September 20-24

French I/II
Bonjour mes etudiants! I enjoyed taking Clara and Marianne to see the cotton in full bloom. We take the natural world around us for granted sometimes and it is neat to see the wonder in someone's eyes when they are seeing something for the first time. I was very suprised to find out that most of you had never seen cotton that close or touched it. I think that was an educational experience for many of you on Friday. I had fun with you comme d'habitude. We will continue working with chp. 2 direct/indirect object pronouns this week and with verbs, vocabulary, and Paris (we will travel to Versailles!)
This is the link for you to practice your vocabulary for Chp.2  Part 1 Vocabulary Test on Friday Sept. 24th.
http://quizlet.com/1276099/bien-dit-2-ch-2-1-flash-cards/

Senior English
This is a link to the vocabulary for Beowulf: http://quizlet.com/1249583/beowulf-vocabulary-words-flash-cards/   Last year we used quizlet to practice SAT vocabulary. This is the same website. Go there and practice the vocabulary for Beowulf. Your test will be on September 28th. On friday our "doughnut day" we will present your BOASTS following in the footsteps of the heroic tradition! the date for this is September 24th.
This week we will learn about Anglo-Saxon Riddles and try to solve some of these riddles. Historically, many cultures have riddle-poem traditions. One of the best known is the riddle-poem tradition of the Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, and Teutons. These are also referred to as enigmata. These cultures of the Dark Ages played riddle-poem games around their hearth-fires for over five hundred years. Some of their riddles were written down and have survived to this day. Here as an example is a modern English translation of a simple riddle-poem, over a thousand years old. It's from the Red Book of Exeter, which contains many Anglo-Saxon riddles and is one of four surviving Anglo-Saxon prosody manuscripts.
 Riddle: A wonder on the wave / water became bone.
can you solve this riddle? This simple, one-line poem is a good example of Anglo-Saxon prosody and the riddle-poem style.  Good riddle-poems are concise, pithy, visual, and have a beat.  Like haiku and other short forms, they revolve around a compelling image, but in presentation they are likely more akin to poetry slam performances.
 Another common feature in Anglo-Saxon prosody is the use of "kennings." These were words before there were words--that is, these were extant words used in combination when no other word for something yet existed. These were often poetic descriptions of some simple thing or event--and had the effect of sometimes being a riddle within the riddle-poem. Some Viking kennings were used so conventionally that they became poetic clichés, even then. For example, the ocean was called the "whale-road," the sun was referred to as the "world-candle, battle was known as "a feast of eagles," warriors became "spear-trees," and generous chieftains were known as "ring-givers." This last kenning was in reference to the practice of a Viking warrior to receive a ring or bracelet from the chieftain's own arm as a special favor, and bestowing such a gift also confirmed the power of the chieftain.
Source: http://www.public.asu.edu/~aarios/formsofverse/furtherreading/page3.html

English 11 AP

Hey guys! This week we will be reading Great English Essays from Bacon to Chesterton and we will discuss the elements of rhetoric utilized by the essayists. We'll be reading Jonathan Swift's "A Meditation Upon a Broomstick" and "A Modest Proposal." On Tuesday I will test you on the assigned SAT vocabulary. Here is the link to practice your SAT vocabulary: http://quizlet.com/2545047/vocabulary-plus-49-flash-cards/ TEST ON FRIDAY



English 11
Wednesday SEPTEMBER 22 test over SAT Vocabulary words   We will read and discuss Jack London's To Build a Fire. I will help you do a critical reading of the short story looking for literary elements used by London to create a naturalist writing. We will continue to work in the grammar workbook as well. Here is the link for you to practice your SAT vocabulary: http://quizlet.com/2545047/vocabulary-plus-49-flash-cards/ 


Myth and Legend.
This week we will be reading Oedipus the King. You have your assigned parts so get your costumes ready. Our overarching goal will be to identify passages demonstrating the tension between free will and fate in the text. By the way, what was the riddle of the Sphinx? Do you know? Here it is. Can you solve it:? Oedipus did. What goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?