SUMMERTIME!

Hope you're all having a great summer!!!  Reminder, you do have summer reading to complete!

UPCOMING SOPHOMORES: You need to read a non-fiction work by an American author.  It can be on anything!!!

UPCOMING SENIORS:  You need to read a book from the Peach Teen 2012 list (this was also last year's Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl list).  Remember, we discussed the books just before your final.

ALSO!!! I am selling books at Barnes and Noble at the Avenue West Cobb.  No, you cannot get a discount, but I can always suggest a book for you to read!  Come by and see me!

Final Preparation

All classes are now in prep-mode for finals.  EOCT scores are in (they did great!) and our last step is to take the final in each class.  The schedule is below:

May 21: 2nd block
May 22: 1st block and 3rd block
May 23: 6th block and 8th block
May 24: 5th block

Students have study guides that cover what will be on their final exams.  The 9th grade exam will be over poetry and the Odyssey.  The American literature exam will be over A Raisin in the Sun and drama.  Below are our StudyStack links to help students review our terms:

Ninth Literature: Ninth Lit StudyStack
American Literature: American Lit StudyStack


Please use these websites to help you as you study!  Remember: the final can make or break you if you're a borderline grade!

Day 82

NINTH LIT

• Students finished watching the film version of the Odyssey and completed a small project making fictional postcards for the characters of the epic

AMERICAN LIT

• Students began watching Lorraine Hainsberry's play A Raisin in the Sun, using a study guide for their final as they watched the 1989 film version.  This will be finished next class and will be on the final.

STUDY HELP!

HEY GUYS!  Wanna play some games?  Or use online flashcards?  HERE YOU GO!

NINTH LIT: http://www.studystack.com/flashcard-929447

AMERICAN LIT: http://www.studystack.com/flashcard-929511

You can play Hangman, matching games, all kinds of stuff.  Enjoy, and study hard!  And remember, you can also use http://www.usatestprep.com/ !!!

Day 81

NINTH LIT & AMERICAN LIT

• Students took notes on everything we have learned this year!  REMINDER!  Our EOCTs will be next week!

Day 80

NINTH LIT

• Students read more of the Odyssey and watched the accompanying film, covering the Sirens, Scylla and Charybdis, Thrinacia and the cattle of the Sun God, the island of Calypso, Phaeacia, and the return to Ithaca.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students turned in their essays!!!
• We then worked on teacher appreciation letters.  Teacher appreciation week starts May 9!
• Afterwards, students worked on increasing annotation and reading skills for the upcoming EOCT.

Day 79

NINTH LIT

• Students read more of the Odyssey, covering the sections in Aeolia, the Land of the Laestrygonians, and the Land of the Dead.  We then watched the film to cover these parts, completing a graphic organizer as we watched.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students finished editing their papers and had another student take a look at it for peer-editing.
• We then went to the lab and finalized our papers.
• REMINDER!!! These final drafts are due next class!!!!

Day 78

NINTH LIT

• Students finished the reading of the "Land of the Cyclopes" section of the Odyssey.  We then began watching the film version of the epic, filling out a graphic organizer as we watched. 
• REMINDER!!! Students can complete practice tests on USATestPrep.com for extra credit!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students who had their rough drafts done worked on editing.  They also were given a grade for their Works Cited page and told to re-do them as marked.
• Students who did not have their rough drafts worked on finishing them.  These need to be in class next time.
• REMINDER!  Final drafts will be due the 26th or 27th!

Day 77

NINTH LIT

• Students took notes on Homer's Odyssey
• We then began our reading of the Odyssey, completing the sections leading up to the Land of the Cyclopes.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students wrote their introduction and conclusion to their papers.
• REMINDER!!!! Students need to have their rough draft and Works Cited pages done by next class!!!!!

Day 76

NINTH LIT

• Students continued watching the film version of Hercules, completing a ticket-out-the-door formative assessment.

AMERICAN LIT

•   Students wrote their second body paragraph in class today and spent any remaining time editing their papers so far.

Day 75

NINTH LIT

• Students completed their poetry booklets and turned them in at the end of class.
• We then took a short series of notes on mythology, epics, epic heroes, and the Greek gods and goddesses.
• Students spent the remainder of the period watching a film depiction of the myth, Hercules.

AMERICAN LIT

• After taking a short series of notes on body paragraphs, students wrote their first body paragraph.  The style was modeled in front of the class by the teacher and each student completed the body paragraph in their packet.

Day 74

NINTH LIT

• As a class, we defined our literary terms for the booklet portion of the poetry project.
• Students continued working on their poetry project, finishing their TPFASTTs  of three poems and beginning to work on their booklets. This poetry book project will be turned in at the end of next class!!!
• REMINDER!!!  If a student did not finish their TPFASTT in class, it is homework!  We will not be  working on the TPFASTT process next class!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students discussed the difference between primary sources and secondary sources and reviewed the citation process.
• We then went to the lab where students were required to find two secondary sources to support their topic (How does my Harlem Renaissance figure show my chosen theme?).  They chose a quote from the secondary source that they felt would be useful in their paper and cited the source using MLA formatting.  This was taken for a grade at the end of class. If a student did not finish, it is homework!!

Day 73

NINTH LIT

• Students continued to work on their poetry projects, TPFASTT-ing three poems and defining their poetry terms to complete their booklets.
• REMINDER!!!  If you received the research makeup assignment, that will be due on Thursday the 12th or Friday the 13th.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students took notes on themes of the Harlem Renaissance and chose one theme to focus on in their research paper.
• Students then went to the lab to find primary resources to support that theme, turning in a worksheet by the end of the period to show their work.

Day 72

NINTH LIT

• Students continued to work on their poetry projects, TPFASTT-ing three poems and defining their poetry terms to complete their poetry booklet.
• REMINDER!!  If you received the research makeup assignment, that will be due on Thursday the 12th or Friday the 13th!!!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students took their "Of Mice and Men" summative test.
• We then discussed the history of the Harlem Renaissance to prepare for our upcoming essay.

Day 71

ALL CLASSES

• Both freshman and juniors took the Benchmark exam today.
• REMINDER FOR JUNIORS: You have your "Of Mice and Men" summative test next class!!!

Day 70

ALL CLASSES

• All classes did a round-robin station review of the things we have learned in class.  Stations included grammar, test-taking skills, the research process, the annotation process, and literary terms and periods.  This will be used next class during the Benchmark exam.

Day 69

NINTH LIT

• Students went to the Media Center to begin working on their poetry project.  Each student read and TPFASTT-ed two poems to use for their project.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students went to the Media Center to learn how to use Galileo and find articles for their research project.

Day 68

NINTH LIT

• Students completed more EOCT prep questions to get ready for the test in May.
• Students took notes on sonnets, haiku, limericks, and ballads, reading examples from each and using the TPFASTT process to understand them.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students took notes on how to cite a source in MLA style for books, articles, and websites.  Other helpful information may be found at the Purdue Online Writing Lab which is linked here: Purdue OWL
• We then went to the lab to research the students' given topics.  They were to find enough biographical information to fill two notecards, find two interesting or useful quotes, and cite two sources in MLA style.  If this was not completed in class, it is homework!!!

Day 67

NINTH LIT

• Students completed an EOCT practice question to prepare them for the upcoming test.
• We then completed TPFASTT sheets as we read the poems "Dreams," "Dream Deferred," and "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud."
• We took a short series of notes on sonnets (Petrarchan and Shakespearean)
• Students them completed a poetry response as a ticket out the door.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students viewed a slideshow of Harlem Renaissance authors, artists, musicians, and dancers before discussing what the movement was.
• We then went to the lab where the students worked on a WebQuest packet using TrackStar.  They found information about the Harlem Renaissance and those involved with the movement.  If this was not finished in class, it is homework and will be due next class!!!
• Students also signed up for their research paper topics, choosing one Harlem Renaissance artist, musician, or author from a list.

Day 66

NINTH LIT

• Students did a brainstorn activity to remember the key points of poetry.
• We then took a series of notes on poetry before reading a few poems in class using the TPFASTT method (Title, Paraphrase, Figurative Language, Attitude, Shift, Title, and Theme).

AMERICAN LIT

• Students had a brief study time before they took the second part of the realism test.
• REMINDER: Students need to read to page 37 (through section 2) of John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men" by next class.  If you do not have a copy use the link here: Of Mice and Men

Day 65

NINTH LIT

• Students took notes on formatting, learning what an MLA style paper should look like.
• We then went to the lab and finished writing and editing our papers.  These were printed and turned in by the end of the period.  These will be graded in approximately 2 and a half weeks' time and will be returned to the students for corrections.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students did a Venn Diagram comparing and contrasting the realism movement and the naturalism movement.
• We then watched a video of Jack London's short story "To Build a Fire" and completed an inferencing worksheet as we watched.
• Students received a packet of worksheets to complete for homework.
• REMINDER!!! The second part of your realism test will be given next class!!!!

Day 64

NINTH LIT

• Students took their DGP quiz and graded it.
• Students conferenced with the teacher to talk about their essays.  Late essays, if printed before class, were accepted for a penalty.
• We then went to the lab to work on Works Cited pages and formatting.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students had a short review session over the movement of realism before taking their test.

Day 63

NINTH LIT

• Students completed Day 4 of their DGP.  There will be a quiz next class!
• Students who had their rough drafts done did a peer editing sheet.  Students who needed to print did so and then completed the peer editing sheet.
• If a student did not have their rough draft completed, they are required to attend a tutorial session!  They also must have their paper printed out in its entirety to receive credit!
• There will be a tutorial session after school on Thursday.
• I will also be coming in at 7:45 on Friday morning.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students completed Day 4 of their DGP and then took their quiz.
• We had a class review over our realism terms, the sub-movements within the movement of realism, and some test taking strategies.
• REMINDER!!! Students have their realism test next class!!!

Day 62

NINTH LIT

• Students completed their third day of DGP.
• We then wrote our intro and conclusion to our papers together as a class.
• Students then went to the lab to finish typing up their rough drafts.  ROUGH DRAFTS MUST BE PRINTED OUT AND IN CLASS TOMORROW!!!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students completed their third day of DGP.  They will have the fourth day PLUS their quiz next class.
• We covered definitons of the following terms: realism, regionalism, vernacular, frame narrative, and anecdote.
• We read a selection from Kathryn Stockett's novel The Help to discuss vernacular within the American south.
• Students then completed a guided reading worksheet as they read "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" by Mark Twain.  This was turned in at the end of the class period.
• REMINDER!!! Students will be taking the first part of their realism test on Friday, March 2 or Monday, March 5!!!

Day 61

NINTH LIT

• Students completed Day 2 of their DGP.
• We then practiced using 'elevated vocabulary' by finding higher level synonyms for common words such as "bad," "good," and "always."
• Students went into the lab to complete their body paragraphs.
• BODY PARAGRAPHS WILL BE TAKEN FOR A GRADE NEXT CLASS.  If a student does not have them completed, they will be getting a fifty.  If they do not have them at all, they will be getting  a zero!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students completed Day 2 of their DGP
• We finished reading "My Bondage and My Freedom" and turned in our guided worksheets
• Students learned about diction and vernacular by reading a short selection from "The Help"
• We then began reading Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" using guided notes.
• REMINDER!!! Students need their books!

Day 60

NINTH LIT

• Students completed Day 1 of their DGP using their new sentence "Can you come over and watch the movie Casablanca after school?"
• Students practiced writing a thesis/claim and had this approved by the teacher.
• We then went to the lab to begin working on our body paragraphs for our essays.
• NOTICE: Students research worksheets and notecards were taken up for a grade.  These were worth three tests.  If a student did not complete them, they must do so for homework ASAP!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students completed Day 1 of their DGP using their new sentence "Carla looked in the mirror at herself and recited the poem 'Fire and Ice.'"
• We took notes on our new unit vocabulary words: direct characterization, indirect characterization, stream of consciousness, allegory, allusion, author's purpose, mood, tone, conflict, refrain
• Students listened to the spirituals "Go Down, Moses" and "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" and completed two worksheets on them
• We then began reading Frederick Douglass's "My Bondage and My Freedom" while working on a guided worksheet.  This will be finished next class.
• REMINDER!!! Students will need their books for the next four classes AT LEAST.

Day 59

NINTH LIT

• Students took their DGP quiz and turned in their weekly DGP work.
• Even day students completed a health survey in the lab with our administrator Ms. Walker.
• After going over essay writing tips, we took notes on the parts of an essay (Introduction, Body Paragraphs, and Conclusion)
• Students then received their essay assignments.  There are two differentiated groups:
• Group 1 will be writing about two genocides.   They will have an introduction, a paragraph about one genocide including the who, what, where, when, and why, a paragraph about another genocide in the same fashion, and a conclusion.
• Group 2 will be writing about one genocide.  They will have an introduction, a paragraph about where and when the genocide happened and to whom, a paragraph about why the genocide happened and events that occurred during it, a paragraph about how the genocide ended and any results, and a conclusion.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students took their DGP quiz and turned in their weekly DGP work
• Even day students went to the lab to complete a survey for our administrator Ms. Walker.
• Students finished reading "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" and turned in their guided notes.
• REMINDER!!! YOU WILL NEED YOUR BOOKS IN CLASS FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS!

Day 58

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

NINTH LIT

• Students completed their last day of DGP, diagramming the sentence.
• Odd day students went to room 212 to complete a health and wellness survey for Mrs. Walker, our administrator.
• After, students went to the lab to finish working on their research notecards from the previous day.  These should be completed!!
• Students received a take-home quiz for "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier."  THIS IS DUE NEXT CLASS!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students completed their last day of DGP, diagramming the sentence.
• Odd day students went to room 212 to complete a health and wellness survey for Mrs. Walker, our administrator.
• Student covered a few new terms such as stream-of-consciousness, flashback, point of view, etc.
• We then read "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" by Stephen Crane and completed a series of guided questions as we read.
• REMINDER!!! Students will need their books next class!!!

Day 57

NINTH LIT

• Students did their third day of DGP, finding clauses and sentence type.
• We then took notes on the rhetorical strategies of ethos, pathos, logos, repetition, restatement, and parallelism.
• Students then went into the lab to work on research.  They used the TrackStar website and track number 437838 to guide them.  They had to find 3 genocides and answer the questions from their research packet on a series of notecards.
• REMINDER!!!  You must have the book "A Long Way Gone" finished by next class! THERE WILL BE A QUIZ!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students did their third day of DGP, finding clauses and sentence type.
• We went over the results of the pretest and collected data from it.
• Students then took a series of notes over realism.
• REMINDER!!!  You will need your book next class!!!

Day 56

NINTH LIT

• Students did the second day of their DGP, finding sentence parts.
• We did an intro activity to the rhetorical devices of ethos, pathos, and logos, using advertisements to find examples.
• We then read Dr. Martin Luther King, Junior's speech from the March on Washington, "I Have a Dream," and found examples of rhetoric within it.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students did the second day of their DGP, finding sentence parts.
• We did a journal activity to practice our realistic writing skills.
• Students took the realism pre-test.
• We then worked on a packet that introduced the realism movement.

Day 55

NINTH GRADE

• Students did the first day of DGP using our new sentence, "Sara read the novel To Kill a Mockingbird in her English class."  We also took a few notes on editors' marks and corrected wrong sentences with them.
• We took notes on MLA citation, looking at how we will create a Works Cited page on our upcoming research paper.  We then went to the lab to work on citing sources on TrackStar.  If this was not finished in class, it is homework!  It will be due next class!
• REMINDER: Students should have "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah finished by next class!! There will be a heavily-weighted quiz!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students did the first day of DGP using our new sentence, "The Spanish Club traveled to Madrid, Spain, during the summer."  We also took a few notes on editors' marks and corrected wrong sentences with them.
• Students then recapped what we had learned about Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson and finished annotating their four poems: "I Hear America Singing" and "A Noiseless Patient Spider" by Whitman, and "I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died" and "The Brain is Wider than the Sky" by Dickinson.  If the annotations were not finished in class, students should complete them for homework!

Day 54

NINTH LIT

• Students completed their resumes in class, using their biographies to guide them.  These were turned in and will be graded.
• We then began the research portion of our research paper, using Trackstar to guide us to useful websites.  Students should ONLY use the websites on our Trackstar during their research.  The Trackstar website is http://trackstar.4teachers.org/trackstar/ and the track number is 437838.
• Students should have read to page 166 of "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah by next class!

AMERICAN LIT

• Students reviewed poetry terms and took some short notes on them.
• Students had a quick intro to the poets Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson before we annotated the poems "Song of Myself" and "Because I Could Not Stop For Death" as a class.

Day 53

NINTH LIT

• Students did a quick expository activity, instructing the teacher how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.  For homework, you will need to write an expository piece explaining how to do something.  Remember you will need all the materials written down as well as every step.
• We then took notes on resumes, using these notes to create a resume for one of the famous biographical people that we read about the previous two classes.
• HOMEWORK: Please read through page 113 of "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah

AMERICAN LIT

• Students had ten minutes or so of review time before working on their test.  The test consisted of:
• One section of previous knowledge
• One cold reading
• One section of vocabulary
• One section of in-class writing

Day 52

NINTH LIT

• Students took their DGP quiz after turning in this week's DGP work.
• We then took a short pop quiz over the first five chapters of "A Long Way Gone" by Ishmael Beah
• Students then finished writing their various biographical facts down.  This will be used for a project next class.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students took their DGP quiz after turning in this week's DGP work.
• We then spent the majority of class reviewing for our Transcendentalism test.  REMINDER: Your Transcendentalism test will be next class, either Tuesday/Wednesday!
• Students also began working on their in-class writing assignment which will be part of their test.  They are expected to discuss how one of two images showcases the tenets of Transcendentalism.

Day 51

NINTH LIT

• Students diagrammed their DGP sentence. There will be a quiz over this next class!
• We then discussed the meaning of the word 'genocide' in preparation for our reading of "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah.  STUDENTS MUST READ CHAPTERS 1-5 BY NEXT CLASS!
• We then completed the TRAILS pretest in the Media Center.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students diagrammed their DGP sentence.  There will be a quiz over this next class!
• We then had a pop quiz over Transcendentalism, which the students kept.  This will be used as a study guide for our test.
• The Transcendentalism test will be on Tuesday, January 31 or Wednesday, February 1!!!
• We spent the remaining class period finishing our Transcendentalism packets which were turned in at the end of the period.

Day 50

NINTH LIT

• Students did their DGP, finding clauses and sentence type.
• We then did an autobiographical activity, looking at ourselves and our lives.
• This was then used to read biographies of various historical individuals such as Rosa Parks, Helen Keller, and Barack Obama.  This will be continued in class.
• REMINDER: Students need to get a copy of "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students did their DGP, finding clauses and sentence type.
• We then read Emerson's "Nature," taking notes and annotating as we read.
• This was used in working on a packet of Transcendentalist worksheets.

Day 49

NINTH LIT

• Students worked on DGP, finding sentence parts.
• We then completed a KWL (know, want to know, learned) chart on nonfiction.  This was followed by a PowerPoint on nonfiction so the students could take notes.
• We took a trip to the bookroom to pick up copies of "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ismael Beah.  If students did not have their ID or their fines paid, they can try to get the book before school or during lunch.  They can also get a copy from the library or purchase the book from a store ($12, but can be found at some half-priced stores).  The book needs to be with them next class.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students worked on DGP, finding sentence parts.
• Students finished the PowerPoint on vocabulary, copying down words, definitions, and making their own examples.
• We acted out the words in front of the class, making connections between the words, current situations, and Transcendentalism.

Day 48

NINTH LIT

• Students cleaned out their folders then did a new DGP sentence, "Jeb likes cars, but he can't drive yet."
• We then spent the rest of the class writing an in-class essay.  The students were to compare and contrast the two Romeo and Juliet films we watched, specifically focusing on three elements of their choice.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students did a new DGP sentence, "Can you come over and watch the movie Casablanca after school?"
• We finished any Transcendentalist notes if needed then did a quick review with a partner over the basic tenets of the movement.
• We then began reading "Self-Reliance" by Ralph Waldo Emerson, annotating as we read.

Day 47

NINTH LIT

• Students continued watching Romeo and Juliet (1996 version).  They will be using their comparison charts to write an opinionated in-class essay over the differences between the two versions next class.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students took a pretest over Transcendentalism.
• They then took notes over the basic tenets and proponents of Transcendentalism as well as some vocabulary words associated with it.

Day 46

NINTH LIT

• Students watched the 1996 Baz Luhrmann version of Romeo and Juliet and took guided notes on the differences between this version and the 1968 Franco Zefferelli version.

AMERICAN LIT

• Students reassessed their romanticism test by doing test corrections.  Grades will be edited by next week.

Day 42-45

MID TERM EXAMS.

Have a nice holiday!