Turning Pages and Taking Names (or No Names): January 31, 2018

Focus: How do yesterday's stations inform your understanding of Chapters 17-20?

Shortened class: Tribe/PLC

1. Warming up with Academic Vocabulary: Quiz #3

2. Reading Invisible Man and composing reading tickets

HW:
1. Please read through Chapter 20 for Friday and prepare a ticket. 

2. Start looking for a poetry paper/project poem; it must be from a different time period than the one you selected last semester. We will be briefly recapping the paper/project tomorrow in class. You will need your poem by Thursday, Feb 8 for your metacognitive.

Ellison's Milieu: January 30, 2017

Focus: What other sources from Ellison' milieu might have influenced his writing?

1. Warming up with a Harlem Renaissance painting

2. Perusing Invisible Man stations for Chapters 14, 15, and 16 (the early Brotherhood chapters)

• Station 1: Claude McKay's "America" (MMM approach)

• Station 2: Booker T. Washington (MMM approach)

• Station 3: The Crusader and the African Blood Brotherhood (skim for essential info, then make specific connections to characters and moments from Invisible Man)

• Station 4: The scene where he smashes Mary's cast iron bank (follow directions on sheet)

3. Wrapping up with your thematic statements

HW:
1. Please read Chapter 17 by Wednesday (no ticket); read Chapters 18, 19, and 20 for Friday and prepare a ticket. Tomorrow will be a reading day.

2. Start looking for a poetry paper/project poem; it must be from a different time period than the one you selected last semester. We will be briefly recapping the paper/project tomorrow in class. You will need your poem by Thursday, Feb 8 for your metacognitive.

3. Keep perusing that Academic Vocabulary! Quiz tomorrow over Sets 1-3 (emphasis on Set 3).

Born Again, Born Again, Jiggity Jig: January 29, 2018

Focus: What is the purpose of Chapter 10 in Invisible Man?

1. Warming up with three good things

2. Taking a trip to the Underworld to understand Chapter 10 (54:15 ish)

3. Enjoying a Socratic slow-down on Invisible Man

4. Wrapping up with questions, kudos, and epiphanies

HW:
1. Please read Chapter 17 by Wednesday (no ticket); read Chapters 18, 19, and 20 for Friday and prepare a ticket.

2. Start looking for a poetry paper/project poem; it must be from a different time period than the one you selected last semester. We will be briefly recapping the paper/project tomorrow in class. You will need your poem by Thursday, Feb 8 for your metacognitive.

3. Keep perusing that Academic Vocabulary! Quiz this Wednesday over Sets 1-3 with an emphasis on 3.

Race and "Science": January 26, 2018

Focus: How did race factor into scientific research in the early 20th century, and how does Ellison turn it into a metaphor?

1. Warming up by gathering background on early 20th century science and socialism

Step 1: Briefly research your topic (Wikipedia works well for most topics).

Step 2: Find one line, paragraph or page from Chapters 10-13 in Invisible Man that takes on new meaning in light of your research.

Step 3: Enlighten the class on your newfound understanding by bringing it into Socratic today.

2. Enjoying a silent Socratic on Chapters 10-13 in Invisible Man

3. Wrapping up with questions, kudos, and epiphanies

HW:
1. For Monday: Read Chapters 14, 15, and 16 in Invisible Man and prepare a Socratic ticket.

2. New: Start considering what poem you'd like to take on for your poetry project/paper. It needs to be from a different time period than the poem you analyzed first semester. We will have our poem metacognitive on Thursday, Feb 8.

3. Look over your new Academic Vocabulary words before you go night-night.

Do You Work for the Department of Redundancy Department? January 25, 2018

Focus: How can we write with stylistic command?

1. Warming up by meeting your Academic Vocabulary, Set 3 (www.quizlet.com)

2. Eliminating redundancy and wordiness; click here for "Writing with Style"

*The rule: If you have two sentences, two adjectives, two phrases, etc. performing the same function, get rid of one of them. Keep the one that's doing it better.*

3. Enjoying a brief "Good Morning, A.P." session to explore the passage itself

• Breaking News: Summarize the dramatic situation in this passage. Don't leave out any dirty details.

• Your Spin: What's your take on what really happened here? This is your thesis.

• The "Facts": No fake news here--stick to the textual passages. Which ones are the most revealing? What literary language might you use to talk about them?

• The Wrap-Up: Lingering questions? Kudos to your fellow newscasters? Brilliant epiphanies?

4. Using the reflective rubric for peer feedback on your intro, structure, evidence, and style

HW:
1. Read the heck out of Invisible Man. We're through Chapter 13 for tomorrow's Socratic; be sure to print and bring your reading ticket to class.

2. Look through those Set 3 Academic Vocabulary words while you're waiting for your Starbucks.

A Little Breathing Room: January 24, 2018

Focus: How can we use this time to stay on top of the game?

1. Warming up with Academic Vocabulary Quiz #2: Sets 1 and 2

2. Catching up, maintaining, and/or getting ahead in Invisible Man

HW:
1. Tomorrow we will workshop yesterday's timed writings.

2. Read through Chapter 13 for Friday's big Socratic; create a reading ticket. If you feel like you want to improve your close reading skills, use your reading ticket to practice. For example, find 2 or 3 passages that intrigue you, and slow down on each one, drawing out imagery, symbolism, diction, etc.

Old School Prose: January 23, 2018

Focus: How do we practice for Question #2 on the A.P. Literature test?

1. Warming up with a group close reading (using literary language)

2. Performing a prose-based timed writing with a focus on...guess what? Close reading and incorporating literary language

HW:
1. For tomorrow:
Look through Academic Vocabulary, Units 1 and 2 to prepare for tomorrow's short quiz.

Finish reading Chapter 10 in Invisible Man; if you read 20 pages a night and 20 pages in class tomorrow, you will easily finish your reading for Friday. No reading ticket necessary tomorrow; you can incorporate Chapter 10 into your ticket for Friday.

2. For Friday: Read Chapters 11, 12, and 13; prepare a Socratic ticket.

Illuminating the Patterns: January 22, 2018

Focus: What larger meaning can start to make of the patterns in Invisible Man?

1. Warming up with three good things and a quick explanation of jazz

2. Taking moments from Chapter 1 and exploring how they play out in Chapters 2-9

The narrator's speech

The white lady

The chaos of the Battle Royal

Tatlock

The blindfolds

The arena

The electrified rug

The coins

The briefcase

The scholarship
The grandfather's advice

Make yourself a big, messy chart in which you focus on a few of the items above and explore how they resurface in subsequent chapters, perhaps in slightly altered forms.

How does it change? How does it stay the same?
What does Ellison's structure have to do with jazz?

3. Enjoying a Socratic Seminar on Chapters 6, 7, and 8

4. Wrapping up with questions, epiphanies, and kudos

HW:
1. Will have a prose-based timed writing on Tuesday.

2. For Wednesday:

• Read Chapter 10 in Invisible Man. NO Socratic ticket needed, but feel free to incorporate this chapter into your reading ticket for Friday.
• Review Academic Vocabulary, Units 1 AND 2 (short quiz on Wed).

3. For Friday: Read Chapters 11, 12, and 13 in Invisible Man; prepare a Socratic ticket.

We Wear the Mask: January 19, 2018

Focus: What is Dr. Bledsoe's role in Invisible Man?

1. Warming up with a circle reading of "We Wear the Mask" and a close reading of Dr. Bledsoe

2. Enjoying a variation on Socratic on Invisible Man: Chapters 5 and 6



3. Wrapping up with epiphanies, questions, and kudos




HW:
1. For Monday: Read Chapters 7, 8, and 9 in Invisible Man; prepare a Socratic ticket (feel free to try something new!).

2. Look through BOTH units of Academic Vocabulary before going to bed at night.

Revisiting the Final for the Final Time: January 18, 2018

Focus: In terms of preparing for the test, what do I need to focus on this semester?

1. Warming up by meeting Academic Vocabulary, Unit 2!

2. Revisiting the final section of the Multiple Choice part of the midterm

• Untangling complex sentences
• Paraphrasing quatrain by quatrain
• BONUS: Scan the heck out of this thing. Two lines have an extra syllable. Look at the line that follow these. What might the purpose of the extra syllable be?
• Seeking the shift and the tone
• Working your way towards the best answer (via speed dating)

3. Returning your Beloved essays with the official rubric (and sample essays for you to peruse if needed)

4. Calculating your actual score using this website: http://appass.com/calculators/englishliterature

PLEASE WRITE YOUR ESTIMATED OVERALL SCORE AT THE TOP OF YOUR SCANTRON AND RETURN IT TO ME.

HW:
1. For Friday: Read Chapters 5 and 6 of Invisible Man for Socratic on Friday; prepare your reading ticket.

2. Ongoing: Keeping scrolling through this week's new Academic Vocabulary and last week's.

Variations on the Battle Royal: January 17, 2018

Focus: How are these early chapters variations on Chapter 1's Battle Royal?

1. Warming up with your first Academic Vocabulary quiz

2. Enjoying our second Socratic on Invisible Man: Chapters 2-4

3. Wrapping up with epiphanies, questions, and kudos

HW:
1. For tomorrow: Bring back all of your midterm materials (scantron, MC, essay prompts).

2. For Friday: Read Chapters 5 and 6 of Invisible Man for Socratic on Friday; prepare your reading ticket.

Camping with Dad: January 16, 2018

Focus: What are we doing well in our prose timed writings, and how can we improve?

1. Warming up with three good things

2. Recapping the technique of the close reading

3. In Question #2: Johnny Got His Gun, considering the first inch, the last inch, and the concrete details and devices in between; which places are richest for close readings?

4. Perusing two sample essays on Q2, then using the reflective rubric to peer edit each other's timed writings

HW:
1. For tomorrow: Remember that tomorrow is your first, tiny assessment on Academic Vocabulary, Set 1. Use Quizlet to review (right before you go to bed if possible).

2. For tomorrow: Read Chapters 2, 3, and 4 in Invisible Man and prepare your Socratic ticket for tomorrow's discussion. Because class is short tomorrow, we will dive right into it with minimal warming up.

3. For Thursday: Bring back all of your midterm materials (scantron, MC, essay prompts).

False Gold: January 12, 2018

Focus: What is the function of the battle royal in Invisible Man?

1. Warming up with Academic Character reminders and goals

2. Collecting objects from the Prologue and Chapter 1

• Skim through the Prologue and Chapter 1 and make a quick list of important objects.

• Jot down (or highlight) an intriguing quotation to describe each one.

• With a partner, try to find connections between the objects...what do they have in common? Can you find any connections between these objects and the stereotypes from Ethnic Notions?

3. Enjoying our first Socratic seminar of 2018: The Prologue and Chapter 1 of Invisible Man

4. Wrapping up with kudos, epiphanies, and lingering questions

HW:
1. For Wednesday, please read Chapters 2, 3, and 4 in Invisible Man and create a reading ticket. Even though it's Wednesday, we will be having a Socratic since we don't have school on Monday. It's 70 pages; I recommend spending three nights on it (one chapter a night).

2. For Friday, please read Chapters 5 and 6 and create a reading ticket for Socratic.

3. Peruse Academic Vocabulary, Unit 1; we will have our first assessment next Wednesday.

Dangerous Stereotypes: January 11, 2018

Focus: What stereotypes dictate the narrator's world in Invisible Man?

1. Warming up with Academic Vocabulary, Unit 1 (5-10 minutes)

2. Viewing part of Ethnic Notions to gain an understanding of the danger and depth of black stereotypes

• Please use the handout given out in class (and also linked HERE) to help you sort through, understand, and apply the stereotypes presented in Ethnic Notions

3. Discussing these stereotypes in small groups and connecting them back to Tuesday's freewriting:

In the first half of the 20th century, how do racial stereotypes factor in to the following questions?

• What does it mean to be invisible? 
• In our society, who's invisible? Who's visible?
• In what ways is invisibility be empowering?
• In what ways is invisibility disempowering?
• Why is important to still be talking about (in)visibility right now, in 2018?

4. Briefly addressing your new reading ticket possibilities

HW:
1. Spend a few minutes perusing Academic Vocabulary, Unit 1.

2. Read the Prologue and Chapter 1 of Invisible Man by Friday; prepare your first reading ticket for Friday's Socratic.

• Overview of Socratic expectations and grading method
• Reading ticket possibilities

Finding the Right Match: January 10, 2018

Focus: What can we expect of the poetry multiple choice section on the AP Literature exam?

1. Warming up with the course syllabus and copies of Invisible Man

2. Transferring your MC responses and scoring each section

• Circling the answers you initially chose and giving me back your scantrons
• Offering you a few thoughts about your MC scores

3. Revisiting "The Albuquerque Graveyard" with a little speed dating (Find the right match for you...wait, no.  Find the right match for each M.C. question)

• Gathering quick background info from the title and the blurb at the end

• Rereading the poem with a focus on the space and the speaker: What kind of journey is the speaker on here?

• Decoding the questions: What types of questions can you expect here?

• Taking on the vocabulary in question #25

• Working around the vocabulary in question #26

• Comparing answers for questions #27-34

4. Meeting your first unit of Academic Vocabulary!

• How it works: Academic Vocabulary overview
• Experimenting with your first set of words

5. Offering you a few new reading ticket possibilities for Invisible Man

HW:
1. Return your signed class syllabus by Thursday, January 11.

2. Strongly consider purchasing your own copy of Ellison's Invisible Man. (Also, if you still have a copy of Beloved, please turn it in this week.)

3. Read the Prologue and Chapter 1 of Invisible Man by Friday; prepare your first reading ticket for Friday's Socratic.

• Overview of Socratic expectations and grading method
• Reading ticket possibilities

2017 Is ECHOING...Echoing...echoing: January 9, 2018

Focus: How does poetic form contribute meaning?  In other words, how is order brought to chaos?

1. Warming up with three good things and a little Greek mythology: The Myth of Echo (read from Book III of Ovid's Metamorphoses)

• What did you learn about the nature of an echo?

2. Discussing "An Echo Sonnet: To an Empty Page" as a class

a. What important information can you garner from the poem's title?

b. Read through the poem with the echo and without the echo (as though it were a traditional sonnet). How would you characterize the Voice? How would you characterize the Echo?

c. Where did you section the poem? How did you figure it out? What's each section about?

d. Think of the poetic devices we've studied so far (imagery, diction, extended metaphor, alliteration, assonance, euphony, cacophony, rhyme, shift words, punctuation, syntax, point of view, enjambment...); which ones play an important role in this poem?  What did they unlock for you?

3. Exploring the rubric and two sample essays to reflect on your own writing

4. Perusing this semester's course syllabus and upcoming items; distributing Invisible Man

5. Enjoying a little freewriting on the book's title:

• What does it mean to be invisible?
• In our society, who's invisible? Who's visible?
• In what ways is invisibility be empowering?
• In what ways is invisibility disempowering?
• How visible are you?
• Why is important to be talking about (in)visibility right now, in 2018?

HW:
1. Return your signed class syllabus by Thursday, January 11.

2. Strongly consider purchasing your own copy of Ellison's Invisible Man.

3. Read the Prologue and Chapter 1 of Invisible Man by Friday; prepare your first reading ticket for Friday's Socratic.

• Overview of Socratic expectations and grading method
• Reading ticket possibilities