Thursday, December 26, 2013
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Over Winter Break...
For many, the best thing you can do for your writing over Break will be to read. Read something delicious and absorbing -- something that sustains you as a reader. Choose it and read it! For some of you it might be three or four books. For others, one or two. For still others, extensive reading in magazines. But Read!
The second-best thing, for those who don't already have one, would be to buy an AP practice manual and begin using it.
Last but not least: run your two poems!
Best wishes for a good break,
Mr. Bratnober
The second-best thing, for those who don't already have one, would be to buy an AP practice manual and begin using it.
Last but not least: run your two poems!
Best wishes for a good break,
Mr. Bratnober
Friday, December 13, 2013
For Monday, Dec. 16 - ~ birthday of Beethoven (& the great Noel Coward)
We'll lead off with magic. You can hold me to this. It's on the Class Blog - a promise of record; an international IOU on the Internet.
Please don't wait until Monday night to review the twenty-one (21) vocabulary words!
Please don't wait until Monday night to review the twenty-one (21) vocabulary words!
We will score today’s essay, so please show up INFORMED FOR SCORING because you have already read (1) the AP scoring guidelines for 2006 (FRQ #3), (2) the three student essays on public expression of opinions, and (3) the AP Scoring Commentary on the three student essays.
Please bring both your two poems for Poetry Out Loud. We’ll rehearse.
Also, we’ll rehearse our AP English Holiday Choir Repertoire for Dec. 19 & 20.
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Thursday and Friday, Dec. 12 and 13, 2013
Thursday: At home, please continue in Ch. 3 of LOC, reading pp. 115-125. In class, we'll read and comment on 3 past student AP Argument essays.
Friday: Write I-CE #1.
Next Tuesday: See the twenty-one (21) new vocabulary words -- you'll find them in the RH column of this blog. -->
Friday: Write I-CE #1.
Next Tuesday: See the twenty-one (21) new vocabulary words -- you'll find them in the RH column of this blog. -->
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
On Wednesday, December 11, 2013
PLEASE BRING BOTH YOUR POEMS, PRINTED OUT, READY TO GO. We'll work in small groups -- low-stress rehearsal, annotation, and discussion of what makes a reading effective.
Monday, December 9, 2013
Tuesday, QUIZ on the new, revised CHAPTER 3 of LOC (ClassJump)
See Monday's entry on this blog. All is revealed. (Note that LOC pp. 81-115 = .PDF pp. 1-18.)
There is a lot of material. It's relatively easy, but there's a reason why this has been up for several days.
The quiz will be Open-Notes; however, "Open-Notes" does not mean "open Xerox copy of the chapter."
There is a lot of material. It's relatively easy, but there's a reason why this has been up for several days.
The quiz will be Open-Notes; however, "Open-Notes" does not mean "open Xerox copy of the chapter."
Saturday, December 7, 2013
For Monday's class, on Dec. 9, 2013
Read and take notes on the new, revised Chapter 3, on the Argumentative Essay. Tuesday's Quiz will focus on the first eighteen pages -- pp. 1-18 of the .PDF // pp. 81-115 of the chapter. It is only available to you on ClassJump. But before you go there, here's the first page of Chapter 3 (scrunched pretty badly in the .PDF):
"ANALYZING ARGUMENTS
"From Reading to Writing
"Have you ever changed your mind about something? What caused you to re-examine a belief or an idea? Most likely, you read or heard someone else's perspective that challenged you to think about an issue in a different way. It might have been a clear, thoughtful presentation of information, a personal story that tugged at your conscience, a startling statistic, or even a bit of humor or satire that presented a familiar issue in a new and enlightening way. It's less likely that you were bullied into reconsidering your opinion by a loud voice that belittled your ideas. By carefully and respectfully reading the viewpoints of others and considering a range of ideas on an issue, we develop a clearer understanding of our own beliefs -- a necessary foundation to writing effective arguments. In this chapter, we're going to analyze elements of argument as a means of critical thinking and an essential step toward crafting your own argumentative essays.
"What is Argument?
"Although we have been discussing argument in previous chapters, the focus has been primarily on rhetorical appeals and style. We'll continue examining those elements, but here we take a closer look at an argument's claim, evidence, and organization.
"Let's start with some definitions. What is argument? Is it a conflict? A contest between opposing forces to prove the other side wrong? A battle with words? Or is it rather, a process of reasoned inquiry and rational discourse seeking common ground? If it is the latter, then we engage in argument whenever we explore ideas rationally and think clearly about the world. Yet these days argument is often no more than raised voices interrupting one another, exaggerated assertions without adequate support, and scanty evidence from sources that lack credibility. We might call this "crazed rhetoric," as political commentator Tom Toles does in the following cartoon." ~ from The Language of Composition, p. 81, by Renee Shea, et al (2012 ed.).
...to continue, jump from here to p. 82 and finish the article on ClassJump. As you'll see, it's now the first Download article - top of the list.
"ANALYZING ARGUMENTS
"From Reading to Writing
"Have you ever changed your mind about something? What caused you to re-examine a belief or an idea? Most likely, you read or heard someone else's perspective that challenged you to think about an issue in a different way. It might have been a clear, thoughtful presentation of information, a personal story that tugged at your conscience, a startling statistic, or even a bit of humor or satire that presented a familiar issue in a new and enlightening way. It's less likely that you were bullied into reconsidering your opinion by a loud voice that belittled your ideas. By carefully and respectfully reading the viewpoints of others and considering a range of ideas on an issue, we develop a clearer understanding of our own beliefs -- a necessary foundation to writing effective arguments. In this chapter, we're going to analyze elements of argument as a means of critical thinking and an essential step toward crafting your own argumentative essays.
"What is Argument?
"Although we have been discussing argument in previous chapters, the focus has been primarily on rhetorical appeals and style. We'll continue examining those elements, but here we take a closer look at an argument's claim, evidence, and organization.
"Let's start with some definitions. What is argument? Is it a conflict? A contest between opposing forces to prove the other side wrong? A battle with words? Or is it rather, a process of reasoned inquiry and rational discourse seeking common ground? If it is the latter, then we engage in argument whenever we explore ideas rationally and think clearly about the world. Yet these days argument is often no more than raised voices interrupting one another, exaggerated assertions without adequate support, and scanty evidence from sources that lack credibility. We might call this "crazed rhetoric," as political commentator Tom Toles does in the following cartoon." ~ from The Language of Composition, p. 81, by Renee Shea, et al (2012 ed.).
...to continue, jump from here to p. 82 and finish the article on ClassJump. As you'll see, it's now the first Download article - top of the list.
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Week of December 3-4-5-6 and Week of December 9-10-11-12-13
Monday, Dec. 2 -- No School for Students.
The following link takes you to the AP English Multiple-Choice Practice Exam you took on Wednesday, November 27. The correct answers appear on p. 29 of the .PDF file. There were two 49s and one 50 last week. Any score in the 40s is extremely promising, pointing towards a 5 (if your essays are rock-solid); a score in the mid-30s or above points to a score of 4 (again, if your essays are rock-solid). Wednesday's AP English Multiple-Choice Practice Exam. We will continue to take these -- or anyway, segments of them. But to guarantee raising your multiple-choice score, please do what past WHS "5" Students have done: buy a published practice booklet and work with it on your own. For many students, success on this AP exam requires outside rehearsal, in advance!
Tuesday, Dec. 3 -- new sections / new Tri / new seats
Bring your two Poetry Out Loud selections to class: printed text, title, and poet.
The low-down skivvy: choose one shorter poem (25 lines or less) and one longer poem (26 lines or more). Either one of these two poems -- the shorter or the longer -- must have a pre-1900 publication date. (And yes, they can both be pre-1900 if you prefer.) ALL selections need to come from the Poetry Out Loud anthology online. When you visit the site, you'll see that the online tools support the requirements -- see "Find Poems" under the Poems and Performance menu. (And yes, there is also a printed anthology -- I have copies in Rm. 201; and yes, they've scratched several titles from the '12-'13 online anthology. Check 'more information here' if you want to see the list of deleted, and thus ineligible, poems.) Memorize your shorter poem by January 3, 2014.
Please brush up on The Great Gatsby, Chapters 7-8-9. If you haven't already read these chapters, now would be the time. In case you left your copy at school: The Great Gatsby online.
Film adaptation will be the topic of our preview Argument Essay -- a trial run // not-for-points // kick the tires. So you would do well to think about, among other things, what Baz Luhrmann & Co. did with The Great Gatsby. We'll see more of the film(s) on Tuesday.
[Portfolios and Writing Grades, back to you this Thursday, Dec. 5.] POL SELECTIONS: 12/6.
P.M. Begin reading the new, revised LOC Ch. 3 (ClassJump). OPEN-NOTES QUIZ: TUES., Dec. 10
Wednesday, Dec. 4
A trial run for the In-Class Argument essay. You know the drill: dark ink, lined paper, forty-five minutes. Although this essay will not "count" in the same sense that future ones will, you can still refer to it in your Winter Letter of Self-Evaluation (Feb./Mar. 2014), so you'd be smart to take a good whack at today's prompt. (N.B., Other AP English juniors will read & "rough-score" your essay, so these will be written anonymously -- Student I.D. numbers only.)
P.M. Continue reading new, revised LOC Ch. 3 (ClassJump). OPEN-NOTES QUIZ: TUES., Dec. 10. POL SELECTIONS: 12/6.
Thursday, Dec. 5
Introduce the Argument Essay, with help from Northwestern University Prof. David Zarefesky. Reminder about LOC, new Chapter 3 ("Argument"), for Dec. 9-10. (It's on ClassJump.) Introduce the AP // College Board standards for scoring the Argument Essay.
Poetry Out Loud: a brief introduction to poetry declamation.
PORTFOLIOS BACK TO YOU: grades, scores, comments, and congratulations.
P.M. Continue to study the new, revised LOC Ch. 3 (ClassJump). Also, for Friday, please read an Argument Prompt (TBA), along with two past essays in response to this prompt: a 6 & an 8 (TBA). GRADED DEADLINE FOR POL SELECTIONS: FRIDAY, 12/6.
Friday, Dec. 6
Your Poetry Out Loud selections are due today; no further delays!
Further discussion of AP argument and the AP // College Board scoring standards.
Score Tuesday's Argument essays on film adaptation. In groups of three, 4th Period students will score 5th Period essays, and 5th Period students will score 4th Period essays. Scored essays back on Monday.
WEEKEND: Please finish reading and annotating the new, revised LOC Chapter 3. We'll talk through this chapter on Monday -- including hints, study guide, et al. -- and take an Open-Notes Quiz on Tuesday.
Monday, Dec. 9
Study hints, guidelines, discussion, Q & A, and Study Groups on the new, revised LOC Chapter 3. Laptops and/or iPads will be welcome this day. I will try to reserve 16 COW laptops for people who don't bring their own computers. Tuesday's quiz will focus on pp. 1-18 of the .PDF file (pp. 81-115 of the Chapter itself).
P.M. Study for Tuesday's quiz: pp. 1-18 of the .PDF file -- pp. 81-115 of the Chapter itself.
Tuesday, Dec. 10
Open-Notes Quiz on Argumentative Writing focusing on pp. 1-18 of the .PDF file -- pp. 81-115 of the Chapter itself... in the new, revised Chapter 3 of LOC (ClassJump).
P.M. Homework amnesty, but practice saying your poems aloud, and be sure to bring both poems to Wednesday's class.
Wednesday, Dec. 11
Briefly discuss the results of the Open-Notes quiz.
LAUNCH Sentence-Combining Workshop: Modeling sentences after professional writers' sentences.
Remaining time: POETRY REHEARSAL.
P.M. Read three short argument essays (TBA). (One professionally edited essay; two student AP essays.) We will write the first I-CE Argument essay in class this Friday, Dec. 12.
Thursday, Dec. 12
Discussion process for the three essays: Scores, characteristics, spots of brilliance, areas that need work.
P.M. Review your notes on Chapter 3. Think about the framework -- the spine -- of a fine persuasive argument. Read at least two or three more exemplary student essays in response to past prompts on AP Central. (Argument prompts, and the corresponding student essays, have always fallen under Free-Response Question #3 since the 2005 AP English exam.)
Friday, Dec. 13 -- Aieee!
In-Class Argument Essay #1. Lined paper; dark ink; 40+ minutes. Good luck!
Weekend: Read the AP scoring guidelines, the three (or more) student essays, and the AP Scoring Commentary for Friday's prompt. We will score your Friday essays this Monday. Also, please run your poems at least three times each -- out loud, with another sentient creature nearby (i.e., at least a parakeet, a turtle, a Miniature Schnauzer... possibly a human being...). Please be sure to bring your poems on Monday.
Monday, Dec. 16 -- Beethoven's Birthday, and the great Noel Coward's birthday.
So, we will score and sing -- score AP essays and sing tributes to these two musical greats. Also, caroling rehearsal for our Super-Lunch appearances this Thursday and Friday.
Sentence-Combining Workshop: Part II.
P.M. STUDY FOR TUESDAY'S VOCABULARY QUIZ #5.
The following link takes you to the AP English Multiple-Choice Practice Exam you took on Wednesday, November 27. The correct answers appear on p. 29 of the .PDF file. There were two 49s and one 50 last week. Any score in the 40s is extremely promising, pointing towards a 5 (if your essays are rock-solid); a score in the mid-30s or above points to a score of 4 (again, if your essays are rock-solid). Wednesday's AP English Multiple-Choice Practice Exam. We will continue to take these -- or anyway, segments of them. But to guarantee raising your multiple-choice score, please do what past WHS "5" Students have done: buy a published practice booklet and work with it on your own. For many students, success on this AP exam requires outside rehearsal, in advance!
Tuesday, Dec. 3 -- new sections / new Tri / new seats
Bring your two Poetry Out Loud selections to class: printed text, title, and poet.
The low-down skivvy: choose one shorter poem (25 lines or less) and one longer poem (26 lines or more). Either one of these two poems -- the shorter or the longer -- must have a pre-1900 publication date. (And yes, they can both be pre-1900 if you prefer.) ALL selections need to come from the Poetry Out Loud anthology online. When you visit the site, you'll see that the online tools support the requirements -- see "Find Poems" under the Poems and Performance menu. (And yes, there is also a printed anthology -- I have copies in Rm. 201; and yes, they've scratched several titles from the '12-'13 online anthology. Check 'more information here' if you want to see the list of deleted, and thus ineligible, poems.) Memorize your shorter poem by January 3, 2014.
Please brush up on The Great Gatsby, Chapters 7-8-9. If you haven't already read these chapters, now would be the time. In case you left your copy at school: The Great Gatsby online.
Film adaptation will be the topic of our preview Argument Essay -- a trial run // not-for-points // kick the tires. So you would do well to think about, among other things, what Baz Luhrmann & Co. did with The Great Gatsby. We'll see more of the film(s) on Tuesday.
[Portfolios and Writing Grades, back to you this Thursday, Dec. 5.] POL SELECTIONS: 12/6.
P.M. Begin reading the new, revised LOC Ch. 3 (ClassJump). OPEN-NOTES QUIZ: TUES., Dec. 10
Wednesday, Dec. 4
A trial run for the In-Class Argument essay. You know the drill: dark ink, lined paper, forty-five minutes. Although this essay will not "count" in the same sense that future ones will, you can still refer to it in your Winter Letter of Self-Evaluation (Feb./Mar. 2014), so you'd be smart to take a good whack at today's prompt. (N.B., Other AP English juniors will read & "rough-score" your essay, so these will be written anonymously -- Student I.D. numbers only.)
P.M. Continue reading new, revised LOC Ch. 3 (ClassJump). OPEN-NOTES QUIZ: TUES., Dec. 10. POL SELECTIONS: 12/6.
Thursday, Dec. 5
Introduce the Argument Essay, with help from Northwestern University Prof. David Zarefesky. Reminder about LOC, new Chapter 3 ("Argument"), for Dec. 9-10. (It's on ClassJump.) Introduce the AP // College Board standards for scoring the Argument Essay.
Poetry Out Loud: a brief introduction to poetry declamation.
PORTFOLIOS BACK TO YOU: grades, scores, comments, and congratulations.
P.M. Continue to study the new, revised LOC Ch. 3 (ClassJump). Also, for Friday, please read an Argument Prompt (TBA), along with two past essays in response to this prompt: a 6 & an 8 (TBA). GRADED DEADLINE FOR POL SELECTIONS: FRIDAY, 12/6.
Friday, Dec. 6
Your Poetry Out Loud selections are due today; no further delays!
Further discussion of AP argument and the AP // College Board scoring standards.
Score Tuesday's Argument essays on film adaptation. In groups of three, 4th Period students will score 5th Period essays, and 5th Period students will score 4th Period essays. Scored essays back on Monday.
WEEKEND: Please finish reading and annotating the new, revised LOC Chapter 3. We'll talk through this chapter on Monday -- including hints, study guide, et al. -- and take an Open-Notes Quiz on Tuesday.
Monday, Dec. 9
Study hints, guidelines, discussion, Q & A, and Study Groups on the new, revised LOC Chapter 3. Laptops and/or iPads will be welcome this day. I will try to reserve 16 COW laptops for people who don't bring their own computers. Tuesday's quiz will focus on pp. 1-18 of the .PDF file (pp. 81-115 of the Chapter itself).
P.M. Study for Tuesday's quiz: pp. 1-18 of the .PDF file -- pp. 81-115 of the Chapter itself.
Tuesday, Dec. 10
Open-Notes Quiz on Argumentative Writing focusing on pp. 1-18 of the .PDF file -- pp. 81-115 of the Chapter itself... in the new, revised Chapter 3 of LOC (ClassJump).
P.M. Homework amnesty, but practice saying your poems aloud, and be sure to bring both poems to Wednesday's class.
Wednesday, Dec. 11
Briefly discuss the results of the Open-Notes quiz.
LAUNCH Sentence-Combining Workshop: Modeling sentences after professional writers' sentences.
Remaining time: POETRY REHEARSAL.
P.M. Read three short argument essays (TBA). (One professionally edited essay; two student AP essays.) We will write the first I-CE Argument essay in class this Friday, Dec. 12.
Thursday, Dec. 12
Discussion process for the three essays: Scores, characteristics, spots of brilliance, areas that need work.
P.M. Review your notes on Chapter 3. Think about the framework -- the spine -- of a fine persuasive argument. Read at least two or three more exemplary student essays in response to past prompts on AP Central. (Argument prompts, and the corresponding student essays, have always fallen under Free-Response Question #3 since the 2005 AP English exam.)
Friday, Dec. 13 -- Aieee!
In-Class Argument Essay #1. Lined paper; dark ink; 40+ minutes. Good luck!
Weekend: Read the AP scoring guidelines, the three (or more) student essays, and the AP Scoring Commentary for Friday's prompt. We will score your Friday essays this Monday. Also, please run your poems at least three times each -- out loud, with another sentient creature nearby (i.e., at least a parakeet, a turtle, a Miniature Schnauzer... possibly a human being...). Please be sure to bring your poems on Monday.
Monday, Dec. 16 -- Beethoven's Birthday, and the great Noel Coward's birthday.
So, we will score and sing -- score AP essays and sing tributes to these two musical greats. Also, caroling rehearsal for our Super-Lunch appearances this Thursday and Friday.
Sentence-Combining Workshop: Part II.
P.M. STUDY FOR TUESDAY'S VOCABULARY QUIZ #5.
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