12/13/2011

Today in class:

We continued Kane from first meeting with Susan Alexander about 40 more minutes into the film.

Homework:

• Please write down three questions that you would like to ask Dr. Yenhert about how AP Exam essays are scored for his talk tomorrow.
• Turn in Short Story Focus Notes if you haven't already
• Read up to page 925 in Oedipus over the break and take notes.
• Write Kane film and character essays over the break.

See you tomorrow!

Mrs. J

12/07/2011

*I will post the Power Point on Greek Theater tomorrow as I have ran out of time today, and you don't need it for tonight.
Please begin reading Oedipus.

Film Technique notes tomorrow!!!

Mrs. Johnson

12/05/2011

More fabulous Metamorphosis presentations today! It's such a joy for me to be in the midst of excellence each and every day.
Homework: Please read the introduction to Greek Theater on pages 893 to 895 and take notes. This will make the lecture process go faster.

Thank you and see you tomorrow!

Mrs. Johnson

12/02/2011

Talented and delicious presentations today!

Homework: Please read Hemingway's The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber pages 258-278 and complete your short story notes. ***I will collect these on Wednesday.

Next Week's Schedule:
Monday: Finish Prose Analysis Discussion
Tuesday: Essay Test
Wednesday: Macomber Chat
Thursday: Oedipus Notes
Friday: Film Technique Notes

Have a great weekend,

Mrs. Johnson 

12/01/2011

Today in class:

We discussed and started preparing for the Free-Response Prose Question on Tuesday.
I will post the Power Point for today's lecture under my "Power Points from Lecture" tab. The Power Point is titled "Approaching the AP Free Response" Prompt.
To further prepare for the prompt, we read a prose text from a previous AP Exam, and analyzed how we would go about writing a POA/thesis for this. We wrote a thesis and POA together as a class, and will continue writing topic sentences and body paragraphs together Monday. Our goal is to write an entire paper together for practice.
Other than that, please stay caught up on your Short Story Notes as I will collect those in about another week. Date TBA.
Finally, continue project work on Metamorphosis. I look forward to seeing those presentations tomorrow!

Mrs. J

11/30/2011

Homework: "Araby" by James Joyce
Continue work on Metamorphosis projects

See you tomorrow!

11/28/2011

Click on link below to see criteria for the project; however, as discussed in class today, the project itself has changed in that you can illustrate the criteria in any way you wish: poster, movie trailer, 3-D stage, live performance, and other possibilities. If you could just give me a courtesy heads up on electronic equipment I might need prior to Friday, that would be appreciated.
We will continue our reading schedule throughout the week as this project will be an out-of-class activity and discuss Good Country People tomorrow. I will be available Tues-Thurs after school for questions.
Friday will be reserved for Metamorphosis presentations.

Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis Project

Mrs. J

11/28/2011

Homework: Please read Flannery O'Connor's Good Country People on page 349. I don't need to ask you to come prepared to discuss because you always do!

Mrs. J

11/18/2011

Read Kafka's Metamorphosis over the break page 191
Think existentialism

Since we didn't get to discuss the story much, here is a Power Point with discussion questions, info about Faulkner, and Freudian concepts explored in the story etc. Check it out!
A Rose for Emily Power Point
Psychoanalytical Criticism

Have a great break!!!

Mrs. Johnson

11/15/2011

Please read "Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman on page 153, write your short story focus notes, and come to class Thursday ready to discuss that work as we will most likely fill tomorrow's class period continuing our "Young Goodman Brown" discussion--rock on witchcraft!

Mrs. J

11/10/2011

Weekend Homework:
* I decided not to quiz over rhetoric devices, but please do study the terms as you saw how many appeared just on that one practice AP Exam: anaphora, ellipsis, and one other one I can't think of at the moment.

We are now beginning our Short Story Unit, yah! This means that you will now begin writing your "Focus Notes" for each short story that we read. Those notes will be due at the end of the unit. A topic of focus is outlined for each short story in the assignment description sheet that I gave you yesterday.

***Please read "Young Goodman Brown" by Nathanial Hawthorne this weekend. (Sorry, I left my anthology at home, and therefore, cannot find the page number for you... it's of course in your anthology) and take notes on it, and come super prepared to discuss it on Monday!

For on your own Rhetoric Device Study, I created a Power Point of questions and answers from the "Living like Weasels" reading: Living Like Weasels

Have a great long weekend!

Mrs. Johnson

11/09/2011

Nature Walk

A Transcendental Experience

Facilitator Directions:

Please read the following goal before beginning discussion:

***Through discussion, students will build authentic real world connections to text, which will increase comprehension.

1.      Just like with the poetry tea party, please ask students to go around and share where they took their nature walk, why they chose that location, and what they experienced while there.

2.      After they have shared the above items, please invite the student to share their piece of writing from their nature walk.

11/07/2011

Today in class:

1. We completed the peer edit for the College Admissions Essay-Final Draft is due Wednesday
2. Homework: Please read: : “Living Like Weasels” on page 1568 and jot down notes on rhetorical devices to mention during discussion.

***There will not be a reading assignment tomorrow night as you will be working on your final drafts to turn in Wednesday.

See you tomorrow!


Mrs. Johnson

11/04/2011

Excellent discussion yet again today. I really value your comments and will share them:)
Homework (It seems odd to include this next): Please read "Battle of the Ants" (a very short essay by Thoreau pg. 1558) in your anthologies.
Please bring a rough draft of your College Admissions Essay on Monday for a very meaningful peer edit session.
Here is a copy of my Power Point from today: College Admissions Essay Assignment

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. J

11/04/2011

Keep reviewing rhetoric devices and please begin reading "The Battle of the Ants." We will discuss the college admissions essay assignment tomorrow!

Mrs. J

11/02/2011

I missed you all today. For tonight's homework, I have updated the Rhetorical Devices Power Point, so I will post that below, and I have added a disclaimer for you to read below before you read "A Modest Proposal."

A common mistake readers of "A Modest Proposal" often make is in the assumption of Swift's intended readers as "the English."  This assumption could be a result of Swift's use of the "Projector" persona's reference to "them" and "they" when referring to the Irish as poor, but not all the Irish were poor, though all were affected by the economic exploitation of Ireland by England. 
What effect would anonymous publication of such a pamphlet have upon the Irish readers?  What effect would it have upon the English readers?

A to Z Rhetoric Devices (shoot, I just realized that it occurred to me earlier that the chiasmus example wasn't saved, so the older more antimetabole-esk example is still on the Power Point, thus I will have to update again! Anyway, for now, here are some more terms for fun! For fun, yeah!

Mrs. J

11/01/2011

Tonight's Homework:

You will want to take notes on the Rhetorical Devices Power Point (already on the blog). Using the terms on the Power Point as guidance, look for rhetorical devices used in Bush's speech (link below). We will discuss these devices and their impact on the speech tomorrow in class.

Link for Bush's Speech

Mrs. J

10/31/2011

What a great ending to our poetry unit today. Thank you for all of your inspiring poems, wow!
I am going to upload the rhetoric devices Power Point below. Just like with the poetry terminology flashcards, if you could please do the same with these devices. I will ask you to identify these devices in each essay that we read, and there will be a brief quiz over the devices. I'll announce the quiz as it approaches, so not to worry about it now, but do start taking notes.
Rhetoric Notes Power Point

Mrs. Johnson

10/25/2011

Get lots of sleep and eat a good breakfast!

See you tomorrow,

Mrs. Johnson

*

Homework: Study notecards

Due Thursday:

• Poetry Glossary or Flashcards

Due Friday:

• Original Poem and Analysis: analysis should be 2-3 paragraphs in length in which you explain the central meaning of your poem, and then select three devices and explain how those devices contribute to the meaning of the poem.
• When you or someone else reads your poem to the class, you will receive one bonus point for taking that bold move. You will also need to provide the audience with a brief explanation as to what inspired you to write this particular poem. If it's too personal, then you can give us a more vague/general explanation such as: A significant person in my life served as the inspiration of this poem. Their passing and legacy inspires me on a daily basis to be a better person or soemthing to that effect.
• Also, please ask the visitor joining us to check in at the office (as many of you know this is protocol) and also to bring their favorite poem (not necessarily one they have written; although that would be cool). If they do not want to, that's fine, or if they want to bring one, but have you read it, that's fine too. It would be really nice to see poetry that has had a profound impact on the different generations--this provides great insight into the history of different eras etc.

Writing Suggestions for tomorrow's in-class essay:

I. Read prompt carefully.

II. Turn prompt into a question--your answer will help you form a thorough thesis and POA.

III. Read the poem and ask yourself the following questions from McElliott's Manifesto (helpful writing packet):
   1.  What does the poem seem to be about?  

*

   3. Ask yourself: How do these devices contribute to the poem?

   2. Scan the poem and identify and select 3 devices.

  4.What is the literary importance of device “X?” How does it help contribute to the poem? What is the effect on the reader?

Finally, come up with a working thesis/POA and get started!

10/21/2011

AP Weekend Homework:
Study for the Poetry Exam
Finish Poetry Glossary and/or Flashcards
Work on original poem and analysis

Just a reminder and to clarify:
Monday and Tuesday- more review
Wendesday-Essay Test
Thursday-Poetry Exam
Friday-Poetry Party!

Have a great weekend!

Mrs. Johnson

10/19/2011

"Musse" Power Point

10/17/2011

Here they are! I hope I remembered everything!

Metaphysical
Neoclassical
MLA
Poetry Test Study Guide
Poetry Calendar for remainder of unit


See you tomorrow!

Mrs. Johnson

P.S. In class today, we went over the Poetry Calendar for the remainder of the unit, and began analyzing Tennysons' Ulysses.

10/11/2011

So you can check out my older post from today for the Romanticism Power Point and assignment from today, but I figured that I should just go ahead and post the last Poetry Period Power Point. This one covers both Victorian and Modern poetry components. Of course you do not need to take notes until you get to the actual elements that were characteristic of poetry from that time period. I included all the background history info just to provide a frame of reference.
Tomorrow we will spend the bulk of the period discussing the two assigned poems for tonight's reading. Spend some time analyzing Ode on a Grecian Urn as there many components to analyze in that poem!
Victorian and Modern Poetry Power Point

Victorian and Modern Poetry Readings in DiYanni anthology

See you tomorrow!

Mrs. Johnson

10/11/2011

Romanticism Power Point

Tuesday’s Agenda:

Share Venn Diagram Results for Renaissance/Metaphysical Time Periods:

Discussion on: “The Flea”

At home:

Take notes on Romanticism PP

Read: “Sick Rose” by William Blake page 542 (glossy pages)

Answer the following: Identify and explain the symbolism of the Rose.

Read: “Ode on a Grecian Urn” by John Keats page 632

Answer the following:

1.                        Have you ever been happy enough that you felt you could live in that moment forever? If not, did this poem convince you that such moments are possible?

2.                        Why does the speaker seem to be all over the place in this poem? He seems to go from curious to nostalgic to lustful to frustrated. If you had to write his fictional life story, what would it say?

3.                        Why do you think the first critics of Keats’s poetry hated it

4. How would you describe the overall tone of the poem? Is it joyful or sad?

5. Is the speaker able to identify with the Ancient Greeks depicted on the urn, or is he merely excited by the "mystery" of their culture and its foreignness. Do you feel like you can identify with life on the urn?

6. What do Keats’ famous lines “'Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all /Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.' “(lines 49-50) mean to you?

10/10/2011

Here is the Neoclassical PowerPoint to help you answer your assigned questions about your assigned poems, sorry!

Neoclassical Power Point

Mrs. J

10/07/2011

Lecture on Renaissance Period Today:
Here is the Power Point if you need to catch up on notes.
You will not be tested over the Power Point information; I just used it for discussion purposes, but you will need to be able to recognize poetry from the Renaissance Era.

Renaissance Period Power Point

10/05/2011

Homework:

Continue Prospectus work!
Study forms of poetry, so that you feel comfortable/familiar with them.
You may use notes on tomorrow's quiz entitled "Recognizing Forms in Poetry"

Mrs. Johnson

"That's the news, and I am out of here!"

10/04/2011

Sorry for lame Power Point:), but it gets the job done!
So tomorrow, we'll start right away with the Essay Test!
Thursday: Forms Quiz
Friday: begin Poetry Periods Lecture

Forms Power Point

Mrs. Johnson

10/03/2011

Today:

• We analyzed Rhythm and Meter
• I moved the final Prospectus #5-8 due date to Monday 10/10
• Homework: Continue working on Prospectus--use time well

Mrs. Johnson

09/30/2011

We practiced Rhythm and Meter today!

Test over the following terms Monday:)

Feet of 5 Morae

• Cretic : _ u _
• First Paeon : _ uuu 
• Fourth Paeon : uuu _
• Bacchius : u _ _
• Antibacchius : _ _ u

09/29/2011

Today, we finished discussing syntax in selected poems and...
 We took notes on Rhythm and Meter (Power Point below for your convenience). Tomorrow we will analyze and explore rhythm and meter in selected poetry. Please do follow the Poetry Syllabus and read the pages over Rhythm and Meter in the Diyanni text so that you have a good feel for it.

Rhythm and Meter

Happy almost Friday! Hope those that are sick feel better!

Mrs. J

09/26/2011

Today in class, we analyzed poetry from Poet Laureates in the past decade or so, including one from our state! If you were absent, simply go online, check out a recent Poet Laureate, read a poem, answer the following questions about it, and turn it in tomorrow: You can check out the Poet Laureates I have on our blog for guidance too.
Questions:
1.Describe the feelings that surfaced as you read the poem:
2.What words, phrases, and details triggered your strongest responses?
3.Identify and explain how you can apply "The Associative Thinking Process" to a certain aspect of the poem.
4.What words, phrases, lines, and details may have baffled you? Why?
5.Identify and explain observations about the poem's details that may contribute to the overall meaning:
6.What words or phrases recur? How? Where? Why?
7.Infer and explain any connections you can establish between details of the central topic of the poem and language used:
8.Explain how well you feel you understand the poem at this point:
9.How do your own values, ideas, experiences, and standards influence your interpretation and evaluation of the poem?
10.Describe how the poem affects you as a reader: Do you appreciate it? Comment on the poem's aesthetic accomplishment.

09/25/2011

Announcement:

Good morning!

I realized that I made a confusing request in the Poetry Calendar. I asked you to bring in modern poetry (optional) for analysis. What I meant to say was current poetry. Modern Poetry would suggest poetry from that time period, which is not at all what I meant to convey, so I apologize for any confusion. We didn't have time on Friday for me to explain why I wanted to take a day to explore current poetry. We don't have time in our Poetry Unit to do this, and before your prospectus is due, and since you have the opportunity to select four poems outside an anthology of poetry (or our anthology of poetry), I thought it would be the right timing to explore poetry from the last decade or so. I am not requiring you to bring in poetry because I will be providing different poems for analysis, but if you choose to, you may bring in poems that pique your interest.

Suggestions for searching:

It's quite simple:

• Simply conduct a search of Poet Laureates from the last decade or so and read through some of their poetry. If one really inspires, moves, interests you, etc., then print it out and bring it in! (You can also save it to your laptop too)

Our Current Poet Laureate: W.S. Merwin appointed Poet Laureate of the United States, 2010-2011

09/22/2011

If you were absent today, then make sure to bring your rough draft tomorrow for our peer editing session as we didn't quite get to that today. We finished our analysis of "White Houses" today. I will be giving discussion credit to those who were here and excusing those who weren't for this assignment, but we'll discuss how to make up facilitated discussions in the future.

Upcoming Big Projects:
e.e. cummings paper due Monday!
Prospectus 1-4 due next Wednesay!

See you tomorrow!

Mrs. Johnson

09/21/2011

William Blake Thesis/POA Guidance

09/19/2011

Today in class:
*Homework: Create one Device and Effect T-Chart for one poem.

1. We discussed the Poetry Syllabus, which I will have for you tomorrow.
2. We discussed the Poetry Prospectus Assignment, and I showed an example of what a device and effect T-Chart should look like. See attachment: Prospectus Example
3. We had a wonderful analysis of diction and voice in your selected poems. We will continue this tomorrow.

09/15/2011

HW:

Free-write on your favorite place to go (mountains, beach, bedroom, wherever!), and then brainstorm how you experience the five senses while visiting this place: visual, aural, tactile, olfactory, and gustatory. You may not experience all five of the senses, and that's okay. Try to tap into at least three of them.
Next, write a poem in which you incorporate this imagery. You will swap poems with another student in class tomorrow and analyze the use of imagery within their poem and the overall affect on the reader.

Happy almost Friday!

Mrs. Johnson

09/12/2011

Homework: Write down a list of colleges you wish to attend and back up plans

Today in Class:

Figures of Speech Quiz
Associative Thinking Lesson

*Bring Book to class

Weekend Homework

Read Pages 444-450 and 451-456 in Diyanni and come ready to discuss the poems and figurative language.
Study Figures of Speech and Imagery terminology!
Bring objects back for Monday so we can continue "Associative Thinking" exercise
Bring a piece of paper with a parent signature and date indicating that your parents read and accept the requirements outlined in the course syllabus.

See you Monday and have a lovely weekend!

Mrs. Johnson