Syllabus for Oct. 9-13

LAST WEEK: We read an excellent article on the history of KKK costume/hoods, as well as two other short articles--one an encyclopedia entry on "mountaintop" as a symbol in religious texts, and another a textbook entry on "mob psychology" from a textbook. We likewise discussed several chapters from Lord of the Flies, and completed a few analysis exercises using google sheet/page templates. 

Monday

• Small group crossword work. Introduction to Cast Away and survival on tropical islands. 
• HW: Complete chapter nine LOTF google sheet, including one quote that characterizes the boys actions, an analysis of the quote in your own words (IYOW), and the vocabulary you marked for that chapter. 

Tuesday

• Chapter 9 & 10 discussion. Why is Simon killed? Are Piggy and Ralph complicit in his death? Legally? Morally? In the eyes of their peers? In the eyes of God?
• Hw: Read chapter 11 for class on Thursday. 

Wednesday

• No classes; ACT/P-ACT testing. 
• HW: Read chapter 11 for class on Thursday. 

Thursday

• More scenes of island survival from Cast Away. 
• HW: Read chapter 12.

Friday

• Discussion on chapters 11 & 12: Does evil exist in the hearts of the boys? Are the boys born evil? Taught to be evil? Forced to act in evil ways?
• HW: Completing google sheet on evil, violence, and friendship.

Syllabus for Oct. 2-6

LAST WEEK: All students met with Mr. Easton for a writing conference, setting goals for their first essay on Lord of the Flies. If you have NOT met with him, you risk losing those points! See him ASAP during your common free period. We've read through chapter four in LOTF, and this week will approach the end of the novel. 

Monday

• Reviewing MLA format for citing a magazine (or other periodical). Reading "How the Klan Got Its Hood," an essay on masks, and how the iconography of the American KKK came to be. We're reading for a) the author's argument and b) sentences of stylistic note.
• HW: Reading chapter 6, "Beast from Air." Circle words, write questions, and look for the theme of evil. You should have that read for class on Wednesday. Finish reading today's Klan essay tonight. 

Tuesday

• What effect do masks have upon our behavior? We will finish our discussion of Jack's "camouflage" and why he must paint his face before hunting. We will move into a discussion of evil in chapter five, "Beast from Water." What is evil? Where is it? Why does it exist?
• Hw: You should have finished chapter six for class tomorrow. 

Wednesday

• Discussion of chapter six. How is the beast from the air different from the beast from the water. 
• HW: Read chapter seven, "Shadows and Tall Trees."

Thursday

• Discussion of chapter seven. 
• HW: Read pages 124 through 134, the first half of chapter eight. 

Friday

• Finishing chapter eight,  'Gift for the Darkness" today in class. 
• HW: Reading chapters nine and ten this weekend. 

Syllabus for Sept. 25-29

LAST WEEK: Students turned in an expository-narrative about  your "fifth freedom" and likewise completed an in-class writing evaluation on the summer reading. We focused on annotation techniques, and began our reading of Lord of the Flies.

Monday

• Discussing the first chapter of LOTF. We'll post plot and interpretive questions, list vocab, and identify important quotes on a google sheet. We'll start an informal discussion on ch. 1. 
• HW: 5th period: read the first half of chapter 2. 6th period: finish answering the three questions on today's handouts. Tomorrow we will begin our writing improvement plan conferences. We will meet in my office, room 330, and these meetings will last 10-15 minutes. Remember to bring your freshmen portfolio. We will look at that and also review the aforementioned two essays on freedom and which character most embodies loss. 

Tuesday

• Continued discussion of "The Sound of the Shell." We will review our class notes together through a Great Books style discussion of the chapter. 
• Hw: Read the last half of chapter two tonight, "Fire on the Mountain." For this chapter, take annotate for Golding's characterization of nature and humans. 

Wednesday

• Discussion of chapter two. As with chapter one, we will start with a google sheet on the chapter. We will watch a clip from Ancient Greeks: Crucible of Civilization about the foundation of Athenian democracy. 
• HW: Read chapter three, "Huts on the Beach."

Thursday

• Discussion of chapter three. 
• HW: Read chapter four, "Painted Faces and Long Hair," up through and including page 67.

Friday

• Discussion: what impact does wearing a mask have upon our behavior? We will finish discussing Simon's isolation at the end of chapter three, and will also spend some time finishing reading chapter four. 
• HW: Read chapter five, "Beast from Water."

Prompt for Summer Reading Assessment

A few students missed our in-class writing assignment. If you are one of these students, please spend 35 minutes writing a response to the following question. You should use your copy of When the Emperor was Divine, and include quotes in your response:

Which character best embodies the novel's sense of loss, and why?

Syllabus for Sept. 18-22

LAST WEEK: We reviewed our classroom procedures for in-class discussions, and began talking about freedom--or lack thereof--in the novel, When the Emperor was Divine. I collected these discussion notes, both pre-and-post discussion notes. We watched a speech that contained both narrative and exposition as a model for a take home essay on freedom: Which freedom is most important to you? Finally, we did review both course expectations and the academic integrity policy. 

Monday

• In class writing on character. We're meeting in 377-N. This will be collected and issued a completion grade, and will provide me with another baseline for your writing. We will use the freedom narrative, this character analysis, as well as your freshmen portfolio essay for a stylistic improvement plan. 
• HW: Review your annotations for OBJECTS. How does this writer describe things in a symbolic way? In preparation for tomorrow's discussion, pull together a list of artifacts in the novel that seem to have symbolic meaning. 

Tuesday

• Object discussion. Which object best captures the writer's view of freedom/lack of freedom? We will start our discussion with some pre-writing, then discuss, and close with some post-writing. 
• Hw: Re-read pages 118 through 139. For this section, I want you to re-annotate. In so doing, you should 1) circle words that are either vocabulary, or indicate an author's intent; 2) write questions that you have, whatever they are (plot based, or thematic/interpretive); and 3) make note of anything that would answer this question: what does Otsuka want her readers to realize about themselves via the Japanese-American prisoners's experiences upon release?

Wednesday

• Annotation discussion. We'll look at a few passages you marked, and a few you likely should have noted. This will close our work on the summer reading. 
• HW: Review the materials in your freshmen portfolio. Think about what would go into an improvement plan (for your essay writing skills). We will sign up tomorrow for meetings that will take place Friday thru Friday.

Thursday

• Signing up for writing improvement plan conferences. Students will write this plan in class today. We will also begin work on our first novel, The Lord of the Flies. 
• HW: Read chapter one of LOTF.

Friday

• No class because of early dismissal. 
• HW: Finish reading chapter one of LOTF. For annotations, you need to circle words, write questions, and annotate for this theme: What personalities emerge from the survivors on the island?

Internment Camp Photography

Course Expectations...

...are located here.

Syllabus for Sept. 11-15

LAST WEEK: We began by reading about an historic--and now forgotten--icon from the era of Japanese-American internment: the four freedoms flag. In addition to this historic background to the summer novel, we spent some time studying the language of When the Emperor Was Divine via a crossword.

Monday

• Quiz on the summer reading. A very straight-forward, multiple choice quiz. For what it's worth, it is open book.  After the quiz, we will finish reviewing the course expectations and briefly discuss the academic integrity policy delineated in the Student Guidebook. 
• HW: The four freedoms are: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom from fear, and freedom from want. Of the main characters--father, mother, sister, and son--which is most important to each, and why? Provide evidence for your responses via a diagram. The mind-map note sheet can be 8.5"x11", and one sided. It should be handwritten.

Tuesday

• Discussion on the four freedoms. I'll start class by reviewing our practices for discussion. We will start our discussion of this question. 
• Hw: Revisit your notes from yesterday's homework, adding to them as needed. As with yesterday, prepare for discussion with a note sheet that is 8.5"x11" and includes handwritten examples. You should aim for the least obvious, most interesting answer(s).

Wednesday

• Continuing our discussion of freedom in the novel. 
• HW: 6th period only: finish writing your post-discussion reflection to be turned in tomorrow. 

Thursday

• Briefly discussing character development in the novel in relation. We will begin brainstorming for our first real essay, an expository narrative: "The Fifth Freedom essay."  We will watch an 18 minute narrative by Sulu of Star Trek fame as an example of combining a narrative (storytelling) with exposition (explaining what information means).
• HW: Continue brainstorming for the essay. Meeting in library tomorrow. 

Friday

• In our library for orientation. This is a wonderful library, with great faculty and staff who are skilled at both de-stressing and providing assistance to New Trier students. Take careful note of what Mr. Stu shares with you today, and you will be rewarded. 
• HW: Narrative/expository essay on "the fifth freedom" is due Monday. Objective essay on summer reading novel will be in class on Wednesday. As a point of clarification, the essay is to be 1-2 pages long, and should both tell a story and explain what the story means. Several students have asked me if the essay should include a personal story, or a third-person story. My answer is that it could tell either, so long as it is a story that illustrates what one, specific freedom is important to you. 

The Four Freedom's Flag

Click on the image below to discover more about the man who created the flag:

This flag is for sale! You can purchase it from The Flag Guys...

The Four Freedoms

"In his Annual Message to Congress (State of the Union Address) on January 6, 1941, Franklin Roosevelt presented his reasons for American involvement [in the growing war in Europe], making the case for continued aid to Great Britain and greater production of war industries at home. In helping Britain, President Roosevelt stated, the United States was fighting for the universal freedoms that all people possessed.

"As America entered the war these "four freedoms" - the freedom of speech, the freedom of worship, the freedom from want, and the freedom from fear - symbolized America's war aims and gave hope in the following years to a war-wearied people because they knew they were fighting for freedom.

President Roosevelt delivering what came to be known as the "Four Freedoms Speech."

The ideas enunciated in the Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms were the foundational principles that evolved into the Atlantic Charter declared by Winston Churchill and FDR in August 1941; the United Nations Declaration of January 1, 1942; President Roosevelt’s vision for an international organization that became the United Nations after his death; and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1948 through the work of Eleanor Roosevelt."

--adapted and quoted directly from the President FDR Library, 9-6-17