| Syllabus
| Second Quarter's Assignments | Revised:
Jan. 13, 2009 |
|
| [First
Quarter's Assignments] |
Week
of October 27 to 31 (Beginning of Second Quarter) |
| Mon | [CR]
Spelling pre-test. Begin Lowry unit. Pre-reading
activity. Discuss utopia.
Hmwk: (By Wednesday) The Giver,
through p. 25. Gathering Blue, through p. 30. |
| Tues | [CR]
Lowry unit. Journal #13 (Last quarter: what went well? What would you do differently?
What do you need to do to make this quarter go the way you want it to go?) Go
over common errors on most recent test: punctuation with dialogue. Chapter summaries
(20 to 30 words, to be collected at end of reading, before test). Sample chapter
summary on board.
Hmwk: The Giver, through p. 25. Gathering
Blue, through p. 30. Write summaries for each chapter. |
| Wed | [CR]
Lowry unit. Read pp. 26-64 (Giver) or pp. 31-76 (Gathering Blue).
Continue working on chapter summaries. Writing an effective chapter summary requires
focus on word choice, conciceness, and clarity of expression. "Brevity is
the soul of wit"--Shakespeare. Pass back papers.
Hmwk: Study for
spelling quiz. Continue Lowry reading--if
you are not through p. 64 (Giver) or p. 76 (Gathering Blue). |
| Thurs | [PUC
Volleyball Tournament] [CR] Spelling quiz.
Read through p. 118 (Giver) or p. 129 (Gathering Blue) by Monday. |
| Week
of November 3 to 7 |
| Mon | [CR]
Due: Read through p. 118 (Giver) or p. 129 (Gathering Blue) before
the beginning of class. Spelling pre-test.
Lowry unit. Journal #14 (If you could have any job you wanted, and money were
no object, what would you do?) Class project
about assigned jobs (as in The Giver).
Hmwk: Read through
p. 146 (Giver) or p. 174 (Gathering Blue). |
| Tues | [CR]
Lowry unit. Knowledge Survey. Discuss.
Define "euphemism" and discuss the role of euphemism in The Giver.
Euphemism worksheet.
Hmwk:
Read through end of Giver or Gathering Blue by beginning of class
on Wednesday. |
| Wed | [Noon
Dismissal: Parent-Teacher Conferences] [CR] Lowry unit. Test review. Group work
on study and discussion questions.
Share group answers with other groups. Reminders about writing portion of the
test: assert your opinion and then support it with references to parts of the
novels.
Hmwk: Prepare for Lowry test (Giver and Gathering
Blue). Complete chapter summaries to be turned in before test. Study for spelling
quiz. |
| Thurs | [CR]
Due: Chapter summaries for Lowry books. Lowry unit: Test (Giver
and Gathering Blue). No hmwk. |
| Week
of November 10 to 14 |
| Mon | [CR]
Makeup spelling quiz (from last Thurs
when we took the test). Spelling pre-test.
Lowry unit. Begin next Lowry book (Gathering Blue for those who have just
finished The Giver and Messenger for those who have finished Gathering
Blue). Example Discussion
Questions handout.
Hmwk: Read through p. 30 (Gathering Blue)
or p. 35 (Messenger). |
| Tues | [CR]
Lowry unit. Journal #15 (What is your earliest memory? What things help you to
remember?) Discussion groups and reading.
Hmwk: Read through p. 76
(Gathering Blue) or p. 66 (Messenger). |
| Wed | [CR]
Lowry unit. Journal #16 (What makes something art?). Discussion groups and reading.
Pass back papers.
Hmwk: Study for spelling
quiz. Read through p. 129 (Gathering Blue) or p. 102 (Messenger). |
| Thurs | [CR]
Spelling quiz. Lowry unit. Writing
Dialect handout.
Hmwk: Read through p. 174 (Gathering Blue)
or p. 127 (Messenger). |
| Week
of November 17 to 21 |
| Mon | [CR]
Spelling pre-test. Journal #17 (If you
could have dinner with anyone in history . . .). Lowry unit. Discussion groups
and reading.
Hmwk: Finish Gathering Blue or Messenger.
Those who are doing chapter summaries should have them finished by class tomorrow. |
| Tues | [CR]
Lowry unit. Test review.
Hmwk: Complete preparation for test tomorrow. |
| Wed | [CR]
Lowry unit. Test II: Gathering Blue or Messenger.
Hmwk:
Study for spelling quiz. |
| Thurs | [CR]
Spelling quiz. Lowry unit. Good-By Party
for Mr. Rasmussen. No hmwk. |
| Week
of November 24 to 28: Thanksgiving Vacation |
| Week
of December 1 to 5 |
| Mon | Spelling
pre-test. Concrete poetry. Write a concrete poem to decorate the Christmas garland
in the classroom. English 10 students will be invited to judge the poems and choose
the best 3 or 4. These will be published in the Christmas edition of PrepAgenda.
Sample concrete poems: http://www.liswa.wa.gov.au/liskidz/allsorts/concrete/and
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/aero/wright/teachers/wfomanual/langarts/poem.html.
A successful concrete poem will: - Be
in the shape of the object it is about,
- Use
words to "paint" the object (think about texture, color, taste, sound,
smell, etc),
- Have an
element of humor/surprise,
- Be
clearly reproducible, and
- Include
the poet's name on the back.
Hmwk:
Complete a rough draft of your concrete poem.
[Enrichment:
Check out this Concrete
Poetry website: http://www.wild-about-woods.org.uk/elearning/concretepoetry/] |
| Tues | Due:
rough draft of Christmas concrete poem. Peer review. Display and discuss your
poem with three classmates who will respond to peer review questions on the board.
Revise poem--based on peer responses.
Hmwk: Complete concrete poem.
Bring to class ready to hang on the Christmas garland. |
| Wed | Due:
Completed Christmas concrete poems. Hang concrete poems on the Christmas garland.
Begin unit of Christmas short stories. Read aloud "The
Fir Tree," by Hans Christian Andersen. (Untimed Journal #18: Is this
a sad story? How could you interpret this story as a parable about life?)
Hmwk:
Study for spelling quiz. |
| Thurs | Spelling
quiz. Read aloud: "The
Tailor of Gloucester," by Beatrix Potter. Journal #19 (Christmas wishes:
for your friends, your sibling/s, your parents, yourself). No hmwk. |
| Week
of December 8 to 12 |
| Mon | Spelling
pre-test. Students and teacher read aloud: "Dulce
Domum" (chpt. 5 of Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame). [This
link ("Dulce
Domum") includes an audio link.] No hmwk. |
| Tues | Discuss
Christmas story themes. Read along with NPR
recording: "Auggie
Wren's Christmas." Journal #20 ("The short story has no Santa Claus,
no Christmas tree, and no brightly wrapped packages"--NPR.org. What is required
for a story to be a "Christmas Story"? Does "Auggie Wren's Christmas
Story" fit your definition? Explain.) [NPR
link: "Paul Auster: 'Auggie Wren's Christmas']
Hmwk: Complete
journal entry. |
| Wed | Journal
#21 (A childhood Christmas memory). Begin reading aloud: "A Christmas Memory,"
by Truman Capote, pp. 405-416. [Link
to "A Christmas Memory" online]
Hmwk: Study for spelling
quiz. Finish reading: "A
Christmas Memory," by Truman Capote, pp. 405-416. [Audio
link to Truman Capote reading "A Christmas Memory" (scroll down
to click on arrow)] |
| Thurs | [Egypt
Trip] Spelling quiz. Begin reading Henry
van Dyke's "The
Story of the Other Wise Man." No hmwk. |
| Week
of December 15 to 17 |
| Mon | [Egypt
Trip] Spelling pre-test. Finish reading
Henry van Dyke's "The
Story of the Other Wise Man." No hmwk. |
| Tues | [Egypt
Trip] "A Visit From St. Nicholas" and parodies. [Text
file from Wikisource] [Audio
file from Librivox.org] "Twas
the Nocturnal Segment of the Diurnal Period." (Do a google search on
"Twas the night before" to find zillions of parodies--some appropriate,
and some not!) Can you write a parody of Moore's poem?
Hmwk: Study for
spelling quiz. Finish up parody to share
in class tomorrow. |
| Wed | [Egypt
Trip] [Noon Dismissal] Spelling quiz.
Share "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" parodies with classmates. No
hmwk. Have a great Christmas! |
| Christmas
Break (Dec. 18 to Jan. 4) |
| Week
of January 5 to 9 |
| Mon | Spelling
pre-test. Read "The
Gift of the Magi" (pp. 7-13). Answer questions #6-15 (p. 14). Due by
end of class tomorrow. No hmwk. |
| Tues | Complete
"The Gift of
the Magi" questions #6-15 (p. 14) by end of class. When finished, begin
reading "A
Retrieved Reformation," by O. Henry.
Hmwk: Finish reading "A
Retrieved Reformation" before class tomorrow. |
| Wed | Reading
quiz: "A
Retrieved Reformation." Discuss "The
Gift of the Magi" and "A
Retrieved Reformation." Answer "A
Retrieved Reformation" questions.
Hmwk: Study for spelling
quiz. |
| Thurs | Spelling
quiz. Journal #22 (New Year's Resolutions). Read "The
Ransom of Red Chief," by O. Henry. No hmwk. |
| Week
of January 12 to 16 (End of Second Quarter) |
| Mon | Semester
spelling list pre-test. Work on "The Ransom of Red Chief" comprehension
questions. Semester spelling quiz list. Begin
working on short story test review. Notes on board.
Hmwk: Complete
questions--if not finished in class. Study for semester
spelling quiz. |
| Tues | Contine
test review (due Wed, 8:30 a.m.).
Stories on test: Review
(to be completed in your own handwriting): - Write
a paragraph summary for each story.
- Note
the main characters: protagonist and antagonist
- What
is the main conflict in the story?
- Man
vs. himself
- Man vs. man
- Man
vs. nature
- What
is an "O. Henry ending"? How could this term also apply to "Auggie
Wren's Christmas"?
Hmwk:
Prepare for short stories test. Study for semester spelling
quiz. Notebooks due at time of test. |
| Wed | Due:
English notebooks.Semester Exam: 8:30 to 10 a.m. (Short stories and semester
spelling list) |