Conclusion

Read over every blog you have posted over the course of the 2011-2012 school year.  Look back on your writing: what have you learned, what have you written, what is your blog is all about and how have you evolved as a writer?

Write a comprehensive conclusion to your blog - consider your English blog as a body of work and reflect on the meaning and significance of it all. This should be a creative, complex, and encompassing post: the more you write and the more you reflect on, the better your grade will be. Consider a minimum of 500 words as a guideline for length. However, quality trumps quantity.

Also, include a quotation that supports your message as to the meaning and conclusion of your blog. This quotation can be from anywhere - a novel, a poem, a lyric from a song...anything that reflects the meaning of the body of work that is your blog. Be sure to embed your quotation in a way that clarifies its relevance to your message.

This blog post is meant to give a clear, reflective conclusion to the year-long blog assignment. The more reflecting you do on your past blogs, the higher your grade will be. If you have fewer blogs than were required, go into more detail to compensate for your lack of assignments on which to reflect. Feel free to include photos, videos, or other enhancements to wrap up the blog with a bang!

This post is worth 50 points and will be assessed for quality and thoughtfulness. Due no later than Friday, June 15. This assignment will not be graded if completed late.

An Enduring Story

Romeo and Juliet is undoubtedly the most famous love story of all time. The story has been retold countless time in all forms of media: songs, films, musicals, t.v. shows, etc. Now that you've finished reading the play, answer this question: Why is Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and enduring story?

Write one paragraph about what you think makes this story timeless. Then write a second paragraph in which you make a text to text connection - analyze how Romeo and Juliet is similar to another book or story you have read. Why might the author of this book/story have borrowed from Shakespeare's most famous play?

Due Friday, May 25.

Romeo and Juliet: Critical Thinking

Reading Shakespeare is a little bit like working on a puzzle. If you're missing a piece, you may not be getting the whole picture. When you find that piece, you're sure to feel excited.

Describe a time when you were reading Romeo and Juliet and the pieces came together - when you were able to see beyond the words on the page to get the whole picture. This could be something that was discussed as a class or in your group, or it could be something you just understood on your own.

Write about a time when you were able to think critically about what you were reading to think beyond the obvious and gain insight into why a line, concept, or character is important to the whole picture. Write one well-developed paragraph for this post.

Due Friday, May 11.

Connecting to a Character in Romeo and Juliet

Which character in Romeo and Juliet do you feel you are most like? Consider what the different characters say, the decisions they make, and their personality traits. Chose the character you think is most like you and justify your choice with examples.

Write a well-developed paragraph in which you identify the character you are most like and give examples from the play and your own life as support. Be sure to:

1. Identify one character trait you have in common. Give an example of the character displaying this trait in the play and tell about a time when you displayed this trait as well.
2. Identify one decision this character makes and analyze why you think he/she makes this decision and why you think he/she made the right decision.

Post by Friday, May 4.

Word Power!

Describe a time that you have used Word Power outside of class. Describe specifically how you used it. If you have never used Word Power outside of class, make a point to do so this week!

Write two paragraphs for this post. Your first paragraph should be describing how you used Word Power outside of class and the second paragraph should discuss the benefit of reading Word Power and how you anticipate you'll use it in the future.

Due Saturday, April 21.

Getting Ready for Romeo and Juliet

This week we're watching A Midsummer Night's Dream in class to acquaint you with Shakespeare's language. Based on this experience and your past, if any, experiences with Shakespeare, what do you anticipate as we begin Romeo and Juliet? What challenges will you encounter in reading and studying the play? What types of activities or assignments do you think will help you enjoy and understand the play?

Write two paragraphs for this post. The first paragraph should describe your experience with the film (Are you enjoying the story Shakespeare has created? Is it difficult to understand? etc.) and, if applicable, your past experiences with Shakespeare. Your second paragraph should describe your anticipated challenges in reading Shakespeare, what you think you will like about Romeo and Juliet and tell what type of activities you would like to be encounter in class.

Also, please complete this survey by clicking on the link:
Shakespeare Survey

Due Friday, April 13.

Essay Help Comment Stream

Need Essay Help?

Need help on your essay? Chances are your classmates may have similar questions. You can post comments here with questions and I will answer them with a comment back for the benefit of all who follow this blog. I will continue to check this daily during spring break. However, I won't check on Sunday, April 8.

Good luck!
Mrs. Gilman

Character Klatch

CHARACTER KLATCH:         Publish your final draft on your blog by  Fri., 3/23

What lurks inside Dickens’ characters’ minds? What would their innermost thoughts and feelings be? We are about to find out!

You have been assigned a character or the author. For this character you will focus on the most recent ten chapters and:

·             Create a vehicle to share their thoughts and feelings previously unavailable to us through Pip’s narration. Choose one:

o   An interior monologue (description of what the character is thinking about an idea or event.)

o   A diary entry

o   A letter to another character (or friend or editor if you are Dickens)

·             Ground the character’s thoughts and feeling with the text. Cite specific examples from the text in your creation.

·             Show you know and understand who the character is; how they think and feel; and what purpose Dickens has them serve.

·             Share your creation during a group discussion on characters and characterization.

. Revise and publish a final draft on your blog by Friday, March 23. Your writing will be assessed on content, relevance to character, and conventions.

Early Essay Ideas

When we finish reading Great Expectations you will be writing your first full-length 5 paragraph essay. You will be given a prompt for the essay, which will focus on themes and motifs in the novel and we will work on the essay in class during the week before spring break.

If you were to begin an essay on themes and motifs in the novel today, what would you write? As you know, an essay begins with a thesis in which you set out to prove something about the content and style of the work you're discussing. Considering everything you've been thinking about while reading and analyzing Great Expectations, what ideas come to mind? What would you write about? Review your themes and motif chart and your opinion survey from the first day of the unit to get ideas.

Write one full paragraph about your ideas for an essay on themes/motifs in Great Expectations.
Due Friday, March 16.

Great Expectations: How's it Going?

We are about halfway through our Great Expectations unit. How is it going for you? What challenges are you encountering and what are you doing/what could you be doing to overcome those challenges? Discuss both what you can do at home and what you can do in class to better understand the novel, its themes and motifs, and the characters, actions and setting.

Write two paragraphs for this post - the first should reflect on your at-home experiences and the second should discuss your in-class experiences.

Consider:

• What are you doing at home to help you understand and engage in the novel? 
• What else could you be doing at home to better comprehend and enjoy the novel?
• What are we doing in class that helps you? 
• What else could we be doing in class to help improve your experience with Great Expectations?

Due Friday, March 9

Great Expectations: Connections

In your weekly journals you have been making text to self or text to text connections in regards to the essential question: what is important in life? However, there are countless ideas in the novel that you can relate to personally or that you can compare to another book you've read.

For this week's blog post, make a meaningful text to self or text to text connection about an important and pervasive idea in the novel. Describe what it is that you're relating to and use a significant quotation from the novel to highlight it. Write at least two paragraphs comparing the idea from Great Expectations to your own life or to another novel. Be sure to show critical reading of Great Expectations through the connections you make.

Since there is no school Friday this post is due Thursday, March 1.

Research Blog: 1800's and Invention

Great Expectations is set in the early 19th century, pre-Victorian era. In order to understand the setting, it's important to consider how vastly different life was during this time period. These were harsh times when having multiple siblings not survive childhood was a common occurrence. Things we take for granted (and suffer without: think back to the recent storm) were unheard of, such as running water, indoor plumbing, and powered heat sources. Even matches had not yet been invented -  Pip says in chapter two as he's searching in the dark for food to take to the convict "for there was no getting at a light by easy friction then" (13).

Do some research into the modern conveniences that were lacking when the novel is set - the first few decades of the 1800's. What was daily life like? What simple modern conveniences did people lack? What conveniences did they enjoy?  Contrast the life that Pip lives with his sister and her husband to your own life.

In addition to discussing daily life during this time period, think of one simple convenience that would have made life easier for people living in the first few decades of Dickens' life. Come up with an original "invention"  to make life easier using things that were available at the time period. Describe what you would invent and why. How is your invention making life easier during this harsh time period? Be sure to show your knowledge of the setting through your invention.

Due Friday, February 24

Happy New Year 2012: Paragraph and Video

Happy New Year! The start of a new year is an excellent time to re-evaluate your goals and reflect on the progress you've made toward them. It's also traditionally the time to make resolutions and think about the new person you'd like to be in the new year.

Think back to the beginning of the school year - how have you changed and developed academically and personally since starting high school?

With the approaching end of the semester comes your first report card  - the grades your earn will determine your GPA (grade point average.)As we near the end of the semester, what goals do you have for yourself?

Write a paragraph in response to the questions above and find or create a video on YouTube that embodies the changes you'd like to make your life this year. Embed the video in this post.

Due Friday, January 13