This week is slightly different from your calendar because it took us longer to get through presentations. Even still, it is not a big deal because I gained a whole week this week since graduation is a week later than I had thought! :)
Finally I am publishing the pictures of some of the AP projects! Better late than never.
This week is totally independent work. I am anxious to hear your presentations later this week. Check out the countdown clock!!!
Monday, April 20
Lab/Library
Tuesday, April 21
Lab/Library
Wednesday, April 22
Work Day in class
Thursday, April 23
Presentations
Friday, April 24
Presentations
I really hope this is a good week for you all and you enjoy getting some freedom of choice in what you are reading! I also want to say that I appreciate that you all enjoyed The Alchemist so much. It was a great discussion and I am so glad.
You know I am so excited about The Alchemist! I hope our activities over the book go well.
Monday, April 6
Define Unit 6
Allegory, "Everyman"
Tuesday, April 7
Test over sonnets, satire, Boswell, "Everyman"
The Alchemist
Wednesday, April 8
The Alchemist
Thursday, April 9
Vocab Quiz
DUE: SM 13
You are then off on Friday and Monday! Another break!!!
The first nine weeks is now behind us. All grades are starting over, completely fresh and new. Everyone has a clean slate, if you will. Now is the time to decide to change the habits from last grading period, if you weren't happy with your grades. Now is the time to reinforce the good habits and attitudes from last grading period, if you are pleased with the results. But whatever you choose to do for the next nine weeks, there are still nine more weeks of school. Nine more weeks of assignments, tests, projects, and grades... I don't know about you, but I am happy to have nine weeks left with you guys. I have said already that this has truly been the most fun I have ever had teaching AP. I am so enjoying the subject matter and each of you and your unique personalities. Thanks for making my job fun, if not always easy! You might have heard it said, "Choose a job you love and you'll never have to work a day in your life." I can testify to that statement and I can say to you that it is the best advice I could give as far as your future and your career.
31? Can anyone say 31? Because if my calculations are correct, you have 31 school days left until graduation. (And since I am a little unclear about the exam dates, it might be less than that!!!) Now if that's not good news for the Monday after Spring Break, I don't know what is. Right??? So let's pep it up here and smile. It's all downhill from here!
Monday, March 30
"Macbeth" movie
Tuesday, March 31
"Macbeth" movie
Wednesday, April 1
Satire/Modest Proposal (green book)
Thursday, April 2
Boswell Bio (green book)
Friday, April 3
Pastoral Poetry
DUE: Journals
Because I know that you all have your computers with you at the beach and in the ski chalet and doing all the other fun things you are doing this week, I thought I would post a little something that I read this week that made me think of you. (And I know that if you do have your computer, that you are probably also checking my blog at least once a day.) I am reading a book called Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi. It is fascinating and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in Islamic culture and literature. I have marked so many passages and turned down so many corners because I am just waiting for someone to come along who wants to talk to me about a book. :) (I know, I might be waiting a LONG time.) Anyway, here is the passage that reminded me of you all at this point in your life journeys:
It is written at a point when the author is considering leaving Iran for the United States.
"You get a strange feeling when you're about to leave a place, I told him, like you'll not only miss the people you love but you'll miss the person you are now at this time and this place, because you'll never be this way ever again."
What do you think?
Can anyone say SPRING BREAK?!?!?!?! It's here!!! One more week and we can do it!
Monday, March 16
Define Unit 5
Macbeth Act IV
Tuesday, March 17
Macbeth Act V
Wednesday, March 18
Macbeth Test
In-class Essay
Thursday, March 19
Vocab Quiz
BLOG BY MARCH 19 OVER MACBETH.
OK, here is what I have decided about Macbeth activities. You can EITHER do a memorization OR a creative project over Macbeth for extra credit. This will be due Tuesday, 3/31. The creative project just needs to look like you spent at least three hours on it. The memorizations are either:
Option 1: "If it were done..." lines 1-28, Act I, scene vii
Option 2: "Is this a dagger..." lines 33-61, Act II, scene i
Option 3: "Thrice the brinded..." lines 1-34, Act IV, scene i
Option 4: "I have lived long enough..." lines 22-28, Act V, scene iii, and "To be thus is nothing..." lines 48-72, Act III, scene i
Option 5: "This supernatural soliciting..." lines 130-142, Act I, scene iii, "Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow..." lines 19-28,Act V, scene v, and "I will not yield..." lines 27-34, Act V, scene viii
You will read The Alchemist over break and we will start it in the first week of April. Please read it carefully. There is SO much in it worth talking about. I am DYING to discuss literature in an intellectual way with you all. Don't let me down....
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IF we had had class on Friday (instead of being hired out and the rest of us choosing to just hang out), I would have had you do an activity over Lady Macbeth after Act II of Macbeth. I thought you might want to do a piece of this activity on the blog as one of your optional comments. I could see some of you getting into this...
You can link here to read the lyrics to Alanis Morissette's song "Wake Up". What is the speaker's attitude in this song? Does this seem to be more like Macbeth or Lady Macbeth's viewpoint in Acts I and II? Look at the first two lines and line eight. What is the speaker expressing in these lines about the person to whom she is referring? Rewrite the song (or any portion of the song) as if Lady Macbeth is talking to Macbeth. Keep in mind the states of mind of both characters at this point in the play.
Below is an example:
You want power but only if it's morally taken.
You like to think but only if someone else thinks for you.
No reason that you should be in dismay
No excuse for you not to do the deed today
Cause it's easy to be scared
So much easier than being brave
And if your chance comes and passes by, it shall never come back to you
You like prophecies to be fulfilled but only if you don't play your part
You sulk... and you think...just go do it
There's an obvious attraction
To the choice that risks your chance to be king
There's an obvious coward that I
could not make you finish tonight
Cause it's easy to be scared
So much easier than being brave
And if your chance comes and passes by, it shall never come back to you
To you to you to you to you and to you alone...
There's no jewels, no crown, no bravery anymore
There's a little boy cowering in a corner
Which the sight he cannot bear
There's a bold and proud little girl
Going to commit the act
But it's easy to be scared
So much easier than being brave
And if your chance comes and passes by, it shall never come back to you
To you, to you
Go on kill him go on just do it
Go on kill him go on just do it
Go on get it done before someone sees you
Go on kill him go on just do it
Just do it.
The Frankenstein week was a good one, in my opinion. Topped off, of course, with the coolest Monster cake ever!!! :) I am very excited to get to Macbeth this next week. I think you will enjoy it and I am anxious to see how you compare it to Hamlet. We are heading into the home stretch and I just want to tell you all that I am very proud of this class. I wasn't sure at first how you all would be because you seemed a little... let's say... negative. But I can honestly say that I have not enjoyed teaching AP this much ever. I think this is my sixth year to teach it and I have had a ball with you all this semester. You are fun, your discussions are (typically) good, and you seem relatively concerned about your grade and what you learn. Thanks for making it this way!!!
Monday, March 9
Opening Seminar to Macbeth
Tuesday, March 10
Act I
Wednesday, March 11
Act II
DUE: Frankenstein essay
Thursday, March 12
Catch up, activity
Friday, March 13
Act III
DUE: Journals
Little bit of this and a little bit of that this week...
Monday, March 2
Define Unit 4
Shakespearean sonnets
AP Poetry prompt
Tuesday, March 3
Frankenstein as a Gothic
Wednesday, March 4
Frankenstein test, seminar
Thursday, March 5
Friday, March 6
Vocab Quiz 4
Did you love Hamlet? Because I do. :) Can't wait for the seminar. I am loving the comments and the debate that is going on. I really keep wanting to jump back in but I know that you have heard what I have to say so I am trying to resist. (And I am pretending that you care. So please give me that one small dignity...)
Monday, February 23
Hamlet Seminar
Hamlet In-Class Essay
Tuesday, February 24
Watch "Hamlet"
Passage Work
Wednesday, February 25
Finish "Hamlet"
DUE: Creative Projects
Thursday, February 26
AP Practice- Open/Prose Question
Friday, February 27
Shakespearean Sonnets (BRING GREEN BOOK)
DUE: Journals
These were a couple of the best poems from "The Canterbury Tales".
"The Real Estate Agent" by Emily
As we continued I met the doctor's spouse
Well versed on the ways of dwellings
She spoke of mansions, cottages, and houses
All of which she wouldn't mind selling.
To any man that could be convinced
A hole in the wall, never fear
Have a dog? the yard is fenced
No late night lover's quarrels will you hear.
For these walls are nearly sound proof
Don't fret about that mouse scurrying by
Or the shingles falling off the roof
She assured perfection with every choice
Well seasoned in the ways of deceiving
On closing day, her clients rejoiced
Months later they were left weeping
Because they revealed all the flaws
This lady had kept so well hidden.
Against her actions, there should be laws
For how they're left with a broken home to live in.
"The Foreign, Viciously Mean Talent Contest Judge" by Jake
Since the birth of reality television
Every contest has had to feature
This rude, snobby, and usually British,
Horrid little creature.
Humiliating you on live TV
Must be his only passion
His tight v-neck and sharp crew-cut
Mark his terrible sense of fashion.
"That was excrutiating!" and "Worst I've ever heard!"
Are his favorite lines to quote.
Try as you might, America,
You will never get his vote.
He laughs on the inside as he mocks your performance
With an evil little scowl.
Good luck getting Hollywood
If you sing for Simon Cowell.
"The Elementary Gym Teacher" by Paulina
He has no suit or fancy tie to wear to work each day
Shorts, t-shirts, and tennis shoes are his way.
From early morning to three in the afternoon
He wishes that his day would end soon.
He works hard sitting in his classroom
Yelling out commands for one to do.
Teachers are grateful when they drop the students off with a smile
To have these children out of their hands for a little while.
From kindergarten to fifth
All their antics he has to deal with.
And make sure they aren't still too long
And he makes corrections when they jump rope wrong.
Many stories he has to tell
And they all begin with the ringing of a bell.
Sorry this is so late!
Tuesday, February 17
Define Unit 3
Act IV
Wednesday, February 18
Hamlet, Act V
Thursday, February 19
Hamlet Memorization
Friday, February 20
3 Quiz
DUE: Senior Memory Book 7
I mentioned in class today that I personally do not feel that there was an improper relationship between Gertrude and Claudius prior to the death of King Hamlet. I know that other teachers share varying opinions. What are your thoughts on this topic? What examples can you give from the text to back up your opinion? Do you think it is relevant to the plot either way? Do you think Shakespeare really cared what we made of that relationship?
Do you feel that there are any foil characters in Hamlet? (You may have to remind yourself what a foil character is...) If you feel that there are, use the comment board to identify some and explain what effect the foil relationship has on the play, whether its plot of character development.
SHORT WEEK!!!!!! SHORT WEEK SHORT WEEK SHORT WEEK SHORT WEEK!!!!!!!
:)
Monday, February 9
Hamlet, Act II
Tuesday, February 10
Hamlet, Act III
Wednesday, February 11
Hamlet, finish Act III
"Love" activity
DUE: Journals, SM 5, Character Analysis
Enjoy your LONG break while we are here working our little fingers to the bone...
We had a great discussion regarding the Wife of Bath's Tale. Do you think the Wife of Bath is meant to contradict the misogynist (woman-hating) ideas of her time, or to uphold them? How might her story be a type of wish-fulfillment for the aging? Respond to any other elements from this tale (or any others we read during this unit).
I am so excited about getting to Hamlet this week. I just wish that I would be here with you for the first part.
Monday, February 2
Prologue Recitation
Discuss "Wife of Bath's Tale"
Read for homework
Tuesday, February 3
Discuss "Le Morte" and "Sir Gawain"
Write poem in class
Wednesday, February 4
Medieval Quiz
Begin Hamlet
Thursday, February 5
Hamlet Act I
Friday, February 6
Vocab Quiz
Hamlet
SM 5 due
Remember that your Character analysis is due on 2/11.
In the past I have done a precious little activity called "Canterbury Tales: Six Characters in Search of a Pilgrimage" that I heard about at an NCTE conference. The assignment is below.
Select six characters to go on the pilgrimage with you. Two must have been on Chaucer's. Two must be from other literary selections. Two must be real people (though not necessarily living). Explain how these characters would get along and what kind of story they would have told the whole group.
If you feel so inclined, comment on this post and briefly explain your six characters and what kind of story they would have told, who would have gotten along with whom, disagreed with whom, etc.
There will be other posts you can comment on before the 4th (the due date for this blog comment).
When Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel was asked why Jews did not fight during the
Holocaust, he replied "...the question is not why all the Jews did not fight, but
how so many of them did. Tormented, beaten, starved, where did they find the strength-spiritual
and physical-to resist?"
Just a reminder, I am going to see "Defiance" on Monday at 4:20 PM at Premiere Theater. If you want to go, you are welcome to. It is certainly not required. If you do go, or if you have seen the movie on your own, I would love to hear your thoughts on it.
We will finish the Anglo-Saxon period this week. Get ready, because Hamlet is coming up!
Monday, January 26
Discuss Exeter Book
Archetypes
Practice Multiple Choice (AP Test)
Tuesday, January 27
Anglo-Saxon quiz
Canterbury Tales intro and notes
Canterbury Tales Prologue
Wednesday, January 28
Vocabulary Quiz
Canterbury Tales Prologue Part 2
Thursday, January 29
Write own character poem
"Wife of Bath" intro and reading
Friday, January 30
"Pardoner's Tale"
Canterbury Tales Discussion
DUE: Journals
SM 4
On Monday, I will give you the memorization assignment for the Canterbury Tales. However, if you would like to go ahead and work on it, here it is.
We finished Beowulf today and most of you seemed to get it and even somewhat enjoy it. (I know, I know, Tanner, you didn't.) I would like to know what characteristics of Beowulf as an epic hero do you think are still respected in our society today? Are there elements of the Anglo-Saxon code of honor that are held dear in America in 2009?
More than any other group, you all should be closely watching the current national climate. Yesterday was certainly a history-making moment. What are your thoughts on this time in our nation's history? I have linked the text of the inaugural address below, if anyone wants to link to it and comment on any aspect of the speech itself.
Inauguration '09
First of all, I am so happy that we are only here for THREE DAYS!!! Life is truly good at CHS. :)
Wednesday, January 21
Define Unit 1
Anglo-Saxon notes
Read section 1 (18-30) of Beowulf
DUE: SM 1 and 2
Thursday, January 22
Discuss section 1
Epithets
Assign sections 2 and 3
Friday, January 23
Archetypes
Discuss Beowulf
Assign Exeter Book
DUE: Final draft of College App Essay
SM 3
There is a lot to discuss with Beowulf. I hope that you all are on board for a great discussion.
The classics have often been defined as old dusty books written by dead Western white men. I think, over time, that view will change. Our discussion over the classics and criteria for classics went so well that I thought we could continue it on the blog. What books have you read that stand out in your mind in this context, either as a certain classic or as certainly not a classic? What part of the criteria relates to your text selection?
Well, two days into it and I think we're going to make it! This week is going to be a little more mix and match stuff until we start Beowulf at the end of the week.
Monday, January 12
AP Practice
DUE: Self Assessment
Tuesday, January 13
Group AP Grading
Wednesday, January 14
In-Class College Application Essay
DUE: Resume
Thursday, January 15
Biblical Allusions Discussion
Peer read College Application Essay
Friday, January 16
Anglo-Saxon notes
Begin Section one of Beowulf
DUE: SM 1 and 2 check
Hey guys, welcome to the AP blog! I am really excited about this semester. I have to admit, it's an odd feeling to not only know but have already taught the majority of the class! I have great feelings about this semester. I think that you guys might just be the AP class I have been waiting on for six years!!! :) You all will need to post at least one comment per unit. It needs to take the part of an online discussion with each other. I will try to give you a couple of options per unit. This is required in the class. I also might occasionally post things on there that I forgot to tell you or didn't emphasize in class. I would probably make this blog my stopping off point each afternoon/evening if I were you. Well, I am anxious to have a wonderful semester with you guys!
