Friday, June 10, 2011

Starring 4th Period

Check out our video.  This is a one minute video I produced with the help of my students to apply for the 2011 Google Teacher Academy. It's posted here because students wanted to be able to see it easily.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

The Paperless Final

Good morning,
   As you know your final is digital. You may use any online resource you wish, but the thoughts and ideas you express in your writing must be your own.

  1. Create a new presentation in Google Docs.
  2. Answer each question on  a separate slide in your presentation.
  3. Number your slides to match the question numbers.
  4. You may ask for help with the technology but not the content.
  5. Share your presentation with me.

You must follow these directions exactly. ANY missing pieces will lower your grade.
Hint: Use F11 to get more work space on your screen.
I’m deliberately NOT giving you any helpful links. You need to be able to find these things for yourself.

#1 Slide: Title, name, date, period. The title is up to you, be creative

#2 Slide: Explain the difference between Assumptions and Beliefs. Use a quote from the Journals of Lewis and Clark and explain why it is an assumption or belief.

#3 Slide: Insert an image of Chief Red Jacket. Include the URL for the image you insert. Explain who he was. Summarize briefly what he told the missionaries in his Lecture to a Missionary speech.

#4 Slide: Nature has been an important theme in our study of American Lit.  Find an image that represents nature. Write a short poem (can be bad) about the image that includes two forms of figurative language. Highlight the figurative language.

#5 Slide: Use a two column slide. In one column list the important authors of the Harlem Renaissance. In the second column list the important musicians.

#6 Slide: Insert a map to show how the Great Migration affected African American populations.

#7 Slide: Review A Flapper’s Appeal to Parents. Use a two column slide again. List three things parents complain about on one side and three things she suggests to parents on the other.

#8 Slide: Write a thesis statement for the beginning of an essay about your opinion on prohibition. List three points you would use in your essay.

#9 Slide:  Paste this analogy on to your slide and explain the relationships between the words.  Doctor:Hospital:: Professor: College  make sure you thoroughly explain how the analogy works.

#10 Slide: Write your own analogy and explain how it works.

#11 Slide: Describe a moment in The Great Gatsby that was memorable to you. Explain why it was memorable. Include a quote from that moment. (Extra point if the moment involves dramatic irony and you explain how.) You can also include an image IF YOU HAVE TIME.

#12 Slide: Write three IMPORTANT questions about The Great Gatsby.

#13 Slide: Select your favorite quote from everything we read this year. You can go back to first semester if you want to. Include the quote and make a PERFECT citation for the quote. Hint: Use Citation Machine.

#14 Slide: Create a slide about your favorite INDEPENDENT reading book this year. Something you chose to read on your own. Find an image and include your review of the book. If you already reviewed the book in goodreads you can paste that review here. If you write a new review here then paste it into goodreads.

#15 What would you write in my yearbook?


This is an example of the slides you should have. Think of it as an outline.




Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Last day of class before finals :(

Good morning,

Hard to believe this is out last day of real classes before finals tomorrow. Please remember that you final for American Lit is TOMORROW. Yes, the finals schedule is out of order.

Today, please open your English Journal and fill in this statement:
I have earned a ____ on my English Journal because........
Hint: Use the Scoring Guide! (Yes, you can copy and paste in the statement.)

Under that ^^ please answer these questions honestly and seriously.
 What have you learned as a result of being in this class? Write a full paragraph (or more) for each item.
1. About literature-tip: write about something we read that you really enjoyed.
2. About writing- Think about what you may have learned from being in a writing group.
3. About technology- That should be easy.
4. About school- What will you do differently next year?
5. About yourself- What have you learned about yourself this year?
6. About life- What have you learned about life in general this year?
You can still submit questions for the final.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4152/5026716018_80b8b4af2e.jpg

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Finals are coming

Your final for American Literature is Thursday. The final will be comprehensive and cover the entire second semester of material.

Your job today is to review the material we have covered this semester using the blog archive and your own internet search skills.

  1. Work with your writing group
  2. Create a new document (4 gp# Study Guide)
  3. Share it with me and each other (hint: use group shared folder)
  4. You decide who needs to look at what and how to organize your study guide.
  5. Include example questions for important material.
  6. You get a group grade for this. Make it comprehensive.
  7. If you think there is not enough information about a topic on the blog you should add more from other sources.
  8. The way it looks and reads matters, use headings, links, color even images to enhance your guide.
  9. All study guides will be posted for all of you to review from. (This is public work.)
 And while you are working on your study guide you will probably think of some pretty good exam questions. You can suggest exam questions here. Suggest an Exam Question

Richard Cory

Good morning,

Period 3: There is a poem shared with you in your writing group folder. It's called Richard Corey.
Find it and read it.  Then have a chat discussion about the poem with your group (without talking).


Monday, June 6, 2011

Completion and Controversy

Good morning,

Lots going on this week before finals. Many of you still have a lot of work to do. Allow me to suggest a prioritized list for you.
  1. Make sure your Gatsby Project is completed. Check it in PaperRater.
  2. Make sure your English journal is great.
  3. Make sure your group's study guide for the final is excellent.
  4. What do you think about teachers using Facebook? Post a reply here. (A college student doing some research on this would really appreciate your thoughts.)
  5. An article published over the weekend in the Wall Street Journal provoked a lot of controversy about teen reading and young adult literature. #YASaves became a top trending topic on twitter when many people responded with stories of how YA Lit saved them in some way. Here is just one response, there were many. This is about some adults wanting to censor what teens read and others saying teens should make their own reading decisions. What do you think? Read the articles and then comment on this post to reply.
  6. Add some books to your "to read" shelf on Goodreads.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3234/2656043491_86083bceff.jpg

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Finals are Approaching

Your final for American Literature is one week from today. The final will be comprehensive and cover the entire second semester of material. 

Your job today is to review the material we have covered this semester using the blog archive and your own internet search skills.

  1. Work with your writing group
  2. Create a new document (3 gp# Study Guide)
  3. Share it with me and each other (hint: use group shared folder)
  4. You decide who needs to look at what and how to organize your study guide.
  5. Include example questions for important material.
  6. You get a group grade for this. Make it comprehensive.
  7. If you think there is not enough information about a topic on the blog you should add more from other sources.
  8. The way it looks and reads matters, use headings, links, color even images to enhance your guide.
  9. All study guides will be posted for all of you to review from. (This is public work.)
 And while you are working on your study guide you will probably think of some pretty good exam questions. You can suggest exam questions here. Suggest an Exam Question

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Great Minds Think Alike

Good morning,
   Yesterday you met with your writing groups to share your papers and get feedback. Several of you asked if you could also meet with people who chose the same project option that you did. Today is the day for that.

Because some options are being done by many people and some are being done by just a few, our grouping will be flexible. I will help you find people working on the same option you are.

With your group do the following:

It is also time to consider what questions you might see on your final exam. You can once again suggest questions you think should be on the test through this form. Suggest a Question for the Final!

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjelNSLTUDDFPgPpy5OJdbzg_o2Theba0M-gDszLsrTYKrkeLKtxc5YYsLj_02mzzhKKShYBoOR7HYUpYZw7RAKwC52vydbfuLBRKi_EqlvpYiZwMkz_j0MwfgalXTCrWAWtQ8Tdo2lG646/s1600/the_great_gatsby.gif