Wed, Oct 20
DUE TODAY: Two body paragraphs (aka "Irony Essay)
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: None
FOCUS TODAY: Test day!
Turn in paragraphs
Take the Unit 2 Exam on short stories and irony
Mon-Tue, Oct 18-19
DUE TODAY: Two body paragraphs on irony
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Begin typing and making final edits
FOCUS TODAY: Teacher review of paragraphs
No grammar/usage this week on half days
Students will be asked to show the teacher their work in progress on the irony paragraphs. Any student with homework completed will receive a review and commentary from the teacher. Other students will be asked to continue composing paragraphs, then seek review comments.
When students have finished their body paragraphs they are free to begin the reading for the next unit:
Fri, Oct 15
DUE TODAY: Nothing
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Compose paragraph two of the two-paragraph irony assignment
FOCUS TODAY: Body paragraph organization, composition
Grammar/usage QUIZ
Continuing work on preparing body paragraphs for the irony assignment. We pick up today where we left off yesterday: The definition for the type of irony you are discussing in the current paragraph.
By the end of class, each student will have a model body paragraph to take home, with notes on how that paragraph was constructed piece-by-piece. The homework is to compose a second body paragraph and bring both to class on Monday.
Thu, Oct 14
DUE TODAY: Nothing
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: If desired, continue the paragraph work
FOCUS TODAY: Dissecting essay prompts, essay organization
5 minute grammar/usage
Overview of the irony essay assignment and outline for body paragraphs. Class notes:
Essential Question: How does an author use irony to create surprise and suspense?
In the paper, we must talk about surprise and suspense. Because surprise links to situational, we have to choose at least one example of situational irony. Likewise, suspense links to dramatic, so we must address at least one case of dramatic irony.
This paper will just be two body paragraphs – no intro and no conclusion.
Body paragraph out line:
Here is the sample paragraph on Dangerous Game when put together from above:
In Richard Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game”, the author uses dramatic irony to build tension in the reader. Dramatic irony happens when a reader or audience knows something a character does not. Dramatic irony has to do with building tension, because the audience or reader must always wait for an outcome, and that waiting causes stress. In Connell’s short story, the hunter Rainsford must fight for survival as General Zaroff hunts him. He builds traps, hoping to kill or stop Zaroff. The reader knows that Rainsford builds the traps, yet Zaroff is unaware of them. The reader wonders if the traps will work to stop Zaroff and if Rainsford will survive. The fact that the reader knows and waits for the outcome is dramatic irony. Because the reader is made to wait for the outcome, tension is built. The reader eagerly waits to see if Zaroff wins or Rainsford saves himself. Dramatic irony is employed by O’Connell to cause the reader to experience tension and suspense.
Building a Topic Sentence:
Formula for topic sentences:
Wed, Oct 13
DUE TODAY: Nothing
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: None
FOCUS TODAY: The difference between suspense (dramatic irony) and surprise (dramatic irony)
5 minute grammar/usage
After the teacher models, students will work in small groups discovering the function of dramatic and situational irony in the short stories so far.
Period 2 Notes:
Suspense = Dramatic Irony |
Surprise = Situational Irony |
P.O.E. – We see Miss S drop the letter, as do the kids, yet she does not know; it builds tension/suspense b/c we know the letters are mean, and we have to wait to see what the kids will do w/ that letter We know that Miss S has been sending these letters, yet the townspeople don’t know until the kids deliver the one letter; it builds tension/ suspense b/c we don’t know what the townspeople will do if they find out SHE is the author of the letters – we have to wait to see their response Two Kinds The reader knows JM can’t play the piano, but mother thinks she can; it builds tension b/c we wait to see what will happen at the recital and with the mom’s reaction Magi We know Della cuts her hair and worries about Jim’s reaction; we wait to see how he will react and worry with her |
P.O.E. – Her expectation is that the town will be kind, perfect, and quaint; she will be treated w/ respect b/c of her family’s heritage; However, she is shocked at the disrespect shown in destroying what she prizes most Dangerous Game R is usually the hunter and does not believe the hunted has feeling; it’s a shock when he is placed in the role of the hunted and discovers he fears Censors The reader expects that if Juan can get a job in the censor office, he’ll succeed in getting his letter; we are surprised to see he censors his own letter and dooms himself The Sniper Sniper thinks he might know the other man; reality is more than a chance friend – it’s much closer: a brother = Shocking!
|
Period 3 Notes:
Surprise (Situational Irony) |
Suspense (Dramatic Irony) |
P.O.E. Miss S expects the town to be kind and for the people to treat her w/ respect b/c of rich family history; she is shocked and saddened that someone deliberately destroyed what she values/respects Dangerous Game Z expects to win as he always does, yet is shocked to find R alive in his room, lying in wait The Necklace The reader believes the necklace is real and Loisel must work to repay its full price; however, we are shocked at the end to find it was only paste and all L’s work was for nothing The Sniper The reader, along with the sniper, expects the man he killed might be an acquaintance; however, the shock comes when we find it’s not just a chance friend but much closer – a brother Censors Juan expects to join the censorship division in order to stop his letter; however, he fails to stop the letter b/c he’s so wrapped up in his work; it’s a shocking reversal (he even tries to stop them from killing him) Magi D and reader expect her plan to get Jim’s present will work, yet when he reveals he sold his most prized possession (something unexpected) we are all shocked |
P.O.E. The reader knows Miss S dropped the letter seen by the kids; however, she does not know she dropped it; this builds tension b/c we know the letter has mean contents and we have to wait to find out what the kids will do w/ it We know Miss S writes the cruel letters, yet the town does not; this builds tension b/c we wonder what the town will do when they discover the author’s identity Dangerous Game We know R builds the traps for Z, and tension is built b/c we wait to see if the traps work Two Kinds We know JM has not practiced for the recital; builds tension b/c we must wait to see how she performs – poorly or well? Censors The reader learns at the start that Juan is captured, but the author makes us wait the entire story to see that capture and the tension is waiting to find out Juan’s fate Magi The reader knows that D sells her hair, yet fears Jim’s reaction; tension is built b/c we wait for his reaction, wondering if he will still love her |
Period 6 Notes:
Surprise = Situational Irony |
Suspense = Dramatic Irony |
P.O.E. Miss S expects the town to be kind and respectful to her b/c of her family heritage; she is shocked when no respect is shown for what she values most The Necklace Reader and Loisel expect the necklace to be real/valuable; however, we are shocked when we are told it was only paste (and all their hard work was for nothing) The Sniper We believe, with the sniper, that the killed man is a random soldier; the reality is the man is closer than even a friend – a brother = shocking and horrible! The Censors He joins the censorship office to stop his letter and save himself/Mariana; he is shocked when they catch him censoring his own letter = he failed and forgot why he was there Magi Della expects Jim to like and use the chain with his most prized possession; she is shocked b/c he sold his most prized possession and the chain is useless |
P.O.E. The reader knows Miss S is the author of the cruel letters; however, the town does not know who writes them; tension is built b/c we wait to see how the town will react – Violently? Peacefully? The reader knows she drops the letter and that the kids find it – she doesn’t; tension is built b/c we wait to find out what the kids will do w/ it Dangerous Game The reader knows of R’s traps for Z, but Z is unaware of them; tension is built b/c we wonder if the traps will work and if R will survive Two Kinds We know JM is not good at piano, but mom does not; tension b/c we wait to see mom’s reaction to the bad playing at the recital The Censors At the start we are told he is caught; the tension is built b/c we wait to see how he is caught and what will happen to him Magi We know Della cuts her hair and worries about Jim’s reaction to her short hair; tension b/c we wait to see Jim’s reaction – will he like it or reject her? |
Mon, Oct 11
DUE TODAY: Table + four homework questions for "The Gift of the Magi" (if not completed last class)
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Finish reading and character webbing Miss Strangeworth in "The Possibility of Evil"
FOCUS TODAY: Characterization
The Possibility of Evil
Ways to build character:
“What kind of person is this character?”
ACTIVITY FOR TODAY:
Fri, Oct 8
DUE TODAY: Table + four reading questions at end of class
HOMEWORK: Table + homework questions if not completed during class time
FOCUS TODAY: Irony types
Grammar/usage QUIZ
The Gift of the Magi
Focus on irony:
Situational Irony | |
What Della plans | What actually happens |
What Jim plans | What actually happens |
Students transfer the data from the table above to their irony study sheet (begun previous lesson)
Thu, Oct 7
DUE TODAY: Nothing
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: None
FOCUS TODAY: Irony types
5 minute grammar/usage
Review of irony types and identification of irony in each of the stories read so far. Review takes place in a table to organize ideas and thoughts. One such table:
Irony Review
Story |
Situational |
Dramatic |
Verbal |
Dangerous Game |
R has been a hunter all his life, yet becomes the hunted; Z never expects to be defeated, yet R surprises and defeats him; Z has been feeding people to the dogs for years, yet he becomes munchies |
Traps are set by R, yet Z doesn’t know, so tension is built |
|
The Necklace |
Loisel and the reader both believe the necklace is real, yet we discover it was paste and all the hard work was for nothing
|
|
|
Two Kinds |
|
We know JM wasn’t practicing, yet mom doesn’t know, so tension is built at the recital as we wait to see what mom will do
|
|
The Sniper |
The sniper expects he might know the other guy – a chance acquaintance – yet the other guy is his own brother
|
|
|
The Censors |
He fears/hates the censors at first, but joins them; he wants to intercept/stop his letter, but he doesn’t do it (and is even the one to censor it); he joins it to save lives (Mariana) but he dies in the end AND he causes the death of many
|
Start: “one day they caught him w/ his guard down” we know he is caught! End: Caught and killed; B/c we know at the start, tension is built as we wait to see them catch him |
The narrator says that kidnapping is “noble” yet we all know it’s not – that’s sarcasm; The narrator also says Juan is “patriotic” by being such a good censor, yet he actually is destroying the country = sarcasm |
The Gift of the Magi |
|
|
|
Begin reading "The Gift of the Magi"
Wed, Oct 6
DUE TODAY: Questions for "The Censors" + in-class questions
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: None
FOCUS TODAY: Irony types
5 minute grammar/usage
Irony quiz
Review of the story "The Censors"
Additional question for the homework:
#4 - Why/how is the ending to the story ironic? What kind of irony is it?
Tue, Oct 5
DUE TODAY: Prompts/questions for "The Sniper"
HOMEWORK TONIGHT:
FOCUS TODAY: Elements of plot, identifying irony types
5 minute grammar/usage
Review of "The Sniper" assignment
"The Sniper" PLOT CHART:
Review of the essay portion of the Unit One Exam - A letter to "Luke" about conflict
Letter to Luke = 10 pts
Mon, Oct 4
DUE TODAY: Nothing in writing
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Prompts/questions for "The Sniper" (found below)
FOCUS TODAY: Conflict and irony in "The Sniper"
5 minute grammar/usage
Today there are MAPS make-up exams, so a work day will happen, focusing on the short story "The Sniper"
Assignment:
Fri, Oct 1
DUE TODAY: Nothing in writing
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: None
FOCUS TODAY: Satire
PERIOD 2 had MAPS testing today
PERIODS 3 and 4:
Grammar/usage QUIZ
Reading of "The Sniper" with some notes:
Wed-Thu, Nov 4-5
DUE TODAY: Full typed, revised draft of irony essay
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Last-minute revisions to irony essay
FOCUS TODAY: Self-evaluation, teacher conferencing
A Pwrpt slide show provides you with a way to grade your own paper for self-evaluation
Individual student-teacher meetings will take place so students can have one-on-one help with the essay
Mon-Tue, Nov 2-3
DUE TODAY: Typed drafts of the introduction and two body paragraphs for the irony essay
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Revise the intro and body paragraphs, bring final and all other drafts NEXT CLASS
FOCUS TODAY: Peer review
Introduction self-check via handout
Peer review of intro and body paragraphs via handout and conference
DUE DATES for IRONY ESSAY:
Thu-Fri, Oct 29-30
DUE TODAY: Show your body paragraphs
HOMEWORK TONIGHT:
FOCUS TODAY: Self-check of body paragraphs, introductions
Reminders about body paragraphs:
Presentation today: Introductions
Work time: Focus on developing an introduction
Tue-Wed, Oct 27-28
DUE TODAY: Thesis statement, two topic sentences with matching RDF (summaries)
HOMEWORK TONIGHT:
FOCUS TODAY: RDFs, Es, and a last key ingredient
Reminder: Mini-essay topic: How does irony create excitement in literature?
Today we will continue our work with the Step-Up to Writing model to organize our irony information logically. This work will be done in class on the overhead screen, and models will vary per class period.
Powerpoint that guides you to build the irony essay (the slide show assumes you completed the four cases of irony assigned Oct 15-16)
Fri and Mon, Oct 23 and 26
DUE TODAY: Four irony assessments (see Oct 15-16 lesson)
HOMEWORK TONIGHT:
FOCUS TODAY: Thesis statements, topic sentences
Begin work on the mini-essay for irony
Mini-essay topic: How does irony create excitement in literature?
Today we will work with the Step-Up to Writing model to organize our irony information logically. This work will be done in class on the overhead screen, and models will vary per class period. Good models will be transferred from the overhead screen to this page to be used by you.
Powerpoint that guides you to build the irony essay (the slide show assumes you completed the four cases of irony assigned Oct 15-16)
Wed-Thu, Oct 21-22
DUE TODAY: Four irony assessments (keep until next lesson)
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Revise, improve, and create a final draft of your character paragraph - TYPED
FOCUS TODAY: Organization of paragraph elements
Miss Strangeworth paragraphs returned
Worksheet for the character evaluation paragraph
Class time will focus on completion of the worksheet
HMWK: Take home the worksheet, and transfer the information into a new, revised character paragraph
Mon-Tue, Oct 19-20
DUE TODAY: Nothing
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Complete the four irony evaluations (assigned last class)
FOCUS TODAY: Exam day
UNIT TWO EXAM
Thu-Fri, Oct 15-16
DUE TODAY: Any remaining paragraphs on Miss S, with self-evaluation worksheet
HOMEWORK TONIGHT:
TODAY'S FOCUS: Identifying types of irony
Grammar warmup: QUIZ on Latin roots
Review of the paragraph on Miss S., and collection of those not submitted
Review of irony types
Irony has been present in a few of the stories we've read. In fact, some stories contained multiple examples of irony. Below is a quick review:
Your job is to identify and explain FOUR cases of irony from the stories listed above. For each case, identify the following:
An example will be given for "The Necklace"
Aim to complete your FOUR irony evaluations by the end of class
Tue-Wed, Oct 13-14
DUE TODAY: Paragraph on Mrs. S, based on the previous lesson's class notes
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Extra credit opportunity? (See below)
TODAY'S FOCUS: Irony
Grammar warmup: Latin roots - QUIZ next class
Latin Root | Meaning | Example |
ject | throw | eject, reject |
junct | join | junction, conjunction |
scrib, script | write | description, scripture |
solus, sol | alone | solitude, solitary, solo |
ten | hold, keep | detention, tenant, tenure |
ven, vent | come | convention, event, advent |
vol | wish | volunteer, volition |
Review of paragraphs on Miss S. - self-check and self-evaluation
Complete the handout in class with these feedback questions on the reverse side:
TURN IN BOTH the original paragraph and the worksheet
Reading: "The Censors" pg 185
SHOW YOU MADE PROGRESS by showing your notes on irony from the story BEFORE YOU LEAVE
Extra credit opportunity:
How would you describe the two "faces" of Miss Strangeworth? Create a drawing or diagram that illustrates the two different aspects of her life and personality.
Thu and Mon, Oct 8 and 12
DUE TODAY: Inferences chart for Mrs. S.
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Revise and clean up your paragraph on Miss. S.
TODAY'S FOCUS: Writing about character, Step-Up
Grammar warmup: QUIZ on Greek roots
A collective all-class chart will be created on the SmartBoard for Miss S based on the homework
TOGETHER we will move through the following set of questions to develop a model paragraph that proposes what type of person Miss S is.
Moving from evidence to conclusions:
Using facts from the story as RDFs
Developing the E's
Use the information from today's class session to write a PARAGRAPH about Miss S that argues what type of person she is. Your claim of what type of person she is will be your topic sentence.
Tue-Wed, Oct 6-7
Mr. Rice absent Oct 6 - Worksheets completed in class
Mr. Rice present Oct 7 - Worksheets completed in class (same as Oct 6 worksheets)
Fri and Mon, Oct 2 and Oct 5
DUE TODAY: Plot chart for the short story "The Sniper"
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Complete the "making inferences" chart about Miss S.; study for Greek roots quiz
TODAY'S FOCUS: Situational irony, suspense, surprise endings, characterization
Grammar warmup: Greek roots - QUIZ next class
Greek Root | Meaning | Example |
aster, astr | star | asteroid, asterisk, astrology |
chron | time | chronology, chronicle |
dem | people | democracy, demographics |
geo | earth | geography, geology |
log | word | logic, dialogue |
soph | wise, wisdom | sophomore, sophisticated |
tele | far, distant | telephone, telecommunication |
NOTEBOOK CHECK:
Examination of plot charts for "The Sniper"
Examination of situational irony, suspense, and the surprise ending in "The Sniper" - Pg. 167 "Literary Analysis"
Vocab review: characterization
Reading: "The Possibility of Evil" Pg 172
While reading: Follow the directions under "Active Reading: Making Inferences About Character" on pg 172.
This chart and a follow-up writing assignment will be turned in under "Essays/Writing"
Wed-Thu, Sept 30 - Oct 1
DUE TODAY: Questions on "The Gift of the Magi" (assigned and completed during class)
HOMEWORK TONIGHT: Complete your plot chart on "The Sniper" in your class notes; organize notebook
TODAY'S FOCUS: Irony, allusion
Grammar QUIZ: Greek and Latin prefixes
"Personal Conflict" assignment returned, reviewed
Add the word "allusion" to your vocab section
Allusions usually are used to help emphasize or enhance what is being described in the text. For example, if a farming community has had drought for ten years, then it suddenly rains during planting season, the author might use a Biblical allusion to the manna, or heavenly food, that God provided the Israelites during their years in the desert. The text might say, "And the rains came, wetting the dry earth with nutrients, falling like manna from heaven."
CLASS NOTES: "The Gift of the Magi" Pg 152
Reading of "The Sniper" Pg 162
As you read this story, create a PLOT CHART in your CLASS NOTES
TONIGHT: ORGANIZE YOUR NOTEBOOK FOR A CHECK NEXT CLASS