Compare/Contrast Assignment

Comparing and contrasting is a skill that everyone should know how to do because you will be comparing and contrasting things all your life.  With this in mind I want you to compare and contrast songs that have the same title, but are different.  For example, they are sung by different artists and therefore have different styles or lyrics.

Here is a website that gives examples of songs with the same titles, but are by different artists:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110630105002AAyE5H0

I want you to select two songs with the same title and then compare/contrast the two songs.

1. Using a Venn Diagram show the similarities and differences between the songs.
2. In a paragraph explain which song you like better and why.  (Try to focus on the style and lyrics of the song.)

This assignment is due November 5 (Even periods) and November 6th (Odd periods).

Worth 10 points

FYI

PERT Test dates--
Those of you in my College Prep class will be taking the test on November 25-27.

Community Service Opportunity:
If you bring in pop tabs (for example aluminum tabs from soda cans) you can earn community service hours.  For every 50 tabs you will earn 1 hour of community service.
Remember you need 10 for graduation.

Upcoming writing contests:

Due December 1st is the Florida Poetry Association content.  You can write a poem on any topic and it needs to be 32 lines long.

The Scholastic Writing Awards:  http://www.artandwriting.org/affiliate/FL002W due by December 16th.

ACT Tips for Saturday

For those of you taking the ACT this Saturday, here are some last minute tips and reminders:

*Remember to bring your admission ticket and a picture ID (i.e. driver's license, school ID, passport)
*Remember that the ACT does not deduct points for getting an answer wrong so make sure to answer all the questions.
Do not leave anything blank!
*Remember to look for errors in punctuation in the grammar section such as commas, semicolons, colons and dashes.
*Remember in the reading section to find your answer in the passage -- Prove it phrase.
*You can bring a jacket and snacks.

Good luck!

End of the Nine Weeks Updates

Dear students,

I find it amazing how many students wake up and become concerned with their grades at the end of the nine weeks when you should be on top of your grades the whole nine weeks.  Many of you have come by to see me and have emailed me asking why you received an "F" for the Courtly Love Assignment or for Reading Plus -- I did it on purpose so that you can see the impact those zeros would have on your overall grade.

Obviously I will change those grades once the assignments have been turned in or you complete the Reading Plus sessions.

Remember the last grade I am putting in for this nine weeks is the Reading Plus for this week, which needs to be completed by Sunday, October 20th.

If you have any make-up work to bring in you must do so by Monday, October 21st!

*Thursday, October 24th is the End of the nine weeks
**Friday, October 25th is Teacher Work Day (No school)

Courtly Love Assignment

During the time of King Arthur and his knights the lords and ladies of the time followed rules of courtly love.  In class you picked a number, which corresponds to one of the rules of courtly love.

Your assignment is as follows:
1. Write down your rule and explain it in your own words.
2. Give a modern day example using your rule.  In other words, give me a scenario or anecdote using your rule.
3. In your opinion, is your rule true?  Explain in at least a paragraph whether your rule applies in today's world.

*Make sure you are doing the correct number.  For example, if you picked number 1 in class you have to do the assignment using rule number 1.  If you do another number you will not get credit.

Assignment is due October 17 (Periods 2,4,6) and 
October 18 (Periods 1,3,5)

Andreas Capellanus’s Rules for Love

1. Marriage is no real excuse for not loving.

2. He who is not jealous cannot love.

3. No one can be bound by a double love.

4. It is well known that love is always increasing or decreasing.

5. That which a lover takes against the will of his beloved has no relish.

6. Boys do not love until they arrive at the age of maturity.

7. When one lover dies, a widowhood of two years is required of the survivor.

8. No one should be deprived of love without the very best of reasons.

9. No one can love unless he is impelled by the persuasion of love.

10. Love is always a stranger in the home of avarice.

11. It is not proper to love any woman whom one should be ashamed to seek to marry.

12. A true lover does not desire to embrace in love anyone except his beloved.

13. When made public, love rarely endures.

14. The easy attainment of love makes it of little value; difficulty of attainment makes it prized.

15. Every lover regularly turns pale in the presence of his beloved.

16. When a lover suddenly catches sight of his beloved, his heart palpitates.

17. A new love puts to flight an old one.

18. Good character alone makes any man worthy of love.

19. If love diminishes, it quickly fails and rarely revives.

20. A man in love is always apprehensive.

21. Real jealousy always increases the feeling of love.

22. Jealousy, and therefore love, are increased when one suspects his beloved.

23. He whom the thought of love vexes, eats and sleeps very little.

24. Every act of a lover ends with the thought of his beloved.

25. A true lover considers nothing good except what he thinks will please his beloved.

26. Love can deny nothing to love.

27. A lover can never have enough of the solaces of his beloved.

28. A slight presumption causes a lover to suspect his beloved.

29. A man who is vexed by too much passion usually does not love.

30. A true lover is constantly and without permission possessed by the thought of his beloved.

Update

This Friday, October 11th on PBS @ 9:00pm they will be showing the movie Richard V based on the Shakespeare play of the same name.

If you watch it, summarize it and give a critique of the movie (i.e. how was the acting, the costumes, the directing, etc.) I will award you extra credit points for this nine weeks.  The assignment must be typed.
Due on Monday, October 14th!

Reminders

School pictures (for IDs) is this Thursday, October 10th and Friday, October 11th.

Period 2 -- Please remember to bring in your money for United Way!

All Periods:
Nine week project walls must be completed by Friday, October 18th.  You will pick as a class your topic and everyone must contribute to the wall.  I will issue each period a wall.  Your grade will be based off of how good the wall is as a whole, not just your part.  The better your periods wall the better your grade.

*Deadline to sign-up for SAT and ACT for the December tests is November 8th!  Remember that if you are applying to college most schools do not accept scores after December.

Please register at www.getschooled.com for the attendance challenge.  Our school is competing with other schools around the country.  Let's show them what the Gladiators are all about!

SAT tips for this Saturday

To all my students taking the SAT this Saturday:

First of all I want to wish you all luck, but I also want you all to know that you should be confident.  We have been practicing for the past three weeks and you should feel comfortable with the structure of the test and the types of questions (at least the verbal section).

Here are some final reminders--
1. Remember your admission ticket with a picture ID (license, passport, school ID)!  You will not be allowed in without both of these items.
2. You can bring a jacket and snacks.  The room may get cold and if you get hungry you can have a snack in between sections or during the break.
3.  Remember you loose 1/4 point for getting questions wrong so don't just guess at random.
4.  Remember for the essay to answer the question and use strong support and details.  You do not have to write five paragraphs and you can use personal examples.