Week at a glance April 11 - 15, 2011

Curriculum focus: identifies, interprets, and analyzes figurative language including: idiom, imagery, and symbolism (11.1.2.K4), uses information from the text to make inferences and draw conclusions (11.1.4.K5), compares/contrasts textual aspects: character traits, themes, character motives, and author's purpose (11.1.4.K7), analyzes and evaluates how the author's style (word choice and sentence structure) and use of literary devices work together to achieve his/her purpose by using tone, mood, and imagery (11.1.4.K11d, e, and h), and analyzes contextual aspects of setting and their influence on characters and events in the story including the contexts of history, society, and culture (11.2.1.K2a-c).

Root words for this week (root - definition - examples):

1. leuc/leuk - white - leukemia, leukocyte
   
2. mela/melo - old - melanin, melancholy
   
3. neuro - nerve - neurologist, neurosis
   
4. osis - diseased condition of - metamorphosis, tuberculosis
   
5. pneumo - breathing/lungs - pneumonia, pneumatic
   

This week we'll begin our last unit of the school year over F. Scott Fitzgerald's great American classic, The Great Gatsby. We'll focus on the historical, cultural, and social context of Fitzgerald's work as we have an overview of the Roaring 20's, Prohibition, and the Jazz Age--a name for the era given by Fitzgerald himself. Students will meet Nick Carraway, our narrator, and see life through his young and and a bit innocent perspective. Since we are studying the opening chapters of the novel this week, our focus will be on shaping our first impressions of the characters and learning what we can from them. Students will check out books on Tuesday and will need to bring them to class from now on for the rest of the semester.

• Mon: New root words. The Great Gatsby - background and slang, notes and discussion.
• Tues: The Great Gatsby - finish background and slang, notes and discussion. Check out books.
• Wed: The Great Gatsby - read and discuss Chapter I. For Thursday: finish Chapter I, pages 1-21.
  
• Thurs: The Great Gatsby - Chapter I quiz; Chapter I study guide due by the end of the hour.
• Fri: Root words quiz. The Great Gatsby - read and discuss Chapter II. For Monday: finish Chapter 2, pages 23-38.