Monday, February 28, 2011

APEnglish Literature 12: March 1-4

Greetings APEs and welcome to the new week!

I hope you have all read your Mrs. Dalloway, since Tuesday we will be having a class discussion on the novel. Make certain that you come prepared with both excerpts that you would like to examine more closely and with questions for your classmates to discuss.
Some things you might want to consider:
  • What is the setting and is it significant (including the time period)?
  • What are some parallels between Septimus and Clarissa? And why are those significant?
We will have two quizzes this week, one on the remaining SAT words, and one on your allusions.
Also, expect an in-class essay on based on Mrs. Dalloway and don't forget you are supposed to complete a major works data sheet for each major work we read.

If time permits, we will begin reading a series of plays in class. Dr. Faustus was requested, so we will read it first, but we will also be reading the following in the next few weeks:
  • The Glass Menagerie
  • Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead
  • Pygmalion or The Importance of Being Earnest

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

English 12: February 21-March 4

Greetings Seniors,

Welcome to a new week. I have a number of things planned for this week.
  • First we will complete the Renaissance test you took in my absence. 
  • We will have a class discussion of Hamlet Acts 1-3.
  • We will read key passages from Acts IV-V of  Hamlet, and discuss their significance to the work as a whole.
  • We will view select scenes from Hamlet.
  • We will have a quiz on lesson 12 of your vocabulary.
  • In addition to these things, I will be check and grade your note cards. 
  • Don't forget that your Faustus papers are due and that outlines for your research papers must be uploaded to Moodle by Wednesday.
  • Next week: Peer evaluations (rough drafts of research papers) due on Monday. Also, expect a test on Hamlet.
See you in class!

Mrs. SO

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

English 12: February 21-21, 2011

Welcome back from the weekend, Seniors!

I am sorry I have missed so much class with you. I am feeling considerably better and hope to miss no more. While I was gone, you began viewing Hamlet, and I have been told by some that the language is confusing, so we will review that play before finishing the film. I also left you several reading assignments with test questions to accompany them. I hope you enjoyed these pieces from the Renaissance period. We will read a couple more poems from John Donne that I thought might be too difficult for you to tackle on your own.  Then we will read and discuss the exerpts from Milton's Paradise Lost, so bring your books to class.

I only have two submitted essays on Dr. Faustus. Please do not forget this assignment. Upload your essays to Moodle.

APEnglish 12: February 21-25, 2011

Hello Seniors!

This week we will continue our study of Langston Hughes. Be sure to bring a poem for class discussion on Tuesday and Wednesday. You will be expected to speak with authority on the poem(s) you select, so do not choose them randomly. Also, consider how the poems we discuss in class can be incorporated into your research/synthesis papers.

Friday is our round-table discussion on the Langston Hughes paper assignment. Bring a rough outline of your proposed paper and a synopsis of the scholarly article you intend to include. Be prepared to explain briefly how the article contributes to your thesis, which, as you no doubt know, should take an arguable stance.

It is important for everyone to participate in class discussions. Be prepared to give your fellow classmates advice on their projects or to ask questions or both.

Next week we begin our discussion of Mrs. Dalloway. You should have finished reading it and have some points of discussion prepared by Tuesday. For starters, consider how the steam-of-consciousness style in this novel differs from Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

English 10 (All Classes): February 21-25. 2011

Welcome to a new week, Sophomores!

As you no doubt know, I will be out on Monday with our school representative for Poetry Out Loud State competition. Those of you who have me that day will be completing an interactive Reading Graduation exam in the lab. My B day classes will take this test on Tuesday.

The rest of the week will be spent re-reviewing for the graduation exams next week. Expect lessons on the following:
Active/Passive Voice
Commonly Confused Words/Spelling homophones
Paragraphs  (omitting extraneous or unrelated information, transitions, and logical order)
Analysis of literature

Remember I am offering tutoring after school all week, and any time you need it by appointment.

See you in class,

Mrs. SO

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

APEnglish 12: Febtruary 14-18

Welcome back from the weekend, APEs!

Hope you are well rested and ready to read, write and discuss.

As you know, I assigned one of Langston Hughes essays to each of three groups. This week group three will lead the discussion of Hughes' third essay, "My Adventures as a Social Poet." After the group presents the essay and makes intial commentary, the rest of the class is welcome to, and expected to comment and contribute to the discussion. I hope you all noted the difference in tone in this essay as compared to the other two.

After the discussion of the essay, we will read and analyze various poems by Langston Hughes. Do his sentiments as written in his essays come forth in his poetry also? What does his poetry say about the predicament and culture of the Black community in the 20's - 40's? Do you believe his works were instrumental in the eventual civil rights movement? What is the value of social art?

All these questions will be addressed in class and in a written assignment.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

Monday, February 14, 2011

English 12: February 14-18

Greetings Seniors!
Welcome back from the weekend. I hope you all are well-rested and ready for what we have in store this week. Since this is an A week, we will meet three times, and we need to after having missed last Thursday for snow.

If we haven't finished Dr. Faustus, we will (4th block). And all of us will be writing a response to the play. Choose one of the topics posted and upload your response to Moodle no later than Tuesday of next week, February 22.

This is an important work not only for it's clever use of the morality play genre, but also because it is a first in several regards and the model for writing even today.

We will also continue our studies of Renaissance literature. This includes poetry by John Donne and the other metaphisical and cavalier poets and at least one play by the bard himself, William Shakespeare.

We'll also make up the quiz from lesson 11 vocabulary and take a quiz on lesson 12.

Finally, we will spend some time in the lab completing note cards, which are due Thursday, outlines, and rough drafts of our research papers.

Happy Valentines Day! And see you in class!

Mrs. SO

English 10 (All Classes): February 14-18

Greetings Sophomores,

Hope you all had a good weekend. We have lots in store for this week.

  • We will continue honing our reading skills by finding main ideas, summarizing, making inferences and placing texts in logical order.
  • We will hone our writing, organization and research skills by finishing our notes for our research papers, creating outlines and writing rough drafts. I have reserved some lab time this week, but you'll need to do some of this on your own time. Check my moodle pages for deadlines. 
  • We will review our grammar rules with practice exams and learn new (for this year) skills such as identifying and editing active and passive voice, maintaining parallel structure, and differentiating commonly-confused words.
  • Also, don't forget to turn in those journal entries. I'll be checking my moodle soon and uploading your grades.
  • Finally, don't forget the weekly vocabulary quiz on lesson 12.

See you in class! Oh, and HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Mrs. SO

Friday, February 11, 2011

Attention ALL NCTHS STUDENTS

You are invited to make submissions to the 43rd Annual Young Writers Contest. If you are MY student, you are required to make a submission.

Click HERE for details.

ATTENTION ALL SENIORS!

It is imperative that those of you who still owe fees pay them as soon as possible. Please see me about making payment schedules if you cannot pay all at one time.

Monday, February 7, 2011

APEnglish 12: February 7-11

Greetings APEs!
I trust you had a restful and restorative weekend that has prepared you for a weeks of work.
This is a B week, so we will meet three times.
  • On Tuesday, you should bring your Portrait of the Artist books. We will have an in-class discussion of the novel. Remember it is your responsibility to lead the discussion, and you should come to class prepared with some open-ended questions and selected passages for group discourse.
  • On Wednesday I will return your poetry essays, and after you have seen my comments, you will write an essay based on a passage from Portrait. I will also distribute the Mrs. Dalloway novels. This novel is equally challenging as Portrait. Both are written in stream of consciousness. Pay close attention to the parallels between the protagonist and the character Septimus Smith. You will have two weeks to read the novel and complete a Major Works Data Sheet. Blank MWDS forms are on my Moodle.
  • On Friday I will give you three essays by Langston Hughes. We will read and discuss the first together in class, and the other two you will take home, annotate, and come prepared to discuss next week. These essays are to be an integral part of your research/synthesis paper.

Don't forget the vocabulary quiz on Tuesday. S words. 

See you soon!

Mrs. So

English 12: February 7-11

Good morning Seniors!

Hope you had a restful weekend. You should still be working on your research papers. Remember, note cards are due next week Thursday for, and outlines must be uploaded to my Moodle class shortly thereafter.

Remember that in addition to checking my blog, you should also check my Moodle class each week. If you cannot access Moodle, please inform me. You must still do all assignments that are posted there. I will post them redundantly here. You may turn in hard copies or email them to ringram@hsv.k12.al.us.

This week, in addition to your research projects, we will complete Dr. Faustus and continue with our study of Renaissance literature. Be sure to bring books when I tell you.

Don't forget the vocabulary quiz on Thursday.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

English 10: February 7-11

Good morning Sophomores!

Hope you had a restful weekend. We have but three weeks until the graduation exam, so until then we will be spending a great deal of time reviewing those grammar and reading skills that you will need to ace the test. I have confidence that you will all do well, but to meet that goal, you'll have to put forth some effort.

This is not to say you have no other work this week. You should still be working on your research papers. Remember, note cards are due next week on Wednesday for B classes and Thursday for A classes, and outlines must be uploaded to my Moodle class shortly thereafter.

I have also posted several journal assignments to Moodle. These journals are due Feb. 8, and so far only one has been submitted. If you cannot access Moodle, please inform me. You must still do all assignments. You may turn in hard copies or email them to ringram@hsv.k12.al.us. 

Grammar skills for review this week:
  • Capitalization and punctuation
  • Commonly confused words
  • Active and passive voice
  • Misplaced modifiers

Reading skills for review this week:
  • Finding the main idea
  • Making inferences
I will be offering extra tutoring after school this month.

Don't forget the vocabulary quiz on Thursday for A classes and Friday for B classes.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO