Hebrew Bible assignment 1

For those who didn't finish answering the questions in class, the questions to answer (handwritten) were:

1. How was the world created? What did God do in order to make the world?

2. What is the story of Adam and Eve?

3. What happened with Cain and Abel?

4. What is the story of Noah?


Read: Genesis Ch. 1:1-4:16 and chapters 6 through 9. (There's a link to the right to the Bible in case you don't have one.)

Type up answers to these questions:

For each story, what is the purpose or point of that story?

What did you find surprising or strange in any of the stories?

Writing on NIGHT

Link for assignment is here. Note that it should read "five to seven paragraphs," not "four to six."

Outline, due Wednesday, should contain:

Opening few sentences.

Topic sentence for each of the three-to-five body paragraphs.

Brief notation of possible details for each body paragraph.

The paper, due next Tuesday, will require page numbers for direct and indirect quotations.

Poetry Out Loud preparation

Here are the videos (with tips for recitation) from the Poetry Out Loud site:

http://www.poetryoutloud.org/poems-and-performance/tips-on-reciting

Glossary for NIGHT

The glossary for Night is in the set of links to the right. (You may need to look up other words as well, but I thought it would be useful to go over this specialized set of terms. Why you all stayed in a line once you'd figured out your order is beyond me, but I figured, as long as you're back there, just keep standing!)

Beginning Poetry Out Loud

I've posted, in the set of links to the right of this screen, the link to the allowable Poetry Out Loud poems. The majority of the poems in your English anthology are also allowed, but check with the list online to confirm that a poem you're interested in memorizing is indeed acceptable.

We'll be studying poetry in class as well as working on how to recite memorized poems. 

Reading Hogan's poetry

Read Hogan's poems as many times as you need to. Get comfortable with them. As she suggests in her essay, listen. That's the key. Then answer these questions.

1. For each poem, provide one idea that you found in it.

2. For each poem, tell me at least one line (I do mean line, not sentence or stanza) that you liked and why you liked it.

3. Having now read an essay by Hogan as well as several of her poems, identify any common elements (phrasing, ideas, images) you find among her writings.

For Friday

Read twice and annotate Linda Hogan's "Hearing Voices" and Diane Ackerman's "We Are all A Part of Nature."

1. What is the point of Hogan's essay? That is, what does she want readers to take away from it?

2. Hogan connects ideas and real-world things that we might not usually connect. Identify two such connections that she makes between things we don't usually connect. Are those connections convincing to you? Why or why not?

3. On what points might Hogan and Ackerman agree?

4. On what points might they disagree?

5. Ackerman refers to personal experiences in her essay. What effect does it have on the essay for her to include those personal experiences?

6. Pick at least one sentence—from each essay—that stands out for you and retype it.

We'll go over, as well, the sentences you chose from the Malcolm X and Frederick Douglass essays.

For Wed., 10/22

In your anthology, read twice and annotate the essay excerpts by Frederick Douglass ("Learning to Read and Write," p. 24) and Malcolm X ("Coming to An Awareness of Language," p. 91). Be sure to read the biographical information as well. Some words will be unfamiliar to you; use a dictionary if you cannot determine the meaning from the context. Then answer the following questions. Answers are to be typed; format them in the usual way.

1. Find one sentence (or two together) in either one of the essays that you especially like and type out this sentence. Then explain: What makes it stand out to you? Notice how the sentence is constructed as well as the idea behind the sentence. Fully explain your thinking. You will likely need to refer to other aspects of the essay from which the line was taken.

2. In the readings, what similarities do you find between these two authors? Fully explain this answer.

More MLK

As we discussed in class, I want you to listen to Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, delivery of his famous speech and write down anything you notice about how he speaks: What phrases does he say differently than you might expect? Where does he speed up? Slow down? What words take on more emphasis in his reading that in your own reading? Does he pause in any unexpected spots or speed through what you think should be a pause? Does his voice rise or fall in ways that strike you? Anything you notice, I'd like to hear about. I won't collect the assignment, but I want you to be able to tell me something when I call on you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smEqnnklfYs&list=PLC0eGfrn5UNrLt4aJTRLxW5P01vU67AIn

For Thusday, Oct. 16

In your anthology, read twice and annotate Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream," looking especially for those elements identified in the introduction: "metaphors, biblical and literary allusions, and repeated phrases (anaphora)." Then type the answers to the following:

1. Identify (by quoting them) four metaphors and explain what King literally means in each instance.

2. Identify any biblical or literary allusions or references to any other texts. For each example, explain why (in your view) he uses each of those allusions.

3. What phrases are repeated?

For next Tuesday

In your red and white MPH English 9 anthology, read twice and annotate Brian Doyle's "Joyas Voladoras." Then, complete all of the following exercises. Be sure to use directly quoted material to support your answers for numbers 1-3 (see pp. 69-70 in your grammar books to see the proper format for quoting from the essay).

1. What is different about the hummingbird and the blue whale?

2. How is Doyle's writing about the hummingbird different from his writing about the blue whale? 

3. Re-read the essay, but skip the sixth fourth paragraph (about the blue whale). What does the paragraph on the blue whale add to the essay?

4.  Write two paragraphs that contrast two related but different things that you're familiar with, e.g., a favorite pen and pencil, two pets, two plants, two rooms in your home, two siblings, two parents, two favorite drinking glasses, two classes you take at MPH, and so on. Use the kind of descriptive language you've read in the Twain and Doyle essays. 

For Thursday, 10/9

Reading: Please read Twain's "Two Ways of Seeing a River." Read it twice, and annotate it. We'll be reading it aloud next time and discussing people's annotations. Notice (since we talked about it today) Twain's use of figurative language.

Writing: The only writing is to annotate.

Carson reading

For Sept. 29, typed, double-spaced, printed out:

Read the additional material from Rachel Carson.

1. Note her metaphors, similes, and choice of adjectives. What words and phrases especially stand out? Why does she use these particular words and phrases? How would you describe her tone?

2. How does Chapter 2 differ from Chapter 1 (which is in your book)? Although I gave you only a portion of Chapter 3, how does it appear to differ in content from the previous chapters?

3. What does Carson mean by "the obligation to endure"?

4. What obligations do you have?

Formatting

Unless I say otherwise, documents are to be double-spaced and typed in a 12 pt., serif font.

Reading and writing for Monday

The reading:

In your English books, read the essay by Sophronia Liu, "So Tsi-Fai" (pp. 43-46). Notice her techniques for writing about the person she is "profiling."

The writing:

Begin with your draft profile from today's class. If you typed it, print it out. Revise it, keeping in mind (and even rereading) the essay we read in class today. Use concrete images; be observant (even though it may be in retrospect). The new version—along with the draft—is due next Monday. Length: 350-600 words. I do not want anything longer.

See me or e-mail me if you have any questions.

Always check the calendar

See the calendar for your homework.

For September 12: reading and writing

Read twice and annotate Sandra Cisneros’s "Only Daughter," then answer the following questions about it. Please type your answers and double-space the print.

1. What similarities do you see between Cisneros’s father and Alvarez’s father (from the previous reading)?

2. Write one sentence that describes or paraphrases what Cisneros comes to understand about her father, and then quote her insight directly from the essay. Does the insight come as a surprise, or does Cisneros build up to the insight and prepare the reader for it? 

3. Select an image from the essay that stands out to you. Why does this image stand out? What effect does it have on the story Cisneros is telling? 

4. Write a paragraph (several sentences) that describes, like "Only Daughter," what you want out of life and what your parents want for you. Are they the same? Different? How did they come to be that way? How do you feel about those similarities or differences?

Assignment for Wed., Sept. 10

We didn't talk today specifically about the "climax" of a story, the point at which the conflict peaks and possibly is resolved. Still, that's an area I want you to consider in the next essay, and we'll look at the "narrative structure" of all of the essays you read next time.

In your red and white MPH English 9 anthology, read twice and annotate Julia Alvarez's "I Want to Be Miss America." In addition, answer the following questions about Alvarez's essay: 

1. Why does Alvarez want to be Miss America? Be sure to provide evidence from the text to support your answer. 

2. Does this essay have a climax? If so, what is it? 

3. What conflict does the climax emerge from? If not, does this essay need a climax? Why or why not? 

4. Alvarez is very candid and honest about some personal matters. Do her openness and honesty help her essay? Could she still make her point without being so open and honest?

Reading and writing for next Monday

Thanks for the good discussion today. Next time, we'll talk (much) more about the Langston Hughes piece. Also for next time:

Read and annotate Michael Patrick MacDonald's piece "Returning to Southie" (pp. 47-51). To the best of your ability, type up answers to these questions:

1. What is the event or experience that MacDonald is writing about? Why is he writing about it? What is his insight about that event or experience? (That is, what does he realize?)

2. What is the conflict that drives MacDonald's story?  Where does MacDonald's insight or realization occur in the essay? Is that the best place for the insight? Why or Why not? 

Please write in complete sentences.

The calendar

The calendar is now visible. In case you had tried earlier and been unable to access it, please know that it wasn't your fault. I hadn't "shared" the document. (There's always one more step, isn't there?)

Summer assignment

Hello, students!

I wanted to make sure that you knew (in case it wasn't clear to you) that the summer assignment is due on the first day of full classes, which is either Wednesday or Thursday, depending on your section. As has been the tradition at MPH (well, a tradition for three years), the first day of school will run through all eight blocks of your schedule (Day 1 followed by Day 2; no tutorial/advisory). Teachers will introduce their classes and you'll get a solid sense of what the class structure and expectations are for each teacher. We can also answer any last-minute questions about the summer assignments. 

The second time you come to my class: that's when your summer assignment is due. Please be prepared, just as I will be prepared for school. 

E-mail me with any questions: 

wpreston@mph.net

See you soon!

Mr. Preston