October 27 - 31, 2014

This week we will finally wrap up our first Collection from the textbook. We will finish the Collection I Writing Exam on Wednesday. At that point, we will finally be free to start our next unit. The English 11 curriculum is arranged according to historical time periods. For our next unit, we will skip from the 1600s to the 1800s as we look at the development of American literature from 1810-1850. Although this might appear to be a bit dry at a glance, this is also the period when we see the first strong US poets, short story writers, and novelists. We'll have a preview of the unit on Thursday. We'll then wrap up the week with a trip to the library and an extra credit opportunity.

Students who have not finished the Collection I Reading Exam must complete it before/after school, during Advisory, or in English Lab by the end of the day on Tuesday, Oct 28. Students who do not finish the Collection I Writing Exam by Wednesday will need to complete it before/after school, during Advisory, or in English Lab by Wednesday, Nov 5.

• Mon: Collection I Writing Exam - write the rough draft.
• Tues: Collection I Writing Exam - revise and edit the rough draft. Create the final draft.
• Wed: Collection I Writing Exam - all drafts due by the end of the hour. Preview the 2nd Quarter Extra Credit Book Project.
• Thurs: Collection III preview. Summarize pages 175-176. Identify and analyze characteristics of Romanticism and Transcendentalism
• Fri: Meet in the classroom. Go to the library for a brief book talk. Check out a library book and read quietly for the rest of the hour.

October 20 - 24, 2014

WRHS Parent/Teacher Conferences

Wed and Thurs 4 - 8 pm

See Mr. Ritchie in the Library

This week our focus will be on the Collection I Exam. Students received a packet of all of the readings that will be on the multiple choice and short answer portion of the exam. Students should mark up the packet keeping in mind the skills listed on the first page. Students may use this packet of notes on the exam. Students will turn in the packet with their exam. The last part of the week will focus on the Collection I Writing Exam. This will be an in-class essay over multiple days. Students will not need to take anything home or do homework during this time. Students will turn in their notes at the end of each class period. Students will be writing the essay entirely during class time.

• Mon: Collection I Exam
• Tues: Finish the Collection I Exam (if necessary). Preview the Collection I Writing Exam. Begin gathering quotes and making an outline.
• Wed: Collection I Writing Exam - gather quotes and create an outline. Begin creating a rough draft of the essay.
• Thurs: Collection I Writing Exam - create a rough draft of the essay.
• Fri: No school

October 13 - 17, 2014

This week we will wrap up our last Collection 1 readings with a few close reads. The skills required of the two close reads will help identify and review the skills assessed over the Collection 1 exam to be done on Monday and Tuesday of next week.

Any missing work that still needs to be submitted online or handed in should be turned in by the end of the school day on Thursday.

• Mon: Close Read - Tan, "Mother Tongue." Begin reading and discussing the selection. Complete the close read tasks as we read.
• Tues: Close Read - Tan, "Mother Tongue." Begin reading and discussing the selection. Finish the close read tasks and hand in by the end of the hour.
• Wed: Poetry Close Read - Alexie. Read and discuss the selection. Complete the close read tasks and hand in by the end of the hour. Brief discussion over Immigration Poetry close read from last week.
• Thurs: Collection 1 exam preview - review major concepts. Pass out and begin annotating the exam's reading selections.
• Fri: No school - End of the 1st Quarter

Collection 1 Exam on Monday and Tuesday of next week

October 6 - 10, 2014

This week we thankfully have no extended writing tasks to complete. Instead we will take a look at two short texts. The first text, "Balboa," is a narrative text that analyzes what might have been going through Vasco Nunez de Balboa's mind when he saw the Pacific Ocean for the first time. The second text, "Blaxicans," is a modern informative analysis that analyzes how and why we label ourselves based on our culture and ancestry. We'll wrap up the week with a new kind of activity that we'll call an R&R day. This is a day for us to recap and review where we've been, get us all on the same page, and perhaps even make up a few missed points in the process.

• Mon: Wrap up discussion on The Tempest. Begin reading "Balboa," 77-83. Complete the notes and tasks as we read.
• Tues: Finish reading and discussing "Balboa." Hand in notes and tasks at the end of the hour.
• Wed: Begin reading "Blaxicans," 87-92. Complete the notes and tasks as we read.
• Thurs:Finish reading and discussing "Blaxicans." Hand in notes and tasks at the end of the hour.
• Fri: Vocabulary quiz. R&R Day: recap and review. Hand in materials by the end of the day.