I am Poem

This week you have been studying symbolism and the "masks" that we wear.  Below, you will find a link to help you write your own poem.  Think about the mask you created and what it represents.

Follow this link to write your poem:  Click Me!

Students Speak Out

                This past week, TEA announced that they were revoking the charter of 14 charter schools in Texas. Schools are being closed for either low test scores or failing the financial accountability. Some charter schools are fighting the decision.  What a lot of people don't know is that there has been a big debate since charter schools opened in the 1990s. One side claims that students should be allowed a choice of school when they are not finding a suitable education in their district public school.  Others have claimed that charter schools are taking money from the bigger public schools and really are not helping students.  Some feel that charter schools are beneficial to students because they allow small class sizes and are meant to be innovative in their teaching.  Politics are very much involved in what is going on with charter schools and public schools, but many are not asking the students what they think.  So, now is your time to speak out.  What do you think about charter schools possibly shutting down? Do you think there are benefits to charter schools versus public schools? Speak out below. Remember to be respectful and check your grammar before posting. 

Racial Profiling and Police Brutality: How does it affect us? 

During Thanksgiving break, my friend and I went to Austin to visit and hang out. This was around the time of the Grand Jury's decision not to indict Darren Wilson, a white police officer who fatally shot Mike Brown, an unarmed African-American teenager, in Ferguson, Missouri.  My friend and I were at the Museum of the Weird looking at Big Foot when we heard the protesters outside.  I  heard some comments of people in the store that said "Why are they protesting? It doesn't even affect us!".  Do you think that what happened in Ferguson, Missouri is important to us all around the country? How does racial profiling and police brutality affect you? Do you think that protesting is important way to create change? 

Answer these questions on the comments below: 

For more information:Article 

Tell this story:

        Writers get ideas from many places: images, news, observations. Look at this image and create and imagine what could have happened to the character. How can this help with your short story revision? Comment below.

Conflict Assignment: Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven"

     You recently learned about various types of conflict both internal and external.  Edgar Allan Poe was very conflicted himself and wrote a lot about those dark problems.  Read his poem "The Raven" and answer the questions below on a separate sheet of paper. 

Link to the poem

Questions

1. What is an example of figurative language in the poem?

2. What does the narrator hear and how does he respond to this sound? (Stanza 7)

3. What does the narrator ask the raven and what did the raven say? (Stanza 8)

4. How does the narrator's mood change from the beginning of the poem? (Stanza 11)

5. The raven brings the narrator memories of Lenore. What happened to Poe's love in real life? What do you infer happened to Lenore in the poem? 

6. What could the raven represent in the story? 

7.  Short Answer (answer in three to five sentences)- What conflicts (internal and external) was the narrator facing.  Explain. 

If you need some help understanding the poem, here is a link and a video: Summary

After ten years, family members finally open this metal door:

A family in Wisconsin who had been living in this house for almost a decade, finally decided to see what was under this metal door. What they found was shocking....  Imagine this was the beginning to your scary story. What could this family have found down there? 

After you answer the question to the blog, you can find out what was really there by clicking here:

News Story

Hello students. Good job on your benchmarks yesterday! Since sophomores will be testing today, you have a poem to read and analyze.  Remember to read the poem more than once before you begin to analyze it.  Below is the poem. Answer the questions on your own sheet of paper.

Click here for the poem

Warm Up Question:  Do you believe in soulmates (someone who is meant to be with you)? COMMENT on the blog. 

Questions: Answer on our own sheet of paper. 

1. What is an example of figurative language in the poem?

2. What is the setting? How does the setting affect the mood of the poem?

3. What lines inform you of Annabel's death?

4. According the speaker, why did Annabel die?

5. Where does the speaker spend most of his time after Annabel's death? 

6. What is an inference you can make about how the speaker is dealing with the death of his love? 

7. After reading the poem, what image lingers in your mind?