Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Friday, May 21, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
Friday, May 14, 2010
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Congratulations! You've finished the AP Language exam. Tomorrow we'll look ahead to the rest of the year, but for now, you can really help be completing the following:
Also, if you were absent Monday, complete the Million Voices Survey
Monday, May 10, 2010
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
27 April 2010
Do this now: Clear your desk and look up at me.
Agenda
Vocab: Who's lucky?
Multiple Choice Mini-Lesson (Passage 1)
Kelley and Lindsey
Will and Michelle
Discuss/Strategize/Tips
Passage 2 - Individually
Homework: Study Vocab terms, read synthesis essay section in review book
Tomorrow: Individual Study
Do this now: Clear your desk and look up at me.
Agenda
Vocab: Who's lucky?
Multiple Choice Mini-Lesson (Passage 1)
Kelley and Lindsey
Will and Michelle
Discuss/Strategize/Tips
Passage 2 - Individually
Homework: Study Vocab terms, read synthesis essay section in review book
Tomorrow: Individual Study
Monday, April 26, 2010
Friday, April 23, 2010
Do this now:
1. Turn in your finished essays from yesterday.
2. Read the passage in front of you and answer the questions
(15 - 25). Then identify PURPOSE, TONE, and POV.
Agenda
AP Lang Idol - Roshawna/Alexis & Mike perform
Audience Input
Hughes input
Class consensus on answers
Tips
Try another one
HW: See Exam review Schedule (It's also on the website)
1. Turn in your finished essays from yesterday.
2. Read the passage in front of you and answer the questions
(15 - 25). Then identify PURPOSE, TONE, and POV.
Agenda
AP Lang Idol - Roshawna/Alexis & Mike perform
Audience Input
Hughes input
Class consensus on answers
Tips
Try another one
HW: See Exam review Schedule (It's also on the website)
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Do this now: Grab a handout from the stool and read the passage. Turn it over and look up when finished.
Agenda
AP Lang Idol - Pam and Lexii perform
Audience Input
Hughes input
Class Intro
Look at example
HW: Write your own full essay response.
(You may use our intro or write a new one)
Reminder: Review sessions tonight: 4 - 5, 5 - 6, 6:30 - 7:30
Free food at 6:00. Enter and exit through doorsby cafeteria.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
1. Read the prompt on the back of your packet from yesterday.
2. Read the response in front of you.
The Windbreaker (396 words)
I bought a windbreaker for a hundred dollars the other day. The windbreaker was made for mountain climbers. Rich mountain climbers. I’m not a mountain climber. Nor can I legitimately defend spending $100 on a jacket that costs just under the bluebook value of my car. This windbreaker reflects Margaret Drabble’s cynical—but truthful—claim that “our desire to conform is greater than our respect for objective facts.”
That windbreaker has earned me some compliments, its “North Face” label exposing me as the yuppie poser I swore I’d never be. But conforming is so—safe. “Objectivity” says that $100 should go toward a debt, groceries, a down payment on a better car. But conformity trumps objective fact in a world where we are more affected by the people around us than the voice inside of us.
Thoreau probably didn’t wear a windbreaker. He built a house, in the woods, far from the conformist city-dwellers—the “sheep” as Twain called them. Thoreau prided himself in his individuality, his ability to escape the claustrophobic nature of everyday village life that reeked of conformity.
But lo, Thoreau was but a few miles from town, only lived at Walden Pond for two years, and who is anyone to say that his goal was not to sell a ton of books to a “conformist” audience? I taught Thoreau to my AP class this year; indeed I forced them to conform to his nonconformist values. The irony is too much to bear.
We conform because it’s easier, albeit often more expensive, financially or otherwise. The teenager has another beer before getting behind the wheel because he saw how easy it was for his friend to do it; the DINC couple buys a new Audi instead of an old Chevy because it’s easier to explain to their status-seeking neighbors. The 4-year old girl chooses the pink dress because she doesn’t yet know what objectivity is. Maybe therein lies the answer: We conform because it’s what we were taught from birth, before we knew how to think for ourselves.
Though it pains me to admit it, Drabble’s words ring doubly true for me: That same windbreaker was purchased by my best friend the day before, right in front of me. Luckily he lives in New York so I won’t look like the pathetic conformist that I am. For now, I’ll take the compliments.
3. List what the writer DOES WELL.
4. Identify and name rhetorical devices.
5. Explain tone and style.
6. Discuss 4 and 5
7. Score it.
8. Your turn - 25 min (or until the bell)
2. Read the response in front of you.
The Windbreaker (396 words)
I bought a windbreaker for a hundred dollars the other day. The windbreaker was made for mountain climbers. Rich mountain climbers. I’m not a mountain climber. Nor can I legitimately defend spending $100 on a jacket that costs just under the bluebook value of my car. This windbreaker reflects Margaret Drabble’s cynical—but truthful—claim that “our desire to conform is greater than our respect for objective facts.”
That windbreaker has earned me some compliments, its “North Face” label exposing me as the yuppie poser I swore I’d never be. But conforming is so—safe. “Objectivity” says that $100 should go toward a debt, groceries, a down payment on a better car. But conformity trumps objective fact in a world where we are more affected by the people around us than the voice inside of us.
Thoreau probably didn’t wear a windbreaker. He built a house, in the woods, far from the conformist city-dwellers—the “sheep” as Twain called them. Thoreau prided himself in his individuality, his ability to escape the claustrophobic nature of everyday village life that reeked of conformity.
But lo, Thoreau was but a few miles from town, only lived at Walden Pond for two years, and who is anyone to say that his goal was not to sell a ton of books to a “conformist” audience? I taught Thoreau to my AP class this year; indeed I forced them to conform to his nonconformist values. The irony is too much to bear.
We conform because it’s easier, albeit often more expensive, financially or otherwise. The teenager has another beer before getting behind the wheel because he saw how easy it was for his friend to do it; the DINC couple buys a new Audi instead of an old Chevy because it’s easier to explain to their status-seeking neighbors. The 4-year old girl chooses the pink dress because she doesn’t yet know what objectivity is. Maybe therein lies the answer: We conform because it’s what we were taught from birth, before we knew how to think for ourselves.
Though it pains me to admit it, Drabble’s words ring doubly true for me: That same windbreaker was purchased by my best friend the day before, right in front of me. Luckily he lives in New York so I won’t look like the pathetic conformist that I am. For now, I’ll take the compliments.
3. List what the writer DOES WELL.
4. Identify and name rhetorical devices.
5. Explain tone and style.
6. Discuss 4 and 5
7. Score it.
8. Your turn - 25 min (or until the bell)
Monday, April 19, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Monday, April 12, 2010
12 April 2010
DO NOW: Sit in an odd-numbered column.
Clear your desk except for a pen and paper.
Smile.
Agenda
The Mysterious Stranger
Reading Exam
HW: Email what % of our time (out of 100) you think you should spend on: rhetorical analysis, argumentative, synthesis, multiple choice, vocab for exam review.
DO NOW: Sit in an odd-numbered column.
Clear your desk except for a pen and paper.
Smile.
Agenda
The Mysterious Stranger
Reading Exam
HW: Email what % of our time (out of 100) you think you should spend on: rhetorical analysis, argumentative, synthesis, multiple choice, vocab for exam review.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Monday, March 29, 2010
Do this now: Look up at me and smile!
Agenda
Style in writing - my cousin's rant
Let's look at YOUR writing
Return essays
HOMEWORK: Using YOUR writing style, write a note or email to a friend in which you REACT TO and RHETORICALLY ANALYZE
paragraphs 1 - 10 of "Down at the Cross" (the big essay from
The Fire Next Time. (250 word minimum)
Friday, March 26, 2010
Thursday, March 25, 2010
You'll be typing an essay today in Microsoft Word, but you have some choices.
Here they are:
1. RHETORICAL ANALYSIS: In "My Dungeon Shook," what is James Baldwin's purpose and how does he use rhetorical principles to achieve that purpose?
2. ARGUMENTATIVE: In The Fire Next Time, Baldwin writes of the great racial tensions and racial inequality that existed at that point in history. Today, some argue that because of the civil rights movement, the election of Obama, and a number of other "victories" for racial minorities, race is no longer an issue. Drawing from experience, observation, and reading, make a case for whether or not, or to what extent, racial tension and racial inequality remains a critical issue in America.
3. SYNTHESIS: Type up the synthesis essay you wrote Friday, making necessary changes.
You may WRITE or TYPE your response, but it is due AT THE END OF THE HOUR.
Tomorrow: Multiple Choice Exam
Here they are:
1. RHETORICAL ANALYSIS: In "My Dungeon Shook," what is James Baldwin's purpose and how does he use rhetorical principles to achieve that purpose?
2. ARGUMENTATIVE: In The Fire Next Time, Baldwin writes of the great racial tensions and racial inequality that existed at that point in history. Today, some argue that because of the civil rights movement, the election of Obama, and a number of other "victories" for racial minorities, race is no longer an issue. Drawing from experience, observation, and reading, make a case for whether or not, or to what extent, racial tension and racial inequality remains a critical issue in America.
3. SYNTHESIS: Type up the synthesis essay you wrote Friday, making necessary changes.
You may WRITE or TYPE your response, but it is due AT THE END OF THE HOUR.
Tomorrow: Multiple Choice Exam
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
22 March 2010
Do now:
1. Sit in an odd numbered column (#1 is closest to the hallway wall)
2. Clear your desk.
3. Take out a pencil or blue/black pen and two sheets of lined paper.
Agenda:
The Fire Next Time exam (exactly 45 minutes)
James Baldwin interview clip (10 minutes)
Homework: Copy down 5 key passages from "My Dungeon Shook" (include page, par #) and write a 2 - 5 sentence reaction.
Do now:
1. Sit in an odd numbered column (#1 is closest to the hallway wall)
2. Clear your desk.
3. Take out a pencil or blue/black pen and two sheets of lined paper.
Agenda:
The Fire Next Time exam (exactly 45 minutes)
James Baldwin interview clip (10 minutes)
Homework: Copy down 5 key passages from "My Dungeon Shook" (include page, par #) and write a 2 - 5 sentence reaction.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Friday, March 12, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Monday, March 1, 2010
The passage below i
s an excerpt from an email written by Mr. M. to his young son Evan "The Contradiction" M., who, after graduating from high school, decided to put off college, then left home to follow Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino on a worldwide book-signing tour. Read the email carefully. Then, in a well-written OUTLINE in a blog post (as a comment), analyze how the rhetorical strategies Mr. M. uses reveal his own values:
Little Dude-
I'm taking a lot of my time to write you but I'm not sure it's really worth it. I know people hate advice. I know people who want it don't listen to it. And I know that advice from parents is especially annoying because we're old and out of touch, and way too serious.
Still, part of me thinks that as knuckle-headed as you can be, you have some sense and recognize that I only give you advice because I care about YOU. So maybe, just maybe, you'll take it to heart.
Don't see me as "dad." I'm your buddy, your "dog," as it were. Your friend, but a real friend who cares about you. I want to guide you, not stop you.
Look, my childhood was full of bumps and bruises. It wasn't pretty. So of all people, you should listen to me because I can steer you clear of the things that might trip you up, might cause those bumps and bruises. Those same things that tripped me up.
I'm not gonna sit here and tell you how you'd basically be dead without me, or that you've never earned a dime for yourself. Also, I'm not trying to be like your mom and say, "I'm so worried about you Evan. You poor thing, you have no direction in life." You're better than that. And truthfully, I'm not convinced that my telling you all of this is gonna make you act right. I know you have what it takes to act right on your own.
I've always told you to apply yourself. Not because it's an obligation to me, but because it's, simply put, good for YOU. Necessary for you. Is there anything better than being more successful than your peers? Is there anything worse than looking around and seeing that all of your peers are MORE successful than you are? Think about it, if you end up being a loser it will be even worse for you because your parents have done everything in their power to make you succeed. You've had more opportunities than any other kids we know. Your dad is a famous author for crying out loud.
Don't get me wrong. You shouldn't just be successful to "beat out" others (even though it felt awesome to go to my high school reunion and look down on all of these low-lifes, working menial jobs, talking about the "good old days" in high school, when they had teeth and were skinny). You should also be excellent for the sake of excellence. If you're going to half-ass something, you might as well not do it at all. In fact, you look like more of a loser if you do something poorly than if you didn't do it at all.
Sincerely,
Dad
s an excerpt from an email written by Mr. M. to his young son Evan "The Contradiction" M., who, after graduating from high school, decided to put off college, then left home to follow Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino on a worldwide book-signing tour. Read the email carefully. Then, in a well-written OUTLINE in a blog post (as a comment), analyze how the rhetorical strategies Mr. M. uses reveal his own values:Little Dude-
I'm taking a lot of my time to write you but I'm not sure it's really worth it. I know people hate advice. I know people who want it don't listen to it. And I know that advice from parents is especially annoying because we're old and out of touch, and way too serious.
Still, part of me thinks that as knuckle-headed as you can be, you have some sense and recognize that I only give you advice because I care about YOU. So maybe, just maybe, you'll take it to heart.
Don't see me as "dad." I'm your buddy, your "dog," as it were. Your friend, but a real friend who cares about you. I want to guide you, not stop you.
Look, my childhood was full of bumps and bruises. It wasn't pretty. So of all people, you should listen to me because I can steer you clear of the things that might trip you up, might cause those bumps and bruises. Those same things that tripped me up.
I'm not gonna sit here and tell you how you'd basically be dead without me, or that you've never earned a dime for yourself. Also, I'm not trying to be like your mom and say, "I'm so worried about you Evan. You poor thing, you have no direction in life." You're better than that. And truthfully, I'm not convinced that my telling you all of this is gonna make you act right. I know you have what it takes to act right on your own.
I've always told you to apply yourself. Not because it's an obligation to me, but because it's, simply put, good for YOU. Necessary for you. Is there anything better than being more successful than your peers? Is there anything worse than looking around and seeing that all of your peers are MORE successful than you are? Think about it, if you end up being a loser it will be even worse for you because your parents have done everything in their power to make you succeed. You've had more opportunities than any other kids we know. Your dad is a famous author for crying out loud.
Don't get me wrong. You shouldn't just be successful to "beat out" others (even though it felt awesome to go to my high school reunion and look down on all of these low-lifes, working menial jobs, talking about the "good old days" in high school, when they had teeth and were skinny). You should also be excellent for the sake of excellence. If you're going to half-ass something, you might as well not do it at all. In fact, you look like more of a loser if you do something poorly than if you didn't do it at all.
Sincerely,
Dad
Friday, February 26, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
19 February 2010
1. Grab a Scan-tron.
2. Write this down NOW and USE it as you take the test:
Homework:
1. Research one of the people mentioned in Chapter 2 OR someone of your choice that you consider to be an expert.
2 Reread Chapter 2, and write a 250-word "case study" on your chosen person, in which you give a brief profile of them AND explain whether or not they support Gladwell's assertion about the "10,000 Hour Rue" and why.
Due Monday at the BEGINNING OF CLASS.
1. Grab a Scan-tron.
2. Write this down NOW and USE it as you take the test:
MC Exam Tips
Read for the big picture (goal, tone, point-of-view)
Always return to the passage when questions refer to specific lines.
Read AROUND lines--context is important!
Pace yourself! 45 min / 6 passages = 7-8 minutes per passage
Use Process of Elimination - Only guess if you can eliminate 2 answers.
Circle difficult questions and come back to them.
You will be penalized 1/4 point for WRONG answers.
Complete Questions 1 - 41 only.
Homework:
1. Research one of the people mentioned in Chapter 2 OR someone of your choice that you consider to be an expert.
2 Reread Chapter 2, and write a 250-word "case study" on your chosen person, in which you give a brief profile of them AND explain whether or not they support Gladwell's assertion about the "10,000 Hour Rue" and why.
Due Monday at the BEGINNING OF CLASS.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
17 February 2010
Agenda:
Outliers Exam (entire hour)
Clear your desk EXCEPT for a pencil or pen. Wait quietly
for instructions. This is a TIMED test, so let's not waste any.
Homework: Email an article to mrhughesthurston@gmail.com that relates to a topic from Outliers that piqued your interest. Include a 1-paragraph summary and a 1-paragraph reaction.
Tomorrow: Outliers Intro, Multiple Choice Refresher
Friday: Multiple Choice Exam
Agenda:
Outliers Exam (entire hour)
Clear your desk EXCEPT for a pencil or pen. Wait quietly
for instructions. This is a TIMED test, so let's not waste any.
Homework: Email an article to mrhughesthurston@gmail.com that relates to a topic from Outliers that piqued your interest. Include a 1-paragraph summary and a 1-paragraph reaction.
Tomorrow: Outliers Intro, Multiple Choice Refresher
Friday: Multiple Choice Exam
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Agenda
David Foster Wallace (actually Mr. Hughes) reads commencement speech
Discussion
HW: Bring L o C book and homework from today for tomorrow's synthesis essay.
Finish Outliers by next Wednesday. There will be a test.
Discussion
HW: Bring L o C book and homework from today for tomorrow's synthesis essay.
Finish Outliers by next Wednesday. There will be a test.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Agenda
Monty Python - Argument Clinic
AP Argumentals
HW: Read this speech and circle/identify all rhetorical devices.
6th hour: Due to early dismissal we'll finish today's activity tomorrow or next week.
Monty Python - Argument Clinic
AP Argumentals
HW: Read this speech and circle/identify all rhetorical devices.
6th hour: Due to early dismissal we'll finish today's activity tomorrow or next week.
Monday, February 8, 2010
8 February 2010
1. As you watch the video, take out your homework so I can mark it.
Agenda
Look at Friday's synthesis essay
Rubric
Score sample essays
Score your own essays
Discuss
Preview tomorrow
HW: Email mrhughesthurston@gmail.com ideas for "Argumental"
Here's the Spring Syllabus
1. As you watch the video, take out your homework so I can mark it.
Agenda
Look at Friday's synthesis essay
Rubric
Score sample essays
Score your own essays
Discuss
Preview tomorrow
HW: Email mrhughesthurston@gmail.com ideas for "Argumental"
Here's the Spring Syllabus
Friday, February 5, 2010
Monday, February 1, 2010
Agenda
Announcements:
Tutoring every Monday after school
Personal Synthesis
HOMEWORK: Gather 4 artifacts (1 visual, 3 written)
Tutoring every Monday after school
Personal Synthesis
HOMEWORK: Gather 4 artifacts (1 visual, 3 written)
Friday, January 22, 2010
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Today's Assignment
1. Read through the color-coded "Letter From a Birmingham Jail"
2. Using the same color-coding technique, type your own letter (750 word minimum) in a Word document in which you use the same rhetorical strategies to ask for something.
3. Email the color-coded letter to mrhughesthurston@gmail.com
Possible audiences:
2. Using the same color-coding technique, type your own letter (750 word minimum) in a Word document in which you use the same rhetorical strategies to ask for something.
3. Email the color-coded letter to mrhughesthurston@gmail.com
Possible audiences:
- political figure (current or past)
- parent/guardian
- friend (anonymous, please)
- celebrity
- someone you have a crush on
- teacher (anonymous, please)
- work supervisor
- college admissions officer
- school principal
- anyone else (ask for approval)
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Agenda
Preview Final Exam
Go over Friday's prompt
HOMEWORK: By 7 am, email 5 questions/issues for the final exam that you'd like to go over.
Go over Friday's prompt
HOMEWORK: By 7 am, email 5 questions/issues for the final exam that you'd like to go over.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Agenda
Essay Esam - R.A. of Ch. 6, A Room of One's Own
HOMEWORK: Read "Letter From a Birmingham Jail" (p. 260)
in L o C and complete a R.A.G.
HOMEWORK: Read "Letter From a Birmingham Jail" (p. 260)
in L o C and complete a R.A.G.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
For Mon 1/11/10
Directions for today:
1. Take out your homework.
2. Choose which Rhetorical Analysis Guide you want to turn into a full essay (Ch 1 or 2).
3. Type it up in MS Word, using my comments and/or my or Mr S's help.
4. Copy and paste your essay into this Google Document.
HOMEWORK: Finish above assignment and complete R.A.G. for Chapter 3 (due tomorrow)
1. Take out your homework.
2. Choose which Rhetorical Analysis Guide you want to turn into a full essay (Ch 1 or 2).
3. Type it up in MS Word, using my comments and/or my or Mr S's help.
4. Copy and paste your essay into this Google Document.
HOMEWORK: Finish above assignment and complete R.A.G. for Chapter 3 (due tomorrow)
Monday, January 4, 2010
Agenda:
A Room Test
Homework (or when done w/test)
Read the cover page from the syllabus and on the back, evaluate the class so far, in terms of:
1. Your performance
2. My performance
3. The performance of the class as a whole
To consider for each: What is working? Isn't working? Needs improvement? Needs more attention? Anything else that pertains to the course requirements.
A Room Test
Homework (or when done w/test)
Read the cover page from the syllabus and on the back, evaluate the class so far, in terms of:
1. Your performance
2. My performance
3. The performance of the class as a whole
To consider for each: What is working? Isn't working? Needs improvement? Needs more attention? Anything else that pertains to the course requirements.
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