Category: Afternoon Classes

Weekly Reports – 2023 Week One – Afternoon Classes and Dorm

Posted on June 15, 2023 by - Afternoon Classes, Dorm Life, Weekly Reports

Throughout the summer we will be posting weekly reports from the classes. Please let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to see or if you have any questions for specific instructors. We will be posting the first issue of The Thinker (the student newspaper) as soon as the online version is ready.

We are also posting regularly on Facebook. You don’t have to join Facebook to see our posts. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/gpgcla/

Afternoon Classes:

Choir (Colette Tanner, Instructor)

GPGC Choir Students have been working on learning vocal exercises, music literacy (rhythmic and melodic), and reading concert repertoire. Polling the students, they have chosen the theme of NATURE for our FINAL PERFORMANCE.

Critical Thinking (Robert and Jessica Markstrom, Instructors)

This week the students took an animal personality test so they could have fun and learn more about themselves.  We played several different games throughout this week including Carcassonne, Score 4, Twixt, Blokus, Hippos and Crocs, Zombie Dice, Rubix Race, Tsuro, Loot,  What Were You Thinking, and Trial by Trolley.

Dorm Life:

This week the students were welcomed back to the program and spent time getting acclimated to dorm life. They spent their afternoons playing Magic the Gathering and ping pong while also getting to know each other.

On Friday, students got their first weekly bank where they saw their grades for the week. Students spent time after bank going to play soccer or staying at the dorm participating in Stories with Holes where they try to figure out the missing piece in the story presented to them. We also had our first movie night where students came down with blankets and pillows to the lobby and watched Shrek on our big projector screen.

On Saturday morning, students got donuts and fruits for breakfast and were presented a workshop on how to correctly use the dorm laundry machines. They also got to decorate their own laundry magnets. Later in the day, students played Super Smash Bros. and Mario Kart on the Nintendo Switch and had a chance to go to the Rec to play basketball and other sports. For dinner, students were given Raising Cane’s. That evening we had our first dance where our sophomore students spent time teaching the freshmen our traditional dances.

Sunday began with donuts, church, and a Danny Phantom marathon in the lobby. In the afternoon, students had a chance to get Starbucks and to sing karaoke with their classmates. For dinner, we had Taco Bell, and we finished our weekend with Sundae Sunday. Students were able to pick their ice cream flavors and toppings of their choice to have as a fun end of the weekend treat!

Weekly Reports – 2022 Week Five – Afternoon Classes and Dorm

Posted on July 16, 2022 by - Afternoon Classes, Dorm Life, Weekly Reports

Throughout the summer we will be posting weekly reports from the classes. Please let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to see or if you have any questions for specific instructors.

We are also posting regularly on Facebook. You don’t have to join Facebook to see our posts. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/gpgcla/

Afternoon Classes:

Critical Thinking (Robert and Jessica Markstrom, Instructors)

We initially planned to have a “Redemption” week where the students could retry activities they struggled with in previous weeks. However, due to several students being checked out, it made it difficult for the teams to compete against each other. Instead, each team got to have a day where they learned Reef, a new game to the course, with the instructor and the other students played games that will be in next week’s game tournament.

PE (Coach Ancil Delaney)

We played basketball, racquetball, and swam.

Dorm Life:

This week the kids were welcomed back to GPGC on the 4th of July with a hot dog cookout followed by popsicles. They had a government meeting to vote on the final design for their end of the summer t-shirt. They also were able to have the second part of their film workshop where they learned how to edit video.

This weekend the kids celebrated Bilbo Baggins’s birthday with cookie cake and a reading of The Hobbit by the students; this is a tradition that has been carried on at GPGC for decades. On Saturday the kids went thrift shopping in the morning to find any last minute pieces to complete their outfits for the Costume Dance later that night. After Lunch they visited the baby alligator park in Jennings followed by snoballs. After some lobby craft time for final costume makings and pizza for dinner, the Costume dance began. Sunday morning started with donuts, cereal, and fruit. In the dorm lobby we had our summer Magic: The Gathering tournament. After lunch the kids chose between going out to play putt putt or staying in and competing in friendly trivia games. Later in the afternoon they had the chance to go to Books’a’Million. Dinner was burgers followed by our weekly Sundae Sunday treat.

Weekly Reports – 2022 Week Four- Afternoon Classes

Posted on July 16, 2022 by - Afternoon Classes, Weekly Reports

Throughout the summer we will be posting weekly reports from the classes. Please let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to see or if you have any questions for specific instructors.

We are also posting regularly on Facebook. You don’t have to join Facebook to see our posts. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/gpgcla/

Afternoon Classes:

Critical Thinking (Robert and Jessica Markstrom, Instructors)

This week was Lego week in Critical Thinking. The first activity has student’s building bridges out of LEGO’s. The bridges has to meet height, length, and width specifications and was supposed to hold at least 2.5 lbs. of weight. In 5th period, that class’s second activity tested the students’ ability to understand ratios as each team was given the task of building a tall structure with the best ratio of height in centimeters over time in seconds. In 6th period, the student’s activity involved memory, teamwork, allocation of roles, and communication. The teams were to replicate a model, but only one team member could see the model and that member could not build with the Legos. The third Lego activity allowed the students to be creative. Each team was to build anything they desired around a theme and at the end of the hour the team would give a presentation on their structures and their theme. On Thursday, students played a variety of games.

PE (Coach Ancil Delaney)

The students swam, played volleyball, and swam.

 

Weekly Reports – 2022 Week Three – Afternoon Classes and Dorm

Posted on June 28, 2022 by - Afternoon Classes, Dorm Life, Weekly Reports

Throughout the summer we will be posting weekly reports from the classes. Please let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to see or if you have any questions for specific instructors.

We are also posting regularly on Facebook. You don’t have to join Facebook to see our posts. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/gpgcla/

Afternoon Classes:

Choir (Colette Tanner, Instructor)

The students are making wonderful progress on the performance material. They currently have 10 songs sing-able and are working on the other songs. We have broached most of the topics on our THEORY REVIEW including rhythm, pitch, notation, scales, modes, dynamics, acoustics, vocal production, and music appreciation. Their reviews are due next Wednesday. For their FINAL PROJECTS, each student will choose a song and will create an artistic representation of the song and how it relates to our theme. This can be accomplished through any visual medium, literary expression, dance or music, etc. The final project is due on July 13.

We have also discussed DRESS FOR THE FINAL PERFORMANCE on July 23. Dress for the concert should be BUSINESS DRESSY. Gentlemen should wear dress pants and a dress shirt. Ties and suits are optional. Ladies should wear appropriate dresses, skirt/blouse sets or pant suits. NO JEANS OR SHORTS. Also, in reference to dress length, please remember that the students will be performing on choral risers. Dress/skirt lengths should take that into consideration. Please remember that our performance music, with listening links, is posted on https://gpgcsings.blogspot.com. Also posted are informative video links that you may find interesting.

Critical Thinking (Robert and Jessica Markstrom, Instructors)

This week was survivor week in Critical Thinking. The students were put into different types of survival scenarios to test their ability to thrive under disaster wilderness conditions. The students ranked items based on usefulness. The activities came from NASA, wilderness experts, and military experts. Additionally, the students had to work to either escape or live on an island after they had been shipwrecked. We held an auction in homage to the television show Survivor. At the end of the week students played games like Tsuro, Blokus, Get Bit, Pan Am, Hippos and Crocs.

PE (Coach Ancil Delaney)

The students played dodge ball and swam.

Dorm Life:

This week the kids had a movie night in the McNeese honors college lounge where they met the director of the McNeese Honors College and watched The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. The students really kickstarted their GPGC government with their first two government meetings with students, faculty, and staff in attendance.

Friday night the kids had board game time and soccer game time followed by Star Wars: A New Hope to kick off our Space Cowboy Weekend. Saturday Morning we visited Burton Coliseum and the kids got to learn about Rodeo. They met and pet Big John (the horse), practiced roping, and got to see some adorable baby goats. After Lunch they got some swim time and gym time. Later on they had fun tie-dying t-shirts, and watched a performance of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee which they will perform as their end of summer musical. Homemade chicken tacos were for dinner followed by the third GPGC dance. On Sunday the kids split into teams for a brain games competition and watched the TV series Cosmos. In the afternoon they sang karaoke, and enjoyed Chinese food for dinner before Sundae Sunday!

Weekly Reports – 2022 Week Two – Afternoon Classes and Dorm

Posted on June 25, 2022 by - Afternoon Classes, Dorm Life, Weekly Reports

Throughout the summer we will be posting weekly reports from the classes. Please let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to see or if you have any questions for specific instructors.

We are also posting regularly on Facebook. You don’t have to join Facebook to see our posts. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/gpgcla/

Afternoon Classes:

Choir (Colette Tanner, Instructor)

The students have already progressed to the second level in both VOCAL EXERCISES and EAR TRAINING. They are taking rhythmic dictation using rhythms divided down to the 16th note and have started using simple syncopation. With their performance music, they are able to sing through 7 of their pieces and can sing 4 of those with accompaniment. The students are working on learning parts for another 4 songs and have received the remainder of their music. We also discussed the significance of our Traditional Songs: STOPPING BY WOODS and IMPOSSIBLE DREAM. Next week, we will continue to advance our MUSIC LITERACY and begin discussing AMUSIC APPRECIATION and HOW OUR BRAINS PROCESS MUSIC. We will also continue to work on our PERFORMANCE MUSIC.

If you would like to hear the music we are learning, links are posted on our GPGC CHOIR BLOG at :https://gpgcsings.blogspot.com/

Critical Thinking (Robert and Jessica Markstrom, Instructors)

This week was puzzle week in Critical Thinking. The students were challenged with various puzzle activities. One activity had each team putting together as much of 1,000 piece puzzle that they could during the period. We had the students complete 11 logic puzzles of varying difficulty. Another activity had a packet of puzzles that included brain teasers, geometric puzzles, sudoku puzzles of varying difficulty, and mazes. The students engaged with various 3D puzzles in a timed environment. We allowed the students to play with the 3D puzzles in an untimed environment on the last day.

Dorm Life:

This week students visited the local McNeese Radio Station, KBYS. They got a tour, and several got to speak on air during a live radio show! On top of that students who were interested also gave their election speeches for positions in the GPGC Government. Elections were held Friday afternoon, which was our kickoff to a fun-filled weekend.

Friday the students either competed in the weekly soccer match or competed in a round of Werewolf, a team building, interactive card game. For Movie Night this week, we watched Matilda. Saturday morning the kids made friendship bracelets after breakfast. In the afternoon the students watched a video about the history of Juneteenth and why it is relevant today. Then everyone went to the Juneteenth Freedom Festival at the park where they got to hear local musicians and poets, see local artists selling their work, and enjoy some snoballs which were very appreciated in this June heat. After the kids cooled down, we had our second Dance of the summer in the dorm lobby. Sunday included a Shrek movie marathon and Brain Games competition in the morning. After Lunch the kids spent time at the mall or the quad, and then we tie-dyed t-shirts. Dinner was followed by another Ice Cream Sundae Sunday to reward another successful week. This weekend we got meals from Mama Reta’s and Leonard’s; both are local and Black-owned restaurants.

Weekly Reports – 2022 Week One – Afternoon Classes and Dorm

Posted on June 13, 2022 by - Afternoon Classes, Dorm Life, Weekly Reports

Throughout the summer we will be posting weekly reports from the classes. Please let us know if there’s anything else you’d like to see or if you have any questions for specific instructors. We will be posting the first issue of The Thinker (the student newspaper) as soon as the online version is ready.

We are also posting regularly on Facebook. You don’t have to join Facebook to see our posts. The link is: https://www.facebook.com/gpgcla/

Afternoon Classes:

Choir (Colette Tanner, Instructor)

We have finished voice testing and are starting to work on our music. We have also worked on a Music Theory review. They are doing extremely well!

P.E. (Ancil Delaney, Instructor)

This week the students played table tennis, tennis wall ball and swam.

Critical Thinking (Robert and Jessica Markstrom, Instructors)

This week the students took a personality test that allowed the instructor to see what types of traits they had (shy, leader, etc.) in order to place them into teams. Games introduced this week included: What Were You Thinking?, Pirateer (a MENSA select game that utilizes vectors), Ticket to Ride, Twixt, Score 4 (a 3D version of Connect 4), Speed Chess, Blokus, and Hippos and Crocodiles.

Dorm Life:

The students got acclimated to dorm life this week! After classes they are able to play ping pong, board games, and card games in the lobby. We discussed the history of the GPGC Government which we will have our first official meeting of on Monday. 

On Friday after class the students got their first weekly allowance (based on their grades in their classes and dorm behavior/cleanliness). That night they enjoyed playing soccer or competing in an Uno Tournament followed by a movie night of The Princess Bride with popcorn, soda, and candy. Saturday we took the kids for a picnic in the park with more soccer and frisbee. In the afternoon they got to go to the comic book store and Albertson’s to stock up on snacks for their rooms. Dinner that night was spaghetti and meatballs. After dinner everyone had lots of fun at our first GPGC Dance of the summer. Sunday started with donuts and a viewing of recent GPGC musicals from previous years. The kids also had arts and crafts time to make father’s day cards for next weekend. In the afternoon we took the students swimming and had Mario Kart game time. After having Cane’s for dinner the students attended the Calcasieu British Brass Band performing on campus and were treated to ice cream afterwards.

Weekly Reports – Grad Classes, Final Weeks

Posted on July 22, 2019 by - Afternoon Classes, Psychology, Weekly Reports

Conflict and Diplomacy (Ms. Jessica Markstrom, Instructor)

We continued an exploration of the causes of civil conflict by reinforcing economic sources, evaluating group and individual reasons, and addressed how the flow of weapons can also create instability. We watched “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb” for the rest of the short week. This movie provides a biting evaluation of the Cold War and brinkmanship with nuclear weapons. While dated, the issue of accidental war in an age of nuclear weapons coincided with topics we discussed earlier in the summer.

 

Grad Psychology (Dr. Linda Brannon, Instructor)

During week 4, we began topics related to social psychology. Students had chosen topics upon which they were to prepare information to share with the class. We also saw Crash Course videos on social psychology topics. Students had papers due on Thursday.

Our final week consisted of discussions and evaluations of several of the most controversial studies in psychology, including Milgram’s study on obedience and Zimbardo’s prison study, which was conducted at Stanford University. These studies raised ethical questions due to the disturbing results. In addition, we will have an exam on Thursday, which will have a similar format to the exams we have had throughout the session, plus some written questions that will require evaluation of topics in social psychology.

Weekly Reports – Afternoon Classes, Final Weeks

Posted on July 22, 2019 by - Academics, Afternoon Classes, Music, Performances, Weekly Reports

Here are some reports from the teachers of each of our afternoon classes for the last week in the Program. We have organized them by class:

Choir (Colette Tanner, Instructor)

The students are working very hard on preparing their music for the end of the summer concert. Students have also been taking rhythmic and melodic dictation. All of their repertoire is listed on our GPGC CHOIR BLOG with listening links. We have discussed our END OF THE SUMMER BRIDGE PROJECT that is due next Wednesday. We have also discussed dress for the end of the year concert. The students seem excited about their songs and I greatly enjoy working with them.

 

Computer Tech (Barry Humphus, Instructor)

Students were introduced to the Arduino platform and Integrated Developer Environment and constructed their first of several electronic circuits.

 

Critical Thinking (Ms. Jessica Markstrom, Instructor) 

This week students participated in a quiz bowl. Questions come from a high school Quiz Bowl tournament. We also played games. Games included Blokus, Chess, Hippos and Crocs, Lords of Waterdeep, Score Four, Set, Stratego, Tsuro, and Twixt.

Weekly Reports – Afternoon Classes, Week Three

Posted on June 30, 2019 by - Afternoon Classes, Music, Performances, Weekly Reports

Here are some reports from the teachers of each of our afternoon classes for the last week in the Program. We have organized them by class:

Choir (Colette Tanner, Instructor)

This week we have been focusing on memorizing and perfecting the first half of our concert. We have also worked to solidify the vocal parts on our 2 traditional songs of STOPPING BY WOODS and THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM. In past years, these have fallen by the wayside but I am determined that these be learned this summer. (As one students pointed out…this may be Mrs. Tanner’s “Impossible Dream.”) In theory & ear training, we have begun taking RHYTHMIC DICTATION using both simple rhythms (quarter notes, eighth notes, half notes, whole notes and their respective rhythms) and advanced rhythms (dotted notes, triplets, syncopation). They are singing scales in a 6 part canon and are able to sing the 5 pentatonic scales in a serpentine setting. We have begun working in mixed formation to promote independent singing. The students are able to self-evaluate their performances in a very productive way.

 

Computer Tech (Barry Humphus, Instructor)

Students continued to find and print 3D objects this week. They also saw several video clips on how to choose a printer over a large price range and what reviewers recommend. They viewed clips on what types of printing filaments are available and were shown how to level the printer build plates and load filament.

 

Critical Thinking (Ms. Jessica Markstrom, Instructor) 

This week was survivor week in Critical Thinking. The students were put into different types of survival scenarios to test their ability to thrive under disaster wilderness conditions in Northern Canada and the Sahara Desert. The students ranked items based on usefulness. The activities came from military experts. Additionally, the students had to work to either escape or live on an island after they had been shipwrecked. The students could either attempt to fight each other (which is normally their initial impulse) and lose resources or they could band together to share resources. Unlike years past, no group escaped the island. Instead, they focused on raiding rival camps for resources. The students appeared pleased by the events and items available with the auction based off of the television show “Survivor.” On Friday we played games. Games available: Blokus, Chess, Forbidden Island, Hippos and Crocs, Lords of Waterdeep, Score 4, Twixt, and Zombie Dice.

Weekly Reports – Grad Classes, Week Two

Posted on June 23, 2019 by - Academics, Afternoon Classes, Psychology, Weekly Reports

Conflict and Diplomacy (Ms. Jessica Markstrom, Instructor)

We addressed bargaining, negotiations, and deterrence. The bargaining discussion pulled heavily from James Fearon’s work. Students learned about credible signals within bargaining including tying hands, which involve audience costs, and sunk costs, which involve the movement of resources like military troops. We covered how time horizons, iteration, power differences, reputation, settlement ranges, and information affect bargaining. Students read the chapter of Force and Statecraft on negotiations and I addressed the import role 3rd party mediation plays in negotiations between states. They also read portions of Arms and Influence and a selection from the chapter of Force and Statecraft on deterrence. We discussed how deterrence and coercive diplomacy intersect. We ended the week with the State Development project. Some states have struggled with attempts to democratize or secure important resources. Few states considered military pacts.

 

Grad Psychology (Dr. Linda Brannon, Instructor)

During Week 2, we finished our examination of perceptual biases and began our examination of cognitive biases that often lead to faulty beliefs and poor decisions.