Test Friday, May 22, 2009

Know the terms below and be able to relate them to Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress:

SETTING
MOOD
THEME
TONE
CONFLICT (MAN VS. MAN, MAN VS. NATURE, MAN VS. SOCIETY)
SIMILE
METAPHOR
COMING OF AGE
PROTAGONIST
STATIC CHARACTER
ROUND CHARACTER
*PLOT (know the story from beginning to end!)

HW Due Monday, May 11

Read and annotate up to page 89 for Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. Post-it annotations should focus on the thematic statements we discussed in class. Make a case for or against the statements as you read.

Thematic Statements to Agree or Disagree With:
People are untrustworthy by nature.
People learn to manipulate when freedoms are taken from them.
Love cannot be trusted.
We should not trust people because we will end up disappointed.
Some people are natural leaders.

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Check the Writing Portfolio Timeline (packet and Blog post) for important due dates!

Reading Schedule: Balzac...

Week of May 4th
Monday: 19-30
Tuesday:31-42
Wednesday:43-54
Thursday:55-66
Friday:67-89

Week of May 11th
Monday:90-101
Tuesday:102-112
Wednesday:113-123
Thursday:124-135
Friday:136-151

Week of May 18th
Monday:152-163
Tuesday:164-175
Wednesday:176-184 (END OF NOVEL)

UNIT TEST: FRIDAY, MAY 22

Writing Portfolio Timeline

Wednesday, April 29
Writing Portfolio Assignment Details (packet)


Monday, May 11
Reading Log
Recommended Reading List


Monday, May 18
Literary Response and Expression section
Lit. Response Growth Reflection


Monday, May 25
(Memorial Day, No School)


Tuesday, May 26
Critical Analysis and Evaluation section
Crit. An./Eval. Growth Reflection


Friday, May 29
Information and Understanding section
Info/Und. Growth Reflection


Monday, June 1
Overall Self-Reflection


Tuesday, June 2
Table of Contents
Cover Page


Wednesday, June 3
Checked-off Checklist
Blank Rubric
Organize into binder with dividers


Thursday, June 4
No School for Students


Friday, June 5
Writing Portfolio Due (at the beginning of class)

*Conferences June 7th-11th

Reading Strategy: After Each Paragraph, Choose 1

When you read challenging texts, you automatically either 1)summarize in your head 2)ask yourself a question 3) make a prediction or 4)demand clarity

Here's what that means: when reading a challenging text, you need to stop after each paragragraph, or few paragraphs, and use a combination of the following strategies (like we did in class with Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress today!!!!):

1. Summarizing / Self-Review
From what we've read so far, I can tell that...

2. Ask a Question / Self-Testing
Literal: Who calls the violin a "wiolin"?
Interpretive: What is Luo trying to do when he points out that he and the Seamstress share a common 'foot trait'?
Analytical: Who does the Seamstress like better? Why does she like him better?
Applied: What human emotions inspire fear?

3. Predicting / Setting the Stage for Further Reading
Based on...... and what I have read so far, I predict...

4. Demanding Clarity / Breaking Down the Text
I need some clarification about... I am guessing it is...

* Add these strategies to your stock of post-it annotation ideas!

Week of May 4th Reading Strategy Homework

Use one of the sentence starters below to expand on a thought that we discussed in class, or a new idea about the text. (Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress / Chp.1)

I wonder...
I began to think of...
I like the idea...
I know the feeling...
I noticed...
I was surprised...
If I had been...
I was reminded of...

TIPS
*If you get writer's block, here are some options:
Feelings (boring, sad, exciting, weird)
Questions (I wonder why the author put in certain parts....)
Images (pictures in the mind, sensory responses)
Favorite (or detested) words and phrases
Echoes (of other books, movies, television shows, headlines, songs, poems)
Reaction to characters or events (That Assef is such a snake!)
Memories (people, events, places you've known)
Connections (to other ideas, people, feelings, books)

HW Due Tuesday, April 28

The Joy Luck Club
Amy Tan

1. Analyze the excerpt from Amy Tan’s “Four Directions:”
My mother was doing it again, making me see black where I once saw white. In her hands, I always became the pawn. I could only run away. And she was the queen, able to move in all directions, relentless in her pursuit, always able to find my weakest spots. (199)

2. Analyze the excerpt from Amy Tan’s “The Rules of the Game:”
“Ma, it’s not how many pieces you lose,” I said. “Sometimes you need to lose pieces to get ahead.” (98)

3. In the poem, “Night Light,” what does the mother’s action in lines 4 and 5 demonstrate about her concern for the child? Explain.

4. Identify and describe the speaker of the poem, “Night Light.” What kind of person is the speaker? How do you know?

5. In the poem, “Night Light,” what does the phrase “blue irises” (line 9) refer to?

6. In the poem, “Night Light,” what idea about the parent and child is conveyed in lines 13 and 14? Explain.

7. Compare and contrast the parent child relationship in “Night Light” to Waverly’s relationship with her mother. Where do you see similarities? Where do you see differences?


* Thes essay on the worksheet will be done in class TOMORROW. Do NOT do it tonight for homework.

HW Due Monday, April 27

Read and annotate Amy Tan's "Four Directions."

Also- Finish your "found" poems to share in class!

HW Due Friday, April 24

Vocabulary Packet due.

Questions for "The Rules of the Game."

*Bring in a poem that you have written (optional homework).

HW Due Wednesday, April 21

Write a letter to Amy Tan, the author of "The Moon Lady" about her story. Demonstrate your knowledge of the five grammar/style rules we have been focusing on in class:

1.Form the possessive singular of a noun by adding ‘s.
2.In a series of three or more terms with a single conjunction, use a comma after each term except the last.
3.Enclose parenthetic expressions between commas.
4.Place a comma before a conjunction introducing an independent clause.
5.Use a semicolon if two or more clauses are grammatically complete and not joined by a conjunction.

* Cite the grammar rule in parenthesis after the sentence that reflects it.

SUGGESTIONS FOR YOUR LETTER:
- Talk about the imagery she uses. Do you like it? Dislike it? Why?
- Tell the author about how you connect to the characters.
- Make suggestions to Amy Tan about how the story could have ended differently.