Wednesday, 9/30/09

Academic Skills
1. Complete the tutorial sheet summary/reflection section on what you learned today during the tutorial.

Composition
1. VPP (Vocab Power Plus) spelling quiz word write-out.
2. Type up your memoirs! Final draft due FRIDAY: Typed, double-spaced, 12 pt. font.
3. Bring Writer's Inc books tomorrow!

World Literature
1. VPP (Vocab Power Plus) spelling quiz word write-out.
2. Song lyrics & theme. Copy/print the song lyrics of your choice. Include the name of the artist and song title, and write out the theme(s) communicated by the song. Remember that themes are general statements (not specific) about life/people, not clichés, and not advice.

Tuesday, 9/29/09

Academic Skills
1. Organize your binders! Make them 0h-so-nice.

Composition
1. Create vocabulary flashcards - word on one side, definition and picture/inyourownwordsdefinition on the other side.
2. Study for the vocabulary spelling quiz tomorrow.
3. FINISH YOUR MEMOIR ROUGH DRAFT.

World Literature
1. Create vocabulary flashcards - word on one side, definition and picture/inyourownwordsdefinition on the other side.
2. Study for the vocabulary spelling quiz tomorrow.
3. Finish your POV (point of view) conflict journal narrative. It must be either written neatly in ink or typed. Be creative!

Monday, 9/28/09

Academic Skills
1. Continue reading in your IR book. Try to practice empathizing with the characters as you read.
2. Be ready for tutoring tomorrow.

Composition
1. Vocabulary lesson 2 (p. 23) in the VPP books: Copy the word on the left of a Cornell note sheet and the definition on the right. Draw a picture next to each definition that shows the definition.

World Literature
1. Vocabulary lesson 2 words -- finish drawing the pictures next to the definitions on the right side of your Cornell notes.
2. Read the "Story of Your Choice" listed on the sheet and start the worksheet that goes along with it (due Weds). Your story choices are:
“By Any Other Name” – p. 113
“By the Waters of Babylon” – p. 141
“The Storyteller” – p. 155
“The Cold Equations” – p. 164
“Typhoid Fever” – p. 194
3. Write (or type up!) the Point of View Conflict Journal Narrative we started going over in class. The assignment details are as follows:
-Two separate written journals with the date of the event at the top.
-One journal will be from your point of view. The other will be from the other person's point of view. Try to write in the voice of each 'character' of your conflict event.
-Journals must be written in past tense.
-Journals must be typed or written neatly to look like a journal entry.
-There should be a detailed account of the conflict in the event (think 1 page for each journal).
-Make it look nice! Extra points for creativity.
-Due Wednesday for a project grade.

*remember, two assignments are due Wednesday!

Friday, 9/25/09

Academic Skills
1. Try to find 30-60 minutes to spend with your IR book.

Composition
1. Work on the setting sheet and tone of YOUR memoir event.

(bring VPP books Monday)

World Literature
1. Write out one person vs. person conflict that you have had in your life. Write it from your limited, unreliable, 1st person point of view.

(bring VPP books Monday)

Thursday, 9/24/09

Academic Skills
1. IR in your books.
2. Practice tie-tying! Test tomorrow.

Composition
1. Study your vocabulary flashcards and be prepared for tomorrow's lesson 1 test. Do the sentence completion in your book to help you study!
2. Finish your 'House' setting writing passage.

World Literature
1. Study your vocabulary flashcards and be prepared for tomorrow's lesson 1 test. Do the sentence completion in your book to help you study!
2. Finish reading "Flowers for Algernon" part 2.
3. Finish the FFA alternate point of view journal. In case you missed it, here are the options:
Pt. 1
*Progress Report Mar 8 – from Dr. Strauss’s or Dr. Nemur’s POV
Progress Report Mar 10 – Dr. Strauss’s or Dr. Nemur’s POV
Progress Report Mar 25 – from Joe Carp’s or Frank Reilly’s POV
Progress Report Apr 3 – from Joe Carp’s or Frank Reilly’s POV
Progress Report Apr 9 – from Miss Kinnian’s POV
Progress Report Apr 15 – from Miss Kinnian’s POV
Progress Report Apr 28 – from Miss Kinnian’s POV
Pt. 2
*Progress Report May 15 – from Dr. Strauss’s POV
Progress Report July 10 – from Mrs. Flynn’s POV
Progress Report July 25 – from Miss Kinnian’s POV
Progress Report July 27 – from Joe Carp’s or Frank Reilly’s POV
Progress Report July 28 – from Miss Kinnian’s POV
*really hard ones

Wednesday, 9/23/09

Academic Skills
1. IR practice - read 30-60 minutes of your IR book. Practice inferring (focus on predicting) as you read.
2. Bring your ties in again tomorrow (and Friday). Tie test on Friday!

Composition
1. Finish "Dog Star" timelines.
2. Work on the My Memoir plot chart (plot side only).

-=study the vocab on your flashcards for the test Friday=-

World Literature
1. Make a list, on looseleaf paper, of the characters in FFA ("Flowers For Algernon") by Daniel Keyes.
2. Write out, on the same paper, five conflicts from the story. Label what type of conflict they are (person vs. _______).
3. Finish "Flowers For Algernon" by Daniel Keyes. Click here to read the entire text online.

-=study the vocab on your flashcards for the test Friday=-

Monday, 9/22/09

Academic Skills
1. Finish the summary/reflections section on the tutorial Cornell notes page based on what you learned during today's tutoring.

Composition
1. Complete your vocabulary flashcards: word and part of speech on one side, definition and picture/your-word-definition on the other side.
2. Pick your 'top three' events (out of the 10) that changed you as a person the most. On the back of the 10 events, describe these 'top three' in more detail, explaining how they helped change you.

World Literature
1. Finish reading "Everyday Use." Be ready for a reading quiz tomorrow.
2. Finish the indirect characterization boxes for Dee (one one side) and Maggie (on the other side).
3. Create you vocabulary word flashcards.

***Extra credit option: Click here to read the entire text of "Alyosha the Pot" by Leo Tolstoy and, on looseleaf, copy and discuss this question-
What happened in the story of "Alyosha the Pot?" How did the story affect you personally?

Monday, 9/21/09

Academic Skills
1. Fill in the tutoring questions sheet.

Composition
1. Draw a picture that shows each vocabulary definition (next to the written definition) on your vocab Cornell notes.
2. Brainstorm 10 significant memories in your life and write them down.
3. Finish the 'conflict' boxes on our Marigolds head/plot/conflict sheet. We'll turn it in tomorrow!

World Literature
1. Draw a picture that shows each vocabulary definition (next to the written definition) on your vocab Cornell notes.
2. Study character & conflict for the quiz tomorrow.
3. Answer the "too good for you" question on looseleaf:
Write about a person you have known who thought he or she was "too good for you." How did you know he or she felt that way? Explain using all four types of indirect characterization (showing): Appearance, Actions, Dialogue, Effects.

Click here to read the full text of Leo Tolstoy's short story "Alyosha the Pot."

Friday, 9/18/09

Academic Skills
1. IR (Independent Read) for 60 minutes or more.
2. As you read, practice our four Good Reading Habits: Reacting, Questioning, Making Connections, and Making Images.
3. Fill in the Reading Habits Practice Cornell notes as you read. Fill in the Summary section when you are done.

Composition
1. Fill in the 'plot' part of the "Marigolds" plot & conflict chart (the back side on the other side of the empty head that we did for last night's homework).

World Literature
1. Bring Vocabulary Power Plus Book Two books on MONDAY!
2. Make sure you bring your character observations on Monday, as we didn't have class time today to complete them.
3. Be thinking about this question: Think about a person you know or knew who thought he/she was "too good" for you. How did you/would you know? Explain your answer in terms of the four types of indirect characterization.

Thursday, 9/17/09

Academic Skills
1. Fix-up binders so they are perfectly organized.
2. Keep bringing your ties (formal uniform tomorrow for Mass).

Composition
1. Finish reading "Marigolds" by Eugenia Collier.
2. Draw in Lizabeth's 'open head' sheet, showing her thoughts and conflicts. Use color!

World Literature
1. Observe a stranger after school today -- someone you don't know at all.
2. Take notes on the stranger, writing down his or her indirect characterization (actions, dialogue, appearance, effects on others).

Wednesday, 9/16/09

Academic Skills
1. Fill in the summary/reflection part of today's Cornell notes.
2. Keep bringing your ties to class!

Composition
1. Finish the plot side of the conflict/plot chart sheet for "Big Boy" and "The Most Dangerous Game."

World Literature
1. Finish writing your classroom setting mini-narrative that we began in class.

Tuesday, 9/15/09

Academic Skills
1. Finish tutoring questions sheet
2. Bring your school ties!
3. IR 15-30 minutes. In your head (you don't have to write it down), practice the Good Reading Habits we've gone over so far - Reacting, Questioning, Making Connections, Making Images.

Composition
1. Complete your conflict take-home test.

World Literature
1. Finish "The Leap" timeline (10 events) in chronological order and illustrate. Color = extra points!

*extra credit option - Memento movie project

Monday, 9/14/09

Academic Skills
1. IR for 30-60 minutes.
2. Visualize and make images as you read.
3. On today's class notes, draw what you visualized. Include a quote-caption of the part you read that gave you that image in your mind.

Composition
1. Study your conflict notes so you are ready for the conflict test tomorrow (fold over your Cornell notes and have someone quiz you).
2. Finish the in-class group conflict sheet if necessary.
3. If you'd like to get ahead, start reading "Marigolds" on p. 118 of your Holt textbook.

*textbooks checked tomorrow (Writers INC, Vocab Power Plus, Mythology)

World Literature
1. Finish plot charts for "Big Boy" and "Contents of the Dead Man's Pocket" (on the back of the conflict chart sheet.
2. Read "The Leap" starting on p. 33 of the Holt textbook.
3. Fill in the 10 major plot events for "The Leap" (in no particular order) on the sheet Mr. Power handed out.
4. Tomorrow bring scissors and glue!

*textbooks checked tomorrow (Writers INC, Vocab Power Plus, Mythology, Siddhartha, The Joy Luck Club, Things Fall Apart)

Friday, 9/11/09

Academic Skills
1. Read your IR book (45 min - 1 hour)
2. As you read, fill out your Reading Habits practice Cornell notes sheet.
*Remember, late work can't be turned in more than one day late...

Composition
1. Finish the conflict sheet for "Big Boy" and "The Most Dangerous Game" if you have not done so already.

World Literature
1. Fill out the 'plot' side of our "Contents..."/"Anansi..." stories conflict sheet.
2. Quiz Monday on Conflict and Plot. Quiz:
Identify all four conflicts in the short nonfiction story below.
Emmett Till was a real-life black fourteen-year-old living in Mississippi in the racially tense time of the 1950s. One day, on the street with some friends, Till whistled at a white woman leaving a store. The woman told her friends and husband about the incident, and they were greatly angered. They kidnapped Till, beat him savagely, shot him, and dumped him in the river. When the body was finally found, it was so disfigured from the beatings that it was difficult to identify. Till’s mother had to make the tough decision of whether she wanted the funeral open-casket, and decided to do it so the world could see what the men had done to her son. The men responsible went on trial and were all acquitted (found not guilty) by an all-white jury.

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Remember: WELCOME DANCE TONIGHT! Be there! Also, we're back to normal school uniform on Monday.

Thursday, 9/10/09

B2S 2009! I hope to see you all at Back-To-School Night tonight at 7:00 pm. Bring your smiling faces, shaking hands, and any questions you may have.

Academic Skills
1. Read your IR (Independent Reading) book.
2. On your connections notes, make 3 connections to what you read. They can be any kind of connection - Text-Self, Text-Text, or Text-World. Do it like this:
When I read about __________________ in my book, it made me think of _________________.

Composition
1. Finish "The Most Dangerous Game" in your Holt textbook.
2. Finish the last few study questions on your question sheet.
3. Be ready for a quiz tomorrow about what happens in the book.

World Literature
1. Finish any part of the 'Conflicts' sheet that you didn't finish in class.

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Remember: Tomorrow, Friday, is VIKING DAY! Dress up in your blue and gold! Casual dress code is in effect.

Wednesday, 9/9/09

Academic Skills
1. Fix up your binders so that they are in perfect 50/50 tip-top shape.

Composition
1. Continue reading "The Most Dangerous Game" in your Holt textbooks - read through page 10, up until page 11.
2. Fill out the "Most Dangerous Game" Questions & Conflicts sheet up to question #10.

World Literature
1. Finish reading "Contents of the Dead Man's Pockets" in your Holt textbooks. Think about the character's conflicts...
2. On your sheet of paper from class, answer the question we copied down. Here it is, in case you missed it:
What are the two main conflicts in the story? How does the resolution of the second conflict alter how Tom resolves the first conflict? What do you think the writer is trying to teach the reader?

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Reminder: Tomorrow, Thursday, is SPORTS DAY during Welcome Week this week! Wear your favorite team's shirt, sweatshirt, or jersey.

Tuesday, 9/8/09

Academic Skills
1. Read your IR book.
2. As you read, continue our notes from class today: Fill in 5 reactions that you have to your IR book as you read, and 5 questions that you have while you read. Read until you can finish the assignment. Remember - page numbers go on the left, and your reaction/question goes on the right side of your Cornell notes.

Composition
1. Watch a TV show or movie.
2. As you watch, list at least 3 conflicts in the story on looseleaf paper. Use the WANTS ________ BUT _____________ sentence formula. Then try to label each one with the type of conflict it is.

World Literature
1. Read the story "Contents of the Dead Man's Pockets" starting on page 4 of your Holt textbook.
2. Read up until the 'F' on page 12.
3. On a piece of paper, list all of the main conflicts that Tom (the main character) has. List at least 2, and use the WANTS ________ BUT _____________ sentence formula. Try to label the type of conflict, too.
4. You may continue reading the story if you wish.

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Reminder: Tomorrow, Wednesday, is WACKY TACKY DAY during Welcome Week this week!

Friday, 9/4/09

Happy First Friday!

Academic Skills
1. Get a library card from your local library - due Tuesday, 9/8/09.
2. Bring in an interesting IR (Independent Reading) book - due Tuesday, 9/8/09.
3. Bring in a fully organized binder.

Composition
Have a great 3-day weekend!
1. Continue bringing your 2-3" binder (& textbook) each day.

====remember: Other class texts are due by Monday, 9/14/09====

World Literature
Relax and enjoy your weekend!
1. Continue bringing your 2-3" binder and Holt textbook each day.

^^^^remember: Other class texts are due by Monday, 9/14/09^^^^

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Reminder: Tuesday is TWIN DAY during Welcome Week next week!

Thursday, 9/3/09

Academic Skills
1. Get a library card from your local library - due Tuesday, 9/8/09.
2. Bring in an interesting IR (Independent Reading) book - due Tuesday, 9/8/09.
3. Bring in a fully organized binder.

Composition
1. Study the syllabus - quiz tomorrow! (you may use any Cornell notes you take in class or at home today)
2. Bring binders and textbooks daily.

World Literature
1. Start bringing organized binders every day.
2. Start bringing textbooks every day starting tomorrow.

***remember, bring in other textbooks by 9/14***

Wednesday, 9/2/09

Academic Success
1. None - just keep bringing your materials to class!

Composition
1. Look over the syllabus, fill out the back page, and have your parent/guardian sign it.

*remember, textbooks are due 9/14/09

World Literature
1. Study the syllabus (quiz tomorrow)
2. Come with the syllabus back page filled out - have your parent/guardian sign it.

*remember, textbooks are due 9/14/09

Tuesday, 9/1/09

Academic Success
1. Make sure you and your parent/guardian have completed the back page of the syllabus so it is ready to be turned in tomorrow.

Composition
1. Finish copying the class rules.
2. Order/get class textbooks for this semester if you have not already done so. Remember that past students may be selling used textbooks at school. The texts are as follows (clicking on the text title takes you to the Amazon page where you can order it):

Holt Textbook-Literature & Language Arts 3rd Course
ISBN-10: 0030564948
ISBN-13: 978-0030564949

Writers INC
ISBN-10: 0669471860
ISBN-13: 978-0669471861

Vocabulary Power Plus for the New SAT Book One
ISBN-10: 1580492533
ISBN-13: 978-1580492539

Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes
By Edith Hamilton
ISBN-10: 0446607258
ISBN-13: 978-0446607254

Books will be checked Monday, September 14.


World Literature
1. Make sure you and your parent/guardian have completed the back page of the syllabus so it is ready to be turned in tomorrow.
2. Order/get class textbooks for this semester if you have not already done so. Remember that past students may be selling used textbooks at school. The texts are as follows (clicking on the text title takes you to the Amazon page where you can order it):

Holt Textbook-Literature & Language Arts 4th Course
ISBN-10: 0030564964
ISBN-13: 978-0030564963

Writers INC
ISBN-10: 0669471860
ISBN-13: 978-0669471861

Vocabulary Power Plus for the New SAT Book Two
ISBN-10: 1580492541
ISBN-13: 978-1580492546

Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes
By Edith Hamilton
ISBN-10: 0446607258
ISBN-13: 978-0446607254

Things Fall Apart
By Chinua Achebe
ISBN-10: 0385474547
ISBN-13: 978-0385474542

Siddhartha
By Hermann Hesse
ISBN-10: 081120068X
ISBN-13: 978-0811200684

The Joy Luck Club
By Amy Tan
ISBN-10: 0143038095
ISBN-13: 978-0143038092

Books will be checked Monday, September 14.