Word O' the Week

illatration [il-uh-tray-shuhn]: an act of barking at someone or something.

This word would be useful to make a distinction between the differing ways your dog barks- barking just to bark, or barking at the mailman or for food.

10.3.08: Are you ready for the weekend?

Take a few moments and appreciate the glorious Fall foliage this weekend. It is the same inspiration that has produced thousands of poems.... Take a walk in the woods and clear your heads. Poetry is the window to our souls and it can make us immortal. Find a spot and write what you are feeling. You may be surprised at the result...

Brit Lit:

Today we finished watching the film Shakespeare in Love. I hope that it helped you to visualize my notes, and connect to how real his play writing was. Next week, we begin our adventure into his mind, with our reading of Macbeth.

Soph Lit:

Please continue to watch for political propaganda. Orwell warned of absolute power. Always respectfully question authority and think for yourselves. Animal Farm is more than a tale of talking farm animals.... It is a stern warning that still holds very true in 2008. Look for the truth between the manipulation of language all around you.

We will be finishing the novel by Wed. Most likely, we will have some sort of final assessment on Friday. If you are behind, please use this weekend to catch up and ready yourself for the conclusion.


Have a great weekend. I am chaperoning the Homecoming dance Sat. If you see me, come over and say "hi." I am looking forward to seeing you guys all dressed up! :-) Have a safe weekend.

9.30.08

Brit Lit:

Block A: Please review your notes and text tonight for out test Wed.



Block B: Please re-read the stories and prepare for the Test this Thursday.



Soph Lit: Class average was an 84. I was happy to see so many of you doing well- keep it up. For those who are struggling- please come see me and we can work out an improvement plan.



HW- Begin Animal Farm Propaganda poster. These are due Thursday- so try and work on it a bit each night. Remember- you need to include 3 terms from my lecture on manipulating language. As an alternative assignment, some of you may wish to make a promotional video or web page for your character. Remember, although each row was given a character, this is a solo flight.



Read CH 4,5 in A Farm. I smell a quiz on 1-5 wed.- so please make sure that you have read. I am talking to YOU Michelle....

9.29.08

This rain is getting to me...reminds me of the Carpenter's song- rainy days and Mondays always get me down....what happens when you have both?
Block A: You guys came up with some incredible questions. B block is going to have a challenge. Remember- we will be playing a review game Tuesday, with our test this Wed. It will cover everything that we have read in class up to this point.
Please remeber to pass in question 1-5. So far, Asley is the only one who has submitted it.
Block B: Due to the fire drill, I will give you the first 10 minutes to finish your review questions. Get ready to win some great stuff, and learn while doing it. Can you smell what the Q has cooking....
Block C: Reminder, you have a vocab quiz Tuesday. Please study your Animal Farm words. Also: read Ch 1,2,3 in A Farm for Tuesday.

9.26.08

Sorry about the lack of posts. As some of you may have noticed, the computer in my room is being repaired, which has not allowed me to blog at the end of the day.

Brit Lit:
Block A: We finally created our socks. If you asked to complete them at home, please make sure that you finish them and remember to bring them back to class on Monday. Also, in our creative Friday rush, I forgot to collect your HW. Please remember to bring it to class- I will collect them on Monday.

Block B:
Monday we start Macbeth. Ask me why you can't say the name Macbeth in a theartre.....

Soph Lit: Please cover your Animal Farm books if possible. I realize that it is hard to cover paperbacks, but it does help keep them alive longer.
You all did a wonderful job with your proaganda speeches today. Some of you have politics in your future. If you did not get a chance to google The Communist Manefesto- please do and come in with 3 lines that you found interesting and be prepaired to disscuss it at the start of class on Monday. With the Pep Rally schedule today, I just lost track of time...

Also...please watch either the presidental debate, cnn/fox news, or any of the Sunday morning political shows. Please watch for all of the terms that we discussed. I would like each of you to have three examples. Watch for the grandaddy of them all...begging the question. They will do it- see if you can see through the propaganda on both sides. Why don't we notice this normally? What does this say about our democracy? Remember- the most import thing that I can teach you is to think for yourselves. Think about it....

9.23.08

Today we worked on Fables. I gave notes, and we all tried or hand at writing our own.

Brit Lit:

Block A: Please answer question 1-8 (sorry I don't have the page number at home.)

Block B: Please read the assigned story from the Canterbury Tales. Sorry- I am at home and I am unable to give you the pg. numbers. You should have them from when I assigned them this AM.

It looks like we are going to have a very small class Wed. Please make sure your HW is complete- even if you are a Senior.

Soph Lit: I almost have your Catcher Tests done- still cutting through your essays. I hope to have them back tomorrow. On Wed. we will begin our notes on the Russian Revolution. Get ready for a bloody history tale....

9.22.08

Reminder to all of my classes: We exit right, and head down the side staircase on the 3rd floor. Please remember to meet on 3rd base.

Brit Lit: You have the night off. We will be (hopefully) watching parts of The Knight's Tale on Tuesday. In class today, we read the Pardoner's Tale. Please review the story. Block A- you had 4 lines left before the fire drill- please finish it at your convenience.

Soph Lit: Nice job on the review came. The next time that we play, I will be sure to have all of my sound effects working. Thanks for you understanding. Tonight: Please review for your Catcher unit test. Please also review your notes on: Theme, Symbolism, Salinger, and the significance of the title. Please have your books available, as I will be collecting them Tues.

9.19.08

Parents/Guardians: It was very nice to meet those of you that came out last night. I hope that you find the blog useful in helping your student in my course. Please feel free to contact me at any time during the course with any questions or concerns.

Brit Lit: Block A: I had some fun up my sleeve this am- but you needed socks. Please try to remember to have a spare sock for Monday...... If any of you did not pass in your paper assignment this morning: Today we talked about pilgrimages. In the Canterbury Tales, they are on a religious pilgrimage. This morning, we went to the computer lab and wrote about your own pilgrimage. In one page (250 words) please describe a modern day pilgrimage that had an impact on who you are. Please describe the journey, what you discovered about yourself, and whether it lived up to your expectations.

Only 4 of you passed in your HW from last night. Please use the weekend to finish, and make sure that you have it on Monday morning.

Don't forget your socks- we will need them for Macbeth....

Block B: I loved your sock folk this am- I can still see Sarah looking at her sock and admiring it with a big smile all class. She may have puppets in her future..... I was disappointed with HW. Please take advantage of the extra time and pass it in on Monday....

Soph Lit: Holden theatre went well today. What most of you did not realize was that we were learning, in the midst of having fun. What a great way to review..... Speaking of review....we will have a game this Monday, with your test on Tuesday. This will be your first significant grade- so make sure that you look over your notes, as well as the novel this weekend.

Also, on Monday I will be collecting you 1st Draft (with peer edits), your checklist (signed by a peer), and your final copy. Please staple them together, with your final copy on top. Hopefully, this is already done and you can enjoy your weekend without the though of my class....


Have a great, safe, weekend.
I am staying after today to watch the Tantasqua Field Hockey Team beat Shepherd Hill. Good luck to all the sport teams, music kids, and cheerleaders this weekend!

Parent Contact Information

Mr. Cusick:

Courses: Brit Lit, Soph Lit, and Shakespeare.

Room 3115

Email: cusicks@tantasqua.org

Phone: (508) 347-9301, ext 1563

Blog: http://mrcusick.blogspot.com

Late Day: Every Tuesday night. and by student request.

9.18.08

I hope that you encourage your parents/guardians to come out tonight. Please remind them that open house if from 6:30- 8:30.

Brit Lit. Please finish Canterbury Tales, and answer question 1-8 at the end. I will be collecting them and grading them. Please try and remember to bring in a sock. No sock= no puppets= no fun on Friday :-(

Soph: Please complete your Holden checklist, making sure that your paper has as many of the requirements as possible. If you can check off all of them, you are looking at an A paper. Final draft is due this Monday. You will need to submit the following: 1st Draft, which needs to be peer edited, Checklist, and final copy.

Remember your socks, and that Beau should not ever bet in class :-)

9.17.08

I would love to try and catch some of your games after school- esp. vs. Shepherd Hill. If you have any home games, let me know and I will try and pop in :-)

Brit Lit: Make sure you bring in socks for sock puppet theater Canterbury style. Vocab Quiz Thursday. Make sure you study. I will be using the first def. from dictionary.com. Be thinking about what address that you would like to mail your future letter to. We will be addressing them in class Thursday. HW: Please read the rest of the character introductions in Canterbury Tales.

Soph Lit: Please finish Catcher tonight. We will review on Friday, and have a test on Monday. Remember your socks. If the Catch a Body folk song is stuck in your head- I am sorry.

9.16.08

Brit Lit: Please have all your vocab defined by Wed. I will be checking off those who did it. Please review your notes, and make sure you are up to date. I am planning a surprise open notebook quiz to reward those of you that have been playing along and taking notes.

Soph Lit: HW Please read to CH 22. Please expect a quiz. In class on Wed., we will be analyzing Holden's behavior. Please be thinking of questions that you might ask Holden, as well as his responses.

If you have anyone around that grew up in the 1950's, share the story that we read in class. I would be interested in hearing about any reactions.