English 2

Today in class, students discussed both chapter 4 of Night and the film Into the Arms of Strangers which they viewed last week. In class students also began reading chapter 5 of Night during which we learn that critical selections at Buna threaten to drastically alter Elie's life (or what is left of it in the concentration camp). After reading, students received the assignment sheet and chose a topic for the research paper they will begin working on later in the week. In order to prepare for this project, students participated in a "paraphrasing practice" activity that will aid them in both the researching and the writing aspects of the upcoming task. We finished class by hearing a couple biographies of our "butterfly children". Thankfully, none of the stories we heard today ended in death.

Homework

• Finish reading chapter 5 and complete the notesheet

English 2

Today in class, students turned in their notesheets for chapters 2 and 3 of Night. After discussing the new developments in the book, including Elie Wiesel being separated from his mother and sister, and Elie and his father being sent from Auschwitz-Birkenau to Buna, students finished the second half of the film Into the Arms of Strangers. In this film, students learned about the Kindertransport that saved 10,000 children during the holocaust, but sadly left most of those kids orphans after the war. Next week, students will begin reading the biographies of their Butterfly Children. We also have a guest speaker coming next Wednesday to give a presentation on the holocaust.

Participation Question

1. Which countries participated in the Kindertransport?

Homework

• Read chapter 4 of Night and complete chapter 4 notesheet
• Finish the viewing guide for the film (if not turned in today)

English 1

Today in class, students read the Prologue and Act One Scene 1 of Romeo and Juliet. In this scene, students were introduced to Shakespeare's humor, complete with puns, oxymorons, and low humor of the lewd jokes that even Elizabethan peasants would have understood as they watched Shakespeare's plays from the floor of the Globe Theater in London. With a little work and a lot of explaining, students were able to understand Shakespeare's language and humor as well. Classes were also acquainted with some of the main characters in Romeo and Juliet, including Benvolio, Tybalt, Capulet, Montague, and Romeo himself. Next class period, students will meet Juliet in Act One Scene 2.

After reading, students began their Verona Persona assignment by creating their personas/characters based on a few characterizing questions. Students will introduce their characters and communicate with other verona personas online on our class wiki. Students are free to visit the site tonight and write their first posts, but next class they will also get a tutorial on how to use the wiki.

Participation Questions (leave your answers as a comment and receive participation points)
1. What is a pun? An oxymoron?
2. Why is Romeo so depressed in Act One Scene 1?

Homework

• Finish your Verona Persona questions if you did not get done in class
• Remind your parents about Open House tonight at 6:30PM

English 2

Today in class, students continued their journey through Elie Wiesel's memoir. Students turned in the chapter one notesheet they completed for homework, and read chapter 2 in class. After reading, students began watching Into the Arms of Strangers, an award-winning documentary telling the story of the Kindertransport. Parents, if you are curious about this child transport, ask your kids -- they should be able to explain it! Next class we will continue reading the novel and finish watching the documentary.

Homework

• Read chapter 3 of Night
• Complete the rest of the chapter 2 notesheet and all of the chapter 3 sheet

English 2

On Friday (8-21), our Holocaust unit was in full-swing as students began class by reading the poem "The Butterfly" by Pavel Friedman. Friedman's poem is featured in a collection of other childrens' poems and drawings that were found in the Terezin concentration camp after liberation. After reading and discussing the poem, each student made a butterfly to represent the child of the holocaust that they "adopted". For the next several weeks, students will read the biographies of the children featured on their butterflies in order to discover the individuals' experiences as either a victim or a survivor of the holocaust.

After the butterfly activity, students began reading Night by Elie Wiesel. Chapter 1 begins when Wiesel is a child living in Sighet, Transylvania.

Homework

• Finish decorating your butterfly (if not submitted in class)
• Finish reading chapter 1 of Night and fill in the chapter 1 notesheet

English 1

Today in class, students created their own Wordle-inspired "word clouds" to help everyone get to know them and to decorate the big bare wall in our classroom. They also learned how to create and set up their Twitter accounts. Parents who also want to sign up to receive homework reminders (or students who already forgot how from the demonstration today in class) can view the Twitter 101 video on yesterday's post.

Today we also got started on our Shakespeare unit by watching an A&E video detailing the life of the famous poet and playwright. We will be going over the video notesheet next week in class (this means a great chance to rack up participation points in class). If you want to get a head start on participation points, answer the following question in the form of a comment on this post: When is William Shakespeare's birthday (month and day)? What also happened to him on this same date?

Homework

• Finish your word cloud (if you didn't turn it in today)
• Have your parents email me at kryslt@mehlville.k12.mo.us

English 2

Today in class, students got themselves in the right frame of mind to begin our holocaust literature unit. They started class by answering some anticipation questions, first from their own points-of-view, and then from the point-of-view of a Jewish person during the holocaust. After answering the questions, students used the lists of "stuff" they wrote about themselves for homework to create their own "word clouds" similar to the ones seen on Wordle.net. Students also received a demonstration for how to set up Twitter accounts so that they can receive the text message homework reminders for class. If students don't remember all the steps, or if parents are also interested in joining to receive the reminders, here is a how-to video:

Homework

-Finish word clouds

-Have parents send me emails

WELCOME!

Hello everyone, and welcome to Mrs. Krysl's class blog! Today during each of the 34 minute-long class periods, students learned all about the rules, policies, and procedures for their English class. Students also introduced themselves to one another and to Mrs. K, and learned some of what they will be studying this school year. First up for freshmen (English 1) is Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, and first for sophomores (English 2) is a holocaust literature unit, including Night by Elie Wiesel and a research paper. I can't wait!

Remember that both parents and students can check here every day to find out what is going in class and what assignments are due for the next class period. Coming soon will also be participation questions for students who aren't too keen on being vocal in the classroom.

Homework

-List of "stuff" about yourself: your name, your hobbies, your interests, words that describe your physical appearance and your personality, etc.

-Parents send me an email so I have a quick, easy way to get in contact -- be sure to include students' names with the message.

-If no parent email available, bring back the class policy sheet signed by parent -- include the best contact phone number in place of the email address.