Elf visits English department

On Saturday, December 3, Mrs. Diimmler was here at Airport getting some work done--probably processing d-notes or filling out paperwork for the hearing officer--when she heard some commotion in the 500 hall teachers' lounge. It was elves. In fact, several of my siblings and I had come to Airport to meet each department. I was so blessed to be assigned the absolute best department at the whole entire school--the English department--and I can't wait to tell you about my adventures.

It all started with Ms. Willis, who gave me my name, Sandy Snow, because believe it or not, Santa does not give us elves names. Actually, he treats us like robots or machines and refers to us by number. At the North Pole, I was known as Elf #457894257498. While I love making toys for boys and girls, my siblings and I really needed this vacation.

Of course, before I could sit in class, I had to get an ID made and wear it, just like all ELITE students do. Even though the picture makes me look fat, Ms. Nichols would NOT let me retake it.

Anyway, in Ms. Willis's class, I talked to the students about the importance of turning in work on time and then I practiced grammar with a really sweet girl named Nichelle. For most of class, I read this really awesome book called The Great Gatsby. We listened to an audio recording of the book and used sticky notes to annotate important passages. I learned that F. Scott Fitzgerald was a masterful user of foreshadowing, figurative language, and crafting an unreliable narrator. I really liked the part where his parties were described and really want one of those industrial-size orange juice squeezers that Gatsby has.

Towards the end of class, a very maternal student, Lauren, who is also a star on the basketball team, cradled me in her arms while we read, and I would have fallen asleep but she fed me some weird sugary caffeinated beverage called Coca Cola. We have sugar in the North Pole, but not caffeine. Talk about a buzz! I liked the caffeine so much that I got myself a huge cup of coffee at the end of the period.

Next, I popped up in Mrs. Rasmussen's class. She had wanted me to meet her 1st block, but they didn't finish their work in time so she saved me for 2nd block, which was journalism class. I didn't learn much in there because it was half-day, and by the time I took a few photos with the students, the bell rang! I did have time to try on a really soft pair of Ugg boots and hang out with a cat in the most adorable poster ever.

I also got a chance to take a peak at the book the class was reading excerpts from, In Cold Blood, but it was majorly depressing because an innocent family who lived in the middle of nowhere in Kansas gets brutally murdered for no real reason. True story.

To learn how to write a newspaper article, I also studied an old issue of The Daily Gamecock, the newspaper from USC. Mrs. Rasmussen talked to me about how to use the inverse pyramid method, although it wasn't really applicable to the type of story I am writing, which is more narrative than news. But hey! At least I improved my journalism skills.

Speaking of newspapers, I couldn't leave without taking a look at the Airport school news blog, The Eyrie, which I had forgotten we had. It was so impressive. Last year, Mrs. Rasmussen resurrected the long-lost Eyrie, which faded away with the advent of the broadcasting program. Last year, the student created printed issues, but this year they went digital with a blog format. While the students' writing could still use a little work, it was great to see an array of topics and school events reported upon. I even saw some archived news footage from the Blue Crew on the blog too.

Lastly, I finally got my college diploma back. I had been looking for it FOREVER. I bet you didn't know I was an English major. That's probably why I enjoyed spending this time with the English Department!

Now, off to Ms. Frith's room! I didn't know at the time that she was directly across the hall from Mrs. Rasmussen, so exited through the window and had to walk all the way around the breezeway.

Ms. Frith's class was fascinating. They were studying Shakespeare--Macbeth or Othello depending on the class--two of my favorites. A few jokers dressed me up as a snowman, and so I left because I thought they were making fun of my name. While I was gone, I headed to the ropes course and took a turn on a trapeze-like thing they have there. I tumbled off and broke every bone in my body, but luckily someone from Ms. Frith's class found me and they bandaged me up. By the end of the day, I was perfectly healed and ready for my next adventure in the English department.

After recovering from my tumble, I snuck into Ms. Klein's class. This was a rather unique experience as heretofore I had only spent time with juniors and seniors. Ms. Klein's class, all freshmen, were worlds apart from their upperclassman counterparts, but Ms. Klein has EXCELLENT classroom management, so she kept them in line. I really loved having a teacher who is both stern and extremely kind.

First, her class welcomed me with open arms. Then, I worked on my tone flashcards, which was both rigorous and exhausting. Trying to be funny (and to get out of doing my work), I snuck into Ms. Klein's electric blanket and tried to steal some of her Coca Cola. I took my ID off at some point, and had to get a temporary one. Having had enough of my antics, Ms. Klein sent me along to the 100 hallway.

Mrs. Flowers teaches English I Honors and English II Honors. In the former, they were reviewing for the EOC, and I helped. In the latter, they were reading this book called 1984. I learned that it is a dystopian text set in the not-so-distant future where everyone's life is controlled through strict rules and government surveillance. I actually think I have a lot in common with the Big Brother character from the book, actually, being that, technically, I'm an "elf-on-the-shelf" for my job and am supposed to encourage kids to be nice not naughty by looking over their shoulder all the time. I loved the idea of the tyrannical Big Brother so much that I decided to be like him. Sadly, I don't think I scared the students as much as the real Big Brother scared the citizens of Oceania.

So far, I have had SO MUCH FUN with the Engish Department and can't wait to see what lays in store for me in Ms. Reese's, Mrs. McNair's, Mrs. Rabon's, Mr. Masone's and the Fowlers' classes.

Stay tuned for more adventures!