|
|
| Syllabus
| Assignments |
Revised:
Oct. 19, 2006 |
|
| Week
of August 21 to 25 |
| Mon |
Syllabus,
"Getting to Know You" assignment (in class). Literature
survey (in class). "E-mail
to Teacher" assignment.
Hmwk: finish reading syllabus (for quiz Fri). Put together
English class notebook as per instructions in syllabus
("Additional Materials" section).
|
| Tues |
Intro
to English class journaling. Journal #1 (Best/worst "first
day of school" story). Student input on curriculum content.
Writing sample. ["Underdogs" unit story--for students
who finish before peers]
Hmwk: Complete "E-mail
to Teacher" assignment before midnight next Mon. Finish
reading syllabus (for quiz Fri). Put together English class notebook
as per instructions in syllabus ("Additional
Materials" section). |
| Thurs |
Journal #2 (untimed: What I want out of Prep. What I want to accomplish
this year). Grammar pretest. ["Underdogs" unit story--for
students who finish before peers]
Hmwk: Finish Journal #2 (if not completed in class). Finish
reading syllabus for quiz tomorrow. Complete "E-mail
to Teacher" assignment before class next Mon. |
| Fri |
Journal #3 (My first week at Prep: the good, the bad, the ugly--stuff
that needs to be changed/rearranged). Syllabus quiz. "The
Brave Little Tailor."
No hmwk over weekend (as long as you've completed your "E-mail
to Teacher" assignment--due Mon.) |
| Week
of August 28 to September 1 |
| Mon |
Due:
"E-mail to Teacher"
assignment (before midnight tonight). Journal #4 (Have you ever
been an underdog, i.e., expected to lose? Reflections on "The
Brave Little Tailor"). Spelling
words for quiz on Friday (accommodation to beneath).
Begin "Underdogs" unit, a collection of stories from various
cultures about underdogs. Finish reading
"The Brave Little Tailor." Write notes: What are the
circumstances of the story that allow the tailor to be successful?
What has to happen for him to be successful at each turn? What about
the tailor's life would lead you to expect him to lose (be unsuccessful)?
What about the tailor himself makes him successful?
Hmwk: Review the story of David and Goliath in the Bible
(I Sam. 16 & 17). |
| Tues |
David and
Goliath (I
Sam. 16 & 17). Write notes: What are the circumstances of
this Bible story that allow David to be successful? What about David
would lead you to expect him to lose against the giant? What do
David's brothers think of his abilities? Compare this story to "The
Brave Little Tailor." Read aloud the Jacobs
version of "Jack and the Beanstalk." Draw while you
listen. Questions: How does magic make Jack's success possible?
Compare Jack with main characters in other stories. Are the underdogs
smart? Do they rely on coincidence for their success? What is Jack's
reward at the end? Compare this to the rewards in other stories.
Hmwk: Read the Lang
version of "Jack and the Beanstalk." |
| Thurs |
Journal
#5 (Labor Day weekend plans, How's school going for you so far?
Do "magic" and "miracles" mean the same thing?
--one used in fairy tales and the other used in the Bible to explain
the unexplanable?) Reading quiz over the Lang
version of "Jack and the Beanstalk." Intro Cinderella
theme.
Hmwk: study for spelling quiz. (Enrichment:
Why do we have variations on this tale? Do all three "Jack
and the Beanstalk" tales have
the same theme/moral?) |
| Fri |
Journal
#6 (What are your strengths? What do you do really well?). Spelling
quiz (accommodation to beneath). Read aloud a
Jack story.
No hmwk.
English notebook check this weekend. Your
3-ring binder (with 5 labeled dividers and containing all journals,
handouts and notes given so far) must be on shelf in English classroom.
|
Week
of September 4 to 8 |
| Mon |
No
class: Labor Day. |
| Tues |
Spelling
words for quiz on Friday (actual to allege).
Journal #6 (Options: Your weekend, How is school working for you?
Juggling extra-curricular activities with academics). Read the
Charles
Perrault version of the Cinderella tale, "Cinderella; or,
The Little Glass Slipper." For study and discussion questions:
What do you think the Cinderella tale is really about?
Is it about bravery? rags to riches success? beauty? goodness?
nobility of spirit? surviving adversity? Do different versions
have different moral/themes? Why might a society want its children
to understand the story of Cinderella?
No hmwk.
|
| Thurs |
Journal #7 (This morning's
worship, modern Cinderella story, or freewrite). Notes on board
and discussion about "odd" messages of best-known Cinderella
tale:
- Only beautiful people
are good?
- A woman's supreme
ambition is to marry a prince?
- One can pick a spouse
by appearances?
- "Goodness"
means being a doormat for unpleasant people?
Read aloud two other
versions of the Cinderella tale: Princess Furball, by Charlotte
Huck, and Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters, by John Steptoe.
Hmwk: study for spelling quiz
|
| Fri |
Spelling quiz (actual
to allege).
Read aloud The King's Equal by Katherine Paterson. Journal
#8 (Is The King's Equal a Cinderella story? Why/why not?).
No hmwk. |
| Week
of September 11 to 15 |
| Mon |
Journal #9 (Publication
Workshop, 9/11, Queen Esther: Biblical Cinderella?). Read Esther
1 & 2 (silently to self or quietly to a partner). Begin Esther
Reading Comprehension Questions (answers need to be in "Notes"
section of notebook).
Hmwk: Read Esther
3 & 4 (any version of the Bible).
|
| Tues |
Journal
#10 (Reflections on this morning's worship about making decisions
to bring peace and calm to your life). Reading quiz: Esther 1-4.
Continue reading Esther. Continue Esther
Reading Comprehension Questions (answers need to be in "Notes"
section of notebook).
Hmwk: Finish reading Esther (through chpt. 10). |
| Thurs |
Journal
#11 (Imagine you are giving a party for 180--or 7--days. What are
the details?) Spelling words
for quiz on Friday (alliance to anxious). Reading
quiz: Esther 5-10. Continue working on Esther
Reading Comprehension Questions (answers need to be in
"Notes" section of notebook).
Hmwk: study for spelling quiz. |
| Fri |
Spelling
quiz (alliance to anxious). Finish Esther
Reading Comprehension Questions.
No hmwk as long as you have completed the Esther
Reading Comprehension Questions. If not, you HAVE hmwk! The
answers to ALL of the Esther
Reading Comprehension Questions should be in the Notes section
of your English notebook by Monday. |
| Week
of September 18 to 22 |
| Mon |
No
spelling quiz this week because of midterm test on underdog stories
and ITED testing. Check off completed answers for Esther
Reading Comprehension Questions in Notes section of English
notebook. Read: Sleeping Ugly, by Jane Yolen--a tale in which
the ugly girl gets the prince and the beautiful princess gets just
what she deserves. Begin reading "Fair,
Brown, and Trembling" (an Irish version of the Cinderella tale).
Hmwk: Finish reading: "Fair,
Brown, and Trembling.". |
| Tues |
Reading quiz: "Fair,
Brown, and Trembling" Test
review questions about underdog stories.
Hmwk: study for test over underdog stories.
|
| Thurs |
Test:
underdog stories.
No hmwk. |
| Fri |
No
class because of ITED/CogAT testing schedule. |
| Week
of September 25 to 29 |
| Mon |
[Midterm
grades due.] Spelling words
for quiz on Thursday (appall to attach). Read
"The
Open Window," by H. H. Munro (pp. 19 - 21 in lit text).
Hmwk: Did you understand "The
Open Window"? Figure out what happened in the story to
be ready for a reading quiz tomorrow. |
| Tues |
Journal #12 (Consider
the first half of this quarter as a dress rehearsal for the second
half. What needs to be tweaked for peace, happiness and success?)
Reading quiz: "The
Open Window." Do Analyzing Lit qstns. #1-8 & 10-14
on p. 22. Due in class.
Hmwk: study for spelling quiz.
|
| Thurs |
Finish
qstns from yesterday (if necessary). Spelling
quiz (appall to attach). |
| Fri |
No
class because of ITED/CogAT testing schedule. |
| Week
of October 2 to 6 |
| Mon |
Journal #13 (Do you
ever daydream about being amazing or someone other than yourself?
What are you like in your daydreams?) Spelling
words for quiz on Friday (attorney to brilliant).
Read aloud "The
Secret Life of Walter Mitty" by James Thurber (pp. 116
- 120).
Hmwk: Write a Walter-Mitty-type daydream for yourself.
Be as amazing as you want. Finish first draft, and bring story
to class tomorrow to share in a small group.
|
| Tues |
Due:
first draft of Walter-Mitty-type daydream story. Share daydream
story with a partner.
Hmwk: word process daydream story (12 pt. font, Times New
Roman, 1" margins all around, double spacing, name in upper
right-hand corner). |
| Thurs |
Journal
#15. Due today (at end of class): word processed daydream story
and illustration. Work on illustration during class. Hmwk:
study for spelling quiz. |
| Fri |
Journal
#16 (rainy day thoughts). Spelling
quiz (attorney to brilliant). Read story aloud.
No hmwk. |
| Week
of October 9 to 13 |
| Mon |
Journal
#17 (group writing story). Spelling
words for quiz on Wednesday (broadcast to cease).
Read "The Leap" (pp. 57-63). Read
"Flashback" on p. 64 and answer the 3 questions after
the explanation.
Hmwk: discover what the 5 W's and 1 H of journalism are.
(Resource options: online search, encyclopedia, journalist, etc.)
List 5 W's and H for the dramatic rescue at the end of "The
Leap." |
| Tues |
Check off and discuss homework. (Complete reading and "Flashback"
qstns--if not completed yesterday.) Using the 5 W's & 1 H in
the first paragraph, write a newspaper article about the last time
the narrator's mother saved her life (from the burning house).
Hmwk: study for spelling quiz. |
| Wed |
[NB schedule change
because of PowerWeek] Spelling
quiz (broadcast to cease). Continue
on "The Leap" newspaper article. Due
by end of class. Work on #1-5 & 13-15 (p. 64)--due end of
class Mon.
No hmwk.
|
| Thurs
& Fri |
No English 9 because
of PowerWeek.
|
| Week
of October 16 to 20 (End of First Quarter) |
| Mon |
Journal #18 (What are
your strengths?). Finish #1-5 & 13-15 (p. 64). Begin review
for test. [Test fodder: "The Open Window," "The
Secret Life of Walter Mitty," "The Leap," 1st quarter
spelling, and writing]. Review sheet:
- Develop a list of
characters for each story. Write a statement of significance
for each.
- Write a short paragraph
summary of each story.
- Identify main conflict
in each story.
- Identify the significance
of the conflict to each character.
- Review all returned
spelling quizzes. Develop list of words to which you need to
pay special attention.
Test review sheet will
ONLY be accepted for credit right before test time.
Hmwk: continue review for test.
|
| Tues |
Continue
review for test.
Hmwk: continue review for test. |
| Thurs |
Due:
test review sheet. (Must be submitted before test to receive credit.)
Test.
Hmwk: study for spelling quiz. |
| Fri |
Spelling
quiz over this quarter's words (abandon to cease).
Read story aloud.
No hmwk. |