Autumn

It's becoming more difficult to title AP Lang blogs since each class happens to be working on different parts of syntax, transitional rhetorical analysis, and diction.

1: We finished phase one of the Alcott team close read and moved into phase 2. Absentees, you are already aware that you need to have the close read completed, a thesis statement, and one body paragraph for Monday's class. All else have a body paragraph to complete with the rhetorical strategy between you and your colleagues. As noted in class - and always encouraged - use the weekend to craft a superior body paragraph. You want to excel beyond the basics, the minimum, and move into the collegiate presentation.

3: We finished up our Alcott group readings with a flourish! Following our contextual Civil War writings, you received your Orenstein prompts back and copied down the next unit of vocab for Monday. As we were in the awkward time remaining phase between starting diction in a rush or not finishing the first textual example in its entirety, we will be saving all our diction work for Monday.

5: After starting vocab experts, we close read a Jefferson quote and composed a thesis statement to remind you the importance of active verbs, specific adjectives, and mature purposes to set up your analysis. In groups, you each received one of five quotes regarding autumn and proceeded to close read, thesis write, and analyze to the class. And, what an experience of upper-level verbs, diction, and purposes did we hear today! ALL groups presented incredibly descriptive, thoughtful thesis statements and supported their ideas with all of the evidence from the poem. I'm impressed (and I would say looking forward to what you will come up with next time).

For band students, each one of you will be assigned one of the autumn quotes. For your quote, you will circle all the key words and then compose a thesis statement using our formula and showing off all of your own vocabulary to do so. Here are your poems: Jake = Yoko Ono; Madison = Rainbow Rowell; Rhyen = George Eliot; Madelyn = Shauna Niequist. Have that ready to give me - if you want the participation points from today.

If you were absent and NOT a band student (which means you do not have a packet), you are to take this following quote by Ray Bradbury and do the close read and thesis statement: "He had never liked October. Ever since he had first lay in the autumn leaves before his grandmother's house many years ago and heard the wind and saw the empty trees. It had made him cry, without a reason. And a little of that sadness returned each year to him. It always went away with spring. But, it was a little different tonight. There was a feeling of autumn coming to last a million years. There would be no spring." Either print out the quote for your close reading, or write it out on notebook paper to complete the close reading.