English 10 A

Thank you for handing in the essays, checklist, peer edited copy and the quotation log today. You can see how many steps are involved in a literary essay. Now you have a tried and true method for creating essays on any topic. You cannot go wrong if you follow these steps because your thesis flows naturally from your research (quote log).

Today--mostly I wanted to give you a chance to read your USSR books and to fill in the forms for the draw. You've read a lot. Good luck.

For homework (due Wednesday (sigh) next Wed.) choose ten poems that you really admire--they may be comical, insightful, delightful, mysterious . . . anything you like.

Choose poems from two sources only please (so that you learn what is being published these days and why). The Claremont Review or www.poetryfoundation.org (but on this site, check to see if the poem is modern, say post 1960).

Bring all 10 poems to class on Wednesday to share with a partner.

We'll be turning the poems into a book--
I'll give you the criteria on Wednesday.
Have a terrific holiday.
If you asked for an extension on your essay, bring it to my office Thurs. morning. If the office is locked, take it to the staff lounge and ask a teacher to put it in my box. Thanks.

Lit 12

Great work today. We made notes on the first three Acts. Keep your eye on Lear and descriptions of Lear as we discovered some pretty interesting attitudes toward sin and sinners today and poor Gloucester. I cannot even prepare you for what will happen to him. What is his sin, do you think?

Read and make notes on Scenes 4 and 5 in Act 3 and be prepared to share your epiphanies with the class tomorrow. We should be able to finish Act 3 tomorrow and then start our essays early next week. Any ideas what you will write about?

AP Lit

Thanks for submitting the essays today. If you were absent, I will need a note in order for you to receive an extension on the poetry essay.

We discussed the first chapter of Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist . . .
We'll spend a period on each chapter. I gave out two handouts today and we took a board full of notes. Those absent today should borrow the notes.

Prepare for Wednesday's class by doing a close read of Chapter 2. Narrow the focus to what is revealed about Stephen --i.e. Which aspect of his artist portrait is revealed and what is revealed about the power of art or the imagination.
Be ready to present a key passage (similar to our discussions today). Spark notes are actually helpful to catalyze your research. There are numerous essays on aspects of Joyce on the web and I have a good selection of essays in a bok edited by Mark Wollaeger if you'd like to have a look.

Two in-class compositions will be required on this novel. One will be a site passage and the other will be an open-ended essay. We have a Joyce scholar here at SMUS, Dr. Jennifer Fraser and she will be coming to give us a guest lecture once we have finished the book. How lucky are we???

Toodles.

Writing 12

Congratulations!!! Your five months of creativity has birthed beautiful manuscripts. I've only read Ariel's so far and the poems there are absolutely breathtaking. Congrats, Ariel. You can breathe now!!

For one of the contests, they need a picture of you so could you please have a picture that is ready to send available in your email. Next day 9, we will send four poems to two American magazines and we'll get an entry ready for The Claremont Review contest and for the BCTELA. The Review contest has a $20.00 entry fee. You can bring cash, or a cheque made out to The Claremont Review or I can charge it to your account if you have your parents' permission. You get a one year subscription to the magazine with your entry fee so you literally can't lose!!

Monday, Sena and Karen present.

See if you can find a teacher this week and set up a date. Deadline for that presentation is March 14th. I suggest you complete it in Feb. though so you will have more experience before we have our GALA evening.

Date for the poetry evening is Wed. March 8 because Thurs. March 9 is taken by the French Dept. Let me know asap if this date will not work for us so I can change it in SDS. I've used the title of Ariel's manuscript as the title of our evening? The evening is called Writing 12 presents Kiss it Better! an evening celebrating new poetry.  Wed. March 8. 7 p.m. Copeland Lecture Theatre. Ariel, could you get all this info on the poster and then I can get them printed. Colour is fine.

Anyone not like the title? Bring your ideas to class on Monday and we can debate it. I think it works.

Writing 12

Hope you all enjoyed writing the English provinical today. Writing 12 students usually ace the composition section. Yay. All that concrete imagery/show don't tell adages will finally pay off.

Email me your manuscript, bio, address etc. tonight.
Hand me a copy tomorrow during class. Paper clip the poems together, no staples, please. Thanks.

AP Lit

If you need assistance with your thesis statement, pop around the office on Friday.

Monday, Jan. 30, submit:

the essay, double spaced, the TICK charts and thematic statements, the works cited sheet, copies of the poems

I'm sure those English 12 markers will LOVE your writing. It's that good!

English 10

Great work in the lab today. Tomorrow, (Friday) we'll peer edit so bring a copy of your essay.
You should have a typed introduction and three body paragraphs: (350-450 words each).

Follow the sample I gave you and its guidelines. Body paragraphs follow all the rules of the literary paragraphs you have been writing except that they must refer to the overall thesis as well as referring to the topic sentence of the paragraph. Make sure you are proving your thesis throughout the entire essay.

You never want the reader to have to wade back into the introduction to remind them of what it is you are proving.

We'll have a checklist to follow for the peer editing session. I will also show you how to write the conclusion.

Tuesday Checklist:
Submit: the good copy (double spaced) essay, the edited draft, the quotation log, plus a title page and works cited page.

I'm really looking forward to reading your essays.

Writing 12

Can't wait to read your manuscripts this weekend. Be sure to email me a copy (as outlined in the manuscript criteria sheet). Next week, we'll be busy sending them out to contests and to magazines. Yay!! Soon the world will get to see what we see on a daily basis.

Last minute edits needed? See me asap.

Lit 12

Today during class we reviewed the function of Act 2 (the rising action--complications arise out of the conflict). We reviewed several key conflicts from Act 1 and predicted several possible consequences which will arise in Act 2. Before you read the first three scenes in Act 2, predict what you think will happen as a result of the conflicts created in the first act.

Next, we passed along an insult sheet. Google Shakespearean insults and you'll easily find a three-column list. Your task is to use the list and create delicious insults for the more ominous characters in the text: Goneril, Regan, Oswald and Edmund.

Reading tasks: Make notes on all aspects of the first three scenes which you deem important. (Remember your notes are due at the end of the unit). Pay particular attention to the following items:

Scene 1:

•  the significance of Edmund's self-inflicted wound (what might it symbolize or elucidate about his character?)
• take note of all that happens in this scene as it is very plot based (See if your predictions were accurate)

Scene 2:

• Be sure to note the language in this scene as there is very little blank verse, why?
• What does the use of language reveal about the lives of these characters and the tone of the play at this point?
• Line 68 begins a stream of insults--at this point create your insults for the characters mentioned above
• Next, be sure to analyze Kent's speech, lines 76-88. What key thematic concepts arise here?
• Define antipathy (line 91) See if you can use the word in tonight's homework. Do I hear the word, bonus????

Scene 3:

• This scene is very short. It is one soliloquy by Edgar. At this point in the play how do you expect Edgar to react? Are you surprised by the tone of his speech, why or why not? Be sure to be able to point out key character traits and support your opinions with evidence from the text.

Homework:

Complete the Lear chart and thesis statement. You have the criteria on a handout and it is also posted on yesterday's blog. No lates accepted so ensure that you have priorized your actitivites. If you need an extension, let me know today as tomorrow is too late.

The Fool Project!! Marisol's is already completed. Well done. Have fun with it. It's due on Tuesday, Jan. 31. I'm looking forward to meeting and greeting your fools.

Lit 12

Superior effort today. Your interpretations of the character demonstrated your ease with literary analysis. I was truly impressed. If you were away, be sure to get the notes from a friend and add your own what / so what charts to the mix. Remember, your notes are due at the end of the unit.

IT'S ALSO REALLY GOOD TO HEAR ABOUT HOW YOUR FOOL PROJECTS ARE COMING. MAKE SURE YOU SET ASIDE SUFFICIENT TIME FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT. THANKS.

The assignment which is due Wednesday is pasted below. If you need an extension, email me today.
Thanks.

Act 1: Character of Lear Analysis

The fool calls Lear “an O without a figure” (1.4.195-196) and “Lear’s shadow” (1.4.233). Based on your readings, discussions and analyses of Lear in Act 1, create a what / so what chart for Lear’s character.

Include 5 to 7 strong examples on the WHAT side (actions, expressions, descriptions of him from other characters’’ point of view, and quotations) and be sure to fill in the SO WHAT side with your BEST inferences. Look for those epiphanies. Note that doing an excellent job at this stage will make the essay writing much easier.

Once you have arrived at a clear understanding of Lear based on a close reading and analysis of the text, create a clear thesis statement to describe him.

Criteria for an A thesis

·         Goes beyond the obvious

·         A bold declaration of truth based on fact and analysis

·         An accurate depiction that demonstrates an clear understanding of the character

·         Arouses a provocative, yet provable reaction to Lear

·         Diction, grammar, syntax reflect the formal nature of a thesis

Sample Lear thesis statement:

Despite Lear’s success as a king, he must understand himself as a man. Stripped of his former identity, he is a mere shadow of his former self because he expects to continue to be treated like a king; however, identity comes from more than one’s station in life—self-understanding emerges when one takes responsibility for one’s actions, apologizes for transgressions, and rises from defeat with a new and stronger character.  Lear’s blindness to individualism makes him vulnerable to his daughters’ disloyalty.

AP Lit

The beloved TICK chart.... I love the chart as it ensures that you take all the pertinent aspects of the poem to arrive at the theme. It's too easy, otherwise, to write a statement about your topic that is really not clearly conceived in the poem. What English students sometimes do is create a statement that they could have written without even reading the poem. HMM. Don't get caught in that trap as it reveals weaknesses in your ability to pay attention to text. These poems offer an opinion on your topic. What is it?

Homework:

Arrive to class Wed. with two poems annotated. Your tick charts completed and your thematic statements written.

We'll review my expectations for the essay, the MLA style sheet (bring the copy I gave you to class), and how to write the works cited list, and some tips about how to organize the essay.

Essay is due Monday. If you have other key commitments, speak to me well before the deadline in order to get an extension. Arriving without an essay on Monday is suicide.

Good luck on the exam on Thursday. It is definitely possible to score 100%. I suggest you do the paragraph, essay and short story first and then do the multiple choice as they require you to proceed at a snail's pace. Study the errors on the Xmas exam in order to ensure you don't make the same type of mistake on the provincial.

English 10 A

If you were absent today, you must meet me after school in the classroom.

If you want extra help with writing your introduction, meet after school today. Thanks.

Great work today. You learned THE best formula for essay writing ever conceived!! Your thesis statements are scintillating. Your evidence, accurate. Your opinions, persuasive. Your analyses, stunning. Way to goooooooooooooooo.
All As and high Bs on this essay equals LASER TAG..... We can do it!!
Meet in the science bldg. computer lab (the only lab available that block).

HOMEWORK: Arrive with your introduction--follow the sample! Have it typed and double spaced. Have your topic title as the para. title, add the date and your first and last name. Good luck.

AP Lit

Glad you like the www.poetryfoundation.org site. Hope you have chosen all three poems now. One must be from a different era. The examples on the sheet are only a guide.

I've marked most of the poetry compositions and many of you need work to synthesize the poem's theme.
Consequently, you need to do the following for each poem you have chosen for this essay.
3 detailed TICK charts and a thematic statement that clearly states the poem's theme.
TICK is an acronym for Title, Introduction, Conclusion, and Key points (lines or techniques)
It is absolutely foolproof, easy to do, exact.

Writing a strong thesis forces you to be concise.

You need to follow the MLA style guide and to include a works cited. Look back on the site to see how to cite each poem.

You have one more class booked into the lab (due to losing one to snow) but we could add another if we need it.

Your English 12 exam is next Thursday at 8 a.m. We have a class on Wed. If you would prefer to do exam review that day, let me know.

This weekend, do at least one complete chart on one of the poems and let me see it next class.
Thanks.

Writing 12

Today we reviewed all the criteria for the manuscript. If you were away, be sure to re-read that sheet. It is also posted on an early blog.

New deadline for the mansucript is Friday, Jan. 27, period 1.

This week focus on meeting the criteria. It may be a bit of an emotional rollercoaster so go easy on yourself. Stick to the critieria. Trust the skills you've acquired this year. Get editing help.

Aim to have everything ready to go by Thursday afternoon. Print it out and get a friend to copy edit it.
That means they are looking for spelling and typographical errors. Get them to read it from the end to the beginning so they can focus on each individual word. It's really hard to copy edit your own work. No writer does it. All writers have editors. Find someone with an excellent eye!

I'm willing to edit poems all week so get them to me asap.

English 10A

Excellent work in the computer lab today. I'm looking forward to reading your quotation logs.

Bring a hard copy of the completed quote log to class. You will need it in order to turn it into an essay.
Bring three different coloured highlighters to class for this exercise.

Be prepared to work hard during Monday's class. This lesson is the most important lesson of the year. Don't miss it.

We will write the thesis and introduction for your essay on Monday. You will type it up and hand it in on Wednesday. Wednesday, we will write two, possibly three of the body paragraphs.
Arrive Friday, Jan. 27, with your introduction and your three body paragraphs. We'll write the conclusion and peer edit the body paragraphs. You'll have a lot of time during the weekend of the 28th to revise and edit your draft to create a fabulous final copy. Yay.

Lit 12

We reviewed the fact / react charts which were based on the margin notes, page 22. Remember that you will be handing in your notes at the end of the unit. Simply copying today's notes off the board will not get you top marks. I look at your notes to assess your level of engagement with the play. You can use your notes as a "thinking" ground, a great resource when you start to put ideas together for your literary essay. Be sure that you understand Edmund's dedication to "Nature" with a capital N. This dedication is very different notion from what we commonly associate with nature.

I collected the paragraphs on Edmund's Act 1, Sc. 2 soliloquy. If you were absent today, please bring a note in order to be able to submit the paragraphs late.

All paragraphs for those students present today are due by the end of the day.

I handed out a study guide for your reading of Act 1, scenes 2, 3, and 4. As you read underline key images, metaphors, symbols and repeated lines. Notice shifts in tone. Notice shifts in diction as diction is a clear indicator of a speaker's mood.

Create point form notes to the questions on the sheet. Marita, Geoffrey, Erin and Elliot, I will email you the sheet. I created it at home so you will get it at the end of today.

Homework: Complete the readings, the underlining and the notes for Monday on Act 1, Scenes 2, 3, and 4.

You may want to get a good start on your FOOL project as well, which is due Jan. 31. Fool notes below:

The Fool – King Lear
The Royal Shakespeare Company writes of the Fool:

There is no contemporary parallel for the role of Fool in the court of kings. As Shakespeare conceives it, the Fool is a servant and subject to punishment ('Take heed, sirrah – the whip ' 1:4:104) and yet Lear's relationship with his fool is one of friendship and dependency. The Fool acts as a commentator on events and is one of the characters (Kent being the other) who is fearless in speaking the truth. The Fool provides wit in this bleak play and unlike some of Shakespeare's clowns who seem unfunny to us today because their topical jokes no longer make sense, the Fool in King Lear ridicules Lear's actions and situation in such a way that audiences understand the point of his jokes. His 'mental eye' is the most acute in the beginning of the play: he sees Lear's daughters for what they are and has the foresight to see that Lear's decision will prove disastrous.^[4]

Writes Jan Kott, in Shakespeare Our Contemporary,

The Fool does not follow any ideology. He rejects all appearances, of law, justice, moral order. He sees brute force, cruelty and lust. He has no illusions and does not seek consolation in the existence of natural or supernatural order, which provides for the punishment of evil and the reward of good. Lear, insisting on his fictitious majesty, seems ridiculous to him. All the more ridiculous because he does not see how ridiculous he is. But the Fool does not desert his ridiculous, degraded king, and accompanies him on his way to madness. The Fool knows that the only true madness is to recognize this world as rational.

English 10A

Be sure to update your Shelfari account and to respond to at least two other posts on-line.

Today: Jocelyn Dimm recommended several books. Keep the sheet where you picked your favourites and I'll have a look at it next class.

Finish your quotation log completely by Monday, Jan. 30th. Bring three highlighters to class that day and your quote log so that we can turn it easily into the best literary essay you've ever written.

Yay you!!
Keep reading.

Lit 12

Excellent work today into the nature of identity or what Shakespeare calls "the darkness of revelation". (Add spooky laugh here).

Homework: Complete the fact / react chart based on the column on page 22.

Read Edmund's soliloquy in Act 1 Sc 2. Lines 1-22. Write a literary paragraph (250 to 350 words) which explains what is revealed about Edmund in this passage. Pay close attention to imagery, language, repetition, rhetorical questions, tone, line break and symbols. Create a thesis statement which clearly reveals what you think of Edmund based on your analysis of the passage.
Marks awarded for literary analysis, literary must-haves, double space, title, date, name, use of detail, quotation incorporation and citing correctly.

Due Thursday.

AP Lit

I collected the poetry compositions today (Larkin or Owen) but due to the fact that I neglected to post the due date on a previous blog, you may submit the poem composition to me during Wednesday's class or via email. I really look forward to reading them.

From today's lesson I hope you came away with a clear sense of how to tackle the composition question and I also hope that you feel proud of what you have accomplished--you are analysis kings and queens and your love for literature and empathy for Willy's character was clearly evident in all of the compositions that I read.

If you did not fully complete today's composition analysis, it is due Wednesday.
If you would like to re-write today's composition, study, read samples on-line, practice. I will set up a lunch time session where all those who want to re-write meet on the same day--T, W, Th, work for me.

This re-write will need to be completed next week. Even if you did well on today's assignment, I encourage you to come to this session in order to get more practice and more feedback.

Poetry Research Project is due Mon. Jan. 30th. No lates accepted. If you are not able to meet this deadline, speak to me (in person) not via email to discuss your request and possibly to make an alternate deadline. You may wish to choose your theme before Wednesday (to stay ahead). Themes can be general, i.e. love or specific: unrequited love, diaspora, technology, materialism, looking back, ambition, spirituality. The list is endless.

Lit 12

We discussed the Dec. exam and made notes. If you were away today, please make time to see me to go over the questions. If you would like to discuss any of the writing sections, be sure to come and talk.

We have almost finished Act 1, Scene 1--initial scenes take a long time because we are forming opinions of characters, following plot, noticing juxtapositions and admiring the language. We took a lot of notes today so be sure to get copies.

No specific homework this weekend. For Lit 12, anytime for review is always a gift. You can now add Milton and Pepys to your set of reference cards.

Next week, we'll be creating fools to follow you around.

Writing 12

Good luck to all of you in this first contest!! Please create a file in WORD called CONTESTS and write down the titles and the name of each contest so you can easily find what you have sent where. DON'T skip this stage or you could get really muddled. Thanks.

Monday: Meet in the board room. We'll divide into two groups. You all should now have all the poems from your group members. Edit each one carefully. Use the manuscript criteria. A poem can be good but not meet the criteria for the course; consequently, there is no point including it in your manuscript. Look particularly for a lack of surprise, lack of clarity, and wordiness. The final criterion and the most difficult to articulate is SO WHAT? Does the poem work?

Answering this question is hard. Does it offer a new perspective?

Writing 12

Great work in the lab today.

Deadline for the Manuscript: Tues. Jan. 24 (Day 1) Period 5.

No Lates accepted. If you need an extension, speak to me well in advance. Extensions may be given but we are under a publication deadline for The Claremont Review so you could be jeopardizing getting published.

Tomorrow: meet in the Science Bldg. Computer Lab.

Due: Bring 6 or 7 (depending on which group you are in) copies of a poem you want the class to edit for our workshop in the board room on Monday.

Isabella and Karen, you need to bring 7 copies, please.

Tomorrow during class we will each send two poems to the League of Poets National Youth Poetry Contest. For details, visit: www.youngpoets.ca 

Have the poems on your email. You will also need your home address, city and postal code, and a phone number where you can be reached in April. These poems need to be absolutely error free. Search the website for previous winning poems to get an idea of the type of poem that seems to catch a judge's eye.

Here is a copy of the manuscript criteria which I handed to you before the Xmas break:

Manuscript Criteria List: Poetry, Writing 12

Follow your way to an A . . .

Due:Jan. 24. No late manuscripts accepted.

Ensure that you have completed each item. Check each off each item as you finish it.

1. _____ You have included your ten best poems. All of the work is your own.
2. _____ You have edited out clichés, lack of surprise, and dull language.
3. _____ Each poem is titled. The title adds resonance to the poem.
4. _____ Each poem has your name and email address as a header or footer.
5. _____ You are pleased with these final copies and you want to publish them.
6. _____ Any poems not for publication are marked: NOT FOR PUBLICATION
7. _____ Your title page includes a manuscript title such as Soft Green Rain.
8. _____ Your title page also includes name, address, postal code, phone number, and school and home email.
9. _____ The last page of your manuscript is a bio. 1-2 sentences about you.
10. _____ You have another copy at home, at Uncle Fred’s and in a bank safe.

 MANUSCRIPTS WILL NOT BE RETURNED. I DO NOT EDIT THEM. THESE ARE NO LONGER UGLY BABIES. THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL AND READY TO LEAVE THE NEST.

Fly Fleance, Fly!! ( Macbeth).

YOU MUST ALSO submit an electronic copy Jan. 24th. Both are due or you do not receive a mark.  

EACH POEM IS IN A SEPARATE FILE labeled by title.  Include a copy of the bio in the body of the email. Include your name, home address, city, postal code, phone number and home email.

 NO LATES ACCEPTED. If you are sick, send it by cab. They need the money! YOU NEED THE MARKS! The manuscript is worth 50% of term 1, more than any provincial exam.

Make sure that the poems you include match the criteria below:

1. Surprise—I don’t want to be able to predict the next line.
2. Form—line break, caesuras, enjambement, juxtaposition, stanzas, etc
3. Sound—rhythms, syllabics, alliteration, assonance, dissonance, etc
4. Truth—the subject matters to you. You reveal something, make the reader look.
5. Diction—use of language is precise, not fat when you mean chubby, etc…
6. Insight—in the final analysis, the poem is more than description. It offers a vision of the world we were not able to see until we read your poem.

In a manuscript, I expect each copy to be absolutely clean. If there is a typo or mechanical error, I ignore that poem and so will editors of magazines and judges of contests. You are implying via mistakes that your poetry is not important.  I don’t wish to ignore poems. These are your babies—fully grown. Would your mother send you to kindergarten in a dirty shirt with mud on your face?

AP Lit

Excellent work with Larkin's poem, "Here". Amazing!! Larkin is the "spotlight poet" on poets.org this week. If you would like to read more about him (he was a critic of American jazz, for example) visit: http://www.poets.org/

This weekend, find forty minutes to practice writing a composition on one of the two poems I handed out today.

Use the generic question, often found on AP exams:

Write a well-organized essay in which you analyze the techniques the poet uses to convey his attitude toward the poem's subject manner.

Remember, the persona / speaker in the poem cannot be assumed to be the poet.

|With this section of the exam, divide up your 40 minutes differently--take more time to plan by
re-reading and annotating the poem. Use TPCASTT to ensure that you cover all the bases.

If you don't like TPCASTT, you need to be really experienced at reading poetry.

Meaning in poetry relies on sound, form, and language.
Sound: rhythm, rhyme, repetition, and sound devices: alliteration, assonance etc
Form:  Look for punctuation, caesura, enjambement and juxtaposition in modern poetry.
Language: diction, colloquial, elevated, literary devices -- particularly allusion and metaphor

For poetry prior to the 20th century, review your Lit 12 notes as you have it all covered.
There is also a poetry summary in the package I gave you.

Next week we'll be starting something fun!! (evil or not-so-evil laugh here)

English 10 A Copy these dates into your agenda book

Great work in the computer lab today. Meet there again, Friday. Arrive with four quotation responses. Check that you are citing properly and that you have numbered each quotation.

Also, put the question topic at the top of the quote log so I know what question you are investigating.

Shelfari response deadline: Sat. Jan. 14th. A few of you have asked for alternate deadlines so please make a note of the new deadline and plan accordingly.

Next week:
Tuesday: Meet in the Copeland Lecture Theatre for a special book talk by UVic professor and writer, Jocelyn Dimm. She will be sharing her love of YA literature and you may pick up some new book titles that you'll want to add to your reading list.

Thursday: Let me know if you will be away on the Planning field trip.

Quotation Log must be completed and brought to class, Monday, Jan. 23rd. so that we may turn it into an essay. No extensions may be granted for this project as we all need to work together.

Bring three different coloured highlighters with you to class on the 23rd.

I will show you how to organize this brilliant set of ideas into a thesis statement.

You will leave the class with a scintillating introduction to your essay which will be due on the 25th so I can edit it for you. We'll write the body paragraphs in class on the 25th.

Deadline for peer editing: Friday, Jan. 27th.

Good copy deadline: Tues. Jan. 31

Tues. Jan. 31

Submit:
Quotation Log
Essay (with title page and works cited page)

No lates accepted. If you have a legitimate reason for an extension, be sure to ask for one well in advnace and we'll negotiate a new deadline. Never arrive to class the day an assignment is due without the work or without your extension previously in place as you will be required to choose an alternate assignment. Thanks.

AP Lit

40 minute compositions!!! NO problem. Well done.

Tonight and subsequently over the next month, read 10 pages of Joyce per night. Look for and highlight the following:

examples of stream of consciousness
examples of diction to reflect the character's age and how the character thinks and feels (sensations)
key motifs--sex, religion, artist's role, extremism, music, myth of Icarus
key passages--memorable passages, conflicts, etc which reveal the character's progression

If you are unfamiliar with Catholicism, look at this site: http://carm.org/catholic-terminology
To become more familiar with the Irish resistance movement, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Stewart_Parnell

We're starting a poetry unit next class.

Lit 12

As you review tonight, think about the reading strategies we used in class today: predicting, looking at the form and recalling the key aspects of the form to help you understand this sonnet, the age it was written in, the biography of the author--John Milton's Puritanism, predicting what the problem will be based on the pun in the title: "On His Blindness", predicting the solution, looking for key words or shifts in tone for the volta.

Other key strategies are not just recognizing literary techniques but taking pleasure and pride in knowing how effectively they are used.
Metonymy:
Puns:
Biblical allusions:
Personifying the virtue, Patience, and using dialogue for the entire sestet;
Understanding the power and brevity of metaphor
Making and re-making connections
Taking notes while others are talking and adding in your ideas
Asking questions to your partner, to yourself, to the class, to the teacher helps to clarify
Keeping key images in mind to remember the poem
Writing down key quotes and re-reading those notes weekly will keep the material fresh

Finally, creating an emotional connection to the work is the best way to retain it. We wrote about our own talents and our own faiths.

Read Samuel Pepys' diary. Post-it note vivid imagery. Come to Wednesday's class prepared to write a diary entry that records in vivid, sensory detail, your life!!

Keep studying all the works from first term.

English 10 A

Congratulations on your excellent USSR results. You read like demons this morning which is fantastic. Your Shelfari responses are due this Sat. by midnight. Four people asked for extensions. Please make a note of your individual deadlines so that you can make the deadline. Appreciate your contributions.

We had a quiz on the first 12 words.

I handed out the literary essay/quote log assignment.
Typed, double spaced first draft is due Wed. Jan. 25. You must have the essay completed and printed out BEFORE arriving to class in order to get an editing mark. If you cannot meet this deadline, let me know well in advance.

Final copy of the quote log and the essay are due Friday, Jan. 25.

Today we began chose a topic and committed to arriving to class Wed. with our 9 to 12 quotations / passages chosen.

We will work on the responses to the quotations on Wednesday and Friday. The entire quotation log must be finished by next Thurs. Jan. 19th. Bring the quote log to class on the 19th and bring three different coloured highlighters to class in order to turn the log into a brilliant thesis statement.

HMMM.... Writing quotation logs and essays is an incredible creative exercise. When I read your essay, I will see the novel in a new light--through your eyes! The idea here is to come up with an intriguing and thought-provoking answer to either question 1 or 2.

It was interesting to see that half the class chose 1 and the other half chose 2.

What does your choice say about you?

AHHHH!! Loving the English 10As!

AP Lit

Welcome back. Congratulations on your excellent English 12 exam results. For more practice on the multiple choice questions visit the BC provinical exam site.

This weekend, three groups will finish preparing their responses to Act 2 questions. We look forward to your presentations Monday.

Homework: Read Act 2. Make sure that you have a sense of the extent of the tragedy. What is revealed about Willy? What is his plight? How does he overcome it? How do you make sense of his tragic death? Why can't he surmount the American dream (in the way Biff has) in order to live the life he truly craves?

Your answers to these questions can (ideally) create more questions. Beware the pat response. Beware fixing Willy into a slot. The best thing to do with literature is to notice--notice syntax, shifts in mood, character changes, language, juxtapositions, paradoxes, character foils, symbols, where you are drawn in, similarities to other characters in great books or plays you have read.

Bring any questions, curiosities, discoveries to class on Monday so that you feel ready for the test on Wednesday.

After this unit, we'll do poetry and Portrait of the Artist. You'll have time to do close readings of several of Joyce's passages as well as have opportunities to share your findings in small groups.
We will also be practicing some more of the multiple choice sections for the AP exam.

Lovely to see you.
Sincerely,
Ms. Stenson
I mean, thanks, eh!!!

Writing 12

Boarders meet in the parking lot by the infirmary at 4:30 on Monday. We'll drive to Eclectic Gallery: 2170 Oak Bay Ave. All other students please be at the gallery by 4:50. Plan to stay for at least an hour. Bring parents, friends, family.

In lieu of the time you are giving to this event, Tuesday's period 5 class will be cancelled. Use the time to work on your manuscript or on choosing and revising the two poems for our first contest.

Bring two hard copies of poems to be handed in for a final edit to class on Thursday, Jan. 12. I'll edit them and return them to you the next day. We'll meet in the Science Building computer lab Friday morning period 1 to edit and then email these poems to the National Poetry Contest. If you feel you would like more time to edit, submit these two poems to me earlier in the week and I'll get them back to you quickly. You can visit http://www.youngpoets.ca/ to read previous junior and senior winners. This contest is one of the most prestigious ones in the country. Good luck. You deserve to win!!

English 10 A

Wonderful to see your bright faces again! Especially Paloma's version of "assuaged". That is a picture I'll never forget. I'm laughing as I write this. Way to go Paloma!

Using gestures is a terrific way to help the brain recognize words. We've been creating pictures, using the words in context, remembering the part of speech, and now adding a gesture. Find which way works best for you. Use the words in other course work, too. Thanks for that tip, Ashley.

Be sure that your Shelfari is up to date. You can add all the books you read over Xmas to your shelf. I read 7 books over the holidays so I'm feeling pretty excited about reading again.

Homework: Make sure that your novel is filled with the post-its you'll need to create a clear quotation log and literary essay. We'll be working on that next week.

Study the vocabulary and be prepared for a quiz on Monday. Please bring your blue folders to class on Monday.
Have a great weekend.

Lit 12

Welcome Back!! You look rested and ready to have a great second term!

I appreciated your willingness to get right down to work today.

Sadly our projector wasn't working so I couldn't show you the Milton put to music video I was hoping. To get inspired visit this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X23fCUov8S8

For the four students absent today we read it aloud again so I suggest you do that first and then re-read your notes. Next, go through your writing files and determine which aspect of literary paragraph writing you really want to master this month: effective thesis statements, scintillating vocabulary usage, clearly explained quotations, how to cite epic poems, how to incorporate quotations more smoothly, engagement of the reader, going beyond the obvious, insight, etc. We worked in groups to create what/sowhat charts before creating terrific thesis statements to answer one of the questions below.

PARAGRAPHS: (DOUBLE SPACED) DUE MONDAY JAN. 9. If you need an extension, you must let me know in advance. Do not arrive on the day an assignment is due and ask for an extension. Deadlines must be met; however, deadlines need to fit our schedules, too. Thank you. IF YOU ARE ABSENT TODAY, EMAIL ME IF YOU CANNOT MEET MONDAY'S DEADLINE.

In a 350 to 500 word formal, literary paragraph, ANSWER ONE OF THE QUESTIONS BELOW. CREATE A WHAT/SO WHAT CHART IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH THE BEST EVIDENCE AND TO CREATE KEY INFERENCES TO INFORM YOUR THESIS.

1. Examine how Milton effectvely draws out our sympathy and interest in Satan to make us aware that we share Adam and Eve's vulnerability to him.

OR

2. Milton's purpose in Paradise Lost, is to justify the ways of God to man. Discuss what is revealed about God in this section.

Bonus 10%: Use Milton's vocabulary in your paragraph: Leviathan, perdition, oracle, vanquish, ethereal, transgress, deluge, deify, extort, dubious, wrath, ignominy, providence, apostate, guile, obdurate. Plus, any other words not on our vocabulary list that are in the poem. You do not have to use them all. Use them accurately to create an intense persuasive tone.

Have a great weekend.
Remember to write the aspect of literary writing you are working on as your title.