Watching Movies in Class!

One of the Washington State Learning Standards ("Common Core") requires you to "Analyze the representation of a subject or a key scene in two different mediums, including what is emphasized or absent in each treatment." While we've been reading Romeo and Juliet we've been watching parts of two different film versions of the play.

Overall, how is viewing the films adding to and enhancing your understanding of the play? Are you able to view the film through your "lens"?

In your first paragraph for this post:
1. Describe your "lens" in detail. Be specific. For example, rather than saying your lens is character development, tell me what you are specifically noticing about both of the title characters.
2. Discuss what you notice about your "lens" in the film. Is it different or the same as it is in the text? Give specific details from one or both of the films.

In your second paragraph for this post:
1. Write about how viewing the films is adding to your overall understanding of the language, themes and characters. Give a specific example of something you didn't quite understand until you saw it in the film.
2. What do you like about watching the films as we read? Which film do you prefer and why?

Due Monday, December 7.

What do you like about Romeo and Juliet?

We are in our second week of studying Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. What are you liking about it so far? How are things going for you in class? Write one paragraph and give specific examples to support your ideas about what you are enjoying in the play and in class.

Also, what is your "lens?" What are you looking for as you read and work on annotations? Which learning standard are you working on? What have you found so far and how are you making connections? Write a paragraph on your specific focus in the play and what you are finding.

This two paragraph post is due Monday, November 23.

Beginning Romeo and Juliet

I am so excited to begin reading Romeo and Juliet with you! We're going to read the play out loud, act out scenes, watch film versions and engage in discussions about the themes, characters and language in the play.

What is your level of experience with Shakespeare? Have you ever seen, read or performed in a Shakespeare play? How familiar are you with Romeo and Juliet and where does this familiarity come from? If you do know the play, what do you think about it? Write one paragraph about your thoughts on Shakespeare and Romeo and Juliet from your previous experience.

For the second paragraph, write about what you hope to do and achieve in class over the next six weeks or so? Are you looking forward to reading the play out loud? Are you excited to get out of your seat and act? Write about what you hope we will do in class and why. Also, set a goal for yourself. What would you like to achieve in class? Think about your current level of participation and your ability to find important quotes and write inferences - how can you push yourself to achieve more in class with this new unit?

This blog post is due Monday, November 9.

Getting Ready to Analyze To Kill a Mockingbird

As we are finishing the novel this week, next week you will be working on literary analysis. For a writing warm-up, write this week's blog posts about what you find most interesting or compelling about To Kill a Mockingbird.

You can choose to write about the author's use of one of the glossary items we have covered in class, or just write about what you like about the book.

Write one detailed paragraph for this post.

Due Monday, October 26.

Life Lessons

Throughout the first part of To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout learns important life lessons from her father, Atticus. After discussing characterization of Atticus in class this week, what do you consider to be the most important life lesson Atticus teaches Scout? Think about your own childhood - what are some of the most important life lessons you learned from a significant adult in your life?

The first paragraph for this post should focus on describing the most important lesson Scout learns from Atticus in part one of the novel. Briefly explain what prompts the lesson in the book and how Atticus teaches the lesson. For a more advanced analysis of the life lesson, include the effect of this part of the book on you, the reader. Why is this important? How does it add to your understanding of the characters and the novel as a whole?

For the second paragraph, describe an important life lesson you learned from a significant adult in your life (parent, teacher, close family friend, etc.) when you were younger. What prompted the lesson and how did it impact the person you are now?

This post is due Monday, October 12.

Family Background and Social Environment

In the first few chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee spends some time giving details of her family's ancestry and how they came to be living in Maycomb County. She also gives details about they types of people living in Maycomb in order to give the reader a clear picture of the setting. Through the details of the Finch family history and the way Scout and her family interact with other characters in the town the reader can make important inferences about the social environment of the book's setting.

For the first part of this blog post, consider how you came to be living in Olympia. How did your parent(s) end up in Olympia? Does your family have deep roots in this town, going back several generations, or did an outside force bring them here? Talk to your parents about this and write a paragraph about how you came to be living in our community.

For the second paragraph of the post, describe how you view our social environment. What is it like to be living in Olympia, Washington in October 2015? When an author chooses a setting for a story, she considers the way of life, way of talking and behaving, clothing, gender roles, traditions, values attitudes, customs and beliefs of the people who inhabit the setting. What is the cultural backdrop in our town? How does it effect you? Write a paragraph about the social environment in modern-day Olympia.

Due Monday, October 4.

Introduction and Symbolism

Welcome to Honors English! I'm so excited to be your teacher this year. Throughout both semesters, I will post weekly or semi-weekly assignments on this blog and you will need to read the assignments and respond to them on your own personal English blog.

For your first blog post, introduce yourself to your readers. While your main audience will be me (your teacher) other classmates or other literature enthusiasts may be reading your blog periodically. What should your readers know about you? What makes you unique? What do you like to do in your free time? The majority of your blog posts will be responses to the reading we do in class. What type of a reader are you? What types of books do you enjoy? When and where do you like to read? Write a paragraph or so as an introduction to you, your blog, and yourself as a reader.

For the second paragraph, write about a book that you read recently that you enjoyed. The first literary term we discussed in class is symbolism. As your notes recall, a symbol is something that is itself and also stands for something else. Find and post an image that is symbolic of something important from the book you are writing about. Discuss why this is an important symbol.

I hope you enjoy keeping your blog for English. I know I will enjoy reading your posts. Please see me in class or email me if you have any trouble with your personal blog.

This first post is due Monday, September 21.