L. A. 8
We continue with Romeo and Juliet by diving into Act 2. This Act includes the famous balcony scene! This week, we've talked about motifs and imagery. Students made "text message" conversations between two of the characters in the play using modern language. We've also continued our practice of tackling complex texts with our Main Idea Paragraphs. We've switched from finding the main idea and then supporting it with details to finding the details and then using those to generate a main idea.
Contemporary Lit.
We've had a lot of work time this week and made great progress into our Macbeth essays. Students have packets that have helped them create thesis statements and main idea claims for their three body paragraphs. These packets are an outline of the entire essay, as well as containing the prompt, rubric, and places where we recorded textual evidence. The essays need to be five paragraphs long. We discussed how to cite textual evidence with context and reasoning (linking it back to the thesis statement). We also learned how to write introductory paragraphs that include an attention-getter, quick summary of the play, and thesis statement. Essays are due on January 15th.
Writing Lab.
After wrapping up our Personal Essays, we are quickly working our way through an Original Free Verse Poem. Free verse poems do not have a rhyme scheme or specified structure, which gives students a lot of freedom to express themselves rather than play with style. Students still need to include figurative language in their poems, but are not constrained to a particular type of poem. These poems should connect to the subject of their "Gift of Gratitude" Scrapbook, but can be about any topic: a specific memory, lessons learned from the loved one, descriptions of the person, etc.
General Information
Our guidance counselor, Mr. Wong, came to each class this Wednesday to discuss class options for the 2019-20 year. Students were given course catalogs and sheets to sign up for classes. They are required to have 8 credits (7 + study hall, if desired). Classes marked with an "R" are required, while the ones marked with an "E" are electives.
Incoming Freshman have a choice of three Language Arts classes, while next year's Juniors have a few more options. These classes range in difficulty and independent working levels. If you or your student has questions regarding which English class they should take next year, please feel free to contact me. Mr. Cole and Ms. Haig can also answer questions about classes they are currently teaching or plan to teach next year.