Grade 10
Final Exam: June 19th
May 29- End of Year: Romeo and Juliet
We will be doing various in class activities and writings. There is no homework or tests for this unit, but there is a strict requirement that you participate with your small groups and partners while engaging thoroughly with the text and the in class writing prompts
May 18:
Today we will be working with groups of students who chose the same poem(s) in their top 3. We will create an index card that contains our analysis of the poem's form and content, along with a Big question about the poem. From here, we will be sharing our responses and 'teaching' our chosen poem to the other groups in our class.
May 16:
Today we read the poetry packages and ranked our favourite poems. After reading and ranking, we wrote a reflection on our rationale (our reasons and methods) for choosing our top three poems.
May 2:
Because we lost a portion of our class to the Seycove survey, we will now be presenting our group book talks on Thursday and our book trailers on Wednesday.
April 28:
We are coming to the end of the lit circle project. Please note that your final circle meeting will be on Tuesday with your presentations happening on Thursday.
Attention: Being prepared and ready to present on Thursday is a MUST.
April 12: After completing the unit test and selecting our books, we are now into our second session of the
Lit Circle assignment. Remember, it is your responsibility to stay up to date with your readings and your role responsibilities. Marks are given each class based on preparedness and engagement/participation during the lit circle meetings. We have ten meetings with a 5 mark value for each --these marks add up quickly, and it is in your best interest to be an active and contributing member of your group. At the end of our lit circles there will be one final group project. The total of your meeting mark and your project mark will give a final score for the lit circle unit.
In addition to the daily meetings there will be occasional in-class mini assignments based on your lit circle books. The marks for these are independent of the total Lit Circle score.
Communication during the lit circles is important. If you are going to miss a class, it is up to you to pass your completed work on to your group. Make sure you have exchanged contact information/emails with your group to facilitate this.
Here is a link to the Role Sheets for the lit circle, should you need extras.
March 27: Final Vocab List for test on Friday
February 21: Great work on your "Equal" Societies!
Homework: Chapter 3 questions
I have also given you the vocab for this chapter. As with the previous vocab, I am not collecting this for marks, but you will need to know these words for the quiz.
February 3:
Chapter 2 Begins:
Today we are going to see the rebellion and see how it will begin to change life on the farm. I want you to pay particularly close attention to the roles that each animals play. Where are the horses in this group? Where are the pigs in this mix and how do the other animals respond to them?
Chapter 2 Homework questions:
February 1:
Today we will complete and review chapter one of Animal Farm. Our main points of focus are Orwell's use of an allegorical style and his incorporation of some common characteristics of fables. We will also keep a close eye on Old Major's speech as it sets our plot in motion and is a focal point that we can refer back to throughout the novel. We will begin Chapter 2 on Friday.
We will have a quiz on Tuesday for Chapters 1 and 2. The quiz will also include 10 questions asking you to properly punctuate sentences with either a semicolon or a comma.
ONLINE SEMICOLON QUIZ PRACTICE (At the end of the quiz there is a 'find out more about the semicolon' link. It is very useful and covers everything that we worked on in class)
Homework/In-class work: Chapter one Vocab and Questions
January 30: Animal Farm, Day 2
After a brief discussion on the author, the background of the novel, and the relevant literary terms, we began reading chapter one. Remember to pay close attention to the features of fables, allegory, and satire that Orwell is working with. We will finish chapter one in class on Wednesday.
Good work on your in-class essays. I should have most of them marked by Wednesday, Feb. 1st.
January 16:
We finished the remaining questions in class. Next class, we will be preparing to write our in-class essay on non-fiction/rhetoric
January 12:
Complete your Rhetoric definitions and the first 6 questions from the Coretta Scott King speech. Be prepared to discuss your responses with partners and with the whole class.
The Death Penalty is a Step Back
Website for looking up the terms: literarydevices.net
January 04/06: Rhetoric Triangle, Ethos/Pathos/Logos
Your advertisement presentations and questions are due on Tuesday. Come prepared to present. Make sure you have a stable link to your advertisement.
Questions:
1: Who is the target audience for the advertisement? (support your decision with direct examples from your chosen ad)
2: What elements of pathos, ethos, and logos are present in your advertisement (Provide Examples)
3: Which appeal --ethos, pathos, or logos, is most prominent in this advertisement? Why do you think this appeal was chosen for the target audience?
4: Is the use of the appeals effective for the intended audience? Why or why not?
December 12:
Questions for Superman and Me
December 2:
We will be continuing our work on commas. If you missed class, please see the attached practice questions.
Next week, we will start our second non-fiction reading article, a piece is written by a personal favourite of mine, Sherman Alexie.
Comma Practice #2
Superman and Me: The Joy of Reading and Writing
November 30:
Arming the Spirit
November 30:
Sorry for the missing updates on the site. My problems with Weebly should be sorted out now. Today we started working on a punctuation unit. Here are the notes for the comma rules and the first set of practice questions
November 10:
Great job on the thesis statements for the two WW1 poems. It was great to see how well all of you were able to follow the steps to arrive at a strong thesis statement. I look forward to reading your compare and contrast essays which are due on Wednesday. Have a great weekend!!
November 4:
Please complete your introduction and thesis statement for the "Lamb to the Slaughter" compare and contrast essay.
Example: Francis Ford Coppola's film, Apocalypse Now, and Tim O'brien's story collection, The Things They Carried, both show the horrors and seeming pointlessness of the Vietnam War. While they are both engaging narratives, it is the elements of emotional truth and realism, both somewhat lacking in Coppola's film, that make O'brien's book a superior document of the human cost of warfare.
Notice that in my example, I have named the author, the title, and the medium (book, movie, tv show, web page, etc). I have also mentioned my purpose - to show how one is a "superior document of the human cost of warfare". Finally, my example sets out the SPECIFIC FEATURES (emotional truth and realism) that I will use to support my thesis statement.
For those of you who need a copy, here is a link to the story: Lamb to the Slaughter Link
November 2:
After watching the two film versions of Lamb to the Slaughter, we began preparing to write our compare and contrast essay. In class we learned a step by step process that will allow us to successfully create a strong compare/contrast thesis statement. The number one takeaway from this lesson is that you must have a purpose for composing a compare and contrast essay, otherwise you will end up with a list that fails to answer the most important question: So What?
Notes and step by step compare/contrast thesis instructions
Oct. 25:
Today was the start of our book talk presentations. Great job, Emma! Thank you for going first and showing us all how to give an engaging and informative book talk.
Please complete your "Lamb to the Slaughter" newspaper article and have a good copy ready to hand in on Thursday. Along with your article, please include the real news article that you researched and make sure that you have annotated it with the features of a newspaper article.
Notes on Newspaper Article Features. (Use this as a template for creating your article) We focused on page 2 and 3
Oct. 17: Today, we started working on our final story for the short story unit. We will have time in class on Wednesday to complete the introductory questions before moving on to our final assignment.
Oct. 13: In-Class re-write of the essay with one on one help for thesis and paragraph development
Oct. 11: In-Class Write: "Joe the Painter and the Deer Island Massacre"
October 5:
Today we will be taking a closer look at P.O.V and focal character choices.
Please read "Joe the Painter and the Deer Island Massacre" and be prepared to write a multi-paragraph response to the story in class on Tuesday.
Story
October 3:
Today we completed our work on "The Interlopers" and introduced the Book Talk assignment.
The Interlopers: Story Link
Book Talk Assignment
September. 23
Please complete the questions for "There Will Come Soft Rains".
Story: "August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains"
Questions: Here
Big thanks to everyone for their thoughtful responses to the journal prompt and their lively contributions to our mini debate!
Sept. 21
We are moving on to our next story and will be focusing on some new figurative language terms and techniques. Namely, these include personification, simile, metaphor, and symbol. We will also begin taking a closer look at plot structure. In class, after brainstorming and discussing advances in technology, we wrote a journal entry about the following prompt:
"Technology will be the saviour of humankind / Technology will be the downfall of humankind"
You were asked to take a side and defend it with specific examples
Sept. 19
We finished reading "The Metaphor," and our next assignment is to compose a paragraph that unpacks the birthday cake metaphor that closes the story.
Sept. 15
Today, we began reading Budge Wilson's "Metaphor". I was very impressed with your discussion of the narrator's extended metaphor about her mother. You did a terrific job connecting later textual information to the aforementioned metaphor. As you continue to read the story, look for other specific words and phrases that connect, build off of, or diverge from the metaphor we discussed in class. Read carefully, and take note of other metaphors that appear in Wilson's piece. Make sure that you have read the entire piece and are ready to discuss it during our next class.
Story: "The Metaphor"
Sept. 13
Today, we worked on discussion techniques and practices. One of the most important aspects of discussion is listening, so we practised this with our mini silent reading interviews. A couple points to remember about class discussions: It is okay if someone has an idea that is similar to your own. Simply acknowledge your classmate's idea and then see how you can add to it or complete it. Similarly, disagreement is a good thing in a discussion of literature. If you disagree, you can say, "That is interesting _________, but I read that passage differently," or, "I hadn't thought of it that way. Here is how I understood it." Finally, one of the best things we can do in a discussion is celebrate our classmates' responses with positive feedback. You can say things like, "I really liked _______'s point about that," or "when _________ mentioned _____________ I understood the story differently"
For next class, please finish the questions on writing strategy (skip #2) and questions on language from Fish Cheeks.
Sept. 9
Short Story and Questions: Fish Cheeks
First four questions are due on Tuesday. Please answer in full sentences and with direct reference to the text.
May 29- End of Year: Romeo and Juliet
We will be doing various in class activities and writings. There is no homework or tests for this unit, but there is a strict requirement that you participate with your small groups and partners while engaging thoroughly with the text and the in class writing prompts
May 18:
Today we will be working with groups of students who chose the same poem(s) in their top 3. We will create an index card that contains our analysis of the poem's form and content, along with a Big question about the poem. From here, we will be sharing our responses and 'teaching' our chosen poem to the other groups in our class.
May 16:
Today we read the poetry packages and ranked our favourite poems. After reading and ranking, we wrote a reflection on our rationale (our reasons and methods) for choosing our top three poems.
May 2:
Because we lost a portion of our class to the Seycove survey, we will now be presenting our group book talks on Thursday and our book trailers on Wednesday.
April 28:
We are coming to the end of the lit circle project. Please note that your final circle meeting will be on Tuesday with your presentations happening on Thursday.
Attention: Being prepared and ready to present on Thursday is a MUST.
April 12: After completing the unit test and selecting our books, we are now into our second session of the
Lit Circle assignment. Remember, it is your responsibility to stay up to date with your readings and your role responsibilities. Marks are given each class based on preparedness and engagement/participation during the lit circle meetings. We have ten meetings with a 5 mark value for each --these marks add up quickly, and it is in your best interest to be an active and contributing member of your group. At the end of our lit circles there will be one final group project. The total of your meeting mark and your project mark will give a final score for the lit circle unit.
In addition to the daily meetings there will be occasional in-class mini assignments based on your lit circle books. The marks for these are independent of the total Lit Circle score.
Communication during the lit circles is important. If you are going to miss a class, it is up to you to pass your completed work on to your group. Make sure you have exchanged contact information/emails with your group to facilitate this.
Here is a link to the Role Sheets for the lit circle, should you need extras.
March 27: Final Vocab List for test on Friday
February 21: Great work on your "Equal" Societies!
Homework: Chapter 3 questions
I have also given you the vocab for this chapter. As with the previous vocab, I am not collecting this for marks, but you will need to know these words for the quiz.
February 3:
Chapter 2 Begins:
Today we are going to see the rebellion and see how it will begin to change life on the farm. I want you to pay particularly close attention to the roles that each animals play. Where are the horses in this group? Where are the pigs in this mix and how do the other animals respond to them?
Chapter 2 Homework questions:
- What are the strengths and weaknesses of Napoleon, Snowball and Squealer? Use evidence from the text to support your answer (6+ sentences)
- How did the work of the pigs help to ensure the Rebellion and the work of starting the new community? Use two details from the text to support your answer (4+ sentences )
- How was Old Major’s speech reflected in the Seven Commandments? Use evidence from the text to support your answer (6+ sentences)
February 1:
Today we will complete and review chapter one of Animal Farm. Our main points of focus are Orwell's use of an allegorical style and his incorporation of some common characteristics of fables. We will also keep a close eye on Old Major's speech as it sets our plot in motion and is a focal point that we can refer back to throughout the novel. We will begin Chapter 2 on Friday.
We will have a quiz on Tuesday for Chapters 1 and 2. The quiz will also include 10 questions asking you to properly punctuate sentences with either a semicolon or a comma.
ONLINE SEMICOLON QUIZ PRACTICE (At the end of the quiz there is a 'find out more about the semicolon' link. It is very useful and covers everything that we worked on in class)
Homework/In-class work: Chapter one Vocab and Questions
January 30: Animal Farm, Day 2
After a brief discussion on the author, the background of the novel, and the relevant literary terms, we began reading chapter one. Remember to pay close attention to the features of fables, allegory, and satire that Orwell is working with. We will finish chapter one in class on Wednesday.
Good work on your in-class essays. I should have most of them marked by Wednesday, Feb. 1st.
January 16:
We finished the remaining questions in class. Next class, we will be preparing to write our in-class essay on non-fiction/rhetoric
January 12:
Complete your Rhetoric definitions and the first 6 questions from the Coretta Scott King speech. Be prepared to discuss your responses with partners and with the whole class.
The Death Penalty is a Step Back
Website for looking up the terms: literarydevices.net
January 04/06: Rhetoric Triangle, Ethos/Pathos/Logos
Your advertisement presentations and questions are due on Tuesday. Come prepared to present. Make sure you have a stable link to your advertisement.
Questions:
1: Who is the target audience for the advertisement? (support your decision with direct examples from your chosen ad)
2: What elements of pathos, ethos, and logos are present in your advertisement (Provide Examples)
3: Which appeal --ethos, pathos, or logos, is most prominent in this advertisement? Why do you think this appeal was chosen for the target audience?
4: Is the use of the appeals effective for the intended audience? Why or why not?
December 12:
Questions for Superman and Me
December 2:
We will be continuing our work on commas. If you missed class, please see the attached practice questions.
Next week, we will start our second non-fiction reading article, a piece is written by a personal favourite of mine, Sherman Alexie.
Comma Practice #2
Superman and Me: The Joy of Reading and Writing
November 30:
Arming the Spirit
November 30:
Sorry for the missing updates on the site. My problems with Weebly should be sorted out now. Today we started working on a punctuation unit. Here are the notes for the comma rules and the first set of practice questions
November 10:
Great job on the thesis statements for the two WW1 poems. It was great to see how well all of you were able to follow the steps to arrive at a strong thesis statement. I look forward to reading your compare and contrast essays which are due on Wednesday. Have a great weekend!!
November 4:
Please complete your introduction and thesis statement for the "Lamb to the Slaughter" compare and contrast essay.
- I must stress to you, once again, the importance of following the steps for creating a thesis statement. Asking and answering those questions will make a huge difference in the overall quality of your essay.
- Remember, the work that goes into creating the thesis statement DOES NOT GO INTO YOUR INTRODUCTION, only the thesis statement goes into your intro as the last sentence.
- Your intro should include the title of the works you are comparing, the author/filmmaker's name, and an extremely brief plot summary,
- the last sentence of your into is your thesis statement that should begin with an expression like "while" or "although."
Example: Francis Ford Coppola's film, Apocalypse Now, and Tim O'brien's story collection, The Things They Carried, both show the horrors and seeming pointlessness of the Vietnam War. While they are both engaging narratives, it is the elements of emotional truth and realism, both somewhat lacking in Coppola's film, that make O'brien's book a superior document of the human cost of warfare.
Notice that in my example, I have named the author, the title, and the medium (book, movie, tv show, web page, etc). I have also mentioned my purpose - to show how one is a "superior document of the human cost of warfare". Finally, my example sets out the SPECIFIC FEATURES (emotional truth and realism) that I will use to support my thesis statement.
For those of you who need a copy, here is a link to the story: Lamb to the Slaughter Link
November 2:
After watching the two film versions of Lamb to the Slaughter, we began preparing to write our compare and contrast essay. In class we learned a step by step process that will allow us to successfully create a strong compare/contrast thesis statement. The number one takeaway from this lesson is that you must have a purpose for composing a compare and contrast essay, otherwise you will end up with a list that fails to answer the most important question: So What?
Notes and step by step compare/contrast thesis instructions
Oct. 25:
Today was the start of our book talk presentations. Great job, Emma! Thank you for going first and showing us all how to give an engaging and informative book talk.
Please complete your "Lamb to the Slaughter" newspaper article and have a good copy ready to hand in on Thursday. Along with your article, please include the real news article that you researched and make sure that you have annotated it with the features of a newspaper article.
Notes on Newspaper Article Features. (Use this as a template for creating your article) We focused on page 2 and 3
Oct. 17: Today, we started working on our final story for the short story unit. We will have time in class on Wednesday to complete the introductory questions before moving on to our final assignment.
Oct. 13: In-Class re-write of the essay with one on one help for thesis and paragraph development
Oct. 11: In-Class Write: "Joe the Painter and the Deer Island Massacre"
October 5:
Today we will be taking a closer look at P.O.V and focal character choices.
Please read "Joe the Painter and the Deer Island Massacre" and be prepared to write a multi-paragraph response to the story in class on Tuesday.
Story
October 3:
Today we completed our work on "The Interlopers" and introduced the Book Talk assignment.
The Interlopers: Story Link
Book Talk Assignment
September. 23
Please complete the questions for "There Will Come Soft Rains".
Story: "August 2026: There Will Come Soft Rains"
Questions: Here
Big thanks to everyone for their thoughtful responses to the journal prompt and their lively contributions to our mini debate!
Sept. 21
We are moving on to our next story and will be focusing on some new figurative language terms and techniques. Namely, these include personification, simile, metaphor, and symbol. We will also begin taking a closer look at plot structure. In class, after brainstorming and discussing advances in technology, we wrote a journal entry about the following prompt:
"Technology will be the saviour of humankind / Technology will be the downfall of humankind"
You were asked to take a side and defend it with specific examples
Sept. 19
We finished reading "The Metaphor," and our next assignment is to compose a paragraph that unpacks the birthday cake metaphor that closes the story.
Sept. 15
Today, we began reading Budge Wilson's "Metaphor". I was very impressed with your discussion of the narrator's extended metaphor about her mother. You did a terrific job connecting later textual information to the aforementioned metaphor. As you continue to read the story, look for other specific words and phrases that connect, build off of, or diverge from the metaphor we discussed in class. Read carefully, and take note of other metaphors that appear in Wilson's piece. Make sure that you have read the entire piece and are ready to discuss it during our next class.
Story: "The Metaphor"
Sept. 13
Today, we worked on discussion techniques and practices. One of the most important aspects of discussion is listening, so we practised this with our mini silent reading interviews. A couple points to remember about class discussions: It is okay if someone has an idea that is similar to your own. Simply acknowledge your classmate's idea and then see how you can add to it or complete it. Similarly, disagreement is a good thing in a discussion of literature. If you disagree, you can say, "That is interesting _________, but I read that passage differently," or, "I hadn't thought of it that way. Here is how I understood it." Finally, one of the best things we can do in a discussion is celebrate our classmates' responses with positive feedback. You can say things like, "I really liked _______'s point about that," or "when _________ mentioned _____________ I understood the story differently"
For next class, please finish the questions on writing strategy (skip #2) and questions on language from Fish Cheeks.
Sept. 9
Short Story and Questions: Fish Cheeks
First four questions are due on Tuesday. Please answer in full sentences and with direct reference to the text.