Japanese Responses

Sorry that these are so delayed. Here are the comments from the Japanese students. Enjoy!

Amado / Perez / Meyers

Bendall / Choi

Corley / Leal

A Short Good-bye.

To my class:

I'm sorry to write this, and I'm sorry I didn't have time to address this in class. But, I'm going to be long term substitute teaching for Mrs. McGinity for the next 3 weeks (or more). I may be back for the end of the year, and I may not. I want to thank you for your patience and respect this semester, and I hope you learned something that will stay with you. I wish I could be there to see your Multi-Genre Papers. Keep reading and writing. Contact me with anything you may need, and feel free to stop by Room 104 to say "hello." All my best,

Mr. Ankeny

Day Thirty / 4.30.10

Today we started with a WIBR party of sorts. Then we worked on our they're/their/there grammar. Next we discussed poems. The poems can be found here. After that, we discussed different kinds of poems we can write on our own. The handout is here and the slideshow with examples of the poems is here. Finally, we ended with time to write our own poems.

Here is the beautiful poem we read by John N. Morris. In many ways, creative writing is a skill that helps us to live in what kills us.

For Julia, in Deep Water

The instructor we hire
because she does not love you
Leads you into the deep water,
The deep end
Where the water is darker—
Her open, encouraging arms
That never get nearer
Are merciless for your sake.

You will dream this water always
Where nothing draws nearer,
Wasting your valuable breath
You will scream for your mother—
Only your mother is drowning
Forever in the thin air
Down at the deep end.
She is doing nothing,
She never did anything harder.
And I am beside her.

I am beside her in this imagination.
We are waiting
Where the water is darker.
You are over your head,
Screaming, you are learning
Your way toward us,
You are learning how
In the helpless water
It is with our skill
We live in what kills us.

Day Twenty-Nine / 4.28.10

Today we started with the Vocabulary 13 Quiz. Then, we went over the words and definitions for Vocabulary 14 (due May 10, 2010). After that, we edited the essays from Japan. I posted one below, if you missed it. Next, we discussed the poetry homework. Finally, we talked about how we make meaning when reading creative writing. We briefly analyzed the histories of 2 students, and thought about how the "movies in their heads" would be different when reading creative writing. We make meaning out of the prior experiences we have and the pictures we create in our head (among a few other things), and this means there will be different interpretations of texts, and different meanings for different people.

For Friday, we've got a WIBR party:
P1. Adam, Brittany, Kelly, John C., Rhiannon
p3. Arshia, Timothy, Catherine, Courtney

Also, will all the people I requested to e-mail me their essays, please do so by Friday (so do it like, now). Please e-mail me at ankenym@uci.edu. Thank you!

The Strike is Over

We return to 1/3/5 tomorrow, for a block day. Be prepared to pick up the pace, since we've definitely lost some ground. Here's the game plan:

We're going to be turning in Vocabulary Packet #13.
We're going to be taking Vocabulary Quiz #13.
We're going to be turning in our Poetry Assignment Homework.

So please come prepared to class, we've got some catching up to do.

Day Twenty-Eight / 4.21.10

Today we selected the top 6 (approximately) "A Day in My Life" essays. Then we did some writing in our Writers Notebook. Next, we went over the details of the Multi-Genre Paper. Finally, we went over What is Poetry? We saw a clip from So I Married an Ax Murder, looked at poets of the past, and went through a slideshow on the aspects of poetry. The slideshow is here. The handout accompanying the slideshow is here.

Finally, we had homework: analyzing a poem. The homework is here.

Day Twenty-Seven / 4.19.10

Today we were introduced to the Multi-Genre Paper. We read the Biography passage about Count Basie, then we read the poem, "Basic Basie." Here's the poem:

Basic Basie
by Kamau Brathwaite

Hunched, humped backed, gigantic
the pianist presides above the
rumpus, his fingers clutch the chords,

dissonance and discord vie
and vamp across the key
board

his big feet beat the beat until the whole joint
rocks, it is not romantic
but a subtle fingering exudes a sweet exotic

fragrance now and then, you'll
recognize the fragrance if you listen
well, this flower blooms and blossoms,

till brash boogie woogie hordes come burgeoning up from hell
blind
and gigantic

Then we listened to a song by Basie, you can listen to it here. Then we read an example of a Multi-Genre paper that dealt with parental relationships, religion, and an eating disorder. The author used short pieces of poetry, fiction, non-fiction, et cetera to build a "mood" that described her feelings about her topic. Finally, we went over our schedules for next year.

Day Twenty-Six / 4.16.10

Today we started with a quote from Pablo Picasso: "Art is the lie that tells the truth." Then we went over the 1=25 sheet, to help us come up with further ideas for writing. You can download and print the sheet here. Then we covered the grading of our journals, and briefly touched on the multi-genre paper. The handout for those two is right here. Next, we wrote in our Writers Notebook for 20 minutes. Then we read some vignettes (vignette: a brief, evocative description, account or episode) from Sandra Cisnero's The House on Mango Street. We discussed how our 2x2 picture frame is a good way explore our world. Then, we talked about sharing with the Japanese "A Day in My Life." The rubric for that assignment is here. Remember, focus on a notable event in your day, and draw your reader into that scene. Avoid the "Bed to Bed" style.

Day Twenty-Five / 4.14.10

Today we went over the words for Vocabulary 13, which is due on 4.26.10. Then, we worked on our Rough Drafts, preparing for the Final Draft, which is due this Friday, 4.16.10. Finally, we started our unit on creative writing, by defining Creative Non-Fiction and looking at two examples. The New Yorker piece by David Sedaris can be found here. And the Malcolm Gladwell piece from Slate.com can be found here. Mr. Ankeny's story can be read here.

For further examples of Creative Non-Fiction, or creative diaries, check out Slate.com's diary page, here.

Day Twenty-Four / 4.12.10

Today we finished watching Romeo + Juliet.

For Wednesday, please bring your writing notebook and your rough draft.

Day Twenty-Three / 4.02.10

Today, we turned in our rough drafts, and we watched Baz Luhrmann's version of Romeo & Juliet. To find out more information about the film, you can click here.

For Spring Break, you are required to fill out the following survey.

Click here to take survey.

And you are required to get a Writer's Notebook, a standard, 8x11 notebook. I purchased mine at Target for $2.22.

Day Twenty-Two / 3.31.10

Today we had Quiz 3 and then had a Writers Workshop. We read excerpts from Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott (if you want to re-read this excerpt, it's here), The Elements of Style by Strunk and White, and 78 Reasons by Pat Walsh. We also started concept mapping and writing our rough drafts. Finally, we went over the difference between the colon and the semi-colon.

Here is the colon/semi-colon GQ.

Day Twenty-One / 3.29.10

Today we had the Vocabulary 12 Quiz. Then we shared our thesis statements, and peer reviewed another student's work. We also read two articles, one from the OC Register and one from the LA Times. These articles helped us see what good writing can look like, and prepared us for writing our rough drafts.

Day Twenty / 3.26.10

Today we finished Act 5, and then we brainstormed the themes of the play, evaluated how a few poems could enlighten us about these themes, and then we did a Quickwrite on how we thought one song/poem related Romeo & Juliet's themes. We also made a quick diagram, brainstorming for essays #2 and #3.

Here are the poems that we evaluated in class.

And here is a quick gallery walk, of famous artwork related to Romeo & Juliet. Quiz yourself to see if you can recognize the different parts of the play the paintings reference (the titles help). And, if you're feeling really adventurous, explore how the artist interprets these scenes, and whether or not they reveal something new or interesting about the scene through the painting.

Ford Madox Brown. Romeo and Juliet, 1867.
Frank Dicksee. Romeo and Juliet, 1884.
Richard Dadd. Sketch for the Passions. Love, 1853.
Henry William Bunbury. Romeo and Juliet with Friar Laurence, 1792-96.
John R. S. Stanhope. Juliet and Her Nurse, 1863.
Philip H. Calderon. Juliet, exhibited in 1888.
William Hatherell. "Where's Romeo?", c. 1912.
Frederic Lord Leighton. The Reconciliation of the Montagues and Capulets over the Dead Bodies of Romeo and Juliet, 1853-55.
Frederic Lord Leighton. The Reconciliation of the Montagues and Capulets, 1854.

Day Nineteen / 3.25.10

Today we took Quiz #2, then watched Act 4 of Romeo & Juliet. After that, we did a group activity on allusions to Romeo & Juliet in contemporary pop-culture. We analyzed different song lyrics, comparing their use of the play with our knowledge of the play.

For the handout and a list of all the song lyrics, click here.

Day Eighteen / 3.23.10

Today we did a quick Romeo & Juliet check-up, to see what we've understood and what we haven't. And then we had a guest speaker, Mr. Jones, talk to us about the benefits of reading, writing, and paying attention in your freshman English class.

Here's the check-up, and a list of potential quotes for the quiz on Wednesday.

Day Seventeen / 3.19.10

Today we watched/read the rest of Act 3, and did a Quickwrite reflecting on the Friar's plan for Romeo and Juliet (and predicting what may happen next). Mr. Ankeny note: The Quickwrites were very thoughtful, and you all showed a good understanding of the story and made informed (based on the text) decisions on whether or not you think the Friar's plan will work. Nice work.

Day Sixteen / 3.17.10

Today we went over the essays, the Great Chain of Being and 4 Humors, and started Act 3. Remember, you can change your essay topic at anytime. The Thesis is due 3.29.10, and the Rough Draft is due 4.2.10.

Here are the 3 different essay choices: 1. The Creative Type; 2. The Reflective Type; 3. The Observant Type.

And here is a document explaining the Chain of Being / 4 Humors.

Day Fifteen / 3.15.10

Today we turned in Vocabulary 11 Packet, took Vocabulary 11 Quiz, and started Vocabulary 12 Packet.

For Wednesday, bring (or e-mail me: ankenym@uci.edu) your R&J E-mail conversation from Act 2. Be sure to have 3 paragraphs (1. Summary, 2. Quote/Importance, 3. Predictions).

Day Fourteen / 3.12.10

Today we took our first R&J Quiz (see below below). Then we constructed some love poems (see below). We finished Act 2, wrote a Quickwrite, and selected our Essay Topic

Here is the Quiz #1 helper-sheet and some student love poetry samples.