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Tuesday, May 25, 2010

The Sword in the Stone XIV / Catcher in the Rye XVI

College Prep 12:
  • Discuss chapter 14 focus question.
  • Read and log chapter 15 for tomorrow.
  • Looking ahead: Chapter 16 and 17 should be read and logged by Tuesday.\
Grade 10:
  • Discuss chapter 17 focus question.
  • Read and log chapter 18 for tomorrow.
  • Looking ahead: Chapter 19 through 21 should be read and logged by Tuesday.

Monday, May 24, 2010

The Sword in the Stone XIII / Catcher in the Rye XV

College Prep 12:


• What kind of society does the ant’s represent? What is it lacking? How is it a reflection of our own? What does Merlyn want Wart to learn?

• Chapter 14 is a transition passage.

• What, specifically, does White want you to know in this chapter?

Grade 10:
 
• Answer chapter 16 focus question in notebook.


• Discuss chapter 16, with particular mention of his interaction with the children in the park, the hat and his comments about the museum exhibits.

• HW: read and log chapter 17

• Focus question: What is Holden’s real reason for asking Sally to run away with him?

Saturday, May 22, 2010

FYI: Go to Bed!


A growing body of research shows that most teens suffer from chronic sleep
deprivation, due to a biological change that occurs during adolescence. It is well documented that such sleep deprivation impairs the ability to be alert, pay attention, solve problems, cope with stress and retain information. In consequence it:
.       Reduces academic results
.       Reduces athletic performance
.       Increases physical and mental health problems.
“Research shows the typical adolescent’s natural time to fall asleep may be 11 pm or later; because of this change in their internal clocks, teens may feel wide awake at bedtime, even when they are exhausted (Wolfson & Carskadon, 1998). This leads to sleep deprivation in many teens who must wake up early for school.”

School districts around the country have implemented later school start times to impressive outcomes:
.       23.4% Net decrease in teen crash rates
“Average crash rates for teen drivers in the study county in the two years after the change in school start time dropped 16.5 percent compared to the two years prior to the change, while teen crash rates for the rest of the state increased 7.8 percent over the same time period. “
       212 Point increase in SAT scores
“The best known of these is in Edina, Minnesota, an affluent suburb of Minneapolis, where the high school start time was changed from 7:25 a.m. to 8:30. The results were startling. In the year preceding the time change, math and verbal SAT scores for the top 10 percent of Edina’s students averaged 1288. A year later, the top 10 percent averaged 1500, an increase that couldn’t be attributed to any other variable.”
       15 minutes of sleep is worth a grade point
“Dr. Kyla Wahlstrom of the University of Minnesota surveyed more than 7,000 high schoolers in Minnesota about their sleep habits and grades. Teens who received A’s averaged about fifteen more minutes sleep than the B students, who in turn averaged eleven more minutes than the C’s, and the C’s had ten more minutes than the D’s. Wahlstrom’s data was an almost perfect replication of results from an earlier study of more than 3,000 Rhode Island high schoolers by Brown’s Mary Carskadon. Certainly, these are averages, but the consistency of the two studies stands out. Every fifteen minutes counts.”

Thursday, May 20, 2010

The Sword in the Stone XII / Catcher in the Rye XIV

College Prep 12:
  • Chapter 11: Why are wart and Key needed? What quality allows them into the castle? How does Kay demonstrate growth? What important experience does Wart have?
  • Tomorrow: Chapter 12.
  • Note to students: Get the reading done.
Grade 10:
  • Group work!
  • Holden Caulfield is a young man, in severe crisis, of extremes. One side of his hair is gray, the other side not. He is wise and ignorant. Innocent and experienced. Genuine and phony.
    Generate a list of character traits and/or experiences which define both sides.
  • Classes went so well, quiz was postponed to tomorrow and all present will have 10 points added to the last quiz grade!

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

The Sword in the Stone XI / Catcher in the Rye XIII

College Prep 12:
  • Discuss chapter 10.
  • Go over quiz 1.
  • HW: Chapter 11
  • Focus questions: Why are Wart and Key needed? What quality allows them into the castle? How, again, does Kay demonstrate growth? What important experience does Wart have?

 Grade 10:
  • Write answer to chapter 14 focus question. (See yesterday.)
  • Discuss
  • Review quiz 2.
  • HW: Chapter 15
  • Focus question: What is the importance of Holden’s conversation with the nuns?
  • Quiz and log check on Thursday.

 

 

Monday, May 17, 2010

The Sword in the Stone X / Catcher in the Rye XII

College Prep 12:
  • Read and log chapter 10. Focus question: Identify moments that indicate Key’s personal growth. What function does the forest serve in the story?
  • Finish for HW.
  • Portfolios due next week!

 Grade 10:
  • Chapter 13: What do you learn about Holden’s morality?
  • Discuss.
  • Chapter 14, read and log. Focus question: Was Holden wise in refusing to give up the 5 dollars? If not, what does this reveal about him? Compare this with his comments about the theft of the gloves in chapter 13.
  • Finish for HW.

 

Friday, May 14, 2010

The Sword in the Stone IX / Catcher in the Rye XI

College Prep 12:
  • What qualities do the Wart demonstrate while a merlin? What significant events occur?
  • Discuss.
  • HW: Chapter 9: What is the purpose of the story of the Rabbi?
Grade 10:
  • Discuss Holden’s relationship with Jane as revealed in chapter 11, especially the significance of the tear.
  • What is the significance of the duck question? Write in journals individually and discuss in small groups.
  • HW: Chapter 13: What is revealed about Holden’s morality?

 

 


 

Thursday, May 13, 2010

The Sword in the Stone VIII / Catcher in the Rye X

College Prep 12
 
Yesterday:
  • Ch. 6: How does Merlyn feel about the warrior class? How do you know? 
  • Read and log chapter 7. (Note: What lesson does Merlyn wish wart to learn by watching the joust? Does he learn it?
Today:
  • Quiz on chapters 1– 5
  • Log check.
  • Read and log chapter 8. What qualities does the Wart demonstrate? What is the significance of this chapter?

Grade 10:

Yesterday:
  • Ch. 10: Holden puts down everything except, Allie, Phoebe and Jane. Why?
  • Read and log chapter 11.
Today:
  • Quiz on chapters 6-10
  • Log check
  • What did you learn from chapter 11?
  • Read and log chapter 12.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

The Sword in the Stone VI / Catcher in the Rye VIII

College Prep 12:
  •  Ch. 5: What did Merlyn mean for the Wart to learn by turning him into a fish?
  • Discuss
  • Read and log chapter 6. (Note: Pay special attention to Kay and wart’s reaction to the crow.)
Grade 10:
  • Chapter 9: Around what time is it by the end of the chapter? How do you know?
  • Pd. 8: discuss imagery in the chapter, especially in the hotel room.
  • Read and log chapter 10.

 

 

 

Monday, May 10, 2010

The Sword in the Stone V / Catcher in the Rye VII

College Prep 12:
  • Chapter 4 discussion question: Was Merlyn's reaction to Kay appropriate? Why or why not? What is reveal;ed about Merlyn's nature?
  • Read and log chapter 5, with special attention to the point of the Wart's "lesson."
Grade 10:
  • Chapter 8 discussion question: Describe Holden's conversation with Mrs. Morrow. What was he trying to do?
  • Read and log chapter 9.
  • Warning! Overdue research papers MUST be handed in!

Friday, May 07, 2010

The Sword in the Stone IV / Catcher in the Rye VI

College prep 12
  • Pd. 2:  What is Ironic about wart's meeting with pellinore?
  • Pd. 7: Compre the adults in the story so far (Ector, Pellinore, Merlyn). What may the author be saying?
  • Both: Read and log chapter 4. Should be at least halfway through 5 for Monday.
  • Reminder: Research project due Monday.
Grade 10:
  • "Almost every time someone gives me a present, it ends up making me sad." What does this say about Holden?
  • HW: read and log chapter 8.

Thursday, May 06, 2010

The Sword in the Stone III / Catcher in the Rye V

College Prep 12
  • Period 2: Read chapter 3.
  • Period 7: Discuss the irony of Wart's meeting with King Pellinore. Why may T.H. White be presenting him in this manner? Read chapter 3.
  • reading logs for chapter 3.
Grade 10:
  • Read chapter 7, write reading log.

Wednesday, May 05, 2010

The Sword in the Stone II / Catcher in the Rye IV

College Prep 12
  • Stressed the importance of not getting lost in White's description. It is important for an concise concept of the setting, but not as important as the actions of the characters. chapter 1 can be broken down to the following: the governess is fired, Sir Ector discusses the need for a new tutor with Sir Grummore, the haying sequnce reveals important differences between Wart and Kay, as does the hawking sequnce that ends the chapter.
  • Discussed the revealing details in chapter 1 about the characters so far; Sir Ector, kay and the Wart.
  • Chapter 2 plus reading log for tonight. pay special attention to the irony in the scene where wart meets King Pellinore.
Grade 10
  • Took quiz on chapters 1 through 5
  • Discussed the importance of the death of Holden's brother.
  • Reading logs: summaries must be brief. The majority of the log should be on character analysis and development. What is revealed? What lines revela it? What does this say about the character? What predictions can be made?
  • HW: Chapter 6 + reading log.
Note: I will be proctoring the English Regents for the next 5 mornings and will miss periods 2,3 and 4. I deeply regret this. However, the time is to be dedicated to reading the books and writing the reading logs. Any questions or confusions should be noted in notebooks. I will address them.

Tuesday, May 04, 2010

The Sword in the Stone I / Catcher in the Rye III

College prep 12
  • Intro the Legend of King Arthur
  • Dist. Books.
  • read + reading log chapter 1
  • Note: This text may be challenging at first. Stick with it.
Grade 10
  • Journal: Compare Holden's relationship with Ackley and Stradlater.
  • Discuss, with special attention to Holden's reaction to Stradlater's mention of Jane Gallagher.
  • HW: Chapter 5.

Monday, May 03, 2010

Hamlet Exam Review / Catcher in the Rye Chapters 1-3

College Prep 12
  • Went over the hamlet exam. Addressed concerns.
  • Handed back Hamlet essays. Discussed some grammatical issues and the need for act, scene, line text references to support an argument.
  • Tomorrow:  Start The Sword in the Stone by T.H. White
Grade 10
  • Pop quiz on chapters 2 and 3.
  • Discussed the characteriztion of Holden Caulfield as revealed so far. There are a lot of contradictions in his narrative: "I am illiterate but I read books." He says he hates phonies but claims he is a terrific liar. What does this say about him? What is his self-image?
  • HW: Chapter 4 and reading log.