And the novel for the third nine weeks is...

With a total of 116 votes to 21 votes the novel that you have chosen is
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

You will need to have a copy of the book starting January 24th. I will be doing a book check so make sure you download it, check it out from the library or buy it.

Third Nine Weeks book

I am between having all my classes read The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald or A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines.

I am putting in two clips for you to watch and I recommend you look up summaries of the books as well. On Monday and Tuesday all my classes will be voting on what book to read.

The Great Gatsby


A Lesson Before Dying


Reminders:
*Don't forget to bring in your donations for the Humane Society. Donations will be accepted until Friday, January 13th. Please refer to the Nov. 22nd post for the list of items I am collecting.
*Extra Credit SAT word posters are no longer being collected. You can still earn extra credit by leveling up in Reading Plus before January 16th.
*Make sure you have your rough draft for the John Stossel essay contest when you come to class. We will be revising them on Monday and Tuesday (Jan. 9 & 10).
*Make sure you are reviewing your SAT words A-P. The test on these words will be the week of January 17th.
*Remember NO SCHOOL on January 16th for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Stossel Essay Contest

You can go to the following website to watch the video clips and get more information about the contest.
Remember the essay will count for a grade in my class, but I will only submit it to the contest if you want me to.
We will be working on the essays until around January 20th.

http://stosselintheclassroom.org/essaycontest.php?p=watch_video.html&l=22

Last Post for 2011 (I think) :-)

I want to wish everyone a safe and restful winter break.
When we return we will be reviewing what we have covered this first part of the year and then moving onto modern American writers.
We will also continue with our preparation for taking the SAT and/or ACT tests.

Remember the second nine weeks closes on January 20th so if you need to pull up your grade there is still a little time left.

I would like for you to give me feedback as to which of the following books you would prefer to read for the third nine weeks:
A. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald or
B. A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines
You can look up summaries of them and then we will take a vote when we get back from the break.

Enjoy this video of the most sung song on New Year's Eve -- "Auld Lang Syne."

Extra Credit

If you are interested in doing Extra Credit for the second nine weeks please come and see me. It will be due after the winter break and will consist of you creating small posters of our SAT words.
See me before we go on the break to be issued a letter.
Needs to be turned in the week we get back (January 3-6).

Connecting to the novel

Now that we have finished The Call of the Wild I would like you to take a moment and connect the novel to a movie, song or television show that demonstrates the concept of survival of the fittest, returning to your instincts, or the cruel treatment of animals.
You can either post your response to the blog, email me or write and turn into me a paragraph explaining your connection to the novel with a modern day movie, song or show.
You must submit your assignment by midnight on December 14th.
The assignment is worth 4 points.

Becoming Wild

Anthropomorphism Assignment

You will be writing either a poem or a short story from the point of view of an animal. Follow the requirements below:
1. Poem: Needs to be at least 30 lines long. Does not have to rhyme or follow a pattern.
2. Short story: Needs to be front and back of a page.

Poem or story does not have to be typed. Be creative and really try to get into the mind of your animal. I suggest you pick a favorite animal or pet. Have fun with the assignment.

Please email me if you have any questions.