Senior Homework - 11/30

I hope that you all are starting to get into Hamlet. It's especially important to notice how characters are connected to each other at this point of the play and the major motifs that Shakespeare is establishing.

For tonight, you should continue to work on your Great Expectations websites as well as finishing the text. Also, don't forget that your poetry explications are due tomorrow. I'm looking forward to seeing what you've come up with in your poems.

Homework - 30 November

Freshmen:

Next class we will be having our Benchmark Test. Please be sure that you come to class with two pencils. If you'd like to study for this exam, look over grammar and literary terms. Don't concern yourself with other things.

Now, for Monday and Tuesday you should come to class with your introduction paragraph and first body paragraph for your first essay. Use the tips and strategies that we went over in class today to write your body paragraphs. Be sure that you're using your outlines to complete this part of the assignment.

http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/paragraphs.shtml

This website provides good information on topic sentences and writing body paragraphs. It also contains those transition words which I referenced earlier.

Other than writing, you should also read chapter four of A Separate Peace. I hope that you're noticing how things are changing in this text, especially with Gene.

Seniors:

Your explications are due tomorrow! Use the rubric and other information that we've gone over to craft a well-written piece of poetic criticism. The biggest thing to remember about this assignment is that you are trying to prove to me that the meaning is created throughout the whole piece. Be sure that you take me through all of the poem as you write your explication. I will collect these from you tomorrow at the beginning of class.

Also, don't forget that you should finish Great Expectations this week!

Homework - Welcome back!

Today is the 29th of November - we have fourteen more days of school until Winter Break! Things will move pretty quickly before break, make sure that you're keeping up with EVERYTHING that we have going on. There will be a lot of deadlines for you to meet.

So, let's review.

Seniors:

You will want to be sure that you finish Great Expectations by the end of this coming weekend. I would actually suggest that you finish it by Friday. You will not have any Hamlet reading this week, but this weekend and next week, you will. You will not have vocabulary cards due this week.

Now, don't forget that you have that website project due before we leave for Winter Break. First check-in on this is coming. I want there to be a mock-up shared with me and all group members live by this Sunday. Your group has a task. Today, at the end of class when we had free time - I hope that you were speaking to your group members about this.

Lastly, your poetry explications are due on Wednesday of this week. Remember what I said about taking things late with this project. I have a rubric and will share it with you tomorrow. Feel free to see me before or after class with drafts.

Freshmen:

For Wednesday/Thursday - You will want to be sure that you have read chapters one through three. Keep up with your notes, and keep thinking about some of these big ideas that we're bringing up. Those of you with your own books should take notes in your book as you read. Be sure that you also have your vocabulary bookmarks done. Don't forget the page number and definitions.

We have Benchmarks coming up on Thursday/Friday. For Thursday/Friday - just come to class with pencils. You can read when you're done with the test, but you have to remain quiet.

On Wednesday/Thursday, we will be taking the next step forward with our essay assignments. These will be due before Winter Break! If you need help, see me as soon as you realize the problem.

Onward!

Homework over Thanksgiving Break

A-day Freshmen:

Over the break you'll need to read chapter three of A Separate Peace. Make sure that as you read you keep up with your vocabulary. We will have a vocabulary check in the coming days.

B-day Freshmen:

Over break you'll need to finish reading chapter two. Please keep up with the vocabulary assignment.

All Freshmen: You will have your first benchmark exam on December 2nd and 3rd. Feel free to review your grammar warm-ups and grammar notes as well as important literary devices. Don't spend a lot of time studying; I want to see what you know and where you don't understand things.

Seniors:

Over the break you should make it a priority to finish reading Great Expectations. You've got fourteen chapters left in the text to finish Book Three. If you don't finish it over break, you'll want to finish it in the week that we begin Hamlet, after break. Also, over break, you'll want to get your copy of Hamlet. You can get just the Shakespearean version, but I recommend the No Fear Shakespeare - it will help with understanding the plot!

Everyone! Have a great Thanksgiving! Eat lots of food!

Homework - 11/22

Seniors:

Tonight you should be able to finish reading book two of Great Expectations. Tomorrow we're going to finish reviewing some of the main concepts from book two to give you some things to think about as you finish reading Great Expecations on your own.

Also, when we get back from break we will begin studying Hamlet. I would recommend buying a copy of No-Fear Shakespeare Hamlet - this will provide a great aid to help you understand Shakespeare's language.

Freshmen:

You should finish reading chapter two of A Separate Peace. Be ready for good discussion tomorrow!

Weekend Homework - 11/19

Freshmen (A-day):

This weekend you need to read chapter two of A Separate Peace. As you read, be sure that you're keeping up with the vocabulary bookmark assignment. Jot down the words that are new to you with the page number, after you complete the reading assignment, look up the word and - on the bookmark - write a personal, one or two word definition of the new word. Reading is important because it builds vocabulary!

Also, as you read, pay attention to the ideas that we're raising in the class discussions. Especially in this opening bit of the text you want to really pay attention to the characters of Gene and Finny. Their similarities, their differences, and the relationship between them.

Freshmen (B-day): You've got to finish reading chapter one. Don't forget about the vocabulary bookmark.

Seniors:

You've got memorized poems to present on Monday and Tuesday. This should be your priority for the weekend. As I suggested earlier, try recording the poem and then listen to it again and again. Another good memorization technique is to write the poem again and again until you've literally etched it into your mind. We're also going to get back into discussing Great Expectations in these last two classes before we leave for Thanksgiving break. On Monday we'll be discussing chapters thirty, thirty-one, and thirty-two. Be prepared to discuss areas of these chapters in some depth on Monday.

Lastly - all of you come to the game tonight! HUP FALCONS!!!!

Homework - 11/18

Seniors:

For tonight make sure that you get your vocabulary cards taken care of. I will be collecting these from you tomorrow. Tomorrow we'll also have a timed writing on poetry. Try to use some of the things that we've been talking about lately in class about writing for tomorrow. Also, think about the sample essays that we analyzed today in class. Be more like a nine, and less like a two.

Lastly, you should be reading two chapters of Great Expecations each night. Tonight you'll need to read chapters thirty-four and thirty-five. I know that some of you are behind, please take the weekend to get yourself caught up. Don't forget about memorized poems on Monday and Tuesday.

Freshmen:

Tonight you all need to finish reading chapter one of A Separate Peace. As you're reading, continue to pay attention to your vocabulary bookmark assignment as well as your motif and character lists. Note important quotations as you read as well to bring up in the class discussion.

See you all tomorrow. Happy Friday!

Homework - 11/16

Seniors: Your number one priority should be the dramatic reading presentation. You also have reading to do tonight, chapters thirty and thirty-one, but we probably won't get to these chapters until later this week. Make sure that you're prepared for the Dramatic Reading!

Freshmen: See the previous post for your reading assignment. Be ready to discuss these opening pages tomorrow in class.

Homework - 11/15

Seniors:

Tonight for homework you have to read chapter twenty-nine. The story is beginning a bit of a turn. Pay attention to Estella very carefully in the chapter. We'll work on understanding key areas of the text tomorrow in class. Come with good annotations.

Also, don't forget that you have your dramatic presentations on Wednesday and Thursday. Feel free to see me in the morning or during lunch to get some extra help on this. The key here is tone. Also, be sure that you're fluency is high. You shouldn't stumble through.

Lastly, think about your writing skills. We're working on our final push for writing. If there are specific skills you really would like to focus on here at the end - please raise those during these next few days.

Freshmen:

Tonight you will begin reading A Separate Peace. One of the biggest downfalls of this novel is the opening. It's dry. And it takes a bit of opening up to really get into the text. Remember the importance of narrator and setting. Knowles has got to establish these things before the story can continue. For tonight, read in chapter one up until the point when Gene goes back in time. You should recognize this moment fairly easily.

As you read, make sure that you keep track of your motif list on the back cover, your character list on the front cover, and your vocabulary bookmark. These are meant to be done as you read. Wednesday/Thursday, we will begin talking about annotations.

Lastly, don't forget about outlines.

To all of you:

Enjoy the reading! As always, ask questions if you have them.

Weekend Homework - 11/12

Freshmen:

You have the personal reflection about friendship due on Monday and Tuesday - please make sure that these get into the box. Furthermore, if you did not turn in your outline to the box yesterday or today, you will want to make certain you attend study hall on Monday or see me at A-lunch. These outlines are very important, not submitting them is getting you far behind in your essay.

Seniors:

Your homework for the weekend is to read/annotate chapters twenty seven and twenty eight. Also, I gave you back your annotated poems today - use these to begin planning for your dramatic readings next week. Dramatic readings will take place on Wednesday and Thursday. Don't forget that the timed writing will happen on Friday and the memorized poem presentations will be on the 22nd and 23rd. We will be signing up for presentation slots on Monday of next week.

Seniors - Reminders

https://sites.google.com/site/dickensprojectmockup/home

Just reminding you of the mock-up for the Dickens project. We'll probably go to the computer lab sometime next week to set up the templates and do a bit of training with Google sites.

On the topic of Google, how many of you haven't been able to access your gmail accounts on the school computers? I was noticing this with a few people today, and it really held back the activity.

Handing back annotations for you on Friday. We'll spend some time discussing those then; overall, you all did very well.

Hope that you enjoy meeting Bentley...

Homework - 11/10 - 9th and 12th Graders

Freshmen:

I want you to continue thinking about the idea of "friendship/brotherhood" which was raised in the story "The Scarlet Ibis." This idea is going to be really important as we start getting into our novel A Separate Peace next week. Over the weekend, I want you to write about this idea. Please answer the following questions in a personal response. Note that since this is personal, writing rules don't apply.

Your prompt:

Describe the perfect friendship. What are important qualities to a good friendship? Why do these qualities matter? What causes friendships to fail?

Be as thorough as possible in your answer. You may want to draw on examples from your own life or from literature, television, or films. Please put your responses in the box on Monday/Tuesday.

Seniors:

I will have your anntotated poems back for you on Friday. You'll need to use these to prepare for your dramatic readings next week. I've changed the date for the dramatic readings: these are now going to be on the 17th and 18th of November. In terms of homework, you will need to read chapters twenty-five and twenty-six of Great Expectations. Furthermore, your vocabulary cards are due on Friday!

You may want to start discussing in your groups who is going to do what for the website. Divide and conquer!

Senior Homework - 11/9

Tonight I'd like for you to continue forward in Great Expectations. Read chapters twenty-three and twenty-four tonight and annotate those chapters. Try to notice how Dickens is building on certain themes - especially the ideas of being a gentleman, the city of London, and the ideas of friendship. Also, pay attention to family and how we begin to pay attention to the family structure with the Pockets.

Tomorrow, I'm going to be sharing your final project on Dickens and Great Expectations - I'm putting you in groups for this assignment and will have you build a website. This assignment will also count as your major paper for Great Expectations. But more on that tomorrow...

Great Expectations - Jaggers...Devil...Anti-Semitism

Totally just noticed that the Jew in chapter twenty calls Jaggers "Holy father." Now remember the thing about Jaggers being the Devil and you've got some extreme crazy stuff going on.

Would make a really good paper.

Homework - 11/8

Freshmen:

Tonight for homework you have two things to do:

1. Finish reading "The Scarlet Ibis" and complete your dialectical notebook. Honors students should have anywhere from seven to ten entries; Standard students should have three to six entries. Do not turn these notebooks into the box, keep them for our class discussion.

2. Don't forget your outlines for your essays are due to the box on Wednesday/Friday! Work hard on these. Come see me if you need help!

Seniors:

Tonight you all need to read chapter twenty-two of Great Expectations. This chapter provides a lot of backstory on Miss Havisham. Pay close attention to what we learn about her. Keep up with your bookmarks and vocabulary cards, I'll collect those Friday. Finally, don't forget the first stage of your poetry project is due Wednesday. I will not accept this late.

Great conversation today in class. You all made me very proud.

English IV Homework - This Weekend

Seniors:

This weekend you should read chapters twenty and twenty one of Great Expectations. Welcome to London! As you read, pay attention to the city of London and Pip's attitude toward the city. Also, take note of new characters and what we begin to learn about existing characters. As we are getting into the reading again, you will want to get back to your bookmarks and vocabulary cards. I'll collect those next Friday.

Again, if you want to read ahead - please do so. Be prepared for conversation in class on Monday!

Homework for 11/4 - Seniors and Freshmen

Freshmen:

Over the weekend you all should be pulling together your outline for your formal essay. Remember to follow the formatting guidelines that I went over with you in class. Label everything and follow the guidelines about topic sentences and examples to include in the body paragraphs.

Seniors:

Tonight you need to do some time playing around with Google docs and finish the selecting of your poem for your project. Make sure that your posting in the last thread is done tonight.

Now, the Google docs stuff should be relatively easy for you based on the orientation we did today in class. Open your gmail/e-mail account that you set up for the Google group - you'll see that I shared a document with you. That document will include the instructions for tonight's assignment. Bring a paper copy of the response as a back-up just in case the internet fails. I'll be providing feedback in the document that you upload. Make sure that you share your document with me and that I can edit it!

Let me know if you've got questions. I'll be checking these tonight around 9:00 to see what you've all got.

English IV Homework - 11/3

For tonight you need to decide on a poem and a poet for your poetry project. Please respond to this post with the name of your poet and poem. This is due by Thursday evening. No repeats with this, if someone claims yours first - then that's it. Find another.

Also, you should be reading Great Expectations - get ahead on your reading before next week!

Seniors - A Special Note

http://teachers.schooldesk.net/content/2/2/6284/my%20files/Literary%20Periods%20of%20British%20and%20American%20Literature.doc

Copy this link into your browser and use the information to complete your homework tonight. Also, don't forget that only two of your poets can be singers.

Homework - Beginning of the 2nd Quarter - 11/2

Did anyone notice that in my last post I wrote August instead of October? Anyway...

Freshmen:

Tonight for homework you will need to complete the first paragraph of your essay. Please follow your writing notes as you begin to write. Make sure that you have your thematic, attention grabbing opening. Then make your connection to the story. Finally, include your thesis. Bring these to class with you on Thursday/Friday as we will begin coming together and editing for strong beginnings to our essays.

Get off to a good start this nine weeks - 100% completing the assignment.

Seniors:

We are going to focus on poetry for a little bit because we've really neglected it. Tonight, to facilitate that, I would like for your to do some research for homework. Find four British poets who interest you in some way shape or form. Note the following information abouth them:

1. Their name. Birth and death dates.
2. Major works, poems of acclaim.
3. Literary period to which they are connected.
4. Reception by the British public - were they famous? obscure?
5. Why does this poet interest you?

You can use Wikipedia for this, but you may want to double check to make sure that your information is sound. Don't walk in to class with faulty information tomorrow!