Platoon Dénouement/ Julius Caesar Act III, continued

College Prep 12

• Finish watching Platoon
• Final discussion.
• Final reading log check
• Start planning essay:

…at the bottom of the abyss comes the voice of salvation. The black moment is the moment when the real message of transformation is going to come. At the darkest moment comes the light. ~Joseph Campbell from The Power of Myth

Only after we have been completely destroyed can we begin to find ourselves. ~Ryan Smithson, from Ghosts of War

Hell is the impossibility of reason. ~Private Taylor, from Platoon

I think now, looking back, we did not fight the enemy; we fought ourselves. The enemy was in us. The war is over for me now, but it will always be there, the rest of my days. As I'm sure Elias will be, fighting with Barnes for what Rhah called "possession of my soul." There are times since, I've felt like a child, born of those two fathers. But be that as it may, those of us who did make it have an obligation to build again. To teach to others what we know, and to try with what's left of our lives to find a goodness and a meaning to this life. ~ Private Taylor, from Platoon

War is hell, but war is also paradise. ~~Ryan Smithson, from Ghosts of War

Discuss the theme of the Transformation of the Hero in both the film Platoon and the book Ghosts of War through the lens of one or two of the quotes above. Where appropriate, illustrate the transformation of the main characters using elements of Campbell’s hero formula. Your essay should include specific details from both stories. You may use your notes, reading logs and book for this assignment. Write in your own voice. This is not a Regents essay!

Grade 10

• Continue Act III (pd 3 up to line 108, pd 4 line 138, pd 8 line 158)
• LINK to play.

Grades officially close tomorrow!

Platoon Continued / Julius Caesar Act III

College Prep 12

• Continue watching Platoon
• Reminder: consider the application of Campbell's stages of the Hero Journey when studying Private Taylor and Private Ryan (Ghosts of War)
• Tomorrow we will finish the movie, final check of reading logs and start planning essay.

Grade 10

• Started Act III
• Read to line 210 in scene 1 (periods 3&8), and line 177 (period 4)
• LINK to play.
• Students were reminded to make sure work is made up.

Platoon / JC Act II

College Prep 12

• Watched Platoon through the beginning of the village scene.
• Note taken on the parallel between the 'straights' and 'heads' scenes; Taylor passes initiation, the lieutenant does not.

Grade 10

• Watched Act II
• Quiz tomorrow: study vocab and Act II

Ghosts Continued / JC Act II

College Prep 12

• Checked reading logs through "The End," chapter 23.
• Distrubuted submitted reading logs. Reviewed expectations.
• Collected permission slips for movie

Grade 10

• Distributed Act I questions (graded). Explained writing expectations and grading rubric.
• Finished reading Act II.
• Questions 3,4,5 page 381 to be handed in.
• Students were told that one point of extra credit will be added to a major grade for every full side of a page writtten in a reflection journal. Each entry has to be about something meaningful, not trite. More will be explained tomorrow.

Ghosts Project / JC Act II

College Prep 12

• Hand our project guidelines for Ghosts.
• Collect permission slips. (If you lost yours, copy-paste-print permission slip below).
• Reminder: Chapters 20-23 due on Monday.
• Movie starts tuesday.
• Permission slip:

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Our school requires parental permission for your student to view movies that are used in our curriculum, or that are selected by our teachers R.

We believe showing your son or daughter full-length movies such as Platoon enables them to benefit from another medium as a resource in their study of current events and history.

The students do not just watch the film. They must take notes and write an essay connecting the themes and contexts with a current unit, in this case Ghosts of War by Ryan Smithson.

Thank you for taking the time to read and sign this permission form.

Sincerely,

 

_____________________ 
Mr. Lambert
English Department
Gloversville High School

Name of Movie: Platoon

Date of Movie: 12/9 - 11

Movie Rating: R

Student Name_____________________________

____ Yes, I give my son/daughter permission to view curriculum and school appropriate full-length movies rated PG-13 or R.

____ No, I do not give my son/daughter permission to view curriculum and school appropriate full-length movies of the types mentioned in this letter. I understand alternate learning experiences will be provided for my child while the movie is being watched.

Guardian signature/date

__________________________

Grade 10

• Reviewed Act II so far. Discussed Brutus's role in the conspiracy.
• Read through the end of Scene ii.
• Will finish Act on Monday and begin the video.

Ghosts and Due Dates / JC Act I Quiz!

College Prep 12

• Project due date: 12/22
• Rd logs for chapters 20 to 23 due 12/7
• Rd logs for chapters 24 to 27 due 12/14
• Film: Platoon: 12/8-11
• Permission slips for movie were sent home
• Essay writing : 12/14-15 (in Computer Lab)
• Utilize class time productively for reading and book logs!

Grade 10

• Quiz on Act I and vocabulary.
• Read Act II summary, discuss play themes: "Does the end justify the means?" "Is such 'preemptive' action moral?"
• Don't forget crossword for Act II for extra credit!

Ghosts Continued / Julius Caesar Act I Video

College Prep 12

• Continued checking reading logs up through chapter 15. (Reminder: There is a 5 point deduction for each day late!)
  
• Checking reading logs through chapter 19 tomorrow.
  
• Print-out of one reading log from "Red Phase" due tomorrow.
  
• Targeting middle of next week for book completion. There are 2 projects attached to this book:
  

  
  

  Essay: this will be assigned after viewing the film Platoon.
  

  
  

  
  

  Self-chosen project from 50 Reading Related Responses sheet or one of your own choice to be approved by me. (Due dates are to be determined.)
  

  
  

  
  
  

  Grade 10
  
  
  

• Copied over answers to questions 6,7,8 from last Tuesday and handed in for a minor grade.
• Reviewed some flaws in the critical lens essays, especially the tendency to summarize rather than use specific details from the story.
• Began watching Act I, up to the middle of Scene ii (line 214: Casca: You pulled me...)
  

Ghost Continued / Caesar Act I, Scene iii

College Prep 12

• Gave one more day to complete up through Chapter 15.
• Should be done through 224, Chapter 19 ("Tears") a week from tomorrow.
• Also due on Dec. 1: one reading log from "Part 1: Red Phase," typed, double spaced to be handed in.
• Distrubuted directions for portfolio project:

1) General
    a) Appearance
        i) Neatly bound to the best of your ability and imagination
        ii) Cover should be sturdy
        iii) Titled
        iv) Designed in a manner indicative of who you are
         v) All pages typed unless otherwise directed
    b) Table of contents
         i) Separated by units/sections.
2) Sections

    a) College applications
         i) All drafts, final on top
    b) Reflection journals
        i) At least 5 per marking period, dated, titled
    c) Literature
        i) Ghosts of War reading logs
          (1) At least 3, one per “Phase”
          (2) Chapter titles, page numbers, date

Grade 10

• Continued reading the play finished:
• PD 3&8, up to Scene iii, line119
• Pd. 4, up to Scene iii, line 44
• Will finish Act I tomorrow. View the video after the break, then take the quiz.

Ghosts Continued / JC Act I Scene i and ii

College Prep 12

• Independent reading. Reminder to finish up through "Satan's Clothes Dryer" for Monday.
  
  

Grade 10

• Vocabulary:

21. iambic pentameter: The most common meter in English verse. It consists of a line ten syllables long that is accented on every second beat
22. Soliloquy: the act of talking while or as if alone
23. Monologue: is an extended uninterrupted speech by a character in a drama.
24. Aside: dialogue intended for the audience and supposedly not heard by the other actors on stage.

• Check crosswords for Act I
• Began reading Julius Caesar, Act I. Finished up through the middle of scene ii, line 178 (Enter Caesar and his Train.)

"This is the House That Jack Built..." / Julius Caesar Intro

College Prep 12

• 
  
  Discussed the parallel between the Mother Goose ryhme with the chjapter "The Town that Achmed Built." Smithoson's use of the rhyme provides a stark contrast with the events of the chapter and the innocence of childhood.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Students were given chapter 15, "Satan's Clothes Dryer," as the target for Monday. Logs will be graded at that time. Late logs will lose 5 points per day until each group of four is completed.
  
  
  

Grade 10

• 
  
  Julius Caesar by Shakespeare was introduced. Students were given the following handouts: act summaries, character descriptions and crossword puzzles for each act.
  
  
  
• 
  
  5 points will be added to each act quiz with the completion of that act's crossword before we begin reading that act.
  
  
  
• 
  
  10 points will be added to the unit test if all vocabulary from the crosswords is written in notebooks.
  
  
  
• 
  
  The major characters were introduced, and we read the summary for Act I, which we will start reading tomorrow.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Absent students NEED to check here for what was covered and use the above link to read what was missed.
  
  
  

More Ghosts / Critical Lens Continued

College Prep 12

• Since college application deadlines are fast approaching, I decided to give my seniors the rest of the week free from homework... unless they are behind. Many seemed very pleased with this idea.
• However, many are behind in the reading. I checked logs through chapter 11, "Basic Training Part II." I would like to be done through page 223 by next Monday.

Grade 10

• Continued writng critical lens essay. Time will be given tomorrow to finish up if necessary.

A Soldier and Death / Critical Lens Essay Take 2

College Prep 12

Last Friday 2nd period watched the video "A Soldier and Death" as period 7 was going to be attending an presentation by the author of Ghosts of War, Ryan Smithson. Today, period 2 went to an award assembly so period 7 watched the video, which is an old Russian folk tale. Students should have read through page 138 in Smithson's book, the end of "Relief." There should be a total of 12 reading logs so far.

English 10

• Critical lens essays from last week were returned. Students were reminded of the importance of including litereary elements as per directions. On the the Regents exam students will lose 3 out of 6 possible points for neglecting this directions. Many students neglected this on this last essay, which was scored as a minor grade.
• After review, a new critical lens exam was distributed. Appropriate parts were underlined. Students were offered 10 extra credit points for including a competent planning page. Essays were begun and colected. We will continue tomorrow.

Ghosts Continued / Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin

Apologies for the lack of posts over the past week. I will be out again tomorrow.

Grade 12

• Continue reading Ghosts of War.
• Checked reading logs for first three chapters today. Will check through 6 on Thursday.
• Should be up to at least chapter 8 by Thursday.

Grade 10

• Finished kate Chopin's "Story of an Hour."
• Tomorrow is an exam on vocab 1-20 and the short stories done over the past two weeks: "The Monkey's Paw," "The River, the Bass and Sheila Mont," and "Story of an Hour."
• Vocab is as follows:
• 1. 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.”
  2. 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.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. Symbol: something used for or regarded as representing something else; ex. The grim reaper=death, huskie=football team, eagle=America
  6. Allegory: a story meant to be read symbolically.
  7. Elfin: Relating to or suggestive of an elf, Having a magical quality or charm
  8. Empathy: understanding and entering into another's feelings. Different than sympathy which is to feel sorry for; empathy is to feel the same as.
  9. Hedonism: Pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses
  10. Anguish: excruciating or acute distress, suffering, or pain
  11. Anecdote: short account of an incident (especially a biographical one)
  
  12. Profound: showing intellectual penetration or emotional depth; great, important meaning
  
  13. Thesis: A statement that is maintained by argument
  
  14. Annotate: to supply with critical or explanatory notes; comment upon in notes
  
  15. Poetry: the art of rhythmical composition, written or spoken, for exciting pleasure by beautiful, imaginative, or elevated thoughts.
  
  16. Prosody: study of poetic meters and writing verse; the particular system of verse in a poem.
  
  17. Prose: the ordinary form of spoken or written language
  
  18. Metaphor: A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily means one thing is used to mean another, thus making a comparison, as in "a sea of troubles" or "All the world's a stage" (Shakespeare).
  
  19. Simile: a figure of speech in which two unlike things are compared using ‘like’ or ‘as’, as in “she is like a rose.”
  
  20. Conundrum - (noun) 1. a riddle whose answer is or involves a pun 2. an intricate and difficult problem
  
  
  

Fertile Ground by Mr. Lambert / Poetry Intro

College Prep 12

• 
  
  Discussed chapter one of Ghosts of War, students gave feedback, all postitive
  
  
  
• 
  
  Identified the heart of the chapter as 9/11, and the authors visit to the site. I then read a personal essay to the class of my own visit to the site.
  
  
  
• 
  
  I will be out tomorrow. Essays are due. I will check logs for chapters one through three on Wednesday.
  
  
  

Grade 10

• Added the following vocabulary words:
• 15. Poetry: the art of rhythmical composition, written or spoken, for exciting pleasure by beautiful, imaginative, or elevated thoughts.
  16. Prosody: study of poetic meters and writing verse; the particular system of verse in a poem.
  17. Prose: the ordinary form of spoken or written language
  18. Metaphor: A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily means one thing is used to mean another, thus making a comparison, as in "a sea of troubles" or "All the world's a stage" (Shakespeare).
  19. Simile: a figure of speech in which two unlike things are compared using ‘like’ or ‘as’, as in “she is like a rose.”
  20. Conundrum - (noun) 1. a riddle whose answer is or involves a pun 2. an intricate and difficult problem
  
• There will be a vocabulary test on all 20 words next week.
  
• Tomorrow, students will write a critical lens essay with the substitute.
  
  
  

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.