The Romeo and Juliet Paper -- Round #2

Your assignment is to write another five-paragraph essay on part of a scene from Romeo and Juliet, this time comparing two presentations of Act III, scene 1, lines 1 through line 106 (up to ROMEO:  "I thought all for the best.") -- one in print; one on YouTube.  As you will see, the YouTube version comes from the same movie we've viewed all along:  the 1968 film by Italian director Franco Zeffirelli.

Here's a link to the film version:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgnKk8HNvXg.

Regrettably, the YouTube stops in the middle of the scene!  Still, this leaves you with less text to study and discuss, which isn't all bad.  (One hundred ten lines is actually four lines shorter than the Maskers' scene.)   Watch the dueling scene as many times as you need to.

When it comes time to write your essay, use the same instructions I gave you for the Round #1 papers.  For those who need to consult it, I'm posting the original Assignment on my ClassJump page tonight.

To improve your paper over your Round #1 paper, be sure to check out the Student Target Papers I posted on ClassJump.  See the two 8s, the two 6s, the 4, and the 2, along with the comments on each paper.  These, along with the 8-6-4-2 Scoring Rubric on the original Assignment, should serve as guides.

Above all, don't forget to cite good examples as you make your case.  This was the biggest gap in many of the Round #1 papers.  For example, you'll see that there are some interesting and significant cuts in the Zeffirelli film.  By citing a few of the "lost" lines in your paper, you might better explain your response to Zeffirelli's treatment -- good? bad? indifferent? -- of Shakespeare.

Remember, too, that it's fine -- even preferred -- to cite lines of text you find to be especially effective, funny, sad, or memorable.  It's a fencing scene, so 'poignant' might even be a good descriptive word for some of the lines!

These papers are due this Tuesday, February 26, at class time.  Timely submittal is part of the grade.  We'll take class time on Monday for Questions and (hopefully!) Answers about the assignment.  For the best results, make a decent start this weekend and bring a draft to class on Monday.

Go to ClassJump and Read the Six Student Essays

You can use this link to reach ClassJump.

These essays were chosen by 9th Grade English teachers as examples of papers scoring 8 (two examples), 6 (two examples), 4 (one example), and 2 (one example). Please read all six - including the teacher's commentary - and then award an estimated score to your own essay. Bring your scored essay to class on Friday, 2/22.

Homework Assignments in Fall 2012

Thurs., Oct. 11
In class:  Work our way through Chapter 2.  Begin Chapter 3.

P.M.  Carefully read Chapters 3 and 4.  Any reader's quiz on Friday would allow you to use Notes you have taken while reading.  Use the Internet and/or a dictionary to look up any unfamiliar words or expressions you find.

Friday, Oct. 12
In class:  Discussion (and quiz?) on Chapters 3 and 4.

Weekend:  Read Chapters 5, 6, and 7.

Mon., Oct. 15
In class:  Discuss Chapters 5, 6, and 7.

P.M.  Read Chapter 8.  Come prepared tomorrow morning.

Tues., Oct. 16
In class:  We'll do some kind of process for Chapter 8 -- questions, a quiz... something.  Be ready.

Long Weekend:  Read Chapters 9 and 10.  It's fair and OK to read something like Spark-Notes -- not as a substitute, but as a handy assistant.  Sparknotes can help as you read the text itself.  Don't be ashamed or afraid to check the Sparknotes -- before or after reading.  It's a good way to check for understanding. Furthermore, it's out there!@! Let's not pretend that it doesn't exist -- instead, let's use it to our advantage.

Monday, Oct. 22
In class:  Discuss Ch. 9-10.

P.M.  Review Ch. 9-10 and read Ch. 11.

Friday, Oct. 26
In class:  Brief discussion of Ch..12.  THEN SCRABBLE.

Weekend Reading:  GE, Chapters 13, 14, and 15.

Monday, Oct. 29
In class:  Likely quiz on Ch. 13-14-15.  With any luck, you'll get your papers back.

P.M.  Continue to be responsible for Chapters 13, 14, and 15.  As soon as I get your papers done, there will be a Dickens quiz.

Tues., Oct. 30
In class:  Discuss Ch. 13-14-15.

P.M.  Continue to review Ch. 13-14-15.

Wed., Oct. 31
In class:  Discuss Ch. 13-14-15

P.M.  Read Chapter 16

Thurs., Nov. 1
In class:  Discuss Ch. 16.

P.M.  Read Ch. 17!!!

Fri., Nov. 2
In class:  Discuss Ch. 17.

Weekend:  Read Ch. 18

Mon., Nov. 5
In class:  FINALLY YOU GET YOUR PAPERS BACK.  Discuss Ch. 18 of GE.

P.M.  Now I can be tougher about Quizzes again.  Please be ready for class in Chapter 19 on Tuesday. If you have notes on Ch. 19, I'll be happy to let you use them.

Tues., Nov. 6
In class:  Possible Quiz on Ch. 19.  Begin our review of the FIRST THIRD of Great Expectations:  Chapters 1-19.  Test this Thursday.

P.M.  CAREFULLY REVIEW GREAT EXPECATIONS FOR THURSDAY'S TEST.

Wed., Nov. 7
In class:  Review for the Test.  See some or all of David Lean's film (through Pip's good fortune).

P.M.  CAREFULLY STUDY FOR THURSDAY'S TEST.  To see the Study Guide for tomorrow's test, Jump to ClassJump with the link you're about to see.  (When you arrive, scroll down to the VERY BOTTOM of the "Class Downloads" for Honors English 9.)  Link to ClassJump.

Thurs., Nov. 8
In class:  Test on the first 1/3 of Great Expectations, by Charles Dickens.

P.M.  TBA

Fri., Nov. 9
In class:  TBA.

Five-Paragraph Essay Structure

The five-paragraph essay for the MCA exam:

I.                   An interesting introduction.  Final sentence of this paragraph:  your thesis statement.

… good transition

II.                A good reason or example that supports your thesis statement.

… good transition

III.             Another good reason or example that supports your thesis statement.

… good transition

IV.             A third good reason or example that supports your thesis statement.

V.                A convincing conclusion.  Summarize.  Reiterate your thesis statement.  Conclude with a wise or upbeat or thoughtful observation.

Clear sentences.  Solid grammar.  Correct spelling.  Proper punctuation and capitalization.  Indent paragraphs! 

Narrative Essay example -- five paragraphs for the MCA

I went to Camp St. Croix during the summer after 8^th grade.  It was my third year at the Wisconsin camp, and I was assigned to a group that was scheduled to take a canoe trip.  The first half of the trip was uneventful as we made our way upstream.  But the last two days involved an amazing experience:  hurtling downstream on the Apple River, I was caught by the throat and yanked from the stern of my canoe!  I learned from this incident that other people appreciated my sense of humor, that I was a valued member of my trail group, and above all, that I wanted to do more fast-water canoeing.

The Apple River has metal cables stretched across its width – “stays” that people in tubes can grab as they float downstream.  But the wires are positioned at just the wrong height for people in canoes.  They're also hard to see!  When my canoe approached the first wire, the boy in the bow ducked; the boy sitting in the middle never noticed the wire; but the wire caught me under my chin.  The current was moving so fast that I never had a chance.  The wire yanked me from the canoe and left me behind, dangling from the cable.  It took about a minute for the boys in my canoe to turn around and discover that I was gone.  They were shocked.  I waved and smiled from my perch along the wire.  We had some good laughs when they picked me up, and as a result, the incident was an ice-breaker in our group.  Everyone  tried to imitate the way I had waved from the middle of the river.

The boys from my canoe told the story to the rest of our trail group, and it was immediately clear to me that people – especially the counselors – were very concerned about me.  They asked me to repeat the story.  They checked to be sure that I was safe and warmly dressed.   It was the first time on the trip when I felt completely welcome within the group.  I belonged!

The experience was only a minor emergency, but it cemented my life-long love of rivers, wilderness camping, and fast-water canoeing.  I loved the current and the thrill of hurtling downstream, steering to avoid the rocks, marveling at trees that seemed to whiz past me on the shore.  The incident on the Apple River has always stayed with me – perhaps because the sensation of the water, coarsing along my legs, has never left me.

In the years after that trip, I took trips all over the Boundary Waters as a camper, and I led canoe trips professionally – from northern Minnesota, to Canada, to the Arctic Ocean.  In all those trips, I never forgot the incident on the Apple River.  I loved telling the story because it helped me to relish an experience when other people appreciated my sense of humor, when I knew that I was a valued member of my trail group, and above all, that I saw as the beginning of my fast-water canoeing career.  I will always be grateful to the park rangers who stretched those cables across the Apple River.