Up the Stream of Consciousness...

Today we did a bit of practice with stream of consciousness which should help students with the stranger bits of their literature circle novels.

Lit Circle #1

Today we reviewed expectations, I checked homework, and groups had their first literature circle. LC#2 tomorrow.

Literature Circles Begin

Today, literature circles met for the first time, going over the calendar and assigning reading homework. Handouts are at Google Classroom. Absent students should contact their group for tonight's assignment or, at the very least, read the first 20 or so pages of their novel.

Goodbye, Frankenstein, Finally...

After a quick discussion centering on the themes of the novel, students had their timed essay (finally) on Frankenstein.

Bring Lit Circle Novels Tomorrow!

Essay Groups

We spent today reviewing the essays students read for homework last night. Groups discussed their discoveries and created posters we will share tomorrow.

Essay Norming Wrap Up & More Essays

After wrapping up our discussion of the model essays, students did a bit of reflecting on their own essays (below), which I collected. We then turned our attention to an essay critique assignment, and students had the rest of the period to read and annotate their assigned essays. The rest of the assignment is at Google Classroom and is due tomorrow.

Essay Norming

Today we reviewed the rubric I used to score the literary analysis essays and then scored three essays as a class. Students who wish to, after reviewing their own essays and my comments, may make appointments with me to discuss and revise their essays.

"Standard" English

Apropos of our conversation today, here is what seems to be a pretty good summary of Standard English and the controversy surrounding it. A couple of highlights:

"Historically, we can say that Standard English was selected (though of course, unlike many other languages, not by any overt or conscious decision) as the variety to become the standard variety precisely because it was the variety associated with the social group with the highest degree of power, wealth and prestige. Subsequent developments have reinforced its social character: the fact that it has been employed as the dialect of an education to which pupils, especially in earlier centuries, have had differential access depending on their social class background."

"So those who make authoritative pronouncements about a standard English are simply those who, irrespective of accidents of birth, have elevated themselves, or been elevated, to positions of authority in academe or publishing or in other public areas. Whether or not their pronouncements will continue to be accepted is another matter."

"[Standard English] is the variety of English which carries most prestige within a country... In the words of one US linguist, SE is 'the English used by the powerful.'"

Welcome Back!

We began the period with some talk of break and some announcements about essays (grades and comments are at TurnItIn.com), Ashland (there are two spots left), and King Lear (we have free tickets for the NCRT matinee on 1/28/18). Students then had 20 minutes or so in groups to work on the Frankenstein questions interrupted before the break.

Get Your Books!

Your book assignments for semester one literature circles are posted at Google Classroom.; Please get a copy of your text ASAP. I have a few copies to loan, the textbook room has ten of each, and all but Ceremony are available online, but as always, having your own copy that you can write in is best. Local used bookstores (check Arcata and McKinleyville too) or Amazon are good places to start.