Tuesday, December 19

English 12A: Today we completed an assignment on Canvas titled How to Read... Chapter 18 Analysis. If you were absent, complete it. Read Life of Pi through page 156 for the first day of class after the break, and your college application essay should be done by then as well.

English 12B: Today our focus was on researching for your Capstone Project. You should be ready to write when we return from break.

Monday, December 18

English 12A: Today we focused on the reading comprehension strategy of visualization. Continue to visualize what you read throughout Life of Pi, and get through Chapter 49 (page 137) for Tuesday's class. Keep working on your college application essays on your own. They should be more or less complete at this point.

English 12B: Today we concluded our reading of A Christmas Carol and the graphic novels you created to display your understanding of the Four Stages of the Hero. We then spent the rest of the period conducting research. Your research should be completed by the time you return from winter break.

Friday, December 15

12A: Today we took a quiz to test your ability to recognize the various conclusion techniques we have studied and then applied them to your college application essays. For Monday, be finished with Chapter 45 in Life of Pi (page 123).

12B: Today we almost finished our reading of A Christmas Carol as we studied the Four Stages of the Hero. We will complete this project on Monday. Bring your Capstone research material to class next week.

Thursday, December 14

English 12A: First of all, there will be a quiz on the conclusion techniques we have studied tomorrow in class. Study up. Second, today our focus was on Part II of Life of Pi. We wrote a This I Believe statement from his point of view and read an excellent essay that can be found here: https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12254393

You should read everything through (and including) Chapter 42 in Life of Pi (pages 97-112) for Friday's class. Keep working on your college application essay.

English 12B: Today we took a quiz on Part I of The Elements of Style. We then continued with our Four Stages of the Hero-A Christmas Carol Graphic Novel project. You should be compiling as much information about your topic as you can on your index cards for your Capstone Project.

Wednesday, December 13

A long time ago, in a school far, far away...

English 12A: Today we began a long-term assignment to help us see how ideas develop over the course of a text, as well as between texts. We also took a quiz on Part I of Life of Pi. The majority of our class was spent on a seminar discussion about Part I. For homework, either get caught up in the reading or spend a little time on your college application essay.

English 12B: Today we continued with our Christmas Carol-Four Stages of the Hero Graphic Novel project. There will be a quiz on The Elements of Style tomorrow. For homework, continue compiling sources and conducting research for you Capstone Project.

Tuesday, December 12

English 12A: Today we focused on different conclusion techniques to try with your college application essays. You should continue working on these on your own as needed. You also need to complete reading Part I from Life of Pi, and should go onto Canvas and look at the assignment titled "Life of Pi Part I Seminar Form." Read this and think about the items listed there in preparation for tomorrow's class.

English 12B: Today we continued to study the Four Stages of the Hero as we created graphic novels for A Christmas Carol. You should continue research your Capstone Project topic and compile information on your index cards.

Monday, December 11

English 12A: Today we began writing your college application essays. You may continue working on these at home; we will also have some time in class a few days this week. You should finish through Chapter 31 (page 84) in Life of Pi for Tuesday.

English 12B: Today we focused on two things. The first was Question Based Research, and how to use this as you begin researching your Capstone Project topic. The second was we began creating a graphic novel that displays your understanding of how Scrooge progresses through the Four Stages of the Hero in A Christmas Carol. 

Friday, December 8

English 12A: Today our focus was on reading some from Life of Pi, but the main part of our class was spent looking at various This I Believe essays that you read so as to get a sense of the various topics, styles, and tones of these kinds of essays in preparation for writing your own. Your homework is to complete everything through (and including) Chapter 26 in Life of Pi (page 74).

English 12B: We finished viewing Into the Woods as an introduction to the Four Stages of the Hero. You then wrote an essay that analyzed your assigned character's progression through these four stages. Your homework is to continue to collect sources for your Capstone Project. I want you to have access to those sources on Monday.

Thursday, December 7

English 12A: Today we took a short quiz about the different kinds of introduction techniques we have studied and a vigorous debate ensued... That was enjoyable. We also continued to read from Life of Pi. You should read everything through Chapter 17 (page 58) for Friday's class. Also due Friday is your Summer Reading Response Journal; we will take a quiz on the books tomorrow as well. Also bring your This I Believe handout where you wrote five reflections about five different This I Believe essays.

English 12B: Today Ms. Bates came to class and taught us how to conduct our research for the Capstone Project. Please follow her advice and begin collecting sources. Remember, you need at least ten, the details of which you can find on the handout I gave you (and which is also posted on Canvas). Over the next month or so, you need to become an expert on your topic so that you can begin writing your research paper after the break.

Wednesday, December 6

English 12A: Today we continued to focus on the various introduction techniques effective writers use. We also introduced the College Application Essay assignment and you chose a prompt and an introduction technique to use for that prompt. We will begin writing it next week - for now, all you need to do is think about it. Your homework tonight is to read pages 25-39 in Life of Pi. You should also complete all of your summer reading assignments as well as the worksheet related to the five This I Believe essays that you need to read.

English 12: Today we continued studying the Four Stages of the Hero. We will conclude this on Friday. You handed in your Capstone Proposals, and I will get them back to you tomorrow when we learn about research. You should start gathering sources for your Capstone Project now.

Tuesday, December 5

English 12A: Today we read chapters 6 and 7 from The Tao te Ching and pages 12-25 in Life of Pi. We also began a study of various introduction techniques to use when writing an essay in preparation for the college application essay we will be writing prior to Christmas break.

English 12B: Today we completed the assignment for Day 6 from The Elements of Style, completed our study of Stage Two of the Four Stages of the Hero and Act I of Into the Woods, and discussed your thesis statements and began working on your proposals for your Capstone Project. The Proposals are due, on paper, on Wednesday.

Life of Pi Trimester 2 Reading Schedule

Life of Pi Trimester 2 Reading Schedule  (read the pages on the assigned date): 12/4 - Author’s note and 3-12 12/5 - 12-25 12/6 - 25-39 12/7 - 39-58 12/8 - 58-74 12/11 - 74-84 12/12 - 84-94 12/14 - 97-112 12/15 - 112-123 12/18 - 123-137 12/19 - 137-156 1/2 - 156-166 1/3 - 166-177 1/4 - 177-197 1/5 - 192-209 1/8 - 210-225 1/9 - 225-240 1/10 - 240-256 1/11 - 256-270 1/12 - 270-286 1/17 - 286-319

Monday, December 4

English 12A: Today we began reading Life of Pi. You should read the Author's Note and pages 3-12 (Part I, Chapters 1-3) for Tuesday's class. Due for Wednesday's class (12/6) is your revised essay on the film More. Due Friday, 12/8, is your Summer Reading Response Journal uploaded to Canvas. We will have a quiz that day on the summer reading. Also due that day is your This I Believe worksheet, where you read five different This I Believe essays and reflect upon them.

English 12B: Today we continued to study the Four Stages of the Hero, and continued our focus on Stage Two: Initiation, by viewing Into the Woods. Due Tuesday, 12/5, is your Capstone Thesis Statement, and due Wednesday, 12/6, is your Capstone Proposal.

Friday, December 1

English 12A: Today we read Chapter 3 from the Tao te Ching and discussed the second phase of our This I Believe project, which is writing the actual essay. This won't be due until the end of the trimester, so some students may end up taking several months to write an essay, and others may write several essays over the next few months. Each writer's process will differ.

We spent the rest of the period focusing on your essays about More. We did some peer revision and then looked at a model from a former student. Your task is to take the feedback you received from your peer and the ideas from the sample essay and revise and improve your own. Your original essay and your improved essay are due 12/6. Your summer reading Journal is due 12/8 and the quiz is that day as well.

English 12B: Today we focused on the second stage of the Hero's Journey, that of initiation. You should continue to work on and think about your Capstone project. You need to have a thesis related to your topic by Tuesday, 12/5. This will require that you do a few hours of research over the next few days. On Wednesday, 12/6, your proposal will be due.