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In times of emergency, check the School System Web site for up-to-date information.
Click on the link at the top of this page to go to www.stpsb.org.
GIFTED: English I, English II, English III, English IV
HONORS: English I, English II,English III, English IV
ADVANCED PLACEMENT: English III, English IV
How to Read Literature Like a Professor – Thomas C. Foster
Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Read and annotate J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. While reading, keep a reading journal, a written record of thoughts, feelings, and questions. Consider the following prompts as entries for the journal:
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What expectations do you have after reading the opening lines?
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Any sudden realizations about characters, settings, events.
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Details that puzzle you or seem no~to make sense
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Points where characters or events change
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Connections you make to person, places, experiences that you've known
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Similarities to other stories you've read.
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Responses upon understanding or empattiizing with characters'
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Interesting associations that you might rri'ake with the language
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Any symbolic images, figures of speech, unusual quotes.
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Does Holden have a superiority complex? Is he superior? In what ways?
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Is the book arranged in the best order? Why or why not?
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What if there were no first and last chapter? How would this affect your reading of the novel?
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How is Holden a real, or believable character?
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If Holden went to your school, what kind of label might he be given? Why?
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Considering that this book was published in 1951, what makes it a "timeless" story?
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Identify some of the things about your own society that you think are "phony"
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Do you think that society encourages children to grow up too quickly? Explain
You should have at least 12 different entries. The entries should be from the beginning, middle, and end of the novel. Date each entry and note to what chapters or lines you are referencing. The responses need to be relevant, honest, and detailed. The length should be at least 150 words each. Reach below the surface in recording your thoughts. Give specific reasons and examples to support your thoughts.
The entries should be legibly written, using blue or black ink, on loose leaf paper, front of paper only, or typed, using Times New Roman font and double -spaced.
From each work, select 10 challenging words, record the textual sentences or lines and page number(s), define the word, and create a sophisticated sentence of your own.
Record a meaningful quote or strong passage from each work, and explain why you selected that quote and how it contributes to the authors' themes.
Assignments are due two weeks after the opening day of school, at which time you will take a test.
Direct any questions you may have to my email address:artedgmb@aol.com
Life of Pi – Yann Martel
The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald
Beowulf (Seamus Heaney translation)
Grendel by John Gardner
How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster
Read How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster. Applying information from Foster's book, read and annotate the Seamus Heaney translation of Beowulf, the epic poem by an unknown author, and John Gardner's novel Grendel. While reading these works, keep a reading journal, a written record of thoughts, feelings, and questions. Consider the following prompts as entries for the journal:
- What expectations do you have after reading the opening lines of the poem? Of the novel?
- Any sudden realizations about characters, setting, events
- Details that puzzle you or seem not to make sense
- Points where characters or events change
- Connections you make to person, places, experiences that you've known
- Similarities to other stories you've read
- Responses upon understanding or empathizing with characters
- Interesting associations that you might make with the language
- Any symbolic images, figures of speech, unusual quotes
- From the poem, describe the hero Beowulf and his three adventures.
- What is the role of women in the poem? In the novel?
- From the novel, describe Grendel's first encounter with men. Why does he call them "the most dangerous things I've ever met"? What does he conclude about them?
- From the novel, what is Grendel's first reaction to the Shaper's songs? Why does he describe himself as "tom apart by poetry"?
- From the novel, describe Grendel's conversion. How do the Danes reactto him? What does he wish for? Why does he go back again two nights later?
- From the novel, explain the dragon's advice to Grendel.
You should have at least 12 different entries for each novel. The entries should be from the beginning, middle, and end of the novel. Date each entry and note to what chapters or lines you are referencing. The responses need to be relevant, honest, and detailed. The length should be at least 150 words each. Reach below the surface in recording your thoughts. Give specific reasons and examples to support your thoughts.
The entries should be legibly written, using blue or black ink, on loose leaf paper, front of paper only, or typed, using Times New Roman font and double -spaced.
From each work, select 10 challenging words, record the textual sentences or lines and page number(s), define the word, and create a sophisticated sentence of your own.
Record a meaningful quote or strong passage from each work, and explain why you selected that quote and how it contributes to the authors' themes.
Assignments are due two weeks after the opening day of school, at which time you will take a test.
Direct any questions you may have to my email address:artedgmb@aol.com
| You do not need to BUY the movie, but you do need to watch it. | |
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Great memoirs must balance the universal and the particular. Too much of the former makes it overly familiar; too much of the latter makes readers ask what the story has to do with them. In his debut, Hickam, a retired NASA engineer, walks that line beautifully. On one level, it's the story of a teenage boy who learns about dedication, responsibility, thermodynamics and girls. On the other hand, it's about a dying way of life in a coal town where the days are determined by the rhythms of the mine and the company that controls everything and everybody. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. |
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Based on the memoir Rocket Boys by Homer H. Hickam. Hickam's true story begins in 1957 with Russia's historic launch of the Sputnik satellite, and while Homer sees Sputnik as his cue to pursue a fascination with rocketry, his father epitomizes the admirable yet sternly stubborn working-man's ethic of the West Virginia coal miner, casting fear and disdain on Homer's pursuit of science while urging his "errant" son to carryon the family business--a spirit-killing profession that Homer has no intention of joining. |
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Sean Covey promises to make this book an adventure for your teenager. While the book gives the same sound advice that his father gave adults, he gave it that teenage no-nonsense twist and "stuffed it full of cartoons, clever ideas, great quotes, and incredible stories about real teens from all over the world ... along with a few other surprises." In his own words: "So why did I write this book? I wrote it because life for teens is no longer a playground. It's a jungle out there. And if I've done my job right, this book can be like a compass to help you navigate through it. In addition, unlike my dad's book, which was written for old people (and can get really boring at times), this book was written especially for teens and is always interesting." |
(Free podcasts of Cry, the Beloved Country are available on iTunes.)
Questions over the summer? Email Ms.Easterling(she1east@bellsouth.net) OR Ms. Allan (christa.allan@gmpil.com). You must write STUDENT in the subject line; otherwisej if your name is unrecognizable. the email may not be opened.
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Cry, the Beloved Country is a beautifully told and profoundly compassionate story of the Zulu pastor Stephen Kumalo and his son Absalom, set in the troubled and changing South Africa of the 1940s. The book is written with such keen empathy and understanding that to read it is to share fully in the gravity of the characters' situations. It both touches your heart deeply and inspires a renewed faith in the dignity of mankind. Cry, the Beloved Country is a classic tale, passionately African, timeless and universal, and beyond all, selfless. |
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A novel of intense power and intrigue, Jane Eyre has dazzled generations of readers with its depiction of a woman's quest for freedom. Having grown up an orphan in the home of her cruel aunt and at a harsh charity school, Jane Eyre becomes an independent and spirited survivor as governess at Thornfield Hall. But when she finds love with her sardonic employer, Rochester, the discovery of his terrible secret forces her to make a choice. Should she stay with him whatever the consequences or follow her convictions, even if it means leaving her beloved? |
I. Read How to Read Literature Like a Professor. Highlight and annotate the helpful advice throughout the book and use the book to define any/all literary terms you encounter in the book. Yes, this means you’ll have a possible sixty-ish terms You will have a test on the book and the terms used in it within the first three weeks of school.
II. Using only one source for each, research literary movement Transcendentalism and the author Walt Whitman. Write a one page explanation of each and provide a bibliography. Then, read TheNotebook by Nicholas Sparks. (Please do not watch the movie and assume that will be enough. Sparks draws from both Transcendentalism and Whitman to create his characters. We will have a Socratic Seminar on the novel (for which you will earn a grade based upon your participation) within the first three weeks of class.
In short, you will turn in the following on the on Friday, August 22 stapled together in this order:
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Researched report—Transcendentalism
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Researched report--Whitman
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List of literary terms, defined
Summer reading will be: The Lion in Winter and Angela’s Ashes.
The assignments for The Lion in Winter and Angela’s Ashes are below.
The Lion in Winter
The book The Lion in Winter is about a very important family that has to decide who will be the next king of England. Henry II is the king and his wife is Eleanor of Aquitaine. They have three sons who appear in the movie: Richard, Geoffrey, and John. Because the eldest son, Henry had died, the other sons are vying for the throne. Henry II wants John to be king. Eleanor sides with Richard. Another subplot in the movie is that Philip II, King of France, wants his sister's dowry back if she is not married to the next king of England. As you read the book, please answer the following questions. |
1. Why was Henry II proud to be "King, alive, and 50 --- all at once!"? |
2. Why does Henry II refuse to allow Eleanor out of prison? |
3. When Eleanor asks Henry if he ever loved her, he responded, "No." Do you believe this is true? Explain. |
4. How long as Eleanor been imprisoned? |
5. What is the richest province in Europe? Who controls it? |
6. Who was Rosamund? |
7. What reasons does the King of France have to dislike Henry II? |
8. What treason did Henry's sons conspire in? With whom did they plot? Why? |
9. After the treasons of all his sons, what remedy does Henry come up with? |
10. Who in Rome can help Henry annul his marriage? |
11. What drawback to this plan do both Eleanor and Alice point out to Henry? |
12. Briefly describe the relationships listed below: a. Richard and Eleanor |
13. Who do you predict will become king upon Henry's death? Why? |
14. Is this family dysfunctional? Angela’s Ashes Define these terms (expect a test): Autobiography Students will complete the following questions. Answer in complete sentences.
Simile |
Dear Students:
I look forward to meeting (or reveling in a rapturous reunion) with all of you in August. In the meantime, your summer reading assignments will serve as an introduction to the joys and rigors of AP English III. I have chosen readings and assignments to serve as the underpinnings of the work we will do during the academic year. How to Read Literature Like a Professor by Thomas C. Foster will assist you in appreciating literary techniques, symbolic elements and “intertextuality”. We will refer to its content throughout the year.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer is an amazing read. Foer experiments with text and visuals, reinventing our concept of what a novel should be. His book will allow us to start a year-long conversation about how to read textual and visual arguments. We will also be able to compare the “naïve” narrator, Oskar Schnell, with other classic child narrators such as Huckleberry Finn and Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird.
I will ask Barnes and Noble to order copies of these books, so that they will be readily available for purchase; however, you may obtain a used copy of either text from a friend, a bookstore or an online source. While you are book-hunting, you also might wish to grab copies of some of the texts we will be reading during the school year: The Crucible by Arthur Miller, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Adventures ofHuckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (a.k.a. Samuel Clemens).
I have set up an account for us at Nicenet.org. (I know most of you have used Nicenet in your English II courses, so you know the ropes.) At this site I will post assignments and links that will be helpful to you throughout the summer. We will also be able to have online conversations and to send personal e-mail.
Nicenet.org will be a key learning tool during the school year, too. I ask that you use the site in an academically-centered manner. If you choose to behave unprofessionally, I will remove you from the system and take disciplinary action.
To access the site, (which is NOT optional. I would like to meet ALL of you online before school begins), log on to www.nicenet.org; select “Join a Class”; type in this “class key”: X200533FZ6, and create a user name (please use your real name, or your first initial and your last name) and a password. Write your user name and password in a prominent place. You will need that information for all future visits to Nicenet.
Assignments
How to Read Literature Like a Professor
Read chapters 1- 26. Create an outline of the major ideas addressed in each chapter. Type this outline in a format that makes sense to you. During the early weeks of school, you will be asked to use this outline as you read a short story “like a professor” discovering literary and symbolic elements in the text. Your response to the story will be assessed according to how many of these elements you are able to “see” --with Professor Foster’s help, of course.
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
First of all, use the links and resources related to this book that I have placed on Nicenet. I choose this material carefully to help you gain insight into the books we read. Partake! I also want you to post to the conferencing topic for the book AT LEAST three times during the summer. We will often use this forum to prepare for and reflect on our Socratic discussions of texts during the year. Begin practicing now.
Next, set up a dialogue (dialectical) journal for the book—you know—juicy quote followed by commentary on that passage. It should look something like this:
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close Entry 1, p. 15 ______QUOTE___________________________ “I looked at caller ID and saw that it was him.” ________COMMENTARY__________________ Blah, blah, blah, blah, brilliant blah, insightful blah, I’m- the- best- reader- in- the- world blah…Mrs. Vicknair will love this one, blah, blah, blah…
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Ultimately, the journal should have at least ten, typed entries that represent a full reading of the entire text. Use at least three entries to notice stuff that would knock Mr. Foster’s (you know that How to Read Literature Like a Professor guy) socks off. We will henceforth refer to this action as “Fosterizing” a text.
Please do not wait until school begins to do these assignments! The due dates are set to accommodate students who enrolled late or who did not schedule AP English in May. I will assume you have knowledge of these texts beginning on the first day of school.
If you have questions or concerns, please send a personal message to me through
Nicenet.org or to pelliottchs@yahoo.com. Have a wonderful summer.
Mrs. P. Vicknair
English IV: Advanced Placement
Students enrolled in English IV AP will be required to read the following:
A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving
Daisy Miller by Henry James
The summer reading needs to be completed by September 1st, 2008. I have scheduled a reading check test on these novels during the first week of September. If you have questions or concerns you may send an e-mail to the following e-mail address: sheleast@bellsouth.net .You may also leave messages with the office, but return of these messages may take longer.
Local bookstores and libraries will be made aware of the required novels. You may also want to search online for discounted new or used copies of the novels. If purchasing or borrowing the books will be a problem, please notify me immediately. You will need copies of the books for assignments in class, so please make sure you have made arrangements.
Directions:
1. Before JULY, set up a nicenet account. To do this go to nicenet.org and click on “students join a class”. It will prompt you for a class key which is: P236284X7. You will then be asked for a user name and password. Be sure to use something you will remember (and that is classroom appropriate). If you choose to be anonymous you must email me and let me know what number is assigned to you.
2. Understand that any inappropriate posting to this account will be grounds for dismissal from the class and disciplinary actions will be taken.
3. Read the books. No, seriously, read the books. Don’t use spark notes (or similar CHEAT sites). Try to muddle through the books on your own. If you don’t ‘get it’ or have questions, then get onto nicenet and ask! Also, don’t let the size of Owen Meany scare you. It’s a great book. I will provide a link to Daisy Miller this summer, so you can read it online if you prefer.
4. Mark the book as you are reading; this will help tremendously when we discuss and write about the novels.
5. Enjoy your summer and be prepared to read, write, think, and discuss when we return