Remember, your Exam is Friday afternoon at 1pm (arrive 10 minutes early please) in Room 106 (our original room).

Bring your writing utensils, your blue short story/study sheet, and lots of determination!

Below are the BaiBoard review notes that were put together by your classmates..you might find a nugget or two in them.

Good luck, and make sure you study!

We are getting down to "crunch time".  There are a few of you that still owe me some major assignments.  Wednesday will be the cut off day.  I will be around tomorrow at lunch, and during all breaks if you'd like some extra help.

I am away from class today, but that does not mean that the learning stops.  The "Book Battles" will all be pushed forward a day (so today's battles will go tomorrow, and Tuesday's will go on Wednesday).

We need to continue to push forward with grammar.  You voted to put this all off to the end, and since we have finished all our other units, grammar is a very important part that we need to continue to work on.

Warm up your brains by playing a few rounds of Grammar Gorillas (pick the advanced game).  This should all be review (there is help available as well). Move on to this Cloze Exercise, and then finish up the Chomp!Chomp! exercises on Word Choice we started last week (most of you are 1/2 done).  Since I am not in the classroom today, make sure you take advantage of the tips and instructions that come with each exercise.  Take your time, this is only one of the area that we identified as a class that you need to spend extra time on.  I will be covering prepositional phrases, pronouns, and subject-verb agreement during the rest of the week.

Remember that your comparison essay is due no later than Friday, May 23rd (450-600 words, make sure you follow the format discussed in class and the rubric from your Night package)

Your book review (in proper format, 300-450 words) is due Monday, May 26th.

Your introduction to Poetry package can be found here.

Please read Night (and answer the questions in the booklet) at the following pace:

Up to page 47: for May 13th
Up to page 66: for May 15th
Up to page 87: for May 16th
finish the book: for May 17th

You should also be reading your Independent Study Novel, with the goal of having it finished for Tuesday, May 20th (you have been reminded about this several times).

As I discussed in class yesterday, I am away at a Board meeting today.  You should all be ready to go with your presentations tomorrow.  Remember, that I am looking for the professionalism and polish that should be expected from your second time in front of an audience.  Your slides should reflect the "rules" that we developed in class.

Yesterday we also talked about the teacher in Southern California who wanted his class to debate the Holocaust as historical fact.  Your OBQ for the week is to react to this news article.  You could include thoughts about how you would have responded if you were in that class, how to deal with racism and Holocaust denial in an educational setting, and what you think are the most important lessons to be learned from this dark time in modern history.  I would like to read them all by next Friday.

If your presentation is as polished as it can be, please make sure that you read up to page 29 in Night.  There are questions that accompany the reading in your booklet.  We will be reading the entire book by next Friday, so if you'd like to read ahead (because you have a busy week coming up), feel free.

You should have the book that you are reading for your book review/defense finished by now.  We will be starting this Culminating Activity in one week.

Today we will be starting The Pianist in class.  This will be a guided journey for those who have returned the permission form.

Before we start the movie, you will need this Activity Guide.  It would be a good idea to look over the questions before the film starts.

I am eagerly looking forward to seeing your MSND presentations today.  Please make sure you have all your rubrics printed off and handed it to me before you start.

We will be spending the next month (or so) looking at Night.  As I told you in class yesterday, this is my first time through the novel with a class, so I  will be looking for your feedback on all the materials, approaches, and activities that we complete over the next little while. 

You can download the study guide here. 

Sparknotes can be helpful, but every good student knows they are not the end-all and be-all.  You will need to read the book, do the homework, complete the assignments and participate in class discussions to truly come to an understanding.

Today we are going to start a journey together.  I am excited to be spending time with you exploring Elie Wiesel's book "Night".   This will be my first time looking at the Holocaust with students from a literary viewpoint.  At times this will be a very difficult topic for all of us, both from an emotional and an analytical aspect.   The road to understanding will be winding, but we will get there.  Together.

"Never shall I forget that night, the first night in the camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky. Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever…Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never." — Night