Wednesday, October 31, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 40 

WARMUP: At your tables, create a clever way (or a trick) that would help others remember the definitions of the following vocabulary words:

• Table 1 = jaded, advocate, gist
• Table 2 = charisma, efface
• Table 3 = ogre, mesmerize, entity
• Table 4 = bandy, dastardly

·         Write down the questions and your response to each of the following (to be collected):

1.      What surprised me recently?        

2.      What’s bugging me?

3.      What is changing?

4.      What did I expect to happen that didn’t?

5.      Why did something make me so mad?

6.      What do I keep remembering?

7.      What have I learned?

·         Next, in a half-page, tell the story behind one of your answers above.

·         Next, we graded our paragraphs using the same 3 questions as yesterday:

1.      What reactions do you have to your paragraph?

2.      What letter grade do you give it? (explain why)

3.      List 2 questions you would like to ask the writer.

·         CONTEST (table against table):

o   What does “boring” look/feel/taste/sound/smell like?

§  List them. Use all 5 senses…

o   Individually, without using the word “boring” “bored” or “boredom”– write a

½ page paragraph using some of your list to describe something. ADD THIS YOUR WORK ABOVE - TO BE COLLECTED 

ENGLISH homework:

1.      Study for Friday’s vocabulary test (Lesson 5: jaded, gist, advocate…)

2.      What does “fun” look/feel/taste/sound/smell like?

o   List them at least 10 things. Use all 5 senses (if you can)…

§  Beneath your list, and without using the word “fun” – write a ½ page/paragraph using some of your list to describe something.

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 39 

“There is within me (and with sadness I have watched it in others) a knot of cruelty borne by the stream of love…” 

1. Complete the backside of this week’s vocabulary handout
2. They say that you can choose to use your life for good or for evil. Yesterday, you wrote about a character from one of our stories that chose evil because of his knot of cruelty.
1. Going backward in time, think about what might have happened to him that created this knot in their past.

                                                              i.      In a paragraph,  make up something that happened to this character that upset him and caused him to become mean.

                                                            ii.      Also, explain what happened to him and the people around him as a result of this decision.

2. What’s a different choice they could have made given their same past/background, same situation that may have resulted in a positive?

                                                              i.      In a paragraph, tell the story of how this would have played out.

3. At our desks, we graded two papers “The Redwoods” (gave it a letter grade and told why) and “Mouse Alert” – by answering the following 3 questions for the second paper: 

·         What reactions do you have to the paper?

·         What letter grade do you give it? (explain why)

·         List 2 questions you would like to ask the writer. 

4. Next, we graded each other’s journal from today using the same 3 questions as above

ENGLISH homework: 

Study for Friday’s vocabulary test (Lesson 5: jaded, gist, advocate…)

Monday, October 29, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 38

1.      Write a paragraph about what you think makes some siblings treat each other cruelly; unkindly. (to be COLLECTED)

a.       Underlined the “core” of each sentence of our warmup and drew arrows connecting the various “chunks” to the core. Discussed how “I think” or “I believe” makes the writer the actor (which is NOT what we want).

Discussed the following:

a.       Your feelings sit in the backseat of your car. You are the driver of your car. Your feelings are backseat drivers always yelling out directions to you, telling you what to do and how to drive. You can listen to them, acknowledge them, but you don’t have to do what they say. You get to drive wherever and however you choose. You’re in the driver’s seat.

b.      In “The Scarlet Ibis” James Hurst wrote, “There is within me (and it is with sadness I have watched it in others) a knot of cruelty borne by the stream of love, much as our blood sometimes bears the seed of our destruction, and at times I was mean to Doodle.” (pg. 336)

·         TO BE COLLECTED - (add to same paper as above paragraph), for 15 full minutes, write out what you think is the author’s purpose of this “knot of cruelty” (pg. 336) or “childish spite” (pg. 343) or “streak of cruelty within me” (pg. 343)

o   Answer one (or all) of the following questions (as long as you write for 15 minutes):

1.      When (and with whom) does your knot of cruelty show up?

2.      What could you personally do differently with your knot of cruelty? What could you do differently with your spite?

3.      What could you learn from this older brother’s tragedy?

·         Next, for 8 minutes: Pretend someone is unfamiliar with the concept of the “knot of cruelty” that we discussed in “The Scarlet Ibis.” Give them a taste of what it is (explain it to them in your own words - for 8 full minutes) and how it is present in one of the other short stories that we have read in this class (“The Cask of Amontillado,” “The Interlopers,” “The Most Dangerous Game”).

·         Picked up this week’s vocabulary word list (Lesson 5)

ENGLISH homework:

Study for Friday’s vocabulary test (Lesson 5: jaded, gist, advocate…)

Friday, October 26, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 37 

1. Collect classwork from yesterday (Scarlet Ibis test review – 8 questions)
2. Take prefix/root test #3
1. Turn it in. Pick up next test.
3. Take Scarlet Ibis test
1. Turn it in. Begin warm up.
4. After turning in your IBIS test, pickup handout on center table, MARK ON THE PARAGRAPH as many of the 26 errors in this paragraph as you can.

It’s legs were crossed and it’s claw-like feet we’re delicately curved at rest.  even death did not mare it’s grace. For it laid on the earth like a brokin vase of red flower’s and we stood around it; awed by it’s exotic beautey. “Its dead. mama said.”  “what is it,” Doodle repeated?

• World's Thinnest books assignment:
• Write down 2 titles for each character. (TURN IN TO CENTER TABLE WHEN COMPLETE)

• Choose your single, favorite title and draw it on a whiteboard (include the author/character for each title)       

 

1.      Mama 2.      Doodle’s brother 3.      Daddy

4.      Doodle 5.      Scarlet Ibis 6.      Swamp

7.      The weather

ENGLISH homework:

NONE!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 36
2 reminders: 2 tests tomorrow; today is a study hour – after attendance, use your time wisely, quietly…

1. Complete test review below.
2. Fill in an empty 3-column chart, number the first column 1 – 11 and fill it in from memory…
1. Use your flashcards (or pink sheet) to study and fill in the rest.

TEST REVIEW:

1. Review terms: uneasiness, exhilaration, amusement
1. find an example of each in the story – write it out, word for word
2. Read page 338 – “go-to-sleep” flower…discuss vocabulary
3. Explain the vocabulary words in each of the following quotations:
1. “…gloriously iridescent vortex,” (pg. 338),
2. “With success so imminent…” (pg. 337)
3. “an invalid brother…” (pg. 334)
4. What 3 words would you use to describe Doodle’s brother while he was teaching Doodle to walk?
5. In "The Scarlet Ibis," Hurst (the author) uses natural elements of the setting to comment on the action of the story and the characters. These include plants, birds, insects, and weather phenomena. Make a list of 10 of these natural elements and write a paragraph on ONE of them, explaining how it relates to the action of the story or the characters themselves.
6. Write down BRIEF definitions for the following literary terms:
1. foreshadowing (pg. 1 on handout)
2. conflict (pg. 1)
3. theme (page 3)
4. allusion, (pg. 3)
5. metaphor, (pg. 4)
6. simile, (pg. 4)
7. symbolism, (pg. 4)
8. irony, (pg. 4)
9. oxymoron, (pg. 5)
10. juxtaposition, (dictionary)
11. antipathy, (dictionary)
12. apathetic (dictionary)
7. Using page 340 as a resource, figure out
1. About what year (pg. 340)
2. WHERE did this story take place?
8. There is an allusion on page 340 in the paragraph that begins, “It was Saturday noon…” – Read the whole paragraph and name the children’s story that is being alluded to.

ENGLISH homework:
Study for Friday’s Prefix test (11 prefixes from “30-15-10” list) = re- ………cred-
Study for Friday’s “The Scarlet Ibis” test

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 35

Check classwork (your 4 lists of 10 from “Scarlet Ibis” guilty/not guilty)…begin…

§  There are lots of ways to win an argument. Write down 4 of them.
·         2 reminders:

o   1. PREFIX test on Friday. Remember that the prefixes will not be in alphabetical order on your test! §  The best way to study is to fill in an empty 3-column chart, number the first column 1 – 11 and fill it in from memory…·         If necessary, use your flashcards or pink sheet to fill in the rest.

o   2. Announce 2^nd test on “The Scarlet Ibis” – also Friday – we will review specifics tomorrow in class

·         We all know how to argue. But how do you win an argument?

o   Watch short video and be ready to discuss how this argument is won.

·         Explain classroom assignment:

1. Using your 4 lists from yesterday, choose one set of your GUILTY arguments (parents or brother).
1. You are to pretend that all of these things have been said ABOUT YOU in front of a jury.
2. Things are not looking good for you. The jury seems convinced of your guilt.
2. The judge has asked you if you have anything to say in your own defense.
3. In computer lab 140, DEFEND YOURSELF…
1. …by writing out a closing argument (to be read at the close of your trial) that refutes the key points against you. Make your case as convincing as possible.
2. GOAL: You are to take all statements and turn them in your favor before the jury so that you can convince them that you are correct and the other party is incorrect.
3. Use this opportunity to point out discrepancies in the other side's theory. Challenge the overall position. Highlight inconsistencies to discredit anything the other side tried to prove or defend.
4. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury…”
4. PRINT and TURN IN TODAY

ENGLISH homework:

·         Study for Friday’s Prefix test (11 prefixes from “30-15-10” list) = re- ………cred-

·         Study for Friday’s “Scarlet Ibis” test (pgs. 333 – 344)

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 34

• While I check your symbolism chart (20 items)…
• Open your books to page 333. Using the first 2 paragraphs, answer the 8 questions that follow AND TURN IN ON CENTER TABLE WHEN FINISHED

Right there questions:

1.     Between what two seasons does this story begin?

2.     What is the oriole nest compared to?

Think and Search

3.     Explain what all the colors in this passage suggest?

4.     What is making the narrator remember Doodle?

Author and You

5.     This opening paragraph has a grim tone to it. How do authors create appropriate tones for horror stories?

6.     The oriole images in this passage are sad, depressing. How could the author have created a different emotion using the same bird images?

On My Own

7.     Think about a sad moment in your life. What symbols/images would you use to help convey the sadness of this moment?

8.     What is your opinion of death?

·        TURN IN ON CENTER TABLE WHEN FINISHED

DISCUSS: list all the events that happened in the last half-hour of Doodle’s life (beginning on page 342 “As soon as I had finished eating…” until the end of the story)

Discussed the ending of “The Scarlet Ibis” – what happened? Is it the narrator’s fault?

·         How specifically did Doodle die?

o   What do we know for sure?

·         How do we know he didn’t die by lightning? A fallen tree?

·         Is his death the narrator’s fault? 

 (Was it easier to prove them guilty or not guilty?)

4 lists – 40 reasons total:

• List 10 events that happened in the story that would help convince a jury that…
• 1. Doodle’s older brother is responsible for the death of Doodle?
• 2. Doodle’s parents are responsible for the death of Doodle?
• 3. Doodle’s older brother is NOT responsible for the death of Doodle?
• 4. Doodle’s parents are NOT responsible for the death of Doodle?

ENGLISH homework:

Finish your 4 lists (see above) 

Study for Friday’s Prefix test (11 prefixes from “30-15-10” list) = re- ………cred-

Monday, October 22, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 33

o   Separate out your 11 flashcards for this week’s prefix test:

§  This week’s 11 prefixes are..re- ………cred-

o   Listened to “The Scarlet Ibis” pgs. 333 – end (30 minutes) – adding to our list of possible symbols – totaling 20 (things we think may prove to be symbolic - a continuation of Thursday’s list)

Create a chart of your 20 possible symbols that looks similar to the following. Identify each entry as a symbol (yes or no), and if yes, what is its meaning:

For example (your chart should be set up like this):

WORD                                   SYMBOL?                             (if yes…) MEANING

1. Peacock                               yes                                           love, protection, kinder world

2.
3.
4.
Etc.

On a whiteboard, create a movie poster or comic strip (with words, drawings, and symbols) that depicts the main events covered in “The Scarlet Ibis” pgs. 333 – 338

 

ENGLISH homework:

Finish symbolism chart (see directions above). 

Study for Friday’s Prefix test (11 prefixes from “30-15-10” list) = re- ………cred-

Friday, October 19, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 32 

½ day - 2012

• Quiet study time for vocabulary test (Lesson 4: elude, fallow, blight…)
• Take vocabulary test (Lesson 4: elude, fallow, blight…)
• After test, using the following format, write down 2 predictions about what you think will ultimately happen in “The Scarlet Ibis” based on what you have read so far. Use this format:
• “Because the story says, ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________, I predict __________________________________
• Elmo – show World’s Thinnest Cask books!!
• Hang posters

ENGLISH homework:

None

Thursday, October 18, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 31 

Parent teacher conferences (6:00 – 8:00 p.m.)

1. Take out vocabulary sheet - review
2. Using your Literary Terms packet, review the definitions of symbols and inferences
1. Complete symbolism scenarios
3. Complete work with symbols: drawing 4 symbols as pictures and making a COAT OF ARMS (shield) that symbolized 4 different aspects of each of us
1. symbolic or literal?
4. Noted symbols for “The Cask of Amontillado”
1. What is the cask of Amontillado symbolic of in the story?

                                                              i.      What other “casks” can you think of?

                                                            ii.      What is your cask?

1.      What do you hope for more than anything that may not exist?

2. Fortunato’s PRIDE/EGO is his ultimate downfall.

                                                              i.      What are other downfalls that people initially think are strengths?

3. Advertisers are like Montresor. How?
4. When finished, PREVIEW the story on pages 333 – 338.
5. Began reading the first half of “The Scarlet Ibis” pgs. 333 – 338 – paying special attention to the symbols - list 10 things that MIGHT BE SYMBOLS

ENGLISH homework: 

Finish reading first half of “The Scarlet Ibis” pgs. 333 – 338 – list 10 things that MIGHT BE SYMBOLS 

Study for Friday’s vocabulary test (Lesson 4: elude, fallow, blight…)

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 30 

MEAP TESTING 2012 – 7:40 – 9:25 – shortened schedule 

Parent teacher conferences (3:30 – 5:30 p.m.)

 

1. Before I collect your homework:
1. Staple your poster to your list of 10 titles.
2. Write your name, date, hour on the back of your poster
2. Take Cask test
3. Complete the exercises on the backside of your vocabulary handout
4. If time: Write up a new 3 or 4 word sentence that fits the structure “x, y ,z”                                                              i.      Label it “x, y, z”
2. Expand it to 15 words STOP AND WAIT
3. (and then 35 words.)

ENGLISH homework: 

Complete the exercises on the backside of your vocabulary handout

Study for Friday’s vocabulary test (Lesson 4: elude, fallow, blight…)

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 29 

1.      Collect homework: Number a paper 1 – 20…choose 20 points in the story, beginning on pg. 288 and ending at “…the clamorer grew still.” (pg. 292) For each point, (a) quote the text and then (b) ADD SUBTEXT from Fortunato’s point of view.

2.      Read the last paragraph of “The Cask of Amontillado” (page 292) and be ready to explain its meaning.

3.      Announce 20-question test on “The Cask of Amontillado” – Wednesday – Q & A? 

4.      To study for tomorrow’s “The Cask of Amontillado” test (20 questions)

a.       Write down and study the use of the following terms/ideas in the story:

                                                              i.      impunity, absconded, premeditated, motley, surmounted, irony, coat of arms, foreshadowing, vowed revenge, point of view, imagery 

World’s Thinnest Book assignment:

            QUESTION: What’s the name of a book that the following characters have no authority to write:                                

THE 10 AUTHORS:

1.      Montresor

a.       Lasting Friendships for Every American Girl

b.      Cooking Thanksgiving Dinner with Niter and Niceness

c.       Living in Love: Creating a World of Second Chances

d.      Forgiveness: The Best Part of Life

2.      Fortunato

3.      Luchesi

4.      Edgar Allan Poe

5.      John Allan

6.      Montresor’s servants

7.      The trowel

8.      The catacomb

9.      Fortunato’s jingling bells

10.  The bricks or mortar 

ENGLISH homework: 

World’s Thinnest Book assignment (10 titles – NO “guide to, how to, for dummies..); 1 for each character listed above; then choose the best 5 titles for your poster) – staple poster to your list. TO BE COLLECTED Wednesday 

Study for tomorrow’s “The Cask of Amontillado” test (20 questions) - review the use of the following terms/ideas in the story: impunity, absconded, premeditated, motley, surmounted, vowed revenge, coat of arms, foreshadowing, point of view, imagery, irony 

Study for Friday’s vocabulary test (Lesson 4: elude, fallow, blight…)

Monday, October 15, 2012

ENGLISH - 1^st trimester – Day 28 

• Collect classwork: (if you didn’t already turn it in on Friday)
• 15-word, 35-word expansions
• WARMUP:
1. Pick up this week’s vocabulary words (#4) on center table
2. Read “A Closer Look – The Other Man in the Wall”
3. Foreshadowing: planting clues about what will happen later in a story
• Reviewed foreshadowing quotes we found before from “The Cask of Amontillado.”
• TO BE COLLECTED: Number a paper 1 – 10 and then below that, number it again 1 – 10. Then without writing on the handouts, complete the 2 “Foreshadowing” handouts on the center table on your paper.
4. Subtext: what we imagine a person is thinking while they say something else.
• ADD TO the bottom of YOUR FORESHADOWING ANSWERS: Number a paper 1 – 20…choose 20 points in the story, beginning on pg. 288 and ending at “…the clamorer grew still.” (pg. 292) For each point,
• (a) write down a line/sentence of the story…word for word, then
• (b) ADD SUBTEXT from Fortunato’s point of view.
• Finish for homework.

ENGLISH homework: 

Number a paper 1 – 20…choose 20 points in the story, beginning on pg. 288 and ending at “…the clamorer grew still.” (pg. 292) For each point, (a) quote the text and then (b) ADD SUBTEXT from Fortunato’s point of view.

Study for Friday’s vocabulary test (Lesson 4: elude, fallow, blight…)