Falling Into a Great Year

With the school year well underway, hopefully you are falling into good study habits. Having good study habits includes setting personal goals, managing your time wisely, and taking care of yourself! Nobody wants to be shaking like a leaf on a tree at the end of the year, so be sure you are setting your roots for a good year now. For five bonus points now, become a smart person following this blog and comment on your favorite part of Fall here!

Where Did The Year Go?

Seniors:  Thanks for stopping by to visit this blog, but don't you have more fun things to be doing now that you've graduated?

Juniors:  The clock is ticking, but time hasn't run out yet.  You still have a 12 Angry Men test, a short PowerPoint presentation and a 100 word vocab final on your agenda.  Daily Check In's have ended for the year.  Although you do not have any more assigned vocabulary units, don't lose those books yet.

Lit and Film:  "E.T. phone home!  E.T. phone home!" We are ending the year with the modern day classic E.T., directed by Steven Spielberg.  As we are watching, pay close attention to fairy tale elements in the film.  



Thank you everyone for a good year.  I wish everyone a safe and fun summer.  Please stop by Everything English over the summer - you never know what you may find!  See you in the fall!

Has Anyone Seen That Yellow Thing That Used To Be In The Sky?

These rainy days and nights are the perfect chance for you to get some school work done.  I'm sure once the sun comes back from its vacation, we will all be eager to get out and enjoy it!

Seniors:  Double, double, toil and trouble...Macbeth is coming to a close. A test is right around the corner. Is your study guide up to date?

Juniors:  You have devoted a lot of time to your chosen independent reading book.  Your 3 part writing assignment is due Friday and presentations start next week.  

Lit and Film:  Watching The Truman Show may make you think twice about the media-message-filled world that surrounds you.  For 5 bonus points, comment on your thoughts of this significant quote from the film:  "We accept the reality of the world with which we are presented."  Comment by 2:14, Monday May 2nd.

"Horses Are For Petting, Not Eating"

"Horses are for petting, not eating."  These were the words of wisdom from my five-year-old after school today.  After a good chuckle, I thought of today's reading of Macbeth with the seniors.  I will give 5 bonus points to the first senior that can post the reason that it strangely relates to an event in Act Two of Macbeth.  Then I got to wondering, do any of you have funny stories about some strange thing you may have tried to eat as small children?  If you have a tale to tell, I prithee thee, pray tell!  5 bonus points, by 2:14 Thursday, 4/21.

~Look Like The Innocent Flower, But Be the Serpent Under It ~

Using Metaphors 
Seniors know that the title of this post is a line from Macbeth.  Lady Macbeth is using a metaphor to tell her husband how to act. In fact, the entire play Macbeth is loaded with metaphors and other figures of speech. Each class now has a bonus point opportunity here in relation to metaphors:

English 12:  Post an original metaphor that talks about the upcoming end of your high school experience.  


Lit and Film:  We have gone one step further to define "allegory" which is an extended metaphor, as is the film WALL-E. Write a metaphor concerning a theme explored in WALL-E.


English 11:  Use a main character from your independent reading novel and describe him or her using an original metaphor.  


Everyone may post one metaphor for five bonus points until Friday, April 15th.  I can't wait to see how creative you will be!

JVS Poetry Contest Entries Due Thursday

Attention Everyone:  Entries for the JVS Poetry Celebration Contest are due on Thursday.  This has been posted in the announcements:

Calling All Poets:

April is Poetry Month. In order to celebrate “Poetry,” the JVS will be having a poetry contest. Your poem must be no longer than 21 lines, it does not have to rhyme, it can not contain “foul” language, but it must be original, which means you can not copy from someone else or the internet. It must be your own work.

All poems must be typed, contain a title, your name, grade, home address, and program. (Do not use all capital letters)

All poems must be submitted to your English teacher in Room A209 by Thursday, April 7th. No poems will be accepted after April 7th !!

Your poem will be posted throughout the school and will be entered into a national contest, where you have the opportunity to win cash and/or prizes.

One poem per student.

I know it's short notice, but I'm offering 10 bonus points for the third quarter to all entries.  Turn them in to me by this Thursday, April 7th.  

After Winter Break, I mean SPRING Break...

Juniors:  DO YOU HAVE YOUR INDEPENDENT READING BOOK IN YOUR POSSESSION YET? If so, for 5 bonus points, post the title and author of your independent reading novel here before midnight on Sunday, April 3rd. You need to bring your book to class on Monday!


Seniors:  Tomorrow is April 1st.  Many scholarship applications are due this month.  What are you doing now to put yourself in a position to be prepared for life after graduation?  There are many scholarship opportunities on JVS's website.  Check them out!!!

Lit and Film:  Every time I saw a group of birds this week, I thought of you. Now I bet all these birds wish they hadn't flown back north so soon - someone forgot to tell Mother Nature we flipped the calendar to Spring!

Anyone going to the Indians home opener tomorrow?  See you all on Monday.

For My Number One Fan...

Hello Mrs. Pluta!  Nice to see you here.  I wonder if anyone else will stop by to say hi today!

Seniors 2011 - Last Lectures

Here's the array of historic characters we met Wednesday for our Last Lecture Presentations. Bravo!

Did You Start Your Hourly Countdown To Spring Break Yet???

One more day, one more day, one more day.... We can do this!

Seniors:  Did you return your biography library books from our project?  Also, if you will have no use for the costume articles that you picked up on our field trip, please donate them to the classroom.  I'm sure I can put them to good use!  Reminder - your Shakespeare background packet is due tomorrow.  Be ready to start my favorite Shakespearean tragedy after break:  Macbeth!

Juniors:  What did you think of the decision of the elderly couple in today's story, "A Summer Tragedy?"  What would cause them to go to such drastic measures?  What would you do if you were in their situation?  5 bonus points for a thoughtful comment under this post! 

Lit and Film:  I'm not gonna lie...those birds give me the creeps!  Scanning your faces as you were watching today's segment with the bird attacks at the birthday party and fireplace, some of you are also a little affected by these birds!  This classic film used nearly 300 camera trick shots and was revolutionary for its sound effects and editing. As we continue to watch The Birds, pay special attention to the sounds in the film, especially the bird scenes.  What do you think the sounds add to the mood of the film and/or the characters and why?  5 bonus points for a thoughtful comment under this post! 

Bravo Seniors!!

You did a fabulous job with your Last Lecture Presentations today!  Many of you were well-prepared for this big day.  So many costumes were solid representations of the historic figures you represented and you really characterized your subject well.  Mrs. Pluta and I were impressed.  Many of you had good insight into your figures and put together meaningful words of advice.  While the presentations lasted longer than we had anticipated, you were flexible with the schedule change.  From that crazy Mongolian's opening yell, to George Washington's powdery hair and Dodge Charger, so many of you stepped up to this challenge by overcoming nervousness, stepping out of yourselves and into the life of someone you've never met, and taking chances in front of a big group.  Hopefully, for some of you, this project is proof that you can accomplish anything you want with a little thought and effort!

A special thanks to our IMT juniors, Chris and Victoria, for filming the presentations.  Can't wait to see how that came out!

Darth Vader = Tragic Hero? and other stuff.

Seniors:  ARE YOU READY FOR TOMORROW?  GOOD LUCK!

Juniors:  Today's story, "The Storyteller" dealt with often overused literary stereotypes, referred to as archetypes.  These are predictable kinds of characters, plots, themes or conflicts.  We see these a lot in many film plots too.  The movies in the double-trilogy (???)   of Star Wars contains nearly every possible archetyped character and plot that exists in storytelling and writing.  What are some of the kinds of characters or plots that we see often in literature or film?  Can you name any?

Lit and Film:  It's Spring!  The Birds are arriving in our area!  Take cover!

Follow This Blog!!

Attention All Students:  Sign up to follow this blog for a bonus 10 points!! Do it now, while you're here!

Ready to Spring for Spring Break!

Finally!  Spring Break is on the horizon.  By this time next week, you may be lounging around without a care in the world, playing an intense game of Mario Party, or working as many hours as you can fit into a week.  Whichever is the case, remember to stay focused until 2:14 on Friday!

English 12: The big day is upon us!  Last Lecture presentations are this Wednesday.  It is crucial that you are prepared for your presentation.  Remember all of the costumes and props that you will need, have your presentation rehearsed, and be ready when it is your turn to deliver your presentation.  It is crucial that you are in school for this special day.

English 11:  We are continuing our unit of short stories.  Remember there will be a quiz on Friday over literary terms given to you in class.  Remember, you must have a fiction book by April 4th for independent reading.  It needs to be at least 200 pages and bring it to school with you when we return from break.

Lit and Film:  We are continuing to study the oldies.  I know many of you had mixed reactions about the very earliest of film shorts that we watched.  I, for one, am very appreciative for the advances in cinema since the 1800's!