By Steve Iversrud
Mini-School has many great subjects of interest. One of which is their expansive English department which has two great teachers in it. First is veteran Mini-School English Teacher Merlin Zimmerman who teaches 9th, 11th, and 12th grade in and out of Mini-School. And second is Jen Goeptert who is making her Minnetonka and Mini-School debut. She teaches 10th grade English in and out of Mini-School.
Since I first came to Mini-School I have been in both teachers’ classes and have had many great learning experiences. In Merlin’s class so far this year I have read the books Brave New World, Animal Farm, and the acclaimed Shakespeare play The Tempest. We have also gone over units such as 18th century Romantic Poetry. In Jen’s English class, we have read the Ernest Hemmingway Pulitzer Prize novel The Old Man and The Sea and Hometown Hero Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. We just finished up with Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Every day in class we free write in our journals to gain penmanship and experience in writing.
Every day in English class, whether it is Merlin’s or Jen’s class, there is something new to do and new to discuss. The most favorite memory of mine is when we were reading Brave New World. The book is about a brainwashed industrial society in the future. And the thought of such a future for mankind seemed uncanny but, at times, not far out of reach. Learning in these classes and reading books like these help keep my mind open and thinking freely like all minds should.