Please be aware I do not update this page; it is an introduction only. For
regular updates, please see the grade work page.
August 20, 2010
Again, we start off the year with our research papers. After the initial
approval of narrowed topics and sources, the students do the papers on their
own. They are due in four weeks after the topic assignments are chosen. The
topics are a harder this year, and many rely on current information more than
information from years past. The due date is 9/16.
When we finish with the research paper, we do a quick review of diagramming.
I will be introducing new concepts to them and review verbs, pronouns,
clauses, and verbals. Again, I teach from PowerPoint and the text is used for
homework only.
Then we go into a study of the work of William Shakespeare. Shakespeare is
timeless and one of my favorite authors. So, we began our study with the
students doing presentations of Shakespeares and his time period. Then we
study A Midsummer Night's Dream (this should be underlined, as should the
movie listed below, but I can't get this program to do that).
We will be watching several scenes from a few movies, Shakespeare in Love
because of the portrayal of life and theater during Shakespeare’s time and
three versions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream filmed in the 1930s, 1970s and
1990s, and we compare the differences.
My goal is not so much to study Shakespeare by figuring out what the play
means (I’m not convinced that 8th grade is the appropriate age to totally
understand Shakespeare’s meanings), but to bring the play and Shakespeare’s
melodious language into the students’ lives. We will learn to make
decisions about how the scenes from the play are presented and just enjoy
his words.
Along with the text, the students will have a packet of review/study
questions for each scene which they will discuss and complete in groups of
four. These packets are collected and graded at the end of the unit.There
will always be a test after each scene/act which could be a multiple choice,
short answer, or paragraph answer quiz. Yes, there will be a final exam.
Vocabulary will be the same as last year: a vocab workbook, vocab cards, and
two tests per unit.
The rest of the year is spent writing. The actual writing assignments vary
from year to year depending on the class personality. There is always an
expository essay of some sort, an opinion essay, some personal essays, and
poetry. There are so many genres and topics from which to choose that I need
to see how the class responds to this type of writing before I make my final
decision. I will tell you, however, that this is my favorite part of
teaching. I love reading their non research paper writing.
As usual, if you have any questions or concerns, please e-mail me at
jzanotti@stmarygostyn.org.
Here's to a good English year.