Monday, November 30

Announcements

Poetry Project is due Monday, 12/14. You will be sharing your poems in class on Wed, 12/16.
Important dates:
12/9: Period 2 goes to Poe's house
12/10: Period 3 goes to Poe's house
12/11: 9th grade trip


Assignments
Sonnet ppt
Paraphrase the following the sonnets and answer the questions.

Homework: Finish Sonnet 73 and answer the questions on the bottom.

Tuesday, November 24

Journal
What do you think I should tell your parents at parent/teacher conferences? Be honest.

Assignments
Today we discussed and analyzed the poems you and your groups created on Friday. You all did some amazing work!

Your homework is the Poetry Handbook Project. Choose one of the assignments to complete. The project is due in class on Thursday, December 10.  Be ready to present one poem to the class on that day! If you have questions or want to adapt the project, please see me. I'm open to ideas and creativity!

Don't forget:
Period 2 - your NHD papers are due to Mr. Brasof TODAY!
Period 3 - your NHD papers are due to ME by 3pm TODAY! (mccartneychs@gmail.com)

Monday, November 23

Remember, your NHD papers are due tomorrow.

Period 2, you are turning your papers in to Mr. Brasoff.
Period 3, you are turning your papers in to me. If possible, please bring me a paper copy. If not, email it to me by 3pm!

Good luck! I'm looking forward to reading all of your hard work.

Tomorrow, we will be returning to poetry!

Friday, November 20

Poetry Stations!

If you missed class today, see me on Monday. I will give you a worksheet to make up some of the group work we did today.

We will review your creations and interpretations on Tuesday in class.

Thursday, November 19

Today, we reviewed parenthetical citations and worked on organizing NHD papers, including introductions and conclusions.

The NHD paper will count as a grade for English and Social Studies!
Make sure you are meeting the requirements on the rubric.

NHD Intros and Conclusions

We will have computer time in class on Monday to work on your paper!

Papers are due Tuesday! Period 2, you will turn your paper in to Mr. Brasof. Period 3, you will turn your paper in to me.

Wednesday, November 19

Today is MLA day!

Review the following materials so that you can add parenthetical in-text citations to your NHD paper!

MLA power point
MLA Parenthetical Citations

Bring in your NHD Materials for tomorrow! We will be continuing MLA citations and working on organization tomorrow!

Period 3 - Complete these practice worksheets for homework.
Practice with Parenthetical Citations

Tuesday, November 17

Announcements

Bring your NHD notes and in-progress papers to class on Wednesday and Thursday! We will be working on organization, MLA citations and annotations in class.

If you were not in class today to take the quiz, you have one week to make it up! See me to set up an appointment!

Assignments

Journal

If you had to come up with a metaphor or a simile for your life, what would you compare to your life to? Why? Explain.

After the quiz, we talked about simile and metaphor in the following poems.

"Willow and Gingko"

"Caged Bird"

"Poker Face"

Read the following poem and follow the directions below it.

"Willow and Ginkgo"

by Eve Merriam

The willow is like an etching,

Fine-lined against the sky.

The ginkgo is like a crude sketch,

Hardly worthy to be signed.

The willow’s music is like a soprano,

Delicate and thin.

The ginkgo’s tune is like a chorus

With everyone joining in.

The willow is sleek as a velvet-nosed calf;

The ginkgo is leathery as an old bull.

The willow’s branches are like silken thread;

The ginkgo’s like stubby rough wool.

The willow is like a nymph with streaming hair;

Wherever it grows, there is green and gold and fair.

The willow dips to the water,

Protected and precious, like the king’s favorite daughter.

The ginkgo forces its way through gray concrete;

Like a city child, it grows up in the street.

Thrust against the metal sky,

Somehow it survives and even thrives.

My eyes feast upon the willow,

But my heart goes to the ginkgo.

DIRECTIONS

1. underline the imagery

2. focus on the animals and people that the trees are compared to

3. what surrounds each tree?

Based on the descriptions, sketch what you think each tree would look like. Why do you think each tree would look this way?

Monday, November 16

Announcements

1. Quiz tomorrow, 11/17/09, on vocabulary, commas and fixing run-on sentences!
2. Keep working on your NHD papers! On Wednesday and Thursday, we will go over MLA in-text citations and organizations. Next Monday, I will give you computer time in class to finalize papers. See me if you need help!
   

Assignment

Today, we reviewed the Illuminating Imagery worksheet on the "Juicy," "The Rose that Grew from Concrete" and "Harlem."

We also read a review on the new Christmas Carol Movie. Pay attention to the different ways the author uses commas and phrases.

Tomorrow, we will take the quiz and focus on simile and metaphor in poetry!
Your homework is to study for tomorrow's quiz!

English 3

Your assignment is on the newly created English 3 Blog.

http://english3mccartneychs.blogspot.com/

English 1 - Friday, 11/13

Happy Friday the 13th! I guess it's your lucky day because I'm not there... I'm sorry I'm not with you today, but here is today's assignment.

Assignment:   
Complete Collection 1: Skills Review in the Elements textbook (purple book). Complete all questions and assignments, including the essay, on pages 76-81. Work will be collected when I return and counted as a grade.

We will go over your homework (Illuminating Imagery worksheet) on Monday when I return. Your quiz on Vocab #5, run-on sentences, and commas will still be on Tuesday.

Have a wonderful weekend and I apologize again for missing class.

ENGLISH 3!!!

English 3! You have your own new, private blog!

Go to
http://english3mccartneychs.blogspot.com/

English 1

Journal: 
In your opinion, what does success look like? How will you determine if you are successful in life? How does this image of success relate to your personal goals and aspirations? Explain.

Assignments:
Today, we read the following poems/songs in class. We focused on how the author used imagery to illustrate humble beginnings, dreams and success.

Juicy
The Rose that Grew from Concrete
Harlem: A Dream Deferred

After you have read the poems, complete the Illuminating Imagery worksheet for homework. This worksheet should be #5 on your Table of Contents.

English 3

Announcements
Today is the first day of the second marking report!
"The Black Cat" assignments will count as part of the second marking report.


Assignments
Review and discuss "The Black Cat" Reading Comprehension questions and the Suspense chart. Discuss the symbolism and significance of the black cat and its relationship to the narrator.

We will start the next story on Thursday, 11/8.

English 1

Announcements
Vocabulary #5, fixing run-on sentences, and comma quiz on Tuesday, 11/19.
Bring McMoney to class on Thursday to boost your grades

Assignments
Table of Contents - Keep track of your notes and handouts this marking report for a grade. You can keep track of handouts and class assignments using the link on the right.

Take notes on the following power point on comma usage. There will be a quiz on Friday.

Comma Power Point (OWL)


Homework: Practice writing with thought transitions and vocabulary words. See handout.

English 3 - Friday, November 6

Announcements
17 Journals are due today for all students in school. For those absent due to the SEPTA strike, you may turn them in on Monday, 11/9. If the strike continues beyond Tuesday, 11/10, I will count the journals as a second marking report grade.
Punctuation Study Island Assignment due today!!!


New Study Island Assignment (Setting) due Friday, 11/12.

Today's Agenda
1. Review and discuss the Suspense Chart and the Reading Comprehension Questions on "The Black Cat." These should all be completed by today. I will be checking them in class.
2. Create story boards for the Poe story of your choice. Your story board should have at least 8 scenes and should illustrate the most suspenseful scenes in the story. You may work with a partner. This is due at the end of the period! This is extra credit.

English 1 - Friday, November 6

Announcements
17 Journals are due today for all students in school. For those absent due to the SEPTA strike, you may turn them in on Monday, 11/9. If the strike continues beyond Tuesday, 11/10, I will count the journals as a second marking report grade.


Today's Agenda
1. Check and review homework (Fixing Run-on Sentences worksheet)


2. Haikus - poems that present a vivid picture and the poet's impression, sometimes with suggestions of spiritual insight. The traditional haiku is three lines long: the first line is five syllables, the second line is seven syllables, and the third line is five syllables.

Examples:

quiet, empty streets
attendance in school is sparse
SEPTA strike end soon

faces are a blur
houses, streets and stops fly by
music pounds my ears

soft murmur downstairs
discordant voices increase
and chaos erupts

Write one haiku that incorporate images of your daily life. Follow the 5-7-5 syllable pattern.

3. Vocabulary Haikus
Write a 5-7-5 haiku for a vocabulary word. Your haiku should help the reader understand what the word means.

inadvertantly

unintentional mistake

not planned or thought out

the concert crowd was

scattered in their seats, few and

far between, bare, sparse

English 1 - Thursday, November 5

Journal
Do you believe in karma? In other words, do you believe that what goes around comes around? Have you ever experienced this? Explain.

Updates and Announcements
17 Journals are still due tomorrow. If the strike continues, students unable to come to school because of the strike will have until Monday, 11/9 to turn in journals. Please show me your absence note when you return.

Keep studying your vocabulary. There will be a quiz next week.

Work on Study Island! Remember, for every 5 new words and definitions you record and show me, I will give you extra credit (It's all about McMoney).

Today's Assignments
Fixing Run-On Sentences
Visit the following websites and take notes on clauses and run-on sentences. Identify the ways to combine independent sentences without creating a run-on sentence.

Clauses
Run-ons, Comma Splices and Fused Sentences

Once you have taken notes, fix the run-on sentences on the hand out below. These are sentences from your papers!

Fixing Run-On Sentences
Finish this sheet for homework.

English 3 - Thursday, November 5

Journal
Examine the narrator of "The Black Cat." The narrator begins the story with a guilty confession, yet claims sanity and levelheadedness. How do his actions and the events of the story disprove this? How much of what he says do you think is real or unreal? Is it possible he really is sane at the end, when he uses flashback to tell the story?

Updates
17 Journals are still due tomorrow. If the strike continues, students unable to come to school because of the strike will have until Monday, 11/9 to turn in journals. Please show me your absence note when you return.

Keep studying your vocabulary. There will be a quiz next week.

Today's Lesson
Study Island and Independent Work
You should complete the Punctuation Assignment by Friday, 11/6.
This is the first grade on the second marking report.
The Setting Assignment should be completed by 11/12.


For Friday, you should have 17 journals , the Suspense Chart ("The Black Cat"), and the Reading Comprehension Questions ("The Black Cat") completed. We will be going over them in class.

English 3 - Wednesday, November 4

Hello everyone! Try not to have too much fun enjoying the SEPTA strike - here are your assignments for Wednesday.

Announcements and Reminders

1. 17 journals are due Friday, November 6! Each journal must be at least 10 sentences long. If the SEPTA strike continues, I will extend the deadline.
2. Email me the Vocabulary Quiz Project if you have not already. You can email me at ajmccartney@philasd.org OR mccartneychs@gmail.com
3. Complete your Study Island assignment for Friday. Take notes on punctuation. Write down the definitions of words you do not know. This is your first grade for the second marking report.

Assignment

1. Review your vocabulary words and definitions.
2. Finish reading Poe's "The Black Cat."
   
3. Complete the suspense chart for "The Black Cat." Find five suspenseful parts of the story, explain why they are suspenseful based on pacing, dangerous action or foreshadowing. Try to find at least one example of each.
   
4. On the back of the suspense chart, analyze the narrator of "The Black Cat." Is he reliable? Why or why not? Examine his character through his words and actions to determine whether or not you can trust him.
   
5. Answer the following questions in your notebook.
   

"The Black Cat" Reading Comprehension Questions
1. What is the narrator’s purpose in telling his tale?

2. The narrator describes his fondness for animals, stating, “There is something in the unselfish and self-sacrificing love of a brute, which goes directly to the heart of him who has had the frequent occasion to test the paltry friendship and gossamer fidelity of man.” In your own words, describe what this means. How could this statement foreshadow what will happen in the story?

• brute: (n) a savagely violent person or animal
• paltry: (adj) small or meager
• gossamer: (adj) made of or resembling gossamer (a fine, filmy substance consisting of cobwebs spun by small spiders.

3. How does the description of the cat as “sagacious” contribute to the meaning of the story?

4. What is the significance of the narrator’s change of disposition from docile and tender to “… more moody, more irritable and regardless of the feelings of others”?

5. Why does he eventually mistreat the cat?

6. Describe the narrator’s feelings after abusing the cat. Why is that significant?

7. How does the narrator define “perverseness”? Do you agree with his definition? do you agree that it is human nature?

8. The narrator explains that he hung that cat, stating he “- hung it because I knew that it had loved me, and because I felt it had given me no reason of offence; - hung it because I knew that in so doing I was committing a sin.” What do you think the narrator means by this?

9. What happens the night of the cat’s death? How does the narrator explain the phenomenon he discovers after the fire? What does the phenomenon symbolize?

10. What is significant about the new cat and his markings? What does the cat symbolize?


11. Why is it significant that the cat will not leave the narrator alone?

12. How does the fact that the narrator kills his wife instead of the cat add to the meaning of the story?

13. Discuss the significance of the following quote. “I made no doubt that I could readily displace the bricks at this point, insert the corpse, and wall the whole thing up as before, so that no eye could detect anything suspicious.”

14. Why is the narrator able to sleep so well after he conceals the body?

15. How do you explain the ending? Discuss the symbolism of the ending.

English 1 - Wednesday, November 4

Hi everyone - I know you're super bummed to miss school because of the SEPTA strike, so here are today's assignments.

Announcements and Reminders
17 journals are due Friday, November 6! Each journal must be at least 10 sentences long. If the SEPTA strike continues, I will extend the deadline.

You can email me questions or work at ajmccartney@philasd.org OR mccartneychs@gmail.com

Assignments

1. Review your vocabulary words! Make flashcards and use them! (If you show me your flashcards or study tool when you get back, I will give you McMoney - think about your learning style!)
2. Work on Study Island assignments! Finish any that you did not complete. You should answer at least 20 questions to get credit for each assignment.
   
3. Read the following two poems ("Introduction to Poetry" and "I Said to Poetry") and find examples of simile, metaphor, personification and imagery (use the Poetry Terms handout from Monday). Answer the questions following each poem.

Introduction to Poetry
Billy Collins

I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide

or press an ear against its hive.

I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,

or walk inside the poem's room
and feel the walls for a light switch.

I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author's name on the shore.

But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.

They begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.

Questions

1. How does the speaker want readers to feel about poetry? How do readers feel about poetry?
2. What is the speaker's message about poetry? How does he use figurative language to create this message?
3. Find at least one example of a metaphor, simile, personification and imagery in this poem.
   

I Said To Poetry
by Alice Walker

I said to Poetry: 'I'm finished
with you.'
Having to almost die
before some weird light
comes creeping through
is no fun.
'No thank you, Creation,
no muse need apply.
I'm out for good times --
at the very least,
some painless convention.'

Poetry laid back
and played dead
until this morning.
I wasn't sad or anything,
only restless.

Poetry said: 'You remember
the desert, and how glad you were
that you have an eye
to see it with? You remember
that, if ever so slightly?'
I said: 'I didn't hear that.
Besides, it's five o'clock in the a.m.
I'm not getting up
in the dark
to talk to you.'

Poetry said: 'But think about the time
you saw the moon
over that small canyon
that you liked much better
than the grand one - and how surprised you were
that the moonlight was green
and you still had
one good eye
to see with it.

Think of that!'

'I'll join the church!' I said,
huffily, turning my face to the wall.
'I'll learn how to pray again!'

'Let me ask you,' said Poetry.
'When you pray, what do you think
you'll see?'

Poetry had me.

'There's no paper
in this room,' I said.
'And that new pen I bought
makes a funny noise.'

'Bulls**t,' said Poetry.
'Bulls**t,' said I.

Questions

1. This poem is a conversation between whom? How can you tell?
2. How does "Poetry" react when the speaker says it is giving up poetry?
3. What reasons and excuses does the speaker give about giving up poetry?
4. Analyze the last stanza. Do you think the speaker will really give up poetry? Explain why or why not.
5. Find at least one example of a metaphor, simile, personification and imagery in this poem.