Tuesday, December 11, 2012

As Simple As Snow Webquest

The following assignment is for periods 1-3 and is due on Wednesday, December 19.

Go to this website


1) Identify one of the famous figures from Anna’s room, then write a 100 word   passage on who that person is and why he or she might be interesting to Anna.

2) Find a hint in the mix Anna made for the protagonist.


3) Find an unsolved mystery online and write a 100 word passage  explaining   occurrence and what you think happened.


4) Sign up for clues (if you want to)



Monday, December 10, 2012

Marking Period 2 Alternative Assignments

Students may complete any of the following assignments to replace a failing grade for marking period 2. The highest grade received will be a 65. 

1. "The Gift of the Magi"

Read "The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry, then write a 225 word response to it, including:

75 words summarizing the plot
75 words explaining how the story conveyed irony
75 words explaining whether you believe Jim and Della were foolish or wise.

This essay must be typed, and a hard copy must be handed in to receive credit!

Click here for the text


2. "A Christmas Memory"

Answer the following essay in two paragraphs, typed.
-
Discuss intergenerational friendships. Do Buddy and his friend have an admirable relationship? Is age just a number, or are there boundaries that should not be crossed? Is Capote's depiction of friendship in this story realistic? What does Buddy get out of his friendship with the old woman, and what does she get out of her friendship with Buddy?

Friday, November 30, 2012

As Simple as Snow Assignments

Periods 4 and 8:

Please complete the following guided reading questions by the due date assigned in class.


As Simple as Snow pages 1-20 Guided Reading Questions

As Simple as Snow pages 21-40 Guided Reading Questions

As Simple as Snow pages 41-60 Guided Reading Questions

As Simple as Snow pages 61-80 Guided Reading Questions

As Simple as Snow pages 81-102 Guided Reading Questions

As Simple as Snow pages 103-121 Guided Reading Questions

Friday, November 16, 2012

Roots Homework

Please define the following roots for Monday, November 19th.

Click here for the list of roots

Monday, November 12, 2012

The Research Paper: Social Issues

The topic for the research paper this year is: Social Issues. Below I have included links on potential topics and information on what is expected in the paper. Note that you are not limited to the topics I have provided; you may ask to have a different topic approved. I will also include due dates below as I create them. The final draft of the research paper will tentatively be due some time in March. As always, e-mail me at Allon.Morali@lodi.k12.nj.us if you have any questions.


Click here for information on the research paper

Click here for a list of potential research paper topics

Click here to see what topic you were assigned

Source Sheets-

Book Source Sheet

Website Source Sheet

Video Source Sheet

Personal Interview Source Sheet

Your top three choices for topics: Due November 13

Source Sheet 1: Due November 20

Source Sheets 2 and 3: Due November 26 (At least one of the first three must be a hard source!)

Source Sheets 1-5: Due December 3

Source Sheets 1-8: Due December 8

Source Sheets 1-10 Due December 17

Cover page + 2 page history section (3 pages in total): Due January 14

Works cited page + 2 page key figures section (3 pages in total): Due February 5

Thesis Sentence: Due February 8

Table of contents + 2 page thesis + 1 page of opposing view and debunking it (4 pages in total): Due February 21

Monday, October 22, 2012

Quarterly Assessment 1 Review


Click here to receive the review sheet for my quarterly assessment

Click here to read Plato's "Allegory of the Cave"

Click here to read "Lady Lazarus"

Click here to read "Dover Beach"

Thursday, October 4, 2012

COMPILATION OF PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE CARE ACT (Obamacare)

In our period three class today, we digressed a bit into a discussion on the presidential debate last night and "Obamacare". If anyone is interested in taking a look at the actual language of the act, here is a link.

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Grammar Project

You will be assigned a grammar topic and a partner to create a lesson to teach the class. The lesson should...

1) have some multimedia interactivity (powerpoint, youtube video, etc)

2) have some lecture and note taking

3) have a homework assignment for students to take home and complete to reinforce the lesson

4) take between 5-15 minutes to present (some lessons will take longer than others)

The day the project is due, you will be expected to present the lesson to the class. I STRONGLY RECOMMEND that you come in early that day or an earlier day to practice in my classroom and make sure that everything is in working order.

Come in with a backup plan! If the technology is giving you trouble, you should still be prepared to teach the lesson without eating into too much class time.

The homework assignment you will be dissemenating to your classmates is due two days before your presentation. It should take about 5 minutes to complete.

I will present a lesson on subject/verb agreement to give you an example of what I expect.

This is the link to the homework for that subject/verb agreement lesson.

Please e-mail me if you have any questions.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Fahrenheit 451 Content Quiz Makeup essays


The following is for any students who either missed a Fahrenheit 451 content quiz, or took a content quiz and got under a 50. You may write either of the following essays to replace that grade. The highest grade you can get on the essay is a 50. The essays must be at least two paragraphs.
 
1. Which character in Fahrenheit 451 is most like the element fire? How?
 
2. In paragraph 1, define situational irony and give an example of it. In paragraph 2, discuss its application in Fahrenheit 451. Identify any other forms of irony in the novel.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Fahrenheit 451 Pages 113-136 Guided Reading Questions

Answer these questions for Thursday, 9-27-12
If you would like to download the document to print out the ditto, click the following link: https://www.box.com/s/3amfon0p4hwzlz7dwkw3

1. Identify three vocabulary words and cite what pages you found them on.

2. How did Beatty find out about Montag's books?

3. What happens to Beatty?

4. How does Beatty find out about Faber?

5. What happens to the mechanical hound?

6. What happens to Montag's leg?

7. Why does Montag want to wash up and comb his hair?

8. Give two reasons why crossing the thoroughfare is dangerous for Montag, even though there isn't a car in sight.

9. After visiting Faber, Where does Montag travel?

10. What is hunting him at the end of this section?

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Summer Reading Makeup work

For students who owe me summer reading-

In lieu of taking a test, you will complete a 4 paragraph essay for half credit.


In paragraph 1, identify a dynamic character and explain how that character changed throughout the story.

In paragraph 2, identify a static character and explain how that character stayed the same throughout the story.

In paragraph 3, identify at least three different conflicts in the story, explain them, and then explain how they were resolved (if they were).

In paragraph 4, Identify the climax of the story, and explain how it acted as the turning point in the book.

This essay must be typed.
E-Mail me if you have any questions.

- Mr. Morali

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Fahrenheit 451 Vocabulary

Directions:
For each word, either...
1. Write a sentence using the word
or
2. Draw or print a picture that makes you think of that word


Stolid (adj)- Not easily stirred or moved mentally; unemotional; impassive.
Valise (n)- A small piece of hand luggage.
Perpetual (adj)- Constant; neverending.
Gout (n)- A painful inflammation of the joints.
Plume (n)- a feather or feather-like shape.
Illumined (adj)- Illuminated; lighted up.
Bewilderment (n)- confusion
Clad (adj)- Covered with a protective or insulating layer
Thoroughfare (n)- A busy roadway of traffic.
Limned (v)- Described
Squander (v)- Fail to take advantage of
Pyre (n)- wood heaped for burning a dead body as a funeral rite; large pile of wood for burning
Sear (v) - To burn or scorch
Gingerly (adv)- Cautiously
Incriminate (v)- To make one look guilty
Pedant (n)- One who pays undue attention to book learning and formal rules
Convolution (n)- A form or part that is folded or coiled
Sloth (n)- A dislike for work and exertion; laziness
Bombardment (n)- The attack using bombs, shells, or missiles.
Scythe (n)- A farming tool with a long curved single edged blade and a long bend handle.

Monday, May 7, 2012

Assignment- Write a poem

You are to write a poem and submit it to turnitin.com by Thursday, May 10th at 10 PM. Be prepared to present it to the class.

You will be graded on the following-

Whether or not you avoid cliches

Whether or not you use poetic language

Whether or not you have a theme that the poem sticks to

Friday, May 4, 2012

Poetry Homework

Select a poet from the following list, then select a poem he or she wrote. Print out that poem and write a 125 word response explaining what you think it means. Be prepared to present it to the class! If you want to select a different poet, e-mail me by Saturday night for approval. This is due May 7th for Freshmen, and May 9th for Seniors. If you use a poem that no one else in the class uses, you get extra credit!

Anne Sexton
Dylan Thomas
William Wordsworth
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Sylvia Plath
William Shakespeare
John Donne
Andrew Marvell
Walt Whitman
Langston Hughes
Maya Angelou
Elizabeth Bishop
William Carlos Williams
Charles Bukowski
Emily Dickinson
Pablo Neruda
Allen Ginsberg
T.S. Eliot
Marianne Moore
Wallace Stevens

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

The Color of Water Vocabulary

Senior homework- Put the following words in sentences for Monday, March 26.

Cajole (verb) To persuade with flattery or gentle urging
Macabre (noun) Having death as a subject; gruesome
Nebulous (adjective) Vague
Absolved (verb) To be free from guilt of consequences
Tacitly (adverb) Done without words
Avarice (noun) Greed
Industrious (adjective) Diligent; hard working
Upbraid (verb) To criticize or scold
Commiserate (verb) To feel or express sorrow or sympathy for; empathize with; pity.
Commodity (noun) An article of trade or commerce, especially a product as distinguished from a service.
Contingency (noun) Dependence on chance or on the fulfillment of a condition; uncertainty; fortuitousness.
Deference (noun) Respectful submission or yielding to the judgment, opinion, or will of another.
Dowry (noun) The money, goods, or estate that a wife brings to her husband at marriage.
Motley (adjective) Exhibiting great diversity of elements; heterogeneous.
Synergy (noun) Combined action or functioning; synergism.
Solicit (verb) To seek for something by entreaty, earnest or respectful request, or formal application.
Verboten (adjective) Forbidden, as by law; prohibited.
Insular (adjective) Of or pertaining to an island, or detached and isolated.
Covenants (noun) An agreement, usually formal, between two or more persons to do or not do something specified.
Trysts (noun) An appointment to meet at a certain time and place, especially one made somewhat secretly by lovers.

Senior Research Paper Due Dates

March 22- Passion and career topics
March 28- Source sheet 1 + bring in more to research in class
April 4- Source sheets 2 and 3 due
April 16- Source sheets 4 and 5 due
April 25- All 8 source sheets due
May 4- Autobiographical Narrative and Cover Sheet (3 pages)
May 14- Career Section (two copies of this!) and Works Cited (total of 5 pages)
May 23- The rest of the research paper + table of contents

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Senior Extra Credit

As an extra credit assignment for The Color of Water, you may choose to do a research presentation on one of the two following topics. Feel free to either give an overview on some of the subtopics, or pick one or two of the subtopics to focus on. Your presentation should be about five minutes (No more than ten minutes, no less than three). Make sure you are not reading to the class. You may use powerpoint for bullet points, but make sure you are explaining the topic.
There should be some kind of visual component to this project.

1) Jewish law:
What customs and rituals are carried out by people of the Jewish faith? What are the different types of Judaism? Some suggestions on what to include-
- clothing
- keeping kosher
- The haggadah
- seders
- Yiddish
- The Shvartses

2) Famous figures in The Civil Rights Movement (excluding the people we all know about like Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks). Make sure to focus on this person's life relative to the Civil Rights Movement. Some suggestions are-

- Bobby Seale
- Huey Newton
- Floyd Patterson
- Bob Gibson
- Paul Robeson
- Jackie Robinson
- Eleanor Roosevelt
- Philip Randolph
- The Kennedys
- Malcolm X
- The Ku Klux Klan


This presentation is due March 30th (The earlier, the better)
Your topic proposal is due March 26th (Try to get it in by March 22nd)

Monday, March 19, 2012

Senior Research Paper

My Life

Students are to research several areas of the past and future lives, and from this, create a mission statement.

What you want to research-
1. Your family history and childhood
2. You potential future career
3. Something you are passionate about


Your research paper will be a total of 9 pages, with a total of 4 chapters.
The parts of your research paper will include-

1. Cover page (1 page)
2. Table of Contents (1 page)
3. Family history/childhood (2 pages)
4. A "passion you will take to the grave" (1 page)
5. Your potential future career (2 pages)
6. Your Mission Statement (1 page)
7. Works Cited Page (1 page)


Sections explained

Family history/childhood-
This is where you will write about your life already lived. You will receive a sheet of paper with questions about yourself. Some you may already know; some you may need to check your birth certificate or ask your family. This is also the section where you will include high interest anecdotes that characterize you.

A "passion you will take to the grave"-
In this section, you will select something you are passionate about that will probably stay with you for the rest of your life. Some appropriate examples are-
Your religion
Your political views
A philosophy on life (For example, you may believe the point in life is to help others, or to have fun)
Music (This is more than "I like to play guitar". This is more along the lines of "music connects people around the world".
Anything else you can think of along these lines.

Some of these are easier to research than others. If you are writing about something like religion, it would be perfectly appropriate to write about the important tenets of the religion, the history and origin of it, et cetera. If you pick something more abstract, however, like how you want to help others in life, then you have a lot of room for how you want to approach this topic. You may write about famous people who have lived lives like this (Like Mother Theresa and Gandhi), or write about systems of belief that follow this philosophy, or whatever else you can think of.

Your potential future career-
Here you will research the field you are most likely to enter after your schooling. Research how you get the career, the difference between how the career is portrayed in the media and what it is really like, what it pays, and anything else that is important to include.

Your mission statement-
This is your final thought: the culmination of all your research and what you have learned from it. What is the cohesive theme that ties all the previous sections together? What have you learned from this? How will this impact how you live life in the future?

Other pages-

Cover page-
Your cover page should be-
Centered, use size 12 times new roman font, with the title in "Title Caps"

and should have the following-

Lodi High School (At the top)
The title of your essay (in the center)
Your name
My name
course title
and due date (all at bottom)
Note that my name comes after yours, not after the course title!

A sample cover page can be found here

Works Cited Page-
This page will have "Works Cited" centered at the top.
You will then list your works in alphabetical order. Instead of indenting the first line like a normal paragraph in your research paper, you will indent all the following lines of the citation.

A sample works cited page can be found here



Source Requirements-
You must have a minimum of 5 sources with a total minimum of 8 source sheets.

At least one source must be a hard source. (A book, newspaper, magazine, or something like this that you can hold in your hand)

At least one source must be a hands on source. This is information you gather yourself. A good example of this would be an interview or shadowing someone for a day. Use this link to help you cite this kind of source.

At least one source other than the previous source must be a family member. Use this link to help you cite an unpublished document (like your birth certificate).

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Freshman Roots

Roots to be defined by Friday, March 16-

Anthro
Astro
Bell
Bio
Cent
Chron
Chrom
Cred
Dyna
Ebon
Form
Geo
Graph
Helio
Hydro
Lum/Luc
Lunar
Meter
Milli
Mono
Phon
Pyro
Solar
Terra
Ab
Anti
Auto
Circum
Dis
De
Duct
Ex
Extra
Hyper
Hypo
Mal
Micro
Mono
Morph
Retro
Tele
Trans
Uni
Logy
Nomy

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Macbeth Test Review

Macbeth quotes to know for the unit test.
Know-
Who said the quote
What the quote means
And what the context of the quote is

1.1
Fair is foul and foul is fair
Hover through the fog and filthy air

1.3
Oftentimes, to win us to our harm,
The instruments of darkness tell us truths,
Win us with honest trifles, to betray 's
In deepest consequence
1.4

There's no art
To find the mind's construction in the face:
He was a gentleman on whom I built
An absolute trust

Stars, hide your fires;
Let not light see my black and deep desires

1.5
Yet I do fear thy nature;
It is too full o' th' milk of human kindness
To catch the nearest way.

Come, you spirits That tend on mortal thoughts, unex me here,
And fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full
Of direst cruelty!
1.7
Screw your courage to the sticking-place,
And we'll not fail.
2.1
I go, and it is done: the bell invites me.
Hear it not, Duncan, for it is a knell
That summons thee to heaven, or to hell.
2.2
Methought I heard a voice cry "Sleep no more!
Macbeth does murder sleep"
2.3
Drink, sir, is a great provoker of three things.
Marry, sir, nose-painting, sleep, and urine.

Where we are
There's daggers in men's smiles, the near in blood,
The nearer bloody.
3.1
Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown
And put a barren scepter in my gripe,
Thence to be wrenched with an unlineal hand,
No son of mine succeeding.
3.2
Better be with the dead,
Whom we, to gain our peace, have sent to peace,
Than on the torture of the mind to lie
In restless ecstasy.
3.4
Ay, my good lord: safe in a ditch he bides,
With twenty trenched gashes on his head,
The least a death to nature.


4.1
From the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes


The poor wren,
The most diminutive of birds, will fight,
Her young ones in her nest, against the owl.
5.1

Out, damned spot!



Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Macbeth Essays

Due Friday, February 17th. 125 words minimum, typed.
What role do the witches play in Macbeth? Do they merely see the future, or do they have some role in developing it? Discuss the supernatural elements of the play (the ghost, the illusions, the witches). Is it possible that these are merely figments of Macbeth's imagination? If they are not, why not? If they are, what do they represent?

Monday, February 6, 2012

Freshman Research Paper Deadlines

Deadlines

1. Top 3 choices for topic- Due Wednesday, February 8th
2. First source sheet- Due Friday, February 17th
3. Source sheets 2 and 3- Due Monday, February 27th
4. Source sheet 4- Due Friday, March 2nd
5. Source sheet 5- Due Monday, March 5th
6. Source sheet 6 and all other research- Due Friday, March 9
7. Biographical narrative and cover page(2 pages minimum + Cover page)- Due Thursday, March 15
8. Disability section and Works Cited Page (2 pages minimum + Works Cited)- Due Thursday, March 29
*EDIT* How the celebrity positively impacted the world has been removed from the requirements *EDIT*
9. How the disability affected the person/how that person overcame it, your reflection, and the table of contents (1 page minimum + 1 page minimum + Table of Contents)- Due Monday, April 16

Freshman Research Paper

Theme: In the Face of Adversity: From Tragedy to Triumph


Topic: Students are to find a famous person from sports, the arts, or entertainment who has overcome a disability to lead a successful life.

What to research:
1. Information on the disability
2. Biography of the famous person



Sections:
1. Cover page
2. Table of Contents
3. The disability itself (the celebrity will not be mentioned in this section) (2 pages minimum)
4. Biographical narrative (2 pages minimum)
5. How the disability affected the person and how he or she overcame it. (1 page minimum)
6. How this famous person has positively impacted the world. (1 page minimum)
7. Your reflection (1 page minimum)
8. Works Cited

This research paper will be a minimum of 10 pages
Note: This paper must adhere to all MLA rules and conventions of formal writing.






Sources-
You must have a minimum of 6 sources- 3 on the disability and 3 on the celebrity. At least 3 of your sources must be hard sources (books or magazine articles for example). Be creative with your sources; you may:
-use videos
-interview someone with the disability
-whatever else you can think of

You must also have source information notes sheet on each source


Click here for help finding a famous person with a disease

Of Mice and Men Essay

Of Mice and Men essay, 1-3 pages, due Monday, February 13-


Discuss the power dichotomies in the novel. Consider the following-
Social Status
Physical power
Gender inequality
Racial inequality

What does Steinbeck suggest about the power of the laboring class? Cite the source material to prove your assertion. Consider the following-
George and Lenni's dream
Crooks's and Candy's reactions to that dream
Candy and his dog
Curley's wife

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Of Mice and Men Project

Freshman project due Monday, February 6th.
-Select a character and draw his hands. This is an artistic project, and will be graded on your creativity and the detail put in.
- Write a 125 word (minimum) essay explaining how this character's hands portray the character. Follow all conventions of MLA format, formal writing, and the rules of grammar we have learned.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

"The Long Exile" Essay

In two paragraphs, respond to the following question-

Was Aksenof's death liberating or ironic? Consider both sides. Argue for one, and against the other.

This essay is due Thursday, February 2nd.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Senior Soliloquy

Seniors should have Macbeth's soliloquy on page 382, lines 19-28, memorized to recite to the class by February 6th.
You can also click here for the soliloquy.


Click here to watch Homer Simpson perform this!

Marking Period 3 Vocabulary

Have the following words defined by Thursday, January 24th


Macbeth Vocabulary (Seniors)

Prophetic
Surfeited
Scruple
Predominance
Pernicious
Avarice
Antidote
Lament
Entreat
Augment
Auger
Avouch
Jocund
Blaspheming
Confound
Dolor
Perturb
Guise
Divine
Usurp


Of Mice and Men Vocabulary (Freshmen)

Douse
Appraise
Dabble
Bemuse
Whinny
Cringe
Stilted
Snivel
Crestfallen
Fawning
Pugnacious
Disengage
Derogatory
Recumbent
Writhe
Reprehensible
Maul
Mottle
Mollify
Aloof

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

For seniors who want money!

http://www.studentscholarships.org/scholarship.php