Welcome back!

 Most of our assignments for this year will be posted and submitted via Schoology.  However, I strongly recommend bookmarking this page for easy access to the assignment calendar, useful links, and important announcements. 

Note: If you plan on accessing this page on your phone, you will need to scroll down to the bottom and click on "Web View" in order to see the calendar. 

Assignments during our online instruction time

All materials for my students are available on Google Classroom.  Please see the posted plans so you know what you are responsible for.

Guardians - please email me with your name and your student's name, so I can share information with you from Google Classroom. 

Contact me via email or REMIND with questions.

Senior Project Office Hours

Now that we've started the Senior Project, I know you are going to have lots of questions.  

You are welcome to talk to me about about your questions and concerns during class or before/after school.  You can also contact me via email, through the Help Thread on Google Classroom, or by text via Remind*.  Please be aware that, while I am happy to help you with the project, there are limits to my availability outside of school hours.  College professors refer to their available time as "office hours," so here are mine:

During my Prep Hour: by appointment only
Monday: 2:30 to 5:30

Tuesday-Thursday: 2:30 to 6:00

Friday: 2:30 to 2:45

Saturday: 10:00 to 4:00

Sunday: unavailable

I will make every effort to answer questions in a timely manner, but patience is a must - I have a lot of students sharing my time so messages will be dealt with on a first come, first served basis.  Your best bet for a quick response is to take advantage of in-class work time or our weekly student/teacher conferences during the Senior Project process.

*Everyone is required to sign up for the Senior Project Remind, by texting @shiersp20 to 81010.

Important things to keep in mind for the Senior Project

1) Every step builds on the step before.  Failure to complete the annotated bibliography means you won't be able to do the outline, failure to complete the outline means you won't be able to do the essay, etc.

2) Deadlines are put in place for a reason - the project is laid out so you have a reasonable amount of time to complete each stage.  Keep track of due dates and use the time you have been given wisely.

3) There is absolutely zero tolerance for plagiarism or other forms of academic dishonesty.  There is an established precedent in place that starts with a zero on the assignment and disciplinary action and escalates from there, up to and potentially including failing the class and not receiving your diploma in extreme cases.

4) CHECK YOUR SCHOOL EMAIL REGULARLY.

Materials for the Senior Project are posted here and on the ELA 12 Google Classroom page.  If you have questions about the project or any of the components, use the "Senior Project Help Thread" on Classroom.

"The Great Gatsby" online assignments

The online assignments for our study of "The Great Gatsby" is available via the ELA 12 - Second Semester class on Google Classroom.  

In order to access announcements, assignments, and other postings on the class page, you need to be logged into your school email account.

The ebook and audiobook links are available on the right side of this page.

Poetry Unit Materials

Looking for the poetry unit?  

Go to the ELA 12 - Poetry Unit class on Google Classroom.  In order to access announcements, assignments, and other postings on the class page, you need to be logged into your school email account.

Sample Annotation

This is a sample annotation:

This article was written by three medical professionals and published in a well-known academic journal. It focuses on the level and frequency of caffeine consumption in high school students. It also discusses the correlation between caffeine consumption and behavioral problems, as well as the correlation between caffeine consumption and other mental health issues. Additionally, the authors discuss their findings in the area of gender and levels of caffeine consumption, finding that young males are far more likely to over-consume caffeine than young females. The article includes detailed statistics on caffeine consumption that would be useful as evidence to support my essay thesis.


This annotation includes:
2-4 sentences summarizing the source (no quotes)
1-2 sentences evaluating the source's reliability/objectivity
1-2 sentences reflecting on the source's usefulness for an essay on the topic

Leadership Annotated Bibliography

One of the pieces of the Senior Project that we will be doing later this year is an Annotated Bibliography, which is a way of organizing research on a topic prior to writing about that topic.  To help you prepare for that, we will be doing an Annotated Bibliography now that will serve as a practice assignment for the Senior Project one.  

During the Senior Project, you will be researching and writing about a topic of your own choice, but this time you will be researching (but not writing) about a topic I chose: Leadership.  You should have ample time to work on the assignment in class.

Important Dates: 
November 13 - Google Doc share is due by 5PM
November 18 - digital draft collection at 5PM
December 2 - final printed bibliography/articles are due by 2:40

TEWWG - Ch 18 online assignment - DUE November 1

Chapter 18 of "Their Eyes Were Watching God" includes several good examples of both suspense and foreshadowing.

Your assignment is:
1) Provide a definition and non-book example for Suspense and Foreshadowing (20 points)
2) Provide TWO EXAMPLES of each literary device from Chapter 18, including a quote and a page number (15 points each)

The assignment is worth a total of 50 points and is due no later than 5 PM on Friday, November 1, and can be submitted as either an email or a shared Google Doc.

NOTE:
For an email, the subject line should be "Last Name Hour Ch 18."  For a shared Google Doc, the document name should be "Last Name Hour Ch 18."  An incorrect name/subject line will cost you 5%.

TEWWG - Chapter 7-9 Online Assignment - DUE October 23

Chapters 7, 8, and 9 of "Their Eyes Were Watching God" have some fantastic examples of figurative language in them. Part One of this assignment can be done before you read these chapters, and Part Two can be done as you read them. Your answers can be turned in by email or in a shared Google Doc, and the fully completed assignment is due by 5 PM on Wednesday, October 23.

Part One (before you read):

Look up definitions and non-book examples of the six types of figurative language. Each definition and example is worth up to 10 points (total of 60 points).

*Metaphor
*Simile
*Personification
*Allusion
*Irony
*Alliteration

Part Two (as you read):

Using Chapters 7-9, find examples of FOUR of the six types of figurative language listed above. Share your findings as a quote and a page number. Each quote and page number is worth up to 10 points (total of 40 points).

The full assignment is worth up to 100 points. For up to 20 extra credit points, share book examples with page numbers for all six types. You are welcome to share Part One and Part Two separately or together, but both parts are due by 5 PM on Wednesday, October 23.

NOTE:

For an email, the subject line should be "Last Name Hour Ch 7-9." For a shared Google Doc, the document name should be "Last Name Hour Ch 7-9." If you send Parts One and Two separately, add "Part One" and "Part Two" to your submission name. An incorrect name/subject line will cost 5%.

"Their Eyes Were Watching God" background assignment - DUE October 11

Read these two short essays carefully, looking for answers to the following questions:

1. Who were five of the twenty-nine men who signed the incorporation papers for Eatonville? 

2. What is odd about the men who signed?

3. Who discovered Hurston's grave and published an essay about Hurston?  

4. Where was that essay published, and in what year?

Reading: History of Eatonville, FL

Reading: Zora Neale Hurston biography

When you have finished the assigned reading, send me your answers either via email or in a shared Google Doc.  See note below about the proper naming convention for submitting responses to online assignments.

Each answer is worth up to 25 points, for a total of 100 points for the assignment.  Your answers are due to me no later than 5 PM on Friday, October 11.    

NOTE: 

For an email, the subject line should be “Last Name Hour Their Eyes background.”  For a shared Google Doc, the document name should be “Last Name Hour Their Eyes Background.”  An incorrect name/subject line will cost you 5%.

Miss Shier's Tips for Asking for a Recommendation Letter

When you ask for a letter of recommendation from a teacher, coach, or another adult, you should provide the following information:

• Your full name
• What the recommendation is for (college or scholarship)
• Who the letter needs to be written to, if it's someone specific
• When you need it by
• Hard copy or email (and where to send it)

Include the following important information about you and your academic and extracurricular activities:

• Academics (honors classes, AP, college courses, early college, etc.)
• Rank and GPA, if you know it
• Clubs or sports teams you are involved in (NHS, Key Club, football, etc.)
• Special awards or honors you have received
• Anything else special you think your recommender should know or include

Remember: You are asking your recommender to do you a favor, so as a matter of courtesy, give them as advanced a warning as possible.  This should be AT LEAST one full week, but more if you can.  If you give less warning, there is a very good chance that they will say no or you will not get your letter in time.

October College Visits

Check the assignment calendar for dates and times for all of the currently scheduled college/university/trade school visits.  More will be added as information becomes available, so check back often.

Student Resume Examples/Templates

Check your email or your "Shared" folder in your Google Drive for a set of sample resumes that can be used as templates if you would like.  You will need to make a copy of the document before you can do any editing.

The templates in the "Materials" folder are mostly for professional resumes, not student resumes.  You can still use them, but you would need to make some changes to make the format work for you.

Welcome, Class of 2020!

Welcome to a brand new school year!  I am excited about what this year has in store for you, and I look forward to helping you prepare for heading off to whatever comes next for you.

Moving forward, there are a few things I strongly recommend:

1. Bookmark this page.
2. Check this page frequently - this is where you will find pretty much everything you need for ELA this year.
3. Keep track of assignments and due dates. 
4. Check your school email regularly.
5. Start thinking about what you might want to research for the Senior Project.  We're doing it slightly differently this year, but it will still be helpful for you to have an idea of what you are interested in for when we get started later in the year.

Senior Project Presentation Fair Days - May 13 and 14

Here is the schedule for the two presentation days in the library.  Remember that you need to be dressed up for both days (at least while you are presenting) and that you need to have a charged Chromebook and your presentation board with you.

Note: All seniors will eat during A lunch on these two days.

If you miss one of your assigned presentation times, you will be required to complete an alternate assignment to receive makeup credit.

In-Text Citations - MLA

Every piece of information that you include in your essay that comes from an outside source (other than your own personal brain) or that is not common knowledge needs an in-text or parenthetical citation.

We have talked about this in class, but just in case:

VIDEO: "What are in-text citations?" (This is the video we watched in class)

VIDEO: "MLA In-Text Citations - an in-depth guide" (Long, but VERY useful)

VIDEO: "Plagiarism & Citing Sources: Common Knowledge Explained" (Useful information we watched in class)


Helpful information sheets, links, and practice:
"MLA In-Text Citation Helper"  (Handed out in class)

"MLA In-Text Citations" from the Bedford Writing Center (Lots of detail, but very useful)

"MLA In-Text Citations: The Basics" from the Purdue OWL


It is very important to remember that ignorance is not an excuse; if you do not know the right way to do a citation, it is never okay to just skip over doing it.  

High School vs. College

In case you were wondering, this is actually a pretty accurate comparison between high school and college, regardless of what college you might attend:

"How is College Different From High School?"

Senior Project Office Hours

Now that we've started the Senior Project, I know you are going to have lots of questions.  You are welcome to talk to me about them during class or before/after school.

You can also email me or text me via Remind* with questions or concerns.  Please be aware that, while I am happy to help you with the project, there are limits to my availability outside of school hours.  College professors refer to their available time as "office hours," so here are mine:

During my Prep Hour: by appointment only
Monday: 2:30 to 6:30

Tuesday-Thursday: 2:30 to 7:00

Friday: 2:30 to 2:45

Saturday: 10:00 to 5:00

Sunday: unavailable

I will make every effort to answer questions in a timely manner, but patience is a must - I have a lot of students sharing my time so messages will be dealt with on a first come, first served basis.  Your best bet for a quick response is to take advantage of in-class work time or our weekly student/teacher conferences during the Senior Project process.

*Everyone is required to sign up for the Senior Project Remind, by texting @shiersp19 to 81010.

Senior Project Remind sign-up

Sign up for Senior Project Remind messages by texting @shiersp19 to 81010.

This is required by 3/1 and is worth 50 points.