Presentations Begin

We began the day with the first two poetry presentations. After that I assigned the first major essay. Due dates are below and handouts are at Moodle.

Tonight's Poems:
Period 2

• "Love" by anonymous
• "A Dream Deferred" by Langston Hughes

Period 6

• "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost
• "All Day I Hear" by James Joyce

The Final Work Day

Students had a bit more time to wrap up their presentations today. We also selected the order for group presentations and I assigned the presentation audience HW (below).
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Poetry Project Audience Homework
Each night you should study the poem(s) that will be presented the following day in class by answering the questions below. Do all the assignments on the same paper, heading each assignment with the date and the poem’s title.

1. Summarize the plot of this poem.  Briefly, what is it about?
2. Note a few literary techniques which stand out in this poem.

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Tonight's Poems:
Period 2

• "We Real Cool" by Gwendolyn Brooks
• "Nothing Gold Can Stay" by Robert Frost

Period 6

• "I taste a liquor never brewed" by Emily Dickinson
• "Nothing Gold Can Stay" by Robert Frost

Work Day

Today students had the whole period to work on their presentations.

CRAs with "Richard Cory"

Today we looked at Robinson's "Richard Cory" to get started. After discussing the poem a bit, we used it as a basis to practice with the new CRA handout (available at MoodleHub). Students had some time at the end to write/revise their CRA paragraphs for the poetry project.

Friday & Monday

Friday students spent most of the period working on the poetry project, finishing analyses and working together to plan and start the presentation.
Monday we spent the day on Faulkner, beginning with a brief As I Lay Dying quiz and talking through some of the students' confusion for the rest of the day. We wrapped up with a quick quiz/review of the metrical feet.
Presentations begin Friday.

The Poetry Project Begins

Poetry groups got together and exchanged contact information, picked a poem from the poetry book based on the requirements listed on the handout, and printed a copy for each group member.
For the rest of the period, students analyzed their poems by following bullets 1 through 5 under step 1 on the handout, this analysis should be completed for homework if not done in class. This will be collected later.

Fun with Meter

Today we spent the day learning poetry terms relating to meter while trying our best to annoy the neighbors. The notes are at MoodleHub. The shouting and silliness you'll have to get from a friend. At the end of the day I passed out the handout for the first poetry project (also at MH), which will be started tomorrow in my absence.

New Assignments: I passed out a character chart for As I Lay Dying as well  today. You should find it useful in tracking the many characters in the novel. I will collect it after we are finished with the book in a couple of weeks.

Monday & Tuesday

Monday students checked out copies of Sound and Sense, handed in the study guide, and spent the rest of the period on the Ceremony timed writing.

Tuesday we spent the whole period taking some poetry terms notes and looking at the poem "Reapers" by Jean Toomer.

Two for One

Thursday we spent the day doing presentations based on the Ceremony questions from earlier this week.

Friday we wrapped up presentations and had a very brief intro to Faulkner's As I Lay Dying.

New Due Dates:

As I Lay Dying

• Read through chapter 31 by 10/25
• Finish by 11/1

MoodleHub Posts

• Post 1 by 10/24
• Post 2 by 10/31

From Discussion to Discussion

In second period, we spent the time we had before the Josten's monopoly intervened working on the Ceremony discussion questions. In sixth period we started presentations and got through one group.

The Agency Fair

We spent most of the period working on the Ceremony discussion questions we started yesterday. In 6th period, we also had a warm-up analyzing the following quotation: “That night she danced he was already a dead man, a living dead man who sucked life from the living, desiring and hating it even as he took it” (85).

Yep, Another Quiz...

We started the day with our second Ceremony quiz and then talked about the book in a general way. Near the end of the period, I divided students into groups and they got started on the Ceremony discussion questions posted at MoodleHub. Most groups got through at least number 1.

Free Rice Anyone?

Today we made a concerted effort to improve our grammar and vocabulary while simultaneously donating food to the needy. Oh and half the class was absent due to some school event or other.

More Norming

Today we wrapped up our norming activities with Cisneros' "Eleven."

Essay Norming: Part 1

Today we continued our look at Cisneros' "Eleven" with this prompt:
WU: Review the prompt below and plan the essay you would write in response.  Include a complete thesis statement and a paragraph by paragraph plan.  You have 8 minutes.

Question 2

(Suggested time—40 minutes.  This question counts as one third the total essay score.)
    Read the following short story carefully.  Then write an essay analyzing how the author, Sandra Cisneros, uses literary techniques to characterize Rachel.

After reviewing some possible outlines, we spent the erst of the scoring three sample essays written to this prompt.

Optional HW: Students may write the essays they planned in class for extra credit. These essays should be handwritten and the entire task should take no more than one half hour. Due Monday, 10/11.

Rachel and Jesus: Twins?

The period began with a warm-up based on a Ceremony quotation. After discussing that at some length, students reread "Eleven," referring to their green sheets and marking as much figurative language and as many stylistic devices as possible. We wrapped up the period discussing what they found.

Of Tie-Dye and Reading Quizzes

We began the day with a short reading quiz and spent most of the remainder of the period talking about Ceremony.

11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1

Today we started with a short journal about being 11 years old and then spent the rest of the day reading and discussing Sandra Cisneros' short story "Eleven" (available at MoodleHub).