APELC Class Notes
Objectives: APELCers processed texts from multiple genres.
Period 3 juniors and seniors, a neat day today with good discussion over the Miner piece (that fooled far too many of you), Michelangelo’s The Last Judgment (which I’ve included below), and WB Yeats’ “The Second Coming” (unnecessary parentheses added to maintain parallel structure).
Seals of Excellence documents need to be completed and returned to me no later than 3:30 pm, Friday.
One more thing, have you done anything about the genocide in Darfur today? Do you know that the situation in Sudan is just over six years old? Do you realize that the (ongoing) mass-killing and rape of men, women, and children in Darfur is the third conflict of its type in the last fifteen years? Follow the news at the NewHour’s The Darfur Crisis, or, even better, investigate opportunities to help at Stop Genocide Now.
English 9 Class Notes
Objectives: Freshmen 1) identified and corrected conventions errors in consultative, written language, and 2) identified and explained character, setting, idiom, plot, imagery, irony, foreshadowing, point of view, motif, symbol, and theme in autobiography.
First freshmen, our conventions practice was interrupted by a fire drill, but we finished when we returned to class and we also completed the audio text of “The Village Watchman”. I’m grateful to Austin today for sharing a bit of his Mormon worldview and highlighting some of the LDS-specific references in the text.
I’ll be out Thursday, but you’ll see me at the assembly.
Until then.
APELC Class Notes
Objective: APELCers responded to their peers’ process analysis drafts.
Juniors and seniors, you did as the objective states today. Please check your assignments list carefully. Because of the late-in days, I’ve planned the same for Tuesday and Friday, and for Wednesday and Thursday, so pay close attention to material and dates for this week.
See you next class.
English 9 Class Notes
Objectives: Freshmen identified and explained character, setting, idiom, plot, imagery, irony, foreshadowing, point of view, motif, symbol, and theme in autobiography.
Again freshmen, the objectives were more goals today than others, but we began to work with imagery in the initial scene of the totem pole in the story. We’ll work at identifying and explaining the others next class as we proceed with and finish the short Williams text.
Note that the due dates for the answers to the questions associated with the text has changed. Please check your class page for details.
See you next class.
APELC Class Notes
Third juniors and seniors, with plenty of you out today we still went over what your colleagues did on Tuesday (because of the number of presentations we still had to hear and because of our unusual schedule this week).
Please attend your class page for homework details, and have a great weekend.
English 9 Class Notes
Periods 2 and 6, please check yesterday’s first period notes objectives and details, and please attend the homework on your class page.
See you Monday.
APELC Class Notes
Objectives: APELCers will explain and identify speech acts.
Third period juniors and seniors, we discussed speech acts today, a neat and interesting way of examining the way we speak and the content and force our speech carries. Dig more about speech act theory at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
Please attend the details of your homework on your class page.
See you next week.
English 9 Class Notes
Objective: Freshmen began drafting an expository paragraph about symbols in autobiography.
First freshmen, we spent some time discussing symbols in “Graduation” before I gave you the task of drafting a paragraph as indicated in the objective. You chose three important symbols in the autobiographical excerpt and commenced work writing about their importance.
Please attend your class page for homework details, and have a good weekend.
APELC Class Notes
Fourth juniors and seniors, with our short day we were able to (almost) finish your worldview presentations with Tim explaining Marxism; Jackie, anarchism; Keerthana, white supremacy; and Jordan, existentialism (no cutsie verbs today, not feelin’ it).
Here’s a clip I mentioned that was taken by the rebels who occupied the NYU student union: “The Painfully Ridiculous End to the NYU Revolution” (remember the language warning I gave you). And, for a laugh and to punctuate Jordan’s presentation on the absence of meaning from and the absurdity of life according to the existential worldview, here’s the Onion News Network report I talked up in class:
Find out more about the author.
English 9 Class Notes
Periods 2 and 6, we weren’t able to tackle the conventions practice today as your first period colleagues did yesterday and we rushed a bit through the remainder of “Graduation” but we should be on track for Friday for you to begin (and perhaps complete for those industrious among you) your three-chunk paragraph.
Here’s a clip of “Lift Every Voice”, aka “The Negro National Anthem”, that was so important to Maya Angelou and her classmates that day in 1940.
APELC Class Notes
Objectives: APELCers processed texts from multiple genres.
Period 3 juniors and seniors, I shared with you a clip from my favorite sketch comedy of all time (see the troupe’s official site) which I thought apros pos of our next unit on process analysis.
You processed and examined the Eadweard Muybridge piece that opened the chapter and I asked you to describe the process of the bird’s flight. (For more on the artist see the Muybridge Collection at the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames.) We moved to the Mitford text which elicited some neat discussion about the physical processes of death, composition, and funerary illusion. I mentioned that I want to be used in a body farm, and I also pointed to an interesting book, Stiff, by Mary Roach, which Salon excerpted, “Dead man decomposing”.
BONUS. Here’s a clip from National Geographic about body farms.
English 9 Class Notes
Objectives: Freshmen 1) identified and corrected conventions errors in consultative, written language, and 2) identified and explained character, setting, idiom, plot, imagery, irony, foreshadowing, point of view, motif, symbol, and theme in autobiography.
First period freshmen, today after tackling some conventions errors we completed “Graduation”. We broadened our identification and explanation today to include more of those concepts listed in the objectives. You’re proficiency is growing and I like it; we had some good discussion today about the implications of Mr. Donleavy’s speech and whether or not expectations based on race still exist today.
Remember to bring your paragraph template next class.
APELC Class Notes
Objective: APELCers wrote an argument.
Juniors and seniors, I’ll attempt to have your papers back to you Thursday and I’ll post the revision-conference sign-up sheet then, too. Remember also that Thursday is the last day to register for the APELC exam in the book store; don’t let class or test performance fears prohibit you from taking the exam. As I explained in class, I have every faith that each one of you will do exactly as you’re prepared to do on the exam.
Please check your class page for homework details.
English 9 Class Notes
Objectives: Freshmen identified and explained character, setting, idiom, plot, imagery, irony, point of view, motif, symbol, and theme in autobiography.
Freshmen, you approached some of the concepts listed above but not all. We’ll get to them in turn as we proceed with “Graduation”, which we read and discussed today. We’ll try to finish next class. Remember that the answers to the assigned questions over the reading are due at the end of tutoring Tuesday for first period and the at the end of tutoring Thursday for second and sixth period.
See you next class.
Academic Integrity
Here’re two links that you should be examine carefully: the University of Arizona’s Code of Academic Integrity and Pima Community College’s Code of Academic Ethics. I mentioned academic integrity in class, and I wanted to follow-up here.
Those of you that’ll be attending a post-secondary institution’ll be responsible for following your college’s or university’s rules of academic integrity. Because information in the modern world is so abundant and available, it’s vital that you pay attention to guidelines that help you present and submit your own original work in an academic environment. So when I stress to you the importance of citing quotations and paraphrases of others’ works and words, I’m not just blowing hot air.
You’ll have some brief introduction to academic integrity at freshmen orientation, but it probably won’t be taught to you in clever ways with worksheets; you won’t Think-Pair-Share about it; and you won’t break into groups for a project on it. You’ll simply be required to attend it on your own, and that’ll also mean learning the style guidelines for your particular discipline (MLA, APA, Chicago, et cetera), for the most part, on your own as well.
Most institutions maintain a zero-tolerance policy toward instances of plagiarism, cheating, and other (not-so) scholarly chicanery. Violations (even accidental) or perceived violations (no matter how innocuous you may think them) are very serious and can severely damage all of the hard work you put-in getting to your dream-college. They can result in academic probation, suspension, and even expulsion.
So, I again encourage you to take seriously my admonition about citing other authors’ in your papers and formatting your work correctly.
I hope you’re enjoying your break.
See you Monday.
APELC Class Notes
Fourth period APELCers, Jen shared Platonism, Daniel unveiled Mormonism, Jean-Paul revealed theistic Satanism, Yixuan shared her suffering with Buddhism, and Angelica helped us achieve serenity now through Shambhala.
We still have to hear from Keerthana, Tim, Jackie, and Jordan when we get back. They’ll need to be ready Wednesday.
In an effort to highlight the importance of academic integrity, I’ll post some links to resources you should consider when adhering to and formatting your papers according to a style guide such as MLA. This isn’t to accuse any student of transgressions; rather it’s to make you aware of the seriousness of (even accidentally) violating academic integrity codes. Check back later next week.
English 9 Class Notes
Periods 2 and 6 freshmen, we did the same as your peers did yesterday. Please remember that you need to have your reading done by the time we return Monday, and that the answers to the After Reading questions I assigned are due at the end of tutoring the Wednesday.
Don’t miss any opportunity to improve your grade this quarter, no matter where on the scale your current grade rests. If you’re in the A or B category, don’t rest on your accomplishments, and if you’re in the C or D category and even lower, don’t not work to the best of your ability.
Have a great and we’ll see each other when we get back.
APELC Class Notes
Objectives: APELCers presented their worldview research.
Third junior and seniors, Kerri told us what worked and what didn’t with pragmatism, Nora gave us a spirited presentation on Shinto, Lauren lead us down the eight-fold path of Buddhism, Andrew made us feel like family through Confucianism, then Hal made us despair with existentialism, but finally, Megan helped us feel good again with the “spiritual junk food” of Wicca. Good presentations by all.
A couple of other reminders for your final drafts due the day we get back: 1) make sure you have all of your sources accounted for according to the details I laid out in the assignment document, and 2) don’t forget to include two images, contextualized and explained and cited, 3) edit and revise carefully for content, including the modes you’re working with (narration, exposition, evaluation), and style (according to the MLA guidelines.
Please don’t diminish your hard work by ignoring (tedious but) easy formatting details.
English 9 Class Notes
Objectives: Freshmen 1) identified and corrected conventions errors in consultative, written language, and 2) identified and explain character, setting, idiom, plot, imagery, irony, foreshadowing, point of view, motif, symbol, and theme in an autobiography.
First period freshmen, we began as the objectives state and then I introduced you to a new piece of autobiographical text by Maya Angelou, “Graduation”.
You had time to begin before reading and story notes, and I gave you your homework, the due date for which is not what you’re used to. Remember that the answers to the questions that I’ve assigned over the reading are due at the end of tutoring Tuesday, the week we get back.
This is your opportunity to make the most of our last nine weeks together. Make it count: Do your best every time.
APELC Class Notes
Fourth juniors and seniors, today Ben greened us with environmentalism, Heather introduced us to LaVayan Satanism, and Petra Communized us all after we spent our last day in the liberry where you spent time banging out more of your expository/narrative/evaluative research papers.
Please read over your peers’ notes from yesterday carefully. Again, please read over your peers’ notes from yesterday carefully.