Over the next several weeks, I want students to fully understand The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 and also the communist "witch hunt" in America during Red Scare and Second Red scare in the 1950s when Sen. Joseph McCarthy and Edward R. Murrow squared off. It is purposeful because of the universal themes and concepts it teaches: fear, loyalty, pride, greed, paranoia, justice etc. Kids can relate to these because the concepts still exist in today's world. They will try to understand why young teenage girls cried "witch" ... and why Senator McCarthy cried "communists" ('witches'). Murrow and Crucible protagonist, John Proctor, are also compared, analyzed and examined. Many students who enjoy reading fantasy novels really seem to like this play. Arthur Miller wrote the play in 1953... we will research why he wrote The Crucible and why he used a 260-year old tragedy to compare it to???

Week of November 28 2011

English 10 students will take the To Kill a Mockingbird Unit Test this week. Final preparation for the test: Each student will be provided with a Unit Test review handout and participate in two rounds of TKAM "Jeopardy" that contains much of the information on the Unit Test.

To Kill a Mockingbird Unit Test (100 points)

Block 6 - Tuesday November 29
Blocks 1, 3, + 5 - Wednesday November 30

Honors English 10
Character Profile Essay (50 points)
DUE: Monday November 28

Honors English 10 students will watch the made-for-TV movie A Raisin in the Sun on Monday and Tuesday. Students will then be faced with the challenge of taking on the role of playwright and developing their own personal conclusion which brings closure to at least one aspect of the play that was left unresolved.

Week of November 14, 2011

English 10 -

We will continue reading To Kill a Mockingbird this week and finish the story next week. We will discuss the title of the book in terms of symbolism as well as the metaphorical "mockingbirds" in the story.

Honors English 10

We will continue "performing" Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun in class with students reading parts in the play. We will discuss how Mama's plant is symbolic and begin to examine some of the major themes such as strength of family, dreams, and money vs. morals. We read Act 1 Scene 1 in class on Friday Nov. 11.

Monday November 14 -
A Raisin in the Sun - Act 1 Scene 1 Quiz (30 points)
Mama's Plant Moodle Response Due (10 points)

Week of November 7, 2011

English 10 students will compose and revise an essay that focuses on the theme of perspective as it relates to the Tom Robinson trial in Harper Lee's classic, To Kill a Mockingbird. Students will have three day including two full class periods to complete the five paragraph essay. The most challenging aspect of the composition is writing in the "first person" in order to convey a specific character's personal perspective of the trial. In other words, instead of writing about certain characters, students must write from the character's perspective. This assignment is designed to assess each student's knowledge of specific characters as well as their ability to express the given character's point of view in regards to the trial at the center of the novel. Pre-writing activities included analyzing Johnny Cash's song "A Boy Named Sue," making personal and literary character connections to a poem titled "Children Learn What They Live," and making informed decisions about where specific To Kill a Mockingbird characters would "rank" in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. All of these lessons were aimed at solidifying each student's understanding of various characters' experiences and how those experiences shaped their perspective.

Perspective Essay Due Dates:
Blocks 3 + 6 - Thursday November 10 (at the end of class)

Blocks 1 + 5 - Friday November 11 (at the end of class)

Honors English 10 -

We will begin reading Lorraine Hansberry's Broadway play, A Raisin in the Sun on Friday. Students will write a short response focusing on symbolism after we read Act 1 Scene 1 in class and then will take a quiz on Act 1 Scene 1 next Tuesday November 15th.

Week of October 31, 2011

We will finish our unit on Adjectives this week in English 10. Quiz dates are below. Later in the week, we will investigate the theme of "perspective" in To Kill a Mockingbird and begin a multi-faceted assignment that culminates with students writing about the Tom Robinson trial from four different characters' perspectives.

Adjectives Quiz - 50 points
Block 5 - Tuesday, Nov. 1
Blocks 3 + 6 - Wednesday Nov. 2
Block 1 - Thursday Nov. 3

Honors English 10

To Kill a Mockingbird Unit Test (100 points)
Monday - October 31

Week of October 24 2011

English 10 students will read Chapters 19-23 (pages 190-227) in To Kill a Mockingbird before we take a break next week to complete a multi-faceted writing assignment that focuses on the theme of "perspective." Students will also examine the importance of adjectives and how to effectively incorporate adjectives in their writing.

We will also begin a "Word of the Day" exercise. I have compiled a list of the 100 most frequently used words in previous ACT Tests. From that list, I will choose and display one word per day and each student will be required to type the word, definition, part of speech, and synonyms then use the word properly in a sentence.

To Kill a Mockingbird Quiz - Chapter 19 (15 points)
Blocks 1, 3, + 5 Monday October 24
Block 6 Tuesday October 25

Honors English 10 -
To Kill a Mockingbird Final Essay (50 points)
Tuesday - Essay Assigned - Rough Draft (not graded) to be completed/printed/submitted in class...

Wednesday 10/26 - Final Draft Due at End of Class

Friday - TKAM Unit Test Review - Unit Test will be next Monday 10/31

Week of October 10, 2011

English 10 students will continue reading To Kill a Mockingbird this week. They will also begin to examine adjectives and participate in a small group "competition" that focuses on adjectives and synonyms. No formal assessments this week, yet one assignment due that will be graded as a quiz(see below).

Chapter 16 Vocabulary (20 points) -
Students must identify five (5) unfamiliar words in Chapter 16 of To Kill a Mockingbird, look up the definition, and use the word correctly in a sentence. This assignment will count as a Quiz and will be graded as an "Assessment" in Infinite Campus.

Honors English 10
Pronouns Usage Quiz (38 points)
Tuesday - Oct. 11

Study Guide #2 Due Wednesday

To Kill a Mockingbird - Read Chapters 22-25 (pgs 212-241) over the long weekend