Kory Gunderson

February 2012

2012-02-01T18:39:00.001-08:00

This month:

Particpate in the Livingston Credo Project!

Progress period 5 ends, 13th

No school, 20th

Early release, 29th

January 2012

2012-01-03T10:33:00.000-08:00

This month:

School resumes, 3rd

Early Release, 9th

Early Release, 11th

Semester Exams, 18th -20th

No school, 23rd

Second semester begins, 24th

December 2011

2011-12-01T15:32:00.001-08:00

Chico Writing Workshop, 12th

Early Release, 14th

Recognition Assembly, 21st

Winter Break, 22nd - January 2nd

November 2011

2011-11-02T07:53:00.000-07:00

This month:

End of Quarter 1, 3rd

Conferences, 10-11th

Thanksgiving Break, 23-27th

October 2011

2011-10-03T14:50:00.000-07:00

This month:

PIR, 12th

Big Timber Arts Roundup, 20th-23rd

Introduction

2011-08-25T09:24:00.000-07:00

Hello! My name is Kory Gunderson, and I will begin my first year teaching English at Park High this coming school year.

To introduce myself a bit: I grew up in Baltimore, Maryland and Thessaloniki, Greece. I attended K-12 at an independent all-girls school in Baltimore, The Bryn Mawr School, and graduated from Stanford University in California with an AB in Art History. I came to Montana in 1998, and I received my Secondary English teaching certification, along with another BA in English, from Montana State University - Bozeman in 2004. I completed my MA in English at MSU in 2009 and was granted the opportunities to present parts of my work to scholarly conferences at the Aristotle University in Thessaloniki and The University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. My thesis is titled Re-constructing Dialogue: Literary Sensibility and Non-violent Subjectivity. I am deeply committed to working and teaching towards social justice and reconciled local and worldly vision and participation.

I've lived here in Livingston for the past 10 years, and when I’m not reading, researching, philosophizing, or teaching, you may find me telemark skiing, running, dancing, gardening, and/or playing with my dogs. I have held a number of jobs around Livingston, and I am currently a local arts advocate in a couple of capacities. I have also been known to sing and act when the opportunity arises!

I am very excited to be joining the faculty at PHS, and I am looking forward to an amazing year.

This page will serve as my home base/home page for my classes and any other activities I may supervise at Park High. In the sidebar of this page, you will see the links to my individual class pages. Each page is constructed to include syllabi, assignments, and relevant links. You may also visit my past pages to see other classes I have taught. I keep these pages live as a teaching resource and as an archive of web elements of my work.

I hope that this blog will prove to be an easy and useful way for students and parents to keep up to date with my particular classes and/or extracurricular information and announcements.

Please contact me directly by phone or email if you have any questions or comments; this page is not constructed with a comment wall interface.

Thank you and Good Luck

2011-05-25T14:05:00.000-07:00

May 2011

2011-05-16T07:20:00.000-07:00

Last Day of School, 26th

April 2011

2011-04-01T12:55:00.000-07:00

Research Project speeches, 15th @ 5pm

Prom, 16th

No school, 22nd-25th

Teen Day, 29th

March 2011

2011-03-01T13:47:00.000-08:00

This month:

Play Auditions, 2nd

End of 3rd quarter, 18th

No school, 21st-22nd

School Board/Administration/MEA negotiator discussions re: proposals to address budget shortfalls for 2011-2012 are taking place throughout this month. If you have strong ideas, feelings, concerns regarding these matters, please let your voice be heard!

February 2011

2011-02-03T07:11:00.000-08:00

This month:

No school, 21st

School Board Special Meeting, 23rd

School Board/Administration/MEA negotiator discussions re: proposals to address budget shortfalls for 2011-2012 are taking place throughout this month. If you have strong ideas, feelings, concerns regarding these matters, please let your voice be heard!

MUSWA Writing Assessment, 28th

January 2011

2011-01-03T07:34:00.000-08:00

This month:

1st semester exams, 12-14th

No school, 17th

2nd semester begins, 18th
Manaia Connect Program, 18th

Research Project Parent Meeting, 20th @ 8am

December 2010

2010-12-01T07:20:00.000-08:00

This month:

Christmas Vacation Begins, 21st

November 2010

2010-11-01T07:11:00.000-07:00

This month:

Independent Research Projects due, 2nd

Cats - East Side Arts Center in Livingston, 5-7th, 12-14th, 19-21st

Parent Conferences, 8-9th

Research Speech Options @ 6pm, 16th

Explore Test for Freshman, 17th

Thanksgiving Break, 25-28th

October 2010

2010-10-01T08:28:00.000-07:00

This month:

XC @ Billings, 2nd

XC @ Helena, 7th
PLAN test for Sophomores, 7th

XC Home Meet, 9th

PSAT test, 13th

XC @ Joliet, 16th

Arts Roundup, 21-24th

XC State Meet @ Helena, 23rd

Shakespeare in the Schools, 25th

End of 1st Quarter, 29th

September 2010

2010-09-02T07:05:00.000-07:00

This month:

XC @ Harrison, 4th

No School, 6th

XC @ Belgrade, 11th

In Service/No Classes, 13th

School Photos, 15th
Arts Roundup applications due, 15th

XC @ Jefferson, 18th

Homecoming, 24th

XC @ Red Lodge, 25th

XC @ Huntley, 28th

Welcome to 2010-2011

2010-08-16T08:38:00.000-07:00

I am pleased to be returning for my third year at SGHS and am looking forward to another exciting and memorable year!

I will continue using this blog as my home base/home page for my classes and the extracurriculars I supervise. If you have followed this page in the past, you'll notice some design and information updates. In the sidebar of this page you will see the links to my individual class and extracurricular pages. Each page includes syllabi, schedules, and relevant links.

Please do not hesitate to call or email me with any concerns, questions, or suggestions.

Go Herders!

Have a wonderful summer!

2010-05-29T13:13:00.001-07:00

May 2010

2010-05-03T08:47:00.000-07:00

This month:

Spring Awards Assembly, 12th

Graduation, 23rd

Last Day of School, 28th

April 2010

2010-04-01T08:11:00.000-07:00

This month:

Easter Break, 2-5th

Research Project Speeches, 13th

Service Day, 23rd

"Alice in Wonderland" performances, 29th-May1st

March 2010

2010-03-01T07:13:00.000-08:00

This month:

Class of 2012 Ski Trip, 1st

CRT Testing for Sophomores, 8-10th

End of 3rd Quarter, 19th

No School, 22nd

Play Auditions, 24th

Civic Center Cleanup, 27th

MUSWA Scoring Conference, 29-30th

February 2010

2010-02-01T07:11:00.000-08:00

This month:

MT Thespian Festival in Missoula, 5th-6th

MUSWA (Montana University System Writing Assessment), 11th

Dance Assembly, 12th

No School, 15th

January 2010

2010-01-04T07:19:00.000-08:00

This month:

School resumes, 4th

Mayhem Poets performance, Alberta Bair Theatre - Billings, 12th

1st semester exams, 13th-15th

No School, 18th

2nd semester begins, 19th

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2009-12-18T08:49:00.001-08:00

December 2009

2009-12-01T07:45:00.000-08:00

This month:

World AIDS day presentations, 1st

Themes service learning letter writing project with BTGS

Christmas Holiday, 19th - Jan. 3

November 2009

2009-11-02T07:15:00.000-08:00

This month:

No School, 9th

Parent Conferences, 10th from 2-8pm

Student Interviews for HOBY conference, 12th @ 3:45pm

Research Project Speeches, 17th @ 6pm

PMC Final presentation, 23rd

Thanksgiving Holiday, 26th-29th

October 2009

2009-10-01T07:04:00.000-07:00

This month:

Themes service learning project at PMC, Wednesdays

Arts Roundup, 15th - 18th

Shakespeare in the Schools presentation "Romeo and Juliet" and workshops, 19th

MT OPI Web Conference on Differentiated Instruction, 28th

Welcome to 2009-10 !

2009-08-20T13:42:00.000-07:00

I am so happy to be returning to SGHS and am looking forward to another exciting and memorable year!

I plan to continue using this blog as my home base/home page for my classes and the extracurriculars I supervise. In the sidebar of this page you will see the links to my individual class and extracurricular pages. Each page includes syllabi, schedules, and relevant links.

Please do not hesitate to call or email me with any concerns, questions, or suggestions.

Go Herders!

Spring Semester 2009

2009-01-28T11:37:00.000-08:00

Second semester is here, and I am in the process of transitioning to the new schedules and new students...as Kory Gunderson!

I was, indeed, married last weekend, and I am getting used to the new moniker. I am very happy to have been able to share my happy day with many folks from Big Timber and some students too!

The new semester has been great so far, but I do miss many of the little things that made last semester so wonderful.

I am building pages for each new class, so please keep checking in for revisions, updates, and new posts. I will continue to streamline the use of this page in the hopes making it easier for parents and students to use.

Welcome back!

Weeks 10, 11, & 12!

2008-11-17T09:18:00.000-08:00

Service Learning day, research paper deadlines, mock elections, hunting, end of the quarter, real elections, parent conferences, volleyball tournament, senior night. Whew!

Wonderful success at Dornix Park...a treat to work at the ground level on what promises to be a beautiful community gathering place, sanctuary, historical site. As you can see, we had a great sunny day and good feelings! Good work everybody!

In our mock elections, the students came in very conservative, and I don't mean entirely Republican. The students voted to retain every incumbent despite party lines. In the presidential race, the students' voice proclaimed, "more of the same!" as they voted in the McCain/Palin ticket. Thank you the the mayor of Big Timber for presiding over our mock town hall meeting.

The end of the quarter brought a reassessment of my grading schema and amendments to my syllabi. Please see individual class pages for details regarding each class.

And finally, I was so glad, truly, to meet so many parents on the conference night. As a new teacher, it meant a lot for everyone to share with me their stories and their honest take on how things are going. I look forward to continue to get to know everyone.

And now, we are well on our way to Thanksgiving, and I want to give another special thanks to the Culinary Arts class for including me in their special dinner. Mrs. McCullough's class prepared a full Thanksgiving meal, including delicious pies!, of which I was only too glad to partake! Thanks so much for welcoming me and sharing this beautiful meal.

Week 9 Notes

2008-10-26T14:33:00.000-07:00

Football and Cross Country draw to a close, students prepare for ACTs, others work with a final push on their research papers, and one more week to go in the quarter!

I'll admit, my notes will begin to be a bit shorter, (at least until I catch up enough that I can spend more time here). I do want to keep up with this site, but I am finding it hard to do so on the already crunched weekends.

This past week seemed sort of difficult to me. Perhaps it's always rough to regain momentum after a long weekend, perhaps it's that time of the semester when students are experiencing a let down with the end of the sports seasons, perhaps students' minds are on other things like hunting antelope and elk. I'm not sure, but I did notice that a number of times this past week, students were HIGHLY reluctant to work.

I find it pretty hard when I'm the only person in the room who is willing to put attention to the schoolwork at hand. I do get impatient when I have to invite/coax/cajole/remind/plead etc. students to remember why we are here. And I do mean WE. Opening our minds to each other is a two way street. Reading together, learning together, thinking together can't really work well when everyone involved isn't participating to the best of their ability. This does require some energy/stamina/effort.

As I said, I don't know what the cause was, but I surely felt the lack this past week.

Weeks 7 and 8 Notes

2008-10-21T10:49:00.000-07:00

Things are really moving along...The end of the quarter is approaching, the end of our fall sports season, the end of October. I find myself hard pressed to believe how quickly the time is passing.

I experienced my first snowfall in Big Timber, my first Arts Roundup, my first Montana Shakespeare in the Schools day.

I have been trying to drum up Ski Club participants and trying to push those juniors through their research paper deadlines.

Mostly, I have been working to understand the rhythm of the school, to find the moments when it's time to push and the moments when it's time to breathe. I am trying to understand how to adjust and respond to what the students are showing me they need and at the same time continue to show them what it is they need to learn.

Upcoming dates:

Service Learning projects Oct. 27
Halloween Oct. 31
Trial 8 period schedule Nov. 3
Parent conferences Nov. 10

Weeks 5 and 6 Notes

2008-10-05T15:35:00.000-07:00

The last two weeks have been very busy...unit wrap ups, Montana Rep preparation, Arts Roundup preparation, ACE conference for new teachers, In Service and HOMECOMING.

I feel very proud as each of my classes passes through the first unit of study and moves into the next. It is wonderful to watch, as we begin our second units, how students build on what they have learned in order to grasp the new material. There it is! Why I teach!

I think the first tests were accomplished without too much issue, and the five week reports seem to have been met without too much question. I, again, urge anyone who would like to discuss classwork, grades, progress, etc. to contact me.

On Monday October 20, the Montana Rep will be performing "Much Ado About Nothing," a Shakespeare comedy, at SGHS. In conjunction with their visit, many classes will have the opportunity to participate in workshops the actors will be offering. I am looking forward to working with my Speech and Debate class, my Comm Arts class, and my Brit Lit class in these workshops which will focus on trial law and conflict resolution, acting as a way of "reading," and Shakespearian language. What a privilege!

There will be 9 students representing SGHS at this year's Arts Roundup, October 16-19. I will be working with both the writing and acting groups and can't wait to meet the professionals who will be working with us as well as the other students from Montana and those traveling from Pennsylvania. This year promises to be a blast! Thank you so much to Kathy Agnew for her continuous efforts to make the Arts Roundup run smoothly.

I attended my first SGHS vs. Columbus football game on the 26th and cheered myself hoarse! Way to go Herders! Though it didn't go our way in the end, it was an AWESOME game!

On Tuesday, Sept. 30, I attended a conference led by representatives from ACE, the curriculum consortium to which SGHS belongs. I brushed up on Performance-based assessment techniques and the State and Federal standards for Secondary English. Though the time was beneficial, and I was able to gain some ideas and resources for improving my class structures, I did miss being with my classes. It seems as though ACE is incredibly considerate in interpreting standards and thoughtful in its acquisition of useful materials for teachers. I hope to be able to share/make available the standards information I gathered during the conference at our Parent/Teacher conferences next month.

At our In Service, we discussed at length how we might be able to work more efficiently as a faculty. I feel really grateful that I am a part of such a hard-working and honest group of people. It makes this job incredibly rewarding and pleasant.

Finally, Homecoming was Friday, and I spent time with the freshmen preparing our float and reveling in school spirit. Highlight for me: driving the Herder mobile!

Week 4 notes

2008-09-21T12:30:00.000-07:00

Success for X-Country team, blood drive preparations, 1st home football game, and thoughts (and soon tangible help) extended to Huntley Project after the fire at their school.

I am pleased to see the work being accomplished as we settle in to having completed the first month of school. Unit tests are coming up for most of my classes, and it feels great to be making some headway through the large amounts of material we are expected to cover!

The interest and response to the Arts Roundup has been positive. I will be turning in the applications I've collected to Kathy Agnew on Monday, Sept. 22.

I was able to make a connection with the Executive Director of the Montana Council for the Arts, and she is earnestly interested in seeing more opportunities for performing arts in Big Timber. Now the task is to see how SGHS can connect with some of the financial support that is available.

This past Wednesday, I oversaw the first Ski Club meeting; we had 37 students express an interest in taking part in weekend trips this coming winter. I plan to make the necessary phone calls to secure group rates at Bridger Bowl and Big Sky. Price Sheets and Consent forms will be available after I get our discounted ticket prices. I also hope that the Ski Club can enjoy "lunch and a movie" a few times prior to the first snowfall. Pre-season ski films have been part of getting ready for decades though we've come a long way since Warren Miller!

Week 3 Notes

2008-09-14T12:56:00.000-07:00

School photos, volleyball victory, and riddles on the morning announcements.

I gave a number of my classes quizzes this week, and I think I caught the attention of many of my students. I believe they are getting the message that they have got to know the material and be prepared! I have been really impressed with the talents and abilities of the kids at SGHS, and I hope that each student will push themselves to meet the expectations that I place before them. In this way, every student can ensure that they will continue to grow academically and intellectually.

I myself had a bit of a "quiz" this past week as Mr. Ryan sat in my Language and Literature class to perform my first professional evaluation. Mr. Ryan and I will be meeting this coming week to discuss his observations and recommendations. I look forward to hearing his feedback and continuing my own growth as I transition to SGHS.

The Big Timber Arts Roundup is coming up on the weekend of October 16-19 at the Hobble Diamond Ranch. The Roundup is "a gathering of Pennsylvania and Montana student writers, actors, artists, and photographers and professional Montana writers, actors, artists and photographers to explore the arts and Montana." Students participate in workshops, readings, presentations, and performances, and the Roundup is a wonderful way to learn from people working in various arts fields, meet new people from around Montana and across the country, make friends, and have fun being creative! Contact me at school, or Kathy Agnew, 932-5619, for information and applications. We hope to fill some of the 30 Montana student openings with kids from Big Timber!

On that note, I will be meeting this week with a couple of representatives from the Montana Council for the Arts to discuss the theater production for SGHS. I hope to kick off fundraising for the play by securing a sizable grant through this organization.

Week 2 Notes

2008-09-07T12:23:00.000-07:00

Though only four days long, we somehow managed to pack a full week in anyway. I enjoyed having the chance to meet the parents who attended the open house on Tuesday (kudos to the students who accompanied them!), and I also enjoyed seeing the School Board at work on Wednesday. Not many board meetings seem to go as smoothly while at the same time inviting and working through differences in opinion and making firm decisions honoring those differences. By all appearances, this board seems healthy and committed.

I was able to meet with Mr. Buerkle this week to begin the process of producing the school play. Our performance dates have been confirmed for April, and it is now to work generating a budget. I hope to draw on state and national level grant funding as well as the support of local organizations and businesses interested in seeing the opportunities for performing arts in Big Timber flourish. As we have come to accept over the last few decades, school district budgets often need private or non-profit supplementation in the arts and humanities; thankfully there are many resources available. It is just a matter of getting connected.

Chili dog, anyone? Great work freshmen in the concession sales at the volleyball games on Saturday! I was impressed with the good spirit and dedication these folks showed: many students competed on Saturday THEN came to work. Great job.

In the week to come, continued work and a visit from Mr. Ryan to my classes.

Week 1 Notes

2008-09-01T10:23:00.000-07:00

What a great week! After spending a few days working through logistics, it seems as though all of my classes are settling in. I have gotten a chance to go through my reading assignment and note-taking expectations with everyone; I have performed a reading assessment with some of my classes, the rest to be given this coming week; and I have been able to check in with a writing assessment in most classes, again, the rest to be performed this coming week.

My relationship with the copy machine has been marginal, at best, as those of you in Themes will corroborate. I am, however, finding the "wired" classroom and the online attendance and grading systems a pleasure to work with. SGHS is fortunate to have these resources schoolwide.

I hope that I will be able to meet many parents at the Open House on Tuesday night (it starts at 7pm!), and I am looking forward to sitting in on the School Board work session on Wednesday and becoming better acquainted with those folks and the contributions that they make on the executive level to the school.

Introduction

2008-07-14T14:50:00.000-07:00

Hello! My name is Kory Winslow, and I will begin my first year teaching English at Sweet Grass County High School this coming school year.

To introduce myself a bit: I grew up in Baltimore, Maryland and Thessaloniki, Greece. I attended K-12 at an independent all-girls school in Baltimore, The Bryn Mawr School, and graduated from Stanford University in California with an AB in Art History. I came to Montana in 1998, and I received my Secondary English teaching certification, along with another BA in English, from Montana State University - Bozeman in 2004. I am currently working towards my MA in English from MSU.

At this time, I live in Livingston, Montana, and when I’m not reading, researching, philosophizing, or teaching, you may find me telemark skiing, running, hiking, backpacking, camping, gardening, and/or playing with my dog. I also have been known to sing and act when the opportunity arises!

I am very excited to be joining the faculty at SGCHS, and I am looking forward to an amazing year.

This page will serve as my home base/home page for my classes and the extracurriculars I supervise at SGCHS. In the sidebar of this page you will see the links to my individual class and extracurricular pages. Each page includes syllabi, schedules, and relevant links. I hope that this blog will prove to be an easy and useful way for students and parents to keep up to date with class and extracurricular information and activities.

Please let me know by phone or email if you have any questions or suggestions.