Just Mine Now

One text you will be reading this year is one you'll either love or love to hate.  It's the one major text that provides many opportunities to analyze argument as well as to analyze rhetorical strategies.  Both of these skills are needed both when deciphering multiple choice questions as well as two of the essays the exam will ask you to write.   You will find more at Thoreau's Cape Cod .  The book, Cape Cod is described as Thoreau's "sunniest, happiest book."  Possibly  you'll enjoy reading if you have extra time.  You will see more of Thoreau than a man who at times appears to be preaching how you should be living your life, something often found in Walden .  We may read parts in class after our study of Walden .  The website where this text is found also has other works by Thoreau, including an annotated presentation of Walden .  The site may well be worth your perusal. 

Yes, you will be working hard this year.  Some of you may find the time required to excel in this college course in high school a bit overwhelming.  So you might want to read through this particular resource provided by the College Board today through Twitter regarding time management.  It's called " 8 Ways to Take Control of Your Time ."  If you have a Twitter account you might want to consider following AP for Students.  Some good resources are often provided through the tweets for this course and other AP courses. 

Welcome again!  You might want to read the earlier welcome I wrote for last year's students.  What I have said there still stands for this class.  What is presented today is new for this year. Yes, I have been reading, but these are some things new for me.  The first involves an extended essay, How Reading Changed My Life by Anna Quindlen that began with a quote written by Thoreau, someone you will learn to love or hate this year: "How many a man has dated a new era in his life from the reading of a book.  The book exists for us perchance which will explain our miracles and reveal new ones" (Quindlen 1).  Think about what she means here.  Why read?  Because it is true that the more you read, the better you write.  Your reading actually trickles down into your writing. The second book I'm currently reading is Long Quiet Highway: Waking Up in America . While this book can be classified as a memoir, Ms. Goldberg also talks about the process...

Information at these links should help you analyze what you're reading.  You have chosen a difficult novel to digest in a very short amount of time, so I'm hoping the information at these links will help you unravel any queries you may have about what is going on in the novel. An Exploration of Characters and Themes Notes on Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony and the Effects of White Contact on Pueblo Myth and Ritual

Here's a link to the video.  Hopefully it'll work better at home for you.  Please note how it relates to what you should be considering while writing the synthesis essay, how you can apply the information presented.

Now that I have your researched arguments, it's time to turn your attention to last week's assignments.  I'll expect the questions for be complete for both essays by Friday. You will also be participating in Socratic Seminar that day for both. 

Yes, I have scored all your essays.  Rhetorical analysis still needs work so if you're looking for something to concentrate on, concentrate on that essay over spring break.    If you want to know your scores on today's mock exam, email me at my alternative email address, that is if you can't wait.  You'll receive your score sheets Tuesday, 4/7.