river oaks [english]

As discussed in class, your next assignment is to write a "This I Believe" essay. The purpose for this essay is explain some core belief or value, perhaps telling a story about why you hold that conviction dear. The publishers explain their rationale below: How Youth Can Get Involved with This I Believe This I Believe encourages thoughtful and respectful sharing of philosophical, spiritual, or civic beliefs by inviting people from all walks of life to write brief essays that discuss the rules they live by. Thousands of young people around the country have embraced This I Believe as a powerful way to explore their beliefs. Our project’s goal is to encourage people of different beliefs to listen to one another. We encourage you to come together with friends, neighbors, and acquaintances to discuss the essays you’ve written. You can get started by reading the essays written by other young people that have been submitted to This I Believe . Click here to access our Youth Essay D...

The exam will include questions on the following: Medieval Period Introduction (historical context) Chaucer's Bio and Poetics Canterbury Tales - General Prologue, Pardoner's Tale & Wife of Bath's Tale Boccaccio - Federigo's Falcon Elements of Romantic Literature (Chivalric Romance) Sir Gawain & The Green Knight Death of Arthur The exam will be mostly (if not all) objective - multiple choice, T/F, and matching.

(1) First, your goal is to evaluate the audience and purpose of a print advertisement. What is the target audience* for the ad? What magazine was it in? Who would the image(s) in the ad appeal to? Beyond selling a product, what else is being sold? What is the message (or implied message) of the ad? * Target audience = the demographic that the company wants to reach, or that segment of the population (age, sex, race, class) that is most likely to buy the product or to use the service advertised. (2) Second, your task is to describe the ad's contents. What does it look like? Your reader will not have the ad to reference, only your description, so describe the images, colors and layout. What do the images/colors suggest? If there is text, what does it say? Is there a slogan on the ad (usually next to the logo)? Analyze the use of diction and syntax . Be specific and use quotation marks when appropriate. (3) Third, your goal is to analyze the effectiveness of the advertisement. ...

Hey all - sorry for the late post. The structure for the "drinking age debate" paper follows the classical model from your textbook (pages 13-14): Introduction - states the subject and your position on the issue Narration - establishes context and/or your connection to the subject Confirmation - uses reason and evidence to support your position Refutation - lends credence to the opposition and argues against it Conclusion - summarizes and recommends action Again, your paper should be typed and formatted according to MLA.

Your assignment is to write a poem describing a someone from contemporary society. Refer to the " General Prologue " to The Canterbury Tales as your model. The character should be someone who does a particular job or serves some specific purpose in our society. Your poem should be at least 14 lines, in rhyming couplets. Please include the following: description of the person's job/position character traits -- personality, temperament, morals, etc. physical description -- including uniform/clothing Remember that almost any line from Shakespeare is in iambic pentameter: Bring a TYPED rough draft on Friday 9/27. The final draft is due on Monday 9/28.

Your exam on "The Prologue" to The Canterbury Tales is scheduled for Tuesday. We'll review on Monday. The exam will be a mix of multiple choice, matching and short answer. You will also have a short essay. There's been some confusion about the memorization assignment for the Honors students. Originally, I had scheduled five-ten minutes at the beginning of class on Monday, but I've decided to give you until Wednesday to complete the assignment. You must write (or recite) the first twelve lines of "The Prologue" - in my presence - by the end of the day on Wednesday. That gives you all a bit of extra time and it allows you to do it in class or during break, etc. Below is the video I told you about. You might try emulating someone else's lyrical style if "old guy" is not your thing, but it is a good way to remember the meter and rhyme. Personally, I think it's pretty awesome: This one's more from the Beastie Boy school of rap:

As promised, this is a sample MLA research paper . Note especially the use of cross-referencing between the parenthetical citations and the works cited page.

Your final installment in the research paper is the "solutions" portion - a comparison/contrast of the best available solutions to your problem. The paper should use credible support from at least three sources, and should be formatted according to MLA. Please include the following: An introduction connecting this paper to your last A section explaining/defining each of your solutions A section evaluating your solutions based on specific criteria A conclusion regarding your findings I also mentioned in class that you may include images in your paper. I went over the process for saving and importing images in class. There are two primary methods: Right click > Save Image As (or Copy) > Insert (or Paste) into Word Print Screen (at top right of your keyboard) > Edit in Paint > Paste into Word For either method, you'll need to adjust the layout by double-clicking the image and "wrapping" the text. Remember also that the image is from a source, and t...

Seniors : You are supposed to be looking at FactCheck.org . This site was developed to "fact check" claims made by people/organizations about issues in the news. I want you to determine whether or not you believe the site is biased or not, and to provide an example supporting your opinion. Juniors : You should be reading the Introduction to The Canterbury Tales and "The Prologue" (100-125 in your textbook). We will be discussing "The Prologue" this week.

Your final draft of the Problem Paper is due tomorrow. Please remember to bring your rough draft and all of your sources. Again, consider the following in your revision: Is your topic clearly defined and explained? Do you connect the problem to your field of study? Have you provided an analysis of the causes of the problem? Are you using at least three credible sources, and are they cited properly? Do you have a "Works Cited" page, numbered in sequence? Have you followed all the rules for MLA format? Remember also that tomorrow is the absolute deadline for your interview letters. Next up is the Solution Paper, which may utilize some of the same sources. Make sure you check with me if you need a copy.

As promised, Wars on Canvas: 1066

By the end of the weekend, you should all have conducted your interview and started the research for your "problem" paper. A letter (in full block format) is due on Tuesday including the following: A paragraph about your interview subject - who did you talk to? why is that person qualified? when and where did the interview take place? A paragraph about the information you got from the interview - what was most useful? what are you using in your paper? how did it go? ALSO, please start looking online for information regarding your topic. If your problem is local, then look locally ( The News Star , for example). Search using the techniques you learned last year. Don't forget about EBSCO - now available to River Oaks students: username - riveroaks password - mustangs

Seniors, your next step in the process is to decide on a topic for your "problem" paper. You must narrow it down to ONE topic, and you must focus on the problem ONLY. There are several ways to search for topics: Ask a professional - one of your questions should have been "what problems/issues do you face on a regular basis?" Search for problems on Google - i.e. "_____ problems" Look at your college's website - on the department page, there should be some direction to the course catalog or course descriptions where you can find subjects you will be studying in your degree program - look for one that interests you and research it Look up your professional organizations' sites - search for "_____ association" - there are usually several organizations connected to your profession, and each will have its own website, with current "hot" topics After you have decided on a topic, you will need to research the "history" of th...

Seniors, you have a rough draft due tomorrow. Don't give me the old "my printer's broken" excuse... get to school early and print it there so we'll have something to look at. Also, please bring all sources used in the paper -- we'll discuss how to cite them. As for the paper itself, just make sure you are explaining the rationale behind your decisions (i.e. why are you majoring in that? why are you going there? what education is required for that? what's the job like? etc...). Organize into paragraphs and CITE all sources.

Make sure you've done the following for Monday! You were told on Friday, so this is just a reminder: English IV Type a set of fifteen questions for your interview. You should have someone specific in mind, and by now should have plans to conduct your interview this week. You should also have plenty of information for the Career Paper (including a printout from the Occupational Outlook Handbook ). Your first draft is due on Tuesday . English III Answer questions on page 38 of your textbook/handout (#2-8, a-e). Use complete sentences and correct grammar, but your answers do not have be a paragraph long each. Be succinct and specific.

The site we looked at in class today is an excellent overall source for this first paper. It defines various career paths, broken down into subcategories, and provides info about job growth and salary. If you're going to use it, I suggest printing the PDF available. Please write the website address on the printout. Occupational Outlook Handbook

Your next assignment is to write a letter to me proposing your topic for the Career Paper. Please use FULL BLOCK format - found in your textbook - and ONE INCH margins. Include the following: A short paragraph stating your purpose for the letter and your topic. Tell me what career you've chosen, what major that requires and where you plan to go to school. A short paragraph stating your future plans and rationale (why you want to do this particular job) Again, this is to be in letter format! We went over this in class and it's in your book. Don't forget to sign the letter. THIS WEEKEND you should be writing your first paper and adding in the research you've done so far. You will get the assignment in class and I'll re-post it here. Also, set up your interview!

Your assignment for tomorrow is to print out a description of your major from the university of your choice. Feel free to print out more than one. You can search for degree programs through the CollegeBoard site - like we did in class. You can also try looking through the rankings in the latest issue of US News & World Report , including a feature which lets you search by region.

As discussed in class today, your first assignment is to write a 250-word self-assessment. What do you think you'd like to do later in life? What are your talents? Where would you like to live? What's most important to you? What kind of work environment are you most comfortable in? All of these questions and many more come up when you start considering what career you'd like to pursue. This reflective essay is informal, but please type and format according to MLA. Second, go to College Board's site and explore their section on Careers and Degree Programs . Print out the page that seems closest to your ideal job/career. Finally, if you need some help getting started, you might want to try one of the many "career aptitude" tests that are out there. Be aware that some of these sites require registration and/or a fee.

Welcome back everyone.... I'm looking forward to a great year. I'm teaching Junior and Senior English this year, and we just installed a new Promethean ActivBoard in my classroom. We'll hit the ground running, so get ready to start in earnest on Thursday. I'll post the supply list on this site after I hand out syllabi, and we'll also be taking up a book fee in the first week or so. The book reports are officially due on Thursday , and we'll prepare for the essays on Dracula and Bayou Farewell on Thursday and Friday. Your in-class essay is on Monday . See you in class!