Thursday, January 31, 2013
Agenda:
Happy Thursday everyone! Thank you so much for your passion yesterday; I swear there is a method to my madness and I will share that with you today.
In the words of William Faulkner “People need trouble -- a little frustration to sharpen the spirit on, toughen it. Artists do; I don't mean you need to live in a rat hole or gutter, but you have to learn fortitude, endurance. Only vegetables are happy.”
-Quick final reflection of the debate
-We will go get The Awakening from the library
-As a class, we will read "The Story of An Hour" by Kate Chopin. Make sure you annotate your copy and note observations that you believe are important to share. This is the perfect introduction to issues that Kate Chopin is concerned with, which we will discuss in much greater detail while reading The Awakening.
Homework:
-Read The Awakening pgs. 1-34
**If you need help with vocabulary while reading, these are two great places to look.
-Kate Chopin Vocabulary
-Kate Chopin Vocabulary
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Debate: How has your sex been oppressed historically?
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Class Debate
Agenda:
I hope you are all having a lovely Wednesday!
-The class will be split into two groups, males versus females.
-The debate will focus on how you feel your sex has been oppressed or discriminated against throughout history ( and currently if it is relevant). Historically, think of things that you know were happening during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Homework:
-What was your overall reaction to the debate? Were there topics or arguments suggested by the opposing team that surprised you? Why or why not?
-Secondly, what are some predictions you have about this unit? How do you think the debate fits into the overall topics we will be discussing about male authors and their view of females as well as female authors and their view of males during the late 19th and early 20th centuries?
Class Debate
Agenda:
I hope you are all having a lovely Wednesday!
-The class will be split into two groups, males versus females.
-The debate will focus on how you feel your sex has been oppressed or discriminated against throughout history ( and currently if it is relevant). Historically, think of things that you know were happening during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Homework:
-What was your overall reaction to the debate? Were there topics or arguments suggested by the opposing team that surprised you? Why or why not?
-Secondly, what are some predictions you have about this unit? How do you think the debate fits into the overall topics we will be discussing about male authors and their view of females as well as female authors and their view of males during the late 19th and early 20th centuries?
Monday, January 28, 2013
Review Midterm exam/ Closure RAGTIME
AGENDA:
MON. 1/28: Pass back midterm exam, rubrics and answer keys
Discuss approaches to the 3 essays. Select 1 essay to revise for homework.
HMWK: Revise 1 essay of your choice. Review RAGTIME for quiz and closure discussion on Tuesday
TUESDAY 1/29: Quiz on RAGTIME. Closure discussion and view end of video.:
MON. 1/28: Pass back midterm exam, rubrics and answer keys
Discuss approaches to the 3 essays. Select 1 essay to revise for homework.
HMWK: Revise 1 essay of your choice. Review RAGTIME for quiz and closure discussion on Tuesday
TUESDAY 1/29: Quiz on RAGTIME. Closure discussion and view end of video.:
Friday, January 18, 2013
Friday 1/18- Final Reflection on Sanchez's Essay
You all did an excellent job dissecting a college level critical essay yesterday! I am really proud of the work you did and thank you for welcoming me into your AP English community. It means a lot to me to be working with you all throughout these next six weeks.
Today we will be finishing our discussion of the Sanchez critical essay. The partnerships/groups that did not go yesterday will go today.
After our class discussion you will be doing some reflecting on the following quote:
"History is a kind of fiction in which we live and hope to survive, and fiction is a kind of speculative history, or superhistory, by which the available data for the composition is seen to be greater and more various in its sources than the historian supposes...There is no fiction or non fiction as we commonly understand the distinction: there is only narrative"
-E.L. Doctorow
-What does Doctorow mean when he says "History is a kind of fiction in which we live and hope to survive"?
-Do you agree with Doctorow when he says that there is no fiction or non fiction, only narrative? Why or why not?
-Sanchez supports the claim that Doctorow's Ragtime was created as an illusion of the truth. How is Sanchez's claim supported by Doctorow's quote above? Why do you think Sanchez decided to open his critical essay with this quote?
Today we will be finishing our discussion of the Sanchez critical essay. The partnerships/groups that did not go yesterday will go today.
After our class discussion you will be doing some reflecting on the following quote:
"History is a kind of fiction in which we live and hope to survive, and fiction is a kind of speculative history, or superhistory, by which the available data for the composition is seen to be greater and more various in its sources than the historian supposes...There is no fiction or non fiction as we commonly understand the distinction: there is only narrative"
-E.L. Doctorow
-What does Doctorow mean when he says "History is a kind of fiction in which we live and hope to survive"?
-Do you agree with Doctorow when he says that there is no fiction or non fiction, only narrative? Why or why not?
-Sanchez supports the claim that Doctorow's Ragtime was created as an illusion of the truth. How is Sanchez's claim supported by Doctorow's quote above? Why do you think Sanchez decided to open his critical essay with this quote?
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Thursday 1/17- Critical Essay on Ragtime
Hello AP English! I am so excited to work with you all today! I
apologize in advance if I forget a name or two, I will have them down
soon-- I promise.
Today we will be reading a critical essay titled "Doctorow's Ragtime: A Breach in the Frame of History" by Jesus Benito Sanchez.
The article is on the longer side so we will divide into pairs (possibly groups of three) and split the reading into sections. This will allow you and your partner to become experts on your section.
As you read your assigned section, be sure to highlight or take a few notes because you will be sharing your findings with the rest of the class.
Important Vocabulary:
Deconstruction- theory of literary criticism that questions traditional assumptions and beliefs about certainty, identity, and truth; attempts to demonstrate how statements about a text undermine its own meaning
Historiography- the writing of history based on critical analysis, evaluation, and selection of authentic source material and composition of these materials into a narrative subject or scholarly criticism
Discourse- a formal discussion of a subject; it can be written or spoken
Epistemology- branch of philosophy that studies the nature of knowledge, its foundations, and its extent and validity
Metafiction- fiction that deals, often playfully or self-referentially, with the writing of fiction or its conventions
Inter-text- the relationship between texts or a text in relation to other texts
American Eden- a major cultural theme in U.S. history, expressing salvation through a return to, or recreation of the pure, pastoral Garden of Eden
Today we will be reading a critical essay titled "Doctorow's Ragtime: A Breach in the Frame of History" by Jesus Benito Sanchez.
The article is on the longer side so we will divide into pairs (possibly groups of three) and split the reading into sections. This will allow you and your partner to become experts on your section.
As you read your assigned section, be sure to highlight or take a few notes because you will be sharing your findings with the rest of the class.
Important Vocabulary:
Deconstruction- theory of literary criticism that questions traditional assumptions and beliefs about certainty, identity, and truth; attempts to demonstrate how statements about a text undermine its own meaning
Historiography- the writing of history based on critical analysis, evaluation, and selection of authentic source material and composition of these materials into a narrative subject or scholarly criticism
Discourse- a formal discussion of a subject; it can be written or spoken
Epistemology- branch of philosophy that studies the nature of knowledge, its foundations, and its extent and validity
Metafiction- fiction that deals, often playfully or self-referentially, with the writing of fiction or its conventions
Inter-text- the relationship between texts or a text in relation to other texts
American Eden- a major cultural theme in U.S. history, expressing salvation through a return to, or recreation of the pure, pastoral Garden of Eden
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Week of 1/13-17 Ragtime/AP Prep
Monday, 1/13--Quiz on Ch. 14-28
View video of Coalhouse Walker section
HMWK: Be sure to read up to Ch. 29 for discussion tomorrow
Tuesday, 1/14
Read Brent Staples, "Black Men in Public Spaces"
For discussion:
In small groups of 3 or 4, focus on the following Evaluation (Bloom's taxonomy):
Defend or challenge Coalhouse Walker, Jr.'s fight to obtain justice. Can you justify his actions?
What must he sacrifice in the process?
How do his actions affect those around him?
What do you think drove the men at the firehouse to act the way they did? Do you agree with the actions/advice of the police and lawyers?
How does this scenario relate to the justice system and civil rights struggles in today’s society? As Staples suggests, are black men still seen as a threat in our society? Must they whistle baroque music in the streets to be accepted?
POST A COMMENT FROM YOUR GROUP ON THE BLOG BY THE END OF THE PERIOD.
View video of Coalhouse Walker section
HMWK: Be sure to read up to Ch. 29 for discussion tomorrow
Tuesday, 1/14
Read Brent Staples, "Black Men in Public Spaces"
For discussion:
In small groups of 3 or 4, focus on the following Evaluation (Bloom's taxonomy):
Defend or challenge Coalhouse Walker, Jr.'s fight to obtain justice. Can you justify his actions?
What must he sacrifice in the process?
How do his actions affect those around him?
What do you think drove the men at the firehouse to act the way they did? Do you agree with the actions/advice of the police and lawyers?
How does this scenario relate to the justice system and civil rights struggles in today’s society? As Staples suggests, are black men still seen as a threat in our society? Must they whistle baroque music in the streets to be accepted?
POST A COMMENT FROM YOUR GROUP ON THE BLOG BY THE END OF THE PERIOD.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Week of Jan. 7-11 Ragtime/AP Prep
Monday: Discuss Ragtime questions.
Tues: Bloom's taxonomy lesson
Wed. : View additional sections of film --Tateh and Coalhouse
AP English Language essay question review
Thurs. : Continue review for AP midterm
Tues: Bloom's taxonomy lesson
Wed. : View additional sections of film --Tateh and Coalhouse
AP English Language essay question review
Thurs. : Continue review for AP midterm
Friday, January 4, 2013
Ragtime Discussion Questions
AGENDA:
- View opening of film. Compare/Contrast
- Does it capture the tone of the book? Is this how you envinsioned the characters?
- Discussion Questions
- 1. When the story opens, the narrator describes life in the early 1900s, noting that “There were no negroes. There were no immigrants.” Is this description accurate? What might this statement propose about the accuracy of historical accounts?
- 2. Why might the author have chosen to name the characters as he did? Why do some of the characters have general names such as Mother’s Younger Brother while others have proper names like Coalhouse Walker, Jr.? Does this affect the way we relate to them?
- 3. Describe the narrator of the story. Can we be certain of who it is, or does the point of view shift throughout the story? How does Doctorow’s method of narration relate to historical texts?
- 4. Why did the author choose the title "Ragtime" for this novel? What is ragtime music? What are its origins and how does it relate to other genres of music? What does it reveal about the society in which it was created? What literary devices does the author use to reference or re-interpret ragtime? 5. Why might the author have chosen not to use quotation marks? Does this affect the rhythm of the story?
- 6. Describe the setting of Ragtime. When and where does the story take place? Why might an author have chosen to write about this time period and these places and events?
- 7. When was Ragtime written? What was happening at the time? How might readers then have related to the story? How do we relate to it today? Is it simply a historical narrative or does it reveal things about contemporary society?
- 8. Why do you think that Mother’s Younger Brother chose to help Coalhouse Walker, Jr.?
- 9. Doctorow chooses to incorporate historical figures in a fictional context. Who does he include? Why might he have chosen to include these people? Does his portrayal of them match historical accounts?
- 10. The story takes place during a time of technological progress and industrialization. What are some of the innovations represented in the book? How does their presence affect the characters? Is the impact good or bad? Explain.
- 11. The quest for freedom and peace is a key theme of Ragtime. How does the author use Harry Houdini to illuminate the complexity of this quest?
- 12. While the characters represent different classes and races, they share much in common. Discuss some of these commonalities. How are the characters different?
- 13. What imagery does the author use in the first chapter to set the scene? What does it tell us about life in the early 1900s? What might the purpose be in revealing the murder of the architect Stanford White? Does it change our initial impression of American life during this time?
- 14. When Evelyn Nesbit meets The Little Girl in the Pinafore, she is tied with rope to her father’s wrist so she won’t be stolen. How does the author make connections between Evelyn, The Little Girl, and Mameh? Why is Evelyn drawn to Tateh and The Little Girl?
- 15. When Father returns to New Rochelle, the mirror “gave back the gaunt, bearded face of a derelict, a man who lacked a home.” What does this mean? What has changed since Father left home? How does he adapt to these changes?
- 16. Why might J.P. Morgan be so fascinated with Egyptology? Do his fortune and his collection of valuable objects bring him peace? Why do you think he invites Henry Ford to meet with him?
- 17. The notion of value is prominent in the book. What do each of the characters value? What consequences does this have for them?
- 18. Does Coalhouse Walker, Jr. obtain justice? What does he sacrifice in the process? How do his actions affect those around him? How does this scenario relate to the justice system and civil rights struggles in today’s society?
- 19. Why does Tateh reinvent himself as a baron? What does it mean for his identity? How does the style and imagery of the novel relate to the advent of cinema? How does this invention change our perception of history?
- 20. Many of the characters struggle for what they believe is right. Are they successful? How are these struggles tied in to the notion of identity or societal definitions of identity?
- 21. )The author uses his characters allegorically. What groups are represented? Do you feel the portrayals are accurate? Why or why not?
- 22. The author presents many representations of family and relationships. Describe some. Which are most successful? Why do you think this is?
- 23. Why do you think that Mother and Tateh end up together? What draws them together? How would this relationship have been viewed in the early 1900s? How would it be viewed today?
- 24. Why do you think that the author chose the quotation by Scott Joplin as the novel’s epigraph? What does it signify? (Questions from Random House "Teacher's Guide.)
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
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