To Kill a Mockingbird

I'm hoping you all check this blog before class on Tuesday, but your assignment is to read Chapters 4-8 in To Kill A Mockingbird as well as the short little biography to the left. 

See if you can spot any themes emerging in the novel. Don't you just love themes?? :D

By the way, the picture above is one of the famous prints by James Audubon of the daring little Mockingbird. I wonder if Harper Lee had ever seen this picture?

I've got some grading to do!

Well, now that you all have turned in 5,000 papers to me, I will be spending every waking moment grading between now and Tuesday. :) Good think I like my job! 

So, for Tuesday, we're going to keep it fairly simple. Read the short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, linked in the left sidebar, entitled "Yellow Wallpaper." It should prove to be an exciting read. The lecture will be about Writing on Literature, so come prepaired to discuss what you think Gilman is trying to communicate in her story.

Snow Day - Inauguration Day

Well, make snowballs, sled down your yard, and eat snow-cream, because class is cancelled today!

I doubt we're in much danger of bad roads by the time of class, but there's a chance the church will be closed, so we'll wait till Thursday. So, what to do for homework?

Thursday:

-Bring in your final draft of your Expelled papers.

-Bring your article (for extra credit) and your current events topic.

-Bring in your letter to the Sri Lankan ambassador.

-And of course, there's still the Declaration of Independence.

Speaking of our country, if you get a chance, watch the inaugural speech today, and pray for our next President! It will be a historic moment for our nation! See ya Thursday!

Making a Difference

I'm excited to read your assessments of Expelled! Please bring the final drafts of those papers on Tuesday. Also, follow the link to the Declaration of Independence, one of the most famous persuasive essays in our country's history! We'll be discussing those ideas on Tuesday, in addition to a bit more grammar.

For Thursday, start thinking about your letter to the US Sri Lankan ambassador. If you want an example of a letter or more information about the issue, please follow the link to Carolyn's blog post about the anti-conversion bill. 

Additionally, be looking through TV news reports, websites, and local newspapers for a current topic that interests you. If you bring in an actual article, you get extra credit! We'll be using them for class on Thursday! And if you want a few places to check for topics here are a few link ideas to get you started:

http://knoxnews.com/

http://www.curatormagazine.com/

http://www.metropulse.com/

http://www.cnn.com/

Again, these aren't due to THURSDAY. Ask your parents to help too! I certainly can't endorse everything on these sites, so use discernment! 

Annalyzing

Well, I enjoyed the discussion on Expelled today! Great thoughts, everybody. The rough draft of your papers are due this Thursday, and we'll spend some time peer reviewing them. Also, please read Jacoby's essay! It's rather interesting, so I'm looking forward to that discussion as well.  Here's the list of questions to keep in mind as you're reading:

• What is his thesis?
  
• What is he trying to accomplish?
  
• What is his argument? 
  
• Does he acheive his goal?
  
• Are you convinced?
  
• Has it challenged your thinking? Moved you from where you stood before you read it?
  
• What could have made it better?
  

See ya Thursday! 

p.s. The final draft for your paper will be due on Tuesday, for planning purposes (except for you, Nicole).