End-Of-Year Literature Discussion

The 5 Article Choices from Class:

• Removal of American Authors
• Jews and Syrian Refugees
• No Charges For Clockmaker
• E's G: Defense of Millenials
• Fighting Bullying

And remember: you only have one guiding question:

Probably, like, at least a level 4 Bloom's Taxonomy question.

TKAM Test Review

This is a link (Deas!) to the review powerpoint from class today.

This is the TKAM Test Review Guide I gave to students.

TKAM Test Tomorrow.

Career Fair Essay Drafting

This is a link to Friday's documents about how to begin drafting the essay.

TKAM Pt. 1: Maycomb

After checking and collecting the Phrase HW from Monday, students and I reviewed information we've learned about Maycomb so far.

Why was everyone so surprised that this assignment counted?

It was, like, our 6th practice.

Part 1 of TKAM is more or less exposition: we learn about the timeframe, the fictional town, and the people who inhabit it.

Here are links to the Review Documents that 2nd, 3rd, and 6th period created (which I thought were the strongest and most thorough):

• 2nd Period Notes
• 3rd Period Notes
• 6th Period Notes
• Further Study Material:
• TKAM Historical Background PPT
• TKAM Historical Background PPT (.pdf copy)
• "Flavoring The Stew" Activity from Monday (Complete)
• "But, but! Mr. Tidyman! Will there be vocab words on tonorrow's quiz? How am I supposed to study?!?!"
• Figure it out.

HW:

• Membean assessment tomorrow (online)
• TKAM Part 1 Quiz

Everybody Hates Phrases

Guys, guys, guys. Phrases, as a segment of grammar, aren't hard, they're tricky.

Recall the Allegory of the Train.

Prepositional Phrase Practice 1.5 (The Booster Shot)

Discussions about the TKAM Anticipation Guide were interesting. 6th period in particular delighted me with several original thoughts.

1st period was too spicy. Not bad (though I heard informally that it got worse over the course of the day), just too spicy. Tomorrow I'm going to chill that class out.

HW:

• Membean Quiz tomorrow.

Practice: Adj. Phrases

2 Major Things Happened Today:

• Students *attempted* to complete Phrase Practice #1 (Ex. 2 on pg. 118-119 of the purple book). Since it was practice, I revealed all of the right answers. I should not have been surprised that most everybody got most everything wrong. Ah, but I was.
• Students received the TKAM Anticipation Guide. It became HW for sharing in class tomorrow
• Note: students did not have to respond in writing to each statement. They only had to write down their reasoning for 4 (2 SAs and 2 SDs)

HW For Wednesday:

• Complete TKAM Anticipation guide for discussion tomorrow.
• Membean Quiz on Thurs.
• Flag Football on Friday

STOP: Grammar Time

We started new grammar:

The Phrase

Here is the note-taking sheet I gave students. Yes, it gets filled out, and taped into to the Notes Composition Notebook.

The information is on pages 116-118 in the Purple language book.

HW:

• Membean Quiz Thursday
• Flag Football Game Friday (2-3p)

Welcome to Q2

10/12 - 10/16
Monday was a Teacher Planning Day - No Students
Wednesday was the PSAT. It was insane, and should not count as a school day in any regard.
Tuesday there was a Membean Quiz.
Tuesday and Thursday, students worked on a TKAM WebQuest:

TKAM WebQuest Document

Tuesday they researched an assigned portion individually - 

Thursday they shared what they found with jigsawed groups.

Friday, I gave my own lecture on TKAM background information. I used this powerpoint to emphasize certain points:

TKAM Background & Context Powerpoint

"...but Tidyman...I don't have powerpoint!"

Quit whining.

Here is the powerpoint saved as a .pdf

HW for Monday:

• The next session of Membean closes on Monday, 10/19. Go study some minutes.

Wait, What's an "RQ" again?

Immediately after our attendance-taking, and a wee stretch, I returned students' Speak Reading Quiz #1.

Which was good. They could see what they got. And maybe think about coming to see me, on their own time, to ask me questions about their grade.

I had to give that quiz back, so I could give out

Speak Reading Quiz #2. It was not over everything we've read; rather, it was only over last night's reading assignment.

After the distribution and completion of the quiz, I invited students to examine Mr. Neck's "debate" on IMMIGRATION, in the context of the First Amendment and Free Speech.

This the slide I threw up on my powerpoint:

BUT LET ME BE CLEAR:

I did not open the discussion referenced above to student debate.

It was simply a visual reminder of Mr. Neck's debate.

With this slide in view, I asked students to answer a few questions (leading, of course, towards sharing and discussion), in their Classwork Composition Notebooks:

1. What is the First Amendment?
2. (a) Did Mr. Neck's class' debate observe, feature, or otherwise uphold free speech? (b) Was Mr. Neck's debate fair?
3. Have you ever, as a student, been a part of a class at all like Mr. Neck's discussion? How did it go? How did you feel? Connect personally, if you can and wish to, to this passage.
1. I neither required, nor forced, students to draw a personal connection. Nor did I require that any students share feedback of a personal nature. It was an invitational journal response only. That being said, several students, in all of my classes, had something to say about connections between Mr. Neck's "debate" and their own educational careers.

HW:

• Tomorrow, we're focusing on the Sordino Family Thanksgiving. You might wish to review pgs. 57-65 to prepare.
• Keep studying Membean.

Flipping Cushions

First of all, students began classes today with 15 minutes of Membean practice time, courtesy of Mrs. Syes' loan of the laptop cart.

The current 2-Wk Session of Membean:

9/8-9/21

Last Tuesday to Next Monday

90 Minutes of Study

6 different days

See me with individual questions about progress.

Students then joined me in sharing thoughts on a certain white couch in the Sordino living room.

This is a link to the slides I shared to move the discussion along.

As an added bonus, there are slides at the end with my critique of sample student responses.

See how yours stacks up.

Also, here's a sample of digital annotations I put up for the classes today:

HW:

• Read Speak pages 49-65. Stop @ PEELED AND CORED
• Continue to study Membean.

Analyzing Melinda's First Quarter

Classes today began in the Notes composition notebook:

• Capitalization Practice #2 from Purple Language Book, pg. 294-297
• Takes notes 10f(1-3)
• Complete Exercise 3, which we then checked in class.

Then, students transitioned to their Classwork Notebooks to respond to this Speak Journal Entry:

Yes, the discussion that followed occasionally derailed into venting. But only occasionally.

HW:

• Log your time on Membean.
• Here is a link to the Symbolism Analysis Document, which comes to class tomorrow completed.
• Spoiler Alert:

"What does 'RQ' stand for?"

"...and why is it on the whiteboard agenda?"

It stands for

Reading Quiz

and it was on the board because students had one today, over the first portion of reading: pg. 3-28 of Speak.

Of course you're allowed to ask me about taking the quiz again. Just bring me some proof that you didn't have your book yet*, such as an internet order confirmation, or delivery tracking number.

*I've heard a digital file might be available on the internet.

Students then were able to work in pairs on this classwork document:

What's In A Name?

HW:

• Finish "What's In A Name?"
• Read Speak to the end of the First Marking Period.
• You'll know it's the end of the marking period because Melinda will receive her report card.
• Fun fact! The MLK's First Marking Period ends on 10/2. Report Cards will go home on 10/19.
• "But Mr. Tidyman! How could you know such things!? You are but a lowly teacher! Who in their right minds would entrust you, you, with such precious information?!"

Words and A First Day of School

First Major thing? Membean Quiz. Remember, your Membean Studying grade is worth 40%, and your Quiz grade is worth 60%, of the grade you'll see in Gradespeed.

Which means if you're naturally talented at Vocab, and aced the Quiz, you might be thinking that you have a 100. But if you're so confident in your mellifluous diction that you neglected to complete any studying, please keep that in mind as you enjoy (irony) your 60.

And then! O then! It was finally time to begin Speak!

We read pages 3-5 together in class, as I led the students in sample annotations on an old-school overhead projector.

Students agreed, roundly, that Melinda had a pretty terrible first day of high school.

Yep.


HW:

• Read Speak to page 28. Stop @ CHEERLEADERS.
• Membean. Study some.

Notes on Membean

Here is the Membean document my classes received a couple of weeks ago, when we originally logged back into the site to reactivate usernames and pick back up with studying:

Membean Handout

See me, or e-mail me, your questions.

SPEAK and the Short Week

Having had a 4-Day weekend, students were bright-eyed and bushy tailed as they returned to classes today.

First, we began class in the 

• Notes Composition Notebook:
• Capitalization Notes #1
• Purple EoL book, pg. 292
• Take notes 10a-e
• Complete Ex. 2 on pg. 293

Classes then took a moment to pivot hard into some Membean details, prompted by Zorria's question in 2nd period:

Membean Deets:

Payment Window: 8/31-9/18

That's Next Friday, y'all.

Membean Cost: $10.00

Payment Options:

Yes, you can bring me $10 cash, or check made out to MLK Magnet

or...

You can pay right here! Online! Through MLK!

Don't worry about how it has Mrs. Syes' name on it. My students should use this same link.

Then, we pivoted back to our

• Classwork Composition Notebooks
• "Listen" Poem
• Poem included and explained in the 10th Anniversary printing of the novel (paperback).
• The "You:" referenced in the poem refers to the readers of the Speak. Every line, except for the first and last stanzas, was pulled from a note, letter, or message sent by a reader to Laurie Halse Anderson. The "Me:", consequently, represents Anderson herself, hearing from (Listening) her reading audience's painful, personal revelations.

HW:

• Speak books come to class tomorrow, to begin reading and annotating.
• Membean Quiz #1 in class
• Will be available online for 24 hours, and accessible by internet to those students who miss class tomorrow.

Speak Preview; Theme Paragraph Submission

First thing I asked students for today was a sandwich. A sandwich of written work! Haha! Get it?! I'm hilarious!

How to Make A Theme Paragraph Work-Sandwich:

• The revised, finalized copy of the Theme Paragraph goes on top.
• The Peer Review Sheet (completed) goes in the middle.
• The rough draft goes on the bottom
• Staple it all together, and Boom!
• That's a sandwich. Give it to Tidyman.

And Then...
Students received today a document called the

Speak Anticipation Guide

along with instructions about placing it in the Classwork Composition Notebook, as well as responding to the instructions.

Written responses on the chosen 3 prompts were to be recorded in the Classwork Notebook as well.

Reviewing the 10 statements of opinion (I was exceptionally clear that I was not "teaching" these statements as "facts"), even the most casual of readers will be quick to notice that they were written in order to ignite personal, possibly divisive, personal response. It should come as no surprise that I invited my students to discuss their thoughts on certain of the prompts about which they felt most strongly. Note: This discussion was not a Speaking & Listening grade, due to the limited exposure time to the material as well as the sensitive and personal nature of the content. It was an invitation to share thoughts.

HW For Long Weekend:

• Just get a copy of Speak, if you haven't already. You don't have to begin reading until next week.
• Other than that, enjoy yourself. Get some rest. Maybe read something you're interested in
• Like this, for example, which I'm reading. Not like you care.

Peer-Review Day

Students peer-reviewed each others' Theme Paragraph Drafts in class today.

The Peer Review Document

It's a .docx (Word) file.

HW:

• Edited and revised Theme Paragraphs will be handed in Friday, 9/4

Vocab; Updated Theme .pptx

First thing today, students in each of my classes had 15 minutes of time to engage with vocabulary practice on Membean.

Click this to sign in to Membean!

Then, students continued to draft their Summer Reading Theme Paragraphs, after I shared a few updated notes on...

This updated Powerpoint file!

(Please remember: the two student examples of work on the later slides are not perfect. In fact, there are several flaws in each. But at least the second one HAS the author's MESSAGE about an HUI)

HW:

• Theme Paragraph Drafts due Tomorrow, in class.
• Continue studying Membean (Study window closes next Tuesday)
• Perfect Credit = 90 mins split up over 6 different sessions

Theme Paragraphs

This is a link to the Theme Paragraph Outline 1-page handout from class today.

And here's how students set up the reverse of this page, for collecting evidence:

This became a document for collecting the information that will become Assertions 1, 2, and 3.

Here's a link to the Powerpoint File.

HW:

• Draft of Theme Paragraph Due WEDS. 9/2
• Membean practice in class tomorrow.

1795 Original Text: To A Mouse

Follow-Up Friday Post:

You thought that the poem I gave you was hard to read?

Haha, get real.

Here's the poem as it was originally written:

I dare you to try to read it out loud without laughing.

I bet you can't.

Mice. Men.

Students today brought their notes on the poem To A Mouse to a class discussion analyzing the poem.

Here is a link to the powerpoint I used to facilitate discussion. It mirrors almost exactly the questions from the document.

Despite my technological facility, there's no way I can post the discussion my classes had. If you missed today, you better ask a friend* for the answer to number 4.

*And you better be friends with Jocelyn in 6th.

Because she really knocked it outta the park.

This is the .pptx from class today.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Yes it's a new one.

To A Mouse - Robert Burns

After students finished their diagnostic tests, they picked up a copy of a poem.

I INSIST that this poem connects with one our summer reading texts.

The HW became to respond to Q1-5 on the sheet for discussion tomorrow.

This is a link to the copy of the poem.

Freshman Diagnostic

Students began taking a beginning-of year Diagnostic Test.

As it is a Diagnostic test to gauge students' incoming level of aptitude, it will not count as a grade in Gradespeed.

The vast majority of students did not finish, so we will devote some of tomorrow's class time to finishing the test.

SRA: Summer Reading Assessment

Today students did two things:

• Submitted their Summer Reading Annotations
• Took their Summer Reading Assessment
• Multiple Choice & Short Answer

If you missed either of these details, see me ASAP.

Lit Terms & SR Review

• This is a link to the blank Plot Diagram document.
• This is a link to the Ender's Game plot-sequencing activity. (This is the one with review questions.)

HW:

• SR Annotation due tomorrow
• SR Assessment tomorrow

A New Day; A New Year

Welcome, MLK Freshmen!

For many of you, I mean, Welcome Back!

Today was a half-day for students. As such, classes were only about 20 minutes long. Give the constraint on time, there are many class resources and documents that will be delivered on Friday (our first full day) 8/7.

So what did students do today? After I stumbled through my new rosters, I introduced my website (if you're reading this, you already know.)

Also, we had a brief discussion about this: 

Some students could correctly identify this as a QR code. Fewer could competently elaborate on what this artifact's function is, and how it works.

The point is that, if a student possesses a smartphone, I encouraged them to seek out an app (free) that would let their cameras decode the information in the square.

• Android Users: Look for the program QR Droid in the Google Play Store. It might be easier to open the Play Store in your mobile device.
• Apple Users: A student recommended the app Qrafter, which appears to do basically the same things, and is available in the App Store.

Over all of today, only one student actually scanned and decoded this QR in class. Surprise: it's a link to the 9th grade Supplies list. Which I will have hard copies of on Friday.

Word on the street is that this is Tax-Free Weekend.

Finally, as class wound to a close, I asked students to take out their Agendas and write down their HW. Almost no one had an agenda. It was depressing. So get one.

HW:

• First Day Packets are due back to 1st period teachers ASAP.
• Write Tidyman an Introductory Email

Summer Samples

Sample Word Doc.

Sample PDF File.

The Key To Fahrenheit 451

Frustrated by slow reading progress in class?

Desperate to find out what happens to Clarisse?

Curious about how Montag's world got to be the way it is?

Or are you just a mega-nerd who loves reading?

Full online text of F 451.

Boom.

Waving Goodbye to R&J / Heading Into 451

This is a link to the Soundtrack Final Project for Romeo and Juliet.

Here is a .pptx file of the notes my Freshmen got on Utopias and Dystopias.

And finally...

Here is the first taste of Dystopia:

Ray Bradbury's The Pedestrian

HW:

• The R&J Project is due Tuesday.
• Read The Pedestrian for Monday.

• Don't do HW for my class on Sunday. It's Mother's Day. Celebrate the maternal influences in your life. For real.

Life After the EOC

In short, it goes on.

Tomorrow, classes will hold a Socratic Circle Discussion activity, in which students will have the opportunity to chat with each other about the issues they found important in R&J.

Love vs lust? Death? The power of visible light? And whose fault are these dead kids? And does fate even exist at all? Why do we still gotta read this play, anyway?

These topics, and more! will feature prominently tomorrow.

Here is a link to the HW document: a question preparation guide, with a reminder about Blooms Taxonomy.  Bring it to class, and be prepared to talk: perhaps by asking a pertinent question, or responding to a topic being discussed.

But tomorrow's not the day to be quiet and hang back. #realtalk

EOC Review Materials from Class!

The EOC materials from class are all zipped into this archive.

Contains: 2 Powerpoints, 18 handouts ("sheets")

Size: Around 4.5 mb

Feel free to browse what you need.

See you tomorrow. Get some sleep, have a bite to eat for breakfast.

Do not come and ask me for coffee. That is for me.

EOC Term Focus

Here is a link to a short .pptx containing terms we reviewed in class today.

This website does an excellent job of explaining Paradox, which was by far the most troubling term.
Ex. 01:

• "I can't get a job because I don't have a college degree."
• "I can't go to college because I don't have enough money."
• "I don't have money because I can't get a job."
• Shout-out to 3rd period for this gem.

Any one statement on it's own seems fine, yet together they construct an inescapable prison of circumstances.

Ex. 02:

• "This statement is a lie." 

Also: Here was another brain-melter from class

HW:

• Read Act V of Romeo and Juliet. Finish it. It's so good.

One More R&J Resource

So, there's this writing duo, Charles and Mary Lamb. They published a book called "Tales from Shakespeare." They included R&J, and re-wrote it in prose as a story.

If the play format/ancient language is driving you up a wall, check this out:

http://www.bartleby.com/1012/17.html

R&J: A Toe in the Water

Big shifts in today's classes! First of all, everybody got...

New Seats!

Woooooo...alright back to work.

But even more important than that, classes got their first spoonful of

Romeo and Juliet!

On page 807 of the Lit Book.

Today, classes tackled the Prologue to the play.

And by "tackled", I mean, worked together to translate into Modern English.

Documents You Might Want:

• This is a link to the raw text of the Prologue (this was on my projector screen for gesturing purposes.
• This here is a link to the Translation document (which was classwork)
• You want me to be honest? This is a link to the SparkNotes page for the Prologue. I place it here so that you can check your own translation against a published one. I do not care one bit if you use this site, and ANY of its materials, to help your understanding of Shakespeare's text. Use anything and everything at your disposal to make meaning out of what's going on, but read the original Shakespearean text (anything else you consult should be IN ADDITION TO the real text.)

How did it all go? Pretty darn well, I think. Shout-out to the powerhouse scholars in 7th period who shared their translations with me:

Student Example #1

Student Example #2

Both of these show good solid work, though neither is perfect.

HW:

• Do some Membean. This is Week 2.
• Bring your textbook to class. Every. Day.

Also, I will be absent Weds and Thurs this week, 4/8-4/9. The Wind Ensemble is going to Memphis, and I'm going with them :) See you Friday. The sub will have instructions for you.

R&J: Historical Background (England)

Classes 2-6 today were taught by Mr. Miller, the student teacher who has been working with me this semester.

Students needed their books in class today, specifically for pages 798A-798B: Elizabethan England.

This is the Active Reading Note-Taking sheet that accompanies the Lit Book pages.

This is the powerpoint file Mr. Miller used to guide his class discussion/teaching.

"Why Did The Renaissance Begin in Italy?" Good question. The answer(s) can be found in this supplement.

This here is a link to the website that explains how the Junian and Gregorian calendars were brought into alignment.


HW:

• Read pgs. 798-799, Theater in Elizabethan England and
• Complete the reading guide section for these 2 pages (it's on the back of the handout linked above)
• Bring your book to class tomorrow

PS: A student asked about how much a penny in Elizabethan England would have been worth today. Here is a link to a reference with modern exchanges.

EOC Prep, Now and Moving Forward

The ENGL - I EOC Test will be

May 5th, 2015

So today, students took the first half of last year's EOC. Tomorrow, they'll take the other half.

The scores and question-data will be used by Mrs. Syes and I to modify instruction in the weeks leading up to the real EOC.

EOC practice will continue tomorrow.

Come and see me if you have questions about GradeSpeed. 

PS: You still need your books for reading Romeo and Juliet.

Starting next Monday.

A Short Note On Grades

They're just about done.

If you need to come and talk to me about a missing assignment, please track me down on your own time. I'll need to verify and submit my gradebooks by 3pm Thursday.

The Odyssey Test A (for my morning classes) benefitted from a 10 point curve.

The Odyssey Test B (for my afternoon classes) benefitted from a 7 point curve.

Please keep that in mind if you plan on coming to chat with me about those.

ODY Review Powerpoint Part II

This is the powerpoint file.

The Odyssey test (over parts one and two) is tomorrow. 

Yo, 2nd Period!

Your Membean Quiz has just been posted!

Here's a handy link to the Membean login!

You have until 3:30pm tomorrow to take it.

ODY: Part One RVW

This is a link to the Powerpoint.

This is a link to the .pdf.

(It's not awesome though, because it can't do transitions.)

Thursday 3/5: Snow Day

Reminder: I gave you guys a schedule for the week. Scroll down for the post.


Here's a refresher. Click for .pdf link.

Bored? Curious about a challenge?
Hint: We're on page 148. Beginning of Book 12.

Foolish Elpenor

Well, I was wrong. There's a 5th spirit that Odysseus speaks with in the Underworld:

Elpenor the Graceful

I'm just kidding that's not his real name I'm being ironic. 

After revisiting the 4 messages/warnings the ghosts gave to Odysseus yesterday, freshman classes today did close in-book readings of Elpenor's request that he makes of Odysseus.

Students then had to answer, in writing, two harder questions regarding The Cyclops and LoTD:

These were answered on loose-leaf paper, and handed in to me before the end of the day.

HW:

• Read the next adventures: The Sirens, Scylla, and Charybdis
• Membean window closes on Saturday.

And the Award for "Worst Host Ever" Goes To...

Polyphemus. The Cyclops.

The. Worst. Host.

First, students took a short quiz on the details of the story, The Cyclops. In short, he was not good to his guests.

This is a link to an explanation, and several examples, of Greek hospitality.

How can I tell? I can tell because he ate six of them. Don't even get me started on Polyphemus.

Students also engaged in an active listening activity. Specifically, they listened to the radio drama that the BBC's Radio 4 created in honor of the last Olympics to be held in Greece. We don't have time to listen to the entire production (even though it is WONDERFUL), so we listened to the part where Odysseus visits the Land of the Dead to ask a ghost for advice.

This is the sheet on which the students made notes while they listened along.

We HAD to listen to this part, because the lit. book version cuts the most heart-breakingly beautiful moment of the story*: Odysseus discovering that his mother has died.

*I recognize that this is an opinion, and not a fact.

Think you're tough? Listening didn't make you sad?

Here's the unedited/unabridged exchange between Odysseus and his mother.

He... he tries to hug her. He can't. 

This story is 3,000 years old, y'all.

This Week's Weather Advisory

A recent e-mail from Dr. Carr advised teachers to prepare for the possibility of inclement weather this week.

In case anything weird happens, here is a link to the schedule of reading for the week. I gave this out in class today.

Exploring The Odyssey Pt. One

I feels like forever since I've seen my classes. These two weeks have been ridiculous.

But enough whining.

Classes began today with a quick review of Epic Poem lit terms: Invocation of the Muse and in medias res.

Here is a link to the review .pptx that we looked at in class.

Here's the same information, in a .pdf file, in case the powerpoint isn't working for you.

Students were quick to tie the idea of in medias res back to a flashback. Which is how Homer presents Odysseus' story: when we meet him, he's sitting in a king's royal court, explaining the many adventures that brought him there after the end of the Trojan War.

We discussed Odysseus' first two adventures in depth: Sailing from Troy, and The Lotus Eaters:

• On the coast of the Cicones, Odysseus and his men generally behaved like a bunch of pirates. They landed, plundered, killed, and enslaved women. The crew decided to celebrate with a victory feast, despite Ody urging them back to the boat. The army from the next town over showed up and killed a bunch of Greek soldiers. Everyone was sad. Question: Does Odysseus' crew always obey his orders? And when they don't what happens? Answer: FORESHADOWING.
• Odysseus and his men almost get stuck on the island of the Lotus Eaters. The people of the island show the crew no ill will (re: they don't attack the sailors), but offer them some lotus. The lotus is just a plant. And yet...it's dangerous:
• It grows naturally.
• It robs people of their hopes, dreams, goals, and strength (for the crew, that is their desire to get home.)
• Those who ingest it forget about everything...
• Except eating more lotus.
• The danger of the lotus is a danger of temptation.
• This literary concept has an analogy in our own modern world.
• It's drugs. The lotus is a drug. It is just a plant, but can destroy Odysseus' and his men's dream of going home.

Many students referenced Percy Jackson:

This scene is from the Lotus Casino. The heroes lose 5 days of time, and nearly fail their quest. 

And those students were absolutely correct.

I extended the reading of The Cyclops by one more day, for students to read it again, and ask me questions. Because there's a quiz on it tomorrow.

HW:

Quiz on The Cyclops tomorrow.

A Journey of 1000 Miles Begins With a Single Step

...and that first step is to...

Start Reading The Odyssey!

Even though I can't be there to start it with you.

The assignment for today, which will carry over the weekend, is this:

• Read from the Invocation of the Muse (a.k.a the first page) to the end of The Cyclops.
• pgs. 1045-1063
• Respond to the questions on page 1049 in your Classwork composition notebook.

When we're all back together again on Monday, we'll review some Lit. Terms and talk about strategies to crack into this dense text. See you then.

Friday & Online Textbook

Okay, I had planned on warning my classes today (Thursday) that I would be out of the building on Friday 2/27. I have to chaperone a club competition. But school was closed. So...yeah. Here are some pointers on Friday's class material, and going into the weekend:

The Lit Book Is Online
Haha, that's not a link.
Which means you don't have to take your physical book home, if you don't want to.

Here is the login page: Right here.

I also created an Online Textbook Guide to assist students with their Usernames and Passwords:

This is the guide as a Word Document.

This is the guide as a PDF.

Once you successfully log in, change your password. I cover that in the guide.

If you have a specific question about why your information doesn't work, e-mail me. We'll work it out. 

But don't e-mail me at 11:45 on Sunday night with a problem, and then tell me it was my fault that you didn't read. I will laugh.

HW For Monday: Put your floaties on, kids. I'm throwing you into deep water.

• Read The Odyssey Part 1 pages 1045-1063. This will include:
• The Invocation of the Muse
• "Sailing From Troy" (Odysseus tells a king of his adventures in a flashback)
• "The Lotus-Eaters"
• "The Cyclops" (possibly the most famous/well-known of Ody's adventures)
• Respond, in your Classwork notebooks, to Q 1-4 (all parts) on page 1049.
• Bring me your questions, written down or in your mind, on Monday. Seriously, The Cyclops is a tough story, but it's great. Don't rush it. And bring me your questions.

Odyssey Resource Grab Bag:

Welp. Your copy of the Odyssey is abridged. If you're the kind of student who is curious about what you're missing, feel free to enjoy any/all of these digital resources. If you're the kind of student that doesn't care, a blog post isn't going to make you start caring now.

BBC Radio 4 - Scholars Break The Story Down

45 mins

BBC Radio 4 - The Odyssey (Radio Play)

Clips for Parts 1, 2, 3, available

YouTube - The Odyssey (1997)

2:52:25

John Green - A Long and Difficult Journey

12:06

The author of AFIOS and LfA explains a lot, very quickly.

The Simpsons x The Odyssey

S13 E14

Not even kidding.

That's how well known this story is.

The Odyssey Begins!

Welcome back from Ice-Week 2015. In light of recent weather patterns, we've had to rearrange some things.

We no longer have time to do The Trojan War. You only really need to know 3 things about it:

• It goes on for 10 years.
• Greece wins (google Trojan Horse).
• Odysseus was the Greek general who thought up the winning strategy. Now he has to go home.

The story of Odysseus going home after the Trojan War is the basic premise of:

The Odyssey

Today, students read Lit. Textbook pages 1040E-F, which focused on Homer as well as the genre of Epic Poems.

Here is a link to the handout that accompanied those pages.

We also looked at the word "abridged." Page one of the students' version of The Odyssey is the exact same as page one of the real book.

Page 2 of the student version picks up on page 145 of the real version.

The student version begins an in medias res story in medias res. More on that later.

HW:

• Your Lit. Textbook now comes to class every day. No, you cannot leave it in my classroom. It leaves with you every day as well.
• Membean window closes next Saturday. If you did vocab studying over the break, it'll still count. See me, or e-mail me, for details.

Mythology Quiz Review: The Heroes

This right here is a link to the Review Jeopardy powerpoint that was the focal point of class today.

Pay special attention to higher-difficulty questions, like the $500s and Final Jeopardy.

I highly recommend you download the file and play it in Powerpoint. It's not as fun when you just read through it.

But if you NEED to read through it, cause you don't have Powerpoint, then this line is a link to a .pdf printout of the content. 

Enjoy this picture of me from class today.

How Did All This Come to Be?

Today, students read and responded to Ch. 3 of Mythology: How the Universe and Mankind Were Created.

Here is a link to the Notes Sheet I gave out.

Students were quick to notice a particularly well-known name explained, mythologically, in this chapter:

Pandora

as in...
The Music Streaming App
The Jewelry Store
The Planet

So, did curiosity kill the cat? Perhaps.
But it also made life worth living.

HW: Finish Ch. 3. Remember, if you need the book, scroll down to see a post explaining where the text is.

"Tidy! Where's the book?!?!"

It's right here.

You have a quiz tomorrow on the Mythology that we've read so far.

Study your Introduction, Ch. 1, and Ch. 2 class notes.

Esp. the Big 12.

TCAP Writing Practice Sched. & Materials

The schedule for next week:

TCAP Practice Schedule:

Monday, Jan 12^th

1^st Period – 8 – 10:20am

2^nd Period A- 10:25 – 11:35 (1^st half of practice)

Lunch -  11:35 – 12:30

2^nd Period B – 12:30 – 1:40 (2^nd half of practice)

7^th Period – 1:45 – 3pm

Tuesday, Jan 13^th

3^rd Period – 8 – 10:20am

4^th Period A- 10:25 – 11:35 (1^st half of practice)

Lunch -  11:35 – 12:30

4^th Period B – 12:30 – 1:40 (2^nd half of practice)

7^th Period – 1:45 – 3pm

Wednesday, Jan 14^th

5^th Period – 8 – 10:20am

6^th Period A- 10:25 – 11:35 (1^st half of practice)

Lunch -  11:35 – 12:30

6^th Period B – 12:30 – 1:40 (2^nd half of practice)

Awards/Rewards Assembly – 1:45 – 3pm

The .pptx with notes from class today
The .pptx, but saved as a .pdf (if link above doesn't work)

TDOE Website with TCAP Resources

Written Response Rubric (Long Format)

Written Response Rubric (Short Format)

Scored Sample Responses (Key @ End)
In response to the sample tasks in the .pptx notes above

Tips for the Assessment

Courtesy Mrs. Williams

Something you want that you don't see here?

E-mail me.

Or just come see me next week.

Also: Spirit Week Schedule

1/12-1/16

Monday – 'Merica Monday (dress as patriotically as possible – all American flag type things, red, white and blue theme)

Tuesday – Twin Tuesday  (It takes two)

Wednesday – Wacky Wednesday (tacky day) (please remember we have a dress code)

Thursday – Switch Thursday (opposites)

Friday – Blue and White Day – MLK School spirit

From Ms. Flakes

Sentence Combining

I did take up the document from yesterday that asked for students to take a swing at combining sentences, but it wasn't for a grade, I just wanted to look through them quickly and eyeball trends (positive and negative).

While I was looking through those, students examined the official notes on Sentence Combining as a skill:
This is a link to the EOL notes sheet on Sent_Comb.

I also let students go ahead and complete Exercise 1, using the blanks on the back of the Notes sheet for their answers. Yes, I know I left 10 blanks, but you only need 5 to complete the exercise. Thanks, Jenny.

Tomorrow we'll review answers to those 5 practice exercises, as well as begin preparing for the upcoming Practice TCAP Writing Assessment taking place next week. Try to contain your enthusiasm.

Welcome Back! Q3

After attendance and a stretch, I handed back to students some leftover work from Q2.

Then I introduced our next educational pursuit: Greek Mythology & The Odyssey. Students don't have to purchase either text -- The Odyssey is in the Literature book (turquoise). And we're not reading Edith Hamilton's Mythology cover to cover, just choosing a small selection of myths to focus on.

Finally, to dip our toes back into the waters of having school, and class, again, students read a short story based on a Greek myth: "Antaeus".

Here is a link to the story itself.

I also gave students a short collection of questions that accompany the story, and on the reverse, an exercise in sentence combining.

Here is a link to the questions.

And here is a link to the sentence combining activity.

HW:

• Finish the "Antaeus" questions
• Complete the Sentence Combining activity
• Also: 7th period students got a permission slip that is due TOMORROW to 1st period teachers.

It's good to be back.