Guidelines for Chapter Summaries:

I liked the effort you put into your chapter summaries for the first go-round of The Power of One. It was much better than the notes you took while reading Life of Pi. However, most of you spent too much time on them, made them too long, and focused too much on summary. In the future, follow these guidlines:

1. Keep it short (no more than half a page, and spend no more than five minutes on each one).


2. Keep it focused on what you thought or felt while reading.

Here are a couple of examples for you to model your work after:

Chapter 3: This chapter was both extremely funny and depressingly sad. I found the moment that Granpa Chook let the Judge know exactly what he thought was great, but I knew the moment it happened, the Judge would kill him. He probably would have killed him no matter what, and this just pushed him over the edge... The moment Peekay showed up at the school with Granpa Chook, I knew something bad would happen with him, but I guess if he had left him at his Granpa’s farm, he would have been eaten anyway. I do wish he hadn’t died, and I feel very sorry for Peekay, left there all alone with the loneliness birds building their nest in him.

Chapter 5: I love Hoppie. What isn’t there to like - he is friendly, tough, smart, and he takes care of Peekay when no one else will. The reader loves Hoppie because we read the story through Peekay’s eyes, and Peekay idolizes him. And this allows the reader to overlook the main problem with loving Hoppie - he’s an outright racist. How can we like and admire someone who tells Peekay straight out that colored people are not the equal of whites, who bullies a shopkeeper because she is female and Indian? He calls blacks kaffirs and Indian’s coolies. I don’t know how to resolve this problem in my mind, because I like Hoppie but do not like his racist attitudes, and I can’t just shrug it off as being a product of his time and place. The best example of the contradiction this brings up is his naming of himself after Joe Louis, an African American boxer, and his faulty rationale that a black American isn’t like an African, that on the inside he’s white. That’s even worse, I think, than using racist terms...

Friday, September 28

Freshmen: Today our focus was on generating as many ideas for potential essays as possible. Your task this weekend is to go over the list of questions I provided you with and come up with as many answers as possible - this will form the foundation of many of the essays you will write this year. Due Monday are the Preface and the Introduction from They Say I Say. We will have a vocab exam next Friday.

Sophomores: Today we had a seminar on Chapters 1-5 of The Power of One. Due for next Friday are Chapters 6-9, with a reflection on each chapter also due that date. We will have a vocab exam next Friday.

CNF: We read from Chapter 5 in Blink. It seems many people will need Monday to read as well, so we will take Monday for reading and discuss the chapter on the block day.

Thursday, September 27

Freshmen: Today we began reading They Say I Say. Due for Monday is the Preface and the Introduction (pages xvi through 15). You may use your 20 minutes of reading homework for this. If it takes you longer than your allotted 20 minutes to read this, then you will need to read longer than 20 minutes; if it takes you less than your assigned 20 minutes to read, read from something else to finish your 20 minutes. If you want to see what else you missed, please click on this link: http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/013.html. I have moved the vocab exam back a week to next Friday.

Sophomores: Today we concluded our Break It Down close reading introduction. You should be doing this kind of thinking as you work on your Echoes of the Tao assignment, your Triple Entry Journal, and your reflections due at the end of each chapter. I have moved the vocab exam back a week to next Friday; this means we will have a seminar on Chapters 1-5 in The Power of One on Friday instead of Monday.

CNF: Today we began reading Chapter 5 in Blink and taking a dozen notes for seminar.

Tuesday, September 25 and Wednesday, September 26

Freshmen: Today we finished up reading a packet of essays and analyzing what the writers are doing that make the essays effective. We discussed our observations. We also read a poem by Billy Collins, "On Turning Ten." If you would like, you can write a free verse poem about a time your perceptions of the world changed. You can get up to 25 points extra credit for this; it is due no later than October 2. We also passed back your free verse poems. If you would like to improve your grade on these, you can improve your poems based on the rubric an the notes we took in class, and resubmit them. In your resubmission packet, you need to include your original poems and rubric, your new revised poems, and a typed explanation of what you improved in your poetry. Please get a copy of They Say I Say and bring it to class starting on Thursday.

Sophomores: We focused improving our ability to read via close reading. The process we focused on was observation and analysis, synthesis, and thesis. In other words, we focused on noticing things in what we read (whether it's music, art, film, or literature), figuring out how those things contribute to the larger whole, and then crafting a thesis or opinion about the text that we can support with our observations. Continue to read - Chapters 1 - 5, along with your half page reactions to them, are due on Friday, as is vocabulary.

CNF: Today we did several activities to help us better understand the ideas depicted in Chapter 5.

Monday, September 24

Freshmen: Today we continued our focus on effective essays. Your homework is to read for 20 minutes tonight. Vocab Unit 2 is due on Friday.

Sophomores: Today we focused on making good progress in our text. Chapters 1-5 with a reaction to each chapter is due on Friday. You should have at least the first three chapters read for Wednesday's class.

CNF: Today we had a seminar discussion on Chapter 4 of Blink.

Friday, September 21

Let's go, Utes: Utah, 24, ASU 17. Mark it down...

Freshmen: Today we began a study of essays and the characteristics or traits that good essays share. Your homework is to read for 20 minutes; vocab is due next Friday; honors students need to respond to the blog. You will need the book They Say, I Say for next week.

Sophomores: Today we began The Power of One. You can find the reading schedule on an earlier post. We will have a seminar on the reading next Friday, 9/28. For that seminar, your prep must look like this: For each chapter, I want you to write a reaction response. This should be a couple of paragraphs long (say, half a page for each chapter, handwritten or typed, and single spaced), and should consist of a little summary but primarily be focused on what you think about what you have read. This may include commentary on the writer's style, plot events, characters and the decisions they make, or ideas, themes, or concepts in you find in the book. Each chapter's response is worth 20 points.  Vocab is due next Friday. Get at least the first chapter of The Power of One read for Monday.

CNF: We finished reading Chapter 4 from Blink. We'll have a seminar on it on Monday.

Freshmen Honors Prompt

Please post a comment where you explain the most important thing you learned about writing from The Elements of Style. Explain not only the concept, but why you feel this is so crucial to becoming a better writer. Comment on what others have to say as a part of your answer.

Thursday, September 20

Freshmen: Today our focus was on the concept of what writing is exactly, and the different activities that writers engage in while writing. Your homework tonight is to read for 20 minutes. Honors students, you need to post a comment to the prompt that was posted today.

Sophomores: Today we focused on the implications of Part III in Life of Pi, and also focused on recurring ideas, images, and themes in the Tao te Ching. Bring The Power of One tomorrow.

CNF: Today we began Chapter 4 in Blink.

Tuesday, September 17 and Wednesday, September 18

Freshmen: Today our focus was on thesis statements. Your homework is to read for 20 minutes Tuesday and Wednesday.

Sophomores: Today we read Part III of Life of Pi together in class and discussed it. We will begin The Power of One tomorrow - please bring it to class with you.

CNF: We focused on some ideas and engaged in some activities to help us better understand the concepts covered in Chapter 4 of blink, mainly: How is structure necessary for spontaneity?; Which is better, more or less information?; and, When should you stick with a well-formed plan and when should you deviate from it?

Monday, September 17

Freshmen: Today we reflected on what you learned about poetry, shared them, and self-assessed the poems you wrote. Your homework is to read for 20 minutes Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and one night on the weekend. Honors students: We meet at 7:30 AM in my room on Thursday, 9/20, for a quiz and discussion on The Elements of Style.

Sophomores: Today we had a seminar on Part II of Life of Pi. We will read Part III together in class on Wednesday. Your essay is due Wednesday as well. Have The Power of One for class on Thursday.

CNF: Today we had a seminar on Chapter 3 of Blink.

Friday, September 14

Okay, so again, first things first: My score is... Utah 21, BYU 17, though I must admit it's probably my heart more than my head on this one - you don't pick against BYU when they have a senior QB and good tight ends, like they do this year, especially when the Utes' offensive line is playing so poorly and we're missing our best play-maker in Blechen. Nevertheless: Go, Utes!

Freshmen: Today we took the Unit 1 vocab quiz. On the blog is the rubric for your poems - go over your poems and make sure they conform to the standards on the rubric. All five are due on Monday. Read for 20 minutes as well.

Sophomores: Today we took the Unit 1 vocab quiz. Due for Monday is Part II of Pi, a dozen notes for seminar, and two Echoes entries. Due next Wednesday is your essay, and it must be submitted to turnitin.com, information about which can be found on the blog.

CNF: We concluded Chapter 3 from Blink. We'll discuss it on Monday.

Freshmen English Free Verse Rubric

Freshmen English Free-Verse Rubric

Your poems will be scored, as a group, for the following principles of free-verse poetry that we have studied thus far. Each poem accounts for roughly 20% of the overall grade.

Principle:	Strong:	Medium:	Weak:
Written about a first-person experience:
Use of I/Avoidance of Participles:
Format:
Lead:
Conclusion:
Repetition/Cut to the Bone:
Use of literal and figurative language:
Overall Score:                          /100

Thursday, September 13

Freshmen: Today we covered the final principle of free verse that we'll focus on, which has to do with format. You are to revise your current poems for correct format - consult your notes and look at other poems for this. Your final copies (five in all) are due on Monday, 9/17. Read for 20 minutes; vocab Unit 1 is due on Friday 9/14.

Sophomores: Today our focus was on Richard Parker, that aptly named tiger. Part II with a dozen notes for seminar and two Echoes entries are due on 9/17.

CNF: We read Chapter 3 of Blink.

The Power of One Reading Schedule 2012

Here is our reading schedule for The Power of One.

Friday, September 21: Begin book.

Friday, September 28: Chapters 1 through 5 due [meaning Chapter 5 is due, too (83 pages)].

Monday, October 1: Seminar on Chapters 1 through 5; have your chapter reflections for seminar on this date.

Friday, October 5: Chapters 6 through 9 due (74 pages).

Friday, October 12: Chapters 10 through 12 due (94 pages).

Monday, October 15: Seminar on Chapters 6 through 12; have your chapter reflections for seminar.

Thursday, October 25: Chapters 13 through 21 due (188 pages).

Friday, November 2: Chapters 22 through 24 [the end of the book (78 pages)]. Final seminar on this date; have your chapter reflections for the seminar on this date.

Tuesday, September 11 and Wednesday, September 12

Freshmen: Today our focus was on literal and figurative language. Revise your four current poems, integrating figurative language where appropriate. You are also to write a fifth poem, one that uses figurative language well and adheres to our previous principles. Read for 20 minutes Tuesday and Wednesday; vocab is due Friday.

Sophomores: Today our focus was on various writing techniques found in Life of Pi. We then introduced our first essay assignment of the year.

Essay assignment: Life of Pi is essentially the story of how an event shaped a particular person’s life and turned him into the person he is today. Look back on your life. Tell the story of an event (or multiple events if you wish) that helped shape who you are today. In your essay, you must do a couple of things. One is you must cite from Life of Pi at least three times. In other words, use Martel’s words to help tell your story. A second requirement is you must use the rhetorical techniques that we studied in class, namely listing, using a variety of sentence structures, and using repetition (of both words and structures). Your essay must be submitted to turnitin.com by 8 AM on Wednesday, September 19. The necessary info for turnitin.com can be found on the blog and in the classroom.

Due Friday is vocab; also due Monday is Part II with twelve notes for seminar and two Echoes of the Tao entries.

CNF: Today we did an implicit association test through Harvard's website. The IAT we did was the race IAT. As homework, do at least one other IAT through Harvard's site. It can be most easily found by googling "IAT" and then clicking on the harvard.edu address.

World Literature Prompt #2

Today in class we looked at several good belief statements. Imagine you are Pi Patel, and you want to submit a belief statement to This I Believe. What do you believe? What principles guide your life? Write a short belief statement from Pi's point of view (using I, writing in his voice, using some of his stylistic devices). Sign it with your name and period number. Please restrict your belief statement to the events covered in Parts I and II, not those in Part III, if you have read that far.

Monday, September 10

Freshmen: Today we focused on using effective repetition, as opposed to the redundancies, clutter, and fluff we emphasized cutting on Friday. You are to revise your current three poems and if using repetition to stress an idea, image, or theme makes your poems stronger, do so. You are also to craft a new poem that uses repetition well, so by Tuesday, you will have four poems that adhere to the principles we have covered thus far. Read for 20 minutes tonight and don't forget that vocab Unit 1 is due on Friday.

Sophomores: Today our primary focus was on exploring the This I Believe website and sharing the best essays you found there the past few weeks. Due in one week is Part II with a dozen seminar notes and at least two Echoes of the Tao entries. Due Friday is Unit 1 vocabulary. Finally, respond to today's World Literature Prompt #2 on the blog.

CNF: Today we had an interesting seminar on Chapter 2.

Friday, September 7

First, the important thing: Nate-dog predicts a 34-13 win for the Utes; however, that's too generous - it's a dangerous game - and I therefore predict a 27-21 win for the Utes.

Freshmen: Today we focused on the importance of cutting during the revision stage with poetry. Your task is to focus on your current three poems and strengthen them by cutting fluff and redundancies. Bring your revised (improved) poems to class on Monday. Also, read for 20 minutes this weekend, and don't forget that vocab is due next Friday. Honors students, be working on The Elements of Style assignment.

Sophomores: Today our focus was on visualization. Make this a focus as your read the rest of Part II, which is due 9/17, along with a dozen seminar notes. Don't forget that vocab is due next Friday, and that your This I Believe worksheet is due on Monday. Be working on your Echoes of the Tao assignment as well.

CNF: We tried to read all of Chapter 2 of Blink today in class; if you didn't finish in class, finish it over the weekend; you need eight notes for seminar on Monday.

Thursday, September 6

Freshmen: Today we focused on conclusions to our poems. The primary emphasis was that readers find the most meaning in free verse poems at the end, and therefore, good poets end their poems in ways that resonate: ending on strong words, ideas, or images, or perhaps using an echo structure or ending with something juxtaposed against the rest of the text. Your homework is to read for 20 minutes tonight; you are also to revise your previous two poems based on today's principle. Craft a new poem tonight that focuses on ending strongly. Don't forget about vocab next week. Honors students, begin working on The Elements of Style.

Sophomores: Today we began our Echoes of the Tao assignment. You should have two entries done by the time we have our next seminar, on September 17. These entries can be from either Part I or Part II of Life of Pi. Finish all of Part II up through Chapter 45 for tomorrow. Vocab is due next week.

CNF: Today we did a few things to prepare us for reading Chapter 2 in Blink, for example, a scrambled sentence test.

Tuesday, September 4 and Wednesday, September 5

Freshmen: Today we did some stuff out of a book titled Sleeping Dogs Don't Lay that focused on grammar and usage. Your homework is to read for 20 minutes Tuesday and Wednesday and to bring in the two poems that are due on Thursday.

All Freshmen Honors students: We will have our first AM seminar at 7:40 on Friday, 9/6. Bring The Elements of Style with you this day.

Sophomores: Today we had our first seminar, which focused on Part I of Life of Pi. Please read Chapters 37-45 for Friday (this means finish Chapter 45). Also, you should be working on vocab and the This I Believe sheet that I gave you. You can find the vocab schedule on the blog and the worksheet is due on 9/10.

CNF: Today we practiced thin slicing in a number of different contexts.