English 9B
Jane Belton

Syllabus – Trimester II

Monday 1/18 – No School

Tuesday 1/19
In Class:  Discuss Act II, scenes 3-4, Macbeth. Review vocabulary words 17-25.
Homework:  1) Read and annotate Act III, scene 1. In addition to annotating the scene, select one passage in the reading that you think is significant and that you want to raise for discussion. Make sure to write down specific questions/interpretations to share about that passage. 2) Work on vocabulary list for Act II (define and find “context” for words 26-30). 3) Continue reading your RWR book!

Wednesday 1/20
In Class:  Discuss Macbeth Act III, scene 1. Model close readings.
Homework: 1) Read and annotate Act III, scenes 2 & 3. 2) Review vocabulary for quiz on Tuesday 1/26. 3) Continue reading your RWR book!

Thursday 1/21 – No Class

Friday 1/22
In Class: Discuss Act III scenes 2 & 3
Homework:  1) Read Act III, scenes 4-5 2) Study for vocabulary quiz on Acts I & II. 3) Continue reading your RWR book! You should be finishing it no later than 1/29, if you haven’t already.

Monday 1/25
In Class: Discuss Macbeth Act III, Scenes 4-5.
Homework: Study for vocabulary quiz # 1 (on Acts I & II). Read and annotate Macbeth, Act III, Scene 6 (pp 113-115).

Tuesday 1/26
In Class: Vocabulary Quiz #1 (Acts I & II). Discuss Macbeth, Act III, scene 6.
Homework: 1) Read and annotate Macbeth Act IV, Scenes 1& 2 and complete Reflection 7: Respond to the following question in 2 fully developed paragraphs (typed, double or 1.5-spaced). How does Lady Macduff compare to Lady Macbeth? Incorporate and discuss specific textual evidence (quotes) in your response.  Remember, the proper way to quote from Shakespeare is: When meeting the Weird Sisters, Banquo notes, “You should be women,/And yet your beards forbid me to interpret/That you are so” (I. iii. 47-9). 2) Work on defining vocabulary for Acts III-V (words 1-6).

Wednesday 1/27
In Class: Reflection 7 due. Discuss Macbeth Act IV, scenes 1 & 2.
Homework: 1) Read and annotate Act IV, Scene 3, Macbeth. Pay attention to how Malcolm “tests” Macduff.  Also, how does Macduff compare to Macbeth? 2) Work on defining vocabulary for Acts III-V (words 7-12) 3) Continue reading your RWR book. You should be finished with it by Friday 1/29. Begin selecting your next book for the RWR project (selection of next book will be due Wednesday February 3).

English 9B

Jane Belton

Syllabus – Trimester II

Tuesday 1/5

In Class: Freewriting on “ambition”:  first thoughts, questions, and portraits.

Homework: Write a poem or a short scene between 2-3 characters or that explores different aspects of ambition that emerged in class and in your writing today (at least 1-2 pages, typed, double-spaced; more if it is a poem or a series of poems).

Wednesday 1/6

In Class: Write down book/author for RWR book choice # 2. Image explosion of Macbeth speech. Discuss Shakespeare and relevant background for the play. Begin Macbeth together (Act I Scene 1)

Homework:  Read and annotate Macbeth Act I Scenes 2-3. In Scene 3, examine and annotate carefully Macbeth’s speech (“Two truths are told…”).  Choose one or two specific lines from the speech to respond to in your notebook. What questions do you have about the line?  What images or words strike you in the line?  What does the line make you think of?  What does the line reveal to you about the character of Macbeth? Make sure to bring your writing to class to share.

Thursday 1/7 – No Class

Friday 1/8

In Class: Discuss Macbeth Act I, Scenes 2-3

Homework:  1) Read and annotate Macbeth Act I, scenes 4-6. In Scene 4, pay particular attention to the character of Macbeth and how he interacts with Duncan.  How does his conversation with Duncan on page 27 compare with his “aside” on page 29?  2) Work on vocabulary list for Act I (define and find “context” for words 1-5)

Monday 1/11

In Class: Act I, scenes 4-6, Macbeth.

Homework:  1) Read and annotate Macbeth Act I, scenes 7. 2) Work on vocabulary list for Act I (define and find “context” for words 6-10). REMEMBER: You should be reading your RWR book # 2 by this point!

Tuesday 1/12

In Class: Discuss Macbeth Act I, scenes 7.

Homework: 1) Study for close reading quiz #1 on Act I for Monday.  Re-read and review significant passages and scenes from Act I. Review annotations and notes carefully. 2) Work on vocabulary list for Act I (define and find “context” for words 11-16). 3) Read your RWR book # 2!

Wednesday 1/13

In Class: Act I Close Reading Quiz.

Homework:  1) Read and annotate Macbeth Act II, scenes 1-2. As you read Scene 2, trace how power and control shift in the scene between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.

2) Begin vocabulary list for Act II (define and find “context” for words 17-20)

Thursday 1/14—No Class

Friday 1/15

In Class:  Discuss Macbeth Act II, scenes 1-2.

Homework:  1) Read and annotate Macbeth Act II, scenes 3-4. 2) Read your RWR book; you should finish it by late January so that you can begin your 3rd book! 3) Work on vocabulary list for Act II (define and find “context” for words 21-25)

English 9B

Syllabus:  December 2009
https://blog.lrei.org/jbelton

Wednesday 12/2
In Class: ALWG, chapters 18 & 19
Homework:  Read and annotate chapters 20-21 (193-218)

Thursday 12/3
In Class:  Discuss ALWG, chapters 20-21. Why does Beah want us to know his story? Complete Focused Freewrite # 1 and view clip of Beah’s interview with Jon Stewart.
Homework: Complete Reflection 6: ALWG chronicles Beah’s physical and emotional journey through war and transformation. In a 2 page typed reflection, describe your journey of reading this memoir. What was it like for you to read this book? Was it hard to pick up each night? Did you read it voraciously? Why? What did you feel while you read and at what points? Did you feel inspired? Helpless? Sad? Overwhelmed? Surprised? Passionate? At what specific points did you feel these things? Really trace the trajectory of your experience reading the book from start to finish. Refer to specific moments (and at least three specific quotes) in your reflection. Weave the evidence thoughtfully into your paragraphs and use correct parenthetical citation. For this book, just place the page numbers in parentheses. The following is a model of correct parenthetical citations: “The sharp, harsh cry of a woman filled the forest, and I felt the fear in her voice piercing through my veins” (35).

Friday 12/4
In Class: Speech Workshop 1: Share Reflection 6 with a partner (5 minutes). Complete the following Focused Freewrite (FFW# 2) in class (15 minutes): At the start of the unit, we asked you to consider different images and texts that have taught you about war and about the various associations you had or have with war. Now that you have read Beah’s memoir, please write a reflection in which you consider the following question: What are the ways in which Beah’s memoir problematizes and makes more nuanced or complex your initial thoughts and understandings of war? In your freewrite, ber sure to incorporate at least three pieces of textual evidence (quotes) from the memoir to support your ideas. Remember to use proper citations while incorporating your evidence. Trade responses with a different partner. Dialectical notebook exercise. (10 minutes) Read aloud Beah’s speech and do “choral reading” (15 minutes).
Homework due at exam period: Reread Beah’s speech and Complete Focused Freewrite # 3: What makes Beah’s speech a speech? What are the elements in the speech that make it a speech? What purpose does his specific speech serve? What is his call to action/argument/thesis? Refer to specific evidence from the speech in your freewrite (1-2 pages).

You must bring the following materials to the exam period.
➢    Focused Freewrite # 1
➢    Focused Freewrite # 2
➢    Focused Freewrite # 3
➢    Reflection # 6
➢    Beah’s speech
➢    ALWG
➢    Your English notebook
➢    Pen/Pencil