31 October - Happy Halloween!

AP Language

Solid day today in AP Language as we had some really big conversations about the power of the past, memory, truth, and identity. I appreciated the way in which you were closely reading the chapters to understand the way in which our motifs are interacting with each other to create arguments in the text. We're hitting the back half of the novel, so it's important to see how things are shifting to create key meanings. Remember, the characters aren't really characters - they're ideas. It's time to pay attention to who's winning, who's losing, and why. 

For next class, focus on reading Chapter 6. There are some major changes that occur in Chapter 6, so pay close attention and see the shifts as they occur. Don't forget that as we are working in class, you should be filling out your motif charts. As the ideas are activated in conversation note the ideas in the chart. Remember, you don't need quotes or page numbers, just collect the data. Next week we'll have a bit of a catch-up space to work on projects, draw some big connections, and collaborate together. I'm really enjoying the energy that I'm seeing in class around Gatsby and the increasing depth of analysis and reading. Keep practicing! Keep writing!

27 October - Feminism and Weekend Time!

AP Language

What a great day to end the week in AP Language. We dug into Deborah Tannen and looked at the marking of women, the ideas of power, politics, and access, and of course feminism. This is another article that we're going to come back to a few times this year as we consider the roles of women in the texts that we read and the roles of women in our American society. We flexed our precis muscles at the end to get ready for our next round of FRQ 2 - Rhetorical Analysis. Remember how our work in class will always support the development of our skills.

Over the weekend, there are two chapters to read because they work together very well. Chapter 4 and Chapter 5 give us the opportunity to learn a LOT about Gatsby, Daisy, Nick, and the world of the 1920's. Pay attention to the idea of the past. We'll be building a timeline, so you may want to pay attention to what happens when in the lives of the characters.

Remember that revised projects are due by the 31st of October. I can give a bit of flex time if needed, but the majority should be submitted by then. Remember to focus on your audience, purpose, and message slides. Accomplish the goal of the rubric. Come to Lion Time or after school to conference. 

25 October

AP Language

Solid day today in AP Language as we had our first synthesis day. As we keep reading through The Great Gatsby we will gather our thoughts every three chapters. Today we discussed most of the major ideas in the book and the key arguments that Fitzgerald is presenting to us. Keep using our key passages, our annotations, and our conversations to track these major developments.

We also discussed our final project on The Great Gatsby and the tools you'll use to complete it. Track the motifs as you keep reading. Notice how the ideas build on each other in order to accomplish a full argument. Work with friends to track ideas - it makes life easier. At the end, we'll build a visual of the motif and write about a key passage in which the meaning is developed. 

For next class, read and annotate Deborah Tannen's article "There Is No Unmarked Woman". Think about the women we've met in The Great Gatsby. Consider their roles and the way in which they're marked. Don't forget that project revisions are due by 10/31. Remember to give me your rubric and resubmit the project on Schoology.

23 October - Party at Gatsby's!

AP Language

Great times today in AP Language as we experienced our first party at Gatsby's house. I was glad to see the way in which you were able to discern the meaning of key details to see the messages that Fitzgerald is providing about the world and people of the 1920's. Keep paying attention to patterns. Consider what cars and characters are really symbolizing. 

If you've fallen behind, take today as an opportunity to get caught up. Next class we'll be having a day to pull ideas together and focus on skills. No reading is assigned for next class. Focus on revising your What's the Situation projects based on today's feedback session. Remember to focus on purpose and message as you guide your revisions. If you would like to conference, please reach out! As always, I'm here to support you.

19 October - End of HoCo Week

AP Language

Wowza! What a day in AP Language as we discussed Chapter 2 of The Great Gatsby. I loved the depth of your analysis and your reading and the way in which you reflected that in your discussion. Keep in mind that everything we're doing right now is about strengthening your analytical reading and writing skills. This is the key work to do in order to improve the skills assessed in your rhetorical analysis - FRQ 2. This is also a great skill that will apply in your other classes; remember, it's always about close reading and deriving patterns. Apply our reading strategies as you read on your own to deepen annotations and remember more of what you read. Annotating is making your thinking visible, so do it!

Over the weekend, read Chapter 3. You're going to get into your first party at Gatsby's house. Look at who comes and what happens. Pay attention to the imagery, the words, and the choices. Keep developing your list of big ideas in the back of the book and see how these ideas are developed in the body of the narrative.

If you're struggling with analytical writing, come in to Lion Time next week. I'm here to support you and provide more practice and feedback with your skills. We'll discuss more feedback and reassessment options next week!

17 October - Away at a Conference

AP Language

Sorry to be "away" today, but learning calls! I'm spending the first part of the week at an Instructional Coaching conference. It's been a good opportunity to work really closely with Mrs. Hanson and to get more into the learning part of my new role in the school. I'm looking forward to seeing you all on Thursday in class and to see the fruits of your labors from today.

Today's class is focused on Chapter 1. You're working totally focused on Chapter 1 today in order to understand the structure of the chapter, the way in which tones fluctuate, and key elements of the narrative like conflicts, setting, and character. At the end of class, you're focused on analysis of a Chapter 1 Key Passage. As we go through this book, we'll be doing a lot of analysis of key passages. Focus on using the given sentence starters and the earlier conversations to put together a deep and focused analysis. Use the sentence starters I've given you! You're struggling with depth of commentary, and these will help get you there.

If you missed the timed writing, please schedule a make-up. I'll be hosting a session on Wednesday after school. As always, reach out with any questions or concerns. Enjoy Chapter 2 for Thursday's class!

13 October - Spooky Friday

AP Language

Great day in AP Language! It was so long since I'd seen you last, that we had a lot of stored up energy for today's work. Today we began Unit 3 and looked at WEB DuBois's From the Souls of Black Folk. This is one of our main texts for the next few units - it's foundational. We'll keep coming back to it and focus on ideas related to identity and perception and self-perception. The conversation we had and ideas we derived were quite rich. Go back to the recording or collaborative slides to review.

We ended class by looking at a video related to the social context for the novel we're studying, The Great Gatsby. Over the weekend, read Chapter 1. Focus on big ideas, characters, and the patterns that you're noticing in the literature. Annotate with post-it notes or on paper to track your findings. Consider how this book is a reaction to the moment of the culture of the 1920's.

See you on Tuesday! If you missed the timed write, we can make it up next week.

6 October - FRQ Friday!

AP Language

FRQ Friday in AP Language land today. We looked at "America Needs its Nerds" by Leonid Fridman (distant cousin to Mr. Friedman, perhaps?) and wrote an analysis of Fridman's argument. I'm looking forward to seeing your thoughts and first analyses. I hope that you found space for a little cat as you wrote and that it brought you a feeling of success and not allergies, as cats often bring me. 

Next week is strange because of the PSAT on Wednesday. It falls on a grey day, so I won't see you for class. Our next class will be on Friday. For Friday, please have read and annotated WEB DuBois Chapter 1 from From the Souls of Black Folk. It's a great bridge piece into our work related to The Great Gatsby. I posted a video in Materials to help you with the reading - it's a discussion between me and Mr. Friedman about this reading. You may find it helpful to watch before or after you read to process.

You may also want to secure The Great Gatsby if you want your own copy. I'll issue school copies in about two weeks. Once we get back on normal schedule, we'll have feedback from projects and essays!

Enjoy the long weekend. See you very soon!

4 October - Timed Writing on Deck!

AP Language

Today was a filled day in AP Language land as we wrapped up Unit 2 and prepared for Friday's timed writing. You'll be writing an FRQ 2 which requires you to read and then write an analysis of a text. How does the author convey their argument to an audience? The process we've worked through in class - from SPACECAT to PRECIS to ESSAY - is the one we'll employ on Friday.

Remember how you'll be scored and what the requirements are. I'm looking forward to seeing your first attempt at this type of essay. Review previous recordings and the resources we've reviewed. Prepare by doing and engage in meaningful review. Remember if you're missing anything from the unit, to complete it by the end of the weekend. I should have projects ready for you next week!

2 October - Happy Fall!

AP Language

Great work today in class everyone, we are engaging in some great skill building and review to prepare for our timed writing on Friday. Today's class looked at a few important concepts. First, we discussed grading on timed writings - we looked at the scoring guidelines, sample essays, and a prompt to understand not only the task but how we'll be assessed on it. After understanding the task and the requirements, we went back to the precis. The precis is the key to writing that introduction/thesis to FRQ 2 and starting off well. Keep practicing with the precis to prepare for Friday's timed writing. 

I would recommend that you continue to write precis and review our readings through this unit as a means to practice, study, and prepare for Friday. All of the readings are posted in Schoology as well as all of our slides. Don't forget the recordings too. Looking forward to Wednesday and the last class of Unit 2.