I am Mrs. Ellen Letourneau, one of 13 English teachers at Harlem High School. I have spent my entire career as an English and reading teacher in the Harlem District. I began teaching on Friday, February 13, 1976!  How is that for symbolism?

Although the superstition is that Friday, the 13th brings bad luck, my years at Harlem have been far from that. I simply cannot believe that 29 years have gone by; I still love interacting and teaching my students. Every year I meet great students who keep me on my toes.

This year I will be teaching an English 12 class, an English 10 Accelerated class, and an English 10 class.  The English 12 curriculum has been revised this year to emphasize British literature.  Beginning with Beowulf and ending with 20th Century writers, we believe our graduates will be even more prepared for the English classes they will take at the colleges and universities they attend in the future.

English 10 Accelerated and English 10 are classes I truly enjoy.  After teaching seniors for so many years, I realize that sophomores are quite different.  They are not suffering from that dreaded disease - senioritis!  In fact, their enthusiasm is quite contagious.  I hope that they will enjoy the challenge of reading Shakespeare and writing the difficult research paper.  

“The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery” according to poet Mark Van Doren.  This is my goal regardless of the curriculum.  To reach this goal, I am completing work on a Master's of Science degree with an emphasis on integrating technology into the classroom.  Through the work I am performing in these courses, I am learning a vast amount of knowledge about myself and about assisting your children to learn better in the 21st Century.  I hope they will share some of our discoveries with you, the most important role models in their lives.

I would greatly enjoy hearing from you at any time.  If you have questions, concerns, or suggestions, please feel free to contact me at school by calling 654-4511 during 2nd block (9AM until 10:30AM) or emailing me at eletourneau@harlem122.org.  I check both my voicemail and email at least twice a day. 

Thank you for reading through this information.  And, thank you for allowing me the chance to meet and teach your children.  After getting to know them, I realize that our future looks bright because of them.