Revising C/C intros

Today we did some more Bible poster presentations.

Then Mrs. Gilbert shared ways to revise our c/c intros to be better and we had time to work on them.

Cleaning up our c/c

Today we started by sharing some of our Bible-lit. posters. Students who were unfamiliar with the stories were encouraged to take notes.

Then we took some notes about how to best revise our c/c drafts. Students then spent time actually making the revisions. Be sure to turn in your notes with your process work at the end of this paper!

Homework: Finish revising your paper to add details, figurative language, and connections. Tomorrow we'll work on introductions and conclusions.

Bible as literature

Today we divided up into pairs (or trios) to read and summarize certain key Bible stories. Each story needed to be summarized on a poster (with a visual element) and it had to be compared to a Greek or Norse myth. These posters are due tomorrow, and students will share them with their classmates.

NOTE: We are reading these stories for the same reason we read Greek mythology -- they form an important part of an "educated" person's background knowledge. We are reading these stories as literature, and while we respect that for some these stories are more than that... in school we can not and do not endorse one religion over another and so we will not be discussing the religious aspects of these stories.

Our next paper

Today we shared our c/c charts with Mrs. Gilbert in order to get feedback on how to do them better.

We also got the guidelines for our next paper (which is a compare/contrast paper) and reviewed expectations (available online at www.cjgilbert.net).

Remaining time was given over to working on this paper -- either starting a draft or creating a new c/c chart as pre-work for our paper.

Rough Draft #1 is due next Tuesday

Myths: Our own and our world

Yesterday we turned in our myths and and wrote a reflection on them (what did we like about our myth, what could still be improved or changed with more time, what were some parts that were especially well written -- be sure to quote and explain them!)

Then we had an opportunity to read and comment on one another's myths.

Today, we'll be in the library computer lab to complete this activity:
http://www.cjgilbert.net/ASE/Mythology/Mythology-C-C.htm

And we beginning our next paper tomorrow:
http://www.cjgilbert.net/ASE/Mythology/Mythology-C-C-Essay.htm

Norse vs. Greek

Today we had an oral quiz on Norse mythology and then group discussions comparing it to
Greek mythology.

Tomorrow the myth final drafts are due.

Proofreading and Comparing...

Today we worked on proofreading our Myth stories. The final draft (including visual) is due on Wednesday.

We also began discussing the Norse mythology readings. Tomorrow we'll be having a discussion comparing the two, so come prepared with questions that will lead to those comparisons.

Wrapping up Greek

Today we did the last part of the Greek mythology test -- a discusison quiz.

We also got back our myth drafts. They are to be revised and brought to class next week Monday.

Homework reading for this weekend (on to Norse! mythology): pp. 443-463

Note the following names/stories/items:
Aesir
Odin
Loki
Thor
Freya
Balder
Asgard
Valhalla
Valkyries
Creation
Signy & Sigurd
Brynhild & Siegfried
runes, mead, well of wisdom
*Note their beliefs about life, good and evil.

Testing

Yesterday and today we worked on the mythology allusions test.

Today the take-home essay was due.

Tonight we took home a poem and novel excerpt to read, analyze and annotate. Tomorrow we'll have a discussion quiz over them (the last part of the mythology test!!!)

Sliding down in the world

Today the groups on chapters 6 and 7 of Malcolm X presented. The class earned participation points for being a respectful audience. There may be a quiz coming and, since quizzes are open-note, students should be taking notes on these presentations.

How to compare and contrast

Today we went over the take-home essay prompt for the mythology test. We also reviewed how to use a graphic organizer to set up a compare/contrast essay (like the myth test) in a way that shows higher-level thinking. Students are strongly encouraged to use the graphic organizer to help their essays be more clear.

We wrapped up class by sharing allusions.

Homework: Work on the essay and come prepared to class tomorrow with all of your notes organized for the allusions portion of the test AND the Olympians part (with no notes)

Review

Today we did lots and lots of review for the test.

Tomorrow we'll begin the essay portion of the test (which will be take-home, due on Thursday). Wednesday we'll work on the allusions portion of the test.

The only homework? Study, study, study...

Homecoming!

Today we spent time in committees, reviewed some allusions on film, and listened to the P.A. interrupt class over and over again.

We also turned in our Rough Drafts #2 to Mrs. Gilbert

Your only homework for the weekend: Study for the test.

Reviewing myths

Today we wrote discussion questions and then discussed the myths of 6.1, 6.2 and themes across the entire book.

We also reviewed a little bit of what the test will be about (more at www.cjgilbert.net)

Revising myths

Today we worked on revising our myths to add detail, dialogue and more action/conflict.

Rough Draft #2 is due Friday to Mrs. Gilbert

Read 6.1 & 6.2 for tomorrow

Cannibalism, yum!

Today we began by doing some vivid writing about the Trojan War -- students were to describe either the experience of being in the horse and the battle that followed OR the experience of a Trojan mother when the Greeks overrun Troy.

We wrapped up reviewing the Trojan War and discussed what was significant about this story.

Then we participated in the House of Atreus presentation -- Que. 1, 3 &4 of their worksheet is due by tomorrow.

Homework: RD#1 of your Create-a-Myth is due tomorrow.

Readings for Thursday include the following sections of 6.1 and 6.2:

The Trojan War!

Today we acted out the trojan war with puppets.

Tomorrow we'll wrap up discussing the war and then participate in the House of Atreus presentation.

Make sure you read their chapter tonight.

More on our own Myths

Today we began class by giving feedback to the Hercules group.
We got the "official" scoring guide for the Create-a-Myth project and had time to work on writing and revising our myth (these will be posted on the website sometime this weekend).

Finally, we did a bit of open mic time.

Homework for Monday: Read both chapters on the Trojan War (inc. Fall of Troy) and keep working on your myth project.

The Theseus discussion was pushed to Monday or to a future review day.

Hercules!

Today we stared class with a little quiz over the heroes that we've read about so far.

Then the Hercules group presented and we greatly enjoyed the charades.

Mrs. G handed out a little study guide for Theseus and said we'd talk a little more about him tomorrow.

Finally, we discussed tomorrow's agenda: bring several paragraphs of your myth-in-progress and expect to work on it as well.

Writing our own myths

Today we began class by giving feedback to yesterday's group presentation on Jason and the Quest for the Golden Fleece.

Then we discussed an upcoming project where students will create their own myth. They can make up a hero or a god and then write a story (adventure, romance, comedy, etc.) about them. We spent classtime brainstorming and starting to draft.

Homework reading for tomorrow: Hercules & Theseus chapters.

The heroes begin...

Today we heard all of the presentation for Jason and the Quest for the Golden Fleece, and then we got to do a little bit of the Perseus presentation.

Tomorrow: Writing workshop & wrap-up on Perseus.

Thursday: Hercules & Theseus (Read ahead! These are loooong chapters!)

Cupid & Psyche

Today we started with the treat of some reading time.

Then we participated in Cupid & Psyche's presentation.

Tomorrow: Jason and Perseus.

Celebrations & Preparations

Students completed their lesson plans for their mythology teaching groups today and got them approved by Mrs. Gilbert.

We also celebrated Joey's and Larry's birthdays and had open-mic time.

Don't forget the homework reading this weekend of Psyche and Cupid!

Pictures day

Today we had school pictures during our class.

When we returned, we did some journaling and then had some committee time.

The study committee reminded everyone that we'd be having a quiz tomorrow; areas of particular focus are this week's reading plus the creation stories from last week.

The birthday committee shared plans to celebrate two birthdays on Friday. Everyone had to commit to $3 -- either to bring $3 worth of goods (there was a sign-up for cups, cookies, etc.) or to bring $3 for pizza (which is due tomorrow).

Myth Soap Operas

Today we did "myth soap operas" where we acted out the various love myths that we read the previous night. After a lot of laughter, we also briefly touched on some common themes we saw emerging.

Then we signed up for teaching groups - each group has a chapter to read for Thursday (and will be quizzed on it!). Eventually, that group will be responsible for teaching the chapter to the rest of the class.

Tomorrow is picture day and we'll be doing some journaling.

Discussions & Play-doh

Today we began class with a brief review of the weekend reading: students created play-doh symbols for the characters and stories from the reading and had to explain their symbol to the class.

Then we had group discussion time over the reading.

We also shared allusions to Greek mythology.

And finally, we have two piece of homework:

1) Read the chapters on "Eight brief tales of lovers" and "Atalanta"
2) Write for 10 minutes in your journal -- try to write your own "myth" with a lesson to be learned or a crazy story to explain how something came into being.

Tomorrow we'll be getting physical with the reading, and Wednesday will be picture day.

Friday Festivities

Today we did writing workshop, open mic time and committe time.

We also reviewed where to meet for fire drills and what counts as cleavage on the ladies' shirts.

See yesterday's entry for the weekend homework.

Discussions & Allusion

Today we did fishbowl discussions over the three chapters of Mythology that we have read so far.

Then we learned what "allusions" are. As homework, everyone should bring in a couple of allusions to Greek mythology either Friday or Monday. The allusions can be in books, songs, TV, film, news, etc. but they should be referencing Greek mythology.

The homework reading for Monday is 1.4 and 2.4 -- and, in addition to taking notes, everyone should write some more discussion questions about the reading.

Tomorrow we'll have journaling, open mic time, committee time, and some wrapping-up-class-details time.

Digging for Potatos

Today we learned about our journals and writer's workshop.

We began by doing a "potato" write where we wrote for 8 minutes about the potato given to us from Mrs. Gilbert. We then shared those writings with each other.

We then discussed how the potato was a metaphor for writing and how the journals would be used in this class. After this "warm-up," we proceded to have an additional 10 minutes for writing and some additional sharing time.

The homework for tomorrow is on yesterday's entry.

Timelines and Questioning

Today we compiled our homework into a large timeline for chapter 1.3 of Mythology. Students should have the entire timeline written down in their notes.

We also learned (briefly) about the difference between high and low level learning. Our homework for Thursday is to read 1.2 and to write 5 high-level discussion questions, at least 2 of which must be on 1.2 while the others may be over anything we have read so far.

Tomorrow we'll need our journals for a writing activity.

Of Quizzes & Olympians

Today in class we had a quiz over the weekend's reading. It was open-note, so students who brought their graphic organizer with them had an easier time of it (and the graphic organizer was due!).

We also finished reading the partner interviews.

Homework for tonight: Read ALL of 1.3 and make a bulleted list in big (2") print of the key events in your section (which you signed up for in class). You are encouraged to take notes on other key events as well, but they won't be graded -- but they will be allowed on quizzes!

Beginning Mythology

Today started by doing a few more partner interviews.

Then we got our Mythology books and did an "Instant Expert" activity to get into them.

Then we reviewed the reading schedule and study guide (both available online at www.cjgilbert.net).

Finally, we reviewed the homework for this weekend: to read 1.1 and create a graphic organizer on the Olympians (and the rubric for this assignment is also available online)

Getting to know you...More!

Today we read some of the partner introductions to get to know one another.

We also reviewed the syllabus and turned in our homework (syllabus signed and annotated, student survey).

We brainstormed rules for the classroom and created a final list of rules (Be respectful, Be responsible, Don't disrupt the learning if you're having a bad day, Help others be the best they can be) . We also decided to set up committees to organize special activities -- some for studying and some for celebrating (e.g. birthdays)

In a shocking development, we actually have no homework for tonight, but tomorrow we'll start mythology and will have homework for the weekend.

Day 2 - Getting to know you!

Today we began partner interviews in order to get to know each other-- everyone should write the final draft of their partner interview as homework and be prepared to read it aloud to class tomorrow. If you were absent today, you should write an introduction of yourself (rough and final drafts) to be read aloud to the class tomorrow.

Additionally, everyone should bring back the parent signature slip for their syllabus and be familiar with the contents of the syllabus.

Students who were absent yesterday received a folder of make-up work that should be returned tomorrow.

1/2 Day Welcome

Today we had approximately 18 minutes to kick off the start to a new class -- Advanced Sophomore English.

In that time, we completed a folder of work (absent students will need to pick it up and finish it) and were assigned our homework (to finish the student survey; read and annotate our syllabus; and have our parent(s) sign off on the syllabus).

All homework is due Thursday since over half the class was at the MSC, but be aware that tomorrow night we'll have some other homework as well.

Welcome to a New Year!

Welcome parents and students of Advanced Sophomore English!

I hope this year will be exciting, intellectually invigorating, and challenging for us all.

Each day we will record the class' activities here so that absent students (or curious parents) may read about what we did. Feel free to peruse past entries to get a better idea of what past classes have done.

Class blogs tend to be updated by 4:00 p.m. each day.

For more information, visit our class website at www.cjgilbert.net

More persuasion & Antithesis

Today we went to the computer lab. We typed up our papers there and got a half-sheet with instructions about what to revise. We left there at 2:55. We came back sat in our assigned seats and took a small quiz. Then we got into our groops and talked about the book, like what happened and such. Then we reviewed some more literary techniques, including antithesis, interrogative, exclamatory, declarative and imperitive sentences.

Allison

Prince of Wales discussions & persuasive writing

Our Bellwork for today was to turn in the progress reports and to put up the remaining literary term posters on the wall. Then, we were to gather in our journaling groups and discuss chapters 16-18 with the other group members, making sure to discuss the literary techniques.

Next, Mrs. Gilbert handed out a rubric for how to journal well and went over the guidelines with the class while using examples of other classmate’s journals from last night. This was followed with a ten-minute review of the literary techniques that are on the wall.

Then, Mrs. Gilbert discussed with us a fill in the blank worksheet that was on persuasive speeches. Then we had a while to start working on our rough drafts of the persuasive speech/essay. This rough draft is due tomorrow at the beginning of class.

Laura

The END of the RESEARCH PAPERS

Today we turned in our final draft to our research paper unless you got your tape yesterday then its do Thursday. You should've come to class with everything in order and then we wrote the reflection. Then we shared our favorite part. Pick a group to journal each chapter with.

Breanna

Catching up from the snowday

Bellwork: Work on lit. poster for 15 minutes then hang on the wall it wont be late until after Wednesday

15 minutes to talk about the book & then took quiz

Got a research paper check list, went over it. Bring research folder (final & process) all finished according to checklist tomorrow. You’ll have 30 minutes to do reflection, and then discussion on novel if we have time.

Maddie

Diction

Bellwork: Have journals out and silently listen to announcements. Make a group poster of verbs that come to mind when given a word assigned by Mrs. Gilbert.

Classwork: Take ten minutes to look over your paper and add more diction (both specific and creative) to your paper. Discuss chapters five through nine within group and then present any questions that you might have had to the class. Turn in all journals as well as any extra credit. Take notes on new literacy techniques, shifting adjectives and appositives, which can help to spice up your paper. Take the last fifteen minutes of class to do chapter ten journals or work on paper. Those who papers are due today, turn them in to Mrs. Gilbert.

Naudia

Thesis & Parallelism - from 12/7

Worked on our thesis
Looked for or added parallelism
Worked on what makes a good conclusion

Kellie

Shifting adjectives, appositives & diction

Bellwork: Have journals out and silently listen to announcements. Make a group poster of words that come to mind when given a word assigned by Mrs. Gilbert.

Classwork: Take ten minutes to look over your paper and add more diction to your paper.

Discuss chapters five through nine within group and then present any questions that you might have had to the class. Turn in all journals as well as any extra credit.

Take notes on new literacy techniques, shifting adjectives and appositives, which can help to spice up your paper. Take the last fifteen minutes of class to do chapter ten journals or work on paper.

Those who papers are due today, turn them in to Mrs. Gilbert.

Naudia

Absolutes and participles

We learned the literacy techniques absolutes and participles. Had handout to go with them. And you should probably get the notes from a classmate.

Got the rubric for out research paper and a new timeline for the next couple weeks.

We revised our 2nd rough drafts and added new literacy techniques to them also added other necessary literacy techniques to paper.

Some people had to turn in their 2nd rough draft with tape, others got theirs back.

HOMEWORK: Read and journal Chapter 11 from The Power of One

By Cristi

After the bell today we worked on finishing up finding errors in citing from yesterday and discussed how to format our works cited page. Then we learned about passive words (is, are, were, was, been). We found all of the passive words in our 2nd drafts and worked on changing it to an active voice. Journals are due either today (for chap. 1-7) or Monday (for chap. 1-9). For the last few minutes of class, papers were passed back and Mrs. Gilbert told us what to expect the rest of the semester.
Have a good weekend * Nicky *

Time to talk about characters.

Today we took a quiz on “The Power of One” chapters 1-6. We also made a poster on characters in the book, found quotes that described them, and identified literary techniques in the quotes. Also we practiced citation. Homework: Have rough draft #2 done by tomorrow (12/2/05) and bring your audio tape.

--JJ

Revision, revision

We began with revisions on an example paper and reviewed how we should apply them to our own papers. Then we went over when you have to turn in a rough draft for a tape.

Mrs. Gilbert passed out progress reports and then had make-up time for the rest of the hour.

Tomorrow will have a quiz on the Power of One.

Kirstin

Revising RD #1

Today we got our rough drafts checked by Mrs. Gilbert and then we went over various things to make our paper better In those things we completed a fill in the blank that will aid us in making our final paper better. (Be sure to pick up the handout and copy notes from a classmate).

Tomorrow you need to show Mrs. Gilbert that you have improved your RD and Friday your RD #2 is due.

You still have to read chapter 5 tonight, but you may skip journaling if need be.

Mike C.

Wrap-up TFA / Begin Power discussions

November 28, 2005

Bellwork
Answer questions regarding Things Fall Apart (get them from Mrs. Gilbert)
Group Discussion
Class Discussion
Assignment
Answer questions about The Power of One (get them from Mrs. Gilbert)
Group Discussion
Class Discussion

Gave us our homework: Read and Journal Chapter 4 and Rough Draft of Research paper and work cited page. (DUE TOMORROW)
Last 25 minutes of class
Work independently and silently on reading/journaling on Chapter 4.

By: Dorothea P.

Plagiarism, credibility and research standards

Today we assembled research folders -- see Mrs. Gilbert for all the handouts.

We also corrected the Plagiarism or Not! Worksheet, turned it in, and discussed how to avoid plagiarism. We discussed how to do in-text citations and rough draft bibliographies.

Then we went to the computer lab and learned how to evaluate the credibility of sources. We turned in the first page of the Searching the Web worksheet (available at our class website under the reserach section).

Tomorrow we'll start putting it all into action as we do research on our topics.

Homework: Keep journaling/reading -- Chapters 14-15.

cjg

Beginning Research reports...

Today in class we had a bell assignment that was to come up with a list of topics that you would read a magazine article about. The bell assignment led into us getting our research paper assignment, along with the rubric for our letter which is due on Monday, and also our timeline that says when everything has to be turned in. (These handouts are available on www.cjgilbert.net under ASE on the Research-Citation page.

We also presented some of our Igbo people books.

Homework: Read/journal on chapters 9-11 (if you do better on these, Mrs. G will raise your previous journal grade) and write your research proposal letter.

--Martha

The ill-fated Ikemefuna & literary journaling

Today in class, after reviewing proverbs, Mrs. Gilbert assigned everyone in the class to a group. In the groups everyone had to find a literary technique from the book Things Fall Apart but each literary term could not be used more than once. (See the instructions handout for more details) After each group finished their poster, they had to put them up on the wall under the assigned chapter. We also got a handout explaining how to add literary journaling to our nightly work.

Mrs. Gilbert then read chapter seven of Things Fall Apart aloud to the whole class and we all followed along or read ahead silently. The rest of the groups presented their literary technique posters to the class. The literary techniques presented were discussed in the class and we turned in the journals on chapters 5-6.

Tonight we have to read chapters seven and eight from Things Fall Apart and journal on them and have them ready for tomorrow.

Kwanterryia

Wrapping up the webquests

Today in class we started out in the computer lab until 2:00, this was so that our groups could finish our power-point presentations and do our self-evaluations. Self-evals, stapled with the notes, personal knowledge prompts and slide printouts are due by Friday.

We got back to class and the “literary people” did a couple more presentations. Our first group discussion happened after that over our book “Things Fall Apart”. Turn in the notes you took on that last night. Tonight’s homework is to read over the next chapters on your reading list and continue journaling.

Literary cheatsheets are due by Tuesday

Ronda

Beginning African lit

Bellwork: We turned in our “If I was going to write a paper on the Shrew” outlines and any other Nicenet work due.

During class: The next book we are reading, Things Fall Apart, takes place in Igbo culture. We will be writing a storybook as table groups comparing Igbo culture to modern culture tomorrow in the library computer lab. Mrs. Gilbert showed us an example storybook she created. We were given the process description and rubric for our task. Then we divided the group topics into individual assignments. The Things Fall Apart books were signed out and we took notes for reading the novel.

Homework: Answer your topic’s question for modern culture and read Chapter 1 in Things Fall Apart.

BY: Maggie D

Petruchio tames Kate!

Today we finished performing all of Act 4 and scene 1 from Act 5. We also got handouts on what we're doing tomorrow and over the weekend (those instructions are available online at www.cjgilbert.net under the "Taming of the Shrew" unit in ASE).

Homework: Read Act 5

Act 4 Taming of the Shrew

We watched the second half of the “wooing scene” in the classic movie version of Taming of the Shrew. Those who wanted to continue acting were assigned a role by Mrs. Gilbert (in Act 4, Scenes 1, 2, and 3 and Act 5 Scene 1). Those who wanted to have an alternative assignment picked a literary technique with a partner and prepared a presentation on where that technique is used in Act 4. Act 3 Scene 2 performed. Groups were then given 30 minutes to prepare their presentation (either acting or literary technique). All presentations need to be ready by tomorrow.

By Becca

More Shrew

In the beginning of class we found our new assigned seats. Then we had 30 minutes- the people who acted today rehearsed and the other people worked on the literary techniques packet and discussed notes from Shakespeare Alive. Then we watched acts two and three (at least scene one). At the end of class we watched some scenes from the Taming of the Shrew. Also we signed up for acting or literary terms as work for tomorrow.

Homework: Read act four of the Taming of the Shrew and if you signed up for acting tomorrow, write down some ideas you would have for adding physical humor. If you signed up for literary techniques, write down page numbers where you notice literary techniques. -Angel

HAPPY HOLLOWEEN

GET OUT YOUR PARAGRAPH ON ACT 2 AND BE READY TO WATCH A PLAY DONE BY STUDENTS
DISCUSS IN YOUR GROUPS ABOUT YOUR PARAGRAPH ON ACT 2 OF TAMING OF THE SHREW AND THE CHAPTER YOU WERE ASSIGNED FROM SHAKESPEARE ALIVE! EITHER ABOUT THE WOMEN OR ABOUT THE FAMILY
IN YOUR GROUPS FOR YOUR PLAY ALSO YOU RECEIVED YOUR CHEAT SHEET BACK GRADED AND GET HELP IN GROUP IF NEEDED BUT OTHER WISE
GET A SEAT AND WATCH THE FIRST ACT PERFORM

DAVID K.

Background on Shrew

We received a new sheet of paper telling us a story of either old English families or Women in the Renaissance. You have to take notes and right a paragraph comparing it to Act 1, which you also have to read over the weekend due on Monday. There is also a literary sheet where you test yourself and will correct on Monday with your cheat sheets. Then for the rest of the hour we got to work on all of that and get the most we could get done. Blake

Rehearsal time

Today we had to take a white piece of paper for the bell work and put who you we wanted to sit by and don’t want to sit by and any other special needs. We also signed up for scribe for 2nd quarter. After that Mrs. Gilbert collected them and we went over on how to edit are screenplays so they make more sense (get notes from a classmate). Also Mrs. Gilbert showed a scene from Kiss Me Kate to see how levels and how we need props to show what’s going on in are play. Then for the rest of the hour we got in are groups and practiced our presentations for the play

Blake
(sp.)

Starting to Tame the Shrew!

Today is the last day of the semester. Today in class we received the Taming of the Shrew and received papers that dealt with the play and the characters and also how to write an Actor's Notebook. We also went over how to perform and discuss the characters to decide on which of them that we liked. After that we went over the roles that we choose for the play. Then everyone left and that is it.

Homework is to begin filling out the Actor's Notebook.

Gavin

Exam Part 2

Today we took down our 13th Olympian posters and did the 2nd part of our final exam. We also put up our posters for our story/poem.

Homework: From a magazine, newspaper or internet, get a picture of people and lable the use of negative space, levels and leading center.

--Jack

Reflections

Hey everyone quess what we did today. Sorry u cant u werent there but to tell you we turned in are papers today and we had to write a reflection for it (see the handout Mrs. Gilbert gave out). Also we got the requirements for the style poster which is due Tuesday. Then for the rest of the class we finished the movie.

Blake

Ramping up for Shrew

Today we just did bell work, which was practicing putting commas in the right places in complex and compound sentences. After that we watched the movie “Ten Things I Hate About You.” The homework for tonight is to turn in our final draft of the comparison/contrast, along with the other work.

--Martha

Complex sentences

Bell work- each of us in our group made sentences to make a really short story.

Made 3 compound sentences from the story that we wrote

Did 3 sentences each for pattern 3 and 4 (aka complex sentences) from the punctuation pattern sheet. Switched with group member and edited their paper for proper punctuation.


Proofread rough draft # 3 for compare and contrast paper.

Final draft due Friday!

You can turn in your books anytime.

--Cristi

Final Exam Part 1.

Today in class we first talked at our tables about who we thought the tragic hero was until 1:20
40 minitues to complete you Final Exam Part 1 Essay. In your essay the Prince Of Egypt , Atigone and another Myth had be included in it.
20 minutes quiet time which was for:
redo mini essays on Atigone
Revise C/C paper

Tomorrow bring Third Rough Draft

David K

In class today we finished watching "The Prince of Egypt" that we started watching on Friday. Try to take notes, you will need them for tomorrow's Final-Part 1.
Ronda

Working on literary terms cheatsheet

We defined words from anthology books in our cheatsheet and for some of them we needed to find examples from Antigone. Look for the list of words posted in class.

We worked on introductions make sure to have: an attention getting intro with a thesis (point).

Quiz over the Antigone story tomorrow and R.D. #1 due

Erin

End of Antigone, Creon and Haimon!

Today (10-11-05) we just read and took notes on scenes 4-Exodos on the Antigone story pages 330-340. Also we talk about our compare and contrast paper. We talked about having a message/point in your paper. Another thing we talked about was the body paragraphs. The first sentence deals with the main connecting points. The middle sentences descriptively shares info for both stories and make connections between the two stories. And the last sentence deals with making connections between the two stories. Homework: Write 3 body paragraphs that are due tomorrow (10-12-05).

JJ

The plot thickens: Antigone

Bellwork:
Turn in you c/c chart
Make a list of key quotes made by Antigone and Ismene in the Prologue of Antigone

After our bellwork, we discussed how to properly read our lines in Antigone. You need to open your mouth and speak clearly and loudly. Make sure you are sitting up straight with both feet on the floor or stand. Next, we read Scenes 1-3 in Antigone. We had a worksheet of questions to discuss on Scenes 1 and 2. We wrote down key quotes of Creon and the Sentry in Scene 1.

Homework: Write down key quotes from the characters in Scenes 2 and 3.

E.C.: Read Scene 4 and write a paragraph summary for 10-11-05.

Maggie

Beginning Antigone and C/C paper

We went around reading everyone’s final drafts, and putting down comments about we thought about it. Turn in the final.
We voted between Julius Caesar and Taming of the Shrew (Shrew won)
We received another packet of poems (save for next week)

David and Ronda played out the first scene of the play of Antigone.
We all were assigned a part to the play to read over the weekend.

AND, we were assigned to do the pre-work chart for a compare/ contrast paper. Instructions for the paper can be found online at www.cjgilbert.net under Mythology under C/C paper.

--Written by Ashley, typed by Blake

C/C Bible/Other myths

Today we started with a review worksheet on compound sentences; we corrected it as practice and we will have a quiz over it in the near future.

Then we spent time in groups discussing the Bible stories we read on Tuesday. Then we got in smaller groups (3-4) to make a compare/contrast (c/c) chart between one Bible myth and another myth. Each person had to translate one part of the chart into a body paragraph for a "group" essay. These were taped to construction paper and turned in.

Finally, we signed out Platinum edition anthologies and everyone has to read pages 308-309 for tomorrow to prepare for our next story: Antigone.

REMINDER: Final draft of Olympian is due tomorrow. Don't forget to organize your papers according to the handout you received in class today.

Compound Sentences

Today we did a quick review of parts-of-speech via some more mad libs. Then we got Punctuation Pattern sheets and discussed the differences between simple and compound sentences, and between compound subjects/predicates and compound sentences. Then we wrote 9 sentences on lined paper: 1 simple with a compound subject, 1 simple with a compound predicate, 7 compound sentences using each of the main coordination conjunctions once (and, or, for, so, yet, but). We turned them in for credit.

The we took notes on how to do a better job of proofreading our Olympian projects. Everyone is supposed to proofread their 3rd rough draft at least 3 times before writing their final for Friday.

Then we shared some allusions.

Schoolhouse Rock & Bible-as-Literature

Today we made up stories about random subjects where we had to fill in the blanks with the grammatically correct word. We had to get in group of 2 and then make the story (Mad Libs) then get together with another group and have them fill in our story with random words in the blanks.

We also started to talk about famous Bible stories and some of were assigned as leaders for reading these stories. After that we made posters in different groups about certain stories that we were assigned to. Then we all took notes on the other stories that we learned about from the other groups.


Homework was to bring 3 high level questions about Bible stories and other stories we read and bring in 3rd rough draft on Olympian story.

--Rod

Poetry & Discussion

-Write letter to someone about his or her poem and tell him or her 3-5 things that you liked.
-Revise Olympian story to include dialogue, description, and figurative language.
-Write high level 3 questions connecting Greek/Norse/World Mythology.
-Discuss The questions in groups and write down good points.
-3rd rough draft due Wednesday for Olympian story.-Everything about Olympian due Friday.

--Josh P.

Wrapping up loose ends

Today we turned our poems in Make sure you turn in all the rough drafts as well as the fill-in-the-blank worksheet. Also, on a sheet on lined paper describe how your poem changed between drafts to become better and how you feel about your poem and why .

Then we watched scenes from Lord of the Rings to see Norse mythology.

We also got our mythology tests back and mock-meap multiple choice. Extra credit options are available after school if you see Mrs. Gilbert

HOMEWORK: Rough drafts #2 of 13th Olympian due on Monday (be sure to double-space it) and Final draft (with visual) will be due on Wednesday.

-Angel

More myths - here and around the world

Peer Revision:
Read your Olympian story to your group and get feedback. Fill out the sheet that was handed out on Wednesday.

Drafting Time:
Time to apply feedback to Olympian story.

Story Packet: Read packet of stories from other countries and apply them to Greek mythology stories. Make a compare and contrast chart with a partner. Turn it in.

Reminder: Final draft of poem due tomorrow! With rough drafts and scoring rubric!

By: Naudia

Line Breaks & Norse Mythology

We discussed the new way Mrs. Gilbert wanted us to do our compare and contrast charts. We got in groups and practiced these charts by comparing Norse myths to Greek myths . We also went over the process of formatting poems (such as line breaks, indentations, creative grammar etc.)

We also got our assignments for tomorrow since Mrs. Gilbert will be gone. We'll need our rough draft of our Olympian story to work on in class and our final draft of our poem is due on Friday (along with the rough drafts and the grading sheets)

By Kwanterria

Day 2 of Mock-MEAP

Today we did the writing part of the mock MEAP test and we have have home work to read pages 443-444, 447-463. You have to know these people, places, and things

Gods Odin, Loki, Thor, Freya, and Balden
Mortals: Signy and sigmond
Brynhaid, sigold, and gummer
Places:Asgard, Valualla, the well of wisdom
Things/other Runes, Valkyries
Creation mythes(esp Giants)

Please also bring a clean draft of your poem tomorrow for us to work on.

By Breanna

End of Mythology test

Turn in take-home essay with grading rubric stapled on top.
Finished test and watching Hercules.
EC opportunity- ask for paper
HW: Make up 13 Olympian -- who are their parents, what life events, symbols, etc. -- due Monday

RD #3 Poem DUE tomorrow along with audiocassette tape

Kylie C

Myth Test - Day 1

Today we took a test and don’t forget to turn in your take-home essays tomorrow.
-Ryan

Myth review & disc

Bell work : pick up and read worksheet about take-home essay assignment due on Thursday. Also went over the worksheet.

Bring rough draft to #2 to class, feedback #2 in groups practice more feedback over Ms. Gilberts revise poem.

Went over more mythology with picture guessing what they are & allusions on Monsters Inc.

Test tomorrow over allusions using notes past test etc.

Went to library to talk about the high level questions we wrote on tape recorder for points.

--Maddie

Mythology & Poetry Review

*“Helpful Feedback” worksheet
*Notes on “Good Critics”
*Class discussion on worksheet and notes
*Broke into groups and read poems aloud and finished filling the back side of the “Helpful Feedback” which is called “Author Response to Feedback”.
*Whole class played jeopardy for mythology review.

HOMEWORK: Write 5 high-level discussion questions for tomorrow. Have the Olympians memorized. Write RD #2 of your poem.

By: Dorothea P

House of Blood & Poem Assignment

We watched the House of Atreus' presentation and turned in a matching worksheet. We also compared violence from back then to today in discussion.

The we made a list (and everyone has a copy on their poetry-definition handout) of what we should "require" for these poems. We then compared this list to the scoring guide which Mrs. Gilbert handed out.

We then had sharing time.

Homework:

• In 6.1 read the stories of Midas and Glaucus/Scylla. In 6.2 read the stories of Amazons, Arachne, Chiron, and Sisyphus.
• Write a rough draft of a poem that you would like to work with on Monday. Keep all rough drafts of that poem and any aborted poems to count as credit towards your effort grade.

Bell work

-Write three sentences using three characters from the Trojan War and Fall of Troy chapters.
-Include a simile, metaphor and alliteration in the three sentences.
- Write an imaginative paragraph using imagery on what happened to women and children after the demise of troy or the Trojan War.

Mythology

Trojan War
- Jeopardy.
- Group Quiz

The Fall of Troy
- Interpretive play-doh sculpting and discussion with whole class
- Group discussion on which side you would choose in the Trojan War; the Greeks or the Trojans
- Individually write your views on the side you chose and turn it in.

Poetry
- Review I want fireworks
- Add the definitions of details, diction and parallelism to your cheat sheet.

--Laura

Hercules & Literary Terms

Today we took a little quiz over the heroes and then we played jeopardy and learned about Hercules. And went over the poems “Resume” and “I Went to the Movies Hoping Just Once the Monster Got the Girl” in the packet and took notes on our cheatsheet about imagery, metaphor, simile, and alliteration. -- Josh W.

Perseus & Theseus

Today the groups of Theseus and Perseus went. The team Perseus made us do skits on that chapter and discuss whether someone can avoid their fate (you will need to turn this in in writing if you were absent). It was ok.

Then Theseus’ group played a question game, and you had to answer various questions from that group. You have to turn in a paragraph on different subjects (see the Theseus group for the prompt.)

For Bell work we had to write down in our journals the different things that we dislike and what we like in poetry -- get the notes from someone else about the class-combined list.

Kirsten

True Love vs. True Betrayal

Bell work- poem packet. Star 4-5 poems you’d like to read. Underline/star lines you like. Write questions or reactions in the margins. We will use these poems tomorrow along with the literary cheatsheet.

Edith Hamiltons’s Vocab -- write'em down if you don't know them.
Hussy- 1. A woman considered brazen or immoral. 2. A saucy or impudent girl.
Lamentable- 1. Inspiring or deserving of lament or regret; deplorable or pitiable.
Usurper- 1. One who seizes another’s place, authority, or possessions wrongfully.
Ornament- 1. Something that decorates or adorns; an embellishment.

We rearranged the tables to make them into the groups of our stories.

Discussion about message boards. If you have a joke, mark it as so. No all CAPS.

Cupid & Psyche
Broke into 3 groups, each group got a different discussion question (graded).
- In what ways do you think Cupid & Psyche’s relationship would have progressed if Venus would not have interfered?
- Describe a time that you were in a situation like Psyche’s (not necessarily in love) and the things you did to get what you wanted.
- Compare the love life of Cupid & Psyche to the stories of those today.
Cupid & Psyche Jeopardy

Jason and the Golden Fleece
Jeopardy
Higher order thinking question(graded) : Expand on the idea of Jason loving Medea

Reading (& notes) for tomorrow: 3.1 & 3.2

by Loren

Online discussion boards & group prep.

After some journal time, we finished reading partner interviews and shared some journals aloud. Next week we'll be getting into some poetry, so brace yourselves.

Groups then had 15 minutes to finish writing their lesson plans for their group presentations next week. They had to be turned in to the box before we left for the computer lab.

In the computer lab, we went to www.cjgilbert.net and clicked on the "ASE" then "Mythology" and then "Communicating with Email & Discussion Boards"

We SKIPPED the first three steps because Mrs. Gilbert found out we could no longer use that website. We started directly at step #4, and as a result, everyone has to make sure to respond to the "REQUIRED" topic to make up for skipping steps #1-3.

Homework: Minimum: Read and take notes on Psyche & Cupid AND The Quest for the Golden Fleece. IDEALLY: Read ahead so that next week will be easier on you!

Michael B.: I'm going to give you the class key in a "coded" message so that strangers can not log in to our message board. The number is 5*26#80A*6 BUT replace both of the astericks * with the first letter in the name of the guy who overthrew Cronus and freed his brothers/sisters, AND replace the # with the first digit of your house address. If you can't figure it out, email me.

Prepping for Myth Teaching Groups

Bell assignment was Helpful/ Unhelpful worksheet

Test on the story we signed up for

Went over Mythology Teaching Groups rubric

Talked in groups about out topic and turned in lesson plans.

Homework: Bring username & password to class, as well as handouts/questions for next week, and 2 creative lies and 1 interesting truth about yourself.

Michael C

Greek Soap Operas

Today in class we first signed our name on the board for groups for the book. All the groups goes up in front of class and acts out their stories.

Then we got this packet with words that we had to fill out only the definitions we knew and we as a class will go over the rest.

After a while we put our names on the board for another group presentation that is due a next week and the group you picked is the chapter you need to read tonight.

Quiz tomorrow!


David K.

Playdough mythology

by Becca F.

Bellwork
10 Minute Journal Writing
Optional Prompts: “Nothing ever happens in my neighborhood except…” OR “I don’t remember when…”
Mrs. Gilbert talked about adding Sensory Details (sight, taste, touch, hearing, smell) to your writing
4 minutes to revise a past journal entry, adding more detail
2 minutes to share with a partner
Don’t Forget: Weekend Journal writing (thirty minutes), Journals will be collected at the end of this week or beginning of next

Read 8 Interviews/Introductions

Reviewed Stories from Weekend’s Reading with Play Dough symbols and Partners,
Then as a Class

Make or Revise a Story for Mythology with a Partner
Teach a lesson or Explain why something is (Why is this flower here? Children, obey your parents.)
Write it on a paper
Play Dough symbol for your story
Homework: Don’t forget to take notes on 2.2 and 3.4 and wear comfy clothes.

Thursday -- Journaling, Open-mic, & Quiz

Today we spent time journaling and then sharing some of those journals aloud (and some people made us cry). Then we took a quiz over class procedures, policies, rules and some of mythology so far. We corrected some of it as a class and Mrs. Gilbert will do the rest. We held off on the names part of the quiz because we hadn't finished reading the interviews.

Tuesday we will be talking about 1.4 and 2.4. Be sure to take notes on what you read!
Also: Please journal for 30 minutes over the weekend.

Happy Labor Day!

Debriefing the drill, defining respect & high-level thinking

Today we spent the first 25 minutes of class debriefing from the mock disaster drill.

Then we spend time reviewing class expectations for respectful behavior.

Finally, we spent the last 40 minutes of class taking notes on what qualifies as high-level thinking, writing high-level discussion questions, and then writing answers to the high-level questions.

The reading schedule has been modified: 1.4 is still assigned, but we won't be discussing it until Tues. 9/6 when we also discuss 2.4

Tomorrow: Quiz on names, procedures, policies, rules and chapters 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3

Potatos & Creation Myths

Today we used potatos as a metaphor for writing and spend about 15 minutes writing in our journals. We will write in them regularly in class and sometimes out of class. Mrs. Gilbert will collect them occasionally for credit.

We also did a timeline & family tree for creation myths. This will be collected at the time of our next quiz (e.g. Thursday). Then we spent time discussing some of the issues involved in creation myths.

We also heard from Mr. Barney over the PA and got a letter to take home to our parents.

The reading for tonight is 1.2 and everyone should come prepared to talk about Dionysus, Demeter and Persephone.

Olympians, classmates and drills

Today we showed our Olympian Graphic Organizers to Mrs. Gilbert for points and we took a quiz over our reading (but we could use our notes on it).

We also read more partner interviews and discussed how to reconcile the different likes/dislikes of people in class (e.g. talking vs. quiet, group work vs. alone, etc.)

Mr. Barney also spoke to us (via P.A.) about the need to be calm and cooperative during disaster drills -- because sometime this week we will have a disaster drill complete with emergency personnel and everything.

The reading for tonight is 1.3. Students should plans on making a timeline and/or family tree as notes, but they'll also have 10-15 minutes in class to work on it as well tomorrow.

Introduction to Mythology

Today we started by reviewing any questions about procedures -- we'll do more with them next week. After a severe weather drill, we started getting into Mythology. We also did an "Instant Expert" activity to just start to get to know the characters. Then we signed out books, got the study guide and reading schedule, and also got our first assignment -- to read 1.1 and make a graphic organizer on the 12 Olympians by Monday. All the handouts (including the graphic organizer rubric) are available on www.cjgilbert.net under the Mythology Unit in ASE.

Be sure to come prepared Monday with your book, graphic organizer and your notebook for writing.

Respect, Procedures & Drills

Today we self-evaluated our peer interviews and then turned them in after reading some aloud. We also brainstormed ways to show respect during different situations (group work, whole-class discussion, etc.) Then, while the Math/Science Center students went to a meeting, we reviewed class procedures (everyone, including M/SC, is to read the handout as homework) and reviewed where we are to meet in case of fire drill.

Popping Balloons & Interviewing Partners

Today we burst at the seams as we added several new students, but we persisted in learning more about the class and the expectations.

We wrote about using balloons and bamboo skewers as metaphors for trying new things (like starting a challenging class).

We also began partner interviews in order to get to know each other-- everyone should write the final draft of their partner interview as homework and be prepared to read it aloud to class tomorrow.

Additionally, everyone should bring back the parent signature slip for their syllabus and be familiar with the contents of the syllabus.

Students who were absent yesterday received a folder of make-up work that should be returned tomorrow.

Welcome to a new school year!

Today we met for 30 minutes and completed the "First Day Folder." As homework, students should bring their syllabus home to share with their parents and get it signed.

Math/Science Center students will need to complete this folder as homework tomorrow.