Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Ms. Prevosti

Semester 1 Final Blog Paragraph

Please post a 6-8 sentence paragraph that analyzes one literary technique in your Independent Reading Book for the end of Semester 1. This paragraph should include a topic sentence, details from the book, analysis about how the author uses that literary technique, and a summary sentence.

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Annotated Bibliography Paragraph for 1st Marking period Independent Reading book

Post your Annotated Bibliography Paragraph for your 1st Marking Period reading selection here. Post by 6pm on October 27.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Independent Reading Novel Plot Development Post

Hello!

In two well written paragraphs (5-7 sentences each), detail the development of the plot of the novel you selected for independent reading. Tell what is happening to the characters, how the conflict is developing, and any interesting events that have happened.

Include your full name and block at the bottom of your posting.

This is due by 9PM on Saturday, October 3.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Sophomore Independent Reading Selections for 1st Marking Period 2009-2010

Hey, Lovely Sophomores!

Please write a short post letting everyone know the author and title of the book you've selected to read for independent reading during the 1st marking period.

As I am posting this DEREK JETER hit number 2,722, the record for most hits by a Yankee!!!!!!!

Oh, and I am currently reading Pilgram at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard. This novel is about a year Annie Dillard spent living and observing nature in the blue valley of Virginia. I love the vivid description she uses to narrate her experience observing nature. Here's an example of her writing style:

"Outside in summer I watch the orb-weavers, the spiders at their wheels. Last summer I watched one spin her web, which was especially interesting because the light just happened to be such that I couldn't see the web at all. I had read that spiders lay their major straight lines with fluid that isn't sticky, and then lay a nonsticky spiral going the other way. It seems to be very much a matter of concentration. The spider I watched was a matter of mystery: she seemed to be scrambling up, down, and across the air. There was a small white mass of silk visible at the center of the orb, and she returned to this hub after each frenzied foray between air and air. it was sort of Tinker Creek to her, from which she bore lightly in every direction an invisible news. She had a nice ability to make hairpin turns at the most acute angles in the air, all at topmost speed" (Dillard 53).

Over the summer I read:

Ann Rynd, Anthem
Jon Franklin, Writing for Story
David Thoreau, Walden
Maxine Hong Kingston, Warrior Woman
W.E.B Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk
David Sedaris, Naked
Truman Capote, In Cold Blood
Joan Didion, Slouching Toward Bethlehem
Eudora Welty, One Writer’s Beginnings
Spencer Wells, Deep Ancestry: Inside the Genographic Project
Frank McCourt, Teacher Man
half of Dante Alighieri's, Inferno

I love to read!

Mrs. Kaplan

P.S. Also, sign your post with your first and last name as well as your block.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Mrs. Kaplan's A,G and H Blocks Blog Posts 2nd marking period

After you have sent me your draft via my email address and have received my reply with your grade,please post your annotated bibliography paragraph here for 2nd marking period. Remember, we are all blogging at different times. Don't forget the layout of a successful blog:

1. Topic Sentence -with author/title and literary technique used
2. Details - relevant details from the text to support your discussion of the literary technique
3. Analysis - discussion of "HOW" the author uses the literary technique to do something
4. Summary Sentence - restate topic sentence

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Ms. Prevosti's E Block Blog Posts 2nd marking period

Please blog here for 2nd marking period. Remember, we are all blogging at different times. Don't forget the layout of a successful blog:

1. Topic Sentence -with author/title and literary technique used
2. Details - relevant details from the text to support your discussion of the literary technique
3. Analysis - discussion of "HOW" the author uses the literary technique to do something
4. Summary Sentence - restate topic sentence

Friday, February 6, 2009

REVISED ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY PARAGRAPHS

Post your revised annotated bibliography paragraph from the 1st semester here. Also, don't forget to print your paragraph and attached it to the marked up sample paragraph your worked with on Friday. Both are due Monday, 2/9.

Mrs. Kaplan

1st marking period Blog Posting February 2009

Once a marking you will post a response to the novel you have selected for independent reading. This response is called an Annotated Bibliography, and it should be a well detailed, extended paragraph. Follow the instructions outlined below to complete your comment:

1) Compose a clear topic sentence that includes the author and title of the novel you are reading and the point you wish to make about the novel. Do not use an “I” phrase.

2) Compose 6-8 sentences that:

a) Detail the main plot events (remember the paragraph should not be entirely plot summary).
b) Detail how the author uses one literary device to develop the plot (characterization, theme, conflict, setting, point of view, etc.)
c) Include transitions between your details of the main plot events and your detail of the literary device.

3) Finish your paragraph with a summation sentence that restates the topic sentence by explaining why you liked or disliked the novel.

DO NOT USE "I"PHRASES ANY WHERE IN YOUR PARAGRAPH AND REMEMBER TO ITALICIZE BOOK TITLES AND THE TITLES OF PLAYS.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Welcome to the Blog! This is where you will post your Annotated Bibliography for the 1st Marking Period

Independent Reading Blog Requirements
Sophomore World Literature Students,

Once a marking you will post a response to the novel you have selected for independent reading. This response is called an Annotated Bibliography, and it should be a well detailed, extended paragraph. Follow the instructions outlined below to complete your comment:

1) Compose a clear topic sentence that includes the author and title of the novel you are reading and the point you wish to make about the novel. Do not use an “I” phrase.

2) Compose 6-8 sentences that:

a) Detail the main plot events (remember the paragraph should not be entirely plot summary).
b) Detail how the author uses one literary device to develop the plot (characterization, theme, conflict, setting, point of view, etc.)
c) Include transitions between your details of the main plot events and your detail of the literary device.

3) Finish your paragraph with a summation sentence that restates the topic sentence by explaining why you liked or disliked the novel.

DO NOT USE "I"PHRASES ANY WHERE IN YOUR PARAGRAPH AND REMEMBER TO ITALICIZE BOOK TITLES AND THE TITLES OF PLAYS.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

April Annotated Bibliography Extended Paragraph

Post your annotated bibliography extended paragraph for April here. Carefully proofread your paragraph for content and grammar before you publish, and don't forget to print out a copy of your posting for your Literature File. Use the following format to compose your paragraph:

Format for composing an Annotated Bibliography Paragraph:

1) Compose a topic sentence that states the author and title of the novel and explains whether you liked or disliked the novel.

2) Compose 6-8 sentences that:

a) detail the main plot events (remember the paragraph should not be entirely plot summary).
b) detail how the author uses one literary device to develop the plot (characterization, theme, conflict, setting, point of view, etc.)
c) include transitions between your detail of the main plot events and your detail of the literary device.

3) Finish you paragraph with a summation sentence that restates the topic sentence by explaining why you liked or disliked the novel.

DO NOT USE "I"PHRASES ANY WHERE IN YOUR PARAGRAPH AND REMEMBER TO ITALICIZE BOOK TITLES AND THE TITLES OF PLAYS.

Friday, March 28, 2008

March Annotated Bibliography Extended Paragraph

Post your annotated bibliography extended paragraph here. Carefully proofread your paragraph for content and grammar before you publish. Use the following format to compose your paragraph:

Format for composing an Annotated Bibliography Paragraph:

1) Compose a topic sentence that states the author and title of the novel and explains whether you liked or disliked the novel.

2) Compose 6-8 sentences that:

a) detail the main plot events (remember the paragraph should not be entirely plot summary).
b) detail how the author uses one literary device to develop the plot (characterization, theme, conflict, setting, point of view, etc.)
c) include transitions between your detail of the main plot events and your detail of the literary device.

3) Finish you paragraph with a summation sentence that restates the topic sentence by explaining why you liked or disliked the novel.

DO NOT USE "I"PHRASES ANY WHERE IN YOUR PARAGRAPH AND REMEMBER TO ITALICIZE BOOK TITLES AND THE TITLES OF PLAYS.

Sunday, March 2, 2008

February Annotated Bibliography Extended Paragraph

Post your annotated bibliography extended paragraph here before 6pm on March 3, 2008. Carefully proofread your paragraph for content and grammar before you publish. Use the following format to compose your paragraph:

Format for composing an Annotated Bibliography Paragraph:

1) Compose a topic sentence that states the author and title of the novel and explains whether you liked or disliked the novel.

2) Compose 6-8 sentences that:

a) detail the main plot events (remember the paragraph should not be entirely plot summary).
b) detail how the author uses one literary device to develop the plot (characterization, theme, conflict, setting, point of view, etc.)
c) include transitions between your detail of the main plot events and your detail of the literary device.

3) Finish you paragraph with a summation sentence that restates the topic sentence by explaining why you liked or disliked the novel.

DO NOT USE "I"PHRASES ANY WHERE IN YOUR PARAGRAPH AND REMEMBER TO ITALICIZE BOOK TITLES AND THE TITLES OF PLAYS.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Extra Annotated Bibliography Paragraphs for 1st Marking Period

To bank up to 2 points, post your extra annotated bibliography paragraphs here. You may complete a paragraph for any novel you are reading independently. In order to receive the 2 points, your paragraph must be thorough, follow the correct format, and be error free. Proofread carefully.

Format for composing an Annotated Bibliography Paragraph:

1) Compose a topic sentence that states the author and title of the novel and explains whether you liked or disliked the novel.

2) Compose 6-8 sentences that:

a) detail the main plot events (remember the paragraph should not be entirely plot summary).
b) detail how the author uses one literary device to develop the plot (characterization, theme, conflict, setting, point of view, etc.)
c) include transitions between your detail of the main plot events and your detail of the literary device.

3) Finish you paragraph with a summation sentence that restates the topic sentence by explaining why you liked or disliked the novel.

DO NOT USE "I"PHRASES ANY WHERE IN YOUR PARAGRAPH AND REMEMBER TO ITALICIZE BOOK TITLES AND THE TITLES OF PLAYS.

Monday, January 14, 2008

January Annotated Bibliography Extended Paragraph

Post your annotated bibliography extended paragraph here before 6pm on February 11, 2008. Carefully proofread your paragraph for content and grammar before you publish. Use the following format to compose your paragraph:

Format for composing an Annotated Bibliography Paragraph:

1) Compose a topic sentence that states the author and title of the novel and explains whether you liked or disliked the novel.

2) Compose 6-8 sentences that:

a) detail the main plot events (remember the paragraph should not be entirely plot summary).
b) detail how the author uses one literary device to develop the plot (characterization, theme, conflict, setting, point of view, etc.)
c) include transitions between your detail of the main plot events and your detail of the literary device.

3) Finish you paragraph with a summation sentence that restates the topic sentence by explaining why you liked or disliked the novel.

DO NOT USE "I"PHRASES ANY WHERE IN YOUR PARAGRAPH AND REMEMBER TO ITALICIZE BOOK TITLES AND THE TITLES OF PLAYS.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Annotated Bibliography Reading Selection

Post your Annotated Bibliography paragraph here before 6pm on November 3, 2007. Review my sample below and check your paragraph for accuracy and that it is free of grammatical errors before you publish.

Ernest J. Gaines. A Gathering of Old Men. New York: Vintage Contemporaries, 1992. A Gathering of Old Men is a novel about racism. Set in the south in the 1970s, it is the story of a group of black men who band together to protect their friend who killed a white man in self-defense. Because each man says he committed the murder, the authorities, baffled, can do nothing. The power the men have, and the resulting tension that is created, slowly builds throughout the novel. Ernest Gaines uses characterization to move the plot towards its violent conclusion. Each character in the novel is detailed vividly, allowing the reader to sympathize with their dangerous situation. At times, the reader can even empathize with the characters. Gaines details the bond between each man to force the reader to experience the emotions each man feels. In doing so, Gaines forces the reader to examine their own prejudices and ponder what they would do in the face of injustice. On a scale of one to ten, A Gathering of Old Men is a solid ten, a novel that everyone should read.

Tuesday, October 2, 2007

Independent Reading Redo Comments for September 2007

Following the instructions below, and after you have previewed your comment carefully, post your comment for your independent reading selection.


1) Compose a clear topic sentence that includes the author and title of the novel you are reading and the point you wish to make in your paragraph. Remember the topic is the title and author of the novel; the point is the literary device you will detail.
2) In an extended paragraph, discuss one of the following literary devices: characterization, conflict, point of view, theme, or setting.
3) Include at least one quote with citation from the pages your are detailing to support and develop your comment.
4) Include Analysis, your thoughts/opinions about the plot and use of the literary device in your paragraph.
5) Complete your paragraph with a summation sentence that refers back to your topic sentence. Do not rewrite your topic sentence.

Saturday, September 15, 2007

September Post on The Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor

Although it is not an independent reading selection, this month you will begin commenting on the blog by answering a question about the prologue to The Story of a Shipwrecked Sailor. Read the question below. Then, select the comment link to compose your answer, following the instructions below:

1) Write the question in your answer.
2) Cite supporting evidence from the prologue to support your answer.
3) Include analysis, your thoughts and opinions about Marquez's purpose.
4) Include at least one quote with citation from the prologue to support your answer.
5) At the bottom of your response, write your full name, block and the date.

When you are satisfied with your answer, select Publish Your Comment. Then, return to the main page of the blog and sign out.

Now, here is the question for the Prologue (pages v-ix):

What do you think was the author, Gabrial Garcia Marquez's, purpose in writing the story, and how does his purpose affect your expectation of the story?

Independent Reading Comment Requirements

Sophomore World Literature Students,

Once a month you will post a comment about the novel you have selected for independent reading. Follow the instructions outlined below to complete your comment:

1) Compose a clear topic sentence that includes the author and title of the novel you are reading and the point you wish to make in your paragraph.
2) In an extended paragraph, discuss one of the following literary devices: characterization, conflict, point of view, theme, or setting.
3) Include at least one quote with citation from the pages your are detailing to support and develop your comment.
4) Include Analysis, your thoughts/opinions about the plot and use of the literary device in your paragraph.
5) Complete your paragraph with a summation sentence that refers back to your topic sentence. Do not rewrite your topic sentence.

Once a month you will also post a response to another student’s comment. To respond to another student’s comment, follow the instructions below:

1) Select the comment link at the bottom of the posting.
2) In the window, type your name, date, and block
3) Enter a brief, one paragraph, response to the posting.
4) Preview your comment to check for clarity and that it is error free.
5) Select Publish Your Comment.

Above all enjoy!