Poetry Out Loud Comes to Senior English!

Hey Seniors, we will be holding classroom Poetry Out Loud Competitions in early January.  School-wide and then regional competitions will follow not too long afterward.  The time to start preparing is now.

1. Please find and begin memorizing a poem -- see the links below.

2. Be sure to choose a different poem than the one you chose last year.

3. Memorizing a poem is something you can all be successful at.  Just don't put yourself in the situation of trying to memorize it all at once.

4. Good luck!

Poetry Out Loud -- Poems of 25 Lines or less.

Poetry Out Loud -- Browse Poems

Hamlet Resources

 Resources:
Hamlet -- Full Text online

Enjoying "Hamlet" 
Shakespeare Resource Center
Hamlet: The Undiscovered Country

Into the Wild Resources

Resources for your Into the Wild research are at the following link:

http://delicious.com/wirth_ray/mccandless

The White Man's Burden: Rudyard Kipling's Poem and the Response

In 1899, Rudyard Kipling (of Jungle Book fame) wrote a little poem that generated more than a little controversy. Kipling's poem, "The White Man's Burden," was a plea for America to be more involved overseas and, in particular, in the Philippines. Many people not only disagreed with the worldview expressed in the poem but also found it to be racist.

Until 2007 or so, there was an excellent website that featured Kipling's poem and many of the responses, which came in the form of editorial cartoons, poems, essays, and letters to the editor. This website has unfortunately been taken down. However, some of the resources are still up on various places on the web.

As a believer in the learning opportunities available in looking at the original poem and the response, I have started to re-gather these resources and put them back in one place. White Mans Burden .Net (White-Mans-Burden.Net) is now onine in hopes that teachers and students around the U.S. might find it useful.

Beowulf Resources

Beowulf -- Translations.net

Beowulf -- Easy to read version

Beowulf -- Hypertext version

Evalating Online Sources

Evaluating Online sources: 5-Question quiz

1. Please read and discuss the "Evaluating Your Sources" handout together as a class.

2. Below are a few tips related to the handout:
---Authority (authorship) can often be determining by scanning the top of the web page, the bottom of the web page, and the "about us" page (if any). Keep in mind that unless the person is famous and/or known to you, a name only tells so much. Who is this person? What do they do for a living? What kind of education do they have?
---Objectivity: Is the site selling anything? Trying to persuade you of anything? Are there ads on the site?
---Authenticity / Reliability: Is there an organization, corporation, or educational institution associated with the site? What is it? As before, look at the top of the web page, the bottom of the web page, and the "about us" page (if any).
---Timeliness: Is there a date provided somewhere on the page or even in the copyright (if any) at the bottom of the page?

3. Visit each of the 3 diet sites below and complete the chart by making comments about these sites in each respective box in the chart:
Weight Loss Center (article)
Medicine.Net (article)
Diet Pills Hoopla & Hype (article)

Coming Soon:
You can travel into space for $200,000.00
Right now you can go to
The End of the Internet for free.
Check it out!

Time Management Quiz

Take the time management quiz at:
http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_88.htm

Words, Words, Words -- An inventory of your college essay.

 Create a word cloud:
http://www.wordle.net/

Check out the Readability of your essay:
http://www.addedbytes.com/code/readability-score/

More Tips on the College Admissions Essay

A useful source which includes a list of 10 things to avoid in your college admissions essay is at:

www.college-admission-essay.com

Utilize Action Verbs in your resume!

Action verbs for your resume are listed here.

College Admissions Essay -- Resources

The College Board has useful section on Essay Skills for the college admissions essay. Included are a section on how to choose a topic and tips on writing the essay itself.

Samples of successful essays can be found at www.quintcareers.com/

The Common Application essay prompts are at https://app.commonapp.org/CommonApp/docs/downloadforms/CommonApp2008.pdf

True fact: You can pay as much as $1000.00 to have a professional essay editing service such as EssayEdge help you with your essay. (Or you can just ask Wirthy and get help for free).

The College Board suggests you compete the following as part of your brainstorming process:

• Discover Your Strengths: Do a little research about yourself: ask parents, friends, and teachers what your strengths are.
• Create a Self-Outline: Now, next to each trait, list five or six pieces of evidence from your life—things you've been or done—that prove your point.
• Find Patterns and Connections: Look for patterns in the material you've brainstormed. Group similar ideas and events together. For example, does your passion for numbers show up in your performance in the state math competition and your summer job at the computer store? Was basketball about sports or about friendships? When else have you stuck with the hard work to be with people who matter to you?

The Glue of a Good Essay - Transitions

A list of transitions and guide to their use is at:
www.rscc.cc.tn.us/owl&writingcenter/

Building Your Resume

A useful online Resume Builder is at
http://www.resumizer.com/


Another good option for resume templates is via Google Docs.
(If you don't have a Gmail account, see me for the login info for the class Gmail account.)

Resume Headings: Activities Activities & Interests Additional Experience Additional Skills Additional Training Affiliations Associations Awards/Recognitions Career Goal Career Objective Certifications Coaching Experience Achievements Community Involvement Community Service Computer Skills Conferences Attended Education Employment Employment History Employment Objective Experience Goals Highlights of Qualifications Hobbies & Interests Honours & Awards Language Skills

Memberships Extracurricular Activities Objective Personal Achievements Presentations Publications Qualifications Related Activities Related Experience Relevant Experience Relevant Skills Scholarships & Awards Skills Special Skills Summary of Qualifications Teaching Experience Technical Skills Training Volunteer Activities Volunteer Experience Volunteer Work Work Experience

Writing for Results -- How Can We Persuade?

Resources for Persuasive Writing:
Persuasive Essay (Essayinfo.com)
Guide to Writing a Basic Essay 
50 Topics for Argumentative Writing

Sample Essays:
Television Watching
Euthanasia 
Cats
Hand Dryers


Topics for Persusaive Writing
Persuasive Writing Prompts
Fun Persuasive Topics

What Discipline Do You Practice?

Discipline  (noun)
1. training to act in accordance with rules; drill: military discipline.

2. activity, exercise, or a regimen that develops or improves a skill; training: A daily stint at the typewriter is excellent discipline for a writer.

3. punishment inflicted by way of correction and training.

4. the rigor or training effect of experience, adversity, etc.: the harsh discipline of poverty.
--Dictionary.com

Prompt:

What is one of the disciplines that you practice? Or that is practiced by a person you respect and admire? (Write 2/3 page or more in response).

Storm Waves & Acadia -- Resources

Articles on the storm wave incident at Acadia National Park in August of 2009 are on another page of this blog.  Click here to view that page.

Welcome to Senior English 2010 - 2011!

Welcome to the 2010 - 2011 school year. My hope for each of you is that you can arrive in class with enthusiasm, persistence, and a sense of purpose. These qualities will carry you a long way down the road toward graduation -- and a successful life.

This blog will be an important resource throughout the year. Please bookmark it on your browser so you can find your way back later. (Simply google "wirthy english" if using another computer.)

As part if our begining of the year goal-setting process, you will be completing a practice Accuplacer exam. This exam is used by colleges after you have already been admitted to place you in classes and also to determine if you need to do any remedial work in English or mathematics.

Many students enter their senior year feeling like they really don't need much but a diploma. Taking a practice Accuplacer will help you find out if you are as ready as you may think you are.

An useful resource that includes practice questions for the Accuplacer is at:
www.testprepreview.com/accuplacer_practice.htm

Not all of you will go to college, but we want and expect all of you to be college ready.

Links to the Future

The Future Essay rubric requires you to refer to your future novel as well as at least one other source.  Please choose, read, and refer to 1 or more articles from the sources below:

http://www.newsoffuture.com/   (recommended)

http://www.futureforall.org/ A Layperson's View of Future Technology and Society

http://www.globalfutureonline.org A World Vision Journal of Human Development

http://www.globalfuturist.com Harnessing the Power of Innovation

http://www.wfs.org World Future Society

Anthem Online

Ayn Rand's Anthem (full text) is online at:
http://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Ayn_Rand/Anthem/

Media Literacy Resource

A valuable resource for media literacy is at:
http://www.nmmlp.org/media_literacy/index.html

Galleries of Internet Ads:
http://www.bannerreport.com/html/gallery.section.php?size=3
http://www.bannerreport.com/html/gallery.section.php?size=4

English 12 Assignment for Tuesday, April 6

Please complete the following as part of our Language & Power unit:

1. Print a copy of the following worksheet:
--How to Read an Ad
2. Go to the webpage "Ad Dissection 101: How to Read an Ad"
3. Read and click your way through the activity. Be sure to respond to the corresponding questions on the worksheet.
4. Turn the worksheet in to the basket on the front desk. Thanks!

Colors and Symbolism

Here are links that provide tips on symbolic meaning of different colors:

http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/middle/color2.htm

http://desktoppub.about.com/cs/color/a/symbolism.htm

http://crystal-cure.com/color-meanings.html

Spoof Ads

spoof (noun)
1. a mocking imitation of someone or something, usually light and good-humored; lampoon or parody: The show was a spoof of college life.
2. a hoax; prank. --Dictionary.com

View the spoof ads at Adbusters.org and then complete the related thinksheet.

Merchants of Cool -- Frontline Program Available Online

The Frontline Merchants of Cool program is available online at the following link:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/cool/

English 12 Assignment for Tuesday, March 23

Please complete the following as a way to get started with our Language & Power unit:

1. Print copies of the following worksheets:
--How to Read an Ad
--Recognizing Appeals and Claims
2. Go to the webpage "Ad Dissection 101: How to Read an Ad"
3. Read and click your way through the activity. Be sure to respond to the corresponding questions on the worksheet.
4. Go to the webpage "Recognizing Appeals and Claims"
5. Read and click your way through the activity. Be sure to respond to the corresponding questions on the worksheet.
6. Turn both worksheets into the basket on the front desk. Thanks!

Resources for Creating a Bibliography

Use this to create your bibliography: EasyBib

Go here to learn about annotations: Purdue Owl: Annotated Bibliographies

This site includes a sample of what your bib page should look like:
Lesley U.: MLA Format Annotated Bibliography Sample

Evaluating Online Sources

Evaluating Online sources: 5-Question quiz

1. Please read and discuss the "Evaluating Your Sources" handout together as a class.

2. Below are a few tips related to the handout:
---Authority (authorship) can often be determining by scanning the top of the web page, the bottom of the web page, and the "about us" page (if any). Keep in mind that unless the person is famous and/or known to you, a name only tells so much. Who is this person? What do they do for a living? What kind of education do they have?
---Objectivity: Is the site selling anything? Trying to persuade you of anything? Are there ads on the site?
---Authenticity / Reliability: Is there an organization, corporation, or educational institution associated with the site? What is it? As before, look at the top of the web page, the bottom of the web page, and the "about us" page (if any).
---Timeliness: Is there a date provided somewhere on the page or even in the copyright (if any) at the bottom of the page?

3. Visit each of the 3 diet sites below and complete the chart by making comments about these sites in each respective box in the chart:
Weight Loss Center (article)
Medicine.Net (article)
Diet Pills Hoopla & Hype (article)

Coming Soon:
You can travel into space for $200,000.00
Right now you can go to
The End of the Internet for free.
Check it out!

English Wide Open Exam

An online copy of the English Wide Open Exam will be placed here.

(If typing your exam, please copy and paste the exam into a word program and then type each of your responses below the respective question.)

English 12 Semester Outline

Writing:
Acadia storm wave essay
Resume
College admissions essay
Persuasive essay
Question paper (interpretative paper)

Readings:
Beowulf (3 episodes)
Canterbury Tales: Prologue, Pardoner's Tale
"The Somebody"
Hamlet
Independent reading: ________, __________ (2 or more books)
Biography: ________________

Terms:
Concrete detail
sensory detail
chronological
functional
voice
organization
revision vs. editing
simple, compound, complex sentences
thesis
argument
opposition argument / rebuttal
objective
critical
analysis
synthesis
evaluation
literary period
genre
alliteration
rhythm
climax
resolution
conflict, internal & external
ambiguity
point of view

Themes:
The Story of English (how our language has evolved)
Inheriting Earlier Voices
Writing for Results

English Wide Open -- Semester Outline

Writing:
Descriptive writing
Writing about a place
Persuasive writing
Wild places essay
Acadia storm wave essay
Resume
College admissions essay

Readings:
Island Girl
The Reach
The Island / Polar Dream
Into the Wild
Into the Wild (film)

Terms:
Concrete detail
sensory detail
chronological
functional
voice
organization
revision vs. editing
simple, compound, complex sentences
refute
critical
analysis
synthesis
evaluation
literary period
genre

Themes:
The Importance of Place
Going to Extremes in Search of Truth

Going to Extremes in the Search for Truth

In a world where extremism is so prevalent, we might ask why is it that so many individuals are going to such extremes. We also might ask if extremism is more a reflection of the individual or of society.

• What is extremism? Do all (most, many) of us have extremist tendencies? Can any of us become an extremist?
• Is extremism always bad? Are some forms of extremism more harmful than others?
  
• What are the causes of extremism?
• What would a world without extremism look like?
• Are some people more susceptible to extremism? What characteristics do these people have?
• What can we do as individuals and as a society to reduce extremism?

Links for further research:

ADL: "Extremism in America"
Islam for Today: "Muslims Against Extremism and Fundamentalism"
SPLCenter: "Active U.S. Hate Groups" (map)
Religious Tolerance: "Hate Websites"
Hate Groups for Dummies: "How to Build A Successful Hate Group"
Tolerance.org: "Responding to Obama: America at the Extremes"