Dear Students,

Huckleberry Finn is grounded firmly at the center of American geography and consciousness, making it necessary for readers to understand something of the pre-Civil War slavery controversy, free and slave states, and the Mississippi River’s division of East from West and North from South, a primary conduit for people and goods.

We will benefit from reading additional slave narratives, especially of those who escaped slavery via waterways: Frederick Douglass, Linda Brent/Harriet Jacobs, and Olaudah Equiano, all of which are found in Henry Louis Gates, Jr.’s Classic American Slave Narratives. These oral histories offer a basis on which to consider Jim’s portrayal in Huck Finn, as well as the attitudes and life styles that surrounded slavery. How accurate is Twain’s portrayal of Jim?

Research Directions: Using Washington State University’s web site, read from the “early examples” of slave narratives, reply to this post with three important passages (quotes) from any of the early slave narrative, develop two questions, and one comment about why you selected the passages you selected. Due today.

If the links are broken, try Project Gutenberg for free ebooks.

Tomorrow, please return to this post and comment on at least two of your classmates’ ideas.

Sincerely,

Mr. Coey

Dear students,

This is another great opportunity. Don’t miss it!

http://www.scusd.edu/e-connections-post/top-10-reasons-attend-scusd-college-fair

Coey

Questbridge helps match low-income students with the best colleges and universities in the United States.

Click here for more information

Coey

Greetings Class of 2013!

Lately I’ve been thinking about school, which is actually work for me and most of the time fun work.  We have an amazing year planned for IB English and I think we will continue to explore ideas and enrich each other.  For starters, we are exploring and asking questions about the antebellum South through the carefree eyes of Huckleberry Finn, through the wisdom of Frederick Douglass (born into slavery), and through the diction of contemporary African American poet, Nikki Giovanni.

At the end of last semester, we scrambled to put together a great world literature paper, and that was a challenge, especially at the end of the year.  I expect all of you to come to school with a revised world literature essay, striving for closer to the maximum word limit of 1500 words.  Almost every writer could spend at least another page of writing, solely dedicated to the task of evaluating the writer’s choice (part C on the rubric) and discussing the resulting effects and the extent to which you appreciate the writer’s choices.  It seems natural to make this either interwoven into your commentary, or to specifically write about the writer’s choices in your concluding paragraph (albeit a long conclusion).

Given that this world literature paper is worth 25% of your IB grade, and you have total and complete control over the quality of thought and writing that goes into the paper, this is your best opportunity to earn college credit for IB English.  You can knock this essay out of the park and make it a great piece of writing free of errors.

The other IB assessments (oral commentary, Paper one, and Paper two) are all timed assessments. You really don’t get a second chance with those assessments.  Again, this makes the case for you being very thorough and thoughtful with your world literature paper. Remember to include a bibliography, including all the relevant information about the novel, short story, or play you are writing about, and you should include a reference for any of the critical lens ideas you are using from our class handouts.

I hope this email reaches you at a time where you feel you can revise (meaning ‘see again’) your world literature essay and view it in a fresh way.  As always, refer to the text whenever possible and especially as you craft your interpretations.

Thanks for reading all the way to the bottom of the page!

Kind Regards,

Coey

Hey IB English,

Just a quick message to help you find your page on wikispaces.

http://ibenglishwriteon.wikispaces.com/

You can start working immediately in preparation for Monday’s presentations.  We have two days this week with the laptop carts, but that is it.  So please plan accordingly.

Kind Regards,

Coey

Interactive Oral, Reflection Papers, and World Literature

If you are interested in travelling to Ashland, Oregon, and seeing these amazing theatrical productions, we will need to start thinking about funding and accommodations.  Click on these links to learn more about the plays and ticket prices.  If this is too expensive, we may be able to visit CalShakes in Berkeley.

http://www.osfashland.org/plays/index.aspx

http://www.osfashland.org/visit/accommodations/other.aspx

Happy New Year!  I see many of you have posted your short stories and provided thoughtful replies to each other.  The quality of story-telling is quite remarkable, especially given that there is very little in our curriculum allowing for creative writing.  I suggest that you return to our Writeon web site to review comments made about your writing and respond in turn.

For those who have not yet posted, your assignment is past due.

Enjoy your holiday.

Sincerely,

Mr. Coey

Symbols Slide Show

Your comments in today’s Socratic Seminar were insightful and analytical.  Overall, I am impressed with your understanding of how to apply the critical lenses.

I’ve updated two of our pages.  Look to the upper right to see our new page, IB Assessments, and I added another critical lens resource.

Just a reminder that I need a comment from each of you after you watch the BBC documentary.  Also, you should write only one double-entry journal for the remaining five chapters of the novel.

HOTS essays are due Monday, November 28th.

Keep working hard. Your brains are growing!

Kind Regards,

Coey