Ghosts of War I / Critical Lens Paragraph 3 and Conclusion

College Prep 12

• Distrubute Ghosts of War by Ryan Smithson
• Reading Log Format is as follows:
• One log for each chapter. Use in-class journal.
  Each log must include the date, chapter title and page number.
  Log content:
  Brief summary
  A more extensive personal response. This may include:
  

  discussion of a particular quote from the chapter
  discussion of the
  significance of the chapter title
  personal opinion of something said or
  done
  Creative reaction: poetry, fiction, letter, drawing (occasionally)

• Finish chapter one plus log

Grade 10

• Continue critical lens essay prep. Write paragraph three and conclusion
• Study handout, book lists and literary elements, for assessment on Monday.

Orpheus and Eurydice / Critical Lens Essay II

College Prep 12

• Viewed the Orpheus and Eurydice video.
• Discussed themes and imagery.
• Tomorrow: peer review and distribute The Ghosts of War.

Grade 10

• Handed back Silver Kiss unit tests. Discussed essay performance.
• Wrote intro paragraph independently for:
  "Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts." (Arnold Bennett)
• Discuss quote interpretation.
• Tomorrow: body paragraph number 1.

Theseus, Finally / Critical Lens Part 1

Apologies for missing the last couple days' posts. My cup runneth over onto the table and all over the floor....

College Prep 12

• Yesterday I emphasized the importance of putting real effort into essay rewrites. If I keep making the same corrections, then we are spinning our wheels and not improving.
• Read from the book The Best College Admission Essays a sample essay and advice about mechanics.
• Today: read The Legend of Theseus and discussed the questions at the end of "The King Must Die."
• Tomorrow we will view a video of the story Orpheus and Eurydice.

Grade 10

• Yesterday we constructed the outline for "The Bass, the River and Sheila Mont:"
• 
  "The Bass, the River and Sheila Mant" by W.D. Wetherell
  The "Big Four"
  Characters: Sheila, W.D., the fish
  Theme: know what you really want, set your priorities correctly, be realistic about your chances, don’t let fleeting desires control you
  Plot: W.D. wants to go out with Sheila, she says yes, he puts his fishing stuff in the canoe and drops in the line, picks her up, hooks a huge bass, he is torn between the fish and Sheila who thinks fishing is dumb, chooses Sheila who doesn’t even care about him and gets left for another guy
  Setting: Vermont, on a river, summer, in the country
  Plot Breakdown:
  Motivation: W.D.’s attraction to Sheila
  Conflict: Fish or girl?
  Complication: he hooks a fish, she doesn’t care about him
  Suspense: keeping Sheila from finding out about the fish, what will he choose
  Climax: he cuts the line
  Denouement: she dumps him, he’ll never make the same mistake again
  Analytical Elements:
  POV: first person
  Other literary elements: imagery, characterization, irony, setting, conflict
• Today we studied the introductory paragraph for the critical lens essay. Students copied the following model:
• 
  According to Duff Brenna, "All literature shows us the power of emotion. It is emotion, not reason, that motivates characters in literature." In other words, literature shows us the power of feelings. Feelings, not thoughts, inspire characters in books to act. The Silver Kiss, by Annette Curtis Klause and Romeo and Juliet, by Shakespeare illustrate the truth of this theme.
• Then they copied the following quote:
  "In literature, evil often triumphs, but never conquers." (Anonymous)
• We discussed how to praphrase the quote. Specifically, identify the most improtant words and generate a list of synonyms. Choose the best ones. So this quote can be reworded to: In litereature, evil can win much of the time, but in the end does not succeed.
• A full introductory paragraph was generated from this.
• No homework.
  

Rewrites / Sheila Mont

College Prep 12

• The next two classes wil be dedicated to rewriting essays and completing "The King Must Die" and questions at the back of the story. Absences have been high and I hope everyone will be caught up by Monday

Grade 10

• Students finished reading "The Bass, the River and Sheila Mont." They are to annotate the text, concentrating on character development, plot and conflict. Story outlines must be completed for tomorrow. Both highlighting and outlines will be graded.

Ritual - The King Must Die Part 3 / Critical Lens Essay Prep

College Prep 12

• Define ritual, discuss
• Identify and discuss ritual in the story so far
• Discuss ritual in terms of myth functions
• Start reading "The King Must Die" pg. 248
• Finish tomorrow with subsitute.
• Thursday: essay rewrites

Grade 10

• Generate list of books read in preparation for writing critical lens essays
• Students should prepare for critical lens writing by: reviewing story characters, plot, themes, etc.
• Distribute critical lens handout:
• 
  Critical Lens Essay Layout
  Introduction Paragraph: All of the information in regular font is information that you will need to "plug in" to the critical lens introduction formula. All of the information that is in italics is information that you copy down- your formula.
  
• According to author of quote, "quote the critical lens statement word for word." In other words, re-word or paraphrase the critical lens statement in your own words. Title of work of literature by author’s name, and "Title of work of literature" by author’s name, illustrate the truth (or fallacy) of this theme.
  
  Body Paragraph One: In body paragraph one, you will be discussing the first work of literature, a literary element from that work of literature, and how they relate to the critical lens statement. This body paragraph should have a strong topic sentence, and should tie all of the above information together using SPECIFIC examples from the work of literature that have to do with the literary element of your choice. These specific examples should PROVE the quote to be true or false, depending on whether or not you agree with the critical lens statement. An example of a topic sentence (first sentence in paragraph) is as follows:
• 
  Title of work of literature, by author’s name, proves author of critical lens statement theme to be true (or false).
  
  Body Paragraph Two: For this paragraph, you will use the same directions and topic sentence as body paragraph one, only you will use a NEW work of literature, and a DIFFERENT literary element.
  
  Conclusion: In the conclusion, you should ALWAYS restate your thesis and your main ideas (it is okay to repeat, in other words, important points you have made, such as: what the critical lens statement means, briefly how it ties in with both works of literature, and/or the literary elements that you chose).
• New Vocabulary:
  Anecdote: short account of an incident (especially a biographical one)
  Profound: showing intellectual penetration or emotional depth; great, important meaning
  Thesis: A statement that is maintained by argument
  Annotate: to supply with critical or explanatory notes; comment upon in notes
  

Theseus Goes to War and other Dalliances/ The Silver Kiss Exam Part II

College Prep 12

• Review story so far. Continue reading, focusing on emerging character traits of Theseus, the main character.
• Finish for HW. Underline, highlight and annotate for a minor grade.
• Essay 5 due Tuesday.

Grade 10

• Period 3,4: Continue book exam
• Period 7: pep rally. Will finish exam on Monday.

Theseus Goes for a Swim and the 2nd Deady Sin/ The Silver Kiss Part X

College Prep 12

• Handed out the Second Deadly Sin of Writing.
• Discussed briefly
• Handed out chapter 3 from The King Must Die. Started reading.
• Tomorrow: peer review

Grade 10

• Journal: How did the story end? Was it a good ending? Why or why not?
• Discussed the dream imagery of chapter 13 and the significance of the discussions Zoe had with lorraine and her father.
• unit test tomorrow, including all ten vocab words:
  Theme: a unifying idea that is a repeating element in literary or artistic work
  Ex: "Never give up." "Accept what can’t be avoided." "The need of the one outweighs the need of the many."
• 
  Tone: a literary technique, that is a part of composition, that shows the attitudes toward the subject and toward the audience implied in a literary work. Tone may be formal, informal, intimate, solemn, sad, playful, serious, ironic, condescending, or many other possible attitudes.
• 
  Irony is a literary or rhetorical device, in which there is a clash or discordance between what a speaker / writer /actor says or does, and what he or she means or what is generally understood. There are three types of irony: verbal, dramatic and situational.
• 
  Allusion: An indirect reference to some piece of knowledge not actually mentioned.
• Allusions usually come from a body of information that the author presumes the reader will know.
• 
  Symbol: something used for or regarded as representing something else; ex. The grim reaper=death, huskie=football team, eagle=America
• 
  Allegory: a story meant to be read symbolically.
• 
  Elfin: Relating to or suggestive of an elf, Having a magical quality or charm
• 
  Empathy: understanding and entering into another's feelings. Different than sympathy which is to feel sorry for; empathy is to feel the same as.
• 
  Hedonism: Pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses
  Anguish: excruciating or acute distress, suffering, or pain
  

Hero Review - Passive Voice Oh No!/ The Silver Kiss Part IX

Apologies for the missed days. Sometimes some of the balls fall on the floor and roll under the couch...

College Prep 12

• Collected Essay #4
• Reviewed the two types of hero in terms of essay #3, which could have been done better in too many cases.
• distributed handout on the Passive Voice: The First Deadly Sin of Writing.
• Students were reminded that if they didn't know the rules for writing dialogue (essay #5) they had to find out!
• There will be a break after essay #5 for students to work on rewrites.

Grade 10

• Checked reading logs for chapters 10 and 11
• Discussed the significance of 'the silver kiss' in chapter 9, the emerging theme of the story (acceptance of death) and the stages of denial, anger, bargaining, grief and acceptance.
• HW: Finish the story. We will finish discussion tomorrow. Unit test on Thursday.

The King Horse Part III / The Silver Kiss Part VI

College Prep 12

• Continue and finish the story.
• Look for central theme(s)
• Define 'moira'
• Be ready to address the functions of myth in the story.

Grade 10

• As the copy machine was down, test is postponed until tomorrow.
• Logs for chapters 6 through 9 were checked.
• Students began chapters 10 and 11, to be finished for HW.

The King Horse Part II / The Silver Kiss Part V

College Prep 12

• Journal: Children live in a magical world and they swim in the functions of myth like a fish in water: unaware. Later in life, how might Thesues recall his encounter with the king horse? What function might be served? Why? Discuss
• Continue reading.
• Peer Review of Essay 4 this Thursday. Reflection journals due.
• Essay 5 will be question # 88: If you could meet any famous person, living or dead, who would it be? Write a dialogue between you and that person.

Grade 10

• Journal: Explain the nature of Simon’s attraction to Zoë.
• Discuss
• Review highlights of chapters 6 & 7.
• Continue reading. Chapters 8 & 9 due tomorrow.
• Test on book up to this point tomorrow.

The Horse King / The Silver Kiss Part IV

College Prep 12

• Applied Campbell's four functions of myth to the Greek creation story. Discussed.
• Began reading "The Horse King" in Man the Myth-Maker, with the purpose of applying the four functions.
• Final draft of essay 3 due tomorrow.

Grade 10

• Journal: What new information do we learn from about Simon in chapter four?
• Discussed chapter four and five.
• Started reading chapter six while I checked reading logs (major grade!).
• HW: Chapter six and seven plus reading logs.

Peer Review / The Silver Kiss Part II

College Prep 12

• Peer Review
• Students were informed of a college application process presentation at the high school on Wednesday October 7th at 6:00 P.M. Those interested signed up.
• Question number 59 (Explain how your experiences as a teenager significantly differ from those of your friends. Include comparisons.) was assigned for next Thursday.
• Students were reminded of the assignment due tomorrow. (See previous post.)

Grade 10

• Two new vocab words were introduced:
  Elfin: Relating to or suggestive of an elf, Having a magical quality or charm
  Empathy: understanding and entering into another's feelings. Different than sympathy which is to feel sorry for; empathy is to feel the same as.
• The reading log for chapter 1 was copied down as a model:
  Book Log Model
  Journal Section
  The Silver Kiss by Annette Klause
  Date 10/1 Chapter 1 Pg. 1-12 "Alone"
  Zoe’s Mom may be dying from cancer, her father has become distant, her best
  friend is moving. She’s alone, frustrated, hurt, and angry. Her friends don’t
  know how to deal with her, she isn’t allowed to spend time with her mother. She
  sits in the park at night, sees a boy whose beauty breaks through her defenses
  and she cries.
  The tone is lonely and sad. Death or abandonment seem to be
  developing themes.
  Author’s language is very descriptive.
• The parts are 1) heading, 2) plot summary, 3) theme/tone statement, 4) personal observation.
• Students read chapter 2 and wrote log in class. Chapter 3 + log for homework.
• Chapter 2 and 3 will be for a minor grade. However, every two chapters thereafter will be for a major grade.