Weeks of 10/1-10/5 and 10/8-10/12 (Morris)

All Classes:
The Do Nows, DOLs and CTAs we've completed can be found on this playlist.  Every Monday is a Do Now (for SAX and American Literature), every Tuesday is a DOL, every block day is a CTA, and Fridays are various activities.

SAX and American Literature:
After the Unit 1 Assessment, we talked about how to revise it.  You can just re-do any questions in Steps 3-4 that you missed, and you'll get the points back.  For the Proficiency Scale, you need to compare your answers to the ones we develop in these videos - how were your answers similar/different from ours?  What did you learn about the text from watching the videos?

We also viewed this video in some classes to help define what this class is all about.

American Literature:

1. We read "How it Feels to Be Coloured Me" and completed this assignment.
   
2. We read the first chapter of Their Eyes Were Watching God and found examples of archetypes of how women were view.
   
3. We have had two reading quizzes so far (chapters 2-4 and 5-6).
   
4. Videos for chapters 2-9 are available on this playlist, where I read the text for you.
   
5. We watched Close Read #1 and Close Read #2.
   
6. You will be choosing any passage from Chapters 5-6 and doing your own Close Read (#3), following these instructions: Choose a passage and write it out (you may write it abbreviated: "Firstline...lastline" (page) instead of copying it word for word).  Then develop a question that is asked in this passage or that can be answered through a close reading of the passage (like, Does Janie do the right thing?  What is Janie's motivation for leaving Logan?).  Finally, use evidence from the story to answer the question.  You may directly quote, but it is not required.  This is due in class on 10/10 (1st) or 10/11 (4th).
7. We will be having our first Socratic Seminar in class next week, using the question: "Is there love in any of Janie's relationships?".  You will choose either Tea Cake or Jody
8. The final major assignment in the unit is to record yourself and a small group doing Close Read #5.  More instructions to come.

SAX
All of the assignments we completed are on this playlist.  We also had a Socratic Seminar on the three texts so far: "How to Become a Writer," "Under Water," and "In the Ruins of the Future."

Then we developed a toolkit for Narrative Technique.  The list is as follows:

• relatable to reader and to "real life"
• emotional impact is in the content, not the tone/style
• descriptive, vivid imagery, and unique metaphor and similes
• tone becomes emotional when reflecting on the significance of the event and reactions to the event
• balance between fact and emotion
• leaves the reader with a clear impression, often of hope, possibility for change, or a greater appreciation of life
• the impression the reader gets is the one the author intended (you feel what the author wants you to feel)
• clear stance on an issue that is balanced and rational
• there is an underlying/deeper message, but it is subtle and/or does not have a clear/right answer

Using that list, we created Blog Post #3, where you re-read your definition essay from Unit 1 (the Life Changing Event) and evaluated its narrative according to this criteria.  Click here to log in to your blog.


Language of Humour
The main playlist for this unit is here.

We finished Unit 1 with an assessment, using David Sedaris' "City of Angels" and the South Park episode of the class' choosing.  If you missed the test, see Ms. Morris immediately.

Main Assignments:

1. Read Chapter 1 of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (H2G2)
2. Listened to the first radio drama of H2G2
3. Wrote a blog post about both texts
4. Did CTA 4 and compared the funny stories to the non-funny stories.
   
5. Wrote a monologue about an inanimate object (due to Edmodo on 10/9)
6. Analysed several examples of those monologues
7. Revised our monologues