English 9 Regents: Poetry (Odes)

As part of our poetry unit, students learned about a variety of poetic styles from odes, to elegies, to romances and epics.  We examined a plethora of figurative language tools used by poets to craft their work.

This is what we did with Odes:

1- defined Pindaric and Horatian odes and the purpose of an ode altogether

2- read and analyzed the structure of “Ode to Aphrodite” by Sappho (example of Pindaric Ode)

3- read and analyzed the structure of two odes from T. S. Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats (“Macavity: the Mystery Cat” and “Mungojerry and Rumpleteezer”), which are examples of Horatian Odes.

5- compared student analyses of Eliot poems (speaker, tone, mood) with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s interpretation of the same poems in the musical Cats.  Analyzed Webber’s characterization of each cat (speaker, tone, musical style, choreography, costuming, lighting) and justified his choices with textual evidence from Eliot’s poems.

We then used a Visible Thinking exercise with video performances of these same odes:

“Macavity”

“Mungojerry and Rumpleteezer”

 

 

English 9 Regents: Poetry

Throughout the poetry unit, I am introducing a variety of poetic styles as a brief overview of the genre.  The poems include:

 

“Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening” by Robert Frost (meter and rhyme scheme)

“The Bells” by Edgar Allan Poe (how assonance, consonance, and alliteration are used to create onomatopoeia)

“Sympathy” by Paul Laurence Dunbar (meter and rhyme scheme; symbolism)

“Mending Wall” by Robert Frost (blank verse, iambic pentameter, effectiveness of imagery)

“Mother to Son” by Langston Hughes (characterization, extended metaphor, symbolism, free verse)

“When I Heard the Learned Astronomer” by Walt Whitman (free verse, “self” as speaker)

“Ode to Aphrodite” by Sappho (Pindaric ode, strophe/antistrophe)

“Macavity: The Mystery Cat” by T.S. Eliot (Horatian ode, characterization, imagery, speaker)

“Mungojerry and Rumpleteazer” by T.S. Eliot (Horation ode, characterization, imagery, speaker)

“In Memory of W. B. Yeats” by W. H. Auden (elegy, characterization)

“Sonnet 130” by William Shakespeare (sonnet format, iambic pentameter)

“The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe (narrative poetry, characterization, conflict, imagery, repetition, trochaic octameter)

“Casey at the Bat” by Ernest Lawrence Taylor (narrative poetry, characterization, conflict)

“La Belle Dame Sans Merci” by John Keats (narrative poetry, romance, characterization, setting, speaker)

“The Lady of Shalott” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson (narrative poetry, characterization, romance, conflict)

 

English 9 Enriched: Short Story Anthology 2014

It is complete!  The students have created their 2014 Short Story anthology: Through the Telescope by Castor Pollux.  It is a collection of satirical stories (inspired by Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels) that address myriad social issues.   Their tales are  poignant and clever, but only twelve could be selected to be published in the anthology.  As for the remaining students, I have encouraged them to submit their stories for writing contests and other means of publication, and I have set up a page online with a list of such contests.

The students wanted to get the idea of their stories being an “alternate universe” in the grand scope, and that each tale focused in on a particular aspect of society they wished to zoom in on; hence, the title Through the Telescope.

After some discussion about cover art, the students decided they wanted to go with some sort of “star” theme.  We looked at various photographs they happened to have (NO taking anything from the internet!), and then I went to visit Science teacher Bill Kent.  He just happened to have had some of his star photographs converted from slides to digital format that very week…it was a sign!  After some deliberation, the majority voted for the photo of star paths taken in a canyon.

Finally, they needed a collective name.  Because we had spent a great deal of time examining cultural mythology, their collective name is an allusion to the constellation Gemini and the twins, Castor and Pollux.  The idea of twins relates to how their tales point out the foibles of society through an alternate or “twin” universe.

Incredibly clever allusion!

You may click on the photograph of the book cover to be taken to the publication site and to examine the preview of their work.  their books shall be presented to the students at the Freshman/Sophomore awards ceremony at the end of the month, and we shall also have a book signing/cake celebration in early June.

Congratulations, Castor Pollux!

The stories:

“The Timeline” by Nicholas Barton

“Hope for the Valley” by Caitlyn Coffey

“Reduce, Reuse,…Nihility?” by Marko Dilai

“Whispering Rebellions” by Taylor Elliott

“Speak” by Leela Fideor

“The Knitted Nightmare” by Emily Folan

“Plastic For All” by Emilie Leinberg

“Over the Rainbow” by Catherine MacCarthy

“The Sound Principle” by Lucas Mancini

“Old Habits” by Kyle Norton

“The Royal Ruse” by Courtney Priddy

“Reality Check” by Dalton Pumputis

English 9 Enriched: Television Prologues a la Shakespeare

As students examined Shakespeare’s opening prologue in Romeo and Juliet, we talked about the function of a prologue (introduction of characters, setting, and the main conflict, as well as an invitation to “stay tuned”) in his play.

We also looked at modern prologues for television shows such as The Brady Bunch, Gilligan’s Island, The Fresh Prince of BelAir, and The Beverly Hillbillies, and they examined how those lyrics fit the purpose of a prologue such as one written by Homer or Shakespeare.

Their Task:

Oh, those wonderful prologues of days gone by! Like the opening sonnet from William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet , which introduces the audience to the “two households, both alike in dignity”, early television programs often began with a theme song or prologue. Today, television shows have nearly obliterated the informative, entertaining prologues of the early T.V. years and replaced them with musical interludes and credit collages.  Your task will be to remedy this oversight by selecting your favorite television show, which presently begins with theme music only, and write a suitable prologue for it. Remember that an effective prologue invites the listener to hear a story, and it  introduces the characters we are about to see in the show, gives hints about the setting/where the story shall take place, and offers some clues about upcoming conflicts.  And, of course, it will be written in SONNET form!

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Student Samples:

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Modern Family Prologue by Nick B.

 

This is the story of our family.

We may have problems with each other now,

But we love each other, as you can see.

We always end up making you ask how.

There’s Jay and Gloria and little Joe;

He’s old, she’s young, but they still make it work.

Manny is such a kind and helpful Bro;

He’s smart, he’s funny, and he’s not a jerk.

Don’t forget Phil and Claire; they have three kids:

Alex and Hayley are sisters to Luke.

Mitchell and Cam’s love is off of the grid;

Adding baby Lilly was not a fluke.

And if you relax and put on a smirk,

We’ll tell you how we make our family work.

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Prologue for The Walking Dead by Kevin V.

 

A man awakes to an awful new life,

Not knowing where he is or what to do,

He struggles to find his son and his wife,

While strange monsters congregate in a slew.

Miles away, the outskirts of the city,

House the exact same abominations,

What happens here, truly is a pity,

In this world, everyone is on probation.

Old morals and beliefs begin to fade,

Because in Atlanta no one spares breath,

Unfortunately, the people have paid,

The ultimate price; no life, only death.

On this reborn planet, things never mend,

And the problem seemingly has no end.

 

English 9 Regents: Prologues for “The Interlopers” a la Shakespeare

As students examined Shakespeare’s opening prologue in Romeo and Juliet, we talked about the function of a prologue (introduction of characters, setting, and the main conflict, as well as an invitation to “stay tuned”) in his play.  To show that they understood the function of a prologue AND the structure of a sonnet, the students were asked to create a prologue (in sonnet form) for another story about feuding families: “The Interlopers” by Saki.  It was a story we had read during the short story unit this Fall.

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Here is a student sample by Mike B. (I bolded and italicized the stressed syllables to show the iambic pentameter):

 

For years a feud has continued to grow

Over one puny little strip of land;

This feud has brought them nothing but sorrow,

And could not be stopped by the judge’s hand.

Our story takes place one dangerous night:

Two different men plotting each other’s doom,

But soon their evening will be filled with fright

As imminent danger begins to loom.

As Ulrich and Georg lessened their rage,

Their families’ past they began to pave,

Unknown to them, their current wooden cage

Would also serve as their eternal grave.

The land the families saw as their prize,

Ironically brought down their sons’ demise.

English 9 Enriched: Justification for Teaching Creative Writing

After much analysis of Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, as well as arguing points relative to his satire, the students began to work on a satirical piece of their own.  And while creative writing is not particularly well supported by the Common Core, I am a firm believer in allowing students to use their imaginations, especially to ponder the question, “What if…?”

Through exploring Swift’s use of “What if…?” in his novel, we expanded on how students would approach the same scenario: What if you suddenly found yourself in a place where people are only six inches tall?  Or are giants?  Or is a place ruled by horses?  This gave them a starting place for creating their own scenarios for their stories.

We also looked at various forms of satire, and each student selected two or three forms that they wanted to “play with” in their own writing…and then they got down to work.

The last structural stipulation was that, like Gulliver’s Travels, their story had to be some sort of travelogue (but it could be an adventure of the mind…like Dorothy’s dream in The Wizard of Oz).  As such, they needed to incorporate elements of the Hero’s Journey pattern as outlined by Joseph Campbell.  We have worked with the Hero’s Journey all year, and I wanted them to show me how well they understood it through their own tale.

Doing all of this, as well as incorporating the use of strong sensory imagery (to either set a particular mood/atmosphere, but as a method of characterization), metaphors, similes, symbolism, and the use of dialect (to aid characterization) will give students a better grasp of what a professional author goes through in creating his/her works of fiction.  If students can not only recognize, but appreciate WHY a particular type of figurative language is used in writing, then they will be better prepared to analyze literature in the future.

In approaching persuasive writing, the students also had to write a commercial in an effort to get their fellow classmates to not only read, but vote for their story to be published in our upcoming short story anthology.

That is my justification for teaching creative writing!

After working for the past six weeks on their creation, here are some advertisements for their short stories:

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“The Timeline” Trailer by Nick B.  Nick’s PowerPoint trailer for his short story, “The Timeline”

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Leela’s iMovie trailer for her story, “Speak”:

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Mike’s YouTube video for his story, “When Technology Attacks”

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Kevin’s YouTube video for “Swagpocalypse”:

English 9 Enriched: What if…? (Houyhnhnmland)

For each of the three parts of Gulliver’s Travels that we read in our abridged version, I have asked the question, “What if…?”

“What if you suddenly found yourself in a world inhabited by people only six inches tall?”

“What if you suddenly found yourself in a place inhabited by giants?”

and finally:

“What if you suddenly found yourself in a world where another animal was the dominant species, and men were wild beasts?”

To get them thinking, I did a Visible Thinking exercise using a clip from the 1968 film, Planet of the Apes.

Click picture to play the clip…

While watching the clip, students wrote down three things they SAW in the video that may relate to Gulliver’s arrival at Houyhnhnmland.  Once they had ten (after the clip was finished), each found a partner and shared what they saw in the clip.

After sharing, they returned to their seats to write three things they thought about how the clip connected to Gulliver’s Travels and explain why, as well as three things they wondered about if they were to suddenly find themselves in a similar situation.

We shared their responses on PostIts, using a different color for See/Think/Wonder.

After sharing their verbal responses, they broke up into their assigned groups to continue the discussion about Gulliver’s arrival in the land ruled by horses.  They had to address the following:

– I would definitely ________________.

– I could possibly __________________.

– three things Swift was showing about mankind through this portion of the novel.

After each group prepared its answers, we shared some of their ideas.

English 9 Enriched: Persuasive Essay/Argument

Persuasive Argument: Gulliver’s Travels

Some critics say that in Gulliver’s Travels we see Swift at his most misanthropic; his representation of the Yahoos demonstrates that he is a bitter hater of mankind. Other critics say, however, that for Swift the Yahoos do not represent mankind but what mankind must strive to overcome.

Choose which side of the argument you’d like to take. If the class is unevenly distributed, then I will be asking for “volunteers” to argue the other side (If it makes it any easier, you can pretend that you are a defense attorney for someone you KNOW is guilty, yet it’s your job to defend him anyway).

Preparation: You will need to divide your team and work for about 20 minutes to prepare your case (with textual support, or course; you may also bring in expert witness testimony via Google):

– one third will be those presenting a convincing position of support for your topic.

– Another third will be those who will present counter-claims after hearing the opponent’s opening statements. In preparation, you have to predict what the other side might say in support of their position (like you might if you were to ask to go to a late night party, and you already know that you will have to convince your parents because they will have objections).

– The final third will be those who will refute the counter-argument (remember, the opponent is going to challenge your position, too, so be prepared for what they might say…like why your parents might not think it’s a hot idea for you to go to said party). These folks, too, will have to listen carefully to the opposition in order to respond appropriately. Since you will have predicted what the opponent’s objections might be, you are ready to put holes in their counter-argument.

– Choose your closer—who’s going to put the nail in the coffin of the opponent and win the argument for you?

 

The Debate:

– The presentation of the case:   One third of your team must clearly state your team’s position, with each person being sure to offer arguments for why your side is correct (using textual evidence as support). That group of folks will have two minutes on each side to state its case. While the opponent’s team is presenting its case, those who are NOT preparing to speak for the presentation of the case will be taking quick notes on what the opponent says. These points will be use in the counter-argument.

(There will be a two minute intermission to huddle to prepare counter)

– Countering the case: After both sides have presented their position with compelling evidence, the next part of the team will counter what the opponent had to say it their opening remarks. You might phrase your statements with, “I’ve heard you say that Swift ________, but isn’t it true that ________?” You are trying to weaken their support with your counter-claim. The opponent must LISTEN to the counter arguments being presented without refuting (YET). Two minutes for each side to counter.

 (There will be a two minute intermission to huddle to prepare to refute)

– Refute the counter: After both sides have attempted to weaken their opponent’s claim with a counter-argument, it is time to refute that counter. You might say, “While it’s possible that what ________ is countering that ____________ might be true in some instances, it’s more plausible that _____________.”   Two minutes each side for the rebuttal.

(There will be a two minute intermission to huddle to prepare their closing statement)

-Driving it home:  Each closer has ONE minute to attempt to win the argument.

This is a 20 minute timed debate.

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As they were preparing, students were incredibly engaged in the process.  They got out their smartphones and their iPads to look for sources, and they were digging through their texts.

This exercise was preparation for a persuasive essay using the same questions as above.  They now have selected textual evidence as well as support from outside sources for their arguments.

English 9 Regents: Foreshadowing in Of Mice and Men

I set the scene with dimmed lights and had the students completely clear their desks so that I could perform a reading of Chapters 5 and 6 from Of Mice and Men.   As I read, I used character voices and dialect to support the various characters I portrayed.  The room was completely still as I read…you could, to use a cliche, hear a pin drop.   When I finished, students were to work SILENTLY on their reading questions (in honor of the two characters who died in those chapters).

Their writing piece will not be with a partner this time, but it will still be an Evidence-Based Claim.  This will be the culminating assessment for the novella as each will work independently.  Throughout this unit, students had practice writing several evidence-based claims paragraphs (Steinbeck bio/Migrant Workers; Animal Symbolism in Chapter 1; Characterization of George/Lennie in Chapter 2; Creating Tone (Sympathy) in Chapter 3; Characterization Through Imagery in Chapter 4; and Prejudice throughout Chapters 2-4).  The students are complaining of carpel tunnel syndrome!

Each writing piece was practice in writing literary analysis.  Their final assessment will be to choose from the two significant events in Chapters 5 and 6 (the deaths of Curley’s wife and Lennie).   Once they have made their choice, they will have to complete an Evidence-Based Claims Form about how the even was foreshadowed by prior events in the novella.  Their paragraph, then, will be about how either the death of Curley’s wife or the death of Lennie was foreshadowed in the plot.

By this time, they should be able to complete this in one period (55 minutes).  They have been doing so with prior Evidence-Based Claims paragraphs when they worked with partners.

Forming EBC Foreshadowing

English 9 Regents: Prejudice in Of Mice and Men

After reading Chapters 1-4 of Of Mice and Men, students worked together to fill in the following chart on the board (answers are already filled in below):

CHARACTER                                       TYPE OF DISCRIMINATION

Lennie	mental disability
Candy	physical disability/age discrimination
Crooks	physical disability/age/racial discrimination
Curley	picked on because of his height
Curley’s wife	gender discrimination

After they completed the chart, names were drawn and students could choose which character he/she and their partner would write about. The catch was that only TWO pairs could write about a particular character (for example, only two pairs could write about Crooks per class). This prevents getting 78 papers about Crooks and ignoring the rest of the characters.

Once the pairs selected which character would be the focus of their paragraph, each pair had to fill out an Evidence-Based Claim Form to organize their ideas about the character and how he/she was an object of prejudice.

Forming EBC Prejudice