A MESSAGE TO PARENTS OF SENIORS

English courses at the senior level in high school are often challenging. As you know, those who meet the challenge with consistent effort are rewarded with more than a good grade. They develop good study habits, they expand their reading, writing, and thinking skills, and they prepare for a rigorous academic environment at the university level.

I expect students to do many things in my English classes, and the most important of those things is reading. Reading is the foundation of just about everything that your son or daughter will do in my class. I expect students to read all the assignments, even those that are extremely difficult and time consuming. Over the twenty-seven years I have taught high school English, I have become convinced that strong readers are strong learners, effective writers, and efficient problem-solvers. Strong reading skills are the result of reading regularly at a challenging level. Your student may have difficulty with the material, but if it were too easy, it would not be beneficial. In addition, if your student does not read the material, he gains little of value from the course.

Please encourage your student to complete every reading assignment and to avoid substituting short cuts like Cliffs Notes and Online summaries.

If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

School Phone Number:  355-3500
Classroom Phone Number: 355-3472
Email:  lray@greenville.k12.sc.us