Friday, September 30

Pre-AP
In today's class we took the third, successive quiz on The Odyssey.  Students were measured on their understanding of the plot as well as their analysis of the symbols that Homer uses in the poem.  They were also tested on their knowledge of heroic convention.

To further embed these heroic ideals, after students finished the test we watched a few minutes of Disney's Pinocchio as talked about the fact that, although it is not usually considered an epic, that by the epic conventions we discussed in class, it is a classical epic story.

Homework: Students should read through Part 4 of The Odyssey (page 1009-1018 in the textbook) and be prepared for the fourth quiz on this poem on Tuesday, October 4th.

AHSGE Reading Review
It's interview day!  Ryan Saxby, manager of the Tuscaloosa area Chick-Fil-A stores; Rick Harbin, an accountant; Preston Robertson, an insurance adjuster; and Leah Tollison, a teacher here at Hillcrest, are all coming into class to interview our students.  Students have been working on resumes all week, and are coming to class today ready to be hired! (Theoretically of course :) )

Thursday, September 29

Pre-AP
In today's class, we took our word of the day quiz, covering all words of the day that we have discussed in class thusfar.  Afterwards, we also completed a close reading of part three of The Odyssey.  Within that reading, we discussed how hospitality played a major role in the lives and everyday-behavior of the ancients, and how it drove some of the action in the story.  We also discussed the heroic light in which Homer casts Penelope.  All of this discussion and reading is in preparation for tomorrow's quiz on this part of The Odyssey.

Homework: Re-read and review part three of The Odyssey (pages 995-1006) in preparation for tomorrow's test.

AHSGE Reading Review
We finished watching Waiting for Superman today and had a class discussion about tenure laws and graduation examinations.

Homework: Students need to finish their typed, professional resumes and bring a copy with them to class tomorrow.  Students also must "dress up" for their mock-interviews tomorrow.  For guys, at least wear a polo-type shirt tucked into dress pants with dress shoes.  For girls, either a dress skirt or dress pants need to be worn along with closed-toed shoes and a dress shirt or blouse.

Wednesday, September 28

Pre-AP
In today's class we split our time between learning about pronoun-antecedent agreement and The Odyssey: Part 2.  Using our annotation skills from yesterday, we discussed how to annotate fiction and went through the second part of The Odyssey together to make sure that we understand both annotation and The Odyssey itself.

Homework: Read through The Odyssey: Part 3 in preparation for the test on Friday.  Also, students should study all of their words of the day in preparation for the word of the day test Thursday.

AHSGE Reading Review
In today's class, we reviewed about resumes and interview skills.  We also started watching a documentary about education in America called Waiting for Superman.  Students were encouraged to express their opinions about the content of the movie, as much as they saw.

Homework: Students should finish their professional resumes in preparation for the mock interviews that we will have in class on Friday.

Tuesday, September 27th

Pre-AP
In today's class, we discussed annotation and how it is different in fiction and non-fiction works.  We then got some practice at annotating non-fiction by reading through the article on "Heroes in Children's Literature" found in yesterday's hero packet.

Homework: Students need to finish "Heroes" article and finish annotating it.  Student also need to study for the WOD quiz on Thursday and The Odyssey: Part 3 quiz on Friday.

AHSGE Reading Review
In today's class, we discussed resumes and interview skills, and what it takes to make yourself stand out in the application process.

Homework:  Students must create and type a professional resume, and come to class on Friday dressed professionally, with a copy of their resume, ready for mock interviews.

Monday, September 26

Pre-AP
It's a heroic Monday in English!!

Within our study of Homer's The Odyssey, we are learning about what makes a hero a hero, and what makes an epic an epic.  These "heroic conventions" and "epic conventions" are still widely used in media even today, and as we discuss the topics in class we point out these connections so that students will understand that these ideas are relevant to their everyday lives.

Students in fourth block also finished up their research paper presentations today.

Students need to start preparing now for the Word of the Day quiz which will be on Thursday, and The Odyssey: Part 3 quiz which will be on Friday. Students need to have part 3 of The Odyssey (page 995-1006 in their textbook) read by Thursday.

We will also be discussing annotation in class this week, so in addition to their normal materials, students also need to bring a highlighter and a pack of post-it notes with them to class every day starting on Tuesday.

For a copy of the "Hero Packet" that we're using in class, click here.

AHSGE Reading Review
Today we finish up our comparison and contrast of quest stories.

Tomorrow we will begin learning job interview skills and how to write a resume.  Students need to make every effort not to miss any days of class this week, as the work for this assignment will be done largely in class.

Friday, September 23

Pre-AP
Today is test day!  In class, we took a quiz on all of our words of the day that we have had up to this point in class, as well as the second part of The Odyssey.  After students finished the quiz, we discussed epic conventions, e.g. the parts of an epic that make it truly epic!  We discussed how an epic poem's story arc differs from the normal Freytag story arc in subtle ways.  We also discussed how the epic story is still alive and well today in many modern books and movies.

AHSGE Reading Review
We're on a quest!  Or at least, we're reading and watching stories that are about quests. We continued the past few days' emphasis on comparing and contrasting several different quest stories.

Thursday, September 22

Pre-AP
1st block: In today's class, we started to discuss The Odyssey's role as being one of the most important epic poems ever written.  We discussed the different components of epic poetry and talked about various epic conventions, which we still see in modern media today in movies and books such as Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, and the Harry Potter series.  We also discussed the epic hero and compiled a list as a class of the characteristics of a hero.  We then put several examples to the test and determined whether or not they were heroes based on our criteria.

4th block: We continued our research paper presentations today and should finish them tomorrow.

Homework:  Finish reading The Odyssey Part 2.  Study the story and all of the Words of the Day to be ready for the quiz which we will take tomorrow.  Students should also finish their phrase poetry from the "Phrase Toolbox" packet that they received in class.

AHSGE Reading Review
We continued our comparison and contrast of Le Morte d'Arthur and The Princess Bride.

So far this week, here's what we have done...

Monday
Pre-AP: We started out our week by turning in the research papers on which we have been working.  1st block turned theirs in today. 4th block spent time peer-editing the rough drafts.  Then, we discussed the different kind of sound devices which poets use to enrich their craft, including alliteration, assonance, consonance, rythm, meter, and rhyme.  We also discussed several different types of phrasing, including prepositional phrases, appositive phrases, infinitives, gerunds, participial phrases, and nominative absolutes.  In tonight's homework, students use these types of phrases to create poems about a topic of their choice.

Homework: 1st block- prepare presentations; work on sound device packet.
                   4th block- finish research papers

AHSGE Reading Review: Today we went over several test-taking strategies to continue our preparation for the graduation exam.  The reading portion of the exam, for which this class helps to prepare the students, will be taken on Wednesday.

Tuesday
Pre-AP: In Tuesdsay's class, 1st block began giving their presentations.  4th block turned in their research papers and covered the grammar material that the first block covered yesterday.

Homework: 1st block: finish phrase poetry
                   4th block: prepare presentations; work on sound device packet

AHSGE Reading Review: There was an all-out reading blitz today!  Using O. Henry's short story entitled "The Gift of the Magi," the class went through all of the graduation exam's standards in reading.  Tomorrow, the students will be taking the reading portion of the graduation exam.

Wednesday
Pre-AP: In today's class, 1st block finished their presentations.  We also introduced the question which is at the forefront of the Odyssey: "What role does fate play in our lives?"  Considering our class's essential question, we also posed this idea: "Does the Greek's understanding of fate contain an element of prejudice as it is defined for this class?" (Prejudice- thinking about someone or acting a certain way toward someone based on factors that person cannot control.)  4th block began their presentations today.

Homework: 1st block: Finish phrase poetry; read The Odyssey, Part 2; study for WOD and The Odyssey   
                                   test
                   4th block: Finish sound device packet and phrase poetry; read The Odyssey, Part 2; study for
                                   WOD and The Odyssey test

AHSGE Reading Review: Today's class was positively medieval.  We discussed Sir Thomas Mallory's Le Morte d'Arthur, focusing on the plot and action of the story.  Then, we began watching The Princess Bride, in an effort to compare and constrast the two stories.

This week we'll combine our entries for simplicity's sake!  Enjoy the summarizing and please email me if you have any questions about a specific day's activities!
Pre-AP
This week is research paper week!  (The students' favorite week of the year, right?)  The entire week will be devoted to learning the research process, studying how to correctly format a research paper and all of the pieces leading up to the paper, and, finally, writing the paper itself.  Here is a schedule of the week's activities...

Monday
Take quiz on The Odyysey: Part 1 and Mythology notes from last week (1st block)
Begin talking about research process and library orientation

Tuesday
Continue research in the library
Take quiz on The Odyysey: Part 1 and Mythology notes from last week (4th block)


Wednesday
Go over research packets and talk about title page, bibliography, notes, and outlines
Continue to research in the library
Research Paper Outline due

Thursday
Review research process and packet
Continue research in the library and write rough draft

Friday
Rough Draft of research paper due
Discuss bibliographies written in the correct MLA format
Peer-edit of rough drafts
Go to library to begin typing final draft of research paper


RESEARCH PAPERS ARE DUE ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2011!!  Along with the research paper, students are also responsible for turning in their rough draft (with revisions), their peer-edits (completed), their correct outlines, and their note pages that are correctly formatted (at least three; one for each source).

Presentations of the papers will begin on Tuesday, September 20th.


AHSGE Reading Review
The graduation exam is next week!  So, this week we are going to review the "Reading Review Greatest Hits."  According to the data from last year's graduation exam, there are certain AHSGE standards that are missed more than any other.  We are going to have an intensive review of these standards this week, in hopes that all of the students will pass the grad exam in reading this time around!  Therefore, the Hunger Games quizzes this week will be different than normal.  This week's quizzes will also feature questions from our discussion of the AHSGE standards, to ensure student comprehension of the material.

Monday
Hunger Games Reading and Quiz
Summarizing Practice
How to Find Main Ideas

Tuesday
Hunger Games Reading and Quiz

Identifying Propaganda (Student write own piece of propaganda)
Recognizing Logical Fallacies

Wednesday
Hunger Games Reading and Quiz
Making Predictions
Using Organizational Patterns in writing

Thursday
Hunger Games Reading and Quiz
AHSGE practice on USA TestPrep in Library

Friday
Hunger Games Reading and Quiz

Practice Exam for Reading Comprehension (will count as test grade)


Again, if you have any questions about specific days, please do not hesitate to email me or call me at the school (205.342.2800) to make an appointment to meet.

Friday, September 9th

Pre-AP
Today we continued our discussion of Greek and Roman Mythology and began a powerpoint set of notes on Homer and the background of The Odyssey.  We also began reading through the story itself.

The first Odyssey quiz will be on Monday, September 12th.

AHSGE Reading Review
In today's class we reviewed all of the concepts we learned about this week and played a game to help increase retention of the concepts covered.

Thursday, September 8th

Pre-AP
We began our time together today talking about how myth has made its way into our modern-day story cannon in the form of ghost stories.  We read through work from Kathryn Tucker Windham and discussed how the oral tradition of passing story from generation to generation is still alive and well even in our society.

We also began our study of Greek and Roman Mythology to prepare ourselves to start reading The Odyssey.  The first quiz on The Odyssey will be on Monday, September 12th.

AHSGE Reading Review
Today's class will focus on learning about organizational patterns and functional literacy and will attempt to give students a basic understanding of how to use functional literature to procure employment and stay active in our society.

Wednesday, September 7th

Pre-AP
The students had a chance to try their own hands at Native American myth today.  The class broke into groups and studied different Cherokee myths about the origin of many parts of our world.  Then students gathered around a virtual campfire and each re-told the tales that they had learned.

AHSGE Reading Review
Students studied the important skill of being able to place events in sequence.  To practice this, students watched a video clip that contained a complex timeline, and put the events in the order in which they occurred.  This assignment was taken for a grade.

Tuesday, September 6th

Pre-AP
Folklore and myth make up a vital part of our contemporary literary canon, and it is especially pervasive in a sub-genre of folklore known as Native American myth.  In today's class, we began by talking about Native American myth and students were exposed to the legend of Ut'lun'ta, and ancient Cherokee myth about a woman who roams the forest. 

AHSGE Reading Review
Today's lesson was on figurative language.  The class broke into groups and read through several different Native American myths, in which they were to find examples of figurative language.  The students also retold the stories as a group to the class.

Friday, September 2nd

Pre-AP
In today's class, we reviewed and discussed the poetry that we began in yesterday's class, focusing on the information that the students found about the poets and authors in the library.

AHSGE Reading Review
In today's class, we covered reference material and how to use it for functional literacy.

Thursday, September 1st

Pre-Ap
In today's class we continued our study of Romeo and Juliet by looking at other literature and poetry that was affected by the play's strong themes of love and loss.  We studied works by Amy Lowell ("The Taxi"), Par Lagerkvist ("The Princess and All the Kingdom"), Robert Graves ("Count the Beats"), and Alfred, Lord Tennyson (In Memoriam).  Students researched these writers in the library and began an assignment where they would make a movie poster based on one of the works.  That poster is due on Tuesday, September 6th.

AHSGE Reading Review
In today's class, we finished watching the movie Simon Birch and discussed the correlations between it and Romeo and Juliet. Students filled out a graphic organizer enumerating the differences between the two works. To ensure comprehension of the subject, students took a quiz on comparing and contrasting.