Comp. Lit. II:

Journal Prompt #1: "Madness in great ones must not unwatched go." What is the danger of having too much power? Describe a moment when you were given power and how you handled it. 1 page I passed out Animal Farm.

Shakespeare

Today: Journal Prompt #1: "Madness in great ones must not unwatched go." What is the danger of having too much power? Describe a moment when you were given power and how you handled it. 1 page HW: Please read to pg 47. in Shakespeare Alive!

Welcome

Welcome to my class! Get ready to work hard and have fun while doing it. I look forward to teaching you this semester.

Brit. Lit

Today
We finished Jane Eyre.

Quiz (X3) on Monday.

I passed back your 1984 test and your room 101 paper.

Comp. Lit. II

Today

Day 2 of 2 in the computer lab.  Today you completed parts III an IV of your portfolio.  These are due this Tuesday.

Brit Lit:

Today:

We went around the room and wrote responses to the following questions:

Find textual evidence of sarcasm in the novel
How is Mr. Rochester a character that we are made to feel sympathy for?
Find the best example of Gothic Lit. in the novel

Nick suggested a Star Trek Voyager episode that deals with the Victorian novel.  We watch some of this episode and talked about how this fit.

HW: Please finish the novel :-)

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

We had computer lab time day 1 of 2.

We used this time to complete Parts I + II of the final portfolio.

We will finish these on Friday.

Brit Lit:

Today:

We all went outside and found a tree to read ch 27.  I gave you 30 min. to read.

We came back in and I asked you each to summarize the chapter.

We ended class with a great clip from Seinfeld as a defeated history teacher.  This time of year, I often think of this clip.

http://www.schooltube.com/video/30747e2e060f4e4efc5b/

HW:  Please read to pg 371

Comp. Lit. II:

Today
We began work on your final portfolio.  Today, you selected 3 of your 30 journal prompts and wrote 3-5 sent. as to why these were your favorite. 

I broke you into small groups and asked you to:
define 10-15 of the main plot points.
perform them with no words or props
do the in reverse order
Perform in exactly 32 sec.

We ended class looking at the Beatles doing the play within a play scene from Midsummer.

Please have everything needed to complete part 1 +2 of your portfolio for Thursday.

Brit Lit.:

Today:

I passed back journals 21-30.

We defined Gothic Lit.

I broke you into small groups and asked you to find textual evidence for 8 of the 10 terms.

We watched a 20 minute Scooby Doo Episode and identified the gothic terminology that is also used there.

Comparing Gothic Lit in a Victorian classic and Scooby Doo- not bad for the last days of school....

HW:  Please read to pg 282.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

We looked at twitter and the nature of tweets.  I asked you to pick two character's in the play a write 6 tweets for each of them.  We shared these.

We looked at Facebook and imagined if these character's were alive today, what would their Facebook page look like.  Each row was given a different character and tasked with making a facebook page for them.

I assigned your final project:  Portfolio's:

Portfolio Assessment

For your final assignment, I will ask you to reflect back on the work that we did together.  A portfolio allows you the opportunity to think about what you have done, what you have learned, and how you may have changed through the process.  A completed portfolio consists of the following four parts:

Part I:  Journal Prompts  Please select 3 out of the 30 journal prompts that you are most proud of.  For each one, please type out and write a 3-5 sentence reflection piece as to why the prompts that you selected were meaningful.

Part II:  Selected Assignment  Please select one assignment that you are the most proud of from  your writing folder and include it in your portfolio.  Please include a 3-5 sentence reflective piece commenting on:

1.        What did you learn from this assignment?

2.       What did you find most challenging in this assignment?

3.       If you could do this again, what specifically could you improve on?

Part III:  Letter to Students  Please write a one page letter to future students taking this class.  Please give advice on what to expect from me as a teacher, as well as your comments on the activities and assignments that we did in class.  Please make reference to specific assignments and novels in your discussion.

Part IV:  Letter to Yourself  Please write a letter to yourself.  In this letter, please comment on specific areas that you have improved upon while taking this course.  Think about thoughts and feeling that you have had while reading and writing in this class.  Please try and give specific evidence to back up your statements.  You should aim to cover at least three areas of improvement, with three specific examples.  Please also feel free to comment on how you have changed as a person through assignments and class discussions.

 Please include all parts along with this assignment sheet in a manila folder, with your name, date and class clearly marked on the front.  If you do not have one easily available, please see me.

Due Date:____________________

My Comments:

 

Grade:___________________

 

 

Finally, we played freeze pop.  Each of you were given the opportunity to use the TiVo remote, freeze the action of act 2, and insert something comical into the play.

Brit Lit:

Today:

We broke into small groups and designed a modern movie poster for a re-make of Jane Eyre.
You cast the top ten on the back.
We passed these around and wrote fictitious movie quotes.

We looked at a feminist article on what a modern woman (and man) could learn from Jane Eyre.

I passed out my notes on Gothic Lit.

HW:  Please read to pg 272.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

We reviewed the play and notes on Shakespeare.

You took a quiz (A Block only)  on Act-1-2

Remaining people recited their Puck Lines.  -10 for each day not ready.

We went to support the Art department by attending All Arts Day.

Brit Lit:

Today:

We reviewed your reading from last night.

We played Three Strikes and You Get a Quiz.  You avoid a quiz by only having one strike.

We looked at the role of women during the Victorian Age.

We played a game on this:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/interactive/games/victorian_women/index_embed.shtml

I asked you to do a free write:
Imagine that you are Jane and have wandered up to investigate the noises.  Open the door to the room in the attic and describe in first person what you see.  2/3 of a page

HW:  please read to pg 151 (ch 17)

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

We defined the language tricks that Shakespeare uses.

We looked at reverse thought, and I played a short clip from Yoda demonstrating this effect.

I asked you to give your own examples for each of the terms.

I broke you into small groups and had you find specific examples from act 1-2.

We reviewed the Puck lines.  These remain due Friday.

Brit Lit:

Today:

We reviewed your reading

We looked at the used of weather in the novel to set mood

We looked at hope and compassion in the school.

We defined classical allusions and looked at 20 allusions in this novel.  We looked at how allusions are used in many movies and popular lit. today

We took a quiz on your notes from yesterday + reading.

HW:  Please read to pg. 119 (ch 14)

Comp. Lit. II

Today:

I gave you notes on the very little facts that are known about Shakespeare.

I gave you notes on:
The Globe
Groundlings
Plays vs. religion
Other forms of entertainment
Throwing food at the end of act 1.

We finished act 2

Reminder:  Puck lines need to be memorized for this Friday.  This is a test grade- so end in greatness!

Brit. Lit.

Today
We looked at the 1st person narration and some of the amateurish style of the writing in Jane Eyre.  I asked to write a 1st person account of the red room from Jane's perspective.  1 page.

We went outside and I encouraged you to find a tree and read for 30 minutes. 

We had a group discussion about:

Jane's rebellious spirit
Boarding school in 1860.
The style of the novel.
questions that you have from the exposition.

HW:  Please read to pg.  85

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

I assigned the last lines by Puck to be memorized for this Friday.

We broke into small groups and converted the lines to modern dialogue.  We performed these in front of the class.

We began acting out act 1.

Due to MCAS using all the computer labs, our letter to Ellie has been moved to another day.

Brit Lit.:

We finished 1984 and Dystopian fiction.

We looked at the letter Orwell wrote explaining why he was about to write this book.  Have you ever felt passion that would inspire you to do something like this?

We talked about the Snowden interview from this week.

We learned about the Bronte sister's.  We began to define the Victorian novel.

HW:  Please read pgs 1-33 (ch 5) of Jane Eyre  for Monday.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

A Block:

Ms. Nijssen past back your test and offered you a bonus set of questions to raise the class avg.
We went to the lab and wrote your letter to Ellie.

B Block:

We began Shakespeare.
We paired up and insulted each other with Shakespearian insults.
We practiced adding emotion to lines to convey meaning.
We watched the 15 min. Doc: Why Shakespeare?

Brit Lit:

Due to the senior award ceremony, we did not have class.  For those in class, I passed out Jane Eyre.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

We took the test for Night.

George Orwell Explains in a Revealing 1944 Letter Why He’d Write 1984

Most of the twentieth century’s notable men of letters — i.e., writers of books, of essays, of reportage — seem also to have, literally, written a great deal of letters. Sometimes their correspondence reflects and shapes their “real” written work; sometimes it appears collected in book form itself. Both hold true in the case of George Orwell, a volume of whose letters, edited by Peter Davison, came out last year. In it we find this missive, also published in full at The Daily Beast, sent in 1944 to one Noel Willmett, who had asked “whether totalitarianism, leader-worship etc. are really on the up-grade” given “that they are not apparently growing in [England] and the USA”:

I must say I believe, or fear, that taking the world as a whole these things are on the increase. Hitler, no doubt, will soon disappear, but only at the expense of strengthening (a) Stalin, (b) the Anglo-American millionaires and (c) all sorts of petty fuhrers of the type of de Gaulle. All the national movements everywhere, even those that originate in resistance to German domination, seem to take non-democratic forms, to group themselves round some superhuman fuhrer (Hitler, Stalin, Salazar, Franco, Gandhi, De Valera are all varying examples) and to adopt the theory that the end justifies the means. Everywhere the world movement seems to be in the direction of centralised economies which can be made to ‘work’ in an economic sense but which are not democratically organised and which tend to establish a caste system. With this go the horrors of emotional nationalism and a tendency to disbelieve in the existence of objective truth because all the facts have to fit in with the words and prophecies of some infallible fuhrer. Already history has in a sense ceased to exist, ie. there is no such thing as a history of our own times which could be universally accepted, and the exact sciences are endangered as soon as military necessity ceases to keep people up to the mark. Hitler can say that the Jews started the war, and if he survives that will become official history. He can’t say that two and two are five, because for the purposes of, say, ballistics they have to make four. But if the sort of world that I am afraid of arrives, a world of two or three great superstates which are unable to conquer one another, two and two could become five if the fuhrer wished it. That, so far as I can see, is the direction in which we are actually moving, though, of course, the process is reversible.

As to the comparative immunity of Britain and the USA. Whatever the pacifists etc. may say, we have not gone totalitarian yet and this is a very hopeful symptom. I believe very deeply, as I explained in my book The Lion and the Unicorn, in the English people and in their capacity to centralise their economy without destroying freedom in doing so. But one must remember that Britain and the USA haven’t been really tried, they haven’t known defeat or severe suffering, and there are some bad symptoms to balance the good ones. To begin with there is the general indifference to the decay of democracy. Do you realise, for instance, that no one in England under 26 now has a vote and that so far as one can see the great mass of people of that age don’t give a damn for this? Secondly there is the fact that the intellectuals are more totalitarian in outlook than the common people. On the whole the English intelligentsia have opposed Hitler, but only at the price of accepting Stalin. Most of them are perfectly ready for dictatorial methods, secret police, systematic falsification of history etc. so long as they feel that it is on ‘our’ side. Indeed the statement that we haven’t a Fascist movement in England largely means that the young, at this moment, look for their fuhrer elsewhere. One can’t be sure that that won’t change, nor can one be sure that the common people won’t think ten years hence as the intellectuals do now. I hope they won’t, I even trust they won’t, but if so it will be at the cost of a struggle. If one simply proclaims that all is for the best and doesn’t point to the sinister symptoms, one is merely helping to bring totalitarianism nearer.

You also ask, if I think the world tendency is towards Fascism, why do I support the war. It is a choice of evils—I fancy nearly every war is that. I know enough of British imperialism not to like it, but I would support it against Nazism or Japanese imperialism, as the lesser evil. Similarly I would support the USSR against Germany because I think the USSR cannot altogether escape its past and retains enough of the original ideas of the Revolution to make it a more hopeful phenomenon than Nazi Germany. I think, and have thought ever since the war began, in 1936 or thereabouts, that our cause is the better, but we have to keep on making it the better, which involves constant criticism.

Yours sincerely,
Geo. Orwell

Three years later, Orwell would write 1984. Two years after that, it would see publication and go on to generations of attention as perhaps the most eloquent fictional statement against a world reduced to superstates, saturated with “emotional nationalism,” acquiescent to “dictatorial methods, secret police,” and the systematic falsification of history,” and shot through by the willingness to “disbelieve in the existence of objective truth because all the facts have to fit in with the words and prophecies of some infallible fuhrer.” Now that you feel like reading the novel again, or even for the first time, do browse our collection of 1984-related resources, which includes the eBook, the audio book, reviews, and even radio drama and comic book adaptations of Orwell’s work.

Brit Lit:

Today:

I collected your papers (room 101) and your reading questions from last night.

We reviewed the story and looked at how Dickens helped define the term ghost story. 

We read Shelly's intro to Frankenstein and we explored the role of women writers during this time.

HW:  None, as long as everything is in.  If missing work- please use tonight to catch up.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

We looked at genocide. 
We discussed the 8 stages of genocide and looked at places in the world where this is still happening.

A Block H recited their Invictus poem
B Block wrote letters to Ellie inviting him to Tantasqua and sharing your feelings from reading this book.

We identified the stages on genocide in Night in small groups.

HW:  Please have the book finished for Thursday.
Read article: Ethnic Cleansing in Croatia.
Study for Test.

Brit Lit:

Today

Due to Naviance training for Jr's, we moved the test to Tuesday, and made the due date for your Room 101 papers Next Wed.

We watched the movie for 1984 as a review.

Please look over your review sheet and be ready to rock the test on Tuesday.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

A Block: 

Took your vocab quiz for Night.

Read and discussed articles from your Night packet.

Began transcribing your Never Shall I forget poems.

C Block:

H Students recited Invictus
CP/CPA students took each stanza and found examples in the text that connects to the poem.

We reviewed your reading from last night.

We watched Ellie gives a speech at the Holocaust Museum:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_kuKXRLEnY

We started watching the Opera Special on the novel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEbLJv3uSPY

I passed back all of your quizzes for Night, your Animal Farm test and your journals.

Brit Lit:

Today:

We played a review game for the test.

We went over the essay questions for the test:

1984 Essay Questions:

 

Directions:  CPA:  Please answer one of the following questions.

(H:)  Please answer two of the three questions.

 

ESSAY # 1
During Winston's stay in the Ministry of Love, O'brien asks Winston, "How does one man exert his power over another" to which Winston replies, "By making him suffer". Explain how The Party is able to maintain control and power over it's citizens (proles and party members alike) by making them suffer. Cite examples from the text to support your answer.

ESSAY # 2
Orwell wrote 1984 as a cautionary tale to warn future generations of the dangers that could be lurking in modern society. While Orwell's nightmarish vision of the future did not come true in in the year 1984, many still view the novel as vitally important to understanding the ways human being can be manipulated and brought under power by others. In your opinion, are Orwell's warnings still valid today? In which way/s and why or why not?

 

ESSAY #3

Discuss the idea of doublethink. How important is doublethink to the Party’s

control of Oceania? How important is it to Winston’s brainwashing?  Please make sure that you give solid examples to back up all of your points.

 

 

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

A Block:  Ms. Nijssen checked your reading questions.  Many of you are not reading.  Please catch up tonight.
We went over your vocab, and were given the def. that will be on your quiz.

We read parts of the story as a class and had a discussion about some of the graphic-intense scenes.

C Block:  We took a quiz on your reading.

We went over the use of the word night.  I broke you into small groups and asked you find examples.  Each group needed 5 examples.  As you continue reading, think about how this word is used in the book.

We wrote out I will never forget poems based on 7 things.  Many of you shared some incredible poems.

HW:  read pgs 66-84
Poetry recitation for C block H students.

Brit. Lit.

Today:

We watched the second part of the Frontline doc that was aired last night.  This can be viewed here:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/view/

HW:  Finish 1984.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

A Block: 
Journal:  Write an entry as if you were on the train with Elie.  Use all of your senses to write.   1pg

We moved class outside and Ms. Nijssen had you go around in a circle a share something you found interesting, as well as a question that you had from the reading.  She explored the importance to the number 7.  We looked at how this number is used in the bible and in different religions.  You wrote a 7 line poem, modeled after the one given to you.  The poem needed to start "Never shall I forget."

C Block:
We discussed your reading.
You wrote a poem based on the key concept of hope.  We shared these and continued our discussion of the power of hope and what can happen when people lose hope.
We took a quiz on your reading.

I shared a web collection of poems about the holocaust.  You can find these here:
http://www.datasync.com/~davidg59/holo_art.html


HW:  Please follow your reading schedule and read pg 47-65.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

We reviewed your reading from last night.

A Block:  Ms. Nijssen ran class and began with a discussion on racism and where it comes from. 

You shared experiences with hate. 

You broke into a circle and shared one thing that you found interesting from the novel, and one question that you had. 

Ms. Nijssen reminded H students of the poem that is due.

HW:  Please read 23-46 for tonight.

C Block:We started with the morning newspaper.  I asked you to find an article that deals with hate and share it with the class.

We shared our experiences with racism and prejudice. 

We took a quiz on your reading.

I asked you to write a poem from the perspective of a Jew being deported.  You were asked to use this poem as a voice of hope.

What is the power of hope?

HW:  Same as A block.

Brit Lit:

Today, the majority of you took the final exam. 

HW:  Please read up to pg.  287.  Finish novel for Wed.

Brit Lit.:

Today:

I broke you into small study groups and allowed you time to prep for the test. 

Comp. Lit II:

Today
A block finished their essays for the Animal Farm test.
B block watched the first half of a doc. on the holocaust.

We passed out Night, and collected Animal Farm.

Reading schedule:

5.19 pgs. 3-22
5.20 pgs. 23-46
5.21 pgs. 47-65
5.22 pgs. 66-84
5.23 pgs. 85-97

Brit. Lit.

Today:

We looked at Dystopias in lit and cinema.  We again looked into the futuristic world of Blade Runner and made connections to 1984. 

I gave a review sheet for the final to anyone taking the final on Tuesday.  On Monday we will be having a study group session in preparations for the final.  Please bring your anthologies.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:
We took the exam for Animal Farm.  Please make sure that you schedule a time to make this up if you were absent.

Brit. Lit.:

Today:

We finished watching the documentary of government surveillance and connected this to the world of 1984.

I broke you into two groups for your letter: Winston or Julia.  We did a free write for 5 min. and then swapped and had the other character respond like a love letter.

I collected the ten things you learned from the doc.

HW:  Please read to part 3.  Expect a quiz.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

We played a review game for the Animal Farm Test

We went over who each character represents from the Russian Revolution.

We reviewed the format for the test.

Please study:
Notes on Russian Revolution
Handout on Propaganda
Novel
Character connections to Russian Revolution.

I also gave you the short answer and essay questions.  Please work on a outline tonight.

Brit. Lit.:

Today:

We relocated due to MCAS and watched the PBS documentary:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/united-states-of-secrets/

I asked you to write 10 things that your learned from the doc.

We continued out discussion on how absolute power, corrupts absolutely.

HW:  Please make sure that you are up-to-date on your reading.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

A Block had MCAS.  We did not have class.

C Block:  We typed and edited the final copy of your Animal Farm, 10 years after story.

Thursday, we will again be playing Who Wants to Win a Pizza Party.  We will be reviewing Animal Farm.

Friday:  Test for Animal Farm, progress report grades close.

If you have any missing work, please make a point to stay after today if you want it counted towards progress reports.

Word of the Week:

Cogitate: Koj-I-tayt  Verb Tr.  To ponder, mediate, think deeply.

Think:

Donald Duck's middle name is Fauntleroy

Early first page of 1984

Brit Lit.:

Today:

We worked around MCAS and senior skip day. 

Today we:

Took a quiz on pgs 83-157.

Read the following article from the NYT:
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/22/weekinreview/simpler-terms-if-it-s-orwellian-it-s-probably-not.html

We talked about the term Orwellian and discussed examples.

HW:  Please read to pg 185.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

A Block: had MCAS and did not meet.

C Block: Wrote first draft of Animal Farm paper:

 

Animal Farm, Ten Years After

 Directions:  Ten years have past since the last page of the novel.  Original animals have died, but not all of their ideas.  Describe the new farm.  Have the animals come closer to creating a true communistic state?  Like history, have events repeated themselves?  How are the events of the 1^st revolution recorded and remembered?  Have facts been changed to benefit specific animals.  Has greed once again contaminated the Marxist philosophy? 

 

Requirements:

Your paper must be typed and have at least 250 words.  Your first draft will be due End of class Thursday.

Brit Lit.

Today:

We began class with the good ole American Newspaper and read the paper.  Specifically, I asked you to read an article on social media vs. their employees'

http://online.wsj.com/articles/should-companies-monitor-their-employees-social-media-1399648685?mod=WSJ_hp_EditorsPicks

We had a good discussion on both sides.  We explored the deeper idea that Facebook has become a way people share their thoughts.  We connected this to 1984.

HW:  Please read to pg 157.  Expect a quiz.  Those that did poorly last round realize that redemption is on the the greatest themes.  It also feels great.

Long range:  We will be working to finish the novel this week.  SENIORS!! (all 3)

Comp. Lit. II:

Comp. Lit. II:
 Today:

We had the final speeches.  It was fun to watch you use the terms that we have covered.  I hope that there was some amount of fun.

Tomorrow will be the last day to go for credit.

We finished watching the movie version of Animal Farm.  C Block also had time to begin to outline the differences between the book and movie, and why the differences where made.  I collected this list.

We shifted the schedule this week to account for MCAS.  I do not want to give you HW for the next two days, so we pushed this week back as follows:

Thursday:  Finish movie A Block and play a review game for Animal Farm.  Pass out review sheet for test.

Friday:  Test For Unit.  

I will try to have your journals back for Thursday.

HW:  Remember all of the MCAS prep that we did, and apply it to this as well.  Good luck, and don't stress out.  It is just one assessment and it does not define you.

Brit Lit:

Today:

I collected any late journals.

We debated censorship and surveillance by the government.  We will finish this debate Friday.

I showed you a video comparing 1984 to the recent events from Rand Paul:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkQx4KOxg5Q

HW: Please read to pg.136 in 1984.  Consider additional facts/info to support your debate.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

I collected any late journals.

We worked on your Propaganda speeches.

We looked at two forms of propaganda in cartoon form:

Russian:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jETJt_zbnKk

USA:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_DaMKUP3Og

I asked for you to identify specifically how people were manipulated in both videos.

HW:  Please read ch 9-10 in Animal Farm.  Study vocab- quiz Friday.  Finish and type your propaganda speech for Friday.

Brit Lit:

Today:

We listed 10 characteristics of the setting in the world of 1984.

We debated censorship and surveillance.  I broke you into two sides and we worked on 4 main examples that each side will use for their debate.

I passed back your last three quizzes.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

A Block finished their utopia group work, and all groups presented their vision of a perfect world.
C Block:  We began the first draft of your propaganda speech.

We looked at the similarities in your Utopia's.

We reviewed your reading.

We took a quiz on ch 4-7.

We defined the following terms:

Propaganda
Faulty Case and Effect Reasoning
Bandwagon effect
Euphemism
Oversimplification
Begging the question
scapegoat

We looked at how these could be used to take over a group of people.

HW:  Read CH 8.  Study vocab words.  Quiz on these this Friday.  C Block:Finish speech

Brit Lit.

Today:

Journal Prompt:  Describe Prom (or recent school event) using Newspeak.  1/2 page.

We found three article in the morning paper an selected one to re-write and distort using newspeak.

We broke into groups and began work on your Utopia project.

HW Please read to pg 105 in 1984.  Expect a quiz.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

Journal Prompt:  What specific events would need to happen here in America to force a revolution?  Please detail at least three things.     1/2 page

We watched the first set of the Favorite Poem projects.  We will watch another set on Tuesday.

We broke into small groups and made a Utopia.

HW:  Please read ch 4-5 in Animal Farm.  C block study vocab.  A block define new words given today.

Brit. Lit:

Today:

Journal prompt:  Please devise a made up character that co-exists with other characters in 1984.  Please write a secret diary for this character that revels their thoughts on the events in the novel so far.     1 page

We looked at all of the new terms in the novel and I gave you a sheet explaining these.  Please use this as a resource for you as you read.

I gave you copies on today's WSJ.  I asked you to find an article and re-write it using newspeak.

We discussed language and why is it important to have description.

I showed you the 1984 Apple commercial:
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=1984+apple+commercial&FORM=VIRE2#view=detail&mid=BD6FD97B5EC5234E9F04BD6FD97B5EC5234E9F04

HW:  Please read to pg 81.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

I gave you notes on the Russian Revolution.  Please study these for a future quiz.

We wrote down def. for the 10 vocab words.  Matching quiz on Friday.

A Block:
We watched the Orwell doc. and began to answer questions from the quiz that are tied to it.  We will finish the last 10 minutes on Friday.

C Block:
Journal prompt:  Create a made up animal and write a journal from their perspective.  How did they view Old Major's meeting?  What are your thoughts on the farm and Mr. Jones?
H= 1 page,   CPA/CP 1/2 page.

We broke into small groups and created your Utopia or perfect society.

HW:  Study vocab.  B block read CH 2-3.

Brit. Lit:

Today:

I collected the poems that were due today.

We discussed your reading (pgs 1-37) from last night.

We watched a doc on Orwell and took a quiz on the video.

We looked at some of the ways that we are being spied on and talked about the 4th amendment.

HW:  Please read to pg 63.

Comp. Lit. II:

Today:

Journal Prompt:  Please write your own fable.  As a reminder from our discussion, these need to be/have:

Short (1/2 page)
Must use animals as characters.
Must state moral or lesson at the end.
Pictures if time.

We watched the final 10 minutes of Dead Poets Society

C Block:We watched a documentary on Orwell and took a quiz on that information
Read Ch 1 for HW

A Block:  HW read CH 2-3 and study vocab words.

Both classes will have a quiz on your reading Thursday.

All Classes:

Journal Prompt (all classes):
What did you do over vacation?  If you did "nothing" please describe the nothingness in fine detail.                                                                                                              1 page

Brit Lit:  We completed looking at your unconscious thoughts and took 15 words generated before vacation and used your conscious brain to but them in the right order and structure a poem around them.

I passed back your Macbeth Projects.

I passed out our next novel, 1984.  If you are at the prom assembly Tuesday, please have read pgs 1-37 for Wed.

I gave you all a copy of the morning paper and asked you to cut out 25 words, with a focus on three examples of alliteration and build a headline poem off these words.

HW: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/multimedia/blackout-poetry.html?smid=tw-nytimes&_r=1

Please complete and print out.

Comp. Lit. II:
We finished DPS
We each received a free copy of the WSJ
We created headline poems using 25 of the words in an original poem.

All classes:

Today:

We reviewed foot and meter.

I collected any poetry video pieces for you project.  A reminder- these are due tonight by 8pm.  If you don't get an email confirmation, I did not get it.

We took a quiz on the poetry terms from your notes this week.

A + C Block watched the first part of the movie Dead Poets Society

B Block wrote from their unconscious mind and did some dream catching.  Please hold onto these sheets.  We will be basing poems off these on the Monday that we get back.

HW:  Have a restful vacation.  Please come back charged and ready to hit the last stretch with vigor.

all classes:

Today:

Journal Prompt #25:  Please explain in detail the connection to the poem that you selected for this project.  Please detail 3 lines that you connected to and WHY.  2/3 Page

We reviewed the project.

I broke you into small groups and had your film your 3 parts: 3-5 sent. as to who you are, 3-5 sent as to why you connected to your selected poem, a video of you reading your poem with feeling.

Please make sure that you label your folder and clips with your FULL name, and for the files, a brief identifier in the file title.

These can be sent together as a folder via dropbox
or
Submitted on Thursday on a flash drive/cd.

These are due Thurday by 8pm

Both Classes:

Today

We watched a short video explaining iambic pentameter
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p226OX39OLs

We looked at previous examples of the poetry project:
https://vimeo.com/84856246

We went around the room and shared why you selected the poem that you brought in.

We defined the following terms:

Rhyme
End Rhyme
Internal Rhyme
Alliteration
Onomatopoeia
Assonance
Consonance
Metaphor
Personification
Hyperbole

We wrote a who are you section in 3-5 sentences for your poetry project.

I explained the file structure and how to use dropbox to submit your project as a folder.
https://www.dropbox.com/

HW:  Please begin to study these definitions as well as the terms covered Monday.

Brit. Lit. + Comp. Lit II:

Today all of my classes did the same basic lesson plan:

Journal Prompt:  Write a 25 line poem on the topic of Spring and the glorious 75 degree weather today.

We took notes on Poetry:

We defined the different forms of metrical feet
We defined meter
We defined foot
We looked at the def. for different metrical lines.

I introduced America's favorite poem project.

I showed you examples from last term and from the project.

I gave you the assignment sheet:

Checklist:

Intro statement Recorded (3- 5 sentences.)

5 digital pictures sent, or 30 seconds of raw footage to have under your voice intro statement.  Please email them to me at cusicks@tantasqua.org by Thursday

 3-5 sent on why you picked the poem.  If this is on your own, I need the video by Thursday.

 

Video of you reading your poem.  Please list the title and poet before reading.

 These are all worth 20 points each.  The final assignment grade will be based on all parts combined and counted as a paper grade.  Effort is a major component of an assignment such as this.  Missing parts for Thursday will result in a deduction of your grade for the assignment.

 

We went outside b and C block and stomped around to Green Eggs and Ham looking at the sound of the metrical foot.

 

I broke you into small groups and asked you to make 4 lines of verse that follows the same trochaic foot.

 

HW:  Please bring in a poem or song lyric that you deeply connect to.  Please make sure you have a copy written or printed out.