01/13/2021: Wind Down Wednesday

Ms. VincentJanuary 13, 2021Leave a comment

We had some great class discussions today. Here's our recap!

English 8

We went over character types today, and here's the vocabulary you need to know.

Hero: a character who is good and does the morally right thing.

Villain: a character who is bad and does the morally wrong thing.

Protagonist: main character, does NOT have to be a hero.

Antagonist: a character who opposes the main character, does NOT have to be a villain.

Flat character: a character we don't know a lot about.

Round character: a character we do know a lot about.

Static character: a character who doesn't change much throughout the story.

Dynamic character: a character who changes or grows during a story.

English 9 and 9H

We discussed the importance of culture to stories today and went over some of the reasons why people tell stories in the first place. Creation myths will not only tell us what the people of a culture believed in a religious sense but also what their values are. Remember that water, as a life-giving substance, is going to appear in a lot of our creation myths.

01/12/2021: For Johnny, Yoruba Creation Myth

Ms. VincentJanuary 12, 2021Leave a comment

In order to give you all as much support as I can in making sure you have the best grades possible, I'm going to allow you to turn in any late work from any point in the second quarter (except reading check-ins for 8th grade). Please reach out through Schoology or email if you're struggling so that I can help.

Here's today's recap!

English 8

The greasers won the rumble! As exciting as this is, Dally knows that he has to bring Ponyboy to the hospital to see Johnny as soon as possible because he's doing worse. Ponyboy isn't feeling well after the rumble, and when he and Dally are pulled over for speeding, he doesn't have to pretend much to help Dally convince the police officer that he's injured and needs to get to the hospital. When they arrive, the doctor tells them that Johnny is dying. Dally manages to bring Johnny some happiness by telling him that he (and the other greasers) are proud of Johnny. Johnny's last words are to Ponyboy, telling him to "stay gold" before he dies.

English 9 and 9 Honors

Today, we read the Yoruba creation myth. Olorun and the other orisha are content to live in their sky kingdom except for Obatala, who wants to use his powers and who wants to create beings to care for. He goes to Orunmila for advice, and is told to gather seeds and sand, then get the gold from the other orishas to make a chain. He does these things and climbs down to the vast ocean beneath the sky. At Orunmila's suggestion, Obatala empties the sand from the snail shell to create land, and then he spreads seeds across it. After looking at his reflection in a pool, he gathers clay to make figures that look like him. He drinks some fermented palm wine and becomes intoxicated, creating some figures who are missing eyes or have misshapen limbs. Olorun grants these figures life, and Obatala becomes the special protector of people with disabilities.

01/11/2021: The Rumble, Babylonian Creation Myth

Ms. VincentJanuary 11, 2021Leave a comment

We had some excitement in our class readings today, for sure! Here's today's recap!

English 8

Today, we read the beginning of chapter 9, where Ponyboy and the Greasers are getting ready for the rumble. They gather together at the Curtis house to prepare, doing acrobatics as they head down the street to the lot. They shout and laugh to amp each other up. When they arrive, they meet with the Brumley Boys and Tim Shepard's gang. The 20 greasers prepare to face off against the 22 Socs, but just before Darry and his former friend Paul are about to begin, they hear a shout. Dally Winston has come to join the rumble! It's quite a fight, and Ponyboy gets pretty beat up.

English 9 and 9 Honors

As the next step in our study of storytelling, we're looking at creation myths. In this study, we're going to be looking at mythology as the collection of stories from a specific culture that combines their philosophical and theological ideas. In other words, creation myths combine what a culture believes and values with their religious views to explain how the world came to be.

In the Babylonian creation myth, Apsu and Tiamat have children together, but they are very loud, and Apsu plans to kill his children. When Tiamat warns Enki, the oldest, Enki kills Apsu. Enraged, Tiamat declares war on the young gods and names Quingu her general. The younger gods cannot win against the older gods and the 11 monsters Tiamat creates until Marduk defeats them, splitting Tiamat in two with an arrow and creating the world and the heavens from her body. He rules the gods. Ea, the god of wisdom, suggests creating humans to care for the world. Marduk kills Quingu, and Ea uses his blood to create the first humans.

01/08/2021: Preparing for the rumble, final project

Ms. VincentJanuary 8, 2021Leave a comment

Sorry for the late update today. Here's our recap!

English 8

We finished chapter 8 today. Two-Bit and Ponyboy went to visit Dallas, who was in a surprisingly good mood until he learned how bad Johnny's condition was. He asked Two-Bit for his ten-inch switchblade. On their way home, the boys ran into Cherry Valance, who told them that the Socs had agreed to not using weapons in the rumble. Ponyboy is beginning to see some of the Socs, like Randy and Cherry, as real people and not just stereotypes.

English 9 and 9 Honors

In order to make the final project less stressful, I made some changes. The project will now be due on Wednesday, but if you turn it in by the original due date of Sunday, you'll receive 5 bonus points. The word count for the original stories has also decreased. If you need any other help, please reach out and let me know. Good luck!

01/07/2021: Socs and Greasers, “Instructions”

Ms. VincentJanuary 7, 2021January 7, 2021Leave a comment

We had a lot to talk about in class today! Here's our recap:

English 8

Today, we finished up chapter 7 and read through the top of page 105 in chapter 8. Randy Adderson (Marcia's boyfriend and Bob's best friend) talked to Ponyboy about the upcoming rumble. He said that he wants to leave town because there's no point in joining the rumble. People get hurt and could be killed, and it won't make a difference. He also explained that all Bob had ever really wanted was for someone to say no to him and set boundaries. Later, they go in to see Johnny, and he's not doing well at all. He's afraid that he will die because there are still so many things he wants to do. When his mother comes to see him, Johnny begs the nurse to make her leave.

English 9 and 9 Honors

We read through Neil Gaiman's "Instructions" today to pull out the different moral lessons in the poem. These are some ideas for you to use if you'd like in your own stories. Remember that having a moral lesson is one of the key points of a fairy tale!

01/06/2021: Wind Down Wednesday

Ms. VincentJanuary 6, 2021Leave a comment

Thank you for continuing to work diligently while I was out sick. Here's what was on the agenda for today:

English 8

Today, you should have worked on the verbs practice worksheet, and if you finished it, on the chapter 7 homework assignment. We'll resume The Outsiders tomorrow.

English 9 and 9H

Today, you should have watched "Instructions" by Neil Gaiman and gotten some ideas about the morals in fairy tales, then continued to work on your projects.

01/05/2021: Ponyboy’s Problem, Fairy Tale Project

Ms. VincentJanuary 5, 2021Leave a comment

Here's today's recap!

English 8

We read more of chapter 7 today and learned that things are getting even more complicated for Ponyboy and his brothers. While making a breakfast of eggs and chocolate cake, he learned from Steve and Two-Bit that he (and Johnny, if he survives) will have to testify in juvenile court about the death of Bob Sheldon, even though Cherry Valance and Randy Adderson are saying that Bob was looking for a fight and Johnny acted in self-defense. There's another problem, too: Ponyboy and Soda might be taken away to a boy's home because of all of this. Ponyboy isn't feeling very well, and he and Two-Bit decide to get some sodas before going to visit Dally and Johnny at the hospital. Unfortunately, a familiar blue Mustang is following them, and it seems that Randy wants to talk.

English 9 and 9H

If you haven't yet finished your villain story rough draft, that needs to be in today. You should be working on your planning page (either your self-editing checklist or your outline). If that's done, get started on your final project.

01/04/2021: First Day Back!

Ms. VincentJanuary 4, 2021Leave a comment

Welcome back! I hope you all enjoyed your break from school. Here's today's recap!

English 8

Today, we went over grading procedures as a refresher, and we talked about the mid-unit assessment that was due on December 23. Many people haven't yet turned it in, so even though it's late and you'll lose some points, please turn it in so that you don't have a zero.

We read the beginning of chapter 7, as well, and saw Darry and Soda take Ponyboy back home after talking to the reporters in the hospital. We also learned that while Dally will regain the use of his arm in time in spite of his burns, Johnny will be paralyzed from the waist down and might not survive.

Don't forget that reading check-ins resume this Friday!

English 9 and 9 Honors

Today, we went over grading procedures as a refresher. Your villain rough draft was due by the end of the day yesterday, so if it isn't in, get it in as soon as possible.

You will be working on one of two projects this week, depending on the grade you received for the rough draft. If you're below the grade threshold, you'll be revising your villain story and submitting a final draft for the final project. If you met the grading threshold, you'll be writing an original story with some of our fairy tale elements (villain type, hero type, and a moral or lesson). You can get creative with the setting in this one!