Friday, December 16, 2011

The last day...

Today we used our shortened period to do and discuss the questions below, which were collected at the end of the period.
Enjoy the Holidays!
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Answer the following in complete sentences.
  1. What two visions does Lennie have down by the river? Why do you think Steinbeck includes these visions?
  2. What surprises Lennie about George's behavior when he meets him by the river? What does Lennie want from George? Why?
  3. Explain the reaction of the men when they reach the scene. How is Slim's reaction different from Carlson's? Why?
  4. Finally, do you agree with George's decision to shoot Lennie? Explain.
  5. Extra Credit: John Steinbeck took the title of this book from a Robert Burns poem which includes the line (paraphrased): "The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray." Explain why Steinbeck chose this for the title of his book.

Thursday, December 15, 2011

So Sad...

Today we started with a quick theme warm-up, discussed chapter 5 as a class, and then finished the book out loud. Students should finish their last set of notes for HW.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

The Dream is the Symbol

Today we began with a very short reading quiz, looked at a thematic quotation from Candy, and talked about the symbolic importance of the dream for George, Lennie, and Candy. We read a bit of chapter 4 as the period came to a close.
HW Reading F with notes.

Monday, December 12, 2011

Symbolism

We discussed the symbolic importance of Candy's dog to start the day today, and then students had the rest of the day to work on tonight's reading.
HW Reading E with notes

Friday, December 9, 2011

Chapter 2

Today I checked chapter two notes and we spent much of the period discussing chapter two before wrapping up by reading some of chapter three aloud.

HW: Reading D with notes.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

Personal Narratives Returned

After a quick qarm-up with a quotation from Of Mice and Men, student spent much of the rest of the period doing a bit of a revision activity with their personal narrative essays which were returned today.
HW: Finish chapter 2 (reading C) with notes, quotes, and a summary.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Chapter 1

We began the day with a summary of chapter one (using some frames as a guide). After reviewing the notes, we spent the rest of the period reading chapter 2.

HW: Reading B with notes.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Our 1st Novel Begins

Today we continued our look at the first paragraphs of Of Mice and Men in the warm-up, wrapped up "The Scarlet Ibis" (I collected all the work), and then we went over the reading and notes expectations for the novel.

HW: Read chapter 1 and take notes (no summary)

Monday, December 5, 2011

I'm Back!

Today we got the first novel of the year, Of Mice and Men, and reviewed the academic vocabulary for fiction as it pertains to "The Scarlet Ibis."

Friday, November 18, 2011

The Day Before...

Today we handed in final drafts of the personal narrative and finished "The Cask of Amontillado."

Have a great break!

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Prep Work

Today we reviewed imagery, mood, and setting and did the vocab on page 343 in preparation for Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado," which we'll read tomorrow.
Personal Narrative final drafts are due tomorrrow.

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Healthy Kids

Today we spent the whole period on the Healthy Kids survey.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Tuesday

Today we continued the close reads for Unit 3, beginning with page 307. We then reviewed the terms setting, imagery, and mood.
Students should finish any unfinished work for homework tonight. Remember that personal narratives are due Friday.

Monday, November 14, 2011

Unit 3 Begins

Today we began unit three in the textbook with a warm-up focused on setting. After some specifics about the essay (final drafts due Friday), students started on the Unit 3 Workshop (Notes pp. 302 & 304 and Close Reads pp. 303, 305, & 306). They should finish this work for homework tonight.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Benchmark Essay Review

Today we spent the period reviewing the benchmark timed writing students did at the end of the first quarter. We reviewed the prompt and the rubric, scored some sample essays, and wrapped up the day with students scoring their own essays.

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Show, Don't Tell

Today we practiced a bit of "showing" writing in the warm-up and the spent the period practicing some more brushstrokes. For homework, students should try out at least three of the brushstrokes as they revise their personal narratives. I will be checking these revisions tomorrow.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Brushstrokes

Today we worked on some creative, grammatical ways to add variety and description to our sentences. Tomorrow, students will apply these ideas to their own personal narratives (which should be complete and undergoing significant revision at this point).

Monday, November 7, 2011

The Conclusion and Some Revision

Today we started with this warm-up:
The students went on to write their own conclusions using the models above and the sentence frames on the following slide:

HW: Students who didn't get to it in class should work through the revision exercises on page 173 and 174 as noted above.

Friday, November 4, 2011

The Real Writing Begins

Today I checked off the prewriting from yesterday and students tried out six different beginnings. Once they had tried all six, they picked their favorite and got started on the first draft of their personal narrative. Drafts should be finished (though perhaps lacking a conclusion, which will be our Monday focus) on Monday.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

More Prewriting

Today we coninued the personal narrative prewriting. Students should complete the web below for homework if they did not manage in class.
Students who finished moved on to starting the actual narrative by working on varied ways to begin.

Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Personal Narratives Begin

Today we began the first major essay of the year, the personal narrative. We started by brainstorming topic ideas, examining the prompt on page 168, and looking at a student example on pages 169-70. No homework tonight, but it's coming.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Benchmark Clean Up

Today we spent the period finishing up the benchmark tests. When students finished, they had the option of doing prompt A on page 249 or the longer prompt B (for a bit more credit). This should be finished for homework if it was not finished in class.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

"Caged Bird"

First Period started with the vocab work on 248. We spent the rest of the period discussing the questions from last night's homework and reading the poem "Caged Bird" (p. 246). Students should add question #7 (p. 247) to the other questions for HW.

Fifth Period did what first period did yesterday.

Tomorrow is the Q1 benchmark assessment. Students need only bring a #2 pencil and something to read or work on if they finish early.

Tuesday: A Tale of Two Periods

First period began the day with a review of the methods of characterization (p. 237) from the Monday notes. We then finished reading the textbook excerpt of Angelou's "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings." Students started their homework in class: Margin questions A, B, D and 1-6 on page 247.

Fifth period spent the day at the Macbeth assembly and reviewed the methods of characterization notes when we returned to class.
Thursday is the Quarter 1 Benchmark Exam!
The Quarter Ends Friday!

Monday, October 24, 2011

Friday and Monday

Friday we spent the entire period on the first quarter timed writing assessment. These will be scored by the English Department on Thursday. Students who were absent will need to make up this test ASAP.
Monday we started with a brief review of the vocabulary from Thursday, added some terms to our character notes from p. 237, and read the first page of "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings."

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Essays and Mentors

We began the day considering the qualities of a mentor, handed in the essays students wrote yesterday in class, and reviewed the selection vocabulary (p. 237) for the next story.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Thank You Mr. McLaughlin

Today we spent the day writing a response to prompt B on page 220, using some convenient sentence frames (below) provided by Mr. McLaughlin. Students were encouraged to use the frames as written or modify or ignore them based on their comfort level with the task. Students should finish and do a revision (on the same paper; no need to rewrite) tonight for HW.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“The Necklace” and “$pending $pree”


       In both fiction and real life, people can fall victim to believing that the more they have, the better their lives will be. The problem is that ______________________________________________________
_______________________________________. Both the short story “_____________________” and the non-fiction article “___________________________” deal with this issue.

       In the beginning of “_______________________,” Mme. Loisel believes that she would be happy if only ___________________________________________________. Given the chance to attend ____________________________________, she borrows a necklace that she believes is made of ________________________ so that at the ball she _________________________________________. Early the next morning things go terribly wrong when ___________________________________________________________________, forcing Mathilde and her husband to ________________________________________________ and __________________________________________. Ten years later, the Loisels are ____________________ and _____________________________, but they are finally free of debt. What a terrible price they paid!

       Today’s teen can learn something from the Loisel’s story, because as the article “____________________” points out, nowadays, ______________________________
_________________________________. Because teens nowadays spend an average of ________________ per week, credit card companies __________________________________, and if teens take advantage of what seems like a cool credit card offer, soon enough they can end up __________________ and _____________________________________. Why do teens spend so much and why are they such an easy target? The article suggests that it’s because _______________________________________, and because ______________________________. To help teens avoid the trap of credit card debt, one city ____________________________________
_________________________________. A chart in the article shows that ______________________.

         In my own life, I’ve noticed that ___________________________________________________. In fact, my spending habits _________________________________________. By reading “The Necklace” and “$pending $pree,” I have learned that ____________________________
_______________________________________________.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Revising Time Travel

Today students finally got their time travel essays back and we spent some time reflecting on them and doing a short revision activity. Both the activity and the essays were collected at the end of the period.

Monday, October 17, 2011

"Spending Spree"

Today we started by reading and discussing the "Spending Spree" article on page 221 of the text. Then we wrapped up our discussion of "The Necklace" and I collected the questions and vocab from last week.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

The Counselors!

Today we enjoyed a visit from the counselors who talked about graduation requirements and the pathway to success after high school.
HW: 1-8 on page 218

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

More Homecoming Craziness

We started the day with a quick look at what motivated characters in some of teh readings from earlier this year. We then managed to finish "The Necklace" in period 1 and got within one page of finishing it in period 5 (doomed by the extended lunch).

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Motivation

Today we began our look at Maupassant's short story "The Necklace" with a discussion of character motivation in the warm-up. After that, we read the first page of the story and did margin question A.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Mostly Vocab

Today we started with a look at the vocabulary on page 207 (we did this in the warm-ups) and then reviewed the weekend's homework.

Friday, October 7, 2011

Friday!

Today we started with a discussion of status and where it comes from. We spent the rest of the period taking notes and doing the close reading on pages 190 and 191. This should be completed for homework if necessary.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Finally Home...

We began the day with a new seating chart to honor our return to our normal classroom. We had a look at point of view in the warm-up while I checked last night's homework. After reviewing the notes from yesterday, students worked on the notes and close reads on pages 188 and 189, respectively.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Make Up Tests... Mostly

Today students who didn't finish yesterday and who were absent had a chance to make up yesterday's Unit 1 test. The rest of the class worked on notes for page 186 and the close reading questions on page 187 (on a separate sheet). There was also an extra credit assignment given.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Unit 1 Test

Students spent the day on the Unit 1 Test today.

Looks like we are still in m209 Wednesday.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Of Death and Roses

Today we started the day with a quick review of some poetic terms (rhyme, rhythm, repetition and alliteration). After handing in the work from "Streets of Memphis," we practiced and read "Incident in a Rose Garden" (pp. 145 and 146).
Unit 1 Test Tomorrow

Friday, September 30, 2011

Friday

Today we started with the vocab on page 118 (in the warm-ups). After going over that, students worked together to do questions 3 and 5-9 on page 117.

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Wednesday &Thursday

Wednesday we wrapped up our work with "The Gift of the Magi" by revising the thematic paragraphs we wrote Tuesday. These were collected. We then began some of the preliminary work for "The Rightsto the Streets of Memphis." Thursday we added the "Memphis" vocab from page 111 to the "Selection Vocab" section of the binder. Then, after reviewing autobiography and cause and effect, students read the story and did margin questions A, B, C, and E. They should finish for HW if necessary.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Tuesday

Tuesday we did the vocab work for "A Gift of the Magi" (p. 104) in the warm-up, and then, after I collected the HW, we worked through writing prompt A on page 105.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Friday & Monday

Friday, after a visit from Mrs. Garnder to discuss the rules, we read O'Henry's "The Gift of the Magi" and did the prediction activities in the margin. Monday we started looking at the irony of the story's ending and then spent the rest of the period on questions 1-8 on p. 103 (9 is extra credit). Students should finish these for HW.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Sacrifice

Today we prepared for "The Gift of the Magi" with a warm-up and discussion on the concept of sacrifice. We then added the story vocabulary (p. 95) to the selection vocab notes and reviewed the definition of irony (also on p. 95). Students also handed in their time travel essays today.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Writing Time

Today, after a look at some helpful graphic organizers and sentence frames, we spent the whole period writing. Students should finish up their essays tonight for homework if they didn't finish them in class.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Time Travel Essay: the Plan & Intro

Today we worked on planning the time travel essay and started on the introductory paragraph. Students should finish the introduction and plan for homework.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Time Travel Essay, Day 1

Today I collected the first set of warm-ups and the vocabulary assignment from Friday. We wrapped up the period reading "The Physics of Time Travel" (p. 51) and got started planning an essay in response to prompt B on page 50.

Friday, September 16, 2011

Thunderous Vocab.

Today we reviewed the concept of theme and checked the homework (which was collected). We wrapped up the period doing the vocabulary work (all of it) on page 49.

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Even More Thunder

We began with a warm-up looking at the sequence question from the homework (which I stamped). After that we reviewed foreshadowing sentences and the other work from yesterday. Students finished the day working on questions 1, 2, 8, and 10 (9 is extra credit) on page 48 in the textbook. This should be completed for HW if needed.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

More Thunder

Today we finished "A Sound of Thunder" and began studying the story in earnest.
  • Students started by choosing three examples of foreshadowing they had noted during the reading and wrote about them using the following sentence frame:
  • When it says, "[a direct quotation from the story]," it seems to foreshadow [what you predicted would happen]. What actually happens is [what actually happens in the story].
  • Next students completed the sequencing activity as explained in blue on page 33 of the text.
  • Finally, students responded to margin questions C (p. 36), D (p. 37), G (p. 40), H (p. 41), and K (p. 47) printed next to the story in the text book.
Homework is to finish any part of this assignment not completed in class.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Finally, a Story

After a quick review of foreshadowing, we went over the vocabulary on page 33 in the textbook, adding it to a page in the "Selection Vocabulary" tab in the notebooks. Then we began Bradbury's "A Sound of Thunder," getting to page 39. At the end of the period I handed back intro letters and then collected them again for the student portfolios.

Monday, September 12, 2011

The Past

Today, after a short warm-up about time travel and its effects, we finished the close reading work on page 27 that we began Friday. This was collected.

Friday, September 9, 2011

Playing with Time

Today we began with a little flashback practice in the warm-up while I checked homework. Next we took some notes on sequence and time from page 26 and started the close read on page 27.
Have a great weekend!

Thursday, September 8, 2011

On to Unit 1

Today we started looking at the concept of story with a warm-up taken from page 22 of the textbook. After wrapping up and handing in the "Walter Mitty" close read questions from yesterday, we reviewed plot and conflict.
HW: Do the close reading assignments on page 25.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Walter Mitty

Today we began the day taking notes from page 12 while I checked off organized binders. We spent the rest of the period reading the excerpt from "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" and answering the close reading questions on pages 13 and 14.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Feels like a Monday

Today we talked a bit about the binder check (postponed until tomorrow) and hall passes (check the course description for policy). We then reviewed the close reading examples on page 9 and I collected the students' close reading work (including last week's work).

Binders

Each student will have a three-ring binder (not spiral) stocked with lots of college-ruled lined paper. The binder should be clearly labeled “Freshman English” and prominently include the student’s name. The first page inside the binder will be the signed course description, and the binder will contain the following labeled sections in this order:
  • 1.    Work in Progress
  • 2.    Warm-Ups
  • 3.    Notes
  • 4.    Academic Terms
  • 5.    Selection Vocab
  • 6.    Graded Work
In addition, students concurrently enrolled in English Support should have a section labeled “Support.”

Friday, September 2, 2011

Picture Day

Today we began with a short quiz on the course description and talked about the rules. Then we had pictures taken and handed in final draft letters of introduction.

Thursday, September 1, 2011

More Notes

We began the day by going over the many things going on tomorrow--school pictures, final draft business letters are due, course descriptions are due with a quiz--and then finished up the drama notes and close read (p. 7) and began the nonfiction notes and close read (pp. 8 & 9).

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Poetry and Notes

Today we started with a review of some of the fiction terms from yesterday, continued with a look at Pat Mora's poem "Los ancianos" and the associated poetic terms and close reading questions from the textbook (p. 6).

Tuesday

Today we continued working through the introductory unit in the textbook, taking notes on academic language for fiction and starting on poetry. We also read the excerpt from The Old Man and the Sea on page 5 and responded to the close reading questions on a separate sheet of paper. We will add to this on Wednesday.

Monday, August 29, 2011

So Many Things...

Today we began with new seats. After that I stamped the business letter rough drafts and we talked a bit about final drafts, the course description, and school pictures (Friday, 9/2). The final part of the period was spent taking notes on pages 4 and 5 of the textbook.
Homework
  • Typed business letter final drafts are due (with roughs) on Friday, 9/2.
  • Signed Course Descriptions are also due Friday, 9/2, and students should expect a quiz.
  • English Materials and Binders (as per the course description) are due Tuesday, 9/6

Friday, August 26, 2011

The First Friday

We began the day by spending some quality time searching through the new planners. Then, after finishing and handing in the four quick-writes from this week, we spent a bit of time on the rough drafts of the letter of introduction.

HW Finish Letter Rough Draft 8/29

Thursday, August 25, 2011

A Busy Day

Today we started with a brief introductory warm-up, went through yesterday's burning questions, wrote one more quick-write, got textbooks, and a new planners, and wrote the first HW assignment in it.

HW Read the Introductory Letter handout and come to class with any questions you might have.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

First Day Ideas

Today we spent the short period writing and talking about big ideas and their power. Students started their first page of warm-ups and their first written assignment, some quick-writes which will be finished and collected tomorrow.

Friday, June 10, 2011

Work Day #2

Students spend the whole period writing today. Most made a good dent in their essays. Final drafts are due at the end of the period on Monday.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

The Essay Continues

Today we spent the period working on essay worksheet #2 and some students got started on their actual essay. For homework tonight, students should have at least the introduction written (following the model on their handouts).

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Essay Time

Today we discussed the homework and turned it in. After a fairly extensive discussion of theme, involving note taking, students had 20 minutes to begin handout #1 in preparation for the final formal essay of the year. They should finish that handout for HW.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Never was a story of more woe...

Today we began by updating our calendar and I collected the act 4 questions. We then finished up the play, discussed it a bit and I assigned the homework.
HW: Act 5 Qs: 1-5, 7 & 8 (p. 1050)

Monday, June 6, 2011

Act 5 Begins

Today we finished up our readers' theater presentations and students had plenty of time to work on tonight's homework: questions 1-3, 5 & 7 (9=e.c.) on page 1033. These should be finished for HW if necessary.

Friday, June 3, 2011

Readers' Theater: Day 2

Today students performed and discussed all of act 4. Act 5 starts Monday.

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Readers' Theater: Day 1

Today we went over the act 3 questions and I collected them along with the work from Friday. I then assigned scenes from act 4 to groups of students who prepared to present them. Presentations will begin tomorrow.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Period 5

Today we wrapped u act three by updating our calendar of events through Tuesday morning. We spent the rest of the period working on questions 1-9 (not 7) on page 1017. Most students finished, but those who didn't should finish for homework.

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Tuesday

Period 1: Today we continued act three, reading 3.2 and part of 3.3, and doing a few close reading/ comprehension questions along the way.
Period 5: We reviewed the work from Friday for much of the period and then finished act 3.

Friday, May 27, 2011

More Act 3

Period 1: Today we recapped the first part of the play and read all of 3.1, wrapping up the day by watching a few minutes of the Zeffirelli version of the scene.
Period 5: Today, with the substitute, students were to continue their reading of 3.2 and 3.3.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Wednesday & Thursday

Wednesday we started act 3, reading scene 1 and Juliet's soliloquy at the beginning of scene 2.
Thursday we were in the lab for more Navigator work.

Monday, May 23, 2011

2.5 & 2.6

Today we finished act two, and students got started on questions 1-7 (8 is extra credit) at the end of the act. Those are due tomorrow.

Friday, May 20, 2011

2.3 & 2.4

Today, after collecting completed in-class essays from Wednesday, we got back to Romoe and Juliet, reading 2.3 and 2.4 (starting on page 977).

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Timed Writing Time

Today we spent the entire period writing a compare and contrast essay (essentially a movie review) based on the notes we took in class on Monday. Many students finished. Those who didn't should finish for homework. Completed essays must be at least four complete paragraphs and include an introduction and conclusion.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Friday & Monday

Friday: 2.1 & 2.2
Today we listened to and discussed the famous balcony scene.
Monday
Today we continued our examination of the balcony scene by watching three versions of the scene and taking notes in preparation for a compare and contrast essay later in the week.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Act 1

Today we wrapped up our look at act one of R & J (after losing most of yesterday to registration). Students had the final 10 minutes of the period to start questions 1-7 (p. 967). These should be finished for HW.

Monday, May 9, 2011

Luhrmann & Queen Mab

Today we warmed up with a look at the beginning of the modern edition of R & J, writing about the filmmaker's choices and considering them in the context of Shakespeare's actual text. We wrapped up the period finishing the Queen Mab activity from Friday.

Friday, May 6, 2011

1.3 & 1.4

Today we began the period by talking a bit about the upcoming Star test. After that we finished act one, scene three and watched it on video. We then read act one, scene four and started a bit of work on Mercutio's Queen Mab speech.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

1.2 to 1.3.58

Today we reviewed act one, scene one and did a bit of writing about scenes 2-3.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Act 1. Scene 1

Today we listened to and discussed act 1, scene 1 of R & J.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

The Prologue

Today we studied the prologue to act one of Romeo and Juliet, reviewing the sonnet form, paraphrasing the lines and playing with the language a bit.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Condensed Shakespeare

Today we had a bit of fun with a summary of the whole play. Afterwards we went over the chartered in the play and made a useful book mark.

Friday, April 29, 2011

Opinions & Themes

Today after a quick review of the terms protagonist and antagonist, we broke into groups and reviewed the homework and took an opinion survey based on Romeo and Juliet. We wrapped up the day with a quick look at the survey.

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Romeo and Juliet Theme Survey

  • Answer all the questions.
  • You must agree or disagree with each statement, but feel free to comment or clarify your answers.
  • Only take the survey once.

Shakespeare Workshop Wrap

Today we powered through the rest of the Literary Analysis Workshop (pp. 932-937), taking notes and talking through the passages and questions. Students should finish the work on pages 936 and 937 for homework if needed.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

More Shakespeare Intro

Today we began by finishing up and reviewing the work on on pages 930-31 and started on the notes from pages 932-33.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

A Less-traditional Love Poem

Today we continued our sonnet review with Shakespeare's "Sonnet 130," and then took some notes on the Shakespeare introduction on pages 130 and 131 of the textbook.

Monday, April 25, 2011

Getting Ready for the Bard

Today we spent the period reviewing poetry terms and studying "Sonnet 18" in preparation for the Shakespeare unit and our reading of Romeo and Juliet.

Friday, April 15, 2011

A Long Overdue Poetry Test

Today we took the test at the end of the poetry unit in preparation for a good, long, much-needed break.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

One more day with Billy

Today the warm-up was the short vocab exercise at the top of p. 762 (#s 1-4). After that, students had time to work on finishing the questions we began yesterday.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Wrapping Up Billy

Today we warmed up with a close read of the final section of the story on page 759. After sharing the sequence charts from yesterday, students worked with partners margin questions C, G and H. Students had some time to begin the story questions on 761 (1-9, 8=extra credit).

Monday, April 11, 2011

More "Charming Billy"

Today we warmed up with A on page 752. We then headed a fresh piece of paper and did B on p. 754 and E on p. 755. We wrapped up the period doing the Sequence Chain as explained in the middle of p. 751.

Friday, April 8, 2011

Flashback and Literary Realism

Today we started with a brief look at the vocab on page 751 and I collected the HW (pp. 748-49). After reviewing the ideas of flashback and realism, we listened to "Where Have You Gone, Charming Billy?" marking examples of both techniques with stickies.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Wednesday & Thursday

  • Wednesday we began with some style practice in the warm-up and spent the rest of the day on the Style and Voice notes on page 746 and the Style and Voice practice on page 747.
  • Thursday, after writing about the discussion prompt on page 750 in our warm-ups, we did "Analyze the Literature" on pages 748 and 749.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Stylistically Speaking

Today we continued our look at style, wrapping up the notes on p. 744 and doing the close reading questions on p. 745.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Today we warmed up with the "What is Style?" question on page 742 and started the notes on page 744.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Wrapping Up

Today while a few students finished up yesterday's quarter 3 assessment, students worked on questions 5-10 on p. 725 (11 was extra credit). We finished up the day talking about the questions. Absent students or those who didn't get a chance to finish the questions should do so for HW.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

A Touch of Frost

Today we continued our look at journey poems with Frost's, "The Road Not Taken" (p. 724).

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

"The Seven Ages of Man"

Today we just scratched the surface of Shakespeare's "The Seven Ages of Man," completing the chart explained at the bottom of page 721.

Monday, March 28, 2011

More Meter

Today we had a bit of fun while continuing of meter practice. Tomorrow: Shakespeare and Frost!

Friday, March 25, 2011

I'm Back!

Today I returned from my three-day absence. Mr. Raymer wrapped up the work with poetry done in my absence, collecting the questions from page 712. After that, we began a look at poetic meter, which we will continue on Monday.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Final Poetry Project Work Days

Thursday and Friday were both work days for the poetry project. Yesterday, I checked off the poetry analysis and students started on posters. Posters should be ready to present on Monday at the beginning of class.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Analysis Time

Students had the entire period to work on the analysis of their chosen poems. They should complete the six-step analysis, including the paragraph, for homework tonight if they did not do so in class.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Poem Projects

Today students had some time to finish up the poetry questions and then partners had time to begin the more detailed poetry analysis that is part of the poem project I introduced today.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Let's see; where were we?

Today we continued our study of poetry. Students read the three poems on pages 686 through 689 of the textbook with their partners and did questions 1-3 and 5-8 after the poems. Students who didn't get through at least #5 should do so for homework.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Poetry Paragraph #2

Today I checked off the homework and students had time to write a paragraph on one of the three poems we have studied so far this week. The paragraphs were similar to that written for "We Real Cool" last week.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

"Grape Sherbet"

Today we added an analysis of the poem "Grape Sherbet" to our Says/Means /Matters chart and discussed the poem at some length. Students then had about 20 minutes to start on questions 1-8 on page 682 in the text (#9 is extra credit). They should finish these for homework.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

More Poetry

Today we continued with the poetry unit, having a look at "I Asked My Mother to Sing" in the textbook, repeating the Says/Means/Matters activity from yesterday, only with the second poem.

Monday, March 7, 2011

Friday & Monday

Friday we wrapped up the poetry analysis that we'd been working on all week: students wrote their analytical paragraphs and handed in the whole packet of analysis.

Monday we spent the day working on the first poem in unit
7 of the textbook, Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz."

Thursday, March 3, 2011

More Poetry Intro

Today we finished up the poetry intro presentation and started the final step in the poetry analysis: the analytical paragraph. We will continue these tomorrow.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Poetry Intro Continued

Today we continued our introduction to poetry.

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Navigator

We were in the lab today.

Monday, February 28, 2011

The Poetry Unit Begins

Today we began our look at poetry with Brooks' "We Real Cool," reviewing some poetic terms in preparation fro unit 7 in the textbook.
Tomorrow we are in the computer lab for more Navigator.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Persuasive Papers

Today students had some time to put finishing touches on their persuasive papers which were due at the end of the period.

Enjoy the vacation!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Wednesday/Thursday

We've spent the last two days working on the persuasive papers. There will be some time in class tomorrow, but final, typed drafts are due at the end of the period.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Persuasive Paper, Day #2

Today we finished up the planning work from the textbook that we started yesterday and then moved on to writing the first drafts using the handout given in class. Some students also started researching using the website evaluation handout they were given.

Monday, February 14, 2011

The Persuasive Paper: Day 1

Today we brainstormed topics and students got started planning their papers using pages 653 (1-4) and 654 (1 & 2).

Friday, February 11, 2011

"The Pedestrian"

Today we read Ray Bradbury's "The Pedestrian" and did questions 1-4, 6 & 7.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Thursday

Today we finished our in class analysis of "Search and Suspend," discussed it and handed in the written work. We then read "Primal Screen" on page 640 and 641 in the text.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Persuasion and Bias

Today we looked at #33 from the Q2 assessment, discussed number 8 from yesterday's homework (which I collected), and then we started studying "Search and Suspend," an article from a recent North Coast Journal, looking for bias, fact and opinion.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Persuasive Techniques & Pennies for Patients

Today we started with a bit of test review, then watched a video about the Pennies for Patients fundraiser currently going on on campus. After passing the PFP box and discussing the persuasive techniques demonstrated in the video, we went over last night's homework which will be collected tomorrow.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Friday & Monday

Friday we began by reviewing the terms "fact," "opinion," and "bias" on page 621 of the textbook. Then we read "How Private is Your Private Life" (622) and started "The Privacy Debate" (628).
Monday we started with new seats and by reviewing a question from the Q2 quarterly assessment. After that, we finished "The Privacy Debate" and did question 1 to 6 and 8 on page 631. Students should finish these for HW if necessary.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Gettysburg & Vocab

Today we analyzed Lincoln's "Gettysburg Address," looking for the rhetorical devices and persuasive techniques we've been studying. We spent the rest of the period adding definitions to the notes for the vocabulary words on page 621.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Run-ons and MLK

Today we began with the grammar work on page 88. We then discussed and turned in the MLK work from pages 608 and 609.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Flight of the Navigator

Today we were in the lab working on our four year plans.

Monday

Today we continued with the "I Have a Dream" work we began Friday. Students had the whole period to fill out the rhetorical device and persuasive techniques charts we created before reading. Students also worked on numbers 1-4 and 7 on page 608 and the Vocab in Practice and Vocab in Writing on page 609. This is due Wednesday.
We are in the computer lab tomorrow.

Friday, January 28, 2011

I Have a Dream

Today we did the quickwrite on page 600 as our warm-up. After going through the vocab and collecting the unit 6 notes, we read MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech and watched in on video. We'll continue working with it on Monday.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Rhetoric. Lots of It.

We began the day by analyzing an advertisement, looking for the persuasive techniques explained on page 596 of the textbook. By the time we finished that and talked about the rhetorical devices on the following pages, the period was over.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Persuasion and Lots of Talking

Today we finished the grammar page we began yesterday and then spent the rest of the period talking about persuasive techniques (from the notes) and the state of the union address as an example of a persuasive speech. Students who didn't finish the homework last night should finish it tonight.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

The Art of Persuasion

WU: Grammar p. 86A
After that, we talked about the first couple pages of unit 6 notes. Students are to finish reading and taking notes through page 599 for tomorrow.

Extra Credit: Watch some or all of tonight's State of the Union address and/or the Republican response. Watch for and note and of the persuasive techniques and rhetorical devices mentioned in the opening section of Unit 6.

Monday, January 24, 2011

And So It Begins... Again

We began the period reflecting on the first semester and talking a bit about the start of the second semester. After I collected warm-ups (the final score in the S1 grade), we got started on the Unit Six Workshop Notes (pp. 594-599). Students should be through page 595 by the start of class tomorrow.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Assessment Fever

Today we took the unit 5 assessment on pages 586 to 589 in the textbook. Remember that final exams start tomorrow, following teh bell schedule below:
Finals Bell Schedule
  • Period 1/2/3: 8:30 – 10:35
  • BREAK: 10:35 – 10:45
  • Period 4/5/6: 10:51 – 12:56
And next week the second semester starts with a new bell schedule too:
2nd Semester Bell Schedule
  • 1st Period: 8:25 - 9:22
  • 2nd Period: 9:28 - 10:24
  • Break:     10:24 – 10:34
  • 3rd Period: 10:40 - 11:36
  • 4th Period: 11:42 - 12:38
  • Lunch: 12:38 – 1:11
  • 5th Period: 1:17 - 2:13
  • 6th Period: 2:19 - 3:15

Friday, January 14, 2011

Open and Shut

Today I collected late paragraph revisions, we discussed and turned in last night's homework, and then we read Saki's "The Open Window" on page 562 of the textbook. Partners did questions 1,2,3,4 and 7 after the story and I collected them at the end of the period.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Today we did the grammar on page 85 and finished "The Lost Boys." Students had the remaining 20 minutes of class to start the home work.
Homework: The Lost Boys" Questions, 1,3, 5, & 7 on page 554 and all the vocabulary work on page 555.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Combining Sentences with "The Lost Boys"

Today we did page 81A in the grammar book, followed by a look at the vocabulary on page 547, and then we began the the story on the following page.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Finally, Paragraphs

Today we spent the first half of the period on sentence types and sentence combining. In period 5, we then wrapped up the in-class portion of the paragraph activity and I finally assigned the paragraph revision assignment. This is due, typed, on Thursday along with the original draft of the Of Mice and Men essay. Period one got about halfway through "Lost Boys" in the text book.

Monday, January 10, 2011

Paragraphs, etc.

Today we started with a warm-up in preparation for tomorrow's story, then went over the "Who Killed the Iceman"/"Skeletal Sculptures" homework from last week (which I collected) and then continued the paragraph assignment we started last week.

Friday, January 7, 2011

Paragraph Revision

Today we worked on paragraph revision, starting by editing and revising a paragraph from an Of Mice and Men essay as a group. 5th period students then moved on to a similar activity on their own with a different paragraph, while 1st period students began working on revising a paragraph from their own paper (which they should finish for homework).  The students' Of Mice and Men essays were handed back at the end of the period; they need to bring these with them to class on Monday.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

We May Never Know...

We started with page 79 in the grammar book today, continuing our review of sentence types. After that, we finished the notes for "Who Killed the Iceman?" (p. 536) and read "Skeletal Sculptures" (p. 540).

Homework p. 544: #s 2, 3, & 5 and p. 545: Vocab Practice and Vocabulary in Writing

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

More Sentence Types and the Iceman

Today we continued our review of sentence types and then read and took notes on the article, "Who Killed the Iceman?" in the textbook (p. 536).

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Sentence Types & Forensics

Today we began by reviewing the four sentence types--simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex-- and then wrapped up by doing the preliminary work for "Who Killed the Iceman?" on page 535 of the textbook.

Monday, January 3, 2011

Welcome Back with Burns

Today we got back into the swing of things with a short look at Robert Burns' poem "To a Mouse." After reading it aloud and discussing it, students addressed the prompt below in their warm-ups.

Question:  What “prospects dreary” do you foresee as the semester comes to a close?  Name at least one fear you have about the future (can be about school or some other part of your life), and then suggest at least two practical ways that you can overcome this obstacle.