Wednesday, December 19th

This will be the last blog post of the year!  I hope you all have a restful and joyful Christmas!  May the peace that the season promises lie on our country's hearts, especially those who have suffered such tragic and irrevocable losses in Connecticut. I'm sure you will all join me in sending them our best prayers and thoughts.

Pre-AP English 9
We spent our time in class today reviewing for the final.  Second block's final will be given on Thursday, December 20th and fourth block's will be given on Friday, December 21st.

To download a copy of the study guide, click here.

English 10
We spent our time in class today finishing our Shakespeare notes and reviewing for the final.

To download a copy of the study guide, click here.

Tuesday, December 18th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the LOTF  unit test in class today.

Homework:  Students should study for their final exam.  Second block's exam will be given on Thursday, December 20th.  Fourth block's exam will be given on Friday, December 21st.

English 10
We finished reading Julius Caesar in class today, and began talking about the life of William Shakespeare and the evolution of the English language.

To download a copy of the Shakespeare PowerPoint, click here.

To download a copy of the final exam study, click here.

Homework: Students should study for their final exam.  It will be given on Thursday, December 20th.

Monday, December 17th

Pre-AP English 9
Today's classes went to go and see the cinematic version of The Hobbit.  When we returned, we used the remaining time to review Lord of the Flies in preparation for the unit test tomorrow.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading Lord of the Flies and study for the unit test tomorrow.

English 10
In today's class, we began reading through Shakespeare's Julius Caesar.

Friday, December 14th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we quickly discussed propaganda and its relation to both World War II and modern media.  Afterwards, we watched several examples of the propaganda we discussed.  Finally, we continued to delve into the world of Lord of the Flies.

To download a copy of the Propaganda PowerPoint, click here.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading Lord of the Flies by Tuesday, December 14th. There will be a unit test on LotF on that Tuesday.  It will cover Words of the Day, sentence objects and complements, irregular verb forms, and the complete Lord of the Flies novel.  Students also need to start studying for the final exam. Second block's exam will be on Thursday, December 20th.  Fourth block's exam will be on Friday, December 21st.  To download a copy of the final exam study guide, click here.

English 10
Today, students took their test on Regionalism, Realism, and Naturalism.

Thursday, December 13th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we finished discussing Post-modernism and began reading through Lord of the Flies.

Homework: Students need to finish reading Lord of the Flies by Tuesday, December 18th.

English 10
Today, we read through "The Celebrated Jumping Frog..." by Mark Twain and "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin.  We discussed how these short stories portray the characteristics of the Realism, Regionalism, and Naturalism genres that we have discussed in class. 

Homework: Students should study their notes on these stories and genres in preparation for the test that they will have tomorrow.

Wednesday, December 12th

Pre-AP English 9
After reviewing sentence objects, we spent the rest of our class time discussing the following quote by William Golding:

"It was simply what seemed sensible for me to write after the war when everyone was thanking God they weren’t Nazis. I’d seen enough to realize that every single one of us could be Nazis.”

As a modern parallel to this quote, w then studied about the "Milgram Obedience Study," a social-psychological experiment that attempted to answer the main question that is presented by Lord of the Flies: What makes someone savage?  This is the question that should be kept in mind by students as they read the novel.

If a student needs extra help with sentence objects, he/she can click here to get it.

For a copy of the Post-modernism PowerPoint notes, please refer to the blog post written on Friday, December 7th.

Homework: Students need to have Lord of the Flies completed by Tuesday, December 18th, which is when their final unit test will be administered.

English 10
After reviewing the parts of a sentence today, we finished discussing the literary genres that appeared after the Civil War.

For a copy of the PowerPoint about Regionalism, Realism, and Naturalism, please refer to the blog post written on Friday, December 7th.

Tuesday, December 11th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the ACT-created "End-of-Course" exams today, which took up the majority of the block.

Homework: Students need to read Lord of the Flies chapters 1-9 by Friday, December 14th.

English 10
Students took the ACT-created "End-of-Course" exams today, which took up the majority of the block.

Monday, December 10th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the ACT-created "End-of-Course" exams today, which took up the majority of the block.

Homework:  Students need to read Lord of the Flies chapters 1-9 by Friday, December 14th.

English 10
Students took the ACT-created "End-of-Course" exams today, which took up the majority of the block.

Friday, December 7th

Pre-AP English 9
We were happy to welcome Mrs. Ferguson and Mrs. Sentell in our second block class today, and we were happy to welcome Mr. Huggins into our fourth block class today!  These Duncanville Middle School teachers volunteered to come and watch a Pre-AP lesson in action so that they can make sure that they are preparing their middle school students for the increased rigor of high school linguistic work.  I applaud our middle school teachers for their deep commitment to their students' success!!

During our lesson, we reviewed sentence complements in continued preparation for the final exam.  Afterwards, we began a discussion of post-modern literary thought and learned the background behind William Golding's Lord of the Flies.

To download a copy of the post-modern PowerPoint, please click here.

Homework:  Students need to have their copies of Lord of the Flies by Monday, December 10th.  Also, they need to finish reading A Separate Peace by Monday, December 10th.

English 10
In today's class, we reviewed subject-verb agreement.  Afterwards, we finished reading Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau and began discussing American Regionalism, Realism, and Naturalism.

The PowerPoint used in today's class can be downloaded by clicking here.

Thursday, December 6th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took their poetry analysis in class today.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading chapters 10-13 of A Separate Peace by Monday, December 10th.

English 10
After finishing their test on American Romanticism, students began reading through several pieces of Romantic literature, such as Nature, Self-Reliance, and Civil Disobedience.

Wednesday, December 5th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we finished our survey of poetry in preparation for the class's poetry analysis tomorrow.

For a copy of the PowerPoint notes, please refer to the blog post from Monday, November 26th.

Homework:  Students need to study over their notes in preparation for the poetry analysis tomorrow.  They also need to read chapters 10-13 of A Separate Peace by Monday, December 10th.

English 10
Students took their test on American Romanticism in today's class.

Tuesday, December 4th

Pre-AP English 9
After a short grammatical review, we plodded on with our brief poetry survey.  For a copy of the PowerPoint notes, please see the blog post from Monday, November 26th.

Homework:  Students need to be studying over their biography notes from the poetry PowerPoint in preparation for their TAP-CASTT poetry analysis test.

Students also need to read chapters 10-13 in A Separate Peace.

English 10
After a short review on sentence complements and objects, we finished our notes on American Dark Romanticism and began reading through several pieces from the period.

Monday, December 3rd

Welcome to the final, full two weeks of the semester!

Pre-AP English 9
After reviewing a bit of grammar, we spent the majority of our time today covering what we could of what is left of the poetry survey that we started last week.  For a PowerPoint copy of the notes, please refer to last Monday's blog post.  (Monday, November 26th)

Homework:  Students need to finish reading chapters 5-9 in A Separate Peace by tomorrow!

English 10
After reviewing intra-text punctuation, we spent the rest of our class time talking about Dark Romantic literature and the American Gothic.  We then read selections from Romantic writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson.

To download a copy of the American Gothic notes, you can click here.

Friday, November 30th

Pre-AP English 9
We had a guest speaker in second block today.  Amber Barnes, Hillcrest's AP Language instructor, spoke to the students about both the rigor and the advantages of an AP course track.  In fourth block, we continued our survey of poetry.  (For a copy of the poetry PowerPoint, please refer to Monday's blog post.)

Homework: Students need to read chapters 5-9 of A Separate Peace by Tuesday, December 4th.

Also, students who are completing the extra credit assignment given with To Kill a Mockingbird must have the assignment completed by Monday, December 3rd.  For a copy of the assignment, please refer to yesterday's blog post.

English 10
In today's class,we continued our discussion of the American Gothic, looking at examples of the Gothic's influences on modern media.  For a copy of the Gothic Prezi presentation, please click here.

Thursday, November 29th

Pre-AP English 9
Today in class, we discussed intra-text punctuation, which includes hyphens, dashes, parentheses, and ellipses.  Afterwards, we continued our brief survey of poetry.

Homework:  Students need to read chapters 5-9 of A Separate Peace by Tuesday, December 3rd.

EXTRA CREDIT!  For those students who attended the extra-credit movie sessions every day this week, here is the other extra credit assignment, worth a possible twenty points: Type a five-paragraph essay comparing and contrasting the cinematic and novel versions of To Kill a Mockingbird.

English 10
Today in class, we reviewed adverbs one more time, and then we discussed intra-text punctuation, which includes hyphens, dashes, parentheses, and ellipses.  Afterwards, we began discussing the American Dark Romantic, or Gothic, genre of literature and poetry.

EXTRA CREDIT!  For those students who attended the extra-credit movie sessions every day this week, here is the other extra credit assignment, worth a possible twenty points: Type a five-paragraph summary of the cinematic version of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Wednesday, November 28th

Pre-AP English 9
Today in class, we reviewed apostrophe usage.  Afterwards, we continued our study on poetry.  To download a copy of the poetry PowerPoint, please refer to Monday's blog post.

Homework:  Students need to read chapters 1-4 of A Separate Peace by tomorrow!

Also, if a student is planning on attending The Hobbit field trip, he or she MUST bring his or her money and field trip form by FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30th (this Friday).  We must have 60 students sign up to be able to go on the trip, so please make sure to bring your money as soon as possible!

English 10
After reviewing apostrophes and adverbs,  we finished our discussion of the major American Romantic authors and poets today, including Longfellow, Bryant, and Emerson.

For a copy of the American Romantic PowerPoint, please refer to Monday's blog post.

Tuesday, November 27th

Pre-AP English 9
Today was a bit of a catch up / get ahead day in class.  Students began reading A Separate Peace by John Knowles.  Afterwards, we continued on with our poetry discussion.

Homework:  Students need to read chapters 1-4 of A Separate Peace by Thursday, November 29th.

Also, students who would like to attend the field trip to see The Hobbit need to make sure to bring their forms and $15 to me by FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30th!!!  If we don't have sixty students sign up, we cannot attend the trip.  So please make sure to get those forms in!

English 10
After a parts of speech review, students learned the definition of the word "disillusioned" by listening to two popular songs, "Brown-Eyed Girl" and "In the Air Tonight," and learning the fabled meanings behind the songs.  Afterwards, we continued our discussion of American Romantic literature.

Monday, November 26th

Welcome back from the holiday break and to the last stretch of this very busy semester!

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we spent a great deal of time focusing on apostrophes and their uses.  We especially focused on the over-arching rule of apostrophe, which is, "Apostrophes show contraction and possession, but not plurality."  Parents, students should be able to explain this rule to you very easily.  If not, then you know that they will need some extra help with apostrophes.

After studying this grammatical concept, we then began our survey of poetry.  Specifically, we discussed poetry's definition and the sonnet form.

Homework:  Students are to compose an original Shakespearean or Petrarchan sonnet that they will turn into class tomorrow.  Students must give their work a TITLE and LABEL the sonnet at Shakespearean or Petrarchan.

Also, students need to MAKE SURE to bring their copies of A Separate Peace to class tomorrow!!

For a copy of the Poetry PowerPoint, please click here.

English 10
After studying apostrophes and their uses, students began to study the background of American Romanticism.

For a copy of the American Romanticism PowerPoint (provided courtesy of Leah Tollison) please click here.

Tuesday, November 20th

I hope everyone has a very restful and appreciative Thanksgiving!

Pre-AP English 9

Students took their unit test on To Kill a Mockingbird in class today.

Homework:  After the test, students received a packet of poetry that we will be using all of next week.  They are to read through Tennyson's In Memoriam (pages 1-5 of the packet) and write a short paragraph (3-4 sentences) summarizing each of the poem's cantos. (There should be 10 paragraphs in all.)  These paragraphs will be due on Monday, November 26th.

Also, students need to have their copies of A Separate Peace and Lord of the Flies by Monday, November 26th as well.

English 10

Students took a test today on the "Hypocrisy in Early American Literature."

Monday, November 19th

Pre-AP English 9
As we finish up our time in To Kill a Mockingbird, we are keeping a wary eye on the national consequences that the book had on America's populace.  As a direct result of the book, many of our citizens' sentiments turned against the segregation that was occurring at the time, and the Civil Rights movement took hold of our country in earnest.  That being the case, we spent time in class today annotating Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream Speech" for his use of figurative language and rhetorical devices.  We also spent a little bit of time discussing irregular verb forms.

Homework:  Students need to finish To Kill a Mockingbird for their test tomorrow.  The test will cover the following:
-- Words of the Day
-- Troublesome Verbs
-- Active/Passive Voice
-- Verb Mood
-- Irregular Verb forms
-- To Kill a Mockingbird

Also, students need to have their copies of A Separate Peace and The Lord of the Flies by Monday, November 26th.

English 10
After finishing Amazing Grace, we discussed irregular verb forms in class today, before listening to MLK Jr.'s "I Have a Dream Speech" and annotating it for allusions to the Declaration of Independence.

Homework:  Students need to study for their test that will be given tomorrow.  The test will cover the following:
-- Words of the Day

-- Troublesome Verbs
-- Active/Passive Voice
-- Verb Mood
-- Irregular Verb forms
-- Harriet Beecher Stowe
-- Uncle Tom's Cabin
-- "To His Excellency, George Washington"

Friday, November 16th

Pre-AP English 9
After briefly reviewing the subjunctive mood (reference yesterday's blog post for online help with this subject), we finished our To Kill a Mockingbird debate today.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading To Kill a Mockingbird by Tuesday, November 20th.  They also need to have their copies of A Separate Peace and The Lord of the Flies by November 26th.

English 10
Today, we finished our conversation about slavery in early America by watching Amazing Grace, the story of the slave abolitionist movement in England.

Thursday, November 15th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we spent a majority of our time reviewing active and passive voice and learning about the different moods of verbs.  We particularly focused on the subjunctive mood, and how that mood can change the form of the verb in the sentence.  For extra review with the subjunctive mood, click here.  For several examples of verbs in the subjunctive mood, click here.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading To Kill a Mockingbird by Tuesday, November 20th.  They also need to have obtained their copies of A Separate Peace and Lord of the Flies by November 26th.

English 10
In today's class, we spent a lot of time reviewing active and passive voice.  We also heavily discussed the hypocrisy of slavery in early American life, and read samples from Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. 

Tuesday, November 13th

I hope everyone had a restful Veteran's Day weekend!  Thanks to all of the men and women who have sacrificed life and family so that we can have the opportunity to live in a democratic nation!

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the first To Kill a Mockingbird test in class today.

Homework:  Students need to finish To Kill a Mockingbird by Tuesday, November 20th!

English 10
Students took the "Revolutionary Literature Test" in class today.

Friday, November 9th

Pre-AP English 9
In our shortened classes today, we covered commonly confused irregular verbs, including lie/lay, sit/set, and rise/raise.  We learned the differences between all of these words, as well as their conjugation into the past tense, past participial form, and present participial form.  For a quick review on the uses of these words, please click here.  We also continued chunking and analyzing the first chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Homework: Students need to have chapters 1-10 of To Kill a Mockingbird read by Tuesday, November 13th in preparation for their first TKaM test.  The test will cover Words of the Day, modifiers, degrees of comparison, commonly confused verbs, the first ten chapters of TKaM, and chapters 14-20 of Boy in the Striped Pajamas.

English 10
In today's class, we focused on studying subject-verb agreement, as well as finishing our analysis of The Declaration of Independence.

Homework:  Students need to study for the "Revolutionary Literature Test" that will be given on Tuesday, November 13th.


I hope everyone enjoys the long weekend!

Thursday, November 8th

Pre-AP
We discussed misplaced modifiers and dangling modifiers in class today. Students should have a copied sheet that enumerates the points of the lessons.  Parents, please go over these with your student and ensure that he or she understands the material!  After learning this grammatical concept, we then began annotating chapter one of To Kill a Mockingbird.

Homework:  Students should finish reading Boy in the Striped Pajamas by tomorrow!  Also, students need to read chapters 1-10 (pgs. 1-82) of To Kill a Mockingbird by Tuesday, November 13th.

English 10
We discussed misplaced modifiers and dangling modifiers in class today. Students should have a copied sheet that enumerates the points of the lessons.  Parents, please go over these with your student and ensure that he or she understands the material!  After learning this grammatical concept, we continued our analysis of the Declaration of Independence.

Wednesday, November 7th

Pre-AP English 9
After finishing the Hey, Boo! documentary, we discussed modifiers and degrees of comparison in class today.  Students are bringing home a worksheet for practice with this concept, but if they need extra review on this grammatical concept, they can click here.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Friday, November 9th.  Also, students need to read chapters 1-10 (pages 1-82 in the class text) of To Kill a Mockingbird by Tuesday, November 13th, which is the day that the first To Kill a Mockingbird test will be administered.

English 10
In class today, we reviewed modifier use and the different degrees of comparison.  Then, we continued analyzing closely the Declaration of Independence.

Tuesday, November 6th

Pre-AP English 9
In class today, students watched the documentary entitled Hey, Boo! which gives a background for Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird.  Students also answered several questions about Lee's life and the background for the book.  Parents, please make sure that students have completed these questions as they will serve as their study guide for that portion of the next test.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Friday, November 9th.

English 10
In today's class, we discussed modifiers and how adverbs and adjectives can often be confused.  Specifically, we focused on the differences between bad and badly, real and really, good and well, and slow and slowly. We also discussed the different degrees of comparison, which include the positive degree, comparative degree, and superlative degree.  Finally, we finished out our time by beginning to analyze The Declaration of Independence. 

Homework: Students should review their grammar notes from the day and make sure they understand the concepts of modifiers and comparative degrees.  If a student needs further help on this subject, he or she should seek extra help outside of class.

Monday, November 5th

Pre-AP English 9
2nd- In today's class, students took the third reading quiz for Boy in the Striped Pajamas.  Afterwards, students finished presenting their research findings from their research papers.

4th- In today's class, students took part in a debate on several of the themes that are present in To Kill a Mockingbird after taking the BSP reading quiz.  We also went over the analysis questions that the students completed Tuesday and Wednesday of last week.

Homework: Students need to read the rest of Boy in the Striped Pajamas (chapters 14-20) by Friday, November 9th.

English 10
After discussing adequate summaries, students finished analyzing Patrick Henry's "Second Speech to the Virginia Convention."

Homework:  Students need to begin reading The Declaration of Independence and making their way through the reading guide for the Declaration.

Friday, November 2nd

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, students continued to present their research findings from their research paper.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading chapters 10-13 of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Monday, November 5th.

English 10
In today's class, we discussed commonly confused words, and then we began analyzing Patrick Henry's "Speech to the Second Virginia Convention."

Homework: Students need to finish their "Virtue Journals" and turn them in on Monday.

Thursday, November 1st

Sorry for the lack of posting this week.  I have been out of school on school-related activities.  I'm glad to be back though!

Pre-AP English 9
Students have been working on research papers this week, and they will begin presenting their findings to the class today.

Homework: Students who do not present their findings today need to make sure that they are ready to present tomorrow.  Also, students need to read chapters 10-13 of Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Monday, November 5th.

English 10
Today, students finished activities that they started in class yesterday, including writing a biography of Patrick Henry.

Friday, October 26th

Happy Friday!

Pre-AP English 9
We started writing the rough draft of our research papers in class today.  Students particularly worked on their introductory paragraphs and transitions.

Homework:  Students need to finish the rough draft of their research paper, which is due at the BEGINNING of class on Monday, October 29th.  Students also need to have chapters 6-9 of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas read by Monday.

English 10
After working with run-on and fragment sentences, we read through several pieces of writing by founding father Benjamin Franklin in class today.  Our main point was the try and determine whether or not a reader can always believe everything someone writes about themselves in an autobiography and whether or not we can believe the legends we have heard about our country's history.  The goal was to become informed readers that evaluate each piece of literature individually without outside bias or presupposition.

Thursday, October 25th

Pre-AP English 9
We continued the research process today in the library.  Students also completed their paper outlines.  By the beginning of class on Monday, students need to have finished the rough drafts of their papers.  The final, typed draft of their papers are due on November 1st.

Homework:  Students should begin working on the rough draft of their research papers.  They should also finish reading chapters 6-9 in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.

English 10
We spent time in class today going over reading strategies for those who do not enjoy reading.  We predominantly covered making inferences, assumptions, and predictions about your reading.  Then, we completed several writing activities to reinforce these points.

Wednesday, October 24th

Pre-AP English 9
We continued our research in the library today.  Students need to remember that an outline of their research paper will be due at the end of class tomorrow. Rough drafts are due on October 29th, and final drafts (with all other components) are due on November 1st.  Presentations will also begin on November 1st.  (Please note: these dates have been revised from the dates on the research packet.)

Homework:  Students need to make sure to read chapters 6-9 in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Monday, October 29th.

English 10
The PLAN testing was administered to students today.

Tuesday, October 23rd

Pre-AP English 9
We started our research in the library today.

Homework:  Students need to review their research notes to ensure that they are in order and to augment them if so needed.  Also, students need to have chapters 6-9 of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas read by Monday, October 29th.

English 10
We finished our comparative analysis of The Crucible and The Village in class today.

Monday, October 22nd

Pre-AP English 9
Coming off of last week's midterm, we have started a new nine weeks and a new emphasis for our reading in the class.  We are shifting our focus from more classical literature to more modern literature, in an attempt to continue answering the question, "What is prejudice, and does it still affect our lives today?"  To begin our foray into this more modern literature, students will begin writing their research papers this week.  Today, we went over the research packet and the research process in-depth.  Please make sure your student has his or her copy of the research packet.

If you would like to see the packet, including a breakdown of the research grade, you can download a partial copy at the following link (it's the entire packet minus the section about how to cite resources): click here

Homework:  Students need to review their research packets and ensure that they fully understand the research process.   Also, students need to read chapters 6-9 in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.

English 10
Today, students began a comparative analysis between The Crucible and The Village.  Students also turned in their research papers.

Friday, October 19th

Welcome to Football Rivalry Weekend!

Pre-AP English 9
Students took their midterm today.

Homework: Students need to read chapters 1-5 of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Monday, October 22nd.  They also need to finish the To Kill a Mockingbird Pre-Reading Packet by Monday (with the exception of the character worksheet.)

English 10

Students took their midterm today.

Homework:  Students need to complete all components of their research paper this weekend.  All parts of the paper are due on Monday.  Students need to make sure to complete the following:

... Note Cards (5 bib cards and 50 note cards)
... Outline (hand-written)
... Rough Draft (hand-written)
... Final Draft (typed, correctly formatted, with a title page, and a bibliography)

Please refer back to the research paper packet for the specifications and examples of each component.

Thursday, October 18th

Pre-AP English 9
2nd Block-  We reviewed for the midterm in today's class.
4th Block- Students took the midterm in today's class.

Homework:  2nd block students need to continue studying for the midterm that they will take tomorrow.
Everyone needs to make sure read chapters 1-5 in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Monday.  Students also need to finish the To Kill a Mockingbird Pre-Reading Packet by Monday as well (with the exception of the "Character Worksheet.")

English 10
Students continued typing their research papers during class today.

Homework:  Students need to study for the midterm that will be administered tomorrow. Also, students need to finish up all components of the research packet.  These will all be due on Monday, October 22nd.

Tuesday, October 16th

Pre-AP English 9
We finished watching Simon Birch in class today and discussed how we would write a comparative analysis between it and Romeo and Juliet.  We also took a moment to review figurative language.

Homework: Students need to study for the Unit Test and the midterm.  The Unit Test will be given tomorrow.  The midterm will be given on Thursday (for fourth block) and Friday (for second block).

English 10
Students began writing their outline and rough draft for the research paper in class today.

Homework:  Students need to finish their rough drafts at home tonight.  They will use tomorrow to begin typing their paper.

Monday, October 15

Pre-AP English 9
We finished reading and discussing Romeo and Juliet in today's class, and we made sure to mention the main themes of the play.  Afterwards, we began watching Simon Birch, a movie with many similarities to Romeo and Juliet.  We will use this movie to compose a comparative analysis.

Homework: Students need to begin studying for the Unit Test that will be given on Wednesday, October 17th and the midterm, that will be on Thursday (for 4th block) and Friday (for 2nd block).

The Unit Test will cover:
... Words of the Day
... Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
... Parts of Speech
... Sentence Objects and Complements
... Phrases (verbals, appositives, and prepositions)
... Figurative Language
... Freytag's triangle
... Shakespeare Notes
... Action of Romeo and Juliet

Also, if students would like to get ahead, they should go ahead and begin reading chapters 1-5 of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.  These need to be read by Monday, October 22nd.

English 10
We continued the research process in the library today.  By the end of the day, students should have finished finding their five sources and writing ten note cards for each source.

Homework:  Students need to finish their hand-written outline by the beginning of class tomorrow.  (An example of an outline can be found in the research packet that was handed out to the class.)

Friday, October 12th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we finished reading over Acts IV and V of Romeo and Juliet.

Homework:  Students need to review the action of the last two acts of Romeo and Juliet.  They should also study for the Unit Test and Midterm that will both be given next week.

ANNOUNCEMENT:  Students need to make sure that they have their copy of Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Monday. They will receive their first reading assignment from the book on this day.

English 10
Students continued their library research today in class.

Homework: Students need to finish their first thirty note cards and have them ready to turn in on Monday morning.

Thursday, October 11th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we discussed pronoun-antecedent agreement.  This is a grammatical concept that should be fairly straightforward but is sometimes tricky, so, parents, please make sure your student understands this idea before we move on to anything else in the class.

If you or your student need help with pronoun-antecedent agreement (including a helpful quiz) click here.

After this grammar lesson, we began discussing Act IV of Romeo and Juliet.

Homework:  Students should finish reading Act IV and begin reading Act V of Romeo and Juliet.

English 10
We continued our research efforts today as students went to the library to continue to find information on their topic of choice.

THE FIRST SET OF NOTE CARDS (20 cards) IS DUE TOMORROW!  THIS WILL BE A GRADE, SO PLEASE BE SURE TO TURN IN YOUR CARDS!

Wednesday, October 10th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the second test on Romeo and Juliet today.

Homework:  Students should begin reading Act IV of Romeo and Juliet.

English 10
Students finished watching The Crucible today.  Afterwards, we began the research process for the research paper that the students will write this week.

For a copy of the research packet (including due dates for the different parts of the assignment) click here.

Tuesday, October 9th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we spent time discussing transitive and intransitive verbs, along with sentence objects and complements.  Afterwards, we quickly discussed Act III of Romeo and Juliet.

If students need extra help with transitive and intransitive verbs, they can click here to get it.

Homework:  Students need to study for the second Romeo and Juliet test that will be given tomorrow.  It will cover...
... Words of the Day
... Transitive and Intransitive Verbs / Sentence objects and complements
... Acts II and III of Romeo and Juliet

English 10
Today we finished The Crucible.  Students also continued to work on the study questions that accompany the play and the movie.

Homework: Students need to finish the study questions for The Crucible and the character worksheet that we have been working on while reading the play.  These are both due tomorrow.

Also, students need to bring a pack of index cards or $5 to buy a research pack from the library TOMORROW.  We will begin research papers tomorrow.

Monday, October 8

Pre-AP English 9
"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players..."  This quote had a literal manifestation in today's class as students performed a "translated" version of Romeo and Juliet's balcony scene.  After the performance, we continued discussing Act II, looking for ways that Shakespeare indirectly characterizes Romeo, thereby giving us his personal opinion on the idea of love at first sight.

Homework: Students need to read Act III of Romeo and Juliet.

English 10
We finished chunking Act III of The Crucible in today's class, and then we watched The Crucible movie, also written and produced by Arthur Miller.  Students focused on finding differences between the play and movie, and they answered several questions that helped highlight the play's theme.

Homework: Finish the "Short Answer Study Guide Questions" given in class.

Friday, October 5th

Pre-AP English 9
We started out the class today by writing a journal that chronicled our personal experiences with prejudice and racism.  It was both heart-breaking and harrowing to hear some of the experiences that the students have had and to know that such blatant ignorance and hatred still abound in our society.  Hopefully, our reading this semester will help to curb that type of thinking in this generation of students.

After the journal, students divided into groups and "translated" Act II, scene 2 of Romeo and Juliet, which they will perform on Monday.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading Act II of Romeo and Juliet by Monday.

English 10
We reviewed transitive and intransitive verbs in today's class and then added sentence objects and complements to the mix.  After this grammar, we continued chunking Act III of The Crucible.

Thursday, October 4th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the first Romeo and Juliet in class today.

Homework: Students need to read pages 723-731 in their literature textbook.  (Scene 1 and 2 of Act II in Romeo and Juliet)

ANNOUNCEMENT: Students need to have their copy of John Boyne's Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Monday, October 15th!
English 10
In class today, after practicing more with sentence parallelism,  we learned about transitive and intransitive verbs.  To finish out the class, we began chunking Act III of The Crucible.

Wednesday, October 3rd

Pre-AP English 9
In class today, we finished reading and reviewing Act I of Romeo and Juliet.

Homework: Students need to study for the Act I test that will be given tomorrow.  Please look on previous blogs for a study guide for the test.

English 10
We finished Act II of The Crucible today and took the test on Act I and II.

Tuesday, October 2nd

Pre-AP English 9
To make sure students are ready for the next test, we spent time today reviewing the different types of grammatical phrases we have covered (verbals, appositives, and prepositions).  We also talked about some of the different themes of Romeo and Juliet, including fighting against fate, judging based on appearance (prejudice), and the eternity of love.

ANNOUNCEMENT:  The test that was scheduled for tomorrow is now going to be given on THURSDAY, October 4th

Homework:  Students need to review their Shakespeare notes and grammar notes in preparation for Thursday's test.

English 10
After discussing the prominence of prejudice in our society, we continued chunking Act II of The Crucible.

Homework:  Students should study their textual notes to prepare for the test that will be given tomorrow on The Crucible Act II. 

Monday, October 1st

Happy October!

Pre-AP English 9
After discussing appositives and prepositions briefly, we began reading through Act I of Romeo and Juliet today, paying special attention to Shakespeare's use of classical and Biblical allusions.

For extra help with appositives, click here.

Homework:  Students need to carefully review their Shakespeare notes in preparation for the test on Wednesday.  They also need to review their notes from our in-class reading of Romeo and Juliet.

Wednesday's test will cover...
... Words of the Day
... Verbals, Appositives, and Prepositions
... Shakespeare notes (look on Thursday, September 27th's post to download a copy of these)
... Act I of Romeo and Juliet

English 10
Our class was cut a little short today by an in-school concert, but we were able to discuss main ideas and begin chunking Act II of The Crucible.

Friday, September 28th

Pre-AP English 9
2nd block- Students took the reading quiz on Runemarks in class today.  Afterwards, we finished up our notes on Shakespeare and Shakespearean England.  Students also had an opportunity for extra credit by reciting the first eleven lines of The Canterbury Tales in Middle English.

4th block-  The students went to the Homecoming Pep Rally today during their normally scheduled class time.

Homework: Students need to review their Words of the Day and notes from the Shakespeare presentation.

English 10
Students took the first Crucible quiz in today's class.

Thursday, September 27th

Pre-AP English 9
2nd block-  No class today because of the Patriot Games.  Students need to make sure to finish reading Runemarks by tomorrow.

4th block- After taking a reading quiz on Runemarks, we finished up our discussion of Shakespeare and his time period.  (A copy of the Shakespeare PowerPoint can be found on yesterday's blog.)

BONUS POINT OPPORTUNITY: On the Shakespeare PowerPoint, on the the "Middle English" slide, a copy of the first eleven lines of The Canterbury Tales can be found, along with a link to a YouTube video that gives the correct pronunciation for the passage.  If students would like to, they may memorize the first eleven lines of The Canterbury Tales IN THE ORIGINAL MIDDLE ENGLISH and recite them to me.  It must be done by Friday, September 28th. 

Homework: All students need to begin studying all the information given to them about Shakespeare in preparation for the first Romeo and Juliet test that will be given on Wednesday, October 3rd.

English 10
Today we reviewed verbals, appositives, and prepositional phrases.  Afterwards, we finished chunking Act I of The Crucible. 

Homework: Students need to study for the test that will be given tomorrow, which will cover Words of the Day, verbals, appositives, prepositions, and Act I of The Crucible.

Wednesday, September 26th

Pre-AP English 9
Over the past couple of days, we have studied all about Shakespeare and Shakespearean England.  We have also been learning about the development of the English language, starting at the beginning of the millennium and moving to modern times.

A copy of the Shakespeare PowerPoint can be downloaded by clicking here.

BONUS POINT OPPORTUNITY: On the Shakespeare PowerPoint, on the the "Middle English" slide, a copy of the first eleven lines of The Canterbury Tales can be found, along with a link to a YouTube video that gives the correct pronunciation for the passage.  If students would like to, they may memorize the first eleven lines of The Canterbury Tales IN THE ORIGINAL MIDDLE ENGLISH and recite them to me.  It must be done by Friday, September 28th. 

Homework:  Students need to have finished Runemarks by tomorrow.

English 10
Today, we learned about appositive and prepositional phrases. Then, we continued studying Act I of The Crucible.

For extra help with prepositional phrases, click here.
For extra help with appositive phrases, click here.

Monday, September 24

Pre-AP English 9
Punctuation was the word of the day today as we covered semicolons and colons.  Afterwards, we began our study of Shakespeare in preparation for Romeo and Juliet.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading Runemarks by Thursday, September 27th.

For extra practice with semicolons and colons, click here.
English 10
Punctuation was the word of the day today as we covered semicolons and colons. Afterwards, we began chunking Act I of The Crucible with an emphasis on the characters of the play.

For extra practice with semicolons and colons, click here.

Friday, September 21st

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we were very grammar heavy.  After reviewing comma and conjunction usage, the class learned about verbal phrases and did several practices with the new concept.  We then wrapped up our discussion of Greek culture and the Greek pantheon before we move on to Shakespeare on Monday.

Homework: Students should finish reading Runemarks.  They should have it read by Thursday, September 27th.

To download a copy of the verbals powerpoint, click here.

For extra verbal help, click here.

English 10
Today was also very grammar heavy for this class as well.  After practicing with conjunctions and learning about verbal phrases, we began chunking our way through Arthur Miller'sThe Crucible.

To download a copy of the verbals powerpoint, click here.

Thursday, September 20th

Pre-AP English 9
After a refresher on the structure of academic essays, students took Part 2 of The Odyssey unit test today, in which they had to write two essays on elements of The Odyssey and Runemarks.  These essays were timed and formal.

Homework:  Students should finish reading Runemarks by Thursday, September 27th.

English 10
After discussing comma splices, we began our study of Arthur Miller's The Crucible.  Connecting the issues presented in the play to modern-day issues including racial profiling and unjust accusation, we discussed how Miller used The Crucible as an analogy for the "McCarthy Witch Hunts."  We will begin chunking The Crucible tomorrow.

Wednesday, September 19th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the first part of The Odyssey unit test in class today.  They will take the second part tomorrow.  In order to prepare for the second part of the exam, which will be two in-class essays, students should review what they have read in Runemarks, paying special attention to motifs and symbols that Harris uses in the text.

Homework:  Study for part two of the unit test and begin reading Books 6 and 7 in Runemarks.  The rest of the book needs to be read by Thursday, September 27th.

English 10
After reviewing the propaganda quiz from yesterday, we began the introduction to Arthur Miller's The Crucible, which we will be reading over the next several days.

Tuesday, September 18th

Pre-AP English 9
In preparation for tomorrow's unit test, we reviewed through all of the material that we have covered in class thusfar.  We also went through each of the tests that we have already taken as another type of review.

Homework:  Students should study for tomorrow's unit test (part 1) which will cover the following:

-- Words of the Day
-- The Greek and Norse pantheons
-- Comma usage
-- The Grammar White pages
-- The plot, settings, and characters of The Odyssey
-- The plot, settings, and characters of Books 1-5 of Runemarks

Bonus!!!  Everyone who emails me the correct answer to this question by 7:50 A.M. tomorrow will receive three bonus points on the test!! The question is, "There is a discrepancy in the Disney movie Hercules and classical Greek mythology as to how many Muses there are.  How many Muses does the movie portray?" Please make sure the email is from a student and contains the student's name  in the email.

English 10
We finished part two of the Propaganda Test in today's class and reviewed more modern examples of propaganda in popular media.

Friday, September 14th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we covered the comma rules in depth and completed some practice with each rule.  Then, we reviewed Part 4 of The Odyssey.

Homework: Students need to study for The Odyssey Test #4 that will be given on Monday, September 17th.  This test will include the following:

-- The Odyssey Part 4
-- The Lit Terms from the "Grammar White Pages"
-- Words of the Day
-- Comma Rules (a copy of the comma rules can be downloaded by clicking here.)

Students should also read Books 4 and 5 of Runemarks by Wednesday, September 19th.

English 10
We also covered commas in depth in today's class and completed some practice with each comma rule as well.  We then studied Anne Bradstreet and Jonathan Edwards and how each of these historical figures reflect the ideologies of Puritan theology and way of life.

Homework: Students should study for the "Propaganda and Early Colonialism" test that will be given on Monday, September 17th.  This test will include the following:

-- Words of the Day
-- Comma Rules (a copy of the comma rules can be downloaded by clicking here.)
-- Propaganda
-- Fallacious thinking
-- Anne Bradstreet and Jonathan Edwards

Thursday, September 13th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the third test on The Odyssey today.

Homework: Students need to begin reading Part 4 of The Odyssey and Books 4 and 5 in Runemarks.  These should be read by Monday, September 17th.

English 10
After finishing our discussion of logical fallacies, we discussed several moral dilemmas in class today and discussed with type of fallacies the dilemmas employed.  To finish out class, we learned the difference between fact and opinion and looked at several examples of each.

Homework:  Students should review their notes on fallacious thinking and propaganda techniques in preparation for the test that will be given on Monday.

Wednesday, September 12th

Pre-AP English 9
Run-on sentences started our class today.  Then, we finished covering all of the literary devices that we, as English scholars, use for rhetorical analysis.  Afterwards, we practiced identifying some of the sound devices that we studied by analyzing Lewis Carroll's poem, "The Jabberwocky."  Finally, we had a short review of The Odyssey Part 3.

Homework: Students should study the following topics for tomorrow's test:
     -- Part 3 of The Odyssey
     -- Books 2 and 3 of Runemarks
     -- The "sound devices" that are listed on the grammar white pages.
     -- Words of the Day

English 10
We finished our discussion of propaganda today by watching several examples of WW II propaganda and identifying the persuasive techniques used in these clips.  To finish the class, we began studying fallacious thinking, and how it is used fuel propaganda.

Parents, if you'd like to download a copy of the worksheet containing all of the different types of fallacy, click here.

Homework:  Students should begin memorizing the different types of fallacious thinking.

Tuesday, September 11th

Please take a moment today to remember those who lost their lives in the attacks on this country eleven years ago.  We will be observing a moment of silence in class today, as well as writing a journal about any connections that the students had with the event.  Please take time to talk with your student about what he or she wrote in class, and what the day means for our country's history.

Pre-AP English 9
After our grammar and journal exercises, which continued our practice with sentence fragments, we finished jigsawing and discussing the different literary devices that authors use to create meaning in a text.  Then, we analyzed Lewis Carroll's "The Jabberwocky" for uses of sound devices.

Homework:  Students should read Part 3 of The Odyssey, as well as Books 2 and 3 of Runemarks.  Additionally, students should review all of the literary devices that were covered in class.  (Parents, if you would like to download a copy of the literary devices to review with your student, please see yesterday's post.)

English 10
We reviewed propaganda techniques in class today, ensuring that students can identify the types of propaganda when they are seen.  Afterwards, we watched part of Remember the Titans and discussed whether or not it can be viewed as a type of propaganda.

Homework: Students should review all the types of propaganda and be prepared to identify them in modern media.

Monday, September 10th

Pre-AP English 9
After continuing to practice with sentence fragments, we began to jigsaw many of the literary devices that we will use in class for rhetorical analysis.  Groups of students each took several of the device terms and became experts on them, so that they could teach them to the class.

Parents, if you would like a copy of the terms to check your student's understanding, you can click here to download the sheets.  (Used by permission from Robin Ball.)

Homework:  Students need to re-read and review Part 3 of The Odyssey.  They also need to finish reading Books 2 and 3 in Runemarks for the test that will be given on Thursday, September 13th.

English 10
We began a discussion of propaganda in today's class, learning and proving that propaganda saturates our society today.

For a copy of the propaganda PowerPoint, click here.

Friday, September 7th

Pre-AP English 9
After discussing sentence fragments in today's class, students finished taking Part II of the test they began yesterday.  Afterwards, we began a jigsaw activity to learn about the different literary devices that are used in rhetorical analysis.

Homework:  Students need to start reading Part 3 of The Odyssey and Books 2 and 3 in Runemarks.

English 10
Students took the second part of the Puritans' belief test in class today.

Thursday, September 6th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, students took the second test on The Odyssey.

Homework:  Students should start reading Part 3 of The Odyssey and Books 2 and 3 in Runemarks.

English 10
In today's class, students took the "Purtians' Beliefs" test.

Wednesday, September 5th

Pre-AP English 9
Students should study for The Odyssey Test #2 that will be given tomorrow.  For a study guide, please see yesterday's post.

Homework:  Students should study and can begin reading Books 2 and 3 in Runemarks.  These must be read by Wednesday, September 12th.

English 10
Students should study for the Puritans test that will be given tomorrow.  For a study guide, please see yesterday's post.

Tuesday, September 4th

Pre-AP English 9
We started out today's class with an exercise in tone and mood (and telling the difference between the two).  There were some incredible pieces written by students emphasizing the use of connotative diction to create tone and mood.  Then, we finished the class by finishing Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid."  Students will answer questions analyzing the fairytale and comparing it with what they have read so far in The Odyssey. 

Homework:  Students need to read Part 2 of The Odyssey and Book One of Runemarks.  They also need to finish answering the literary analysis questions about "The Little Mermaid."  They should also begin studying for their test, which will be on Thursday, September 6th and will cover the following:

-- Part 2 of The Odyssey
-- Book One in Runemarks
-- The basic tenants of Norse mythology and cosmology
-- Words of the Day
-- Capitalization

English 10
We began our study of the Puritans in today's class.  After watching a short video describing the foundation of the Puritan group, we studied the five basic tenants of Calvinism and how these beliefs drove the Puritans on in their quest for religious freedom.

If you would like to download a copy of the Calvinism PowerPoint used in class, click here.  (Note: PowerPoint provided with permission by Stephanie Tucker.)

Homework: Students should begin reading On Plymouth Plantation and begin studying for the test that will be given on Thursday.  The test will cover the following:

-- On Plymouth Plantation
-- Puritan history (from video)
-- William Bradford's life
-- The basic tenants of Calvinism (PPT above)
-- Capitalization
-- Words of the Day

Monday, September 3rd

Happy Labor Day!

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we continued practicing sentence combination.  Afterwards, students received two test that they had taken previously, and we took time to go over them.  Finally, students read through Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid" and spent time analyzing the text and comparing it to what they have read so far in The Odyssey.

Homework: Students should finish reading or re-read Part 2 of The Odyssey in preparation for the test they will take on Thursday, September 6th.  Also, students need to have Book One of Runemarks read by Thursday, September 6th.

English 10
In today's class, after practicing more sentence combination, we held a writing workshop where we compared and contrasted the Grimm Brother's original version of "Cinderella" with snippets from Disney's version of the classic fairytale.

Friday, August 31st

Pre-AP English 9
We continued our practice with sentence combining in class today, before moving to a quick discussion of Norse mythology.  Only taking a quick survey of the ancient myths and gods, we are setting the stage for our reading of Runemarks, which will begin Monday, September 3rd.

Homework:  Students should finish reading The Odyssey Part 2 this weekend.

English 10
Finishing our study of Native American culture and folklore, we watched a 20/20 special on the Lakota Sioux of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota in today's class.  Far from being a culture that is long-gone and extinct, many Native American myths and religions are still practiced and believed today, and the students analyzed how modern Native Americans draw on their ancient beliefs to survive in today's more modern society.

Thursday, August 30th

Pre-AP English 9
Students took the first test on The Odyssey in class today.

Homework: Students should begin reading Part 2 of The Odyssey.  Also, if they have not yet obtained a copy of Joanne Harris' Runemarks, they should do so ASAP.  The first reading assignment will be given on Monday, September 3rd.

English 10
Student took the Oral Tradition / Native American folklore test today.

Wednesday, August 29th

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we spent a majority of our time covering Part 1 of The Odyssey in preparation for the test that will be given tomorrow.  We also reviewed the epic story arc, which gives a solid pattern for determining whether or not something is epic.

Here is what students should study for the test tomorrow....

... The Greek Pantheon notes (to download PPT, click here)
... Part 1 of The Odyssey
... The Fairy tales and Folklore / Oral Tradition notes (to download PPT, click here)
... Parts of Speech (for extra practice, click here)
... Words of the Day (there are seven of them)
... The rules of writing formal instead of informal sentences.

Homework:  Study!!  Also, students need to obtain a copy of Joanne Harris' Runemarks.  The first reading assignment for Runemarks will be given on September 3rd.

English 10
We finished our discussion of Native American folklore and the Oral Tradition in class today, and briefly reviewed for the test that will be given tomorrow.

Here is what students should study for the test tomorrow...

... The Fairy tales and Folklore / Oral Tradition notes (to download PPT, click here)
... Parts of Speech (for extra practice, click here)
... The rules of writing formal instead of informal sentences.

... Words of the Day
... The Cherokee Myths covered in class (to download, click each of the following numbers... one , two , three , four , and five )
... The Cherokee culture notes
... The portrayal of Pocahontas by Disney as compared to the portrayal of Pocahontas in "John Smith's 1616 Letter to Queen Anne of England"

Homework: Study!!

Tuesday, August 28th

Pre-AP English 9
Today's class was a mixture of grammar and literary analysis.  We began the class by reviewing the basic parts of speech and parts of a sentence, and then we played a game to reinforce what we had learned and to apply the grammatical concepts in context.  Finally, we finished by discussing Freytag's triangle and the Epic story arc.

For extra help with the parts of speech, please click here.

Homework:  Students should finish reading Part 1 of The Odyssey and continue studying for the first test on the poem, which will be given on Thursday, August 30.

Students should also obtain a copy of Joanne Harris' Runemarks.  The first reading assignment from this book will be given September 3rd.

English 10
In today's class, we reviewed the basic parts of speech and parts of a sentence, and then we played a game to reinforce what we had learned and to apply the grammatical concepts in context.  Afterwards, we continued our discussion of Native American life and folklore.

Monday, August 27th

Welcome to the 2nd week of school!

Pre-AP English 9
In today's class, we finished our discussion of the Greek Pantheon and segued into a discussion of heroes and the epic heroic cycle.

Homework: Students should begin reading Part 1 of The Odyssey.  Students should also make sure to obtain a copy of Joanne Harris' Runemarks by next Monday, September 3rd.  Students will receive their first reading assignment from the book on this day.

English 10
"John Smith's 1616 Letter to Queen Anne" took up the majority of today's class.  After finishing a character sketch of Pocahontas derived from pop culture, we then analyzed this letter to find differences and similarities of the historical figure from a source document.

Homework: Students should read "The Legend of Spear-Finger" that was assigned at the end of class.  A short reading quiz will be given at the start of class tomorrow.  The story can also be downloaded by clicking here.

Friday, August 24th

Happy Friday!

Pre-AP English 9

Our study of the Greek Pantheon began today.  By having a firm grasp of the gods and goddesses that Greeks believed played a very important part in everyday-life,  we can have a greater understanding of Odysseus' journey and crisis of belief, and we can more easily recognize the sophisticated religious symbolism that Homer employs in his poetry.  If you would like to download a copy of the Greek Pantheon PowerPoint, you may do so by clicking here.  (Be patient.  It takes a little while to download.)

Homework:  Students need to finish writing their Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes essays.  (The prompts can be found on yesterday's blog post.)  These are due on MONDAY.  Students can also begin reading Part 1 of The Odyssey.

English 10

Cherokee traditions and culture took up the majority of our class time today.  We discussed elements of Cherokee culture such as dress, food, authority, and, most importantly for this class, religion and values of the people.  Beginning Monday, we will be dissecting John Smith's "1616 Letter to Queen Anne of Great Britain" so that we can compare an accurate picture of Pocahontas' character with the modernization of her character by companies like Disney.

Thursday, August 23rd

Pre-AP
Today, the Pre-APers took their summer reading test on The Hobbit.  They also received the essay prompt that they will write concerning their other summer reading novel, Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes.  This essay is due on Monday, August 27th.

The essay prompts they can choose from are as follows:

"Write an essay in which you discuss the sources of conflict in Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes, and explain how the conlict between parent and child adds to the meaning of the work."

-OR-

"Characters, like people, are often torn between two desires or obligations.  From Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes, select a character who has faced this type of conflict. In a well-organized essay, identify the two conflicting desires or obligations, and explain how this conflict reveals the underlying meaning of the text."

Homework: Students should begin writing their essay which is due on Monday, August 27th.  They should also start reading The Odyssey, Part 1, which can be found in their classroom textbook.

English 10
Students took the summer reading test assessing their understanding of 13 Reasons Why in today's class.  After the test, the students completed a grammar review that covered the parts of speech and basic parts of a sentence.

Wednesday, August 22nd

Pre-AP
In today's class, we began by discussing further characteristics of formal writing and speaking versus informal writing and speaking.  Then, we analyzed a piece of southern folklore entitled "The Barefoot Woman."  In this piece, we identified examples of tone and voice, diction used for characterization, and classical allusion.  After describing the voice we had created for the narrator, we then listened to the author read the tale and compared the two voices.  (http://themoonlitroad.com/the-barefoot-woman/)  This led to a discussion of how the author uses diction to create voice.

Homework: Students need to finish the note card assignment for BOTH summer reading novels (The Hobbit and Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes).  These are due TOMORROW.  Also, students need to study for the summer reading test on The Hobbit.  It will be administered tomorrow as well.

They also need to obtain a copy of Joanne Harris' Runemarks by September 3rd.  if ordering this book on-line, it should be ordered immediately to ensure delivery by the 3rd.


English 10
Today, we reviewed key themes and plot points of Jay Asher's 13 Reasons Why in preparation for the summer reading test that will be given TOMORROW.  Afterwards, we read through a story entitled "The Barefoot Woman" and analyzed it to find how the author uses diction to create a certain tone for the piece, as well as to create a distinct voice for the narrator.

Homework: Students need to finish the note card assignment for 13 Reasons Why in preparation for the summer reading test that will be administered tomorrow.  They should also study for this test using their novel and the note cards.

Tuesday, August 21st

Pre-AP English 9

Welcome to a new year!  I hope that everyone has had a productive and exciting start to what I am sure will be a benchmark year for each of us!

Our Pre-AP classes have gotten started on the right foot, and I am excited about what we will learn and accomplish this semester.  Parents, please make sure to check this blog daily for updates as to what we did in class and what students will have for homework.

In today's class, we began background studies that will prepare us for our reading of Homer's The Odyssey.  Analyzing the difference between the oral tradition and the written tradition, we discussed the two most common types of stories from the oral tradition: folktales and fairytales.  (PowerPoint can be downloaded by clicking here.)

Homework: Students need to fill out and return their information sheets (the last page of their syllabus) by tomorrow (Wednesday, August 22nd).  This is for a grade, so students do not need to neglect turning in this information.

Additionally, students need to complete and study their note cards for The Hobbit test. (Note cards for The Hobbit AND Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes will be due on Thursday.)  The notes will be due, and the test will occur, on Thursday, August 23rd.

Also, students need to purchase a copy of Runemarks by Joanne Harris.  We will begin reading this novel on Monday, September 3rd.

English 10
Welcome to a new school year!  As said before, I hope that everyone has started off their year in a great, productive way!

In today's class, we completed a study guide to prepare students for the 13 Reasons Why test that they will take on August 23rd.  We also discussed and analyzed the differences between stories told in the oral tradition and stories told in the written tradition (PowerPoint can be downloaded above). 

Homework: Students need to fill out and return their information sheets (the last page of their syllabus) by tomorrow (Wednesday, August 22nd). This is for a grade, so students do not need to neglect turning in this information.


Additionally, students need to complete and study their note cards for the 13 Reasons Why test. The notes will be due, and the test will occur, on Thursday, August 23rd.

Monday, May 21st

Welcome to the LAST blog post of the year!!!  I hope that everyone has a very restful, very safe summer.

Pre-AP
In today's class, we took our last reading quiz on "The Cask of Amontillado" and reviewed for the final exam.

A copy of the final exam study guide can be found by clicking here.

ASHGE Reading Review
We reviewed for the final exam in today's class.

Thursday, May 17th

Pre-AP
In today's class, we reviewed sentence objects and complements.  Then, we read and analyzed Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery."

Homework: Students need to review the semester's material nightly in preparation for the semester exam.  A copy of the semester exam study guide can be found by clicking here.

Also, students need to read "The Most Dangerous Game" in their textbook.  There will be a short reading quiz on the story tomorrow (Friday).

AHSGE Reading Review
We continued talking about heraldry and the Arthurian legend in class today.

Wednesday, May 16th

Pre-AP
Students took the Lord of the Flies Unit test in class today.  Afterward, they were given copies of Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" and O. Henry's "The Ransom of Red Chief."

Homework:  Students should be reviewing for the final exam nightly.  A copy of the study guide can be downloaded by clicking here.

Also, students need to read "The Ransom of Red Chief" by the time they come to class tomorrow.

AHSGE Reading Review
As our nine weeks draws to a close, today we began discussing different literary topics that may possibly appear on the reading portion of the graduation exam.  For today's lesson, we discussed heraldry and the Arthurian legend.

Tuesday, May 15th

Pre-AP
Today's class was an amalgamation of topics that needed to be covered before the end of the semester.  After discussing common problems that have been found in our essays and extended responses, we studied the difference between tone and mood and discussed how authors and screenwriters can change these literary elements very easily using unique syntax and diction in their work.  After this, we finished discussing propaganda by learning about fallacious thinking.  Specifically, we discussed emotional, ethical, and logical fallacies, and how they fuel propaganda's persuasive effect.  If fallacies fuel propaganda, then the difference (and often confusion) between fact and opinion fuels fallacious thinking.

Homework:  Students need to study for the Lord of the Flies Unit test, which will be administered tomorrow.  It will cover all Words of the Day, sentences objects and complements, irregular verb conjugation, "pesky words," all action from Lord of the Flies, as well as an essay discussing how prejudice plays into the novel.

Also, students will be reading several short stories before the semester is over. These will not be "officially" assigned until after the unit test, but if students would like to go ahead and get a head start on these stories, they can. The stories are, "The Most Dangerous Game" (page 24 in the textbook), "The Cask of Amontillado" (page 57 in the textbook), "The Lottery" (handout), and "The Ransom of Red Chief" (handout).

AHSGE Reading Review
Seniors took the final exam in today's class and juniors did a reading assignment on Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur.

Monday, May 14th

Pre-AP
Students took the final reading test on Lord of the Flies in class today.  After the test, we also finished our discussion of propaganda and began talking about fallacious thinking, describing and identifying examples of logical, emotional, and ethical fallacies.

Homework:  Students should review all notes, annotations, and analyses of Lord of the Flies in preparation for the novel's Unit Test on Wednesday, May 16th.  The test will also cover Golding notes, time period notes, Words of the Day, object and complement identification, and irregular verb conjugation.

Also, students will be reading several short stories before the semester is over. These will not be "officially" assigned until after the unit test, but if students would like to go ahead and get a head start on these stories, they can. The stories are, "The Most Dangerous Game" (page 24 in the textbook), "The Cask of Amontillado" (page 57 in the textbook), "The Lottery" (handout), and "The Ransom of Red Chief" (handout).

AHSGE Reading Review
In today's class, we reviewed for the final exam, covering all standards that the "Reading" section of the graduation exam addresses.

Friday, May 11th

Pre-AP
In today's class, we discussed logical progression of sentences in a paragraph before finishing the documentary Waiting for Superman.  After the documentary, we discussed the state of education in our society, and why it is like it is.  In the conversation, the topics of tenure, internal motivation, and the teacher evaluation process were brought up and discussed.

Homework: Students need to review chapters 9-12 in Lord of the Flies in preparation for their test on Monday. The test will also cover and contain Words of the Day (23), irregular verb conjugation, quote identifications, and extended responses.



Also, students will be reading several short stories before the semester is over. If they would like to go ahead and get a head start on these stories, they can. The stories are, "The Most Dangerous Game" (page 24 in the textbook), "The Cask of Amontillado" (page 57 in the textbook), "The Lottery" (handout), and "The Ransom of Red Chief" (handout).

AHSGE Reading Review
Students took a poetry test in today's class, and then we finished watching Waiting for Superman and discussed education in our state and school system.

Thursday, May 10th

Pre-AP
We reviewed predicate adjectives and nominatives in today's class, before finishing the documentary Waiting for Superman.  We also discussed favorable study habits for the final exam, as students received their study guides for the final exam.  (A copy of the final exam study guide can be downloaded by clicking here.)

Homework: Students need to review chapters 9-12 in Lord of the Flies in preparation for their test on Monday.  The test will also cover and contain Words of the Day (23), irregular verb conjugation, quote identifications, and extended responses.

Also, students will be reading several short stories before the semester is over.  If they would like to go ahead and get a head start on these stories, they can.  The stories are, "The Most Dangerous Game" (page 24 in the textbook), "The Cask of Amontillado" (page 57 in the textbook), "The Lottery" (handout), and "The Ransom of Red Chief" (handout).

AHSGE Reading Review
After finishing our poetry unit today, we also finished our education discussion and finished watching Waiting for Superman.

Wednesday, May 9th

Pre-AP
After discussing the state of education in Alabama, and how education can lead to the development of a dystopian society, students began watching Waiting for Superman, a documentary that portrays the state of education in America and explores possible solutions to our educational crisis.

Homework:  Students need to finish reading chapters 9-12 in Lord of the Flies.

AHSGE Reading Review
We continued our education discussion in class today, watching the documentary Waiting for Superman and using it as a conduit to discuss possible solutions to the educational problems that face our society today.

Tuesday, May 8th

Pre-AP
In today's class, we discussed propaganda and its saturation of modern society.  Usually, when discussing propaganda, the focus rests simply on WWII propaganda, especially the German propaganda machine.  However, the same propaganda techniques used in the 1930s and 1940s are still in use today to sell certain products and ideas.  Propaganda plays a big role in the creation of dystopia and the dark world portrayed in Lord of the Flies.

Homework:  Students need to read chapters 9-12 (the remainder of the novel) in Lord of the Flies.

AHSGE Reading Review
We took a break from poetry to begin a discussion of the state of education in today's class, examining the current assessment structure in secondary education as well as the future of assessment and standardized testing in Alabama.

Friday, May 4th

Pre-AP
One of the main questions that Lord of the Flies is trying to answer is, "What is the origin of evil?"  Golding is very much concerned with behavioral motivation and exploring the above question in a microcosm of childhood innocence.  Other social psychologists have also asked the same question of humanity and have conducted experiments to attempt an answer.  In today's class, we looked at one of these instances, called the Milgram Experiment, and discussed why people behave in the negative way they sometimes do.  We then looked at chapters 4-6 in Lord of the Flies and discussed the chapters' implications to the overall novel.

Homework:  Students need to read chapters 6-8 in Lord of the Flies and be ready for a section test on Monday.  This test will also cover Words of the Day and sentence objects and sentence complements.  For a review on sentence objects and sentence complements, see the "Homework" section of yesterday's post.

AHSGE Reading Review
We continued our study of poetry today, looking at Lord Byron's "She Walks in Beauty Like the Night."