APEnglish Literature 12: November 1-5

Greetings Students!

I trust you all had an exciting weekend. But remember, Monday is back to work time, so don't overindulge on the goodies. I have several things planned for you all this coming week.

• We will continue reading from our Hamlet books, so be sure to bring them. We will also go over the first two passages for the Hamlet multiple choice selections.
• We will have our first in-class timed writing on a Shakespeare passage. I will take those essays with me on my training this weekend to be scored.
• In grammar we will review those errors from your most recent essays. Granted there are few, which is good, but review never hurts. 
• We'll also need to discuss how to better embed quotations for fluid writing and how to properly cite sources.
• Unfortunately, I won't be here on Friday, Nov. 5, since I have another training session to attended. On that day, I will give you either more multiple choice questions or an in-class essay. Writing under time constraints is a skill you will need to master if you plan to take the AP exam in the future.

So much to do...so little time.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

English 12: November 1-5

Greetings Students!

I trust you all had exciting weekend. But remember, Monday is back to work time, so don't overindulge on the goodies. I have several things planned for you all this coming week.

• We will have vocabulary quizzes through lesson seven. We will also review vocabulary lesson eight.
• We will continue reading from our literature books, so be sure to bring them. Our reading over the next few days will focus on the epic hero. We've finished with Beowulf (by the way, your boasts were epic) and you've read the Iliad excerpt, so we have only the Epic of Gilgamesh to read before our test on all the epics we've read and the history of Anglo-Saxon Britain.
• In the week to come, we will move from early English to middle English with our study of the Canterbury Tales. You will be doing group projects on this work. More to come next week.
• In grammar we will review the mistakes made in your last essays, primarily comma errors and agreement.

So much to do...so little time.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

Pre-APENGLISH 10: November 1-5

Greetings Students!

I trust you all had an exciting weekend. But remember, Monday is back to work time, so don't overindulge on the goodies. I have several things planned for you all this coming week.

• We will have vocabulary quizzes through lesson seven. We will also review vocabulary lesson eight.
• We will continue reading from our literature books, so be sure to bring them. Our reading over the next few days will focus on comparative texts. We will juxtapose William Byrd's History of the Dividing Line (which is actually NOT a history, but rather a journal) with William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation.
• We will comparatively read two captivity narratives, one of Olauda Equiano, a slave taken across the Middle Passage, and the other of Mary Rowlandson, who was captured by Indians during King Philip's War. 
• In grammar we will review direct objects and learn how to identify indirect objects.
• We will also complete those AP style Multiple Choice questions we started.
• Unfortunately, I won't be here on Friday, Nov. 5, since I have another training session to attended. On that day, I will give you either more multiple choice questions or an in-class essay. Writing under time constraints is a skill you will need to master if you plan to take the AP exam in the future.

So much to do...so little time.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

English 10: Nov. 1-5

Greetings Students!

I trust you are all ready for an exciting weekend. But remember, Monday is back to work time, so don't overindulge on the goodies. I have several things planned for you all this coming week.

• We will have vocabulary quizzes through lesson seven. We will also review vocabulary lesson eight.
• We will continue reading from our literature books, so be sure to bring them. Our reading over the next few days will focus on comparative texts. We will juxtapose William Byrd's History of the Dividing Line (which is actually NOT a history, but rather a journal) with William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation.
• We will comparatively read two captivity narratives, one of Olauda Equiano, a slave taken across the Middle Passage, and the other of Mary Rowlandson, who was captured by Indians during King Philip's War. 
• In grammar we will review direct objects and learn how to identify indirect objects. 

So much to do...so little time.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

English 12: Oct. 25-29

Hello Students!
Hope your day with the substitute went well. I was, of course, getting much needed ActivBoard training, and now I can annotate what is being displayed from my Elmo! I also learned where to get some great resourses.

As usual, we'll be busy this week.

• Monday we will read and discuss Beowulf's feats through the slaying of Grendel's mother. It's a very exciting story, but difficult to understand because of the form and archaic nature of the language. 
• I'll also review the details of the Monaco Holiday Short Story Contest. You are welcome, but not required to enter this competition.
• Moreover, we will review in more detail the expectations for your Heroic Boast. You will be presenting these in class on Thursday, so make them bold and entertaining!
• Wednesday we'll review the lesson seven vocabulary. We'll also finish our reading of Beowulf and his battle with the dragon. In addtion to this, we'll review your quizzes on the Iliad.
• Thursday, of course, is the big Boast. I can't wait to hear how wonderful you all are!

See you in class,

Mrs. SO

APEnglish 12: October 21-29

Greetings APES!

I certainly missed you all last Friday, but I was getting some much-needed training. I hear that the MC questions for Hamlet were beastly. No doubt they were. But fear not; we will be reviewing them in groups as usual. Nevertheless, do expect some MC questions on your midterm.

Here is the plan for the busy week ahead:

• On Tuesday, we'll continue reading and discussing Act II of Hamlet, and we may watch some clips from that Act if time permits.
• On Friday, we'll have a quiz on NO words...yes, I mean the N-O words on the SAT vocabulary list. We'll divide into groups and come to a consensus on the first 13 MC questions that gave you such grief. After that, we'll continue with our reading/discussion of Hamlet. 

We may have a guest observer on Friday, so be on your best behavior, not that you aren't always.

See you in class!

Mrs. SO

Pre-APEnglish 10: Oct. 25-29

Hello Students!
Hope your day with the substitute went well. I was, of course, getting much needed ActivBoard training, and now I can annotate what is being displayed from my Elmo! I also learned where to get some great resourses.

This week will be busy and fun. Now that we've finished with Native American literature, we'll be looking at some comparative colonial literature. Just what is the difference between a journal and a history? You'll find out.
And what makes Puritan writing distinctive? That we will learn as well. And just what is SATIRE? Well, you should know by the time we read and discuss excerpts from William Byrd's History of the Dividing Line. We may not get to all of this in one week, but it is all coming up soon.
Your Creation Myths are due Tuesday, so I hope you've gotten your creative juices flowing. And hopefully those juices will flow over into your narratives, which are due Friday. I'll be both grading and submitting them, so do your best. Some of you will get to read your stories in class on Friday.
Oh, and because Friday will be rather busy, we'll have your next vocabulary quiz next Tuesday instead.

See you soon!
Mrs. SO

English 10: Oct. 25-29

Hello Students!
Hope your day with the substitute went well. I was, of course, getting much needed ActivBoard training, and now I can annotate what is being displayed from my Elmo! I also learned where to get some great resourses.

This week will be busy and fun. Now that we've finished with Native American literature, we'll be looking at some comparative colonial literature. Just what is the difference between a journal and a history? You'll find out.
And what makes Puritan writing distinctive? That we will learn as well. And just what is SATIRE? Well, you should know by the time we read and discuss excerpts from William Byrd's History of the Dividing Line. We may not get to all of this in one week, but it is all coming up soon.
Don't forget that your narrative essays for the Monaco Holiday Short Story Contest are due Thursday. I'll be both grading and submitting them, so do your best. Some of you will get to read your stories in class on Thursday.
Oh, and since we will be pretty busy on Thursday, plan to take your next vocabulary quiz on Monday, November 1. 

See you soon!
Mrs. SO

Attention 10th Grade Students (and anyone else interested)

Hey everyone,

I have put the criteria for a special narrative competition on my GoogleDocs site. I am requiring all my sophomores to enter. I will grade your essays as well as submit them, so make your stories good.

As you may know, I have an October tradition of assigning short stories and reading them aloud in the last class. Sometimes the stories are "scary narratives" but scariness is not a requirement or even suggested.

This year, I would like the narratives to be suitable for submission to the Monaco Holiday Narrative Contest. So, whatever you choose to write, remember that it must have a character or characters and a significant holiday action or experience. Remember, if you are in my A Day classes, you will need your stories by next Thursday, October 28. B Day stories are due October 29.

You must bring two copies, one for me to grade and one without your name on it and with the appropriate information attached on a note card for mailing to the competition judges.

You do not have to be in my tenth grade classes to submit an entry, but tenth grade will be graded.

For complete contest rules and information, click on the link highlighted above.

Have fun writing! I cannot wait to hear your stories!

Mrs. SO

English 12: Oct. 18-22

Well, one quarter is already passed. Grades come out soon. If they aren't what you were hoping, it's not to late to change the end result. Remember, participate in class, turn in every assignment, study, and try not to procrastinate, and you will be rewarded for your efforts.

This will prove another busy week. My A Day classes will only see me once, since I have Promethean Board training on Thursday, so we'll have to work extra fast to get all our goals accomplished. Wish our winners luck in preparing for the regional competition in November!

• We'll continue our study of Anglo-Saxon literature by reading and discussing Beowulf.
• On the day I am away, you'll have a reading review and open book quiz on the epic The Illiad, so bring your text book. 
• You'll also begin working on your own epic BOAST, so get creative and prepare to brag about yourselves. We'll present our boasts upon my return next week.
• Don't forget the Beowulf/Mead-hall Intruder Song extra credit opportunity. You can do this in groups with your friends. I think it could be a lot of fun. If you make a video, we can watch it in class.
• Also, don't forget that October is my tradition narrative-writing month. I'll be talking to you soon about a holiday narrative competition.

See you soon! 

APEnglish Literature 12: Oct. 18-22

Well, one quarter is already passed. Grades come out soon. If they aren't what you were hoping, it's not to late to change the end result. Remember, participate in class, turn in every assignment, study, and try not to procrastinate, and you will be rewarded for your efforts.

This will prove another busy week. You will lose a day, with me, since Friday is the Poetry Out Loud Workshop. Wish our winners luck in preparing for the regional competition in November!

• We'll continue our study of Hamlet and watch some film clips from the Branagh production.
  
• We'll review the best methods for embedding quotations into our writing. Remember, snips or chunks of text flow more smoothly within your own sentences than a complete sentence "dropped" in the mix does.
  
• On the days I am away, you'll have another AP-style multiple choice practice with questions based on the play Hamlet.
• Also, don't forget that October is my tradition narrative-writing month. I'll be talking to you soon about an optional holiday narrative competition.

See you soon! 

English 10 PreAP English: Oct. 18-22

Well, one quarter is already passed. Grades come out soon. If they aren't what you were hoping, it's not to late to change the end result. Remember, participate in class, turn in every assignment, study, and try not to procrastinate, and you will be rewarded for your efforts.

This will prove another busy week. My students will lose a day, with me, since Friday is the Poetry Out Loud Workshop. Wish our winners luck in preparing for the regional competition in November!

• We'll finish up our Julius Caesar presentations and take a test on the parts of speech.
• I'll be reviewing sentence structure with all my tenth grade classes.
  
• We'll also read a number of Native American myths and compare them with other familiar stories.
• On the days I am away, you'll have your first AP-style multiple choice practice with questions based on the play Julius Caesar.
• Also, don't forget that October is my tradition narrative-writing month. I'll be talking to you soon about a holiday narrative competition.

See you soon!

English 10: Oct. 18-22

Well, one quarter is already passed. Grades come out soon. If they aren't what you were hoping, it's not to late to change the end result. Remember, participate in class, turn in every assignment, study, and try not to procrastinate, and you will be rewarded for your efforts.

This will prove another busy week. My A Day classes will only see me once, since I have Promethean Board training on Thursday, so we'll have to work extra fast to get all our goals accomplished. B Day students will lose a day, too, since Friday is the Poetry Out Loud Workshop.
Wish our winners luck in preparing for the regional competition in November!

• I'll be reviewing sentence structure with all my tenth grade classes.
• We'll also read a number of Native American myths and compare them with other familiar stories.
• On the days I am away, you'll have a reading review of Native American literature and Of Plymouth Plantation, so bring your literature books. 
• Also, don't forget that October is my tradition narrative-writing month. I'll be talking to you soon about a holiday narrative competition.

See you soon!

APEnglish Literature 12: October 11-15

Welcome back APEs!
And happy Spirit Week!
Despite the festivities planned for this week, we still have a mound of work to complete, though this weeks work shouldn't seem so overwhelming as some past weeks.

• Bring your Hamlet book to class each day, as we will be reading it and discussing it in depth.
• We will be watching some clips from the Kenneth Branagh version of this play in class and discuss his interpretations of various characters.
• We will complete more multiple choice practices with excerpts from Hamlet.
• And as a culminating project, you will write two in-class timed essays on Hamlet, though this activity will probably not be until next week.

And of course we will have the usual Friday vocabulary quiz. This week study the SAT M words.
Again, welcome back...Don't forget don your black! Monday is BLACKOUT day.
Mrs. SO

English 12: October 11-15

Welcome back, Seniors!
I trust you had a restful holiday and are ready to get back into the swing of things. Since this is the final week of this grading period, it is especially important that you complete all your assignments. We have much to learn this week:

• We will continue our study of the history of Britain and Celtic origins. Note the link in my sidebar. This is the same PPT I am using in class, so you can review it for the coming test.
• We will also read excerpts from Beowulf and another early epic, Gilgamesh. Expect these texts to be on your coming test along with any information on the Anglo-Saxon period and related vocabulary from your textbook.
• All classes are continuing with their vocabulary lessons. All quizzes must be made up this week. Next week all students must be ready for lesson six quiz. 
• Don't forget that ALL work must be made up BEFORE the end of this week. I will be here after school Monday and Wednesday. Arranging a time for make up work is YOUR responsibility.

I'm looking forward to seeing you all again and having a great Spirit Week!
Mrs. SO

Pre-APENGLISH 10: October 11-15

Hello Students,
I hope you had a restful Fall Holiday. Now it's back to the old grind. We have one week left in this quarter, so make the most of the time you have left before the first report card goes out. I have much planned for this week:

• You will be giving your Julius Caesar presentations on Tuesday, so be prepared. Presentations should be no more than 7 minutes long. 
• Expect a test on the Parts Of Speech this this week.
• You will be introduced to early American Literature, including Native American myths.
• You will review sentence structure.
• You will continue with your vocabulary study. By the end of the week, all classes will have taken quiz five and should be prepared for quiz six next week.
• You MUST arrange to make up any missing work before this week is over. I will be here after school on Monday and Wednesday. Remember, scheduling make up work is YOUR responsibility, not mine. 

Again, welcome back! Let's work together to make this a fun and educational week.
Mrs. SO

English 10: October 11-15

Hello Students,
I hope you had a restful Fall Holiday. Now it's back to the old grind. We have one week left in this quarter, so make the most of the time you have left before the first report card goes out. I have much planned for this week:

• If you haven't yet taken your Parts of Speech test, expect that early this week.
• You will be introduced to early American Literature, including Native American myths.
• You will review sentence structure.
• You will continue with your vocabulary study. By the end of the week, all classes will have taken quiz five and should be prepared for quiz six next week.
• You MUST arrange to make up any missing work before this week is over. I will be here after school on Monday and Wednesday. Remember, scheduling make up work is YOUR responsibility, not mine. 

Again, welcome back! Let's work together to make this a fun and educational week.
Mrs. SO