It's All Greek to Me: August 31, 2017

Focus: Why is Sophocles' interpretation of Oedipus Rex the one that still intrigues us?

1. Warming up with your partner: Creating a literary 3 x 3 for Oedipus Rex using one of Foster's archetypes, such as blindness, quests, violence, symbols, flights of season, sex, geography, seasons, or marks

OR

If you're not ready for that, it's okay! Create a family tree for the play and/or a map of what happens in different locations.



2. Offering you a few helpful background items on Oedipus Rex

• Check out what the Greek theater looked like (above).

• Role of the Chorus: To guide the readers in how they should be interpreting the play.

• Teiresias's story: Why is he blind and prophetic?

• Dramatic irony: The Greek audience would have known this myth quite well before seeing the play. They know exactly how what's going to happen to Oedipus even though he doesn't. Look for evidence of Sophocles playing with this irony.

• Catharsis: The process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions

3. Diving into our first Socratic seminar: Oedipus Rex

4. Wrapping up with epiphanies, questions, and kudos


HW:
1. Finish your first blog post before class on Tuesday (unpack your question, use it to explore Oedipus Rex, and make sure you click on the "Publish" button).

2. For Friday: Bring your laptop to class. I will offer you a 30-min College Essay Boot Camp!

3. For Wednesday:

• Read (and annotate) Chapters 1, 2, and 3 in East of Eden.

4. For next Friday:

• Read (and annotate) Chapters 4, 5, 6, and 7 in East of Eden.

5. Come in to see me for a conference on your college essay!

Asking the Big Questions (For Real, This Time): August 30, 2017

Focus: What do you really want to know?

1. Warming up with a few thoughts about this week

2. Forming your Big Question Blog

1. Start with www.blogger.com
2. Sign in with your school Google account.
3. Give it a creative title that includes your first name.
4. Share the blog address with me at kleclaire@lps.k12.co.us
5. Enjoy refining your background, layout, etc.
6. Include your BIG QUESTION in the header.

3. Unpacking your question

• Spend a paragraph or two freewriting on your question. Why did you pick it? What does it mean to right now? What does it make you wonder about?

• Spend a paragraph or two using your question to investigate Oedipus Rex, bringing in specific examples from the play.

4. Cooling down with the imagery in "Ozymandias"

• How does Shelley's imagery compare to yours?

• What patterns do you notice in Shelley's poem?

• What do you think Shelley was trying to? (_____ but also _____)

HW:
1. For Thursday: 

• Prepare for a Socratic on Oedipus Rex; bring your ticket.

2. For Friday:

• Bring your laptop to class for a 30-minute College Essay Bootcamp!

3. For Tuesday: 

• Finish composing your first Big Question blog (see tasks under #3).
• Spend time reading East of Eden.

4. Ongoing: Stop in for a conference on your college essay!

Imagery and Imagination: August 29, 2017

Focus: How do we indulge in and intellectualize imagery in poetry?

1. Warming up with a painting by Bruegel

2. Exploring in small groups William Carlos Williams's and W.H. Auden's poetic reactions to the painting above with a focus on imagery, tone, and complex statements

• Brainstorm on the title (if there is one).

• Which images engage you the most? Which ones help you "fall into the poem"?

• Think of the images as puzzle pieces. What patterns can you organize them into?

• Circle your "buts": Where are the shifts?

• Back to that title!

• Try to use the imagery to consider the author's tone and/or purpose. 

• What is the author trying to do?
• (______ but also ______)

3. Creating your own poetic response to the image below (using your five senses)

What do you want to say about this picture? 

Incorporate your imagery into a short poem or piece of prose that conveys your meaning or tone.

HW:
1. For tomorrow: Reread the rest of Oedipus Rex by Wednesday; compose a Socratic ticket full of questions to bring to class. We will have our first graded Socratic that day.

A thought: Choose five important moments from the play and ask a good question about each.
Or, try to uncover some patterns in the play (what kinds of things repeat?). Ask questions about those.
Or, delve into character analyses. Or deep, deep philosophical questions. Or all of the above.

2. For Thursday and Friday: Bring your laptop to class. We will work on your big question blogs on Thursday, and we will spend 30 minutes on your college essays on Friday.

3. Come in to see me for a conference on your college essay!

4. All of this week: 

• Bring Oedipus and How To Read Literature... to class each day.

• Come see me for a conference on your college essay! Keep working on it!

Asking the Big Questions: August 28, 2017

Focus: What foundational ideas do you need to guide your year in A.P. Lit?

1. Warming up with three good things

2. Indulging in some terrifying Greek myths and understanding hubris

• Read your myth together (Icarus, Phaethon, Arachne, Niobe, or Tantalus).

• Discuss the nature of the error that the human made.

• Use your bodies to create a sculpture/tableau that captures the moment of downfall in your myth; leave out one person to summarize the myth and read a line or two aloud from the myth that captures this moment.

• As you watch other's sculptures, think about what the downfalls have in common.

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• After presenting the tableaus, journal on the following questions:

• In what ways did Oedipus exhibit hubris? To what extent did this contribute to his downfall?

• What questions does this play raise that are central to us as humans? In other words, why is this tragedy heralded as the tragedy?

3. Setting up your Big Question Blogs (links are also on class website)

List of possibilities
Mike's Sample Blog
Mara's Sample Blog

• Please make sure give yourself a unique blog title that includes your first name.
• Include your big question in the header.

4. Using Oedipus Rex to start composing your first blog post; feel free to spend a little time simply freewriting on your topic before you try using it to understand Oedipus Rex.

HW:
1. For Wednesday: Reread the rest of Oedipus Rex by Wednesday; compose a Socratic ticket full of questions to bring to class. We will have our first graded Socratic that day.

A thought: Choose five important moments from the play and ask a good question about each.
Or, try to uncover some patterns in the play (what kinds of things repeat?). Ask questions about those.
Or, delve into character analyses. Or deep, deep philosophical questions. Or all of the above.

2. For Friday: Continue working on your first blog post; please finish by this Friday (but you may want to wait to finish it until we've discussed Oedipus in class--up to you).

3. All of this week: 

• Bring Oedipus and How To Read Literature... to class each day.

• Come see me for a conference on your college essay! Keep working on it!

"Thursday" Workshop and the Final Day of your A.P. Lit Overture: August 25, 2017

Focus: What does writing workshop look like in A.P. Literature?

*If you haven't yet signed up for our class Remind account, click here! (You can do this as I'm passing stuff back).*

1. Warming up by unpacking the prompt in small groups and considering the following:

• Finding the heart: What's this prompt asking you to do?

• Using the literary terms: What do these terms mean? Which ones were helpful?

• Figuring out how to brainstorm effectively: What method do you use? How well does it work for you?

2. Thinking about what an A.P. Lit thesis statement wants to do

Sample thesis that's too plot summary-ish:
The title "Werewolves in Their Youth" reveals the story of two boys who transform into werewolves.

Sample thesis that's too broad / "out there":
"Werewolves in Their Youth" criticizes public education for ostracizing its most imaginative pupils.

Sample thesis the regurgitates the prompt:
Chabon chooses the title "Werewolves in Their Youth" to display the significance of the setting, diction, and characters.

What your thesis should address (and what we're most interested in A.P. Lit):

• What is the author trying to do?
• How is the author trying to accomplish that? 

Sample thesis that responds to those two questions:

Chabon subverts the traditional werewolf myth by making becoming a werewolf the one thing his young characters can control rather than the one thing they cannot; instead, the human world is the one that lies beyond their power.

3. Exploring a sample essay together and discussing its structure

4. Peer editing with a focus on structure

HW:
1. Keep working on your college essay; come by for a conference! I'm nice! And helpful!

2. For Monday: Reread the first half of Oedipus Rex. Bring your laptop to class.

3. For Wednesday: Reread the second half of Oedipus and create a Socratic ticket full of good, Socratic-style questions. 

4.. For all of next week: Bring Oedipus Rex and How To Read Literature Like a Professor to class each day.

"Tuesday" Writing and Day 4 of your AP Lit Overture: August 24, 2017

Focus: What does a timed writing feel like in A.P. Lit?

1. Warming up with a sample college essay (10 minutes)

• Which images stayed with you?
• In your opinion, what worked in this essay?
• What adjectives would you use to describe this person based on this essay?

2. Walking through your first AP Lit prompt as a class; composing your first "Tuesday" writing individually

• Find the heart of the prompt and underline it.
• Brainstorm and/or outline in a way that works for you  (3-5 min).
• Don't start writing until you have an idea of what you're going to say after your first body paragraph.
• Write in the present tense.
• Cite the author's last name after your first quotation; after that, don't worry about citing.
• MOST IMPORTANTLY: Let yourself discover new meanings as you write. End in a better place than where you started.

(Intermission: Start at 3:49)

3. Turning in your essays

HW:

1. For Friday: Make sure you have completed the survey I e-mailed you last Thursday (and encourage your parents/guardians to complete theirs, too). Sign up for Remind texts by clicking  here.

2. For Monday: Reread the first half of Oedipus Rex. Bring your laptop to class.

3. For Wednesday: Reread the second half of Oedipus and create a Socratic ticket full of good, Socratic-style questions. 

4.. For all of next week: Bring Oedipus Rex and How To Read Literature Like a Professor to class each day.

Independent Literary Essays and Day 3 of your AP Lit Overture: August 23, 2017

Focus: How do we generate authentic topics for our college essays?

PLC: Shortened Class
Please turn in your signed class policies.

1. Warming up by debriefing yesterday's Socratic

• What did we do well?
• What do we need to work on?  How?
• How would you grade your first time participating in an A.P. Lit Socratic?

2. Offering you an overview of your first independent literary essay: The College Essay

• Select one essay that you're writing for college acceptance (if you're not going to college or you don't have to write any essays, use one of the 500 prompts posted below).

• Do your best to abide by the word limit set by your college; if you're composing multiple essays, pick one of your longer ones to turn in.

• Include the name of the college, the exact prompt, and any other directions that your college included, such as a word limit.

• Conference with me at least once, either before the essay is due or after you've turned it in.

• Turn it in by September 18 by 3:00 pm (printed copy).

3. Generating ideas with a few stream-of-consciousness writing prompts:

• "Directions to Where I Live"

• Freewriting with 500 New York Times personal writing prompts

• Highlight two or three moments that you remember well enough to describe using at least three of your senses.

• Look for any patterns and/or shifts.

4. (This might need to wait until tomorrow) Using a sample essay to talk about the balance of slowing down moments and reflecting on the larger meaning


HW:
1. For tomorrow (Thursday): Bring paper and a pen or pencil for your first timed writing (on "Werewolves"). Bring your copy of "Werewolves" to class as well.

2. For Friday: Make sure you have completed the survey I e-mailed you last Thursday (and encourage your parents/guardians to complete theirs, too). Sign up for Remind texts by clicking  here.

3. Peering into next week: Reread the first half of Oedipus Rex for Monday and the second half for Wednesday; bring Oedipus and How To Read Literature...to class each day next week.

The Socratic Experience and Day 2 of Your A.P. Overture: August 22, 2017

Focus: What does a real Socratic seminar look like? How do we prepare for it?

1. Clarifying your "Focus and Grit" grade and our class cell phone policy

 In a nutshell:

1. Work ruthlessly on A.P. Lit from bell to bell.
2. Keep your cell phone in your bag unless invited to to take it out.
3. Use your laptop for what we're doing in class (turn off IM and other distracting pop-ups).
4. Your "Focus and Grit" grade will reflect your focus and help you figure out what student skills you need to work on before you leave AHS.

2. Warming up with Ms. Leclaire's favorite trick and your first whiteboard challenge: Close reading the title

3. Offering you an overview of Socratic seminars and an explanation of Socratic grades

4. Creating your first Socratic tickets and playing your first round of Socratic ticket musical chairs

5. Trying out your first Socratic seminar on "Werewolves in Their Youth"

6. Debriefing as a class and reflecting on Socratic individually

• What did we do well?
• What do we need to work on?  How?
• How would you grade your first time participating in an A.P. Lit Socratic?

HW:
1. For tomorrow (Wednesday): 

• Signed class policies are due.
• Bring a charged laptop.
• If you've started working on your college essays, bring in anything you have so far.

2. For Thursday: Bring paper and a pen or pencil for your first timed writing (on "Werewolves"). Bring your copy of "Werewolves" to class as well.

3. For Friday: Make sure you have completed the survey I e-mailed you last Thursday (and encourage your parents/guardians to complete theirs, too). Sign up for Remind texts by clicking  here.

4. Peering into next week: Reread the first half of Oedipus Rex for Monday and the second half for Wednesday; bring Oedipus and How To Read Literature...to class each day next week.

The Poetry Experience and the Beginning of Your A.P. Overture: August 21, 2017

Focus: How do we experience poetry? How do we get organized for this class?

Please turn in your summer reading assignments at the beginning of class.

1. Warming up with three good things and the science of happiness

• My e-mail: kleclaire@lps.k12.co.us

2. Experiencing vs. reading poetry

• "The Human Family" -- Maya Angelou

• "What Will Your Verse Be?" -- Dead Poets Society / "O Me! O Life" by Walt Whitman

• "Introduction to Poetry" -- Billy Collins

3. Coming to terms with terms and understanding why they're powerful

• Trying out a term on Langston Hughes as a class

• Trying out that same term on T.S. Eliot in small groups

4. Indulging in your concrete, Type-A, organization skills and setting yourself up for this class:

• Augmenting your vocabulary with Quizlet: Click HERE to join our class

• Organizing yourself with Google folders within folders within folders:

• Create an A.P. Lit folder called "Yourlastname_A.P. Lit" 

• Share it with me at kleclaire@lps.k12.co.us

• Within that folder, create a "1st Semester" folder.

• Within your "1st Semester" folder, create the following folders (feel free to spice up your labels):
• College Essay
• Introductory Stuff
• East of Eden
• Henry IV
• Poetry
• Beloved

• Staying on top of your game with Remind: Click HERE to join (if you haven't done so yet)

• Perfecting your grammar with IXL:

5. Introducing yourselves to the Big Question Blog: Click HERE to head to our class website (and bookmark it)

HW:
1. For tomorrow (Tuesday): Finish reading "Werewolves in Their Youth" for our first Socratic seminar. We will do our first Socratic ticket in class, but make sure you annotate the story in whatever way works for you.

2. For Wednesday: Please ask your parents/guardians to read and sign the course syllabus.

3. For Friday: 
If you have not yet done so, please complete the survey I e-mailed to you (and urge your parents to fill theirs out, too).

4. Ongoing: Bring your old school supplies to class (pens, pencils, JOURNAL/NOTEBOOK that's just for this class).