Week in Review 10.12-10.16

A job well done this week, guys! 

On Monday we began by diving into the characterization of good old Billy Pilgrim. I'd set up a few "interactive stations" for you, which included: The Wall of Silence, Freeze Frame, and Circle Discussion (where you answered, essentially, "What's wrong with Billy Pilgrim & How do you explain what's happening to him?)

On Tuesday, we got after syntax, which was a lot of fun. We took a look at a passage from "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Poe, and then wrote some sentences of our own. The goal was to mimic feeling and sensation with our diction and syntax, and MAN did you write some interesting/beautiful/thoughtful/well-crafted sentences. Big hearts to you all on this lesson. 

Click here for the writing activity. 

Wednesday was Socratic seminar prep, and you spent time in class teaming up to create high level, thought-provoking questions that would deepen your understanding of the often mind-bending Slaughterhouse Five. 

Click here for the question template, and 
Click here for the questions you created. 

*Shout out to Aquaman and His Decorative Gourds for having the most entertaining team name. (Ogrelords, honorable mention.)

Thursday, of course, was Socratic seminar day, and I believe it was our most successful to date. I want to mention that the work you do in seminar -- collaborating with one another, examining the text time and again, and refining your understanding of the Big Ideas in a Major Work of Literature is what we're about in AP Lit, and you are improving. It makes my teacher heart happy. (My human heart, too.) 

Some of the most fascinating ideas that emerged in seminar were: the notion and significance of Time, the symbolic nature of the Tralfamadorians and their "all-seeing" eyes, intertextuality, sexuality, and the idea of just being (shout out to Holly B. who is this week's Most Lit for pointing out that maybe all of our questions about the meaning of SH5 are ironic, because, "There is no why." Woo woo!)

Friday for first period, it was a work day. (And a few Disney songs made an appearance as well.)

Some deadlines & reminders: 
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Monday: Thought Plots 5-8 DUE; Quarter Exam Timed Writing
Tuesday: No School -- Read SH5
Wednesday: Quarter Exam Selected Response; Chapter 10 reading due
Friday: Thought Plots 8-10 DUE