Week at a glance May 13 - 17, 2013

This week we'll wrap up our work over F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.  Daisy makes her choice in Chapter VII, thereby resolving the primary conflict of the story.  Chapters VIII and IX are all the consequences of her choice and effects that follow.  We will finally come to understand why Nick, in Chapter I, says "When I came back from the East last autumn I felt that I wanted the world to be in uniform and at a sort of moral attention forever; I wanted no more riotous excursions with privileged glimpses into the human heart" (2).  What made Nick so upset?  The end of the novel will explain why.

• Mon: The Great Gatsby - Ch VII quiz; study guide due by the end of the hour.
• Tues: The Great Gatsby - read Ch VIII and Ch IX, pages 147 - 180.
• Wed: The Great Gatsby - Ch VIII and Ch IX quiz; study guide due by the end of the hour.
• Thurs: The Great Gatsby - review the final chapters. 4th Qtr IBP make up presentations.
• Fri: The Great Gatsby - review for the Semester Final.

Week at a glance May 6 - 10, 2013

This week we begin building toward the climax of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.  Daisy and Gatsby have found one another again.  Things are happy for them, but can it last?  Is Gatsby's dream realistic?  Are there other factors that might drive them apart?  Students should consider the following quote from Fitzgerald as we head toward the intense and deadly climax:

"It is sadder to find the past again and find it inadequate to the present than it is to have it elude you and remain forever a harmonious conception of memory." 

Students will also complete the 4th Quarter Independent Book Project this week, due on Friday.

• Mon: No school  - teacher in-service
• Tues: The Great Gatsby - read and discuss Chapter 6. Finish reading Chapter 6, pages 97-111, before class on Wednesday.
• Wed: The Great Gatsby - Chapter 6 quiz. Study guide due by the end of the hour.
• Thurs: The Great Gatsby - read and discuss Chapter 7.  Finish reading Chapter 7, pages 113-145, before class on Monday.
• Fri: 4th Qtr IBP due.  Presentations.

Week at a glance April 29 - May 3, 2013

This week we'll return to F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.  Students have finally met Gatsby.  In this week's chapters, Gatsby has a very personal favor to ask of Nick.  This favor will reveal much about Gatsby's motives, as well as why he was reaching toward the green light the first night Nick saw him.

Students should also be completing their notes and making their project selection for the 4th Qtr IBP.  The 4th Qtr IBP is due at the beginning of class on Friday, May 10.

• Mon: The Great Gatsby - read and discuss Chapter 4. Finish reading Chapter 4, pages 61-80, before class on Tuesday.
• Tues: The Great Gatsby - Chapter 4 quiz. Study guide due by the end of the hour.
• Wed: Pass back and discuss current grades.  The Great Gatsby - read and discuss Chapter 5.  Finish reading Chapter 5, pages 81-96, before class on Thursday.
• Thurs: The Great Gatsby - Chapter 5 quiz. Study guide due by the end of the hour.
• Fri: 4th Qtr IBP - finish the novel.  Create notes for the project.  4th Qtr IBP due at the beginning of the hour on Friday, May 10.

Week at a glance April 22 - 26, 2013

We'll take a break from the reading portion of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby so that we can wrap up the Definition Essay.  We'll begin the week by finishing our notes over the Roaring Twenties.  We'll then pass back and discuss the rough draft of the Definition Essay.  Students will then have two days in the computer lab to revise and edit their final draft.  On Friday we'll do a bit more reading for the 4th Qtr IBP and then review Gatsby chapters I - III.

• Mon: Finish Roaring Twenties slide.  Begin presentations.
• Tues: Finish Roaring Twenties presentations.  Pass back and discuss the Definition Essay rough draft.
• Wed: Meet in the computer lab to type up the Definition Essay Final Draft.
• Thurs: Definition Essay Final Draft due to turnitin.com by the end of the hour.
• Fri: 4th Qtr IBP reading time. Review The Great Gatsby chapters I - III.

Week at a glance April 15 - 19, 2013

We'll continue reading F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.  Students all have their own copy of the novel checked out to them.  Last week we discovered four of the main core characters: narrator Nick Carraway, his cousin Daisy Buchanan and her "hulking" husband Tom, and their friend, Jordan Baker.  This week we meet two minor, yet critical characters: voluptuous Myrtle Wilson and her ghost of a husband George.  After many intriguing rumors, ominous hints, and idle speculation, we will finally also meet the mysterious Jay Gatsby.

• Mon: The Great Gatsby - read and discuss Chapter 2. Finish reading Chapter 2, pages 23-38, before class on Tuesday.
• Tues: The Great Gatsby - Chapter 2 quiz. Study guide due by the end of the hour.
• Wed: The Great Gatsby - read and discuss Chapter 3.  Finish reading Chapter 3, pages 39-59, before class on Thursday.
• Thurs: The Great Gatsby - Chapter 3 quiz. Study guide due by the end of the hour.
• Fri: 4th Qtr IBP reading time. The Great Gatsby -The Roaring Twenties, notes and discussion.

Week at a glance, April 8 - 12, 2013

This week we will finish the rough draft of the Definition Essay.  We will also begin our final novel unit over F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.  Students will meet Nick Carraway, our narrator, and see life through his young and and a bit innocent perspective. Since we are studying the opening chapter of the novel this week, our focus will be on shaping our first impressions of the characters and learning what we can from them. Students will check out books on Wednesday and will need to bring them to class from now on for the rest of the semester.

• Mon: Create and shape the Definition Essay.
• Tues: Finish creating and shaping the Definition Essay.
• Wed: The Definition Essay - handwritten rough draft due at the beginning of the hour.  Check out The Great Gatsby books.  Discuss notes assignment for Ch.1.  Begin reading Ch. 1.
• Thurs: The Great Gatsby - finish reading Ch. 1.  Take notes for discussion as you read.
• Fri: 4th Qtr IBP reading time. The Great Gatsby - Ch. 1 notes and study guide due by the end of the hour.

Week at a glance April 1 - 5, 2013

This week we will wrap up our very brief Career Research Project.  Students will have one more day to polish their projects with color and pictures.  All students should save their presentations to their student drive before class on Tuesday.  We will do the presentations on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Thursday we'll begin our final major essay of the semester, a short Definition Essay in which students will select a word and analyze both its connotations and its denotations with evidence and analysis.  We'll wrap up the week with reading time for the IBP and by writing the first paragraph of the Definition Essay.

• Mon: Career Research Project - final polish for color and pictures.  All student presentations should be saved in the student's school drive prior to class on Tuesday.
• Tues: Career Research Project Presentations
• Wed: Career Research Project Presentations
• Thurs: Definition Essay - assignment overview. Select a word and complete the Concept Map.
• Fri: 4th Qtr IBP reading time. Definition Essay - create the first paragraph & thesis.

Students should have their 4th Qtr IBP book

selected by Friday, April 12, 2013