river oaks [english]

Sophomores Today we read " Ozymandias " and " To a Skylark ," both by Percy Bysshe Shelley . Answer questions at the end of each poem for tomorrow. Seniors Study your vocabulary terms . Use the definitions from Webster's (in the light blue box). Test tomorrow!

Sophomores Today we read Lord Byron 's " She Walks in Beauty " and " Childe Harold's Pilgrimage ." Answer the questions following those selections for tomorrow. Seniors Tomorrow in class, you are writing a summary/critique of an article on AI (artificial intelligence). Please consider the following: Who wrote the piece, and where was it published? How do you know the author and publication are credible? What is the main idea or thesis? Does the title have special significance? What support is offered? Is it cross-referenced or cited? Are there links within the article? Is the evidence or support clearly organized? Is there any particular pattern of organization? (i.e. comparison/contrast, definition, cause/effect, persuasive, etc.) What visual elements, if any, are used to enhance the presentation? Is the piece clear and easy to read? Do you detect any bias, or does the author seem objective? Your focus should be on summary, with minimal commen...

QUIZ TOMORROW on 1st generation of Romantic Poets: Burns, Blake, Wordsworth and Coleridge.

To summarize, here's your week: Monday - Bring an article on AI. Read it! Tuesday - Bring your AP worksheet with answers on a separate sheet Wednesday - Write AI essay in class Thursday - Vocabulary Test (based on terms chosen on Tuesday) Friday - Spring Break!

Seniors The natural extension of our discussion about robotics is the topic of artificial intelligence. If robots are going to be increasingly a part of our lives, then certainly they are going to become more "user friendly" and more autonomous. What are the implications of this trend? Here are some articles/sites to get you started: The AI Revolution Is On The Dawn of the Age of Artifical Intelligence Diverless Cars on CNN The Questions That Computers Can Never Answer Virtual Assistants IBM Watson Mars Rover - Discovery Please bring an article to class on Monday (from this list or one of your own). Please READ IT. We will discuss your articles in class, and each of you will choose one to summarize and critique in class on Wednesday. The AP worksheet is due on Tuesday, when we will generate a list of vocabulary terms for Thursday's test. Sophomores Your homework is to answer the "Reading Check" questions (a-e) following Rime of the Ancient Marine...

I will be out most of the morning, but I have given the substitute all the materials you will need for class: Seniors You will be writing your essay in class. You'll need the book and ONE other source. You will construct an argument that considers the positives and negatives of "living better with robots." Sophomores You are reading The Rime of the Ancient Mariner   in class. We will discuss the poem and homework on Thursday, and you can expect a quiz on Blake, Wordsworth, and Coleridge on Friday.

Seniors Science Fiction’s role in the generation of innovative ideas for the future is well documented. As novelists and short story writers dream up imaginary technologies, scientists strive to make those ideas a reality. Nowhere is this more apparent today than in the field of robotics.   Citing examples from Brian Aldiss’s story “Super-Toys Last All Summer Long” and from at least one other article, your next essay will examine the pros and cons of, as MIT puts it, “living better with robots.” What positive and negative effects exist already, and how might this change in the future? How prophetic is “Super-Toys” and what connections can be drawn between the story and present reality? Below is a list of sites that might be helpful: Carnegie Mellon Biorobotics Laboratory MIT Personal Robotics Group Berkeley Robotics & Human Engineering Laboratory Boston Dynamics Willow Garage DARPA:  Defense  Advanced Research Projects Agency  iRobot Corporation...

I know it's been a crazy week, but we will move on. Your homework for Friday is below: Seniors Answer questions #1-7 on p671 following the short story " Super-Toys Last All Summer Long ." We will NOT write an essay in class tomorrow; instead, I will show you some video and hand out an article or two. Sophomores Read the Burns/Blake handout, and answer questions following the "Chimney Sweeper" poems (#2-9).

Seniors The essay today is on Scott McCloud's "Show and Tell." McCloud's "graphic essay" is actually Chapter Six of his Understanding Comics , and it discusses the ability of comics to communicate through a delicate balance of words and pictures. In fact, I would argue that this is increasingly becoming the way people communicate in the world today -- via technology like texting and social media. This balance, he argues, is what makes comics work. Your prompt follows: Analyze the rhetoric of McCloud's "graphic essay" on communicating ideas through the combination of words and pictures. How does he achieve his rhetorical purpose? In what ways does he employ the same techniques he is explaining? Consider his use of language and imagery, including rhetorical techniques such as juxtaposition, parallelism, allusion and figurative language.  Sophomores We are moving on to the Romantic Period. Please read the following introduction from your te...

Seniors Your homework is to read the rest of the Scott McCloud piece and to answer the questions at the beginning of the selection. Here is his TED Talk, by the way, in case you're interested: Sophomores Your homework is to read the handout on 18th century women writers. We will review tomorrow, and your exam is on Thursday. Sorry, doesn't look the weather is going to cooperate.

Seniors Your essay on Monday is about the possible connections between social media and body image, especially as it affects young people, but also how it is manifested in steroid abuse, extreme body modification, and eating disorders. The question is this: To what degree, and how, does the media create a "single ideal body image," and how does that affect readers, viewers and consumers? Our topic for next week is relationships online, both friendly and romantic, and how inter-personal communication is changing because of the internet and communication technologies. Lastly, your vocabulary list is linked HERE , and I can provide a copy next week if needed.Your vocabulary test will be next Thursday. Sophomores Your reading assignment for the weekend is Daniel Defoe's "Academy For Women," in the handout I gave you or HERE . Your QUIZ on Pope, Pepys, and Defoe will be on Tuesday.

Sorry I couldn't be there today. Here is your work if you missed it: Sophomores Read  The Diary of Samuel Pepys  in the handout OR HERE . After reading, answer questions at the end of the selection (comp check and #2-5). Questions are due Friday. Seniors You have been reading a series of essays in the book on body image. Please answer questions from TWO essays (excluding the photo). I haven't forgotten the vocabulary. The snow day threw us off schedule, and I will post or hand out a list tomorrow.

Seniors As we begin our discussion this week on social media and body image, please read the section in your textbook "Focus on Body Image" (482-92). Our discussion will include a host of issues examined through the context of electronic media: eating disorders, anti-aging drugs, male enhancement  medication, steroid abuse, plastic surgery, and the multi-billion dollar weight loss industry. We will also talk about the positive potential of media: Sophomores Your assignment for Wednesday is to type and revise your political cartoon analysis. Remember that you must attribute all information that is not common knowledge. This requires you to cite the sources using signal phrases . We will not include a "works cited" page with this paper, but I do expect you to include the names of both the cartoonist and the source publication for your article. For more on using signal phrases, try searching Google, or CLICK HERE . Your final draft must be within 10 words of ...

Seniors Your essay this week is an analysis of ONE of the selections in the AP packet. We will continue to discuss those pieces in class tomorrow. Don't forget your vocabulary assignment due Friday! Sophomores You will write an analysis this Friday of a political cartoon. Your assignment for tomorrow (Thursday) is to print three cartoons from CAGLE.COM , a database of contemporary cartoons. Because political cartoons are topical, you need to understand the context, so pick three that you understand! On Thursday, you will focus on one or two on a particular subject. Your homework for tomorrow is to find an article at GOOGLE NEWS and print it out. This will help you explain the context of your cartoon(s). On Friday, you will write an essay (of around 300 words) which analyzes the cartoon's use of satire.

Seniors Today, we went over one of the three essays in your AP handout. One of your assignments for this week is to find 20 terms from that handout that you don't know. You will then type a list of the terms with their definitions (taken from Webster's only , please) and turn the list in on Friday. Please format according to MLA. I will compile a list of terms for a quiz the following week. Sophomores You have a quiz on Jonathan Swift tomorrow. This week, we will continue to talk about satire, including a discussion of contemporary political cartoons.

Seniors In-class argument essay on the topic of social media and repercussions in real life. Sophomores Answer questions A-D, and #3-5 following Part Two of Gulliver's Travels .

Sophomores Please answer questions following Part One of Gulliver's Travels (Comprehension Check and #1-4) for tomorrow. If you really want to be prepared, you should also pre-read Part Two, linked below: Part Two: A Voyage to Brobdingnag

Seniors The focus for this week's essay is social media and privacy . Is the notion of privacy in social media an oxymoron? Should schools and/or employers hold a person's online persona against them? Also, you should be working on the AP multiple choice handout. Please put your answers on a separate sheet of paper and turn it in on Friday. Sophomores Please read the first part of our selection from Gulliver's Travels . We will discuss it in class tomorrow, and I will give you some questions to answer in class or afterwards. Part I: A Voyage to Lilliput

Sophomores Don't forget about the quiz on Monday. Also, please print out the following notes and bring them to class on Monday. We will continue the notes on the Restoration Period after the quiz: Restoration and the 18th Century

Seniors Your task for tomorrow in class will be to respond to #9 on p654: "Which of the predictions Birkerts makes in paragraphs 19-25 do you believe have occurred/been realized?" I will ask you to formulate an organized response, using specific examples from the text and the world around you. Sophomores Your optional homework assignment is to answer A-F on p449. You will have a quiz on Monday on the three works studied so far: Pilgrim's Progress , "Of Studies," and Paradise Lost .