HN English 10 - All Quiet: The End

Finish reading All Quiet on the Western Front tonight.  You should come to class with an answer to the following question prepared regarding the author's purpose and the conclusion of the novel: 

• Why do you think the author ends the book this way?
• Is it sympathy?  Is it a cop out?  
• How might it relate to his statement of purpose at the beginning of the novel? 

English 9 - Romeo & Juliet Literary Terms

All classes should review their literary term definitions, especially pun, allusion, alliteration, metaphor, simile, and personification.  You will have a term check tomorrow that will have examples of these literary terms from Romeo & Juliet.  You will have to identify them without using your notes.

FIRST PERIOD:  Students should finish the study guide questions assigned for Act II, scene iii (2-9) and collecting one specific example of each of the following literary terms from Act II, scenes ii-iii: metaphor, simile, personification, pun, alliteration.  Extra credit will be given for allusion and foreshadowing. 

FOURTH PERIOD:  Students should answer study guide questions assigned for Act II, scene ii (2, 5-12). 

Separate sheet of paper, complete sentences for all study guide questions. 

Research Project assignments were given out today.  If you have not finished your research notecards (due last Friday: 5 sourcecards, 35 notecards), you will have an opportunity to turn them in along with the rest of your project on Wednesday, May 30. 

HN English 10 - All Quiet Chapter 10 & Poems

For homework tonight, you should read both "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "Flanders Field," answering the four questions provided with each poem. 

You should also complete Chapter 10 in All Quiet on the Western Front. 

You got back your final two vocabulary quizzes of the semester today: All Quiet Voc List 2 & 3.  You have until next Tuesday, May 29 to retake either of those quizzes if you failed with an actual F. 

Your All Quiet test will also be next Tuesday.  A basic study guide was distributed in class today. 

English 9 - Romeo & Juliet Continued

ALL CLASSES:  Tomorrow is Wednesday.  Notecards.

FIRST PERIOD:  Answer study guide questions 4-11 from Act II, scene ii. 

FOURTH PERIOD: Answer study guide questions 1-4 and 7-8 from Act I, scene v.

Separate sheet of paper, complete sentences. 

HN English 10 - Research Notecards DUE

All research notecards are due tomorrow for a quiz grade: 5 (min) sourcecards and 40 (min) notecards, all following the format we went over in class. 

Chapter 10 of All Quiet on the Western Front, as per your reading schedule, is due on Wednesday. 

We picked up Night books from the library today, so you may begin that whenever you like, but it is due next Wednesday, the day after your All Quiet test. 

English 9 - Romeo & Juliet Act I

First Period: Finish reading Act I, scenes iii-v and answering the selected study guide questions (iii: 2-6b, 7-8; iv: 2-4, "6"; v: 1-4, 7-9).  You will have a reading check tomorrow and we will go over important quotations, so bring your notes.

Fourth Period:  Finish reading Act I, scenes ii-iv and answering the selected study guide questions (ii: all; iii: 2-6b, 7-8; iv: 2-5 on the new study guide). 

All classes may use the Librivox audio recording if they wish: scroll down for Act I. 

HN English 10 - All Quiet Symbolism

You should interpret the potential symbolic meaning of the following images in Paul's daydream on page 119-20:

1. monk's cemetery in the cloister garden
2. Stations of the Cross (look this general reference up for cultural literacy and this assignment)
3. the poplar avenue
4. the uniform and the rifle

Remember that symbolism doesn't have to be remote and "deep"-- it can be simple or representative (hence the "symbol" in symbolism).  Some symbols in this passage are more complex than others.

Chapter 7 is due on Friday.  

English 9 - R&J: Act I, scene i

All late vocabulary notecards should be turned in tomorrow for half credit.

Students should finish reading Act I, scene i of Romeo & Juliet and answer the corresponding study guide questions (omitting #9).  As always, all study guide questions should be answered in complete sentences and on a separate sheet of paper.  This link connects to the No Fear Shakespeare online edition, although I announced in class that any students lacking internet access should stop by after second period to pick up a paper copy.  Not all of those students did so. 

Research notecards are due on Friday instead of Thursday, so prepare yourself. 

HN English 10 - All Quiet Chapter 1

Students should read Chapter 1 of All Quiet on the Western Front.  Your vocabulary notecards are also due.

Tenth graders will all be taking the English 10 Field Test tomorrow morning.  Students should report to the library to find out where they are testing in the morning. 

English 9 - Research Deadline #2

Posted on the board and discussed in class since last week, your second deadline for your research notecards is due tomorrow.  You should have 2 sourcecards (following the format we discussed in class) and at minimum 12 notecards that take notes from those sources.  Your eventual goal will be to have 5 sources and 35 notecards, so going over the limit for the periodic due dates is not a bad thing. 

Vocabulary notecards are also due tomorrow, so notecards all around! 

We discussed ways to save articles as PDFs for students without internet access at home, so that is not an excuse I am willing to accept. 

HN English 10 - Siddhartha Essay Preparation

Tomorrow you will write an in-class essay answering the following question:  For Siddhartha, is solitude necessary for him to find himself? 

The structure of your essay will be as follows:

• The introduction should define your terms--What do you consider solitude?  What does "finding himself" look like for Siddhartha?  How do the two terms relate?  You should then answer the question posed for your thesis-- Solitude, ultimately, [is / is not] necessary for Siddhartha's self-discovery because [broad assessment of why that you will argue in your third body paragraph].
• The first and second body paragraphs should each explore one side of the argument: one should focus on how solitude was necessary; the other why it was unnecessary.  Use specific examples from the story, including quotations, and analysis to prove your point.
• The third body paragraph should solidly state why whichever side you've chosen is the stronger argument, utilizing more specific examples and analysis to develop the argument you posited in your earlier body paragraph.
• The conclusion should conclude, restating why this is a question that could be debated and your ultimate conclusion.  

You should prepare for your essay tonight.  You will be able to use notes and quotes you have collected, but you will not be able to use your computer.

I handed out the reading schedule for the remainder of the semester today in class-- the first All Quiet reading assignment is due on Wednesday, so prep yo'self.   Books are available in the library for you to check out, though you may pick up your own at a thrift store for about $.50 if you would like to be able to mark important quotations. 

English 9 - The Odyssey Part II Test

Students should complete their 28 character cards that go along with the characters on the study guide; epithet sheets were distributed in class today-- you just have to match up the character with their descriptor.  Since you have a test tomorrow, you should also review the other information on the study guide.  

Reminder: each character card should contain the following information--

1. who the character is
2. why they are important/what they did in Part II of The Odyssey
3.  an epithet for them
4. on the front side of the card, at least one picture going along with their identity or importance

Please remember that on Wednesday you have 2 completed source and 12 completed notecards for your research project.  This was announced last week.

HN English 10- Gilgamesh Test & Siddhartha

You have a Gilgamesh test tomorrow.  I am anticipating it only taking the first half of the class.

You should also read Chapters 5-7 in Siddhartha.  Reading check and discussion to be expected. 

English 9 - The Odyssey Book XXII

Finish reading/listening to Book XXII and complete the study guide handed out in class. Reading check tomorrow (as usual). 

Late notecards should be turned in tomorrow.

Extra Credit project options were distributed in class today.  They are due no later than Wednesday, May 16 at the beginning of class.  If you are absent that day, you should find alternative means to get your project to school because none will be accepted after the 16th.  

Gilgamesh - Mortality Quotations

Tomorrow is Wednesday.  Vocabulary notecards all around!

Complete your Gilgamesh quote worksheet regarding his varying attitudes about mortality throughout the novel. Remember to complete the added section regarding Shiduri and Utnapishtim's attitudes as well.

Gilgamesh test will be on Thursday, May 3.  It will only last for the first half of class.

You also have Chapters 5-7 in Siddhartha due on Thursday for discussion after the test.  Be prepared for a quick reading check. 

English 9 - Book XXI... Prelude to the Beatdown

Tomorrow is Wednesday.  Bring your vocabulary notecards.

Any students who were assigned to finish listening to/reading The Odyssey Book XXI and answering the study guide questions (omitting #2) should do so for homework. 

Audiotexts of all books assigned of The Odyssey can be found on the English 9 Moodle. 

Missing a study guide?  Link to Book XX and Books XVIII & XIX study guides can be found in the previous text. 

The Odyssey Part II Test will be on Tuesday, May 8.

Students should take the following notes into consideration as we approach the end of the semester:

1. Projects are not optional.  Neither are quizzes or tests.
2. If you have a low grade for daily work, do your daily work (homework/classwork).  Many of these are completion grades, so actually complete your assignments.
3. Low vocabulary quiz grade average?  Study for your quizzes.  Retake failed quizzes during the one week time period allowed.  Get help if you don't know how to study.
4. Low test grades?  Study for your tests.  Get help well in advance to help you study.  Oh, and do your daily work since that's what eventually ends up on the tests.  

HN English 10 - Gilgamesh: The Completion

Finish reading the Gilgamesh packet.  You should complete your Quest chart, including the three parts of the Dilmun episode: arrival, story of the flood (no challenges Gilgamesh faces here), and then the sleep/bread event.  More accurately name the snake/flower episode in the next box. 

You may use the study guide distributed in class to guide your reading and there will be a reading check tomorrow. 

Siddhartha Part I (Chapters 1-4) is due on Monday.  Be aware.

English 9 - Beginning Research

Due at the beginning of class tomorrow is the start of your research:  You should have one complete source card and at least five cards of subtopic-grouped notes on that source.

Remember that for items not found on the sourcecard, you need to actually write "not found."

Your topic is the one you selected that is related to your independent reading memoir/biography/autobiography.  If you have not yet selected a topic, well, do so and then do research on it.

HN English 10 - Siddhartha Background Research

Look up the following list of terms (Wikipedia is fine for this assignment, though if you do not understand the definition given on Wikipedia, you should consult other sources).  Remember that all definitions should pertain to that word as it relates to Hinduism:

1. varna & the 4 castes within this system (NOT the larger social hierarchy in Indian society)
2. Four Noble Truths
3. Noble Eightfold Path
4. Nirvana
5. Self
6. dharma
7. the Buddha
8. ablutions
9. Atman
10. the cycle of rebirth
11. karma
12. maya
13. Upanishads

These definitions are due tomorrow.  Part I of Siddhartha (Chapters 1-4) are due on Monday.  You may use the study guide to help structure your reading, but I will not collect it. 

If you did not finish your quest chart that goes along with Books IX-X of Gilgamesh, you should have it done by tomorrow.

Oh, and Wednesday is notecard day.  Behave accordingly.  

English 9 - The Odyssey Loyal/Disloyal List

Today we started preliminary research for the upcoming research projects.  You should have found your first source and begun taking notes according to the way we discussed in class (sourcecard and then notes divided by subtopic within an article).  We have discussed reliable sources in class, so make sure you're following those guidelines.

For homework tonight, those of you who did not complete the Loyal/Disloyal Chart in class today (including descriptions and L or D), should do so. 

Tomorrow is also Wednesday-- vocabulary notecards.