Autobiographical Narrative...Don't Panic

This week we are starting the Autobiographical Narrative!

Many of you have emailed with questions about this assignment. So rather than sharing answers with just the select few, I thought I would include common questions and the answers here:

Q: Mrs. Cales,
Do we have to state we're writing an autobiographical narrative in the introduction? I'm guessing no, but I want to make sure. I know we have to put the assignment name on the top of the document, though.

A: No. You don't have to state "I am writing an autobiographical narrative" or "for my autobiographical narrative I will write about..." These types of statements in your introduction are bland and often an obvious statement. Try to NEVER begin papers with statements like these. You should include the title of the assignment as part of your heading, thus whom ever reads it will know what type of paper you are writing, don't restate the obvious. Besides, as your teacher I will be reading up to 150 of these papers and you want your paper to stand out and not blend into the "fold."

One good way to start an autobiographical narrative is with an anecdote (not an antidote...nobody has the flu here) Such as, "My mom always asks me if I was 'born in a barn.' Even though I wasn't, I do forget to shut the door to the bathroom all the time." (this would be a good anecdote for a personal narrative telling about a time someone may have accidentally walked in on you in the bathroom. (YIPES!!!)

Q: Dear Mrs. Cales,
My question is about all word documents. Should I put one or two spaces after a period? If you could answer that would be lovely.
Thanks,

A: When you write an essay or a report for any of your classes, not just English, you should double space. This makes it easier for your teachers to grade them as well as to make comments in the extra space provided. :)

The Most Dangerous Game

In Weeks 2 & 3 we will be working with Richard Connell's "The Most Dangerous Game." This story was first published in 1924, but is a plot that has been re-used several times in the past several decades. In some cases it was seen as a horror story, and in others as a comedy. I think a lot of you will enjoy reading this story, and below is a short video I found on Youtube.com that I think you will also enjoy. Also, if you are having trouble following the story or you would like to know more about it, follow these links to Wikipedia's pages about Richard Connell and his most famous work, "The Most Dangerous Game."

Welcome To English I, Fall 2009

Welcome Back!

This year in English I we are going to explore many genres of literature, reading To Kill a Mockingbird together, working on building our writing skills together and hopefully having some FUN!

This class blog is one I use each year, so you will be able to find some great class examples from former English I students! On this blog I will update you on our current lessons, share some cool materials and links to helpful sites, and even some class examples. I often refer you to the blog for help, additional information or just to give you some cool ideas.

You are free to comment on any post, with your name or even just anonymously, but remember to keep your comments respectful, helpful, and school appropriate. I do have all comments set to be monitored, so they will not post until I have had the chance to read them and approve them. I have never had to NOT approve a comment, but I have had to ask students to edit their comments to keep their identify private (they shared some pretty sensitive information IMO)

Scheduled Maintenance On OHDELA Site

We have been notified that there will be a scheduled day of maintenance on Wednesday, July 1 from 12am to 12pm. During this time you will not be able to access your Portal or Angel pages. You are still expected to be working on your class assignments. On this day you should be working on your OPTIC Research Project. I have saved this project to my Google Documents so that you can access it through the class blog. Please follow this link to access the OPTIC Research Project. The project is due on July 10th.

Summer School

Welcome to English IB Summer School!

The links to the right and the postings below will help you to complete your lessons and assignments for Summer School. Please feel free to call or email me with any questions or concerns you might have.

:)

Romeo and Juliet Projects

We are finally wrapping up our school year with our Romeo and Juliet projects. Below are examples of the projects your classmates have created. I will post your student examples as you turn them in and only if you give me permission. Please enjoy and feel free to comment, but remember to keep it constructive and positive :)

To any families or friends visiting this page, students in Mrs. Cales' 9th grade English class read Romeo and Juliet and as a final project were allowed to choose one of four project choices. The choices included: Create 5 postsecret postcards to anonymously share one secret for five of the main characters; Create a comic book based on the play Romeo and Juliet; Create a Play (movie) Trailer to "sell" the play; and Re-Write a scene or script based on Romeo and Juliet and record a performance of your script. Below are several class examples. I will be updating them and trying to share as many as I can as they are turned in to me.

Play Trailer Projects

M. Jennings

(this link will pop out a Windows Media Play viewer and may take a few minutes to load on your computer, please be patient it is worth the wait.)

http://www.mydeo.com/videorequest.asp?XID=29389&CID=268941

S. Campbell




R. Lincoln




S. Henry



R. Hutchinson

M. Maze-Dallas

S. Gobah

B. Klein

I. Coffy

M. Kohler

K. Hall

H. Bright

Romeo and Juliet

Our final unit of the year will be William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Romeo and Juliet is one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays. A variety of movies, television shows and even songs have been based on the story of Romeo and Juliet.

In this unit we will explore the world of William Shakespeare and his plays. I have added two updated links to help you as we begin this exploration. The first is Sparknotes.com which can help with understanding the play and its elements. Sparknotes provides summaries and explanations of acts, characters, and important quotes. The second site is No Fear Shakespeare. This site will provide you with a side by side “translation” of the play from its original Elizabethan English text to a Modern English text.

Hiroshima!

Wow, I can't believe we are almost half way through the semester. The light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter! But, now is not the time to start slacking! We are now in our Hiroshima unit. If you are also taking World History with Ms. Paulet or Mr. Mozingo you may have noticed that we are reading the same book in both classes. This is what people in the education field call "cross curricular cooperation," and what students call "less work!"

The English Department in "cooperation" with the Social Studies department are teaching the same book. This will give you the chance to look at the book Hiroshima from both a literary point of view and from an historical point of view. In Social Studies, you will work on a book review, and in English you will create a research paper based on topics related to the book.

RESEARCH AHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Ok, let it all out! It will be okay, I promise. I know "research" is a scary word, but it is important. Why?

1. It helps you to learn how to tell if what you are reading/seeing (whether it is a blog, website, newspaper or magazine) is reliable.
2. The State (Ohio Department of Education--English Language Arts Benchmarks and Standards) says you have to learn how to do research papers! (this is the old "Mom says so" reason.)
3. Believe it or not, you WILL USE THESE SKILLS--I know you are thinking, "yeah, right!" But you will. Some day you will need a job, you will want to figure out what kind of job you want, how much money you will make, and if your boss asks you questions like "do you have any children" is he/she breaking the law. When you go on to higher grades and college, your teachers and professors will assign you research papers until your eyes cross (I know--I have been there and my eyes are still slightly miss aligned ;)

Your life will be much easier if you take the time, listen to your teacher, and tackle your research paper project with fangs! To the Left you will find some excellent sites to help you as you learn the correct way to format your intext citations, MLA Works Cited page, and general research skills your teacher and future teachers and employers want you to have :)

Book Talk!!

Yea, time to read! Okay, so maybe you are not as happy about reading as I am, but at least this time you get to choose the novel you will read. Your Book Talk project will be due March 9th. Although your assignment has not been posted in your lessons yet, I thought I would be nice and give you a heads up.

A lot of you have asked some great questions, so--to be sure we all have a chance to hear (or at least read) the answers, I have posted the common questions here along with their answers.

Q: What book do I have to read?
A: You get to choose what book you want to read. The only restriction is that it must be a novel (a book with chapters and a story--no collections of short stories please) You can choose any novel you like including a graphic novel (you may want to check with me or your librarian to be sure the graphic novel you choose is considered a graphic novel and not a comic book.)

Q: Can I read a biography?
A: Yes! Non fiction novels, such as biographies and autobiographies, are acceptable.

Q: Can I read the Bible or the Qu'ran?
A: Yes, but remember that as part of your assignment you are to look at these from a Literature point of view. You will need to read these books as a piece of literature rather than as a spiritual text. Looking at these texts as literature means that you are going to critique the writing based on the skills we learn in class and approach them like you would any other book. Also, remember that you are attending a Public School -- this means that you are not allowed to use this assignment as a chance to "preach" your religion or to "slam" another religion (take it up with the Supreme court, not me--this is part of the separation of church and state rulings)

Q: How long does the book have to be?
A: The novel you choose should be about 200-300 pages long. Remember that you are choosing a book for your 9th grade, high school, English class. Choose Wisely! Choosing a book that is clearly beneath your reading level is a sign that you are not taking your assignment or the class seriously and will be addressed.

Q: Can I read To Kill a Mockingbird or Hiroshima?
A: No, you cannot read a book we have used for class. I also suggest that you don't choose a book you have read before, unless you plan to re-read the book. Your written assignment will be fairly thought out and detailed so it is important that the book is fresh in your mind.

Have another question? Feel free to email me the question, or to post it to the comments.

The Odyssey: The story of a man desperatly in need of a GPS

For the next few weeks we are going to be reading and taking a good hard look at The Odyssey, by Homer. Okay okay, I know what you are thinking. "Yea! I Love Reading Ancient Greek Epic Poetry"...oh, that wasn't what you were thinking...bummer!

Well, don't look so sad. The Odyssey is one of the first Action "Movies" of all time and Bruce Willis and The Rock would kill to play Odysseus in the latest sequel to The Illiad. So, to show you just how much fun we can have with Greek Epic Poetry, check out the videos and extras below. And, if you are interested in learning more about The Odyssey or need a little extra help understanding the story check out the links to the right.

start