms. Rouleau's criticism to heart, because honestly she's harder on you than the AP readers will be most likely, and that is a VERY good thing because you will be over-prepared for essay writing on the exam. Secondly, she's only trying to help you. Let your writing change and adapt as you learn, because hanging on to old habits will only hurt you. At the end of the year, you'll be amazed at what a great writer you've become, and how you can analyze a poem with no issue! The excessive Q1, Q2, and Q3 essay writing will seem tedious and it will drain you. My advice is to write them whenever you have the first available opportunity to, and get it over with. The more homework and essay writing you do, the more practice you get for the exam. This is one of those "get what you give" situations. It may be hard and stressful, but Ms. Rouleau is pretty good with after-school help. Don't doubt Ms. Rouleau, because she knows what she's doing, and she's a fabulous teacher. And when she gives you extra credit options, LAWD JESUS take them. AND make sure you go to Early AP at least a couple times, the extra material and practice is really worth getting to school before a majority of the teachers do. Also, make sure you tell Ms. Rouleau to make you food, because it's yummy. That's all, good luck to all of you!
ReplyDeleteHello lovelies! I am so glad that you decided to take AP English. My number one piece of advice for you is to NOT STRESS! You are going to have ups and downs, things that you do amazing at and things you will struggle with. It is expected. Do not worry about it! On those nights where you are loaded with homework, push through! They are not very fun, but all the hard work really does pay off. I remember the nights where I sat at my computer staring at a blank screen for a good couple of hours, not knowing what to write at all! But as the year went on, those two hours turned into one, and then only about 20 minutes. I struggled with finding things to analyze and write about. I often "wrote myself into my ideas" as Ms. Rouleau would say. For some of you, this will be what you struggle with. For others, it may be something completely different. The only thing I can tell you is to struggle through it. The struggle is worth it. Your writing will grow leaps and bounds, and you will be thankful for it at the end of the year. I know that I feel so much better going into college, than I would have if I did not take AP English. It may not seem like it at the beginning, but your writing will get better. Also, do not worry about the clock. I always freaked out about in class essays and timed Q1's Q2's and Q3's that we had to write. (I know you probably don't even know what those are yet. But trust me, you will soon find out!) But seriously, don't worry about the time. Just breathe, brainstorm (Ms. Rouleau is completely serious and right about this! It is so important to brainstorm! It helps so much!) and you will be fine! If you put work into AP English, you will get so much out of the class! But putting in work is truly the key. Now all of our comments are not meant to scare you about the work, they are meant to mentally prepare you, and to let you know that it really is not as bad as it seems. You will get used to the workload. You will get used to the essays. It gets easier. Just remember that. You guys will all do great! I wish you guys luck in your senior year and in AP English. You guys will be fine! Just relax, breathe, and DO NOT STRESS!
ReplyDeleteHi Chickens! Well I started out by calling you all chickens because you are going to have to get used to be calling that; it’s not an insult, but rather, a term of endearment. Miss. Rouleau calls everyone her little chicken. Also, if Miss. Rouleau gets really excited and starts cavorting (future vocab word) all over the room; this is completely normal; it was a common occurrence in our AP class! No but really, as crazy as Miss. Rouleau is, she is an amazing teacher. So let me give you guys some advice and tell you some things that I wish I did. I think that the most important piece of advice I can give to you is not to stress; this is probably what all of my fellow AP classmates will tell you as well. Do not just not stress about the class itself, but also, don’t go into the Exam feeling stressed. Miss. Rouleau prepares you REALLY well, as long as you pay attention and do your work you should do fine on the exam. This brings me to my next point; I wish I studied the literary terms more. Miss. Rouleau, at the end of the year, will give you a quiz on all of the important literary terms that are key to know for the exam; take that quiz seriously and really study for it. Going over the literary terms is really important and it helps on the exam. Remember how earlier I said that Miss. Rouleau is an amazing teacher? Well there will be times where you do not like her at all. It will just seem that there are times when you have so much work that you feel as though she has a personal vendetta against you just because you took AP; but that is not the case. Everything she does and all the work she gives serves a purpose. She will make you write 2 page essays in one night and the first few times it will take you so long, but by the end of the year you will be able to bang out a 2 page paper in no time at all. Don’t take her criticism to heart; use it as a tool to get better! At the end of this year, your writing will have developed to a level you would have never dreamed that it would be at all thanks to Miss. Rouleau. My last piece of advice is: read and fully understand Jane Eyre; this is a clutch for the Q3!! Good luck to you all!!!!
ReplyDeleteHello everybody! You probably hate your life right now especially AP Calculus people.. but don't worry! AP English seems really time consuming but its sooo rewarding! Ms. Rouleau is an incredible teacher, and you won't realize it at first, but she really is. Once you take the exam, you'll fully appreciate everything she taught you. Ms. Rouleau is going to push you so hard and your just going to want to give up and stop doing the work, but when you take your exam and realize that you are completely prepared without even studying, you will be so thankful! READ SULA AND JANE EYRE! I don't know if she is planning on using them again, but if she does, READ THEM! They apply to so many AP Exam essay topics and you're first and third quarter grades will suffer if you don't! Plus they're actually great books when you understand them.
ReplyDeleteAlso, try to learn time management skills at the beginning of the year! You will have a huge workload and if you save everything until the last minute, it's going to be so hard to get through it. And put effort into first drafts! it saves time in the long run! Finally, try not to give Ms. Rouleau such a hard time. She's just trying to make you a better writer and student, and it will happen if you're open to her suggestions and critiques! Even if you don't agree with what she says..just do it. She's smarter than you. And like the others already said...take completion credit whenever you can get it!
GOOD LUCK EVERYBODY! You will be fine! Do the work as soon as you get it...its hard but it will help you if you commit to doing it! Enjoy senior year, and get your college stuff done super early...early action is your best friend!
Hello future scholars! Firstly, let me congratulate you for making the decision to take AP English. It is definitely not the easiest class at St. Ray’s, but I hope you learn from all of our advice so it won’t become your hardest class, either. First off, let me say that Ms. Rouleau is a wonderful teacher. She will push the limits of your essay-writing skills to the extreme. Let me start off by saying: attend early AP! Not only is it extremely helpful, you get bonus points. It’s worth getting to school at 7AM for. Also, I was fortunate enough to have my free period before APE. Do NOT write a Q1, Q2, or Q3 (you’ll find out what those are soon enough) right before class. You’ll get a 5 (out of 9 possible points). So work hard and do not procrastinate! I want all of you to do really well. Colleges love the fact that you take AP English and they’ll love it even more if you actually do well in the class. Know your vocabulary. Like Katie said, you do not want to sound bland and repetitious. Ms. Rouleau hates it and so do the AP Readers. By the way, a few words of the wise for your summer papers, write in the present. I do not care if the book writes in the past, you should write in the present. It’s an English thing. Also, if Ms. Rouleau says “This can’t be done the night before,” it does not mean it cannot be done. It means you will fail miserably if you do. Do not test her. However, Ms. Rouleau grades harsher than the AP Readers and the College Board—but that is a good thing! By the way, READ. Or at the very least, Shmoop something. Do not come to class totally unprepared…especially for the cold call (I know, I know. It sounds ominous…It is).
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
By the way, Shmoop > Sparknotes. Don't argue...accept it.
DeleteI cannot believe it is over! We worked so hard throughout the year that it is hard to believe we made it. Most of us thought we would not make it, but I assure you that you will be just fine! It is a lot of work, I will not lie to you, but all of the work is worth it. Coming in I knew that I was not that great of a writer. I really hated writing with a passion. I still do, but I have gotten so much better at it. I will be able to write papers without having to stress over it as much as I used to. Just a few words about Ms. Rouleau…she is amazing and one of the best teachers I have ever had! That is hard for me to say because English is my worst subject, but it just proves how great she is! Even though we did not enjoy all the homework we got and everything we had to do, she prepared me for the AP Exam more than I thought was possible. More importantly, I feel prepared for college. Make sure you do all of your work. If you are worried about your grade, DON’T! There are a lot of completion credit assignments that help your grade, and GO TO EARLY AP! As much as everyone hates waking up for school, get up the extra hour earlier to get to Early AP because it gives you extra credit and gives you extra practice on certain topics you do not have time to cover in class. Honestly, this is something that I am glad I took advantage of. Once you get something assigned, get working on it right away. You do not really get a lot of time for assignments so it is important to budget your time wisely and GET IT DONE. When it comes to analyzing, do not stress! It gets a lot easier as the year goes on. I started seeing things that I never would have seen a few months ago. All the tedious practice really makes a big difference. Q1s, Q2s, and Q3s are awful. I am sorry that I have to break it to you, but it is true. Ms. Rouleau grades really hard, but it helps out so much. She told me she was so hard on me because she knew I had potential. I thought about that and realized how lucky I was.
ReplyDeleteFor those of you taking AP Calculus as well, GOOD LUCK TO YOU! Haha!! All kidding aside, it takes a lot of discipline and hard work to accomplish, but it is so rewarding. It is important to stay together as a class and work together. I cannot tell you how helpful it is to work with your classmates and friends. Working together is essential to getting through the year. If you ever need anything at all, don’t be afraid to ask me! I would love to help! Even though I will be in college, I am willing to help anyone and everyone in any capacity needed! By the way, this is by far the longest blog I wrote all year!!! Hehehe! Good luck young ones!! God Bless!!
Hi guys :]
ReplyDeleteSo I want to say good luck to everyone, and trust me this will help better your writing so much.
The next thing I want to say is read the books and do your homework. It will only hurt you if you don’t. Also, read first then if you find that you REALLY don’t understand, then use shmoop or sparknotes as a guide, not the other way around. Save everything you do (except for vocab because it takes up space) and throw nothing out. Going along with that, I would suggest getting a 1.5 binder or larger for this class; anything smaller will break. Trust me.
Next, in your writing make sure you work on transition sentences! These killed me so much. If you make good transitions, Ms. Rouleau will love it. Another thing with your writing, use strong verbs. Don’t say “make” when you can say “create.” Finally, call everything what it is and do not define literary terms in your papers.
Keep in mind when you are reading that if something is repeated several times like darkness, water, ducks, fire, then it is important. Nothing was put into literature for no reason. Everything has meaning, and it all has some deeper meaning or representation.
When writing timed in class essays, keep a watch on you; preferably a stop watch so you will know exactly how much time you have left. If you are not comfortable writing in pen, just write in pencil. Ms. Rouleau did not mind that I did, and it just helped calm my nerves about not being able to go back and change things without making a big mess on my paper and having nowhere else to write the new part. Finally, once you become better at writing, do not be afraid to write 4 paragraphs instead of 5 if you find yourself cramped on time. Just make sure that those 4 paragraphs are solid.
Once again, good luck, have fun, and it will all pay off in the end!!
Best Wishes,
Ashley Jackson
Hiya kiddos :P
ReplyDeleteFirst word of advice. SLEEP. I mean, I didn't follow this myself, and while it has no direct connection to your English skills, it doesn't matter how well you write, if you don't sleep, it will hurt you. Trust me on that one.
Reading the books would be a good idea. Like, a really good idea. Some of you will choose not to heed my advice, and then you'll see why I told ya to. It's important, don't take it lightly. Not only does it help you in your in class discussion and on any work that Ms. Rouleau assigns, I guarantee having basic knowledge of any of the novels and plays that Ms. Rouleau requires you to read will be worth your time. Trust me, drag through it, even when it REALLY SUCKS.
Now, Ms. Rouleau would be proud of me for saying this, mostly because I never followed this rule myself. TOPIC SENTENCES. Starting out a paragraph with a good topic sentence not only starts you out on the right foot, but it also gives you some confidence as you continue writing, knowing what you want to write and how you want to write it. Keep calm, the words will flow as you go, stressing over every word will only discourage you from writing as a whole, so take a breath, keep calm, and keep writing.
Do. Your. Homework. Sometimes it will seem tedious, but every assignment she gives is for a reason. And even if you feel like it is a waste of time, trust me, you'll want those grades to help whenever your writing is not on par with your usual. (Psst. I didn't do my homework. I regret the hell out of it now.)
So, to wrap up. Here are my lessons for you.
1.) Sleep.
2.) Read the books.
3.) Topic sentences.
4.) Keep calm.
5.) Do your homework.
And also, have fun. It won't be as torturous as you believe it to be. Make it fun, and it will be fun. Have fun guys, you'll do great if you put in the effort.
Good luck!
Chris Carman, signing out.
Howdy ya'll!
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, it was super smart of all of you to take the class because if you put in effort all year long and really try to improve your writing and reading comprehension skills then you will probably pass the exam and get college credit! Ms. Rouleau gives you all of the tools needed to pass the ap exam and it is your decision whether or not to put these tools to use. If you do your work and try hard, you will see results. The work is challenging but it prepares you for the exam as well as what courses will be like in college.
Know that your writing is probably terrible and writing your first few essays to Ms. Rouleau's standards will not be fun. But the course helps you develop your skills to think and write on a much higher level, which are skills that will be beneficial to you throughout your college years. The more essays you write, the easier it becomes and this will help a lot while you try to fly through three essays during the exam.
My words of wisdom:
-Actually try on the multiple choice packets because even though they are completion credit, the more familiar you get with MC questions the easier they become.
-Read Jane Eyre. It's incredibly long and boring but it can be used for almost any Q3 on the exam! (which is super important)
-Care about your work on a deeper level than just your grade in the class. Try to understand why you get things wrong and always try to improve because writing is a skill you will need throughout your life and this class will improve your writing so much if you try.
Don't stress out. The work can seem like a lot at times but it always has a purpose and things will always work out fine in the end.
-Finally, I guarantee none of you will regret taking this class. It is completely worth it and I am extremely happy I took it!
Auf Wiedersehen :)
Danielle Stonely
Well kids, congrats on making it to senior year but if you're in AP English, it's probably not a surprise. My first piece of advice is definitely DO YOUR WORK!! Staying up until 4 in the morning to finish that paper will pay off when you pass for the year. I speak from experience so heed my warning because I know Ms. Rouleau will fail you and then she'll torture you about it. Tutoring sucks especially when you don't belong there. No one can tell you that better than me.
ReplyDeleteMy next piece of advice is take the help when you get it. Ms. Rouleau is available when you need her and if you suffer in silence it won't work out well for you. The class could be a cake walk or you could end up wondering if you're going to summer school with only five class days left.
Lastly, get creative but don't be crazy. All those ideas buzzing around in your head can be put to good use if you know how to work with them. The only thing I regret is how little I shared my brilliance. I know there will be one of you like me next year and I'm hoping this hits home for someone. Put yourself out there. Don't feel silly sharing your ideas or speaking your mind. If our class could stand listening to the crazy stuff Zach said, you'll be fine voicing your opinion. (No offense Zach)
For the record, Robert Frost can teach you some life lessons if you read him the way he's meant to be read. Do me a favor and reread "The Road Not Taken" because it doesn't mean what everyone seems to think. Forget Sharon Olds though, she's a disaster. Respect the poetry section because that could be your saving grace come exam time.
Yo whats Gucci my homies!! Its ya boy, and he`s here to give you some quality knowledge so you can prepare (the proper way) for this class.First off, i know that these AP level courses have become a huge unconquerable class whose sole purpose to to ruin your lives and watch you die slowly. It`s a shame to tell you that, the class is nothing of the sorts. It`s not easy, you are not gonna be able to just sit there and stare out the window and pass (i mean unless your This Kid). Im going to give you some hints on how to pass the class and i think y'all should pay attention because if they worked for this stupid kid they will work for you.
ReplyDelete-Dont over stress (I know ii never did)
-Do the work (Completion credit or not, it helps)
-Read more than the cover of the books Ms. Rouleau assigns (i could barely make it to the cover), this goes for poems too
-Read the passages when doing the multiple choice section (I did this... Once... For the actual exam)
Now these may seem like simple little things that you obviously think you will follow, however, when "stuff" hits the fan, you will forget the basics and will probably break all these rules. But thats ok, (thats part of the not over-stressing hint). The main point of this is to let you know that you will all do just fine. I didnt follow any of these little hints and i did just fine. Those arent for you to live by, they just make things easier. For example, taking a test on a book that you have never even opened is a little harder than taking a test on a book you read. But hey i cant tell you what to do so do whatever you do, and have fun, just pass the class and yes Katie Q. you most certainly can get like a 100, so just stop worrying and start chilling and have a fun senior year, but be careful it goes quicker than you think.
sorry if this makes no sense #sorrynotsorry
Peace!
This message has been brought to you by the wonderful and beautiful mind of This Awesome Kid, aka No Coat, or just simply Josh
PS. Cheating is not cheating, its called teamwork!
And yes this was my longest post of the year, have fun reading it, cause i know i wouldnt have bothered reading it
Hey guys! Where do I begin? Well congrats to you if you read all of the others and you're actually reading mine. As you can see, I am the last to comment. I guess I will make that my first point... DON'T PROCRASTINATE! If you get a paper, Q1,2, or 3 and have a week or a couple days to do it, don't put if off. Use both days and at least start it. You'll see your stress levels drop dramatically. Another thing, READ THE BOOKS!!! Believe it or not, everything you read will be at least decent. You may not appreciate it until Ms. Rouleau analyzes it with you but trust me it's not all bad and neither is she. You will hit a ditch at some point in the year, I think it's third quarter. Don't stop trying and don't give up. Keep yourselves motivated. Chris is absolutely right in telling you to sleep. Sleep every chance you get. Don't be another Brandon getting up at 4 am to do papers and homework, it's not fun. Be ready to think and be ready to be challenged, Ms. Rouleau will make you think. "It's not enough to say..." and "So what?" are somethings you will hear a lot. Don't worry, don't stress, go for help if you need it, read the books, enjoy your senior year, don't let AP English ruin it. I trust you'll all do fine and I don't want to hear the excuse of English is not my subject or whatever because it's not mine and I managed. You'll be fine. Good Luck!
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