I was absolutely delighted yesterday when I read the weather report for the week - 60 degrees Wednesday, 70 degrees Thursday and nearly 80 DEGREES on Saturday!  That's perfect Easter-Egg hunt weather, and the Pruyne are already making loads of afternoon/weekend plans for all this warm weather.  Most of those plans (ok, none of them) inlcude hunkering down inside doing schoolwork.

However, it's important for all of us - especially those of us hoping to graduate in less than 3 months!) to remember that school work needs to be factored in.  It's impossible to ignore the siren call of sunshine after months of winter, but it is super important that we all manage our time carefully, so that we still get work done while having our park, picnic and play time.  Along those same lines, it's important to remember that even when it's nice out, school is still in session!  "I'm a Senior and It's Nice Out" is not an excuse for a legal absence.  It will be even nicer in the summer, so it would be a total shame if you were sitting in sumer school then! 

Grade 11 students should start thinking about the English Regents exam, which is coming up far sooner than you may think!  This page has copies of old Regents exams, along with their answer keys.  Click on the links to "Scoring Guides and Rating Keys" to find the answer keys, along with sample essays.  The scoring guide gives about 18 sample essays for each essay question, which range from perfect scores to essays that get no credit.  It would be well worth the time to browse through a few of these to see what kind of essays New York State is looking for!  There are a variety of Regent's Review Services you can subscribe to online, if you're looking for more help.

I hope everyone gets some nice outdoor time this week, blows off the spiderwebs, and comes back to school refreshed and ready to go.  Have fun, and make good choices!

Elizabeth Pruyne, loving the outdoors.