English 112: Today we had a fabulous whole class discussion about "The Most Dangerous Game".  I gave an assignment to be done on the story.  The assignment focuses on two skills: quotation identification and creating graphic organizers for note-taking.  It is due on Tuesday.  I am not here tomorrow, however, I'll be back on Monday.  You can ask me questions about the assignment then.  See the attachment for the assignment.   English 10: Storyboards were due today.  Today we wrote a snapshot moment from our storyboard and talked about proper use of quotation marks.  Continue working on your drafts tomorrow with the supply teacher.

English 112: Don't forget your homework tomorrow.  Complete a two page double spaced reflection on the following question:  In "Lamb to the Slaughter", how does the author create both the seen and unseen characterstics of Mary Maloney.  You must use quotes to support.  Remember that the graphic organizers you created are a great prewriting tool for this assignment.   English 10: We worked on the reading comprehension skill of determining importance today.  Students searched through the text of "The Pit and the Pendulum" to find words that connected to the human feelings of fear, obsession, anticipation, and helplessness.  The next step is to choose one of those words and complete one of the following activities:  a) text-to-self connection: put that word as the title at the top of your page.  Write a one page double spaced piece that describes a time in your life when you experienced this emotion. b) text-to-text connection: Think about your word and find another text that reminds you of that emotion.  The text could be a song, poem, picture, movie, story, etc.  Write a half page piece explaining why the text you have chosen connects with the word from our story. c) text-to-world connection: Think about your word and how it connects to something that is happening in the world, in your community, or in your school.  This piece should be one page double spaced. d) If you enjoy drawing, you can create a visualization of the word.  Remember that tone is essential. Assignment is due on Monday.

English 112: QW - we watched a video from 1949 entitled "Dating Dos and Don'ts", then students created their own list of dating dos and don'ts for today's teens.  After the QW, we learned about the context of our story, "Lamb to the Slaughter".  We also read the short story.  Over the next couple of classes, we will be analyzing the story, particularly the main character, Mary Maloney.  I am adding an online text of the story (check web links). English 10: QW - Write about a memorable moment from the point of view of another person who was there.  Today I gave you class time to work on the "Sentry" comprehension questions and creative extension which are due tomorrow.  

Writing 110: Continue to revise your narratives.  Complete your independent corrections sheet to hand in with your final copy. English 112: Read the excerpt from the article "Home Smart Home".  Highlight any parts of the article that relate to your reading focus - Does technology make life harder or easier for humans?  Be sure to write important points in the margins.

Writing 110: Over the past few days, we have been looking at the differences between writing plot-based stories and thematic-based stories.  Also, today, we spoke about creative use of dialogue and punctuation to add voice to our characters.  Continue working on your extended narratives.   English 112: Today we read "August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains", a science fiction piece by Ray Bradbury.  We will be working cooperatively over the next two days to figure out the themes in this story and connect them to the real world.  Also, students received their first "One Pager" today, which needs to be completed for Friday.  This assignment is to be completed on your silent reading book.   English 10: Today we read "The Sniper" by Liam O'Flaherty.  We completed open mind portraits, which helps to fine tune our visualization skills.  We visualized what the sniper was thinking about in the middle of the story, and then again at the end.  We will be doing follow up activities over the next few days.  

Writing 110: Writers notebooks were collected today.  Also, we placed our snapshot moments into our writing portfolios with a reflection card.  We are continuing to work on our extended narratives. English 112: Today we discussed the group questions that you were given in yesterday's class.  We also watched the video adaptation of "The Lottery".  I will put the youtube links on the website. Englishs 10: We talked about theme today, and used songs as a prompt for writing thematic paragraphs with quotations.  You may bring in your own song for Monday's class so we can further practice this skill.

Writing 110: We have moved on to extended narrative, and we are playing around with place narrative as a genre for our next piece.  We are currently in the prewriting process, and have been experimenting with sketches and storyboards to help us generate ideas.  Remember that your snapshot moments are due tomorrow.   English 112: Today we read the short story "The Lottery Ticket" on page 198 of the Echoes text.  We did some pre-reading activities that focused on satire.  The following assignment is due on Monday: Find a pop culture example of satire and complete the following assignment.  This should be written in essay format and should be two pages double spaced in length: 1. include a short summary of the source2. state the definition of satire3. refer to how at least three elements of satire are used in the source4. comment on the criticism of a literary work/person/society that is satirized in the source   English 10: We have started our short story unit.  Don't forget that your personal narratives are due tomorrow.