College Essay Materials

Hi all,

Here is the big powerpoint you've been viewing this week. Feel free to reference it for inspiration.

Here is that link to the Johns Hopkins Admissions website. They have some great sample essays and also explanations of why they are so great.

College Application Essays Next Week

Just a reminder that next week we will be in the Media Center working on college essays. Get pumped! It will be a huge advantage to have a polished essay this far in advance of college applications. Attendance is important!

SRI Reading Test

Please be sure you complete the SRI exam. It is a requirement to pass the course and graduate. If you missed class today (when we took it), you will need to make up the exam on your own time during lunch or after school in the Media Center. 

PLEASE SAVE YOUR SCORE SHEET AND TURN IT IN TO ME!

Weekend Reading

Just a reminder that you should finish The Great Gatsby this weekend. We will review the end of the book on Monday and take a written test Tuesday. The only preparation necessary for the exam is reading the book and understanding the characters. It will be a short answer and mini-essay test.

Great Gatsby Reading

Hi all! Just a reminder to keep reading. You should be through at least Chapter 6.

Great Gatsby Chapter 2 tonight!

Don't forget to finish Chapter 2 tonight!

Tomorrow you will do your 4th annotation for our annotation project. On Friday you will take the CERA exam to show how your annotation and deep reading skills have improved over the year.

Weekend Reading Assignment

Just a reminder to read Chapter 1 of The Great Gatsby

Cuckoo's Nest Movie Review

We have now taken our exam about the novel. This week we are watching the film version. Made in 1985, "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" was directed by Milos Forman. It won 5 Academy Awards!

As we watch you should think about:

• What is particularly good about the movie (acting, costumes, dialogue, setting, music)?
• What are the weaknesses?
• What is different from the book? Is it a faithful adaptation?

HERE is the assignment you will complete after viewing the movie. You are writing a movie review! We will talk more about this after the movie.

Cuckoo's Nest TEST MONDAY (April 20th)

Just a reminder that Monday is your Cuckoo's Nest exam!! HERE is the Study Guide.

There will be 45 Multiple Choice questions AND a passage analysis.

For the passage analysis you will need to 1) annotate the passage and 2) write a short two-paragraph explanation of what you found and how it connects to the major themes in the book.

We practiced annotating together. Here is an example of really great annotation:

In case you are having trouble remembering some of our lectures:

• HERE is the lecture about Ken Kesey (the author) and his background
• HERE are those two videos about power and conformity (the Milgram and Asch experiments)

Weekend Reading Assignment

This weekend you should read through the end of Part III. You will have a quiz Monday!

Rorschach Test

Rorschach tests (ink-blot tests) were popular in the early 20th Century as a tool for diagnosing mental disorders.

Here is an online version for those of you who are interested. This is totally optional, but I thought it was interesting.

Take results with a grain of salt!

As the site notes, "[research] indicates that scores from the MCR have little value." These sorts of tests are no longer used to determine mental status or illness. That's a big relief to me as my results are consistent with psychological disturbance. Yikes! If anyone scores "normal," I want to know!!

I think it is interesting to think about the many bogus ways researchers in the past attempted to categorize and ostracize people based on perceived mental differences. Remember our chorus, "Conform or be cast out." 

How many of our characters from Cuckoo's Nest might have been subjected to similar tests?!?

This American Life: The Edge of Sanity

Today we did a listening activity with This American Life's January 31, 1997 broadcast of "The Edge of Sanity." We listened to Part II & IV and answered THESE questions.

If you missed class, please plan to listen to those parts of the show and answer the questions in your own time.

Those of you interested in listening to more of the show may do so, though I do warn you that other segments are somewhat disturbing, so proceed with caution.

McMurphy as a Hero

Today we discussed four important terms you should know:

Hero
Western Hero (cowboy)
Anti-Hero
Tragic Hero

Please know how each of these terms relates to McMurphy!

Reading Reminder

Just a reminder that you should finish Cuckoo's Nest Part II by Friday. You will have a quiz!

Quiz Tomorrow!

Reminder: You have a quiz tomorrow about Cuckoo's Nest through page 69

Conformity & Power (videos from class 3/13)

I forgot to post this earlier!

In class, students responded to the following prompt:
"Have you ever had a teacher, parent or coach that told you something you knew was wrong? Have any of those people told you to DO something you knew was wrong. What did you do? Do you think you are a person who can stand up against power?"

Then, we watched the following two videos and discussed the nature of conformity and power:

Cuckoo's Nest Reading for Monday (3/16)

Just a reminder that this weekend you are reading One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest through page 41. There is a quiz Monday! You have been warned...

Ken Kesey & The Merry Pranksters

I showed you this powerpoint with videos about Kesey's experimental trial with LSD and also his road trip with the Merry Pranksters.

Beat Poetry

HERE is a copy of the Beat poems we read for class today

Beats & Postmodernism Powerpoint

Hi all! HERE are the slides from the lecture yesterday about the Beat Poets and Postmodernism

Psychiatric Institutions Readings (due Wednesday, 3/11)

Tonight, please read these three articles and answer the questions below:

Steve Forbes: Why The Treatment Of Our Nation's Mentally Ill Is An American Disgrace

Institutionalization and Deinstitutionalization with Schizophrenia

Committing a mentally ill adult is complex

Questions:

1. What does each article describe (give a brief synopsis)
2. In your opinion, should the state be allowed to hold some people against their will? Why or why not?

War and the Artist (Project due 2/9)

Hi all! This week is a fun week. You will work in class on an art project meant to draw together all the threads of our War Stories Unit.

Artists have always used war as a source for inspiration. They use that inspiration to create patriotic art or art that promotes peace. View the following video:



Now begin work on THIS assignment.

You will need to turn in THESE questions with your artistic response.

In-Class Listening from 2/27

Today we listened to two really powerful StoryCorp stories from veterans.

The first was from Captain Drew Pham, speaking with his wife Amy about his deployment to Afghanistan in 2011.

The second was from Michael Crowe. In this short clip he describes looking at photos of soldiers from Vietnam.

For each of these stories I asked

• What word or phrase stood out to you?
• What connections can you make with the stories we've read in this unit?

We also watched this beautiful StoryCorp animated video called "The Nature of War:"

Essay Revision Materials

This week we are continuing our work on essays. You are all at different places in the revision process. Some of you need to "get back to basics" and begin again (don't fret, we've all been there!). Others need to reorganize what you have and find new or better pieces of evidence. Some have just minor grammatical issues to correct. My goal is that all of you improve your writing with this essay so everyone must turn in a revision.


Here are some materials for reference:

Guide to complete sentences & capitalization

Reminders for Essay Organization

Guide to my edits

Passive Voice: Go through THIS slideshow

Essay Powerpoint (Citing Sources)

In case you missed class today, HERE are the slides I covered about citing your sources.

Be sure, in your essay, to cite page numbers with every quotations. I would also like a Bibliography or Works Cited page. Use www.easybib.com!

IF we have a "cold-day" tomorrow, plan to email me your complete draft by the end of the day Friday.

Essay Due Dates (Reminder)

Just a reminder that a complete draft of your essay is due FRIDAY the 13th! This is worth 55 points. We have been working on these all week in class. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Essay Writing Guides

HERE is the powerpoint about crafting a thesis & organizing your paper

HERE is the powerpoint about analyzing quotations for body paragraphs

Weekend Homework (DUE MONDAY, FEB. 9th)

Hi all! Today we started reading a fantastic short story by Phil Klay, "After Action Report." This story comes from his National Book Award winning collection Redeployment.

THIS WEEKEND:

1. Finish "After Action Report"
2. Complete the essay prewriting sheet & begin gathering your "evidence" that relates to your chosen essay theme.

Don't panic! We are going to work through the essay step-by-step next week. See you then!

Homework due February 6

Reminder: If you had to rewrite you "American Dream" mini-essay, those rewrites are DUE TOMORROW.

You all received an extension on the "God Bless America" & discrimination in the military paper. It is now also, DUE TOMORROW (FRIDAY):

1. Read the short story "God Bless America"
2. Read THIS article about discrimination in the military
3. Respond to the prompt below

In a well-written 1-page response, answer the following:

President Truman desegregated the military in 1948 by executive action, but in “God Bless America,” Joe serves in a segregated unit headed for Korea (around 1951). Clearly, the military was slow to end discriminatory practices. What evidence do you see in both the short story and the article that confirm this? Use direct quotations in your discussion. Why, do you think, did minorities continue to serve?

Updated Unit Calendar

Hello again -- due to the snow day I have updated our unit calendar. You can find it HERE. I have made major changes so please discard your old calendars.

Snow Day Tomorrow & Homework Reminder!

Hi all and Happy Snow Day! Usually I would expect you to have the homework for Monday ready for class on Tuesday, but I never gave you those readings, so never mind! You get a snow-day without English homework (hooray)!

Hint, hint -- I would make really sure you have read The Things They Carried chapters 1, 9 & 17 by Tuesday. There could be a reading quiz in your future!!

Homework due Monday, February 2

Hi all! Thank you for a great first week. Here is this weekend's assignment:

Read The Things They Carried, Chapt. 9 ("Sweetheart") AND Chapt. 17 ("In the Field"), using post-it note annotation.

I would like AT LEAST: 

-5 new words (and definitions)

-8 important or intriguing quotations (4 per chapter)

-2 questions for class discussion (open ended questions)

If you have questions about annotation, check out THIS GUIDE.

Homework (Due Friday, January 30th)

Homework due tomorrow (Friday, January 30th) 

Tonight please read the first chapter of The Things They Carried and complete the quotation/response worksheet (minimum of 5 important, interesting, confusing or surprising quotations AND your responses). Be sure to include page numbers!

Vietnam War videos from class

Today we began our "War Stories" unit! First on our list is The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. Please check out the unit page for great background on O'Brien and the Vietnam War. Here are the History Channel videos we watched together in class today.

VIDEO: The Road to War (brief overview of the Vietnam War)

Questions: Why was the United States so afraid of the spread of Communism?

VIDEO: A Soldier's Story

Question: How did "Hamburger Hill" get its name? Based on this name, what inferences can you draw about the rest of the war?

VIDEO: Daily Life

Question: Why was boredom a soldier's greatest enemy?

America by Tony Hoagland

Welcome to the second semester of American Lit! I was glad to meet you today. Here is the poem "America" by Tony Hoagland we discussed in class.

America

BY TONY HOAGLAND

Then one of the students with blue hair and a tongue stud   

Says that America is for him a maximum-security prison 

Whose walls are made of RadioShacks and Burger Kings, and MTV episodes   

Where you can’t tell the show from the commercials, 

And as I consider how to express how full of shit I think he is,   

He says that even when he’s driving to the mall in his Isuzu 

Trooper with a gang of his friends, letting rap music pour over them   

Like a boiling Jacuzzi full of ballpeen hammers, even then he feels 

Buried alive, captured and suffocated in the folds   

Of the thick satin quilt of America 

And I wonder if this is a legitimate category of pain,   

or whether he is just spin doctoring a better grade, 

And then I remember that when I stabbed my father in the dream last night,   

It was not blood but money 

That gushed out of him, bright green hundred-dollar bills   

Spilling from his wounds, and—this is the weird part—, 

He gasped “Thank god—those Ben Franklins were   

Clogging up my heart— 

And so I perish happily, 

Freed from that which kept me from my liberty”— 

Which was when I knew it was a dream, since my dad   

Would never speak in rhymed couplets, 

And I look at the student with his acne and cell phone and phony ghetto clothes 

And I think, “I am asleep in America too, 

And I don’t know how to wake myself either,” 

And I remember what Marx said near the end of his life: 

“I was listening to the cries of the past, 

When I should have been listening to the cries of the future.” 

But how could he have imagined 100 channels of 24-hour cable 

Or what kind of nightmare it might be 

When each day you watch rivers of bright merchandise run past you 

And you are floating in your pleasure boat upon this river 

Even while others are drowning underneath you 

And you see their faces twisting in the surface of the waters 

And yet it seems to be your own hand 

Which turns the volume higher?

Tony Hoagland, “America” from What Narcissism Means to Me. Copyright © 2003 by Tony Hoagland.

Homework Due Thursday (January 29)

1. Bring your ID's for the Book Depository
2. One page response: What is America to you? What is your American dream?