Class today (January 15th) and Due: January 19th

Application day!!
Today we are going to put your new-found grammatical knowledge to use..  Yes, you can define grammatical terms... Yes, you can diagram the earliest basic structures.. But as you all know, these skills are all on the lowest rung of Bloom's Taxonomy. Yes?
Whereas you must be able to do these skills first, we are now going to move into the WHY??? (This is what you are all starving for in grammar education).

This is going to be challenging, so be open minded and just try!
Take a lot of notes about your ideas and questions!

Therefore, we are going to be examining two of the major purposes for wanting and possessing excellent grammatical skills. This is the WHY?!
1. Writing expression
2. Reading comprehension

You will be reading the following article by Montserrat Dominguez.
1. Read it once completely.
2. Now you will be doing, solely, a "sentence diagramming" read. In this read, I want you to be looking for the "main line" of meaning. This means, in each sentence, ask yourself: where is the subject? where is the predicate? is there an object? is this a transitive verb or an intransitive verb?
3. Once you have figured out the "main line" of meaning in the sentence (in compound sentences, this will be the independent clause).  Is there a subordinate clause before or after the "main line"/independent clause? How is it working?? Is it giving more information about the subject or the predicate??? (Adverbial or Adjectival?)
4. After reading paragraph 1 in this manner, stop and reflect. Ask yourself the questions: How did her style of writing and placement of these components enhance/detract from her purpose? (Now, keep in mind, she is a professional writer.. she has command over grammatical structure.. therefore, she will be purposefully considering the "vehicle" that carries her ideas. Don't jump to it is more difficult because it is beyond just the basic sentence structure)  Really think about the syntax structure.
5. Now, reread paragraph 1 AGAIN. This time you will be doing a "reading comprehension" reading. With this read you are going to need to balance your recognition of the grammatical purpose of the word with the meaning of the word/group of words. Pause slightly after each sentence and think about how this structure informs your understanding. How does finding the "main line" help you comprehend the meaning of the writing.
5. On a piece of paper, write "paragraph 1" and reflect upon your findings. I am not going to micromanage your writing by asking you specific guiding questions to respond to in your reflection. Just do a thorough reflection of both types of readings and your results.

On to paragraph 2...  and so on... make sure you read the "postscripts" in your initial read, but you do not need to include them in your analysis.

"How Can We Not be Afraid" article

Due: Friday, January 13th

1. Review the new information covered in class on Wednesday/Thursday.

2. Do the following exercises:

Participle and Gerund Diagramming Practice

Gerund, Participle, Infinitive Diagramming Practice

Pulling it all together... Diagramming Practice (tougher)

State of the Union Assignment

State of the Union Assignment-
 Here are some links to the live feed of the SOTU-
1. Everything you Need to Know about the State of the Union
2. White House State of the Union Site

The speech starts at 8:00 PM- January 12th
Pick a network.. they will cover it live.

SOTU Issues...
Here is a link that can help you prepare for the issues that the speech will address:
State of the Union 2016 Issues Guide

Interview with President Obama's speech writer:
Interview with Cody Keenan

THE ASSIGNMENT:
1. Watch the State of the Union with a pen and paper.
2. While the President is speaking, listen closely to his syntax. Are you able to distinguish the parts of a sentence? Can you hear independent clauses and subordinate clauses? What about modifiers? When are phrases used? How?
3. Once you get in the swing of listening in this manner, drift into analysis. How does his grammatical constructions help deliver his message? When does he choose simplicity? When does he utilize modifying phrases? Why? Advantage? Disadvantage?
4. How does the President and his speech writers have command over the use of syntax? Remember the purpose of communication is to "get stuff"... How does having control over syntax and diction aid him in presenting his message and agenda?
5. Jot down as many ideas and conclusions that you can during the speech. You will be turning in the notes.
6. After you are done, write a summary of this experience. What did you learn? How did this type of listening approach help your comprehension?

Due: Notes and typed response, January 19th.

Class today: January 11, 2016

1. Please go through the Sentence Diagramming Prezi (found under Grammar links). AND the Diagramming Prezi found here: Diagramming Prezi- Compounds This review will be extremely helpful for tomorrow's quiz.
2. Review terms for quiz tomorrow.

Week of January 5-8th

We have started to dive into the world of grammar.
As of Friday, we have covered the following. . .

Terms:
Subject, Predicate, Direct Object, Indirect Object, Articles, Modifiers, Adjectives, Adverbs, Phrases, Prepositional Phrases, Main Clause, Transitive Verbs, Intransitive Verbs, Complements, Predicate Adjectives, Predicate Nominatives, Linking Verbs, Auxiliary Verbs,  Action Verb

Diagrams:
1. S|P  2. S|P|DO  3. S|P|DO   4. S|P|DO      5.  S|P(LV)\OC   6. Implied subjects   7. Questions
                                  -IO            -Modifiers

Keep in mind the following:

• Modifiers can fall under any of the diagrams
• Remember to ask the "questions" along the main clause line
• An object is determined by the type of predicate. .  Transitive or Intransitive. . and can happen or not in any diagram
• Know the "questions" of the adverbs. .. they will come in handy when they modify adjectives or other adverbs

Grammar Terms test will be on Tuesday, January 12th. There will be some basic diagramming questions on the test.

Finals Week! December 14-18th

Monday, December 14th: Wrap up Independent Oral Commentaries
Tuesday, December 15th: Praise Songs and Psalms- Readings
Wednesday/ Thursday, December 16th/17th: Socratic Seminar over first semester of AS10
December 18th: Final Exam

You may sign up for your 3rd Quarter Independent Non Fiction Oral Commentary text. Please pull from the book lists I have provided. Start with the first link.

Happy Finals Week!

Schedule: 12/9-12/18

Wednesday, December 9th- Independent Book Oral Exams- 4th Hour

Thursday, December 10th- Independent Book Oral Exams-5th Hour

Friday, December 11th- Bring your literary comparison chart finished. Make sure that 3 new questions, plus, Genesis, The Qur'an, Sundiata have all been added and examined.

Monday, December 14th- Wrap up Independent Book Oral Exams

Tuesday, December 15th- Have read Psalms 23 and 104 (pages 88-92) AND Praise Songs of Orishas (642-47)

Wednesday/Thursday, December 16th and 17th: Socratic Seminar for Final Exam review PLUS end of semester celebration

Friday, December 18th: Semester 1 Final Exam


Independent Book Oral Exam Schedule-


Wednesday, December 9th (4th Hour)
Gigi
Shay
Brandon B.
Trey
Brittany
Josh S.
Lizzie S.
Ross
Laurene
Derell
Brennon

Thursday, December 10th (5th Hour)
Zach
Amanda
Rakayla
Caleb
Noah
Aylish
Logan
Victoria
Lily
Alexander
Justin
Kyndall
Levi
Leana
Ezri

Monday, December 14th (4th and 5th Hours)
4th
Solei
Miranda C.
Morgan P.
Kalub F.
Chase
Ayaan

5th
Lizzie B.
Sean T.
Abby W.
Brenden S.
Ryanne
Bailey
Brooke