5/24/16

• LAST DAY OF CLASS!

• Semester Exam

• MULTIMEDIA BONUS!
• The Simpsons do Hamlet (sign into your school Google account)
• ThugNotes for Hamlet

• ALERT: How to save all of your documents from WISD Google account before they delete it this summer.

• Upcoming Events:

5/20/16

• 2nd Semester Exam Study Guide
• Exam is Tues. 5/24/16
• Re-watch Shakespeare Life & Works videos on YouTube or Google Docs.

• Hamlet
• In-class notes on Act V, scene 2
• If you want to watch the end of the Hamlet video, you can go here.

• MULTIMEDIA BONUS!
• The Simpsons do Hamlet (sign into your school Google account)
• ThugNotes for Hamlet

• ALERT: How to save all of your documents from WISD Google account before they delete it this summer.

• Upcoming Events:

5/18/16

• 2nd Semester Exam Study Guide
• 2A: Fri 5/20/16 or Tues. 5/24/16
• 4A: Tues. 5/24/16
• Re-watch Shakespeare Life & Works videos on YouTube or Google Docs.

• ALERT: How to save all of your documents from WISD Google account before they delete it this summer.

• Hamlet
• 2A: We finished the play by discussing the unresolved issues from Act IV, summarizing Act V, 1 and acting out Act V, scene 2. Prepare for your exam by reviewing your notes, the study guide, and watching the rest of the Hamlet video.

• 4A: We discussed the unresolved issues from Act IV, summarized Act V, scene 1 and discussed the way Ophelia is presented in art. For Friday, read the final scene of the play.

• MULTIMEDIA BONUS!
• The Simpsons do Hamlet (sign into your school Google account)
• ThugNotes for Hamlet

• Upcoming Events

5/16/17

• 2nd Semester Exam Study Guide
• 2A: Fri 5/20/16 or Tues. 5/24/16
• 4A: Tues. 5/24/16

• Hamlet
• QUIZ: Act IV, scenes 1-4. Make up ASAP if you were absent. This is the last grade of the six weeks.
• Discussion / notes for Act IV, scenes 1-7
• HW: Read as much of Act V as you can. I have hard copies available if you come by.

• Upcoming Events

5/12/16

Nominate an East teacher for "Senior Honorary Teacher 2016" HERE. Deadline is Wed. 5/18/16.

• Semester Exams will be on the following dates:
• 2A - Fri. 5/20/16 (or Tues. 5/24-- your choice)
• 4A- Tues. 5/24/16

• Hamlet: 
• Notes / discussion on Act III, scenes 3-4, especially turning point elements.
• Viewing of film version of Acts II & III. You can watch it here (35:53 - 1:26:13).
• HW for Mon. 5/16/16.: 
• Watch the film version of Acts II & III (35:53 - 1:26:13).
• Read and annotate Act 4, scenes 1-4. There will most likely be a quiz.
• Here is the study guide for Act IV.

• Scholarships: If you earned a scholarship-- congratulations! Now it's time to thank your benefactor(s). It is rude to take the money and run, so write thoughtful notes. The College & Career Center has thank you notes and the addresses. Here are some sites to help you:
• U.S. News and World Reports How-To Write a Scholarship Thank You
• Fresno State Scholarship Office
• collegescholarships.org
• Download some templates here

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

5/10/16

HONOR GRADS: You have until Thurs. 5/12/16 to complete your information for the Honor Banquet Booklet. Here is the link. 

• Hamlet: 
• In-class assignment: Review of III, 1-2. If you were absent, complete the 5 statements, then explain how each can be proven / disproven using the text of III, 1-2. Turn in for a grade.
• HW for Thurs. 5/12/16.: 
• Read and annotate Act III, scene 3 & 4 (to the end of Act III)
• Here is the study guide for Act III.

• Scholarships: If you earned a scholarship-- congratulations! Now it's time to thank your benefactor(s). It is rude to take the money and run, so write thoughtful notes. The College & Career Center has thank you notes and the addresses. Here are some sites to help you:
• U.S. News and World Reports How-To Write a Scholarship Thank You
• Fresno State Scholarship Office
• collegescholarships.org
• Download some templates here

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

5/6/16

HONOR GRADS: You have until Thurs. 5/12/16 to complete your information for the Honor Banquet Booklet. Here is the link. 

• Hamlet: 
• In-class writing assignment. If you were absent, see me for a time to make this up ASAP.
• HW for Tues. 5/10/16.: 
• Read and annotate Act III, scene 2. This includes the "play within a play" scene.
• Here is the study guide for Act III.

• Scholarships: If you earned a scholarship-- congratulations! Now it's time to thank your benefactor(s). It is rude to take the money and run, so write thoughtful notes. The College & Career Center has thank you notes and the addresses. Here are some sites to help you:
• U.S. News and World Reports How-To Write a Scholarship Thank You
• Fresno State Scholarship Office
• collegescholarships.org
• Download some templates here

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

5/4/16

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

• Hamlet: 
• HW for Fri.: 
• Make sure your notes are complete for Act II, scene 2. We will write in class.
• Read and annotate Act III, scene 1. This includes the "To be or not to be" soliloquy.You can read it online or come by and get a copy of the act from me.
• Here is the study guide for Act III.

5/2/16

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

• Hamlet: 
• Q&A on the end of Act II.
• HW for Fri.: 
• Make sure your notes are complete for Act II, scene 2. We will write in class.
• Read and annotate Act III, scene 1. This includes the "To be or not to be" soliloquy.You can read it online or come by and get a copy of the act from me.
• Here is the study guide for Act III.

• AP Exam STUDY HUBS on available on Google Classroom
• Literature review videos using Thug Notes
• Literary terms online flashcard sets

• AP Free Response
• Keep studying your literature review chart.
• Here are the past questions from the AP Open Free Response section we have been practicing.

• AP Multiple Choice
• The grade from the practice test has been entered for the 6th six weeks. If you want to improve your score, you can come for 10-minute, 1-passage practices after school over the next few weeks before the exam. For each practice where you score >50%, I will add 10 points to the original test score in the grade book. You can practice up to 100% for the grade book and beyond that for extra practice if you like. Offer expires on May 3.
• Practice time starts at 4:00 pm on the following dates:
•  5/2/16-  Monday- Prose
•  5/3/16-  Tuesday- Poetry
• Answers will be on Google Classroom the following day.

4/28/16

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

• Teacher Appreciation Week is next week. If you want to participate in the WEHS tradition of making cards to be distributed to your teachers, turn them in by Friday morning 4/29/16. You can pick up cards in my classroom or download and print here.

• Hamlet: Assignment for II, 2- Finish for homework. Be prepared to write on the ideas from this sheet next class period. Here are some good sources for information on the Pyrrhus (Neoptolemus) / Hecuba / Priam allusion:
• Overview
• Page one of this document
• My one page overview (that I forgot was on the web but came up on a Google search :o)

• AP Exam STUDY HUBS on available on Google Classroom
• Literature review videos using Thug Notes
• Literary terms online flashcard sets

• AP Free Response
• I took a grade in class for completion of this chart. 
• We had a discussion about how various works from the chart could answer past questions from the AP Open Free Response section.

• AP Multiple Choice
• The grade from the practice test has been entered for the 6th six weeks. If you want to improve your score, you can come for 10-minute, 1-passage practices after school over the next few weeks before the exam. For each practice where you score >50%, I will add 10 points to the original test score in the grade book. You can practice up to 100% for the grade book and beyond that for extra practice if you like. Offer expires on May 3.
• Practice time starts at 4:00 pm on the following dates:
• 4/28/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/29/16- Friday- Poetry
•  5/2/16-  Monday- Prose
•  5/3/16-  Tuesday- Poetry
• Answers will be on Google Classroom the following day.

4/26/16

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

• Teacher Appreciation Week is next week. If you want to participate in the WEHS tradition of making cards to be distributed to your teachers, turn them in by Friday morning. You can pick up cards in my classroom or download and print here.

• Hamlet
• Discussion, II, 2, pgs. 36-42
• HW due Thurs. 4/28/16: Read and annotate the rest of Act II. Use the Act II study guide. 

• AP Exam STUDY HUBS on available on Google Classroom
• Literature review videos using Thug Notes
• Literary terms online flashcard sets

• AP Free Response
• Finish working on the literature review using this chart. Due Thurs. 4/28/16: Complete 8 sections (literary works) of the chart.
• We had a discussion about how various works from the chart could answer past questions from the AP Open Free Response section.

• AP Multiple Choice
• The grade from the practice test has been entered for the 6th six weeks. If you want to improve your score, you can come for 10-minute, 1-passage practices after school over the next few weeks before the exam. For each practice where you score >50%, I will add 10 points to the original test score in the grade book. You can practice up to 100% for the grade book and beyond that for extra practice if you like. Offer expires on May 3.
• Practice time starts at 4:00 pm on the following dates:
• 4/26/16- Tuesday- Prose
• 4/27/16- Wednesday- Poetry
• 4/28/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/29/16- Friday- Poetry
•  5/2/16-  Monday- Prose
•  5/3/16-  Tuesday- Poetry
• Answers will be on Google Classroom the following day.

4/22/16

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

• Hamlet
• Assignment for II, 1
• HW due Tues. 4/26/16: Read and annotate Act II, scene 2, pgs. 36-42. Use the Act II study guide. Focus on proving / disproving the following theories:
• A significant amount of time has passed since Act I.
• Polonius is a sycophant.
• Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are true friends to Hamlet.

• AP Exam STUDY HUBS on available on Google Classroom
• Literature review videos using Thug Notes
• Literary terms online flashcard sets

• AP Free Response
• Use the list of books of literary merit you have read that we created on Wednesday to start reviewing the details of them on this chart. It was an assignment to complete three sections (works) in class today and send me a pic of them for a grade. Due Tues. 4/26/16: Complete 8 sections (literary works) of the chart.

• AP Multiple Choice
• The grade from the practice test has been entered for the 6th six weeks. If you want to improve your score, you can come for 10-minute, 1-passage practices after school over the next few weeks before the exam. For each practice where you score >50%, I will add 10 points to the original test score in the grade book. You can practice up to 100% for the grade book and beyond that for extra practice if you like. Offer expires on May 3.
• Practice time starts at 4:00 pm on the following dates:
• 4/22/16- Friday- NO PRACTICE- I will be out of town for UIL
• 4/25/16- Monday- Poetry
• 4/26/16- Tuesday- Prose
• 4/27/16- Wednesday- Poetry
• 4/28/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/29/16- Friday- Poetry
•  5/2/16-  Monday- Prose
•  5/3/16-  Tuesday- Poetry
• Answers will be on Google Classroom the following day.

4/20/16

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

• Hamlet
• Discussion of I, 4-5. If you were absent, see a friend for the notes.
• We watched a video of the first act of the play.
• HW due Fri. 4/22/16: Read and annotate Act II, scene 1. If you were absent, you can pick up a copy of the Act in class or read it online here until you come to class. Use the Act II study guide.

• AP Exam STUDY HUBS on available on Google Classroom
• Literature review using Thug Notes
• Literary terms online flashcard sets

• AP Free Response
• We discussed the three types of essay questions (log in to Google to view) you will encounter on the AP exam and made a list of all major literary works (novels, plays, epic poems) studied throughout high school that could help you on the third (open) question. Bring this list with you on Friday.
• If you want to practice writing the essays, you can work on any of the samples and I'll give you some feedback. (Log in to your school Google account to view the sample topics.)

• AP Multiple Choice
• The grade from the practice test has been entered for the 6th six weeks. If you want to improve your score, you can come for 10-minute, 1-passage practices after school over the next few weeks before the exam. For each practice where you score >50%, I will add 10 points to the original test score in the grade book. You can practice up to 100% for the grade book and beyond that for extra practice if you like. Offer expires on May 3.
• Practice time starts at 4:00 pm on the following dates:
• 4/21/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/22/16- Friday- NO PRACTICE- I will be out of town for UIL
• 4/25/16- Monday- Poetry
• 4/26/16- Tuesday- Prose
• 4/27/16- Wednesday- Poetry
• 4/28/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/29/16- Friday- Poetry
•  5/2/16-  Monday- Prose
•  5/3/16-  Tuesday- Poetry
• Answers will be on Google Classroom the following day.

4/15/16

Here's a link to the growing slideshow of pics from the making of Senior Wall 2016. Feel free to download images you want for yourself :)

• Hamlet
• QUIZ: I, 3. Make up ASAP if you were absent
• Discussion of I, 3. If you were absent, see a friend for the notes.
• HW due Wed. 4/20/16: Read and annotate I, 4-5. Use the study guide.

• AP Multiple Choice
• The grade from the practice test will be the first one entered for the 6th six weeks. If you want to improve your score, you can come for 10-minute, 1-passage practices after school over the next few weeks before the exam. For each practice where you score >50%, I will add 10 points to the original test score in the grade book. You can practice up to 100% for the grade book and beyond that for extra practice if you like. Offer expires on May 3.
• Practice time starts at 4:00 pm on the following dates:
• 4/15/16- Friday- Prose
• 4/18/16- Monday- NO SCHOOL :) NO PRACTICE
• 4/19/16- Tuesday- NO PRACTICE- I have an appointment
• 4/20/16- Wednesday- Poetry (I will not be able to stay for debriefing afterwards)
• 4/21/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/22/16- Friday- NO PRACTICE- I will be out of town for UIL
• 4/25/16- Monday- Poetry
• 4/26/16- Tuesday- Prose
• 4/27/16- Wednesday- Poetry
• 4/28/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/29/16- Friday- Poetry
•  5/2/16-  Monday- Prose
•  5/3/16-  Tuesday- Poetry
• Answers will be on Google Classroom the following day.

4/13/16

• Hamlet
• Be sure you have finished watching all of the Shakespeare background videos. If you have trouble watching the videos, email me and I'll send you a link to a Google folder with the files.
• Discussion of I, 2, including Hamlet's first soliloquy. If you were absent, see a friend for the notes.
• HW due Fri. 4/15/16: Read and annotate I, 3. Use the study guide.

• AP Multiple Choice
• Class activity for answers to the practice test we took. If you were absent, see me for your test so you can check your overall score.
• We went over the answers to the full-length practice test we did last week. The grade from this will be the first one entered for the 6th six weeks. If you want to improve your score, you can come for 10-minute, 1-passage practices after school over the next few weeks before the exam. For each practice where you score >50%, I will add 10 points to the original test score in the grade book. You can practice up to 100% for the grade book and beyond that for extra practice if you like. Offer expires on May 3.
• Practice time starts at 4:00 pm on the following dates:
• 4/14/16- Thursday- Poetry
• 4/15/16- Friday- Prose
• 4/18/16- Monday- NO SCHOOL :) NO PRACTICE
• 4/19/16- Tuesday- NO PRACTICE- I have an appointment
• 4/20/16- Wednesday- Poetry
• 4/21/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/22/16- Friday- NO PRACTICE- I will be out of town for UIL
• 4/25/16- Monday- Poetry
• 4/26/16- Tuesday- Prose
• 4/27/16- Wednesday- Poetry
• 4/28/16- Thursday- Prose
• 4/29/16- Friday- Poetry
•  5/2/16-  Monday- Prose
•  5/3/16-  Tuesday- Poetry

4/11/16

• Hamlet
• Discussion of I, 1
• Study Guide for Act I passed out
• Read & made notes on the first half of I, 2 in class
• HW due Wed. 4/13/16:
• Finish watching Shakespeare background videos. If you are having trouble with the YouTube playlist, email me for access to the Google Drive folder with all of the videos.
• Finish reading / annotating I, 2 (to pg. 17)
• Analyze Hamlet's first soliloquy. Mark it for the following:
•  paraphrase of sections
•  comparisons
• striking phrases and images
• progression / sequence of thoughts,
• how Hamlet’s tone differs from his tone earlier in the scene
• attitude / state of mind
• allusions 

4/7/16

• Career Research Paper: Paper is due TODAY Thurs. 4/7/16 by 11:59 pm

• Hamlet
• Submit a list of the tasks that each member of your Shakespeare video group was responsible for. If you have an issue about the division of labor, this is your opportunity to bring it to my attention.

• In class: Reading of the beginning of Act I, scene 1 of Hamlet (get your permanent copy from me, but you can read the scene here). Finish the scene (through pg. 7) for homework due Mon. 4/11/16. Make notes on vocab. and summarize main ideas of what is said. 

• HW due Wed. 4/13/16: Continue watching and making notes on the background videos for our study of William Shakespeare's Hamlet. These are the ones you made last week. You might have to log in to your school Google account to view the videos. You should watch the playlist in order.

4/5/16

• Canterbury Tales tests returned and discussed

• AP Exam: We took a 1-hour practice multiple choice test for a grade. If you were absent, see me to make this up. We will use the results from this test to review for the test in May.

• Career Research Paper: Discussion Q&A on using sources in the research paper
• Paper is due Thurs. 4/7/16
• Here is a sample paper for you to reference in your drafting process.
• Here is the research paper assignment (see examples of in-text and works cited citations in the assignment packet)
• How to properly cite sources
• How to avoid plagiarism (intentional or unintentional)
• How to evaluate a website for reliability

• Hamlet
• HW: Begin watching and making notes on the background videos for our study of William Shakespeare's Hamlet. These are the ones you made last week. You might have to log in to your school Google account to view the videos. You should watch the playlist in order.

4/1/16

• Career Research Paper: Discussion Q&A on using sources in the research paper
• Paper is due Thurs. 4/7/16
• Here is a sample paper for you to reference in your drafting process.
• Here is the research paper assignment (see examples of in-text and works cited citations in the assignment packet)
• How to properly cite sources
• How to avoid plagiarism (intentional or unintentional)
• How to evaluate a website for reliability

• Introduction to Shakespeare and Hamlet
• We continued work on the Group video assignment and turned in the final version via Google Drive.
• How to cite an image from the Internet
• How to cite clip art, graphs, charts
• How to cite a YouTube video

3/30/16

• Career Research Paper: Discussion Q&A on using sources in the research paper
• Paper is due Thurs. 4/7/16
• Here is a sample paper for you to reference in your drafting process.
• Here is the research paper assignment (see examples of in-text and works cited citations in the assignment packet)
• How to properly cite sources
• How to avoid plagiarism (intentional or unintentional)
• How to evaluate a website for reliability

• Introduction to Shakespeare and Hamlet
• Group video assignment due Fri. 4/1/16
• How to cite an image from the Internet
• How to cite clip art, graphs, charts
• How to cite a YouTube video

3/28/16

• TEST: The Canterbury Tales
• HW: Continue working on draft of research paper. Discussion / Q&A on Wednesday will be on using sources.
• STAAR testing will take place on Tues. and Thurs. this week. Here is the modified bell schedule:

New Scholarships

3/23/16

• Canterbury Tales
• EXAM will be Mon. 3/28/16. Here is the study guide.
• Review activities:
• Discussion / Q&A on Chaucer's retraction and genres of the tales
• Overview (summaries) of the tales and the accepted order of them [NOTE that you will not be tested on the tales we did not read for class.]
• In-class assignment: Read and annotate the article, "Literary Devices and Themes" by Clarice Swisher.

• Research project
 
• Assignment for Stage 3 of project: Research Paper
• Discussion on how to organize to write the research paper.
• Outlining
• Write in 3rd person only
• 2 main sections
• Q&A
• Here is a sample paper for this assignment.
• How to properly cite sources
• How to avoid plagiarism (intentional or unintentional)
• How to evaluate a website for reliability

• Check out this great opportunity! A former student who works in Washington D.C. sent it to me:

3/21/16

• Canterbury Tales
• EXAM will be Mon. 3/28/16. Here is the study guide.
• Review activities:
• Genres in The Canterbury Tales
• Chaucer's Retraction

• Career Research Project
• Gradesheets for document folders returned and discussed. If you earned less than 75% and plan to revise and show me your improvements, the deadline is after school Thurs. 3/24/16.
• Assignment for Stage 3 of project: Research Paper. This was reviewed in detail. Be sure to read the handout carefully. Final draft due Thurs. 4/7/16.
• How to properly cite sources
• How to avoid plagiarism (intentional or unintentional)
• How to evaluate a website for reliability

3/10/16

• The Canterbury Tales- The Nun's Priest
• Discussion / viewing of film version of the Nun's Priest's Tale (00:00 to 7:52)
• Annotation assignment: Nun's Priest's Tale

• Career Research Project- Stage 2: Gathering Secondary Sources (due Fri. 3/11/16)
• Search resources:
• Department of Labor & Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook
• Wage Estimates- Texas
• Massive Online Open Course Sites (find syllabi and assignments)
• UTx (UTexas system MOOCs)
• Yale Open Courses (search under "Courses")
• MIT Open Courseware
• Harvard Open Learning
• Citation resources:
• KnightCite
• Citation Machine

3/8/16

• The Canterbury Tales- The Wife of Bath
• 4A- QUIZ (Make up if you were absent.)
• Wife of Bath Prologue diagram turned in
• Discussion / viewing of film version of the Wife of Bath's Tale
• Assignment: Wife of Bath annotation
• HW due Thurs. 3/10/16- Read and annotate the Nun's Priest's Tale

Career Research Project- Stage 2: Gathering Secondary Sources (due Fri. 3/11/16)

• Search resources:
• Department of Labor & Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook
• Wage Estimates- Texas
• Massive Online Open Course Sites (find syllabi and assignments)
• UTx (UTexas system MOOCs)
• Yale Open Courses (search under "Courses")
• MIT Open Courseware
• Harvard Open Learning
• Citation resources:
• KnightCite
• Citation Machine

3/4/16

• Canterbury Tales
• 2A- QUIZ on Wife of Bath prologue
• ALL- Assignment for Wife of Bath characterization
• HW due Tues. 3/8/16- Read and annotate the Wife of Bath's tale

• Career Research Project
• Stage 2: Gathering Secondary Sources (due Fri. 3/11/16)
• Search resources:
• Department of Labor & Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook
• Wage Estimates- Texas
• Massive Online Open Course Sites (find syllabi and assignments)
• UTx (UTexas system MOOCs)
• Yale Open Courses (search under "Courses")
• MIT Open Courseware
• Harvard Open Learning
• Citation resources:
• KnightCite
• Citation Machine

3/2/16

• The Canterbury Tales
• Pardoner's Tale annotations (your original notes on vocab. / allusions, etc. + the homework assignment notes) were turned in.
• Discussion of the Pardoner's Tale / Viewing of film version
• HW due Fri. 3/4/16: Read the Wife of Bath's PROLOGUE (p. 166 - 183) and annotate for vocab. / allusions, reactions, etc. Also, make notes on the Wife of Bath's personality traits:
• The Wife of Bath is one of the most iconic characters in English literature. Some scholars credit Chaucer for creating in her the first literary feminist. The prologue to the Wife’s tale (p. 166-183) is longer than the tale itself and reveals much about her perspective on gender roles, her point of view, and the events of her life. Read and mark it to reveal the complex character traits revealed in her words. Try to identify as many personality traits as possible and mark them next to the evidence of each trait. Come to class with ideas about who the Wife is and reasons why Chaucer might have drawn her so vividly.

• Career Research Project
• Stage 2: Gathering Secondary Sources (due Fri. 3/11/16)
• Search resources:
• Department of Labor & Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook
• Wage Estimates- Texas
• Massive Online Open Course Sites (find syllabi and assignments)
• UTx (UTexas system MOOCs)
• Yale Open Courses (search under "Courses")
• MIT Open Courseware
• Harvard Open Learning
• Citation resources:
• KnightCite
• Citation Machine

2/29/16

• Poem of the Week: In-class discussion of "February 29" by Jane Hershfield

• The Canterbury Tales
• Concluded group presentations on comedic ladder. If you were absent, submit a slideshow with your homework examples of the 4 levels of comedy. Make sure you include a written description of how each example fits the level.
• In-class assignment: Text notations on the Pardoner's Tale. Complete on your copy of the text for homework. In addition, be prepared to discuss the symbolic meaning of the image at the top of the page.

• Career Research Project
• Stage 2: Gathering Secondary Sources (due 3/11/16)
• Search resources:
• Department of Labor & Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook
• Wage Estimates- Texas
• Massive Online Open Course Sites (find syllabi and assignments)
• UTx (UTexas system MOOCs)
• Yale Open Courses (search under "Courses")
• MIT Open Courseware
• Harvard Open Learning
• Citation resources:
• KnightCite
• Citation Machine

2/25/16

• Canterbury Tales
• Group assignment: presentation on Comedic Ladder (to finish on Monday). If you were absent, prepare and send me a PowerPoint / Google Slides presentation of your four examples of the comedic later levels. Include explanation about how each example fits the level.
• HW due Monday 2/29/16: Read and annotate the Pardoner's Tale. Make sure you are always reading as if there will be a quiz.

• Career Research Project
• Stage 2: Gathering Secondary Sources (due 3/11/16)
• Search resources:
• Department of Labor & Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook
• Wage Estimates- Texas
• Massive Online Open Course Sites (find syllabi and assignments)
• UTx (UTexas system MOOCs)
• Yale Open Courses (search under "Courses")
• MIT Open Courseware
• Harvard Open Learning
• Citation resources:
• KnightCite
• Citation Machine

2/23/16

• Career Research Project
• Stage 2: Gathering Secondary Sources (due 3/11/16)
• Search resources:
• Department of Labor & Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook
• Wage Estimates- Texas
• Massive Online Open Course Sites (find syllabi and assignments)
• UTx (UTexas system MOOCs)
• Yale Open Courses (search under "Courses")
• MIT Open Courseware
• Harvard Open Learning
• Citation resources:
• KnightCite
• Citation Machine

• The Canterbury Tales
• Discussion of the Reeve's Tale
• Viewing of Miller and Reeve's Tales
• Notes on the Comedic Ladder
• HW due Thurs. 2/25/16: Find an example of each of the 4 levels of the comedic ladder and have your examples available to you for class on Thurs. (Google docs, your phone, etc.)

2/19/16

• The Canterbury Tales
• In-class assignment: Miller's Tale as response to the Knight's Tale. This was turned in.
• HW due Tues. 2/23/16: Read and annotate the Reeve's Tale. Focus on how the Reeve attempts to retaliate against the Miller for his tale.

• Haiku Contest!
• Enter this haiku contest this weekend with three original haiku and I'll give you a bonus point on the 4th six weeks. 
• How to write a haiku

2/17/16

• The Canterbury Tales
• Notes on the Greek pantheon (background for Canterbury Tales)
• Here are some images of some of the stories I told today. Use them to review your notes:
• "Saturn (Cronos) Devouring His Son" by Francisco Goya
• "The Birth of Venus (Aphrodite)" by Sandro Botticelli
• One of the 100-handed giants (hekatonkheires)
• The birth of Athena (out of Zeus' head)
• "The Mutilation of Uranus by Saturn" by Giorgio Vasari and Cristoeano Gherardi
• HW due Fri. 2/19/16: Read and annotate The Miller's Tale

2/15/16

• Canterbury Tales
• QUIZ: Knight's Tale, sections 3&4
• Viewing of video of The Knight's Tale
• Notes & assignment on Knight's Tale parts 3&4
• HW due Wed. 2/17/16: Complete the 8 themes at the bottom of the noteguide to turn in.

• Research Project
• Check your email each day for your mentor's response. Remember that you should continue a dialogue with your mentor. If you have further clarification questions about their response to you, send a follow up email.

2/11/16

• The Canterbury Tales
• 2A- optional written supplement for Canterbury Tales General Prologue test.
• General discussion of notes on the Knight's Tale parts 1&2
• Group discussion & notes on chivalry. An assignment was turned in, so complete it on your own if you were absent.
• HW for Mon. 2/15/16: Read and annotate sections 3 & 4 of The Knight's Tale (Here is a handy Roman / Greek gods chart)

• Research Project
• Check your email each day for your mentor's response. Remember that you should continue a dialogue with your mentor. If you have further clarification questions about their response to you, send a follow up email.

2/15/16

• The Canterbury Tales
• QUIZ: sections 3 & 4 of The Knight's Tale
• Discussion & notes for sections 3 & 4 of The Knight's Tale
• Viewing of film representation of the Knight's Tale
• HW for Wed. 2/17/16: Read and annotate The Miller's Tale. Watch for evidence that the Miller is responding to the Knight's Tale.

• Research Project
• Check your email each day for your mentor's response. Remember that you should continue a dialogue with your mentor. If you have further clarification questions about their response to you, send a follow up email.

2/9/16

• Canterbury Tales
• Optional written supplement for Gen Pro test.
• Class time to work on annotations on Knight's Tale.
• HW for Thurs 2/11/16: 
• Complete Guidesheet for the Knight's Tale Parts I & II (#1-8). Be prepared to discuss your annotations in class.
• Find information on the purpose for medieval chivalry and the rules that governed it. Come to class with facts, ideas, and questions.
• HW for Mon. 2/15/16: Read and annotate sections 3 & 4 of The Knight's Tale

• Research Project
• Check your email each day for your mentor's response. Remember that you should continue a dialogue with your mentor. If you have further clarification questions about their response to you, send a follow up email.
• If your mentor does not email you after this weekend, please let me know.

2/4/16

• Canterbury Tales
• TEST: General Prologue of The Canterbury Tales
• HW for Tues 2/9/16: 
• Complete items 1-3 on the Guidesheet for the Knight's Tale Parts I & II
• Find information on the purpose for medieval chivalry and the rules that governed it. Come to class with facts, ideas, and questions.
• The test scores were not great. You will have the option to complete an additional essay topic on the General Prologue next week in order to supplement your score from today's test. So, continue studying and reviewing the GP. You can start with trying to identify all of the pilgrims in this video: http://youtu.be/vvHvksbUayc.

• Research Project
• Check your email each day for your mentor's response. Remember that you should continue a dialogue with your mentor. If you have further clarification questions about their response to you, send a follow up email.
• If your mentor does not email you after this weekend, please let me know.

2/2/16

• Canterbury Tales
• Completed notes on the General Prologue 
• HW for Thurs. 2/4/16: Study for Canterbury Tales Gen Pro test on Thurs. Here is a study guide for the pilgrims, but there will also be questions about the beginning and end of the Prologue.
• HW for Thurs 2/4/16: Read and annotate parts 1 & 2 of The Knight's Tale for class 

• Research Project
• 2A: You should have sent your email to your mentor. This was due yesterday, 2/1/16. Check your email each day for your mentor's response. Remember that you should continue a dialogue with your mentor. If you have questions about their response to you, send a follow up email.
• 4A: You should have already send me the draft of your mentor email. Check your email for my response. Send your email to your mentor (and copy me on it) by Thurs. 2/4/16.

1/29/16

• "Dead Poets Society" Homework essay turned in. If you were out today, email it to me ASAP.

• The Canterbury Tales- Continued notes on the pilgrim portraits in General Prologue.
• HW due Tues. 2/2/16: Read parts 1 & 2 of The Knight's Tale for class 

• Semester Research Project
• Overview of Project
• Stage 1: Gathering of Primary Sources
• Due Dates:
• 2A
• You should have already sent me the draft of your mentor email.
• HW due Mon. 2/1/16: Send approved introductory email to your mentor.
• 4A
• HW due by Mon. 2/1/16: By this date, share a draft of your introductory email to your mentor with me on Google Docs.
• HW due Thurs. 2/4/16: Send approved introductory email to your mentor.

1/27/16

• "Dead Poets Society"
• Discussion of "She Walks in Beauty" by George Gordon, Lord Byron
• Viewing of final segment of the film. 
• HW due Fri. 1/29/16: Write one page addressing the messages you think the film sends. Focus on the message that impacted you most- poetry, friendship, individuality, carpe diem, family, the student-teacher relationship, etc. Explain how these messages were presented and reinforced in the film.

• The Canterbury Tales- Continued notes on the pilgrim portraits in General Prologue.
• HW due Tues. 2/2/16: Read parts 1 & 2 of The Knight's Tale for class 

• Semester Research Project
• Overview of Project
• Stage 1: Gathering of Primary Sources
• 4A Mentor bios given
• Due Dates:
• 2A
• HW due by Thurs. 1/28/16: By this date, share a draft of your introductory email to your mentor with me on Google Docs.
• HW due Mon. 2/1/16: Send approved introductory email to your mentor.
• 4A
• HW due by Mon. 2/1/16: By this date, share a draft of your introductory email to your mentor with me on Google Docs.
• HW due Thurs. 2/4/16: Send approved introductory email to your mentor.

1/25/16

• "Dead Poets Society"
• Discussion of "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost (p. 6 in DPS poetry collection)
• What are the benefits of taking the “road less traveled”?
• What are the drawbacks?
• What motivates the speaker to take the less traveled road?
• As the poem presents it, is the “road less traveled” better than the other? Support.
• Does the speaker regret his decision or not?
• In what ways is the poem about uncertainty?
• How can we see the concept of carpe diem in the poem?
• Viewing of next segment of the film
• HW due Wed. 1/27/16: Read and analyze "She Walks in Beauty" by George Gordon, Lord Byron (p. 2 in DPS booklet). Focus on what the speaker considers the "ideal woman".

• The Canterbury Tales- Continued notes on the pilgrim portraits in General Prologue
• HW due Tues. 2/2/16: Read parts 1 & 2 of The Knight's Tale for class 

• 2A ONLY: Introduction to Semester Research Project
• Overview of Project
• Stage 1: Gathering of Primary Sources
• Mentor bios given
• HW due by Thurs. 1/28/16: By this date, share a draft of your introductory email to your mentor with me on Google Docs.
• HW due Mon. 2/1/16: Send approved introductory email to your mentor.

1/21/16

• "Dead Poets Society"
• Discussion of "Ballad of William Bloat", "Ulysses" and "from Walden"-- connecting the ideas in the poems to carpe diem and transcendentalism.
• Viewing of next segment of the film
• HW due Mon. 1/25/16: 
• Read and analyze "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost (p. 6 in booklet)  Focus on the extended metaphor and the metaphors that support it.

• Canterbury Tales General Prologue 
• Notes on medieval humours and estates
• Continued notes for the pilgrim portraits

1/19/16

• "Dead Poets Society" film
• Discussion of "O Me! O Life" by Walt Whitman and its connection to the carpe diem theme
• HW due Thurs. 1/21/16:
• Read "The Ballad of William Bloat" by Raymond Calvert (p. 3 of "Dead Poets Society booklet) and excerpt from "Ulysses" by Alfred Lord Tennyson (p. 8-10)
• Analyze and annotate the excerpt from Walden by Henry David Thoreau (p. 10). Connect the poetic idea / concepts in the poem to the other poems, the film, and the concept of "transcendentalism" (be able to define it).

• Canterbury Tales- Continuation of notes on the pilgrim portraits in the General Prologue.

1/15/16

• POW Writing assignment for "O Me! O Life" (p. 12 of "Dead Poets Society" booklet)
• In an organized response, discuss how the poem shifts. In your answer, be sure to also clarify your interpretation of the “question” and the “answer” presented in the poem.

• Canterbury Tales- Continuation of notes on the pilgrim portraits in the General Prologue

1/13/16

• "Dead Poet's Society" film
• Notes & discussion on "To The Virgins, Make Much of Time" by Robert Herrick
• Viewed next segment.
• HW due Fri. 1/15/16: Analyze "O Me! O Life!" by Walt Whitman (p. 12 in booklet). Focus especially on clarifying the question posed and the answer given.

• Canterbury Tales
• Quiz
• 2A: Notes on Friar

1/11/16

• Book discussion conferences are ongoing. Here is the schedule.

• We began watching the film "Dead Poets Society". We will view this in short segments at the beginning of class for the next few meetings. Here is the booklet of poems from the film that I handed out today. We read and discussed "To the Virgins" (p. 5) and "O Captain My Captain" (p. 11)
• HW due Wed. 11/13/16: Analyze and annotate the poem on page 5, "To the Virgins, Make Much of Time" by Robert Herrick. We will discuss the details of the poem before we continue watching the film on Monday.

• Canterbury Tales General Prologue: Class notes through the Monk. Study your notes as we will have a quiz on Wed. If you were absent, you can get notes from a classmate or you can come in and get notes from the class copy that was made today during the presentation.

1/7/16

• Book Discussion Sign-Up

• Canterbury Tales
• Get General Prologue handout from me ASAP
• Notes on General Prologue through the Squire (p. 4)
• Sections assigned for notes presentations

• HW due Mon. 1/11/16:
• Complete Mentor Match Up form
• Have parents read the Mentor Project Letter

1/5/16

Welcome to your last semester of high school! :)

• POW: "Whan That Aprille" by Geoffrey Chaucer- discussion and notes

• Intro. notes for The Canterbury Tales
• In class, we found facts on Chaucer and the Tales and everyone wrote them on the board. Then, I helped the class make notes from them for their notebooks. You can see the facts on the board here:
• 2A Chaucer / Canterbury Tales Facts
• 4A Chaucer / Canterbury Tales Facts
• I gave notes on the structure of the Tales. Get these from a classmate. 

• HW due Thurs. 1/7/16:
• Read and learn info sheet on Middle English Language
• Read and learn background on Chaucer's Life and Works. (I will ask if there are any questions on this in class Thurs.)

• ADDITIONAL MATERIALS
• Images from references made in class:
• Canterbury Cathedral virtual tour (the destination of the pilgrims)
• Time lapse video of 62 mile trip from modern-day London to Canterbury 
• Poet's Corner in Westminster Abbey (where Chaucer is buried)

• Scholarships / Program Applications:
• UTRGV Scholarship deadlines
• Medical Program Application Information