Happy Vacation!

I hope you all have as much fun as these guys!

Murambi genocide memorial--Juliette's story

Folks in Honors English 11.

Here is the link to the short video interview of a Rwandan genocide survivor. Please be advised that there are some graphic images and disturbing content.

Also, apologies for the annoying commercial that might play before it. Ugh.

Homework: December 19

Have a great break, everyone! Enjoy some much-needed rest...

Honors English 12 (G)

• Finish up your map of "The Body"--we'll come back to our discussion when we return from break.
• Read your independent reading book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Finish up your work for chapter 9, if you're not done yet.
• Read chapter 10 (due on Friday when we return from break). Use the reading road map that you received in class today to guide you; jot down answers/notes.
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Finish up your work on "The Body." Remember, it's due tomorrow! I'll come down at the beginning of the senior breakfast, or you can put it in my mailbox. You should have:
• Your annotated copy of the story
• Your 4 responses
• Make sure your name is on everything!
• Read your independent book, and have a great vacation!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Read chapter 10 (due on Thursday when we return from break). Use the reading road map that you received in class today to guide you; jot down answers/notes.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: December 18

English 12 (B)

• You have your schedule! You'll have time to work in class tomorrow, and then it's all due on Friday. Put in some time tonight--some of you are behind...
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Complete the Article of the Week assignment.
• Complete the writing and vocabulary exercise handout I gave you in class.
• If you need to, get caught up on your Strength in What Remains work.
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• You have your reading and writing schedule for Frederick Douglass. Keep reading and writing! You have a lot to do, so make sure it's all done for Friday.

***Note for folks in block A***

Tuesday, you got some handouts to help with chapter 9. To clarify: 

• Your mind map is just for chapter 7. You should have it to refer to, in case things get confusing as you read the rest of the book.
• The MAP map is for chapter 9. Deo moves around the country (and, even, into a different country) in this chapter, so the physical map is there to help you track his movement. You should ignore the part of the directions where it says "You can: 1. use the one you already started..." Those instructions are relevant to D block, but not you. You should start with the part that says, "2. use the one provided..."
• All references to the MAP through the rest of that handout are to the physical map of Rwanda/Burundi.

Homework: December 16

English 11 (F)

• You have your schedule...hopefully you're completing your tasks! Remember to keep the final goal in mind--finish the book, and write 3 responses, before break. It's a lot to do, but you're all capable! Make sure you put in about half an hour of work tonight; you'll have time in class tomorrow to keep going!
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Your task tonight is to mark up those close reading passages--I mean, really mark them up! Remember how much we wrote today? All of the little details we noticed? That's your goal for tonight. Tomorrow in class, you'll do some writing, so...make sure you find all kinds of interesting things! You might look for: 
• repetitions
• patterns
• anomalies
• images
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Write out: 1 sentence, each chapter...what's going on? What is this chapter about? (This process will help us understand purpose and organization later on...)
• Read chapter 8. Keep your focus question in mind as you read.
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• You have your schedule...hopefully you're completing your tasks! Remember to keep the final goal in mind--finish the book, and write 4 journal entries, before you leave for break. It's a lot to do, but you're all capable! Make sure you put in about half an hour of work tonight; then, you'll have time in class on Wednesday to keep going!
• Read your independent book!

Also, because it's Friday...

...an adorable animal video to kick off your weekend.

Homework: December 13

Happy Friday the 13th!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Complete your Chapter 7 map--pull out all of that information and organize it all. It's complex...there's a lot going on here, and there's no way you could remember it and keep it all in your head. But, it's important to understand! So, here are the categories for the mind map:
• Hutu/Tutsi—Deo’s understanding (and how it changed)
• Burundian history—Deo’s understanding (and how it changed)
• Rwandan history—Deo’s understanding (and how it changed)
• Memory
• Education
• Contrasts and contradictions
• Tough questions—Deo's
• Your questions
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Today, I gave you our working plan for the rest of the week--you're going to be reading and writing about "The Body" by Stephen King. You know what you need to do, and when you need to do it by, so....do it! This weekend, you should spend at least 20 minutes working.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Read Chapter 9, to the end of page 119. 
• For this chapter, you'll be mapping out the events literally. You can find a map of Rwanda/Burundi here. As you read, write down important events/quotations, and track Deo's progress. You can print out the map that's linked here, draw your own using this one as a guide, or, if you really want to get crazy, create something online using Google Maps.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: December 12

Honors English 11 (D)

• Finish your chapter 7 map, if you haven't already done so. Your map should include information about: 
• Deo’s background
• Hutu/Tutsi—Deo’s understanding (and how it changed)
• Burundian history—Deo’s understanding (and how it changed)
• Rwandan history—Deo’s understanding (and how it changed)
• Memory
• Education
• Contrasts and contradictions
• Tough questions—Deo's
• Your questions
• Write a 3-paragraph response to chapter 8.
• Summarize
• Respond: I notice, I think, I wonder
• Connect: Make connections between this text and your schema (prior knowledge--might be literary, historical, current events…)
• If you are all set with those two things, start studying your vocab, or work on your Article of the Week--Learning How to Learn.
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• You have your working schedule for Frederick Douglass. So, use it to do some work! You should spend at least 20 minutes between now and Monday doing some work--that might be reading, annotating and/or writing. We'll check in on Monday, and we'll continue working.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Read Chapters 18-24 in "The Body." Annotate the text, keeping a close eye on how Gordie's role as storyteller. Because he's the narrator, this is essentially Gordie's story...right?
• Read your independent book!

Homework: December 11

English 12

Read and annotate chapters 15 and 16 in " The Body."

Honors English 11

Read chapter 8 in Strength in What Remans.

Homework: December 10

English 11 (F)

• If you didn't complete the homework assignment due today, please do so for next class (Thursday). If I gave your assignment back to you, work to add the detail requested, so you're ready for class on Thursday.
• Take a look at this site to map your "Slavery Footprint." We'll discuss this in class on Thursday,
• You may also check out these sites for more information:
• Polaris Project
• Slavery Map
• The World Counts

Honors English 12 (G)

• Today in class, we talked about Gordie as a narrator and a storyteller. You pulled some evidence from the text, and analyzed patterns and anomalies that you found. Now, your job is to write up your observations into a formal 1-2 paragraph response. The "big" question is: Who tells the story, and how? Include specific evidence and language to support your idea. The clear answer is "Gordie"--but what do we learn about Gordie, and what do we learn from him? How does he tell the story of "The Body"? You might consider: language, order of events, intertext, point of view, time...
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Read chapter 7 by Friday. Keep an eye out for those vocab words, and pay attention to the way Kidder provides background information about Deo's life in Burundi.
• Complete a 3-paragraph reader response--
• Summarize
• Respond: I notice, I think, I wonder
• Connect: Make connections between this text and your schema (prior knowledge--might be literary, historical, current events...)
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Write a paragraph comparing the treatment of the train scene in the book v. the film version of "The Body." You might write about things like the way Gordie "directs" Vern in the film--is the treatment the same in the book? Use language from the book to explain!

Homework: December 9

Honors English 12 (G)

• Finish reading chapter 16, and read 17, too! Keep an eye on the storytelling aspects of the text--what kind of storyteller is Gordie? How and why does he tell the stories he does?
• We'll talk more about FEAR and its role in the story tomorrow in class.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Read Chapter 6 of Strength. 
• Finish up your Article of the Week assignment--it's due tomorrow!
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Read Chapters 13 and 14 in "The Body." Some important things happen, including a significant character moment for Vern. And, there's a huge event! We'll talk about it tomorrow, and we'll compare it to the film version.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Read chapter 7 by Wednesday. Keep an eye out for those vocab words, and pay attention to Deo's experience as Kidder relates his earlier life in Burundi.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: December 6

English 12 (B)

• Read and annotate chapters 10-12 of "The Body." On Monday, we will have a reading quiz, so make sure you're prepared! You should know information about each of the characters, and you should know important events about the plot.
• Read your independent book1

Honors English 11 (D)

• In class today, we started doing some brainstorming/prepping for writing about Strength in What Remains, and now you'll write about it! Write a one-pager this weekend, in which you focus on and explore something interesting you've noticed in the text. Below, you'll find my in-class brainstorm--remember, this piece was a very quick, and rough, initial session of brainstorming. It's all over the place, and jumpy, and shows the way my mind works. (Yikes!) In order to write my one pager, I'd choose a point of focus, and "write to explore"--remember the one-pager is all about figuring things out. It should be one page, typed, single spaced. If you can't type it, just make sure that you make up for the length when handwriting.
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• We had a great discussion today, about your independent reading books, and about Frederick Douglass. For homework tonight, complete the front side of the chart. We brainstormed some potential purposes Douglass might have had for writing. They were:
• to share the horrors of slavery with those in the North
• to show how horrible/disgusting some people (slave owners/overseers) were within the system
• to advocate for slavery's end
• to show how strong/smart slaves (Douglass) can be
• Over the weekend, on the chart, you'll choose two of the purposes listed above, and you'll examine the story to find evidence that fits. We'll use the evidence we find to decide if all of the ideas we had are accurate, or if they can be fine-tuned. Then, we'll use them to guide our reading as we move forward.
• Also, read your independent reading book!
• Here's that relevant quotation that Luis brought up in class; RIP Nelson Mandela:

Homework: December 5

Honors English 11 (D)

• Read Strength in What Remains, chapter 6. Keep taking notes. We'll plan out some writing tomorrow.
• Read your independent reading book!

English 11 (F)

• Read Frederick Douglass, chapter 2. Mark it up--identify observations, connections, and questions.
• Read your independent reading book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Read "The Body," chapters 13-15. Be ready for a reading quiz on Monday!
• Read your independent book and enjoy your weekend!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Write your one-pager for Strength in What Remains. We did some freewriting in class today to generate some ideas. Mine's below--remember, I talked to you about my process of idea-generating. This freewrite isn't edited, and it isn't organized yet...it's just part of the writing process. I would pick one idea to really focus in on to write my one pager...
• Read your independent book and have a great weekend!

Homework: December 4

English 11 (F)

• Read Chapter 1 of Frederick Douglass's Narrative. Annotate it, making note of your OBSERVATIONS, QUESTIONS and CONNECTIONS.
• Read your independent reading book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Complete your one-pager response to this question:
• What does King want readers to understand about the experience of growing up, for these four boys, in 1960 (PURPOSE)? How does he help readers understand (STRATEGIES)? 
• Remember, focus on the whole section (chapters 1-12). Find an angle, or a lens, to view the text through. Use specific language from the text!
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Read Chapter 4 in Strength. Make notes on your organizer for the categories of Memories, Questions, and contrasts/contradictions. You established a focus of your own, too, so make notes about that!
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Read "The Body" chapters 6, 8 and 9. Make notes about characters, setting and adventure. Fill in your character chart, too!
• Be ready to write about the story tomorrow in class!!!
• Read your independent book!

Homework: December 3

Honors English 11 (A)

• By next week (Tuesday, I think we said?), complete the "E-cigarette" Article of the Week assignment.
• For tomorrow, read chapter 3 in Strength in What Remains.
• Read your independent reading book!

English 12 (B)

• Read "The Body," chapters 1-4. As you read, keep an eye on how Stephen King establishes: Characters, Settings, and ADVENTURE! Make notes on the text. We'll talk tomorrow.
• Read your independent book.

Honors English 11 (D)

• Check yesterday's post--it's there! :)

 

Homework: December 2

Honors English 11 (D)

• For Tuesday, complete the Article of the Week assignment on E-cigarettes.
• For Thursday, read Chapters 4 and 5 of Strength in What Remains. Remember, in class today you chose a focus, so focus on it!
• Read your independent book.

English 11 (F)

• Complete a 3-paragraph response for the biography of Frederick Douglass. 
• Paragraph 1: Summarize the biography.
• Paragraph 2: Respond to the biography: "I notice...," "I wonder...," "I think..."
• Paragraph 3: Connections...to "The Yellow Wallpaper" and other stories you've read...
• Read your independent reading book.

Honors English 12 (G)

• Read chapters 8-12. Make sure you keep focused on the details--the ways that King establishes the characters, the setting, and the adventure.
• Read your independent book.

Homework: November 27

Honors English 11 (D)

• Read Chapter 3 in Strength in What Remains. We'll talk Monday.
• Read your independent book!

AND, to everyone:

Homework: November 26

English 11 (F)

• Read your independent book a lot, and eat some turkey!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Thanks for telling some great adventure stories today!
• Read Chapters 1-6 of "The Body." Make some notes, paying attention to how King establishes: the characters, the setting and the adventure.
• Read your independent book a lot, and eat some turkey!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Read Chapter 2 of Strength in What Remains.
• Read your independent book a lot, and eat some turkey!

English 12 (B)

• You have an essay draft due Tuesday--you should be in good shape after all of our in-class work time.
• Read your independent book a lot, and eat some turkey!

Homework: November 25

Honors English 12 (G)

• Work on your response! A draft is due tomorrow--I'll take a look!
• Tomorrow we'll prepare to read "The Body."
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Read Strength in What Remains, chapter 1. Keep an eye on how the main character, Deo, experiences the new world he's thrown into. Look at the language used to describe his experience.
• We'll deal with the Works Cited-tastrophe later. It's ok...it'll get done.
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Work on your essay!
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (D)

• We'll finish up the Works Cited lists on Wednesday morning.
• Read Strength in What Remains, chapter 2.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: November 22

English 12 (B)

• Work on your essay! At least two paragraphs by Monday--you choose which two! Make it good--we'll work in class on Monday.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Read Chapter 1 in Strength in What Remains. Keep track of your observations, questions and connections.
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• Read and make notes on the essay "The Rest Cure Revisited." Annotate your observations, questions and connections.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: November 21

Honors English 11 (A and D)

• Paper revisions are due next class! Work hard on them...come see me if you have questions or need help. I expect some changes and revisions--don't even think about just reprinting your original version (or, just fixing a couple of little mistakes and calling it a day). Not that you would do that...
• Read your independent reading book!

English 11 (F)

• You folks did some great thinking and reading today. I was psyched to be part of such a thoughtful, academic-minded atmosphere! After reading the first half of "The Yellow Wallpaper," you asked some great questions that helped guide your reading through the end. Here are some of the questions that I noted:
• What's up with:
• the room?
• the husband? Why does he talk to her like she's a child?
• the wallpaper?
• the baby?
• Is she seeing something different? She says the wallpaper should go, but John says no.
• Is it making her worse to sit there by herself?
• We learn about the story through her perspective--how is this important to our understanding? Is John really like that, or is she just telling us he is?
• Why doesn't he want her to write?
• For homework, your job is to finish reading the story. What's UP with that ending? We'll talk tomorrow. Once you're done reading, write a one-paragraph response to the question/focus you chose, and/or about your observations and ideas about the story.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Work on your Room comparative essay. It's due Tuesday! The ideas are looking great--I'm really looking forward to talking about them and reading them.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: November 20

English 11 (F)

• Read "The Yellow Wallpaper" up to the point marked in class. Make notes of your OBSERVATIONS, QUESTIONS and CONNECTIONS. We'll talk more about the story in class tomorrow.
• Read your independent reading book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Work on preparing your comparative essay. You should come in tomorrow prepared to write--you'll have computers to use.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Write up a reflection, in which you rank the 5 Red Sox articles from best to worst (1-5). You decide what constitutes qualities of a strong essay--just be ready to discuss! In a reflection, talk about why you chose the ones you did. You might mention structure, diction, argument, idea-development, etc. 
• If you didn't finish your in-class response, use the template below to finish up.
• Work on your essay revisions! I'm around after school (just...not today. But tomorrow!)...come by to chat about your essay!
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Work on preparing your essay--brainstorm, or start freewriting/thinking/organizing. We'll start writing on Friday.
• As we talked about in class, Ma's experience is a really complex one. Check out these two blog entries, written/drawn by a woman named Allie Brosh, about her experience with depression. Her experience isn't necessarily the same as Ma's, but it might give a different perspective about what dealing with depression might be like. Keep in mind: there's some challenging language here, and the topic itself is challenging and upsetting. If you have questions about these posts, or want to talk with me about them, just let me know! Or, if you don't want to talk with me, that's ok...talk with someone.
• Adventures in Depression
• Depression, part 2 

Homework: November 19

Honors English 11 (A)

• Study those vocab words! You have a quiz tomorrow.
• Additionally, you should be working on your essay revisions...they're due at the end of the week. Remember, I'm around after school if you have questions or want help!
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• We had a great conversation today about the nature of growing up and the lessons that we learn from Room. We'll come back to it tomorrow, specifically to look at how Ma has been affected by the experience. 
• Tonight, write up a reflection on today's conversation.
• In the first paragraph, summarize some of the main ideas of the conversation. Mention some of the things you discussed, and some of the ideas and evidence you shared with each other.
• In the second paragraph, reflect on your thoughts. What do you think about the question posed? How was your thinking affected by the conversation? What were some of the ideas that others shared, and what do you think of them?
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Write up a reflection, in which you rank the 5 Red Sox articles from best to worst (1-5). You decide what constitutes qualities of a strong essay--just be ready to discuss! In a reflection, talk about why you chose the ones you did. You might mention structure, diction, argument, idea-development, etc. 
• If you didn't finish your in-class response, use the template below to finish up.
• Work on your essay revisions! I'm around after school...come by to chat about your essay!
• Read your independent book!

Fan of the Hunger Games? Check out The Hungry Games!

Starring...Cookieness Evereat!

Homework: November 18

Honors English 11 (D)

• Study your vocabulary! You have a quiz tomorrow.
• Work on your essay revisions--they're due at the end of the week. I'm here after school this week, every day except for today. Come work with me!
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• A draft of your theme project response is due Wednesday. I'm around after school tomorrow if you have questions or need help.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Start working on your Comparing and Reviewing Room assignment. Make sure you've carefully read the model text, and figure out what topic you'd like to consider in your response.
• Read your independent book!

Smart kids discussing literature and life...

...happening daily in Honors English 12.

These notes are my attempt to capture the brilliance of the debrief of a class text-based seminar that examined Emma Donoghue's Room, the nature of growing up, and connections with T.S. Eliot's "Burnt Norton." These aren't even the original discussion notes and questions, just the post-discussion discussion. It doesn't even come close to showing the depth of thought and nuanced discussion that took place over the two days. Believe me, that was a sight to behold.

Homework: November 15

Have a great weekend, everyone! The weather's supposed to be nice and warm!

English 11 (F)

• If necessary, work on your theme triangle organizer. Many of you are all set with it (it should have been finished by today), but some of you want to take it and do more. 
• Be prepared to continue writing in class on Monday. I'm going to take a look at what you've done so far, so I'm ready to help you out on Monday.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Continue to ponder the philosophical, meaning-of-life questions that the philosophy corner of Pat, Kyle and Cam threw out in class today. We'll talk on Monday about the reviews you'll be writing.
• Read the article "They Loved Your G.P.A. Then They Saw Your Tweets" and mark it up. We'll talk on Monday. (You don't need to write a reflection.)
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A & D)

• Keep working on those essay revisions! Remember, they're due by the end of next week (unless you need more time...if so, talk to me). If you're having the "theme challenge," check out this link. There are lots of themes here, so you can just check to make sure you've identified a theme!
• Study your vocab! We'll do some review next week, then a quiz!
• Read the packet of Red Sox articles. Mark 'em up, and identify the main argument of each one. We'll talk about 'em on Monday (block D) and Tuesday (block A)
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• If you didn't finish your response in class today, finish it up this weekend.
• Ponder this question: What did the story of Room teach you about the nature of growing up, and how did it teach you those things? We'll have some discussion about that question next week.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: November 14

"Time and the bell have buried the day..."  

T.S. Eliot, "Burnt Norton"

Honors English 12 (G)

• What a great conversation we had this morning! You discussed some really significant topics, and you did so in really thoughtful, detailed, and philosophical ways. I really wish I had the whole thing recorded, but I guess we'll just have to chalk it up to being there in the moment, and experience that feeling that Eliot spoke of so well: "only in time can the moment in the rose-garden/.../Be remembered..." 
• Tonight, you're just writing up what you heard in class today. A reflection--a thoughtful paragraph on each conversation. You can write your thoughts on the topic you didn't get to discuss, and your experience of the conversation you did take part in. Talk about what resonated with you in the discussions. We'll debrief tomorrow.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A and D)

• Work on revisions! I'm around after school to go over questions with you, if you've got 'em!
• Study vocab! We'll do an in-class "pre-quiz" next week (Monday for block D, Tuesday for block A), then an actual quiz! (Tuesday for block D, Wednesday for A).
• Read your Red Sox articles. You just need to make notes on each, and write down the MAIN IDEA OR ARGUMENT for each one. You can do that right on the handout at the end of each article. We'll use them to write a short essay in class on Monday(D)/Tuesday(A).
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Finish reading Room! Remember, you had a guiding question to consider. Make some notes.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: November 13

English 12 (B)

• Read Room! Remember, you should finish the book by Friday. As you read, take notes about the following question:
• How has Ma changed after leaving Room? How has Jack changed?
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Star essay revisions! Remember, all essays have room to grow; all benefit from feedback and patient revision. (Remember that example essay I showed you in class? Yikes!) 
• We'll work on revisions tomorrow in class...make sure you bring your questions!
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• Project prep: In class today, you should have identified a theme idea. The theme should be a message that is present in Alexie's work, Malala's story, and another story of your choosing (movie, book, biography, TV show, current event). For Friday, complete your triangle organizer by filling in specific details from each story that help support the theme. For each text, you should have 5-10 details (quotations, specific events, character details).
• In class on Friday, you'll write! Make sure you're prepared with a thoughtfully completed triangle organizer.
• Here's the article that I talked about in class today, where John Elder Robison resigned his roles at Autism Speaks because he didn't agree with their classification of autism as "a problem." There are some interesting potential thematic connections with Alexie and Malala--refusing to view challenges as inherently problematic, and a desire to live life beyond labels, to name a couple.

Homework: November 12

Honors English 11 (A and D)

• Read and mark up the 5 texts in the packet of articles distributed in class today. For each, determine the main argument the essay is making. Complete this assignment by next Monday (D) or Tuesday (A).
• Read your independent book--remember, we set reading goals this week!

Honors English 12 (G)

• On Thursday, we will have our seminar! In order to be prepared, please make notes for both questions. You should be fully prepared to discuss either question.
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• Spend 15 minutes looking at the connections between Alexie's work and Malala's story. Look for common topics, then develop a couple of possible THEMES that are present in both stories. Start looking for evidence from each text that supports the theme idea. If you're not sure about connections, start by writing, "I'm not sure about connections...maybe _________" and write to discover an idea. 
• If you're still not sure what to say or write, come work with me tomorrow after school!
• Read your independent book, too!

Homework: November 7

English 11 (F)

• If you can, finish watching the Malala Yousefzhai interview--you can find it here. You took notes today, but if you can add more, do it!
• Read and annotate the chapter of Malala's autobiography. If you need to, look up words, titles, and places to find out more about them.
• Read your independent reading book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Read and annotate the poem "Burnt Norton" and make connections between lines/ideas from the poem and the story Room. Remember, the doctor alludes to the poem, so we'll discuss what "Burnt Norton" adds to our understanding of Room. On the handout, it says that the allusion is made on p. 247, but that's a reference to an earlier version of the text. The reference is on page 307 in our text, so please mark your handout accordingly.
• Start thinking about and planning for both Text-Based Discussion questions.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Complete the writing exercise handout. Write a good story!
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Read Room. You should finish section 4 ("After") by Wednesday.
• Write a reflection on the book. Use the bright green Core Skills sheet to select 2 prompts, from different categories.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: November 6

Honors English 11 (A and D)

• Write a thoughtful and detailed 2-paragraph reflection. Check the previous posts for photo documentation of the conversations--they'll help you remember!
• In paragraph one, give an overview/summary of some of the big ideas we discussed in class today. Mention idea-givers by name, when possible, and summarize the main arguments/analysis you heard.
• In paragraph two, reflect and respond. You might take on an idea that a classmate offered up, and develop it even more. You might challenge an interpretation, or connect a couple of different ideas. If someone's idea made you think of another interpretation, write about that!
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Continue reading Room! Make sure you're up to page 242 by tomorrow--there will be some writing to do...!
• Read your independent book!

"Hell-Heaven" discussion notes--D block

"Hell-Heaven" discussion notes--A block

Homework: November 5

Honors English 11 (D)

• Write a one-pager for "Hell-Heaven"--use the handout I gave you in class to help. Remember, it doesn't have to be formal, but it should make an argument and share some analysis!

English 11 (F)

• Using your drawing, and your notes from class, PICK ONE of the three symbols from the last chapter of True Diary, and write a paragraph using this format:

     In the last chapter of True Diary, Sherman Alexie includes the story of ___________________. Basically, __( in 1-2 sentences, give summary)_____________. In general, (trees/horses/lakes) can be symbolic because they have ____________________________________________ qualities. 
     I believe that Alexie’s purpose in including this story is to make the point that _________________________________. His description of __________(a detail from the story)____________ connects with _____(big idea from the novel). For example, ________________________________ is like ______________________________. Additionally, ________________________________________________________. By including the story of ________________________, Sherman Alexie ____(final statement about story’s role in novel). 

Honors English 12 (G)

• UPLOAD YOUR ESSAY TO TURNITIN, if you haven't already! DO IT!!!
• Write a two-paragraph response/reflection to the Aimee Bender review of Room called "Separation Anxiety." The first paragraph should be a summary/overview of Bender's article (choose the most significant points), and the second paragraph should share your opinion--do you disagree, with reasons? agree, with a difference? agree and disagree simultaneously?  Use the templates from class to help you form your response.

Homework: November 4

English 11 (F)

• Read and annotate "Superman and Me" by Sherman Alexie. Make notes of your QUESTIONS, OBSERVATIONS and CONNECTIONS.
• When you've finished reading it, add 3 details from the essay to your Sherman Alexie topics web.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Read and annotate the review/critique of Room that was written by Aimee Bender. You can find it here if you don't have a copy from class.
• Don't forget to upload your "St. Lucy's"/Pleasantville essay to turnitin.com! The class code is 7244982, the password is GWARR
• We talked about some grammar stuff in class--gerunds and possessives. It's confusing and complicated...if you want to reread the material or see more, check out these two links:
• Grammar Girl
• Grammartips
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Write a one-pager for "Hell-Heaven"--use the handout I gave you in class to help. Remember, it doesn't have to be formal, but it should make an argument and share some analysis!

English 12

• Read Room! You should be read at least to pg. 207, ideally to the end of pg. 218.
• I gave you a headache talking about prepositions and gerunds and possessives today! Hooray! The links for some extra resources are listed above in the Honors English 12 section--check 'em out!
• Read your independent book!

Homework: October 31

Happy Halloween. Thank you for your gratuitous laughter and understanding of my "Hey, Viiiiccctttooorrrr-ino" costume! :)

Here's what's in store for you tonight!

English 12 (B)

• Read Room! You have time tonight, time in class tomorrow, and time over the weekend to finish the "Dying" section of the story.
• In class tomorrow, you'll have some work to do to identify character development moments for Jack.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Finish reading "Hell-Heaven" and complete a 3-paragraph reflection: 
• Summarize
• Respond--"I noticed," "I think," "I like/dislike..."
• Connect--This text reminds me of..., This character is dealing with the same issues as...
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• Write a 3-paragraph response to Smoke Signals:
• Summarize
• Respond--"I noticed," "I think," "I like/dislike..."
• Connect--This text reminds me of..., This character is dealing with the same issues as...
• Read your independent book!

Homework: October 29

English 11 (F)

• Annotate the last chapter of True Diary on the handout provided today in class. Make notes of your OBSERVATIONS, QUESTIONS and CONNECTIONS, as demonstrated in class today.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Complete your "St. Lucy's"/Pleasantville essay! You should have the final with you in class tomorrow.
• Finish Room!
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Using the questions you developed in class today to keep guiding you through "Hell-Heaven." Finish reading to the bottom of page 10 for tomorrow.
• Some of the reading questions we developed today were:
• Which character does Pranab consider more of a father figure: Pranab, or her own father?
• What are Pranab's intentions? What is his character?
• What is the balance of Bengali culture and American culture for this family?
• Study your vocab!
• Read your independent book.

English 12 (B)

• Complete section 2 ("Unlying") of Room.
• Use sticky notes to mark places where you notice repetitions, contrasts/contradictions, memories, questions, etc., as explained in class. 
• Read your independent book!

Homework: October 28

Honors English 11 (A and D)

• We're reading a short story over the next couple of days. It's called "Hell-Heaven" by Jhumpa Lahiri. If you lose your copy, you can find one here.
• In class, we identified some vocabulary words. Keep an eye out for them as you read!
• Tonight, please read to the middle of page 6 in the story. Make notes about your QUESTIONS, OBSERVATIONS and CONNECTIONS.
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• We've had some great conversations about Room. As you keep reading, keep some of those questions and big ideas in mind.
• For tomorrow, read to page 74. There are two section breaks on that page; please read to the second section break.
• Read your independent book!

Homework: October 25

Honors English 11 (D)

• Complete your response to the article you read in class regarding the Washington Redskins mascot debate. Use this template, from They Say/I Say to help: 

• Read your independent reading book!

English 11 (F)

• Finish reading True Diary!
• Add items to your bubble sheet: at least 20 events/facts and at least 10 quotations. Make sure to include page numbers!
• Read your independent book.

Honors English 12 (G)

• Work on those essays! I gave you back your drafts, with feedback. Now, use that feedback to make your essay the best! (If you gave me your essay today, come get it on Monday. If you haven't given me your essay yet...GIMME!) Finals are due on Wednesday.
• Continue reading Room.
• After our discussion of Room earlier this week, I was reminded of these two posts by a blogger who is very talented, and funny, and open about her experiences with depression. Please read the following blog posts, keeping the character of Ma in mind. Perhaps they'll help you to understand her struggles.
• Adventures in Depression
• Depression part two
• Read your independent book!

Homework: October 24

English 11 (F)

• Tonight, you're reading and you're adding to your topics organizer. 
• You should finish through 198, and you should add a whole lot of information to your organizer. Good work today in class--you accomplished a lot!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Read Room--you'll finish the book for next Wednesday.
• Read your independent book, too!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Complete your response to the CNN article about the Redskins logo controversy. Here's the template, from They Say/I Say by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein:

In recent discussions of ___________________, a controversial issue has been whether _______________________. On the one hand, some argue that_______________________. From this perspective, _______________________. On the other hand, however, some argue that _______________________. In the words of one of this view’s main proponents, __________________. According to this view, _______________________. In sum, then, the issue is whether _______________ or  ________________________.

     My own view is that_______________________. Though I concede that_______________________,  I still maintain that _______________________. For example, _______________________. Although some might object that_______________________, I would reply that_______________________. The issue is important because_______________________.

English 12 (B) 

• Complete a three-paragraph response to the first section of Room (pages 1-56). Your response should follow this structure:
• Paragraph 1: Summarize
• Paragraph 2: Reader Response--what do you think of the book so far? What do you like, what questions do you have? What do you notice as you read?
• Paragraph 3: Connections--What connections can you make between this book and other texts/real world experiences?

Go Sox!

I took this photo when I went to Fenway for the 100th anniversary celebration a year ago. These seats are psyched to watch the Series. Go Sox!

English 12: Room questions

On Tuesday, we had a great conversation in English 12 about the opening pages (1-42) of the novel Room by Emma Donoghue. These five big questions have provided a PURPOSE for us as we keep reading the story. Check them out here!

Homework: October 23

English 11 (F)

• Read True Diary to page 168--make sure you read the cartoon!
• Remember, you're looking at those 10 topics you chose today in class--make notes on your paper of events, quotations, and/or details that are connected to those topics. Look to add at least five!
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Your essays are due tomorrow! Make 'em good!
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Read your independent book!

Homework: October 22

Whew! This post is later than usual--there were so many people here after school to work on essays! We had some good conversations, and I'm interested to learn a lot from your essays!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Keep working on those analytical essays. Finals are due Thursday.
• We'll talk about Room tomorrow...through that 4th section.
• Read your independent reading book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Your essay is due tomorrow! Make sure it's printed out. Bring your drafts, too.
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• You did some great work today with Room. Keep those questions in mind, and read to the end of the first section of the book--page 56.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Read your independent reading book!
• (If you didn't pass in your essay today, remember that you'll need to drop it off to me. I don't see you folks again until Friday!)

Writing resources: Citing poetry

Here's a great resource for citing poetry:

http://www.georgetowncollege.edu/eng/resources/how-to-quote-poetry-in-english-papers/

Resources for writing: Blending quotations

Here's a quick video that talks about three main ways to blend quotations into your writing:

Homework: October 21

English 12 (B)

• Read Room! Up to page 42. We'll talk about it in class tomorrow.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Your essay is due tomorrow! Make sure it's printed out. Bring your drafts, too.
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• Write a revision of your "Reservation Mathematics" analytical paragraph. Use the notes we made in class today to help!
• Read your independent book.

Homework: October 18

GO SOX! GO PATS! GO B's! GO CELTS!

English 11 (F)

• Read True Diary. You should read to page 158. We'll be finishing the book next week; if you know you have a busy week coming up, read a little extra this weekend. Remember, you'll need to be able to summarize your reading, and determine important quotations, patterns and signposts. Be ready to write and discuss!
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A and D) AND Honors English 12 (G)

• Work on those essays! Revisit the feedback you've received, and consider the clarity and depth of your analysis. Specifically, work on the following things:
• Revisit your thesis, after reading your full essay and your writing group's comments. Does your essay really develop the idea that's presented in your thesis? If yes, hooray! If no: 
• Consider revising your thesis. It may be the case that you developed a more interesting/nuanced idea as you wrote your essay. Your thesis should reflect that.
• Consider revising your proof and analysis to better develop your thesis. 
• Check out your proof. Have you analyzed it enough? Does the analysis help connect your proof to your thesis, and does your essay develop a clear and interesting analytical argument?
• Take some time to consider your transitions. REMEMBER: Transitions guide your readers through your essay. If your essay has moments that are confusing for readers, use transitions to develop your idea. There are some resources to check out in this post.
• Finally, would a part of your essay benefit from a counterargument? Remember, sometimes it helps to recognize a different interpretation of evidence as you present your own. I used Dynazya and Kate's example in class: In Sherman Alexie's poem "Influences," he describes children stealing beer from their parents in order to prevent the parents from drinking. Kate presented this action as a sign of role reversal (the children taking on the protective role), while Dynazya took it as a sign of rebellion by the kids. You might write: "The children steal beer from their parents. Though this act might be viewed as rebellion, on closer examination it becomes clear that their intent is protective..." You'd then go on to talk about the role of protection in the poem, including other examples from the poem to develop your idea. 
• Next class, we'll review the following:
• Your transitions!
• Blending evidence/quotations.
• Citing your sources.
• Read your independent books. Enjoy!

Resources for writing--TRANSITIONS

Here are a couple of great resources for using transitions within your essays. Remember, transitions are about more than just "making it flow and sound nice"! They help link sections of your analysis, making sure that you're building the strongest argument possible.

This handout does a great job of explaining the function of transitions.

This one does too, and has A LOT of transition words broken up into categories.

Homework: October 17

English 11 (F)

• Read True Diary! You should finish through page 149 tonight. Tomorrow, you'll be writing summaries and reflecting, so make sure you read carefully!
• Read your independent book.

Honors English 12 (G)

• Prepare a draft college/personal essay. Tomorrow, you'll get some feedback. You should come to class with a PRINTED OUT draft.
• Read your independent book.

Honors English 11 (A)

• Today, we spent some time looking at first drafts of your essays. You got some initial feedback from your classmates. BRING THOSE DRAFTS, with sticky notes, with you on Friday, so we can continue to talk about them. 
• Spend some time to start reading through the notes, and make some revisions to your paper. Build your introduction, revise your thesis, and dig into the language/examples any more.
• Study those vocab words--we'll do an activity to practice them on Friday.
• Read your independent book!

English 12 (B)

• Read Room, to the end of page 31. We'll continue to address the question: What PURPOSE does telling the story from Jack's perspective serve?
• Read your independent book!

Homework: October 16

Honors English 11 (A)

• You have an essay draft due tomorrow! Hooray!
• Remember, do the very best you can, and bring in a HARD COPY of your paper tomorrow. We'll look at some model work, and we'll do some peer/group work. It's going to be great!
• Study your vocab words--we'll do an activity with them on Friday.
• Read your independent book.

English 12 (B)

• Start reading Room. You're reading up to the point that we marked in class, on page 13. Pay attention to the narrative voice...we're going to be talking a lot about our narrator, as well as his experiences and understanding.
• Read your independent book.

Honors English 11 (D)

• Today, we spent some time looking at first drafts of your essays. You got some initial feedback from your classmates. BRING THOSE DRAFTS, with sticky notes, with you on Friday, so we can continue to talk about them. 
• Spend some time to start reading through the notes, and make some revisions to your paper. Build your introduction, revise your thesis, and dig into the language/examples any more.
• Study those vocab words--we'll do an activity to practice them on Friday.

Honors English 12: important upcoming dates!

Homework: October 16

Go Sox! 

Honors English 11 (D)

• You folks have a draft essay due tomorrow! Hooray! Do your very best, pay careful attention to the assignment sheet, and put together a strong argument. Tomorrow in class, we'll do some workshopping--make sure you bring a copy of your essay to class with you!
• Read your independent book!

English 11 (F)

• Read True Diary to page 129. Make sure you come to class ready to write tomorrow!
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• Next class, you have a draft essay due! Write something interesting, and make sure you back up your idea with a lot of proof and analysis. We'll workshop them in class--you'll get some good feedback!
• Read your independent book!

"On Turning Eighteen"

In our Coming of Age Literature course, we wrote poems that were modeled after Billy Collins's poem "On Turning Ten." Ours were called "On Turning Eighteen," and they mimicked the structure of Collins's poem, while focusing on important coming-of-age moments that we find when we're on the brink of the adulthood suggested by the BIG birthday of eighteen.

Here's Emily Metivier's poem:

The whole idea of it makes me feel excited but sad,

A crazy feeling that isn’t pleasing,

Worse than an anxiety attack,

like going to Disney Land with the flu,

or going to the beach with no bathing suit.

You tell me to be independent and mature,

but I still need to go to my mom for help,

I remember my childhood,

going outside and playing games,

crying over a broken plate,

watching Spongebob,

in middle school a pre-teen,

in high school a young woman.

But now it is time to be an adult,

join all of my adult idols and figures.

As a child the little things were a big deal,

now going to the mall and buying shoes,

crying over a broken heart,

watching R- rated movies.

In college a young adult,

yet in the working world a fully grown woman.

This is the beginning of adulthood,

a clean slate,

unaware of what's to come next,

It’s time to say goodbye to high school gossip,

time to be an independent college student.

It only seems yesterday it was my first day of kindergarten,

there was only the fear of getting tagged during recess,

I could run around for hours,

but now i want to go to bed at 8pm,

I am tired,

exausted.

Link: Alexie and Bill Moyers interview

Some of you Honors English 11 folks were hoping to use Sherman Alexie's interview with Bill Moyers to help you develop your essay. Here's the link!

Homework: October 11

Happy long weekend! Enjoy the beautiful fall weather! Read a book outside, or something awesome like that.

English 11 (F)

• Complete Steps 1, 2 and 3 of the Writing about "Reservation Mathematics" handout.
• Study your vocabulary!
• Read your independent book! 

Honors English 12 (G)

• You should be working on your analytical essay, and on your college/personal essay. Drafts of those essays are due next week.
• Keep reading Room! We had a great conversation about it today, and you're noticing a lot of important things. You jotted down some things you want to watch for as you read the next section--make sure you're looking for them!
• Read your independent book.

Honors English 11 (A)

• Work on your essay! Drafts are due next week.
• Study your vocabulary words!
• Upcoming important dates:
• Full first draft of Alexie essay, due 10/17
• Vocabulary quiz-through "disdain", 10/18
• Final Alexie essay, due 10/23
• Read your independent book! Study your vocab!

English 12 (B)

• Work on your college/personal essays.
• Study your vocab!
• Read your independent book!

Homework: October 10

Honors English 12 (G)

• Work on your essay!
• Make sure you've read through the section "Dying" in Room.
• Upcoming Dates:
• Full draft of analytical essay, due 10/17
• Draft of college/personal essay, due 10/18
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (A)

• Work on your essay! Spend 20-30 minutes tonight, at least, working on developing your ideas, and deepening your thinking. You should be identifying a theme...remember, that's different from a topic. (For example, a topic might be "identity," but that's not a theme. To find your theme, answer this question: What does Alexie SAY about the topic?) 
• If you need some guidance, here are a couple of resources:
• This site lists a WHOLE LOT of potential topics/motifs that are present in a lot of literary texts. These aren't themes yet, but if one stands out, you should ask yourself, "What does Alexie SAY about this topic?"
• This page contains some common themes found in literature. Check yours against the examples given here. It's not going to be the same as any of these, but it should have the same features. It should make a statement about Alexie's main idea or message, but shouldn't be story-specific (meaning, it's not the plot, and it can apply to more than one text if another text has the same message).
• Read your independent book.

English 12 (B)

• Personal essay work: Do some brainstorming and/or drafting of your personal essay (otherwise known as your college essay). Be ready, in class tomorrow, to work on writing and revising!
• Start reviewing for your vocab quiz--it's on 10/16.
• Read your independent book.

Honors English 11 (D)

• Work on your essay! Drafts are due next week.
• Upcoming important dates:
• Full first draft of Alexie essay, due 10/16
• Vocabulary quiz-through "disdain", 10/17
• Final Alexie essay, due 10/22
• Read your independent book! Study your vocab!

Homework: October 9

English 12 (B)

• Write a response in which you compare Pleasantville and "St. Lucy's"--it should be about a page, 20 minutes.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 11 (D)

• Work on your essay! Spend 20-30 minutes tonight, at least, working on developing your ideas, and deepening your thinking. You should be identifying a theme...remember, that's different from a topic. (For example, a topic might be "identity," but that's not a theme. To find your theme, answer this question: What does Alexie SAY about the topic?) 
• If you need some guidance, here are a couple of resources:
• This site lists a WHOLE LOT of potential topics/motifs that are present in a lot of literary texts. These aren't themes yet, but if one stands out, you should ask yourself, "What does Alexie SAY about this topic?"
• This page contains some common themes found in literature. Check yours against the examples given here. It's not going to be the same as any of these, but it should have the same features. It should make a statement about Alexie's main idea or message, but shouldn't be story-specific (meaning, it's not the plot, and it can apply to more than one text if another text has the same message).
• Read your independent book.

English 11 (F)

• Complete the poetry organizer from class today.
• Read True Diary to page 113--be ready to write about it on Friday!
• Read your independent book.

Homework: October 8

English 11 (F)

• Tonight, complete the handout you received in class today in order to "research" in order to research for tomorrow's poetry study.
• By Friday, read to page 113 in True Diary.
• Read your independent book!

Honors English 12 (G)

• "St. Lucy's"/Pleasantville essay work!
• Read Room--we'll discuss section 3 (Dying) on Friday.
• Work on those college essays!

Honors English 11 (Block A and D)

• Spend 20-30 minutes starting your essay. Start with your working thesis, and start building your argument. It might be just writing/freewriting for 20-30 minutes, it might be mapping/planning/organizing, it might be pulling and analyzing evidence. Spend 20-30 FOCUSED, thoughtful minutes starting your process. 
• Remember, I showed you an example of how I might do this. You can check out the screenshot below from today's class: