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