Friday, May 28
Mr. P projected and explained the unit test on The Great Gatsby, which students will take on Wednesday. That explanation follows:
On Wednesday you are to bring your books and completed booklets to class for the unit test on The Great Gatsby. There will be two questions, one of my choosing and one of yours.
Each question will require you to show how an important theme of Gatsby is expressed through a certain motif.
For the first question I will select a passage from the book which expresses a theme and specify a motif, or cluster of images. You are to show how the specified motif works to convey the theme, citing examples (CDs) you have noted in your booklet, with accom-panying commentary (CM). You must cite page numbers for your quotations.
The second question will be the same except that you must select the quotation and specify the theme.
Students were advised that if they wish to be sure to write on a given question of their own devising they should prepare two in case their first choice overlaps with the required question.
Students were also reminded that searching the text of Gatsby online over the weekend may be very helpful in supplementing the entries in their motif booklets, which are due in class Tuesday. The recommended source is:
http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/f/fitzgerald/f_scott/gatsby/
Once their students can choose to either download the text as a file or to link to a single online file of the novel and do a 'find' search for given words and phrases.
HW due Tuesday:
Motif booklet with at least 80 entries
Friday, May 28, 2010
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Thursday, May 27
Bogie to Noir
We explored the significance of Humphrey Bogart as an icon through a Hitch Pod video called "Bogie Noir" which contains numerous homages to Bogart from European (mostly French) films. We read and interpreted a short piece on Bogart by Alastair Cooke examining Bogart's role as "the only possible idealisdt" -- a hard-boiled, anti-establishment one -- in the WWII era.
Then we looked briefly at the French infatuation with not just Bogart but "film noir" and we began to explore what is meant by that term.
Bogie to Noir
We explored the significance of Humphrey Bogart as an icon through a Hitch Pod video called "Bogie Noir" which contains numerous homages to Bogart from European (mostly French) films. We read and interpreted a short piece on Bogart by Alastair Cooke examining Bogart's role as "the only possible idealisdt" -- a hard-boiled, anti-establishment one -- in the WWII era.
Then we looked briefly at the French infatuation with not just Bogart but "film noir" and we began to explore what is meant by that term.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Wednesday, May 26
Students wrote down CDs from Chapter 9 of Gatsby for three minutes.
We discussed Jay Gatsby as a self-made man, an exemplar of the American Dream, in the more mundane (non-Platonic) terms of Chapter 9, then discussed the novel's ultimate disgust with the reality behind that dream and Nick's final verdict on Tom, Daisy, and their class. We connected their "carelessness" with Jordan's careless driving and that entire motif which culminates in Myrtle's death.
Students wrote down CDs from Chapter 9 of Gatsby for three minutes.
We discussed Jay Gatsby as a self-made man, an exemplar of the American Dream, in the more mundane (non-Platonic) terms of Chapter 9, then discussed the novel's ultimate disgust with the reality behind that dream and Nick's final verdict on Tom, Daisy, and their class. We connected their "carelessness" with Jordan's careless driving and that entire motif which culminates in Myrtle's death.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Tuesday. May 25
Students provided CDs from Chapter 8 of Gatsby, after which we examined the passage on page 117 where Gatsby sees the ladder and creates Daisy as the incarnation of his vision, as well as the passage on page 104 in which Jay Gatsby is presented as springing from "his Platonic conception of himself." Plato's Ladder of Love (from The Symposium) was presented in explanatiion of these puzzling -- and central -- passages.
Mr. P announced that booklets must be completed by a week from today, Tuesday, June 1 (6 of 11 categories crammed full: at least 80 entries total).
The deadline for Outside Reading papers was moved to Friday, June 4.
HW due tomorrow:
Finish The Great Gatsby. CDs from Chap. 9.
Students provided CDs from Chapter 8 of Gatsby, after which we examined the passage on page 117 where Gatsby sees the ladder and creates Daisy as the incarnation of his vision, as well as the passage on page 104 in which Jay Gatsby is presented as springing from "his Platonic conception of himself." Plato's Ladder of Love (from The Symposium) was presented in explanatiion of these puzzling -- and central -- passages.
Mr. P announced that booklets must be completed by a week from today, Tuesday, June 1 (6 of 11 categories crammed full: at least 80 entries total).
The deadline for Outside Reading papers was moved to Friday, June 4.
HW due tomorrow:
Finish The Great Gatsby. CDs from Chap. 9.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Monday, May 24
Students took a quiz over Gatsby, Chapters 1-7. Students will receive one grade between the two quizzes (this one and the quiz last Monday). Whichever score is higher will be kept, the other discarded.
Mr. P announced that students can earn 10 points extra credit by going to the school production of A Midsummer Night's Dream and turning in their ticket; they can earn an additional 10 points by submitting a one-page review of the production.
Starting from Myrtle Wilson's violent death, we discussed the motif of careless driving in the novel, looking especially at the discussion Nick and Jordan have on the subject -- and its larger implications -- on page 63.
HW due Tuesday:
Read Chapter 8. Students will be asked to produce CDs on a chosen topic from the chapter.
HW due Wednesday:
Read Chapter 9 (finish the novel). CDs on that chapter.
Students took a quiz over Gatsby, Chapters 1-7. Students will receive one grade between the two quizzes (this one and the quiz last Monday). Whichever score is higher will be kept, the other discarded.
Mr. P announced that students can earn 10 points extra credit by going to the school production of A Midsummer Night's Dream and turning in their ticket; they can earn an additional 10 points by submitting a one-page review of the production.
Starting from Myrtle Wilson's violent death, we discussed the motif of careless driving in the novel, looking especially at the discussion Nick and Jordan have on the subject -- and its larger implications -- on page 63.
HW due Tuesday:
Read Chapter 8. Students will be asked to produce CDs on a chosen topic from the chapter.
HW due Wednesday:
Read Chapter 9 (finish the novel). CDs on that chapter.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Friday, May 21
Students in each class spent three minutes writing CD's in answer to a question about Chapter 6 which was projected on the screen. Afterwards we used those questions as a starting point for a brief discussion of aspects of Chapter 6.
Mr. P announced that grades on last Monday's quiz have been posted (with 10 points added to bring the average to a C!). He also announced that students would have an opportunity to raise that grade, in the form of a second quiz on Monday, this time to cover Chapters 1-7. The quiz will be easier than the first, and students will try harder to be prepared. The lower grade of the two quizzes will be thrown out; students will keep the higher mark.
HW due Monday:
Quiz over Gatsby, Chapters 1-7. Keep filling up your motif booklets.
Students in each class spent three minutes writing CD's in answer to a question about Chapter 6 which was projected on the screen. Afterwards we used those questions as a starting point for a brief discussion of aspects of Chapter 6.
Mr. P announced that grades on last Monday's quiz have been posted (with 10 points added to bring the average to a C!). He also announced that students would have an opportunity to raise that grade, in the form of a second quiz on Monday, this time to cover Chapters 1-7. The quiz will be easier than the first, and students will try harder to be prepared. The lower grade of the two quizzes will be thrown out; students will keep the higher mark.
HW due Monday:
Quiz over Gatsby, Chapters 1-7. Keep filling up your motif booklets.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Wednesday, May 19
We looked at the way the narrative of Gatsby is structured, with some of the most important scenes of the story told in flashback -- specifically, we reviewed Jordan's account of Daisy's wedding, the letter she receives the night before, and her decision -- soon retracted -- to "change her mine." Mr. P argued that the scene is all the more powerful for being told indirectly and by implication. ("Tell all the truth but tell it slant.)
HW due Friday:
Read at least through Chapter 6. (Pop quiz possible.)
HW due Monday:
Read at least through Chapter 7. (Quiz possible.)
Tuesday, May 18
Mr. P stamped students' motif booklets while students listened to part of Chapter 4. We then read and discussed further portions of the chapter, including the moment when Gatsby is "delievered from the womb of his purposeless splendor" for Nick.
We looked at the way the narrative of Gatsby is structured, with some of the most important scenes of the story told in flashback -- specifically, we reviewed Jordan's account of Daisy's wedding, the letter she receives the night before, and her decision -- soon retracted -- to "change her mine." Mr. P argued that the scene is all the more powerful for being told indirectly and by implication. ("Tell all the truth but tell it slant.)
HW due Friday:
Read at least through Chapter 6. (Pop quiz possible.)
HW due Monday:
Read at least through Chapter 7. (Quiz possible.)
Tuesday, May 18
Mr. P stamped students' motif booklets while students listened to part of Chapter 4. We then read and discussed further portions of the chapter, including the moment when Gatsby is "delievered from the womb of his purposeless splendor" for Nick.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Monday, May 17
Students took a brief quiz over the first five chapters of Gatsby.
We then returned to Chapter 3 and picked up where we left off. We discussed Owl Eyes in the library and connected him with Dr. T.J. Eckelburg.
HW due Tuesday:
Motif booklets with at least thirty entries will receive a stamp.
Students took a brief quiz over the first five chapters of Gatsby.
We then returned to Chapter 3 and picked up where we left off. We discussed Owl Eyes in the library and connected him with Dr. T.J. Eckelburg.
HW due Tuesday:
Motif booklets with at least thirty entries will receive a stamp.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Friday, May 14
Students were reminded to submit their Whitman/Dickinson essays to turnitin.com by the end of today.
We reviewed briefly, via the Fitzgerald documentary, what we know about Zelda Sayre and Scott Fitzgerald and raised the question of their relevance to, or correlation with, The Great Gatsby.
Mr. P projected a map of Great Neck (aka West Egg) and Manhasset Neck (aka East Egg), Long Island, from the 20's showing houses of the rich and famous, including that of the Fitzgeralds. We used the map as an entree into Gatsby's milieu and the mix of people attending his parties, from the Eggs and from elsewhere. We then read a very little bit of the book (more of Chapter 3).
HW due Monday:
Read at least through Chapter 5 in Gatsby. Quiz over Chaps. 1-5 on Monday.
HW due Tuesday:
Booklets with at least thirty entries (to be stamped).
Students were reminded to submit their Whitman/Dickinson essays to turnitin.com by the end of today.
We reviewed briefly, via the Fitzgerald documentary, what we know about Zelda Sayre and Scott Fitzgerald and raised the question of their relevance to, or correlation with, The Great Gatsby.
Mr. P projected a map of Great Neck (aka West Egg) and Manhasset Neck (aka East Egg), Long Island, from the 20's showing houses of the rich and famous, including that of the Fitzgeralds. We used the map as an entree into Gatsby's milieu and the mix of people attending his parties, from the Eggs and from elsewhere. We then read a very little bit of the book (more of Chapter 3).
HW due Monday:
Read at least through Chapter 5 in Gatsby. Quiz over Chaps. 1-5 on Monday.
HW due Tuesday:
Booklets with at least thirty entries (to be stamped).
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Thursday, May 13
Students were reminded that anyone needing to finish the Junior Writing Assessment can come in after school either today, Monday, or Tuesday, or can talk with the teacher individually outside of class and negotiate a different time.
We began by reviewing the part of Chapter 2 in Gatsby which we listened to yesterday, including the appearance of important images of Dust and Ashes (The Valley of Ashes), Ghosts, Phantoms, and Death (George Wilson), and both Eyes and Seeing and Disembodiment (the etes of T.J. Eckleburg).
Then we listened to the end of Chapter 2 and the beginning of Chapter 3.
HW:
Due Monday -- Read at least through Chapter 5 in Gatsby. Quiz over the first five chapters.
Due Tuesday: Booklets will be stamped again. At least 30 entries needed to qualify for a stamp.
Students were reminded that anyone needing to finish the Junior Writing Assessment can come in after school either today, Monday, or Tuesday, or can talk with the teacher individually outside of class and negotiate a different time.
We began by reviewing the part of Chapter 2 in Gatsby which we listened to yesterday, including the appearance of important images of Dust and Ashes (The Valley of Ashes), Ghosts, Phantoms, and Death (George Wilson), and both Eyes and Seeing and Disembodiment (the etes of T.J. Eckleburg).
Then we listened to the end of Chapter 2 and the beginning of Chapter 3.
HW:
Due Monday -- Read at least through Chapter 5 in Gatsby. Quiz over the first five chapters.
Due Tuesday: Booklets will be stamped again. At least 30 entries needed to qualify for a stamp.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Wednesday, May 12
Before listening to a recording of Chapter 2 in Gatsby and adding significant details to our motif booklets, we shared details from Chapter 1.
Students were reminded that they must upload their Whitman/Dickinson esays to turnitin.com by the end of the week. Most students should not need the class codes and password this time around, but for those who do, they are as follows:
Period 1 2922079
Period 4 2922081
Period 5 2922082
Period 6 2922084
The password for all periods is room301.
Before listening to a recording of Chapter 2 in Gatsby and adding significant details to our motif booklets, we shared details from Chapter 1.
Students were reminded that they must upload their Whitman/Dickinson esays to turnitin.com by the end of the week. Most students should not need the class codes and password this time around, but for those who do, they are as follows:
Period 1 2922079
Period 4 2922081
Period 5 2922082
Period 6 2922084
The password for all periods is room301.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Tuesday, May 11
Mr. P announced that Outside Reading papers will be due Wednesday, June 2, and that in response to complaints about too few points having been assigned to that paper first semester the assignment will be worth 75 points (in addition to the function of determining eligibility for A's, B's, etc.).
Mr. P also announced that students need to submit their Whitman/Dickinson essays to turnitin.com by the end of this week (codes to be given tomorrow). Also, students who are afraid they may have used other people's words impoperly in their papers -- i.e., without putting them in quotes and citing the sources -- will be allowed to take back their papers and resubmit them after checking them. Anyone interested needs to talk with the teacher individually outside of class.
Students received stamps on their Gatsby motif booklets while they listened to a recording of the remainder of Chapter 1. Afterwards, we brieflly discussed the chapter and added some images to the booklet.
HW due June 2:
Outside Reading papers. See Documents page of the website if you have misplaced the assignment sheet.
HW due Friday:
Submit Whitman/Dickinson essays to turnitin.com.
Mr. P announced that Outside Reading papers will be due Wednesday, June 2, and that in response to complaints about too few points having been assigned to that paper first semester the assignment will be worth 75 points (in addition to the function of determining eligibility for A's, B's, etc.).
Mr. P also announced that students need to submit their Whitman/Dickinson essays to turnitin.com by the end of this week (codes to be given tomorrow). Also, students who are afraid they may have used other people's words impoperly in their papers -- i.e., without putting them in quotes and citing the sources -- will be allowed to take back their papers and resubmit them after checking them. Anyone interested needs to talk with the teacher individually outside of class.
Students received stamps on their Gatsby motif booklets while they listened to a recording of the remainder of Chapter 1. Afterwards, we brieflly discussed the chapter and added some images to the booklet.
HW due June 2:
Outside Reading papers. See Documents page of the website if you have misplaced the assignment sheet.
HW due Friday:
Submit Whitman/Dickinson essays to turnitin.com.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Monday, May 10
We read more in Chapter 1, focusing on the imagistic way in which Tom, Daisy, and Jordan are introduced in their natural habitat, and adding images to our motif booklets.
HW due Tuesday:
Student booklets with at least a dozen entries covering Chapters 1 through 6 will receive a single stamp.
We read more in Chapter 1, focusing on the imagistic way in which Tom, Daisy, and Jordan are introduced in their natural habitat, and adding images to our motif booklets.
HW due Tuesday:
Student booklets with at least a dozen entries covering Chapters 1 through 6 will receive a single stamp.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Thursday, May 6
We continued reading in the opening chapter of The Great Gatsby and adding notes to our motif booklets under categories of Locations and Geography (West Egg and East Egg), Colors (the white palaces of East Egg), and Time, Clocks, and Seasons (live beginning again with the summer), for example.
Tomorrow: Mr. P is going to Lake Forest and students (with Mr. McCormick) will show students the beginning of Winter Dreams, a PBS documentary about Fitzgerald. Students are to take notes on the film and put them in the tray as they leave.
HW due Monday:
Read through Chapter 3 of Gatsby, adding notes to the motif booklet as you go.
We continued reading in the opening chapter of The Great Gatsby and adding notes to our motif booklets under categories of Locations and Geography (West Egg and East Egg), Colors (the white palaces of East Egg), and Time, Clocks, and Seasons (live beginning again with the summer), for example.
Tomorrow: Mr. P is going to Lake Forest and students (with Mr. McCormick) will show students the beginning of Winter Dreams, a PBS documentary about Fitzgerald. Students are to take notes on the film and put them in the tray as they leave.
HW due Monday:
Read through Chapter 3 of Gatsby, adding notes to the motif booklet as you go.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Wednesday, May 5
Students received a four-page booklet in which to collect motifs, images and other significant details which make up the intricate patterns which Fitzgerald referred to in his famous letter to Maxwell Perkins.
We then explored what is meant by a "motif," using examples from architecture and music (Beethoven, Wagner, and Prokoviev), and we entered our first examples under two categories in the booklet.
Students received a four-page booklet in which to collect motifs, images and other significant details which make up the intricate patterns which Fitzgerald referred to in his famous letter to Maxwell Perkins.
We then explored what is meant by a "motif," using examples from architecture and music (Beethoven, Wagner, and Prokoviev), and we entered our first examples under two categories in the booklet.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Tuesday, May 4
Students learned that they will be going to the auditorium 4th period tomorrow (after going to class for attendance) to hear a presentation by Sam Green, Washington State's Poet Laureate, unless their teacher instructs them otherwise. Everyone attending the reading will take 3rd lunch.
Students checked out copies of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and we began reading the first chapter, focusing on Nick Carraway's habit of reserving judgment of people and his praise of Gatsby's sensitivity to the promises of life.
Students learned that they will be going to the auditorium 4th period tomorrow (after going to class for attendance) to hear a presentation by Sam Green, Washington State's Poet Laureate, unless their teacher instructs them otherwise. Everyone attending the reading will take 3rd lunch.
Students checked out copies of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and we began reading the first chapter, focusing on Nick Carraway's habit of reserving judgment of people and his praise of Gatsby's sensitivity to the promises of life.
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