Poetry

"Oranges" by Gary Soto - students review the elements of poetry -
Literary Focus - metaphor, simile, symbolism, imagery.
Speaking focus - prosody/fluency.

"On Aging" by Maya Angelou - students listen to the poem and learn to annotate by listening to the verse rather than reading it.
Listening Strategies - note taking and attention to intonation.
Literary Focus - speaker/audience.

"O What Is That Sound" by W.H. Auden (Textbook p.141) - a ballad is a poem that tells a story. It is meant to be recited or sung.
Literary Focus - form, rhyme, and rhythm.
Reading Focus - making inferences (Q/A).
Music - "Are There Any More Real Cowbows?" by the incomparable balladist - Willie Nelson.

"Incident in a Rose Garden" by Donald Justice (Textbook p.147) - author's purposeful deceit by a title. Do Now: What might the story/poem with this title be about?
Literary Focus: Figurative Language - metaphor, simile, personification.
Reading Focus: Visualization of setting, character, and events.

"Young" by Anne Sexton ( p.344) vs. "Hanging Fire" by Audre Lorde (p.345)
Literary Focus - finding a unifying theme in two poems through speaker/character analysis.
Reading Focus - Navigating through the syntax of Free Verse. Students learn to break up stanzas into smalfler sentences to better understand the poems.

Class Project - "The Seven Ages of Man" by what's-his-name who, we all agree, wrote fairly well.
This Dramatic Monologue from "As You Like It" will be annotated and performed as a class.

"Two Kinds" by Amy Tan - Independent Reading

Before You Read: Think about the expectations your parent/guardian has for you. What do they think of your talents? How are you living up to the expectations? Do you have your own plans? Record your thoughts as a journal entry in a separate post.

While You Read - answer the following questions:

• What is a prodigy and why does the mother want the main character to become one?
• How does the mother prepare her daughter for fame?
• What talents does the girl have?
• Why does she start the piano lessons and how is the mother going to pay for them?
• Describe the piano teacher
• What do Auntie Lindo and Jing-Mei's mother have in common?
• In your own words, relate the events of the recital.
• What does the author mean when she says, "I didn't have to do what my mother said anymore... This wasn't China"? page 97
• What words does the author use to describe her mother's disappointment in her?
• Why does Jing-mei come back to play the piano after her mother's death?
  

After Your Read - research online about the topics below. Find an article and a picture. Next to the picture provide a caption (5-6 sentences) that summarizes each article.

• Shirley Temple
• The Ed Sullivan show
• Beethoven
• Schumann
  
• Extra Credit - the Japanese invasion of China.