river oaks [english]

Seniors: Visit the This I Believe site and print out one essay that speaks to you personally. You will share this with the class tomorrow. You can navigate the site through the drop-down "explore" menu on the left of the homepage. Try browsing by theme. Juniors: Study for your test on Thursday. It will cover Beowulf and all of the associated notes, as well as two poems you need to read tonight. You also have homework questions. Read pages 90-96 Answer questions #1-4 on 93 and 96

You have two things to do, really. First, you all need to type up a list of at least fifteen questions for your interview. You can use the list we came up with in class, but please relate it to your specific career. Type and format according to MLA. This is due on FRIDAY 8/27. Second, each if you need to write a letter telling me what career you've chosen, including where you would like to pursue your degree and who you plan to interview. For the letter, please use FULL BLOCK FORMAT . Print out the letter and sign it. This is due on MONDAY 8/30.

Seniors: The first thing you'll do this year is a research project based on your career goals. We will discuss your college and non-college options, conduct research on careers and degree programs, and write a series of papers related to the career you've selected. While this in no way locks you into a career path, it does give you a lot more information to go on. Your first assignment: Write a 250-word report on your career goals Print out a career and/or degree description from one of the sites discussed Take a "virtual tour" of the university or institution you'd like to attend The sites we discussed: CollegeBoard ACT Career Planning Occupational Outlook Handbook To find your school, simply conduct a Google search. Make sure you visit the page for your college major, as well.

The new school year is upon us, and I'm certain it will be a great one! The first few days will consist of going over the syllabus (policies, assignments and schedule), and the summer reading assignments. Just to refresh your memory, the books you will be writing about in the first week are as follows: Juniors -- Great Expectations (Dickens) Seniors -- 1984 (Orwell) or Bayou Farewell (Tidwell) Expect to quote from the book in your essay. This means that Sparknotes and the like are not sufficient preparation. If you have not read the book in its entirety, then I highly recommend that you get busy! Your first essay will be written IN CLASS, and you will be able to use your book and notes only. We will discuss topics and strategies in the first couple of days, and then write the essay on Monday, August 23rd. DUE ON FRIDAY (Aug 20th): Your second assignment was to read another book of your own choosing (or two if you're in Honors/AP) and to compose a short report on each usi...

Have a great summer everybody...

Research Process MLA Format – what it is and how it looks Using the subscription databases (i.e. EBSCO, JSTOR) Evaluating sources (the two “R”s – Relevance and Reliability ) Using sources (the two “I”s – Introduce and Integrate) Parenthetical Citation (know the punctuation) Block quotes Works Cited entries (expect at least to know the form for an article from a subscription database) Romantic Period Introduction to the period (620-638) Gothic Literature & Frankenstein (study guide) Women writers of the period (726-728) Robert Burns: “To A Mouse” William Blake: "The Lamb" & "The Tyger" & "The Chimney Sweeper" (two versions) William Wordsworth: "Tintern Abbey," “ Westminster Bridge ” Samuel Taylor Coleridge: "Kubla Khan" & "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" Lord Byron: "She ...

Your last few assignments and readings are listed below: "To An Athlete Dying Young" "The Second Coming" "Dulce Et Decorum Est" (#2-7 on 930) "The Demon Lover" (#2-8 on 1023) "Once Upon A Time" (#2-6 on 1160) We will review the above on Thursday and continue on Friday, when I will hand out a full review of this semester's work.

You should be reading Part Three of Heart of Darkness at this point. We will continue to review the novel on Thursday and Friday. Your exam is on Monday, May 17th . Don't forget about the vocabulary.

As discussed in class, your final is a shortened version of the AP exam, including both a multiple choice section and an essay . The multiple choice questions will come directly from your practice tests for this term, and you will have a choice of essays (analysis and/or argument). In addition, there is a matching section with terms from the handout we've been using for quizzes. Expect 12 terms for non-honors and 22 for honors. The exam will be taken during your regularly scheduled class time and should take no longer than 50 minutes. The essays will be graded on the AP scale and converted to 50 (or 60 points) -- half of your grade, in other words. I do not expect them to be perfect, but I do expect them to be thoughtful and insightful. Remember that this will be your last essay for me: what impression do you want to leave? If you study the material you have, you will be more than prepared. So please STUDY. See you next week.

Don't forget about your Honors papers -- due tomorrow, May 7th! There's a ten-point penalty if the paper is turned in Monday. Please read Part Two of Heart of Darkness over the weekend. We'll finish up next week and then read two or three modern short stories before finishing up for the year.

Although we aren't officially reading the book this summer, I'd still like to recommend Mike Tidwell's Bayou Farewell . It's especially prescient right now, considering what Louisiana is facing in the coming months. What we have in the Gulf of Mexico is not exactly a "spill" -- that implies a finite amount -- but instead is a series of leaks which are pouring oil into the gulf at a rate of 5000 barrels per day. We can hope that the leaks will be stopped, and that the oil will all be cleaned up, and that any further crises will be averted. But the stark reality is that the entire gulf coast is bracing for a long, difficult summer. And the entire country, of course, is bracing for a long summer of politics. Since we've discussed this site in class, it really needs no introduction:

First, your homework for the weekend is to read Part One of Heart of Darkness (1-27). Then, answer questions #1-8 on the handout. Second, you have an EXAM on Tuesday over the following: Tennyson "The Eagle," "Flower in the Crannied Wall," and "In Memorium" Browning "My Last Duchess" Browning "How Do I Love Thee?" Kipling "Mark of the Beast" Orwell "Shooting an Elephant" You are also responsible for the Introduction to the period, as well as notes on the authors.

One last paper for you English AP students is an analysis essay for your outside reading assignment. Most of you chose to read MAUS II , and I handed out questions in class. For those of you who read Never Let Me Go , here is a list of possible topics from the publisher's site.

You are meeting with Mrs. Witherington in the next few days. Please consider signing up for AP English if you are currently in Honors. Monday 4/26 I've ordered Heart of Darkness , and it should here for Thursday at the latest. We are reading from the textbook until then. Your first assignment for the week is to read "Mark of the Beast" (872) by Kipling. Wednesday 4/28 Quiz on "Mark of the Beast" Read Orwell's "Shooting An Elephant" Complete the questions on p.1134 (a-d, #2-5)

It's time for the "memory book" assignment, so you'll need to gather supplies and bring everything to class starting Wednesday. We are also doing a couple of assignments in class, including a letter to your future self and a poem. I'll explain in class. For your "memory book" assignment, you'll need to purchase a couple of things. First, you need a scrapbook from WalMart or Target or Hobby Lobby or Michael's or somewhere. They come in small and large; get the large ("12 X "12). You'll also need at least eight sheets (for a total of sixteen pages). I recommend the kind that are inserted into plastic sleeves. As far as backgrounds and corner cutters and all that, use your best judgement. Some of you will want that stuff, but it's certainly not required. Remember that you'll need to get some pictures/information together from your high school years (9-12 regardless of school). You'll need to organize information in...

Juniors Enclose in supplied folder Final draft (stapled) Rough drafts (including comments from me and peers) Sources (in ABC order) Seniors Final draft in report cover Include title page and table of contents Don't forget Works Cited Proofread!

***SCHEDULE CHANGE*** The final draft of the integrated research paper won't be due until the week we return from break. To better help you prepare for the final draft, we are going to create an annotated bibliography BEFORE the break -- due Thursday, April 1st -- no this is not an April Fools joke. An annotated bibliography is essentially your "works cited" page, with the addition of a critical summary of each source as it relates to your thesis or related points. The forms for citation have been linked here on this site, and we are working on your notecards in class. For more on annotated bibliographies, see the following: Purdue's OWL ( example ) Cornell University Library University of North Carolina ( example )

As discussed in class, MOST of your secondary sources need to come from “scholarly journals.” The best source for journal articles is a subscription database like the following: EBSCO – a collection of databases, including full-text articles Go to the Ouachita Parish Library (or website: http://www.oplib.org ) Click on “Database Links” in the left column Click on “CLICK HERE for our subscription database links” Click on EBSCO Enter your library card number (if not in library) Select a database (I suggest Literary Reference Center) Search using keywords (i.e. "frankenstein AND criticism") Save and/or print You can also access the State Library of Louisiana directly, but you still need an ID. JSTOR – full-text scholarly articles g o to the ULM Library's list of databases Choose JSTOR (or Literature Resource Center) enter user name and password (if off-campus) search using keywords (string together using “and”) click on the title to view the text click PDF to download...

Your final draft of the first paper is due on FRIDAY, March 26th . It should be typed, double-spaced, and formatted according to MLA. This typed draft should be stapled with the handwritten draft, along with the outline/thesis statement, if you brought one to class. Your paper should include direct references to the novel, and each specific reference should be cited. The form for in-text citation , as noted in class, requires the page number in parentheses at the end of the quote (or sentence): Victor states that "blah blah [...] blah blah," anticipating his own demise (#). I have only "quoted" the part of the book that is necessary, and I have not put [ellipses] at the beginning or ending, only in the middle. The square brackets indicate that something has been replaced (in this case, with an ellipsis). You can also use this technique to replace an unclear pronoun, for example, with its antecedent (i.e. the character's name). Note also that you do not need...

The first step in the research paper process is to determine your topic and develop a thesis. We will be writing the first draft on THURSDAY in class. The draft will require three things: your topic, a critical thesis, and specific information from the book itself. You can bring an outline to class, along with your book and notes, but you may NOT bring a pre-written draft. The purpose is to make certain that YOU are writing the essay. You will type (and revise) the paper for Friday. Also, when you turn your paper in on Friday, you must staple the original handwritten draft to the typed version. If you don't have a copy of the "suggested topics" handout, then get one from me. Many of you will be absent Wednesday due to the ABC rally. You guys, especially, need to talk to me outside of class about potential topics. We will discuss thesis statements and outlines on Wednesday. Finally, I STRONGLY recommend that you stay away from essays online. This will ensure that...