Period 1--AP 20
We used this last class of the year to continue to work on their Life of Pi or Huckleberry Finn essays. They worked very well considering it was the last day of school! This essay is due the Friday that we are back from holidays.
Period 2--AP 30
The AP 30s weren't very lucky today and had to write their Hamlet quotation exam. Once they were finished, they were able to use the time as they saw fit to finish up various assignments before the break.
Period 3--AP 10
Well, since the end of the world didn't happen, they had to use this period to work on their Animal Farm assignments. This will be due the Friday we get back from break. Again, considering that it was the last day of classes before the break, the kids did pretty well to stay on task.
Period 4--History 10
They had this class in the comptuer lab to finish up their ABCs of the French Revolution. We will use their ABCs to study from when we get back from the break to get ready for their French Revolution exam that they'll have on Wednesday when we're back.
Merry Chistmas, Everyone, and may the New Year bring you fewer assignments and other happiness!
Monday, 24 December 2012
Thursday, 20 December 2012
December 20, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
Since the kids have been working so well in class, I've let them continue to work on their literary essays rather than starting a new unit with two days left before the break.
Period 2--AP 30
We finished the miscellaneous notes about Hamlet to finish our study of the play off. They will have a quotation exam tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
They were given this class to finish with their timed writes on Animal Farm.
Period 4--History 10
We went to the computer lab and the students had time to work on their "letters" for the ABCs of the French Revolution assignment. They will get tomorrow's class to finish this off.
Since the kids have been working so well in class, I've let them continue to work on their literary essays rather than starting a new unit with two days left before the break.
Period 2--AP 30
We finished the miscellaneous notes about Hamlet to finish our study of the play off. They will have a quotation exam tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
They were given this class to finish with their timed writes on Animal Farm.
Period 4--History 10
We went to the computer lab and the students had time to work on their "letters" for the ABCs of the French Revolution assignment. They will get tomorrow's class to finish this off.
December 19, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
Period 2--AP 30
Period 3--AP 10
The whole morning was taken up by SWAG living up to their magazine campaign promise of supplying the whole school with a pancake breakfast. There were "Christmas party" activities in period 2, and then an assembly for the senior students in period 3 where they could play games.
Period 4--History 10
The students were to use this time to research the information needed for their assigned letters to ready themselves for time in the computer lab tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
Period 3--AP 10
The whole morning was taken up by SWAG living up to their magazine campaign promise of supplying the whole school with a pancake breakfast. There were "Christmas party" activities in period 2, and then an assembly for the senior students in period 3 where they could play games.
Period 4--History 10
The students were to use this time to research the information needed for their assigned letters to ready themselves for time in the computer lab tomorrow.
Tuesday, 18 December 2012
December 18, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
The students used this time to work on their essays. It was a very productive class.
Period 2--AP 20
We are going over some of the aspects of the play that I want to make sure the students understand in regards to analysis. I have notes on the SMART board that they can copy down as they see fit. These are mostly my notes about the play and observations and critiques about it.
Period 3--AP 10
We had a timed write on Animal Farm today. They will need more time to finish this up as we were a bit late in getting started.
Period 4--History 10
We watched a quick video on Napoleon Boneparte to summarize his life and accomplishments. Then, we played some French Revolution Jeopardy and the boys won. After this, I gave them a handout with their assignment for the French Revolution on it. They are going to create an ABC booklet. Each student was assigned two letters from the alphabet to connect to the French Revolution. They have to make up a page that could be put into an ABC booklet for each of their letters. The handout has a sample on it.
The students used this time to work on their essays. It was a very productive class.
Period 2--AP 20
We are going over some of the aspects of the play that I want to make sure the students understand in regards to analysis. I have notes on the SMART board that they can copy down as they see fit. These are mostly my notes about the play and observations and critiques about it.
Period 3--AP 10
We had a timed write on Animal Farm today. They will need more time to finish this up as we were a bit late in getting started.
Period 4--History 10
We watched a quick video on Napoleon Boneparte to summarize his life and accomplishments. Then, we played some French Revolution Jeopardy and the boys won. After this, I gave them a handout with their assignment for the French Revolution on it. They are going to create an ABC booklet. Each student was assigned two letters from the alphabet to connect to the French Revolution. They have to make up a page that could be put into an ABC booklet for each of their letters. The handout has a sample on it.
Monday, 17 December 2012
December 17, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We went through the writing sins that they've committed in the past few months. Then they were given some time to work on their Life of Pi or Huckleberry Finn essays. We will have one more class to work on these so the students have access to me before they are expected to write it on their own. The due date was set for the Friday when we are back from Christmas holidays. They were also handed out copies of Medicine River to read over the break. This is a great novel by Thomas King.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell recapped Friday's reading by watching the last scene of Hamlet in Branagh's version. The students then wrote a paragraph on the choices made by the director and the possible reasons for them. With the last few minutes of class, we examined the Gibson version of the final scene so the students could contrast the viewing.
Period 3--AP 10
We went through the writing sins that they've committed in the past few months. Then, they were given their Macbeth essays back. I did not give them a mark with their essays, but the papers are "marked up" by me. The students were given an evaluation sheet and asked to mark their own. Then, they had a choice to make. If they wanted to a accept the mark I assigned it, I would give them their evaluation sheet. If they wanted to re-do the essay and make changes based on my comments, I would re-mark it. They had to make a choice though, based not on the mark they got, but on the evaluation comments I made throughout their paper. They have until after Christmas break. All of them chose to re-write.
Period 4--History 10
We listened to Amanda's current event assignment. Once that was finished, we were able to continue with our French Revolution power point about Napoleon. Then we had supplementary information on Napoleon in a handout given to them. We nicely finished it when the bell went.
We went through the writing sins that they've committed in the past few months. Then they were given some time to work on their Life of Pi or Huckleberry Finn essays. We will have one more class to work on these so the students have access to me before they are expected to write it on their own. The due date was set for the Friday when we are back from Christmas holidays. They were also handed out copies of Medicine River to read over the break. This is a great novel by Thomas King.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell recapped Friday's reading by watching the last scene of Hamlet in Branagh's version. The students then wrote a paragraph on the choices made by the director and the possible reasons for them. With the last few minutes of class, we examined the Gibson version of the final scene so the students could contrast the viewing.
Period 3--AP 10
We went through the writing sins that they've committed in the past few months. Then, they were given their Macbeth essays back. I did not give them a mark with their essays, but the papers are "marked up" by me. The students were given an evaluation sheet and asked to mark their own. Then, they had a choice to make. If they wanted to a accept the mark I assigned it, I would give them their evaluation sheet. If they wanted to re-do the essay and make changes based on my comments, I would re-mark it. They had to make a choice though, based not on the mark they got, but on the evaluation comments I made throughout their paper. They have until after Christmas break. All of them chose to re-write.
Period 4--History 10
We listened to Amanda's current event assignment. Once that was finished, we were able to continue with our French Revolution power point about Napoleon. Then we had supplementary information on Napoleon in a handout given to them. We nicely finished it when the bell went.
Friday, 14 December 2012
December 14, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
I went over some of the specifics of Huckelberry Finn with the group that is studying that novel, while those who read Life of Pi worked on their essays. We will have ONE more class to work on their essay on Monday.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell and the students finished reading Hamlet! We made it through the grave-diggers scene and the fatal fight between Hamlet and Laertes. On Monday, we will view some of the Branagh version as well as deal with a lecture on some of the finer points of the play.
Period 3--AP 10
This was their last class for this week to work on their Animal Farm character sketches and research. They will not get anymore computer time until next week.
Period 4--History 10
We had a couple of current event presentations to go through. Then, we went through the handout that I gave them yesterday to find answers from their reading on Napoleon. We didn't get as far as I'd have liked, so we will finish up with this on Monday.
I went over some of the specifics of Huckelberry Finn with the group that is studying that novel, while those who read Life of Pi worked on their essays. We will have ONE more class to work on their essay on Monday.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell and the students finished reading Hamlet! We made it through the grave-diggers scene and the fatal fight between Hamlet and Laertes. On Monday, we will view some of the Branagh version as well as deal with a lecture on some of the finer points of the play.
Period 3--AP 10
This was their last class for this week to work on their Animal Farm character sketches and research. They will not get anymore computer time until next week.
Period 4--History 10
We had a couple of current event presentations to go through. Then, we went through the handout that I gave them yesterday to find answers from their reading on Napoleon. We didn't get as far as I'd have liked, so we will finish up with this on Monday.
Thursday, 13 December 2012
December 13, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We continued with the power point on Life of Pi while the Huck Finn kids went to the library to start working on their formal essays. Tomorrow we will switch and I'll go over the Huck Finn novel while the Life of Pi kids work on their essay.
Period 2--AP 30
The grade 12s had their timed write today on a passage from the play.
Period 3--AP 10
Once again, we were in the computer lab to use the technology for the students to work on their two different assignments for Animal Farm.
Period 4--History 10
The students had some reading from their textbook on Napoleon and were given a handout with some blanks for them to fill out. We will correct this together as a class tomorrow.
We continued with the power point on Life of Pi while the Huck Finn kids went to the library to start working on their formal essays. Tomorrow we will switch and I'll go over the Huck Finn novel while the Life of Pi kids work on their essay.
Period 2--AP 30
The grade 12s had their timed write today on a passage from the play.
Period 3--AP 10
Once again, we were in the computer lab to use the technology for the students to work on their two different assignments for Animal Farm.
Period 4--History 10
The students had some reading from their textbook on Napoleon and were given a handout with some blanks for them to fill out. We will correct this together as a class tomorrow.
Wednesday, 12 December 2012
December 12, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We started in with our study of Life of Pi and Huckleberry Finn. I had the Huck Finn kids in a different room with their essay questions and a power point of information and took up the power point for Life of Pi with the larger group. Once we have finished going over the power point, we will switch groups. This talk focussed primarily on versimilitude and the idea of the "better story."
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued to take the kids through the play. They viewed a short clip from the Branagh version of Hamlet that clearly showed the contrast between Claudius and Laertes and Laertes sweeps in to storm the castle. This also highlights how Laertes, and even Claudius act as foils to Hamlet.
Period 3--AP 10
We moved to the computer lab to take work on their character sketches for their assigned character in Animal Farm. The kids seem to be having fun with this assignment as it has a multi-media component.
Period 4--History 10
The questions that they had from the textbook reading were due so we corrected those today. Then, they had two handouts about the Reign of Terror that we went through together. I introduced the idea of Napoleon and they were immediately able to see some correlation between Naploleon and Oliver Cromwell. It is interesting for them to see patterns in human behaviour.
We started in with our study of Life of Pi and Huckleberry Finn. I had the Huck Finn kids in a different room with their essay questions and a power point of information and took up the power point for Life of Pi with the larger group. Once we have finished going over the power point, we will switch groups. This talk focussed primarily on versimilitude and the idea of the "better story."
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued to take the kids through the play. They viewed a short clip from the Branagh version of Hamlet that clearly showed the contrast between Claudius and Laertes and Laertes sweeps in to storm the castle. This also highlights how Laertes, and even Claudius act as foils to Hamlet.
Period 3--AP 10
We moved to the computer lab to take work on their character sketches for their assigned character in Animal Farm. The kids seem to be having fun with this assignment as it has a multi-media component.
Period 4--History 10
The questions that they had from the textbook reading were due so we corrected those today. Then, they had two handouts about the Reign of Terror that we went through together. I introduced the idea of Napoleon and they were immediately able to see some correlation between Naploleon and Oliver Cromwell. It is interesting for them to see patterns in human behaviour.
Monday, 10 December 2012
December 11, 2012
I'm not feeling too great, so here is my sub plan for what should happen on Tuesday!
Period 1—AP 20s
They started a
timed write yesterday that many of them need to finish. They are welcome to about half of the class
to complete this, but I don’t want them to take much more than that. They have to learn time management skills in
their writing. For the remainder of the class when they get
finished, they can use it as a “clean-up” class. They have a “take” due on Friday and also
need to have their novel completed for tomorrow’s class (it’s about half and
half—many are reading Life of Pi and
the rest are reading Huckleberry Finn). We’ll be starting our study of this tomorrow.
Period 2—AP 30
Jon Farrell (Eli’s
intern) is teaching this. They are just at the closet scene, so there is a lot going on.
Period 3—AP 10
We started Animal Farm yesterday, and their
assignment was introduced. There is a
paper copy of the assignment that I’d like to be handed out. They get computer time to start on this
tomorrow. In the meantime, I’d like you
to go over some of the info/analysis of the novella.
Show the
students the power point. Some of this info may help them with their
assignment. Once that is finished, they
can start planning out their assignment.
We don’t have the computer lab until tomorrow, but they still have to
decide what character and then they can start making a list of characteristics
of their chose. I was going to choose
for them, but since I’m not there, they can choose from: Squealer, Old Major, Napoleon, Boxer,
Snowball, Mollie, Farmer Jones, Moses, the dogs, and any other characters I’m just
not thinking of. Encourage them to not
all choose the same one. If I find that
they have, I will have to assign new characters when I come back tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We are
continuing with the French Revolution.
We’ve been watching a fabulous documentary. The kids have
about 20 minutes left to go to watch the documentary. They are supposed to be taking notes down as
they watch. Once they are finished
watching it, as a class, we share our notes and discuss what we learned. This will probably take most of the
class. If they finish a bit early, there
are a few that need to do the questions that were assigned the other day when
Mrs. Adelman was in. If they are
finished everything, they can start DEAR time early. In case you can’t find the documentary, this should be the
address you need. December 10, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
The students did their timed write today. They had a choice between two passages in Othello.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued through Act III today. We were just passed the climax of the play where Hamlet makes the decision not to kill Claudius and are entering into the closet scene. We are on pace to finish the play by the end of the week or early next week.
Period 3--AP 10
We started our study of Animal Farm today and will save Martin Luther King Jr's speech for after the Christmas break, or at least after our study of the novel. We went through Marxism and the Russian Revoltution events and briefly looked at their asigmment for the novel.
Period 4--History 10
We listened to two more current event presentations. We will hopefully be done these before the Christmas break. After this, we continued with the documentary on the French Revoltution. It is a bit slow going as I'm continually stopping and assessing student understanding as we take notes from what we've seen, but it is such an effective documentary that it is worth the time committment. We should finish up with the documentary tomorrow.
The students did their timed write today. They had a choice between two passages in Othello.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued through Act III today. We were just passed the climax of the play where Hamlet makes the decision not to kill Claudius and are entering into the closet scene. We are on pace to finish the play by the end of the week or early next week.
Period 3--AP 10
We started our study of Animal Farm today and will save Martin Luther King Jr's speech for after the Christmas break, or at least after our study of the novel. We went through Marxism and the Russian Revoltution events and briefly looked at their asigmment for the novel.
Period 4--History 10
We listened to two more current event presentations. We will hopefully be done these before the Christmas break. After this, we continued with the documentary on the French Revoltution. It is a bit slow going as I'm continually stopping and assessing student understanding as we take notes from what we've seen, but it is such an effective documentary that it is worth the time committment. We should finish up with the documentary tomorrow.
Sunday, 9 December 2012
December 7, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We did our literary devices quiz this morning. After this, I gave the students their timed writes back to them. In addition, we went over the two poems that were their options so they could see the richness of the sonnets just in case they had a misread or just didn't dig deeply enough into either of the poems. There was also a reflection sheet added into everyone's folders that they had to fill out identifying their mistakes and hopefully, patterns in their mistakes. There was a little bit of time at the end of class, so we watched the last scene of Othello.
Period 2--AP 30
We did our literary devices quiz. Mr. Farrell continued with the "To be or not to be" speech and then continued reading through the play. They were just past the "Get thee to a nunnery" scene before the bell rang.
Period 3--AP 10
We did our literary devices quiz. We listened to the last couple of speeches. Then, I gave them back their practice multiple choice responses from awhile ago. In partners or small groups, they were to work together and determine why they got an answer correct as well as try to determine what the correct asnwers were.
Period 4--History 10
We reviewed from the documentary clip yesterday about Louis XVI trying to escape France and getting captured. We continued with notes as we viewed the documentary and went through the beheading of the monarch and the rise of Robespiere to power in France. The guillotine was a prominent focus in this period of French history. We will continue with the Reign of Terror on Monday.
We did our literary devices quiz this morning. After this, I gave the students their timed writes back to them. In addition, we went over the two poems that were their options so they could see the richness of the sonnets just in case they had a misread or just didn't dig deeply enough into either of the poems. There was also a reflection sheet added into everyone's folders that they had to fill out identifying their mistakes and hopefully, patterns in their mistakes. There was a little bit of time at the end of class, so we watched the last scene of Othello.
Period 2--AP 30
We did our literary devices quiz. Mr. Farrell continued with the "To be or not to be" speech and then continued reading through the play. They were just past the "Get thee to a nunnery" scene before the bell rang.
Period 3--AP 10
We did our literary devices quiz. We listened to the last couple of speeches. Then, I gave them back their practice multiple choice responses from awhile ago. In partners or small groups, they were to work together and determine why they got an answer correct as well as try to determine what the correct asnwers were.
Period 4--History 10
We reviewed from the documentary clip yesterday about Louis XVI trying to escape France and getting captured. We continued with notes as we viewed the documentary and went through the beheading of the monarch and the rise of Robespiere to power in France. The guillotine was a prominent focus in this period of French history. We will continue with the Reign of Terror on Monday.
Thursday, 6 December 2012
December 6, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We continued with the powerpoint examining more information about the play. This will help give the students some ammunition as they write their takes. We had some good discussion about the strength of Desdemona (or lack thereof, depending on how you view it), the protagonist of the play, as well as the vulnerabilities of Othello.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrel continued with the students...he led them through the "To be or not to be speech" and supplemented it with visuals from the Banagh version as well as the Gibson version. They broke it down into visual elements and discussed. At the end of the class, the students did a short writing assignment on which version they preferred and why.
Period 3--AP 10
The students began performing their speeches on their favourite novel of all time! There were some very interesting choices and we will continue with these tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We discussed some of the information they saw yesterday in the documentary clips on the French Revolution. The focus was on Louis XVI and his disastrous reign. We stopped periodically to discuss and take notes from what they saw that surprised them or was new that supplemented the reading.
We continued with the powerpoint examining more information about the play. This will help give the students some ammunition as they write their takes. We had some good discussion about the strength of Desdemona (or lack thereof, depending on how you view it), the protagonist of the play, as well as the vulnerabilities of Othello.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrel continued with the students...he led them through the "To be or not to be speech" and supplemented it with visuals from the Banagh version as well as the Gibson version. They broke it down into visual elements and discussed. At the end of the class, the students did a short writing assignment on which version they preferred and why.
Period 3--AP 10
The students began performing their speeches on their favourite novel of all time! There were some very interesting choices and we will continue with these tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We discussed some of the information they saw yesterday in the documentary clips on the French Revolution. The focus was on Louis XVI and his disastrous reign. We stopped periodically to discuss and take notes from what they saw that surprised them or was new that supplemented the reading.
December 5, 2012
My apoligies for not having this posted yesterday! This is what Wednesday, Dec. 5th looked like:
Period 1--AP 20
The students were given a chance to formulate some ideas for their takes on Othello now that we are finished reading the play.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued with Act II and looked at the soliloquy "Oh, what a rogue and peasant slave am I ..." and continued in to Act III. We will be looking at the "To be or not to be" speech in more detail tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
The students were given this class to work on their speeches about their favourite book of all time. These will be presented on Thursday.
Period 4--History 10
The students had some textbook work to do. They were to read pag 34-38 and do question #1-5 and read pg 38-42 and do questions 2-6.
Period 1--AP 20
The students were given a chance to formulate some ideas for their takes on Othello now that we are finished reading the play.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued with Act II and looked at the soliloquy "Oh, what a rogue and peasant slave am I ..." and continued in to Act III. We will be looking at the "To be or not to be" speech in more detail tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
The students were given this class to work on their speeches about their favourite book of all time. These will be presented on Thursday.
Period 4--History 10
The students had some textbook work to do. They were to read pag 34-38 and do question #1-5 and read pg 38-42 and do questions 2-6.
Tuesday, 4 December 2012
December 4, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We finished reading the play Othello and started on a power point discussion. Right now, it focusses on Iago and his machinations.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued to take the students through Act II today and they just nicely finished reading the act. Tommorrow, they will back-track a bit and will annotate Hamlet's second soliloquy.
Period 3--AP 10
We did a quick exercise on point of view that help them review the concepts as well as showed how point of view can change the reading of a passage. Then, I gave them a quick speech as to my favourite book of all time. I told them that their assignment will be to give a short speech on their favourite book of all time. We discussed the qualitites of a good speaker and the organization of a speech. Tomorrow they will have time to start creating their 1 minute speech. This is a practice speech to get them ready for a speech that will be more involved than this simple one.
Period 4--History 10
We finished the cloze exercise after reviewing a bit. Another handout was given to the students to supplement the information and highlight the reasons for the start of the revolution. At this point, we were able to start watching a documentary on Louis XVI. Students were to write down about five things that they learned about Louis and his rule.
We finished reading the play Othello and started on a power point discussion. Right now, it focusses on Iago and his machinations.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued to take the students through Act II today and they just nicely finished reading the act. Tommorrow, they will back-track a bit and will annotate Hamlet's second soliloquy.
Period 3--AP 10
We did a quick exercise on point of view that help them review the concepts as well as showed how point of view can change the reading of a passage. Then, I gave them a quick speech as to my favourite book of all time. I told them that their assignment will be to give a short speech on their favourite book of all time. We discussed the qualitites of a good speaker and the organization of a speech. Tomorrow they will have time to start creating their 1 minute speech. This is a practice speech to get them ready for a speech that will be more involved than this simple one.
Period 4--History 10
We finished the cloze exercise after reviewing a bit. Another handout was given to the students to supplement the information and highlight the reasons for the start of the revolution. At this point, we were able to start watching a documentary on Louis XVI. Students were to write down about five things that they learned about Louis and his rule.
Monday, 3 December 2012
December 3, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We continued reading Othello and are ALMOST done...we will finish up Act V tomorrow. Things were just heating up when the bell rang!
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued reading Hamlet with the students. We are well on our way into the play. We've been able to review some of the issues around religion that plague this play (or at least plague Hamlet) and are beginning to see the "antic disposition" starting to work in Act II. We will continue tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
To finish off "The Road Not Taken" the students were assigned to write about their own choices and how they might look back on those choices. They also received their 10 new literary device words they will be quizzed on come Friday. Their homework was to make a decision about their favourite book of all time! We will need this information tomororw.
Period 4--History 10
I gave the students back their Glorious Revolution exam and we briefly went over some of the items. Then, we were back into the French Revolution. Today's topics were Louis XVI and the Tennis Court Oath. We will continue with this tomorrow.
We continued reading Othello and are ALMOST done...we will finish up Act V tomorrow. Things were just heating up when the bell rang!
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued reading Hamlet with the students. We are well on our way into the play. We've been able to review some of the issues around religion that plague this play (or at least plague Hamlet) and are beginning to see the "antic disposition" starting to work in Act II. We will continue tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
To finish off "The Road Not Taken" the students were assigned to write about their own choices and how they might look back on those choices. They also received their 10 new literary device words they will be quizzed on come Friday. Their homework was to make a decision about their favourite book of all time! We will need this information tomororw.
Period 4--History 10
I gave the students back their Glorious Revolution exam and we briefly went over some of the items. Then, we were back into the French Revolution. Today's topics were Louis XVI and the Tennis Court Oath. We will continue with this tomorrow.
Thursday, 29 November 2012
November 29, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We opened the class with watching the scene from Branagh's version of Othello for the students to see how Iago managed to manipulate Othello into believing Cassio was talking about Desdemona, when in fact, he was referring to Bianca. From there, we continued with our reading and are almost finished with Act IV.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell helped the students analyze the first soliloquy of Hamlet. They continued with the reading of Act I and we spent a bit of time looking at Polonius's speech since it is so applicable to advice they may be receiving from their parents in this, their grade 12 year.
Period 3--AP 10
We continued with our analysis of Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken" and the students were clearly able to see the misinterpretation they all made of the poem from the beginning! It was fun for them to discover the true meaning of the poem and work together to develop a theme based on the idea of personal myth making. This was a fun class today!
Period 4--History 10
A couple of students started the class with their current events presentations. They were interesting to say the least! Then, we studied the political cartoon with which I left them which illustrated some of the reasons for the French Revolution. I handed out a sheet which outlined some of those reasons (again, looking at the three estates), and finished off the class with a little quiz (that didn't count for anything--just a knowledge check) on their understanding of the three estates.
No school for students tomorrow as it is a Professional Development day for teachers, so everyone can enjoy their long weekend!
We opened the class with watching the scene from Branagh's version of Othello for the students to see how Iago managed to manipulate Othello into believing Cassio was talking about Desdemona, when in fact, he was referring to Bianca. From there, we continued with our reading and are almost finished with Act IV.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell helped the students analyze the first soliloquy of Hamlet. They continued with the reading of Act I and we spent a bit of time looking at Polonius's speech since it is so applicable to advice they may be receiving from their parents in this, their grade 12 year.
Period 3--AP 10
We continued with our analysis of Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken" and the students were clearly able to see the misinterpretation they all made of the poem from the beginning! It was fun for them to discover the true meaning of the poem and work together to develop a theme based on the idea of personal myth making. This was a fun class today!
Period 4--History 10
A couple of students started the class with their current events presentations. They were interesting to say the least! Then, we studied the political cartoon with which I left them which illustrated some of the reasons for the French Revolution. I handed out a sheet which outlined some of those reasons (again, looking at the three estates), and finished off the class with a little quiz (that didn't count for anything--just a knowledge check) on their understanding of the three estates.
No school for students tomorrow as it is a Professional Development day for teachers, so everyone can enjoy their long weekend!
Wednesday, 28 November 2012
November 28, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
Apparently, there are some pretty fragrant lockers, so the entire school did a locker clean out for the first 10 minutes of class. After we got settled again, we were finally able to finish Act III and are well on our way into Act IV. We are starting to see the progression of Othello coming unravelled.
Period 2--AP 30
We continued with our reading of Hamlet and just made it to the first solilouy. We noted character motivations and started to see some of the subtle undertones in the play. I handed out a clean copy of the soliloquy and asked the students to annotate it which we will take up tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
The students presented their interesting choral montage poems of "David" which were very impressive (and fun!). We moved into the study of "The Road Not Taken." First, I read the poem to the students and had them summarize what they thought the poem was about. We didn't share anything yet...most will have misinterpreted the poem (as many do). Then, they were put into groups and asked to annotate the first two stanzas. Once that was complete, we shared some of the annotations, paying particular attention to the tense of the poem. Finally, they and their group annotated the last two stanzas and we had just enough time to share some of their findings. Tomorrow, we will look at the misinterpretations of the poem.
Period 4--History 10
We finished the power point about decision making and discussed the text. Then, they were given another handout with blanks to fill in that explained the roles and make-up of each of the Three Estates of France. Through discussion, they understand the rigidity of French society in pre-revolution France. At the bell, they were given the political cartoon showing the 1st and 2nd estates on the back of the 3rd. They had a bit of time to analyze it, but we will go over it together tomorrow.
Apparently, there are some pretty fragrant lockers, so the entire school did a locker clean out for the first 10 minutes of class. After we got settled again, we were finally able to finish Act III and are well on our way into Act IV. We are starting to see the progression of Othello coming unravelled.
Period 2--AP 30
We continued with our reading of Hamlet and just made it to the first solilouy. We noted character motivations and started to see some of the subtle undertones in the play. I handed out a clean copy of the soliloquy and asked the students to annotate it which we will take up tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
The students presented their interesting choral montage poems of "David" which were very impressive (and fun!). We moved into the study of "The Road Not Taken." First, I read the poem to the students and had them summarize what they thought the poem was about. We didn't share anything yet...most will have misinterpreted the poem (as many do). Then, they were put into groups and asked to annotate the first two stanzas. Once that was complete, we shared some of the annotations, paying particular attention to the tense of the poem. Finally, they and their group annotated the last two stanzas and we had just enough time to share some of their findings. Tomorrow, we will look at the misinterpretations of the poem.
Period 4--History 10
We finished the power point about decision making and discussed the text. Then, they were given another handout with blanks to fill in that explained the roles and make-up of each of the Three Estates of France. Through discussion, they understand the rigidity of French society in pre-revolution France. At the bell, they were given the political cartoon showing the 1st and 2nd estates on the back of the 3rd. They had a bit of time to analyze it, but we will go over it together tomorrow.
Tuesday, 27 November 2012
November 27, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We did our last sheets for the Math PLT--thank goodness! Now we can concentrate the full class on our English endeavours!
We continued to read Act III and almost completed it...we were able to read through the climax of the play with Othello fully becoming "Iago's creature" by the end of scene iii.
Period 2--AP 30
We did our last sheets for the Math PLT--thank goodness! Now we can concentrate the full class on our English endeavours!
We finished with the antecedent action for Hamlet. I introduced the importance of Shakespeare and his family going through religious "schizophrenia" between Protestantism and Catholicism during his own lifetime, and how that creates an anachronism in the play in regards to how Hamlet sees the ghost of his father. This morphs into his tragic flaw. We began reading the play but didn't get very far before the bell rang.
Period 3--AP 10
This was a fun class that had the students doing some group work. They were first given the task of individually choosing the 7 most important lines from the poem "David" and then ranking those lines in order of importance. Then, they got together with a pre-assigned group and they shared their lines. One person was designated to copy down the lines. Together, as a group, they created a new poem trying to keep the basic gist of the original, but telling it in a unique way. We will share these new poems tomorrow in class.
Period 4--History 10
In continuing wit the French Revolution, we examined information on politcial decision making. The students were given a handout and were required to fill in some blanks as I discussed the information on each slide. We will finish this tomorrow.
We did our last sheets for the Math PLT--thank goodness! Now we can concentrate the full class on our English endeavours!
We continued to read Act III and almost completed it...we were able to read through the climax of the play with Othello fully becoming "Iago's creature" by the end of scene iii.
Period 2--AP 30
We did our last sheets for the Math PLT--thank goodness! Now we can concentrate the full class on our English endeavours!
We finished with the antecedent action for Hamlet. I introduced the importance of Shakespeare and his family going through religious "schizophrenia" between Protestantism and Catholicism during his own lifetime, and how that creates an anachronism in the play in regards to how Hamlet sees the ghost of his father. This morphs into his tragic flaw. We began reading the play but didn't get very far before the bell rang.
Period 3--AP 10
This was a fun class that had the students doing some group work. They were first given the task of individually choosing the 7 most important lines from the poem "David" and then ranking those lines in order of importance. Then, they got together with a pre-assigned group and they shared their lines. One person was designated to copy down the lines. Together, as a group, they created a new poem trying to keep the basic gist of the original, but telling it in a unique way. We will share these new poems tomorrow in class.
Period 4--History 10
In continuing wit the French Revolution, we examined information on politcial decision making. The students were given a handout and were required to fill in some blanks as I discussed the information on each slide. We will finish this tomorrow.
Monday, 26 November 2012
November 26, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We had to spend some time getting everyone caught up with the Math sheets that they missed for the PLT. Then, we did the second last one--we will finish tomorrow!
Once back on track with Othello, I showed the students the soliloquy by Othello that I already annotated for them. We went through it together and they copied down their ideas as well as mine. We had a few minutes left so we continued reading Act III, scene iii.
Period 2--AP 30
We had to spend some time getting everyone caught up with the Math sheets that they missed for the PLT. Then, we did the second last one--we will finish tomorrow!
We are starting Hamlet! We did a quick cruise through the life and times of Shakespeare just as a review and we also reviewed the concepts of anachronism and antecedent action. With a power point, I started filling them in on some of the antecedent action that is necessary for them to understand in order for them to understand the reading we will be doing of the play.
Period 3--AP 10
On Friday, the students were asked to do a directed annoation of the poem "David" looking for foreshadowing, symbols, imagery, mood/atmosphere, and theme. We spent the class looking at the poem and finding these together. Near the end of class, I asked the students to choose the seven lines in the poem that they feel were the most important to the poem and then rank those lines by importance.
Period 4--History 10
We had a few current events presentations. This was followed by the introduction of the new unit. They had a handout with the objectives of this unit as well as one on Louis XIV. We supplemented this handout with a power point of the Sun King as well as one showing images of his palace of Versailles. There were two questions the students had to do to starte out discussion for tomorrow.
We had to spend some time getting everyone caught up with the Math sheets that they missed for the PLT. Then, we did the second last one--we will finish tomorrow!
Once back on track with Othello, I showed the students the soliloquy by Othello that I already annotated for them. We went through it together and they copied down their ideas as well as mine. We had a few minutes left so we continued reading Act III, scene iii.
Period 2--AP 30
We had to spend some time getting everyone caught up with the Math sheets that they missed for the PLT. Then, we did the second last one--we will finish tomorrow!
We are starting Hamlet! We did a quick cruise through the life and times of Shakespeare just as a review and we also reviewed the concepts of anachronism and antecedent action. With a power point, I started filling them in on some of the antecedent action that is necessary for them to understand in order for them to understand the reading we will be doing of the play.
Period 3--AP 10
On Friday, the students were asked to do a directed annoation of the poem "David" looking for foreshadowing, symbols, imagery, mood/atmosphere, and theme. We spent the class looking at the poem and finding these together. Near the end of class, I asked the students to choose the seven lines in the poem that they feel were the most important to the poem and then rank those lines by importance.
Period 4--History 10
We had a few current events presentations. This was followed by the introduction of the new unit. They had a handout with the objectives of this unit as well as one on Louis XIV. We supplemented this handout with a power point of the Sun King as well as one showing images of his palace of Versailles. There were two questions the students had to do to starte out discussion for tomorrow.
Friday, 23 November 2012
November 23, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
The were given a few minutes to refresh and cram for thier literary devices quiz and then wrote it. Then, we reviewed the paraphrase that the students started yesterday for Othello's soliloquy...they needed a few more minutes to finish, so they were given that time. We discussed the content of the speech. Then, I tasked them with reading the speech and with specific direction to look at structure (caesura, rhythm, syntax), metaphors, and imagery, they were given time to start annotating. We will finish this up on Monday.
Period 2--AP 30
The were given a few minutes to refresh and cram for thier literary devices quiz and then wrote it. This class was given to them as a work period.
Period 3--AP 10
The were given a few minutes to refresh and cram for thier literary devices quiz and then wrote it. We reviewed the poem "David" and discussed the themes in the poem. As read, I continually posed the question, "What would you do?" Once we finished reading and discussing, we began a focussed annotation of the poem looking for imagery, symbols, foreshadowing, etc. They will finish this on Monday and we will discuss.
Period 4--History 10
These students had their exam to write during this class. We will start their unit on the French Revolution next week.
The were given a few minutes to refresh and cram for thier literary devices quiz and then wrote it. Then, we reviewed the paraphrase that the students started yesterday for Othello's soliloquy...they needed a few more minutes to finish, so they were given that time. We discussed the content of the speech. Then, I tasked them with reading the speech and with specific direction to look at structure (caesura, rhythm, syntax), metaphors, and imagery, they were given time to start annotating. We will finish this up on Monday.
Period 2--AP 30
The were given a few minutes to refresh and cram for thier literary devices quiz and then wrote it. This class was given to them as a work period.
Period 3--AP 10
The were given a few minutes to refresh and cram for thier literary devices quiz and then wrote it. We reviewed the poem "David" and discussed the themes in the poem. As read, I continually posed the question, "What would you do?" Once we finished reading and discussing, we began a focussed annotation of the poem looking for imagery, symbols, foreshadowing, etc. They will finish this on Monday and we will discuss.
Period 4--History 10
These students had their exam to write during this class. We will start their unit on the French Revolution next week.
Thursday, 22 November 2012
November 22, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We continued to read the play. We are just in the middle of Act III, scene iii, so things are heating up for Othello. We will continue with this reading tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
"The Pardoner's Tale" was the focus for this day's study. We reviewed the concept of indulgences, medieval Catholicism, and sin in order to set up the events of the tale. This is primarily an except of the tale--his lecture to the pilgrims about the sin of avarice are summarized rather than read in full, and the reading the students did picks up right from the actual tale of the three rioters. The students were then given their assignment--as a judge, which of the three tales we examined, "The Miller's Tale," "The Knight's Tale," and "The Pardoner's Tale" was the best tale. This will be done in a persuasive essay format, and the students need to be aware of the need to use counter-arguments and contrast to fully make their case. They will also need to define what they feel makes something a "good" tale.
Period 3--AP 10
We revisited the idea of euthanasia and looked at a power point that examined the legal definition of murder as well as the more morally ambiguous idea of mercy killing/assisted suicide. We did this by examining the Canadian cases of Sue Roderiquez and Robert Latimer. We started reading the poem "David" by Earl Birney and the students were directed to be on the lookout for foreshadowing.
Period 4--History 10
As a class, we reviewed the overview study sheet I gave them yesterday and then, they had the rest of class to study for tomorrow's exam.
REMINDER: The AP classes have their literary devices quizzes to study for tomorrow.
We continued to read the play. We are just in the middle of Act III, scene iii, so things are heating up for Othello. We will continue with this reading tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
"The Pardoner's Tale" was the focus for this day's study. We reviewed the concept of indulgences, medieval Catholicism, and sin in order to set up the events of the tale. This is primarily an except of the tale--his lecture to the pilgrims about the sin of avarice are summarized rather than read in full, and the reading the students did picks up right from the actual tale of the three rioters. The students were then given their assignment--as a judge, which of the three tales we examined, "The Miller's Tale," "The Knight's Tale," and "The Pardoner's Tale" was the best tale. This will be done in a persuasive essay format, and the students need to be aware of the need to use counter-arguments and contrast to fully make their case. They will also need to define what they feel makes something a "good" tale.
Period 3--AP 10
We revisited the idea of euthanasia and looked at a power point that examined the legal definition of murder as well as the more morally ambiguous idea of mercy killing/assisted suicide. We did this by examining the Canadian cases of Sue Roderiquez and Robert Latimer. We started reading the poem "David" by Earl Birney and the students were directed to be on the lookout for foreshadowing.
Period 4--History 10
As a class, we reviewed the overview study sheet I gave them yesterday and then, they had the rest of class to study for tomorrow's exam.
REMINDER: The AP classes have their literary devices quizzes to study for tomorrow.
Wednesday, 21 November 2012
November 21, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We finished with our viewing activity of the two soliloquies and did a bit of a comparative analysis between the two productions. We continued to read the rest of Act II of Othello. The students notice the number of passages and monologues that Iago's has compared to the title character and are starting to appreciate the evil genius of Iago.
Period 2--AP 30
We did another page for the Math PLT and then got down to work. We discussed the questiosn from yesterday's viewing activity of the "Knight's Tale" and then moved into some post-viewing questions. We spent some time determining the theme of the except as well as appreciating the various "lenses" through which a viewer and reader must use in order to see the "big picture" of Chaucer's intent. Tomorrow we will take up the "Pardoner's Tale."
Period 3--AP 10
Since I was missing half the class for Driver Training, I gave the students left in class time to get caught up on various assignments, read Animal Farm, or work on other assignments (like studying for their History exam).
Period 4--History 10
We finished reviewing the rest of that booklet of supplementary info from yesterday, and then I gave the kids a handout for them to fill out that is, essentially, a study guide. We will go over the study guide tomorrow together as a class.
We finished with our viewing activity of the two soliloquies and did a bit of a comparative analysis between the two productions. We continued to read the rest of Act II of Othello. The students notice the number of passages and monologues that Iago's has compared to the title character and are starting to appreciate the evil genius of Iago.
Period 2--AP 30
We did another page for the Math PLT and then got down to work. We discussed the questiosn from yesterday's viewing activity of the "Knight's Tale" and then moved into some post-viewing questions. We spent some time determining the theme of the except as well as appreciating the various "lenses" through which a viewer and reader must use in order to see the "big picture" of Chaucer's intent. Tomorrow we will take up the "Pardoner's Tale."
Period 3--AP 10
Since I was missing half the class for Driver Training, I gave the students left in class time to get caught up on various assignments, read Animal Farm, or work on other assignments (like studying for their History exam).
Period 4--History 10
We finished reviewing the rest of that booklet of supplementary info from yesterday, and then I gave the kids a handout for them to fill out that is, essentially, a study guide. We will go over the study guide tomorrow together as a class.
Tuesday, 20 November 2012
November 20, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
The grade 11s did another PLT work sheet for their multiplication tables. We will finish with this for the school's Math PLT next week.
After this, we continued with our viewing activity of the two soliloquies from Othello. We "annotated" the viewing experience and looked at the richness within a visual text. This became particularly obvious when we compared the two different versions of visual texts--one the Branagh version of Othello, and the other, a recording of live theatre--or at least a lower level production. Students spent considerable time looking at lighting, music, body language, facial expression, pacing of dialogue, volume of dialogue, and other technical aspects of the play. We will finish this tomorrow and then move on with the play itself.
Period 2--AP 30
The students were given a handout on viewing the "Knight's Tale" to introduce the concept. We spoke about being active listeners and some of the cues and conventions they may practice in their daily lives while being "master" viewers. They applied some of their powers of observation to a visual text picture of Sir Lancelot and had to come up with words to describe the knight. By using those cues, the students then made predictions as to what the tale may be about. We went over the handout given to them with the cues and conventions for them to look out for and fill out as they watch. We watched it all the way through and then the students filled it in the chart as best they could while the excerpt was playing again. We will take up their observations tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
The students did another practice multiple choice exam today. They will get a little bit of time to finish it up tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
I gave the students another handout with supplementary information about the English Civil War and Glorious Revoltuion. While much of this won't be on their Friday exam, it does help round the picture out of what life was like in England during this time as well as review some of the information we have just finished studying.
The grade 11s did another PLT work sheet for their multiplication tables. We will finish with this for the school's Math PLT next week.
After this, we continued with our viewing activity of the two soliloquies from Othello. We "annotated" the viewing experience and looked at the richness within a visual text. This became particularly obvious when we compared the two different versions of visual texts--one the Branagh version of Othello, and the other, a recording of live theatre--or at least a lower level production. Students spent considerable time looking at lighting, music, body language, facial expression, pacing of dialogue, volume of dialogue, and other technical aspects of the play. We will finish this tomorrow and then move on with the play itself.
Period 2--AP 30
The students were given a handout on viewing the "Knight's Tale" to introduce the concept. We spoke about being active listeners and some of the cues and conventions they may practice in their daily lives while being "master" viewers. They applied some of their powers of observation to a visual text picture of Sir Lancelot and had to come up with words to describe the knight. By using those cues, the students then made predictions as to what the tale may be about. We went over the handout given to them with the cues and conventions for them to look out for and fill out as they watch. We watched it all the way through and then the students filled it in the chart as best they could while the excerpt was playing again. We will take up their observations tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
The students did another practice multiple choice exam today. They will get a little bit of time to finish it up tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
I gave the students another handout with supplementary information about the English Civil War and Glorious Revoltuion. While much of this won't be on their Friday exam, it does help round the picture out of what life was like in England during this time as well as review some of the information we have just finished studying.
Monday, 19 November 2012
November 19, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We did the math sheets for the Math PLT assessment. We are almost finished with these. Then, I went over the literary devices the students will need to know for their quiz on Friday. They are some tough words, so the kids will have to actually study and ensure that they know their devices. Finally, we started in with the major crux of the lesson--we are focussing on viewing today. To start with, we looked at the Brannagh version of Othello with Iago's first soliloquy--we viewed it once to get the main idea of it, and then started in on actually "annotating" the viewing and breaking it down into its parts for lighting, levels, editing, dialogue, body language, sound, pacing, etc. We will continue with this tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We had a lot to get through today. We did the math sheets for the Math PLT and then reviewed the literary devices for their quiz on Friday. They are some tough words, so the kids will have to actually study and ensure that they know their devices. Finally, Mr. Farrell was able to finish up "The Miller's Tale" with the students. They had an "exit slip" in which they had to examine the tale and consider the Miller's values about life and love using about five examples from the text to support their opinion.
Period 3--AP 10
We went over their literary devices for their quiz on Friday. At this point, we had a handout that examined multiple choice strategies. We will be doing another multiple choice practice exam tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We finished going over the handout for the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution. We read, highlighted, and made notes about the information they learned. They decided on Friday for their unit exam.
We did the math sheets for the Math PLT assessment. We are almost finished with these. Then, I went over the literary devices the students will need to know for their quiz on Friday. They are some tough words, so the kids will have to actually study and ensure that they know their devices. Finally, we started in with the major crux of the lesson--we are focussing on viewing today. To start with, we looked at the Brannagh version of Othello with Iago's first soliloquy--we viewed it once to get the main idea of it, and then started in on actually "annotating" the viewing and breaking it down into its parts for lighting, levels, editing, dialogue, body language, sound, pacing, etc. We will continue with this tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We had a lot to get through today. We did the math sheets for the Math PLT and then reviewed the literary devices for their quiz on Friday. They are some tough words, so the kids will have to actually study and ensure that they know their devices. Finally, Mr. Farrell was able to finish up "The Miller's Tale" with the students. They had an "exit slip" in which they had to examine the tale and consider the Miller's values about life and love using about five examples from the text to support their opinion.
Period 3--AP 10
We went over their literary devices for their quiz on Friday. At this point, we had a handout that examined multiple choice strategies. We will be doing another multiple choice practice exam tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We finished going over the handout for the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution. We read, highlighted, and made notes about the information they learned. They decided on Friday for their unit exam.
Friday, 16 November 2012
November 16, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We continued reading from Othello. We made it through to the end of scene ii today and will continue with the play on Monday.
Period 2--AP 30
The students had to do one more math sheet for the math PLT at OHS. From there, they performed their boasts and the students did an excellent job! I was so impressed. Once everyone was finished, Mr. Farrell took over to continue with "The Miller's Tale." The hilarity of the tale and its "fabliau" properties became pretty obvious as we near the end of the tale. We will finish this up on Monday.
Period 3--AP 10
The students were given the class to complete their viewing activity from Of Mice and Men. This will be due Tuesday. I also handed out the novella Animal Farm and encouraged the students to quickly research the Russian Revolution before reading it. This should be read by about December 10th-ish!
Period 4--History 10
Two students were able to present their power points on a chosen current event. At this point, we continued with the textbook handout and notes. The section on Charles II was completed. We should be able to finish the rest of the handout on Monday. The students chose to have an exam for this unit scheduled on Friday. I handed back a number of assignments and their exam.
We continued reading from Othello. We made it through to the end of scene ii today and will continue with the play on Monday.
Period 2--AP 30
The students had to do one more math sheet for the math PLT at OHS. From there, they performed their boasts and the students did an excellent job! I was so impressed. Once everyone was finished, Mr. Farrell took over to continue with "The Miller's Tale." The hilarity of the tale and its "fabliau" properties became pretty obvious as we near the end of the tale. We will finish this up on Monday.
Period 3--AP 10
The students were given the class to complete their viewing activity from Of Mice and Men. This will be due Tuesday. I also handed out the novella Animal Farm and encouraged the students to quickly research the Russian Revolution before reading it. This should be read by about December 10th-ish!
Period 4--History 10
Two students were able to present their power points on a chosen current event. At this point, we continued with the textbook handout and notes. The section on Charles II was completed. We should be able to finish the rest of the handout on Monday. The students chose to have an exam for this unit scheduled on Friday. I handed back a number of assignments and their exam.
Thursday, 15 November 2012
November 15, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We analyzed Iago's soliloquy looking specifically at the tone Shakespeare infuses into this speech for the villain. We just started reading Act II after annotating and analyzing the speech but the bell rang before we could get very far.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued taking the students through "The Miller's Tale" and while we aren't quite finished, we will take a break from it tomorrow as the students present their boasts from Beowulf.
Period 3--AP 10
We finished watching the clip from the movie Of Mice and Men and annotated it much the same way we would annotate something written...just with a different format. The students were just starting in on their assignment--to write a formal, business letter to the Director of Education promoting one particular method of infomormation delivery (visual vs. written vs. auditory). They will get more time to complete this tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
As we continued through the textbook handout, we switched gears just a bit. Rather than the students continuing to write the notes, I provided a cloze handout where they can fill in various blanks from our reading as we discuss the content. This does speed things up a bit and the students still get the notes from the textbook.
We analyzed Iago's soliloquy looking specifically at the tone Shakespeare infuses into this speech for the villain. We just started reading Act II after annotating and analyzing the speech but the bell rang before we could get very far.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell continued taking the students through "The Miller's Tale" and while we aren't quite finished, we will take a break from it tomorrow as the students present their boasts from Beowulf.
Period 3--AP 10
We finished watching the clip from the movie Of Mice and Men and annotated it much the same way we would annotate something written...just with a different format. The students were just starting in on their assignment--to write a formal, business letter to the Director of Education promoting one particular method of infomormation delivery (visual vs. written vs. auditory). They will get more time to complete this tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
As we continued through the textbook handout, we switched gears just a bit. Rather than the students continuing to write the notes, I provided a cloze handout where they can fill in various blanks from our reading as we discuss the content. This does speed things up a bit and the students still get the notes from the textbook.
Wednesday, 14 November 2012
November 14, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We did the next sheet in our 2 minute math PLT work.
Back on track with Othello! We finished reading the rest of Act I of the play, paying particular attention to characters and their opinions of other characters in the plays. Iago remains an enigmatic figure at this point, but certainly fascinating. I handed out their options for writing with this. They have about 20 different topics of which they must choose 3 and write a "take" or a smaller-scale essay (no more than 2 pages). We just finished going through them and the bell rang. On tomorrow's agenda, we will analyze Iago's soliloquy.
Period 2--AP 30
We did the next sheet in our 2 minute math PLT work.
Mr. Farrell continued with the "Miller's Tale" analysis. We examined similar characters to to those on the pilgrimage while Mr. Farrell helped the kids annotate the tale itself. They had to orally read sections of the passage and then were required to annotate a passage and answer some questions to be handed in for the end of class.
Period 3--AP 10
We compared and contrasted reading pros and cons with auditory pros and cons to start the class. Then, we switched gears to FINALLY get a chance to view the last chapter of the novel visually through the movie, Of Mice and Men. We watched it through once to look at the pros and cons of viewing, and then we started to examine the clip in more detail. We paid particular attention to the concept of juxtaposition as we viewed. The further we went in and examined such concepts as lighting, pacing, levels, tone, dialogue, sound, etc., the students were able to see just how rich this small passage in the movie is and how all these elements work together to create tension in the viewer.
Period 4--History 10
The students continued with the reading of the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution handout. We finished with the Tudor kings and queens and have started in on the Stuarts. Tomorrow, we'll be tackling the English civil war.
We did the next sheet in our 2 minute math PLT work.
Back on track with Othello! We finished reading the rest of Act I of the play, paying particular attention to characters and their opinions of other characters in the plays. Iago remains an enigmatic figure at this point, but certainly fascinating. I handed out their options for writing with this. They have about 20 different topics of which they must choose 3 and write a "take" or a smaller-scale essay (no more than 2 pages). We just finished going through them and the bell rang. On tomorrow's agenda, we will analyze Iago's soliloquy.
Period 2--AP 30
We did the next sheet in our 2 minute math PLT work.
Mr. Farrell continued with the "Miller's Tale" analysis. We examined similar characters to to those on the pilgrimage while Mr. Farrell helped the kids annotate the tale itself. They had to orally read sections of the passage and then were required to annotate a passage and answer some questions to be handed in for the end of class.
Period 3--AP 10
We compared and contrasted reading pros and cons with auditory pros and cons to start the class. Then, we switched gears to FINALLY get a chance to view the last chapter of the novel visually through the movie, Of Mice and Men. We watched it through once to look at the pros and cons of viewing, and then we started to examine the clip in more detail. We paid particular attention to the concept of juxtaposition as we viewed. The further we went in and examined such concepts as lighting, pacing, levels, tone, dialogue, sound, etc., the students were able to see just how rich this small passage in the movie is and how all these elements work together to create tension in the viewer.
Period 4--History 10
The students continued with the reading of the English Civil War and the Glorious Revolution handout. We finished with the Tudor kings and queens and have started in on the Stuarts. Tomorrow, we'll be tackling the English civil war.
Tuesday, 13 November 2012
November 13, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We completed another sheet from the Math PLT. Once that was finished, we continued with our reading of Othello. The class was cut short for portfolio preparation, but we should finish Act I tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell started teaching today. He introduced the "Miller's Tale" by examining it in contrast to the romanticism of the Knight's Tale (which would have come immediately before the Miller's Tale). He identified and defined the concept of the fabliau through some visual images of everything that the knight stands for in comparison to everything the Miller finds entertaining. They just started reading the tale itself when the bell rang to end class. Again, this one was cut short for portfolio preparation.
Period 3--AP 10
We reviewed the concept of parallelism that we began discussing last Thursday. I read then the first few paragraphs from chapter 6 and then had them look for similarities in the first few paragraphs of chapter 1. It was interesting to see how Steinbeck was able to tie the novel together through repeated images between these chapters. Tomorrow, FINALLY, we should be able to get our viewing activity in!
Period 4--History 10
We continued with the handout they received last week that goes through England and it's intial struggles between Catholicism and Protestantism. Our focus, for this class, was on Queen Elizabeth I and the problems and sucesses she had during her reign.
We completed another sheet from the Math PLT. Once that was finished, we continued with our reading of Othello. The class was cut short for portfolio preparation, but we should finish Act I tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrell started teaching today. He introduced the "Miller's Tale" by examining it in contrast to the romanticism of the Knight's Tale (which would have come immediately before the Miller's Tale). He identified and defined the concept of the fabliau through some visual images of everything that the knight stands for in comparison to everything the Miller finds entertaining. They just started reading the tale itself when the bell rang to end class. Again, this one was cut short for portfolio preparation.
Period 3--AP 10
We reviewed the concept of parallelism that we began discussing last Thursday. I read then the first few paragraphs from chapter 6 and then had them look for similarities in the first few paragraphs of chapter 1. It was interesting to see how Steinbeck was able to tie the novel together through repeated images between these chapters. Tomorrow, FINALLY, we should be able to get our viewing activity in!
Period 4--History 10
We continued with the handout they received last week that goes through England and it's intial struggles between Catholicism and Protestantism. Our focus, for this class, was on Queen Elizabeth I and the problems and sucesses she had during her reign.
Friday, 9 November 2012
November 9, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
Since most of the class was missing for Remembrance Day Service preparation, they were able to use this class to prepare for their portfolios, read their ELA novel, or do some other homework.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrel took the students through the assignment for the Prologue. It will be due on the 19th of November. A reminder that their Boasts from Beowulf are due this coming up Friday and we WILL be doing them! Circumstances always seem to conspire against their presentation! They were given a bit of time to work on the assignment and then they will be starting something new on Tuesday (Monday is the long weekend).
Period 3--AP 10
We didnt' have this class because of the Remembrance Day Service where we honoured the current and verteran soldiers of the Canadian military and the sacrifices they have made on our behalf.
Period 4--History 10
It was Current Events Day today. Only two of the four students were ready to go but they afforded lots of opportunity for discussion. With the time that was left, the students reviewed Elizabeth I and her decision to have Mary, Queen of Scots beheaded. In the end, the students decided that Elizabeth made the right decision!
I hope everyone has a restful long weeken and that they take a few moments on November 11th and remember the men and women who served over the years for our continued freedom.
Since most of the class was missing for Remembrance Day Service preparation, they were able to use this class to prepare for their portfolios, read their ELA novel, or do some other homework.
Period 2--AP 30
Mr. Farrel took the students through the assignment for the Prologue. It will be due on the 19th of November. A reminder that their Boasts from Beowulf are due this coming up Friday and we WILL be doing them! Circumstances always seem to conspire against their presentation! They were given a bit of time to work on the assignment and then they will be starting something new on Tuesday (Monday is the long weekend).
Period 3--AP 10
We didnt' have this class because of the Remembrance Day Service where we honoured the current and verteran soldiers of the Canadian military and the sacrifices they have made on our behalf.
Period 4--History 10
It was Current Events Day today. Only two of the four students were ready to go but they afforded lots of opportunity for discussion. With the time that was left, the students reviewed Elizabeth I and her decision to have Mary, Queen of Scots beheaded. In the end, the students decided that Elizabeth made the right decision!
I hope everyone has a restful long weeken and that they take a few moments on November 11th and remember the men and women who served over the years for our continued freedom.
Thursday, 8 November 2012
November 8, 2012
NOTE: The morning periods were all shortened to allow the students a chance to work on their portfolios to get ready for the three-way conferences taking place next week.
Period 1--AP 20
We continued reading Othello and are almost finished Act I. We should finish it up tomorrow and I will then introduce the writing options for them.
Period 2--AP 30
We finished all of the characters of The Canterbury Tales Prologue. Tomorrow, Mr. Farrel (Mr. Dingle's intern) will be introducing the assignment and then taking over the class for a time.
Period 3--AP 10
We did a listening activity where I read the last chapter to the students. They've already read it several times and now they had the chance to listen for cadence, pausing, tone, volume, etc. in order to create a response in a listener. Toward the end of class, we started examining parallelism between the beginning of the novel and the end.
Period 4--History 10
We started with a handout reviewing much of what I went over with them orally in the last couple of days. Then, they were given a textbook handout that will follow the English monarchs as they work their way to a constitutional monarchy.
Period 1--AP 20
We continued reading Othello and are almost finished Act I. We should finish it up tomorrow and I will then introduce the writing options for them.
Period 2--AP 30
We finished all of the characters of The Canterbury Tales Prologue. Tomorrow, Mr. Farrel (Mr. Dingle's intern) will be introducing the assignment and then taking over the class for a time.
Period 3--AP 10
We did a listening activity where I read the last chapter to the students. They've already read it several times and now they had the chance to listen for cadence, pausing, tone, volume, etc. in order to create a response in a listener. Toward the end of class, we started examining parallelism between the beginning of the novel and the end.
Period 4--History 10
We started with a handout reviewing much of what I went over with them orally in the last couple of days. Then, they were given a textbook handout that will follow the English monarchs as they work their way to a constitutional monarchy.
Wednesday, 7 November 2012
November 7, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We did the last entry for the Math PLT for this week. When we moved back into English, I went over a "character map" for the play Othello. Each student was then given a part to read and we started to work our way through the first scene. I always find the first scene is slow going as the students have to get back into the rhythm and sound of the language.
Period 2--AP 30
We continued with the characters from "The Prologue" of The Canterbury Tales. We will finish this tomorrow and then we will do a brief assignment on the Prologue. Students are reminded to have their Beowulf Boasts ready to go for Friday.
Period 3--AP 10
The title was our main talking point in English today. The students had the opportunity to read the poem by Robbie Burns from which Steinbeck got his inspiration for the title. Before we view the clip to look at juxtaposition, I created a handout for the students that deals with the same scene, but presented in three different ways. First of all, the students (today) read the last chapter of the novel. They were to look for diction or choice of detail that creates emotion in the reader and highlight those sections. There were some questions to go with this part of the assignment. Tomorrow, we will examine the same passage from a listening perspective and then, finally, we will view it.
Period 4--History 10
The students had to listen to me lecture again today. I finished going over an oral overview of the contents of this unit. Essentially, it was story time starting with Henry VIII and ending with the Glorious Revolution of William and Mary of Orange. I find that this oral introduction to the content of the unit helps the students focus as we do some text book study.
We did the last entry for the Math PLT for this week. When we moved back into English, I went over a "character map" for the play Othello. Each student was then given a part to read and we started to work our way through the first scene. I always find the first scene is slow going as the students have to get back into the rhythm and sound of the language.
Period 2--AP 30
We continued with the characters from "The Prologue" of The Canterbury Tales. We will finish this tomorrow and then we will do a brief assignment on the Prologue. Students are reminded to have their Beowulf Boasts ready to go for Friday.
Period 3--AP 10
The title was our main talking point in English today. The students had the opportunity to read the poem by Robbie Burns from which Steinbeck got his inspiration for the title. Before we view the clip to look at juxtaposition, I created a handout for the students that deals with the same scene, but presented in three different ways. First of all, the students (today) read the last chapter of the novel. They were to look for diction or choice of detail that creates emotion in the reader and highlight those sections. There were some questions to go with this part of the assignment. Tomorrow, we will examine the same passage from a listening perspective and then, finally, we will view it.
Period 4--History 10
The students had to listen to me lecture again today. I finished going over an oral overview of the contents of this unit. Essentially, it was story time starting with Henry VIII and ending with the Glorious Revolution of William and Mary of Orange. I find that this oral introduction to the content of the unit helps the students focus as we do some text book study.
Tuesday, 6 November 2012
November 6, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We continued with our background information to Elizabethan England. We finished it this class, so we will begin our study of Othello tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We did our mental math for the OHS Math PLT for the first two minutes. Students seem to be showing marked improvement.
We continued with our study of "The Prologue" of The Canterbury Tales. We are paying particular attention to Chaucer's "voice" as the narrator and attempting to discover the speaker's attitude about the characters he introduces. With luck, we should finish this tomorrow and then will move on to some tales.
Period 3--AP 10
We continued with our study of Of Mice and Men. We spent some time on questions raised by the themes and how Steinbeck delivers. Hindsight offers the students the chance to look at how tightly Steinbeck weaves his motifs and themes throughout the novella.
Period 4--History 10
We looked at the overview of the new unit examining the English Civil War/Glorious Revolution and studied the concept of revolutions through a concept attainment lesson on the topic. After this, they had some notes about the definition of a revolution as well as information on the Seven Stages of a Revolution. After this, I started introducing them to some of the main players on the stage that we will be discussing starting way back with Arthur (Tudor), son of Henry VII. We are doing a quick cruise through History to introduce the kids to these "characters."
We continued with our background information to Elizabethan England. We finished it this class, so we will begin our study of Othello tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We did our mental math for the OHS Math PLT for the first two minutes. Students seem to be showing marked improvement.
We continued with our study of "The Prologue" of The Canterbury Tales. We are paying particular attention to Chaucer's "voice" as the narrator and attempting to discover the speaker's attitude about the characters he introduces. With luck, we should finish this tomorrow and then will move on to some tales.
Period 3--AP 10
We continued with our study of Of Mice and Men. We spent some time on questions raised by the themes and how Steinbeck delivers. Hindsight offers the students the chance to look at how tightly Steinbeck weaves his motifs and themes throughout the novella.
Period 4--History 10
We looked at the overview of the new unit examining the English Civil War/Glorious Revolution and studied the concept of revolutions through a concept attainment lesson on the topic. After this, they had some notes about the definition of a revolution as well as information on the Seven Stages of a Revolution. After this, I started introducing them to some of the main players on the stage that we will be discussing starting way back with Arthur (Tudor), son of Henry VII. We are doing a quick cruise through History to introduce the kids to these "characters."
Monday, 5 November 2012
November 5, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We did the next sheet in for the math PLT. Most of the kids are showing improvement in their mental math skills, so it should be interesting to see where they end up by the end of the month!
As far as English goes, I gave the students back their To Kill A Mockingbird essays today and briefly spoke to them about their performance. Once report cards are out and I have a few minutes, I will give them their "writing sins" to review. In the meantime, we started in on Othello. I'm hoping to read this fairly quickly. It is a good play and the action moves well, so I should be able to finish this at a reasonable pace. We spent some time looking at the life and times of Shakespeare which impacts some of the actions of the characters in the play. We will finish this discussion tomorrow and then begin reading the play.
Period 2--AP 30
We did the next sheet in for the math PLT. Most of the kids are showing improvement in their mental math skills, so it should be interesting to see where they end up by the end of the month!
With ELA, I sectioned the boards off into various parts for the students to write their information down for others to copy. Having it done this way allows us to see the juxtaposition of the various characters. So far, the kids did an excellent job, but it will take us some time to finish with the Prologue.
Period 3--AP 10
We started going over Of Mice and Men even though we read it and did our assignment before we started reading Macbeth. It is always worth it to examine this classic novella more thoroughly. We are looking at character motivation and how Steinbeck presented the various themes of the novella.
Period 4--History 10
Since Friday ended up being a "snow" day without the busses running, I gave the students this class to finish their open-book exam from last Thursday. Anyone who did not get a chance to finish after these two class days, should make time to do so outside of class time.
We did the next sheet in for the math PLT. Most of the kids are showing improvement in their mental math skills, so it should be interesting to see where they end up by the end of the month!
As far as English goes, I gave the students back their To Kill A Mockingbird essays today and briefly spoke to them about their performance. Once report cards are out and I have a few minutes, I will give them their "writing sins" to review. In the meantime, we started in on Othello. I'm hoping to read this fairly quickly. It is a good play and the action moves well, so I should be able to finish this at a reasonable pace. We spent some time looking at the life and times of Shakespeare which impacts some of the actions of the characters in the play. We will finish this discussion tomorrow and then begin reading the play.
Period 2--AP 30
We did the next sheet in for the math PLT. Most of the kids are showing improvement in their mental math skills, so it should be interesting to see where they end up by the end of the month!
With ELA, I sectioned the boards off into various parts for the students to write their information down for others to copy. Having it done this way allows us to see the juxtaposition of the various characters. So far, the kids did an excellent job, but it will take us some time to finish with the Prologue.
Period 3--AP 10
We started going over Of Mice and Men even though we read it and did our assignment before we started reading Macbeth. It is always worth it to examine this classic novella more thoroughly. We are looking at character motivation and how Steinbeck presented the various themes of the novella.
Period 4--History 10
Since Friday ended up being a "snow" day without the busses running, I gave the students this class to finish their open-book exam from last Thursday. Anyone who did not get a chance to finish after these two class days, should make time to do so outside of class time.
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
October 31, 2012
Happy Hallowe'en!!!
Period 1--AP 20
We finished going over the poem and looking at strategies for how to assess and analyze poetry using "Thou Blind Man's Mark." We spoke about some strategies the students can use in order to analyze the poem despite how difficult it may be. They are doing a Timed Write tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
This class was stolen from us for an assembly.
Period 3--AP 10
The students are working on an essay for Macbeth.
Period 4--History 10
We started our new unit on Political Decision Making by having the students take part in a simulation where I "crashed" them on an island and they had to figure out how to organize themselves. My confidence in their chances weren't very high at the end, but it lead to some interesting discussion about governments and how they make decisions.
Due to a family emergency, I will not be here for Thursday and Friday. In general, this is what the days will look like for the students:
AP 30--they will continue working on the Canterbury Tales by "translating" their assigned characters. This should take up most of Thursday's class, if not all. On Friday, they will share this information.
AP 20--They are doing a timed write on sonnets on Thursday. On Friday, they can bring their Life of Pi or Huckleberry Finn to read.
AP 10--For both days the students can work on their Macbeth essays. They will not get more time thatn this to work on it.
History 10--The students will be writing an open-book exam on the Industrial Revolution for both days. It's a big exam, so they get two days for this.
Period 1--AP 20
We finished going over the poem and looking at strategies for how to assess and analyze poetry using "Thou Blind Man's Mark." We spoke about some strategies the students can use in order to analyze the poem despite how difficult it may be. They are doing a Timed Write tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
This class was stolen from us for an assembly.
Period 3--AP 10
The students are working on an essay for Macbeth.
Period 4--History 10
We started our new unit on Political Decision Making by having the students take part in a simulation where I "crashed" them on an island and they had to figure out how to organize themselves. My confidence in their chances weren't very high at the end, but it lead to some interesting discussion about governments and how they make decisions.
Due to a family emergency, I will not be here for Thursday and Friday. In general, this is what the days will look like for the students:
AP 30--they will continue working on the Canterbury Tales by "translating" their assigned characters. This should take up most of Thursday's class, if not all. On Friday, they will share this information.
AP 20--They are doing a timed write on sonnets on Thursday. On Friday, they can bring their Life of Pi or Huckleberry Finn to read.
AP 10--For both days the students can work on their Macbeth essays. They will not get more time thatn this to work on it.
History 10--The students will be writing an open-book exam on the Industrial Revolution for both days. It's a big exam, so they get two days for this.
Tuesday, 30 October 2012
October 31. 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We did the Math PLT work for the first two minutes. We have to do this twice a week for a month, so we're done with it until next week. In ELA, we started going through the poem "Thou Blind Man's Mark"--we dicussed structure, alliteration, sibilance, and started on imagery. We will continue "ripping" the poem apart tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We did the Math PLT work for the first two minutes. We have to do this twice a week for a month, so we're done with it until next week. In ELA work, we read the first introductory part of the Prologue together. Then, the students were assigned various characters from the Prologue, and working in partners, were to "translate" the middle English version to something more recognizable.
Period 3--AP 10
The students are working on their Macbeth essays.
Period 4--History 10
Since many of the kids were missing for Driver Training, I allowed them time to complete their textbook highlighting and coming up with questions for the exam. The open-book exam is on Thursday.
We did the Math PLT work for the first two minutes. We have to do this twice a week for a month, so we're done with it until next week. In ELA, we started going through the poem "Thou Blind Man's Mark"--we dicussed structure, alliteration, sibilance, and started on imagery. We will continue "ripping" the poem apart tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We did the Math PLT work for the first two minutes. We have to do this twice a week for a month, so we're done with it until next week. In ELA work, we read the first introductory part of the Prologue together. Then, the students were assigned various characters from the Prologue, and working in partners, were to "translate" the middle English version to something more recognizable.
Period 3--AP 10
The students are working on their Macbeth essays.
Period 4--History 10
Since many of the kids were missing for Driver Training, I allowed them time to complete their textbook highlighting and coming up with questions for the exam. The open-book exam is on Thursday.
Monday, 29 October 2012
October 29, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
1. First of all, we had to take part in the PLT (Professional Learning Team) assessment that focusses on Mental Math skills, so we were actually doing Math in ELA! It was weird but fun. For two days a week, for two minute stretches, the students will be given a math worksheet with multiplication table questions on it (up to the 12 times table). This will go on for the month of November. The goal of this group is to improve the mental math skills of our OHS students.
2. Once we got back into our ELA groove, the last group from the sonnets presented their findings. We spoke about the difficulty of sonnets and some of the challenges students face when trying to analyze them. The last groups did an excellent job of Wordsworth's "It is a Beauteous Evening." Then, I handed out information on Sir Phillip Syndney as well as a few other types of sonnets (we know Shakespearean, Petrarchan, but learned about Spenserian and Mitonic sonnets too). We were just about to start in on Sydney's sonnet tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
1. 1. First of all, we had to take part in the PLT (Professional Learning Team) assessment that focusses on Mental Math skills, so we were actually doing Math in ELA! It was weird but fun. For two days a week, for two minute stretches, the students will be given a math worksheet with multiplication table questions on it (up to the 12 times table). This will go on for the month of November. The goal of this group is to improve the mental math skills of our OHS students.
2. We are staring Chaucer--so I had a power point with background information on it about frame stories, Chaucer's writing, the background, St. Thomas a Becket, etc. We will get reading the Prologue tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
We used this time to work on our formal essays.
Period 4--History 10
The grade 10s had time to finish highlighting their Industrial Revolution textbook and they were to make up questions based on information on their page only and hand in to me. They needed to make up two multiple choice, 2 true and false, 2 fill-in-the-blanks, and 2 short answer questions as well as supply the answers for me. I'll make up their exam from some of this information. The exam will be on Thursday.
1. First of all, we had to take part in the PLT (Professional Learning Team) assessment that focusses on Mental Math skills, so we were actually doing Math in ELA! It was weird but fun. For two days a week, for two minute stretches, the students will be given a math worksheet with multiplication table questions on it (up to the 12 times table). This will go on for the month of November. The goal of this group is to improve the mental math skills of our OHS students.
2. Once we got back into our ELA groove, the last group from the sonnets presented their findings. We spoke about the difficulty of sonnets and some of the challenges students face when trying to analyze them. The last groups did an excellent job of Wordsworth's "It is a Beauteous Evening." Then, I handed out information on Sir Phillip Syndney as well as a few other types of sonnets (we know Shakespearean, Petrarchan, but learned about Spenserian and Mitonic sonnets too). We were just about to start in on Sydney's sonnet tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
1. 1. First of all, we had to take part in the PLT (Professional Learning Team) assessment that focusses on Mental Math skills, so we were actually doing Math in ELA! It was weird but fun. For two days a week, for two minute stretches, the students will be given a math worksheet with multiplication table questions on it (up to the 12 times table). This will go on for the month of November. The goal of this group is to improve the mental math skills of our OHS students.
2. We are staring Chaucer--so I had a power point with background information on it about frame stories, Chaucer's writing, the background, St. Thomas a Becket, etc. We will get reading the Prologue tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
We used this time to work on our formal essays.
Period 4--History 10
The grade 10s had time to finish highlighting their Industrial Revolution textbook and they were to make up questions based on information on their page only and hand in to me. They needed to make up two multiple choice, 2 true and false, 2 fill-in-the-blanks, and 2 short answer questions as well as supply the answers for me. I'll make up their exam from some of this information. The exam will be on Thursday.
Thursday, 25 October 2012
October 26, 2012
I am away at an AP conference tomorrow, so this is from my sub plan for Mr. Spence.
Period
2—AP 30
2. We finished Beowulf and the analysis for it yesterday. Today, they get to work on the assignment that goes with it. I’ve told them about it but they haven’t had time to work on it yet. Hand the assignment out and you can read a few of the boasts from last year’s crew to give them some ideas. They can work on it for this class but that’s it. It will be due next Friday when they will present them.
Period
3—AP 10
2. We finished Macbeth and have gone over how to write a formal essay. They should all have their essay topics, but there are extras in case they need it. They can have this class to start writing their formal essay.
Period
4—History 10
Period
1—AP 20
1. Literary devices quiz
2. They were given poems yesterday and put in
groups to analyze their assigned poem.
The first group presented their findings. They are all sonnets. I have them:
read the poem aloud, jot down ideas on the smart board, and present
their findings to the class. Then, I
usually have to go and add to it all.
Ultimately, I want them to be able to determine the meaning of the poem
and important literary devices that help them achieve tone. If enough time is spent with this, it should take all class, but if you get done early, you
can move on with the kids and start talking about John Donne and “The
Bait.” It’s on the same document and the
kids have a photocopy of it. I have a
handout about Metaphysical poetry that can go with it. Students will either analyze together or guided by Mr. Spence.
2. We finished Beowulf and the analysis for it yesterday. Today, they get to work on the assignment that goes with it. I’ve told them about it but they haven’t had time to work on it yet. Hand the assignment out and you can read a few of the boasts from last year’s crew to give them some ideas. They can work on it for this class but that’s it. It will be due next Friday when they will present them.
2. We finished Macbeth and have gone over how to write a formal essay. They should all have their essay topics, but there are extras in case they need it. They can have this class to start writing their formal essay.
October 25, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We split the sonnets left in our handout into four groups. Each group was responsible for offering an analysis of the poem to the rest of the group. The first group was able to present and I offered some supplementary information for the poem. The other three groups will present tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We finished reading Beowulf (an excerpt) yesterday, so today the students worked at "SIFTS-ing" through the poem. They worked in partners to fill out a sheets guiding them through this and then I went over the ideas with them as a larger class. They will work on their assignment tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
We went through the "Dreaded Formal Essay" portion of their AP Resource Booklet. The students will be starting to write their formal essay on the play tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We had two students present their current events and they did an excellent job. We moved from there to watching a documentary on the Industrial Revolution. For students who weren't there, it was called "Industrial Revolution Overview" on You Tube. It was quite well done. The students were to focus on the concept of cause and effect. It was interesting to backtrack through History and see how much effect one single invention (in this case, the Cotton Gin) had on American history. With the last few minutes of class, I handed out the class-made textbook on the Industrial Revolution. We had enough time to go through a couple of the pages and determine what is important on each page. They will continue with this tomorrow.
We split the sonnets left in our handout into four groups. Each group was responsible for offering an analysis of the poem to the rest of the group. The first group was able to present and I offered some supplementary information for the poem. The other three groups will present tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We finished reading Beowulf (an excerpt) yesterday, so today the students worked at "SIFTS-ing" through the poem. They worked in partners to fill out a sheets guiding them through this and then I went over the ideas with them as a larger class. They will work on their assignment tomorrow.
Period 3--AP 10
We went through the "Dreaded Formal Essay" portion of their AP Resource Booklet. The students will be starting to write their formal essay on the play tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We had two students present their current events and they did an excellent job. We moved from there to watching a documentary on the Industrial Revolution. For students who weren't there, it was called "Industrial Revolution Overview" on You Tube. It was quite well done. The students were to focus on the concept of cause and effect. It was interesting to backtrack through History and see how much effect one single invention (in this case, the Cotton Gin) had on American history. With the last few minutes of class, I handed out the class-made textbook on the Industrial Revolution. We had enough time to go through a couple of the pages and determine what is important on each page. They will continue with this tomorrow.
Wednesday, 24 October 2012
October 24, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
Unfortunatley, we lost this class as the entire school took the period to work on their portfolios for three-way conferences to be held mid-November. We'll get back at it tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We started, and finished, the excerpt from Beowulf that shows Grendel's terrorization of Herot, Beowulf's decision to help and his introduction to Hrothgar, and finally, Beowulf's battle with Grendel. With the time left in class, the students identified examples of alliteration, kennings, and caesura which are characterisitcs of this poem.
Period 3--AP 10
We finished going over the power point on some of the technical aspects as well as the characterizations of Lady Macbeth, Macbeth and the Weird Sisters. Then, the students were given their essay assignment options for the play. We broke the questions down together as a class and looked at some of the the things they will have to address in each question.
Period 4--History 10
The students were reminded to get their textbook pages in so they can participate fully in the open-book exam we will have next Wednesday. Today, we compared the traditional European economy with that of the Iroquois society in a handout. We tried to watch a video of the Industrial Revolution, but it wouldn't load properly so we'll try to do that tomorrow.
Unfortunatley, we lost this class as the entire school took the period to work on their portfolios for three-way conferences to be held mid-November. We'll get back at it tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
We started, and finished, the excerpt from Beowulf that shows Grendel's terrorization of Herot, Beowulf's decision to help and his introduction to Hrothgar, and finally, Beowulf's battle with Grendel. With the time left in class, the students identified examples of alliteration, kennings, and caesura which are characterisitcs of this poem.
Period 3--AP 10
We finished going over the power point on some of the technical aspects as well as the characterizations of Lady Macbeth, Macbeth and the Weird Sisters. Then, the students were given their essay assignment options for the play. We broke the questions down together as a class and looked at some of the the things they will have to address in each question.
Period 4--History 10
The students were reminded to get their textbook pages in so they can participate fully in the open-book exam we will have next Wednesday. Today, we compared the traditional European economy with that of the Iroquois society in a handout. We tried to watch a video of the Industrial Revolution, but it wouldn't load properly so we'll try to do that tomorrow.
Tuesday, 23 October 2012
October 23, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
The students were given this class to dive into their novels that they have to have read for mid-November. They are reading either Life of Pi, or Huckleberry Finn.
Period 2--AP 30
The students were given this class to work on their book annotations that are due before the Christmas break.
Period 3--AP 10
We started going over the multiple choice exam that we did a number of weeks ago. The students were given the correct answers of the practice exam and spent time going over vocabulary attack strategies. They focussed on root words (Latin, French, etc) as well as prefixes and suffixes to help them make sense of some of the vocabulary.
Period 4--History 10
We quickly reviewed the three types of economies and then jumped back into the more detailed handout where they were looking at these economies in context. We finished the handout and discussion (as well as a side discussion into the definition of "mercanitilism") just as the bell rang.
The students were given this class to dive into their novels that they have to have read for mid-November. They are reading either Life of Pi, or Huckleberry Finn.
Period 2--AP 30
The students were given this class to work on their book annotations that are due before the Christmas break.
Period 3--AP 10
We started going over the multiple choice exam that we did a number of weeks ago. The students were given the correct answers of the practice exam and spent time going over vocabulary attack strategies. They focussed on root words (Latin, French, etc) as well as prefixes and suffixes to help them make sense of some of the vocabulary.
Period 4--History 10
We quickly reviewed the three types of economies and then jumped back into the more detailed handout where they were looking at these economies in context. We finished the handout and discussion (as well as a side discussion into the definition of "mercanitilism") just as the bell rang.
Monday, 22 October 2012
October 22, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We continued with our Shakespearean sonnets and had a look at how to analyze them. The students came up with some ideas using the SIFTS method and then we worked together as a class to flesh out the rest of the ideas.
Period 2--AP 30
We started Beowulf and Medieval Literature today. We looked at samples of Old, Middle, and Modern English as well as "Caedmon's Hymn"--one of the oldest surviving poems written in what is recognized as English. The students were given a handout on the History of Language and it introduces some of the time period in which Beowulf is set. The students had a couple of definitions to write down. We should be ready to get reading the poem from here.
Period 3--AP 10
We are finished reading Macbeth, so we are starting to do some analysis with the play via a power point I have made up with information about literary devices, characterization, etc.
Period 4--History 10
We de-briefed the Bead Game we played last Wednesday and compared Command, Market, and Traditional economies. We were just in the middle of a handout giving further info on these economies when the bell rang.
We continued with our Shakespearean sonnets and had a look at how to analyze them. The students came up with some ideas using the SIFTS method and then we worked together as a class to flesh out the rest of the ideas.
Period 2--AP 30
We started Beowulf and Medieval Literature today. We looked at samples of Old, Middle, and Modern English as well as "Caedmon's Hymn"--one of the oldest surviving poems written in what is recognized as English. The students were given a handout on the History of Language and it introduces some of the time period in which Beowulf is set. The students had a couple of definitions to write down. We should be ready to get reading the poem from here.
Period 3--AP 10
We are finished reading Macbeth, so we are starting to do some analysis with the play via a power point I have made up with information about literary devices, characterization, etc.
Period 4--History 10
We de-briefed the Bead Game we played last Wednesday and compared Command, Market, and Traditional economies. We were just in the middle of a handout giving further info on these economies when the bell rang.
Thursday, 18 October 2012
October 18, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We did our literary devices quiz--we will see who wins between the grade 10, 11 and 12 AP classes! After this, we began looking at sonnets to continue our lesson from yesterday. We looked at the two main types of sonnets--Petrarchan and Shakespearean and their individual characteristics. The students were then required to use the SIFTS method of analysis to go through the poem. We got somewhat off track in the last few minutes of class and started to talk about ways to create more school spirit in our school. It was an interesting conversation and hopefully some good can come of it.
Period 2--AP 30
We did our literary devices quiz--we will see who wins between the grade 10, 11 and 12 AP classes! The kids saw some of the stuff on the board from last class about school spirit, so we also spent a bit of time discussing that. We got back on track with finishing our multiple choice practice exam. Before the end of class, I introduced the next unit of study (Medeival Literature) by showing a power point of various heroes which will lead into a discussion of Beowulf.
Period 3--AP 10
We did our literary devices quiz--we will see who wins between the grade 10, 11 and 12 AP classes! We then finished reading the rest of Macbeth!
Period 4--History 10
Since about half our class was missing for driver training, we didn't debrief like I wanted to about the "bead game." Instead, I introduced their current events assignment where they will have to choose what current event they want to examine and present it to the rest of the class. I showed a couple of exemplars. We won't start this next week, but rather I will assign two kids for the week after that. To finish off current events, we looked at the article on "Smart Cars" from What in the World." This was a very interesting conversation.
We did our literary devices quiz--we will see who wins between the grade 10, 11 and 12 AP classes! After this, we began looking at sonnets to continue our lesson from yesterday. We looked at the two main types of sonnets--Petrarchan and Shakespearean and their individual characteristics. The students were then required to use the SIFTS method of analysis to go through the poem. We got somewhat off track in the last few minutes of class and started to talk about ways to create more school spirit in our school. It was an interesting conversation and hopefully some good can come of it.
Period 2--AP 30
We did our literary devices quiz--we will see who wins between the grade 10, 11 and 12 AP classes! The kids saw some of the stuff on the board from last class about school spirit, so we also spent a bit of time discussing that. We got back on track with finishing our multiple choice practice exam. Before the end of class, I introduced the next unit of study (Medeival Literature) by showing a power point of various heroes which will lead into a discussion of Beowulf.
Period 3--AP 10
We did our literary devices quiz--we will see who wins between the grade 10, 11 and 12 AP classes! We then finished reading the rest of Macbeth!
Period 4--History 10
Since about half our class was missing for driver training, we didn't debrief like I wanted to about the "bead game." Instead, I introduced their current events assignment where they will have to choose what current event they want to examine and present it to the rest of the class. I showed a couple of exemplars. We won't start this next week, but rather I will assign two kids for the week after that. To finish off current events, we looked at the article on "Smart Cars" from What in the World." This was a very interesting conversation.
Wednesday, 17 October 2012
October 17, 2012
Period 1--AP 20
We started in on some poetry study. To do this, we examined rhyme, rhythm, and scansion. From there, we looked at the SIFTS method of analysis. We started applying this to some Shakespearean sonnets. We just completed the paraphrasing the poem when the bell rang. We will continue with the analysis tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
The students are doing another practice exam for multiple choice.
Period 3--AP 10
We continued reading Macbeth. We are almost finished the play and should finish up reading it tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We played the bead game today with two groups making beads in a traditional way, 2 groups making it in a way that they are told, and 2 groups making their bracelets, necklaces, or rings however they want. We will de-brief what all of this means tomorrow!
We started in on some poetry study. To do this, we examined rhyme, rhythm, and scansion. From there, we looked at the SIFTS method of analysis. We started applying this to some Shakespearean sonnets. We just completed the paraphrasing the poem when the bell rang. We will continue with the analysis tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
The students are doing another practice exam for multiple choice.
Period 3--AP 10
We continued reading Macbeth. We are almost finished the play and should finish up reading it tomorrow.
Period 4--History 10
We played the bead game today with two groups making beads in a traditional way, 2 groups making it in a way that they are told, and 2 groups making their bracelets, necklaces, or rings however they want. We will de-brief what all of this means tomorrow!
Tuesday, 16 October 2012
October 16, 2012
Period 1--Pre-AP 20
I let the students have this class to finish their multiple choice challenge. Once they finished, they had some class time to start tackling the reading of either Huckleberry Finn or Life of Pi (their choice). We're moving on to poetry tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
The students wanted some time to finish their timed write. Judging from this topic which required a comparison between two readings, it looks like we'll need to do some focus work on this type of writing. Once they completed that, the students used the time to work on their annotations or polish up some of their essay issues for their Frankenstein essay that is due this week.
Period 3--Pre-AP 10
I gave the students a handout on paraphrasing again, to jog their memory with this skill. While they struggled with it a bit, it is getting easier than at the beginning of the play. We continued reading the play and are almost finish Act IV. We should complete the entire play by early next week and then it will be essay time!
Period 4--History 10
We caught those who were absent up to speed on our Industrial Revolution role playing discussion and had those students join in groups or develop their own. They had some time to work on the concepts and then we discussed them together in class. Tomorrow, we'll be doing the bead game!
I let the students have this class to finish their multiple choice challenge. Once they finished, they had some class time to start tackling the reading of either Huckleberry Finn or Life of Pi (their choice). We're moving on to poetry tomorrow.
Period 2--AP 30
The students wanted some time to finish their timed write. Judging from this topic which required a comparison between two readings, it looks like we'll need to do some focus work on this type of writing. Once they completed that, the students used the time to work on their annotations or polish up some of their essay issues for their Frankenstein essay that is due this week.
Period 3--Pre-AP 10
I gave the students a handout on paraphrasing again, to jog their memory with this skill. While they struggled with it a bit, it is getting easier than at the beginning of the play. We continued reading the play and are almost finish Act IV. We should complete the entire play by early next week and then it will be essay time!
Period 4--History 10
We caught those who were absent up to speed on our Industrial Revolution role playing discussion and had those students join in groups or develop their own. They had some time to work on the concepts and then we discussed them together in class. Tomorrow, we'll be doing the bead game!
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