Syllabus, week of September 17

WE HAVE SET A FRAMEWORK for our discussions of environmental literature. How do Americans see nature and wilderness? What does that view say about their view of America? We have analyzed two paintings and a cartoon, and in all three nature is under our control. Nature bends to our will, and we shape wilderness into the ideal city we imagine, or we use wilderness for the resources we need, as we see fit. How that portrayal contradict what we read in “Death on the Praries”? What we see in “Death Rides in the Forest when Man is Careless?”

MONDAY

• Watching “John Muir: In the New World.” Students should take notes: Why is John Muir a pivotal figure in the modern American environmental movement? Students will incorporate direct quotes from the documentary into a paragraph on Muir.

• HW: Reading Krakauer's chapter "The Alaska Interior" from his non-fiction Into the Wild. While reading, annotate for vocabulary, write your questions, and annotate for this nature theme in specific: Why are Americans attracted to wilderness, despite the obvious risks it threatens?

TUESDAY

• Continuing the documentary today. What similarities do we see between McCandless and Muir? How do they see the natural world?

• HW: Student's should finish watching the Muir documentary, taking notes, due Thursday. You can watch the video here.

WEDNESDAY

• No school for Yom Kippur.

• HW: If not done already, finish the documentary on John Muir.

THURSDAY

• Returning to the cover of The Grapes of Wrath, and discussing ‘This Land is My Land” by Woody Gutherie. We will watch a short clip on The Grand Coulee Dan, and Gutherie’s exploration of the West and this great wonder of the world.

• HW: Read the handout on Lewis and Clark in the American northwest, and Russian settlements in Alaska (document #8)

FRIDAY

• No class for early dismissal.

• HW: Reading the chapter "Water” from the excellent memoir Trials of the Earth. How is nature portrayed? How does Mary Mann Hamilton see the American wilderness? On Monday, we will be compiling notes on the way of understanding nature and wilderness so far.

Syllabus, week of September 10

Click the image above to watch the Muir documentary.

AS WE BEGIN OUR NATURE and wilderness unit, remember to annotate the material we read by doing three things: a) mark vocabulary (new words, and words carefully chosen by the author); b) write questions you have (primarily about author’s argument), and; c) the theme of how Americans conceive of the natural world around them.  

MONDAY

• No school for Rosh Hashanah.

• HW: Finishing the draft of your duality essay, which is due WEDNESDAY.

TUESDAY

• Formulating your own view of nature. What purpose does nature serve? What role has nature played in your own life? What have your experiences been of the natural world? We will write an in-class assessment (personal narrative, expository essay).

• HW: Finish duality essay for class tomorrow.

WEDNESDAY

• Viewing Gast's iconic painting "American Progress," and reading Turner's frontier thesis in the context of that painting. Small group analysis and discussion.

• HW: Reading “Starving Time” as well as “Death on the Prairies.” What view of nature do these documents put forward?

THURSDAY

• We will watch the Popeye cartoon, and analyze Popeye’s 1930s, American view of wilderness. How does this view of nature contrast with that of the painting used for Steinbeck’s first edition of The Grapes of Wrath?

• HW: Read the handout on Steinbeck and Gutherie in our nature packet.

FRIDAY

• Starting a wonderful documentary on John Muir, an exceptional American naturalist in that he does not believe man to be the measure of all things. (Many Americans--then and now--consider themselves exceptional, and believe that nature is God's give to Americans to use as they best see fit.) When we finish it (not until Monday, possibly Tuesday), students will write a paragraph answering the core question you used to take notes: Why is John Muir a pivotal figure in the modern American environmental movement? Students will incorporate direct quotes from the film into their paragraphs.

• HW: Reading Krakauer's chapter "The Alaska Interior" from his non-fiction Into the Wild. While reading, annotate for vocabulary, write your questions, and annotate for this nature theme in specific: Why are Americans attracted to wilderness, despite the obvious risks it threatens?
  

Syllabus, week of September 3

WE'LL CONTINUE TO ESTABLISH our classroom routines, this week setting a seating chart and also formalizing the way we participate in class-wide discussions and keep notes. Students will begin writing their first essay (on your personal contradictions) and will complete their first timed, in-class essay (on the summer reading). We will also start our first thematic unit on America's portrayal of wilderness/nature.

MONDAY

• No school for Labor Day. 
• HW: Finishing the summer reading (if not already done).

TUESDAY

• Creating our seating chart. Exploring the idea of duality in The Color of Water. After reviewing our google-sheet, we will discuss what McBride is saying about American identity via his novel. What does he want his audience to know and understand about America, through the story he tells? We will also practice our format of discussion note-taking. 
• HW: Begin writing your duality essay. 2-3 pages long, double-spaced with 1" margins, 12 pt. font, title and headers. Due one week from today, Tuesday the 11th. Like McBride, your essay should combine narrative and expository styles to explain your dual American identity. 

WEDNESDAY

• In class assessment on the summer reading; all three-level English juniors are writing this timed essay today. It will not be graded ABCDF, but will be assigned a proficiency score as a baseline to measure growth in your writing. 
• HW: Read silently, read aloud, and then re-read the poem "Flames" by Billy Collins. While reading, annotate: What do you notice in the poem? What leaps out at you? Keep marginal notes.

THURSDAY

• Short discussion of the poem. What is Collins saying about nature? What does his portrayal of Smokey the Bear tell us about his view of American wilderness? Of Americans? As we did on Tuesday, we'll practice our Great Books style of discussion / note-taking. Time permitting, we will look at a turn-of-the-20th century poster created by the US Dept. of Forestry, using the "see-think-wonder" form of analysis. 
• HW: Working on your personal duality essay. 

FRIDAY

• Meeting in computer lab 377-North to work on personal duality essay. 
• HW: Personal American duality essay is due Tuesday. 

Syllabus, week of August 27

HOW ARE YOU AMERICAN? Our summer reading, The Color of Water, is an excellent text to start our course insomuch as the narrator struggles to reconcile his parents history with his own sense of self. Having a black father and a white mother, where does our narrator belong in a racially charged and increasingly polarized society? We will use this story to explore the way in which we, too, embody similar complexities and seeming contradictions that arise when we ask ourselves, "How am I an American?"

MONDAY

• Introduction to America as a contradiction. How is it possible to be one thing and the exact opposite at the same time? After a short introduction to the course, students will brainstorm a list of ways in which they embody seeming contradictions. 
• HW: Write a short answer to the question, "What does 'mixed race' mean?" Have your written response prepared for class tomorrow.

TUESDAY

• Taking pictures of students for gradebook, reviewing handout practices, discussing course expectations (and collecting them), and then introducting how to use our squarespace classroom blog. What does it mean to be "mixed race"?
• HW: After typing and submitting your answer to last night's question as a comment to the mixed race blog, read other responses and post two follow-up questions to your peers's comments. 

WEDNESDAY

• Checking students's names and pronunciation, and then discussing procedures for posting on Squarespace. Short discussion on "mixed-race" and what that means. Then beginning to discuss "The Sound of My Name is a Revolution."
• HW: Re-read the poem tonight, annotating for what you notice in the poem in the margins.

THURSDAY

• Short discussion of the poem. We will then utilize a google sheet to share notes on how the main characters struggle with their seemingly contradictory identities. What is the author saying about American duality via these stories?
• HW: Finish examining the summer reading for passages about duality or contradiction, relative to identity.

FRIDAY

• Working on the creation of a google-sheet of passages relating to dual-identity and contradictory traits from our summer reading. 
• HW: If you haven't finished the summer reading, make sure you've done that by class on Tuesday. 

What is "mixed race"?

Based upon the cartoon by Nidhi Chanani, how would you define mixed-race? After logging into your New Trier google account, choose to reply to this post, and enter your written response to this question. Remember to proofread your response before posting. Once posted, you should read your classmates responses. Select two of them (not yours), and reply to their posting with a follow-up question about their response.

You can find the original cartoon here in pdf format.

Studying for final

Click on the image above to watch the 50 minute biography on Ralph Waldo  Emerson.

The final is Thursday, June 1 at noon. 4th period meets in room 357. 

Syllabus, May 22

OUR FINAL WILL BE on Thursday, June 1 at Noon. The test will be mostly objective, covering both The Awakening and The Great Gatsby. There will also be a short essay portion to the final, which will last 90 minutes. Room loction is TBD. 

MONDAY

• Discussion on chapter four, class, Daisy and Gatsby's past. 
• HW: Read chapter five. 

TUESDAY

• Reading selections on Horation Algiers
• HW: Read chapter six.

WEDNESDAY

• Small and large group discussion of chapter five and six.
• HW: Read chapter seven.

THURSDAY

• Small and large group discussion of chapter seven.
• HW: Read chapter eight.

FRIDAY

• Discussion of chapter eight.
• Finish the novel for class on Monday.

Syllabus, May 15

THE GREAT GATSBY is a novel about love, wealth, infidelity and individualism. As you read the novel--besides circling words and writing questions--pay attention to these themes. What does Nick Carraway say about the wealthy, and how money influences their moral compass? What are both the positive and negative influences of love? Can we--as Gatsby himself will suggest--reinvent ourselves, re-shape our mold into the shape and character that we crave? 

MONDAY

• An introduction to our final novel. Besides collecting the notes on "Flappers, Speakeasies, and the Birth of Modern Culture," I will lecture a short bit. We will also re-read the first six pages on the novel together. I will distribute supplementary annotations for the novel. 
• HW: Read the chapter one notes, both pages, and revisit your annotations of chapter one. 

TUESDAY

• Continuing with chapter one, wherein we meet the Buchannans and Daisy's companion, Jordan. Besides watching a short representation of Nick's meeting, we will re-read and annotate together the remainder of chapter one. 
• HW: Come to class ready to discuss, in assigned small groups, chapter one. 

WEDNESDAY

• Small and large group discussion of chapter one. Remember to keep your notes IN THE NOVEL. You will ONLY be allowed to have your novel with you during the final. Other notes will NOT be allowed. 
• HW: Read chapter two for class tomorrow. Please remember to read my annotations prior to reading the novel. 

THURSDAY

• Small and large group discussion of chapter two.
• HW: Read chapter three for Friday. 

FRIDAY

• Discussion of chapter three.
• Read chapter four for Monday. 

Syllabus, May 8

THIS IS THE LAST LEG OF THE JUNIOR theme race. After this week, you will have finished. 

MONDAY

• Close reading of Emerson's "Self-Reliance."
• HW: Revising your junior theme. Final draft due Wednesday. Stapled together in this order, together. And stapled. 1) The new draft of the essay, on top. 2) Works cited page (only the sources you refer to directly or indirectly). 3) New annotated bibliography (EVERY thing you looked at to make the project exist).

TUESDAY

• Small research groups will work on finalizing their revisions.   
• HW: Remember, the short story, poem, art work should be referred to directly or indirectly in your paper, so they should appear on the works cited page. They will also be on the annotated bibliography.  Do not annotate more sources—apart from the short story, poem, and art work.

WEDNESDAY

• Students will begin to write their junior theme reflection and hand in essays. Subsequently, we will return to Emerson's "Self-Reliance."
• HW: Obtain your copy of F.S. Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. We will start reading that, in earnest, on Friday. So have a copy of the novel in class on Friday. Tonight, watch the first half of this video, "Flappers, Speakeasies, and the Birth of Modern Culture." I will collect notes in class on Friday.  Reflections will also be due Friday!

THURSDAY

• Continuing with a close reading of "Self-Reliance." 
• HW: Second half of video tonight, notes due tomorrow.  Here's the whole video!

FRIDAY

• We will spend the first half of class on Emerson, the second half on introducing Fitzgerald. 
• Reading chapter one of Gatsby. 

Revised Junior Theme....due Wednesday

The revision of your junior theme--wherein you add evidence from three sources (a short story, a poem, and an artword)--will be due Wedensday. I want to have the opportunity to discuss these revisions prior to collecting them. Therefore, because I am out ill for a second day, I am moving that due date. 

When you see this note, please forward it to the other members of your research group.

Thoreau's "Walden"

"The better part of a man is soon plowed into the soil for compost."--H.D. Thoreau

Illustration from the lovely graphic work, "La Vida Sublime."

Click on the image above to link to the Librivox audio of Thoreau's "Economy," the first chapter of Walden. 

Syllabus, May 1

THIS WEEK MARKS THE LAST DAY we'll spend in the library working on junior theme. A revised paper that includes three additional sources--a short story, a poem, and an artwork--by known writers and artists, of some renoun, is due one week from Monday. This week we will immerse ourselves in American transcendentalism. Next week, we will start F.S. Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.  

MONDAY

• In library to work on locating an American artwork that depcts the theme in your research paper. 
• HW: Read the introductory materials from our first packet of readings, "What is Transcendentalism?" Read the first 2-page cover sheet, which provides an overview of the philosophy. Then read the first 9 pages from "Chapter 1: Transendentalism, An Introduction" in that same packet. 

TUESDAY

• In class, we will continue reading from the same readings as last night, and will begin reading the selection from H.D. Thoreau's Walden, from "Where I Lived and What I Lived For." I will provide a primer for reading Thoreau, and we will discuss his version of transcendentalism and his popularity in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.  
• HW: Finish reading the selection from Thoreau, including the bit from "Brute Neighbors"

WEDNESDAY

• Reading and annotating HDT's "Economy," the first essay in Walden. We leave off at the bottom of page five, and at minute 23 in track one of the linked LibriVox recording. 
• HW: Continue reading "Economy" up through and including the top of page 15. 

THURSDAY

• Continuing with a close reading of Walden and "Economy." Introduction to the credo addignment. 
• HW: Finish reading "Economy" for class on Friday. 

FRIDAY

• Shifting from Thoreau to Emerson. We will watch a film-strip on Emerson, will read the brief biography about him, and  will likewise read the introductory essay by Ann Woodlief, "On 'Self Reliance'"
• Listen to a reading of "Self Reliance" over the weekend. We will read it again, more carefully, next week. But you should have heard the entire essay at least once by Monday.