Summer Reading and more reading and still more!

Dear English II students,                                                 

You all have done very well this year and made much progress in understanding literature. In order to be well prepared for classes next year, it is so important to continue reading (and thinking about what you’re reading) throughout the summer. Reading is the best way to maintain your English reading skills as well as improve in grammar, fluency, comprehension, etc. For your classes, you will have assigned summer reading to complete, but I urge you to also read for pleasure in English and read for information in English as much as you can.

A few other suggestions:

1)      Read news in English online (if you can access npr.org or nytimes.org or other news websites, you can read and often watch video or listen to broadcasts – listening to spoken English over the summer is a good practice to keep up also)

2)      Watch movies or TV shows in English!

3)      Read blog posts about anything you are interested in (in English)

4)      Don’t leave your summer reading to the week before school. Read (and take notes!) on your books throughout the summer.

5)      Choose to read some books from my additional summer reading list (see below).

Additional Summer Reading Suggestions:

The Giver, Gathering Blue, Messenger, Son, & Number the Stars by Lois Lowry            The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon
The Book Thief by Marcus Zuzak
Persepolis 2 by Marjane Satrapi
The Hunger Games series
The Divergent series
Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt and others in this series
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
Shabanu by Suzanna Staples
Howl’s Moving Castle by Dianna Wynne Jones
If I Stay by Gayle Forman
Mockingbird by Katherine Erskine
Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
Wonder by Palacio
Any novel by John Greene
Every Soul a Star or others by Wendy Mass
The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston
My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

(Add more in the comments if you want!)

Also, keep writing! You can write emails to me each week about what you’re reading, and I will definitely respond. Or you can add blog entries discussing what you are reading, and I will read those and comment on them.

Have a great summer: read, relax, enjoy, and be ready to come back in the Fall and work!  --Ms. Guarino

Final Exam Prep

English II IS Final Exam Study Guide

A.      Exam Notes:

Each student will be asked to bring in one 8x11 sheet of paper with as many “notes and quotes” from the books we have read as you can fit on this page. The notes are required and will count as points on the exam. See the essay question below for more information on what notes to prepare.

B.  Key Terms to Study for the Exam:  

The exam will ask you to match 15 of these terms with the correct definition. You need to memorize these terms and definitions; you will not be able to include them in your exam notes.

1.      Literature                                                       

2.      Fiction                                                            

3.      Nonfiction                                                      

4.      Novel                                                                          

5.      Mystery                                                                                  

6.      Biography                                                                               

7.      Autobiography                                                                                   

8.      Graphic novel                                                                         

9.      Poetry                                                                         

10.  Drama                                                                                                                                    

11.  Tragedy                                                                                              

12.  Foreshadowing

13.  Metaphor

14.  Personification

15.  Narrator

16.  Unreliable narrator

17.  Flashback

18.  Epilogue

19.  Dialogue

20.  Monologue

21.  Mood

22.  Tone

23.  Plot

24.  Setting

25.  Character

C. Essay Question:

You will write an essay examining one of the following quotations and demonstrating how it applies to any 3 of the texts we have read this year. Use specific examples and create an original, sophisticated analysis of the literature as well as the text of the quotation. Your essay will need to include a clear thesis, an introduction, organized body paragraphs, and a conclusion. It will also need to include exact quotes from the three texts you discuss.

Naomi Shihab Nye: “Why should it be a surprise that people find solace in literature? Literature slows us down, cherishes small details.…We need literature for nourishment and noticing, for the way language and imagery reach comfortably into experience, holding and connecting it to ourselves.”

Marjane’s father: “Never forget who you are and where you’re from.”

Marjane’s Grandmother: “Always keep your dignity and be true to yourself.”

Sookan: “I would gather my pearls and forge ahead….I didn’t know what my future would bring, but I would do as Mother had always told me. I would follow my heart.”

Ashmol: “If you go to Lightning Ridge, people pause in the middle of whatever they are doing to stop and talk to Kellyanne Williamson just as they still pause to talk to Pobby and Dingan and to the opal in their dreams. And the rest of the world thinks we’re all nutters, but they… are all just fruit loops who don’t know what it is to believe in something which is hard to see or keep looking for something which is totally hard to find.”

Lorenzo: “I never fitted in. She didn’t either.”

Candace Sinclair: “Children know…that the stories about their family are both true and untrue. There are endless variations. And people will continue to tell them.”

A reminder about the essay format (as explained in class):

Paragraph 1: Introduction and thesis

Paragraph 2: Analysis of the Quotation -- what does it mean and why is it important? (how does it connect to everything we have been learning about literature all year in this class?)

Paragraph 3: Connect to Book 1 (use specific ideas and quotes)

Paragraph 4: Connect to Book 2 (use specific ideas and quotes)

Paragraph 5: Connect to Book 3 (use specific ideas and quotes)

Paragraph 6: Conclusion

Vocabulary words

List of words for tomorrow's test:

1. taxidermy

2. villainous

3. recuperate

4. quarrel

5. constellation

6. snorkeling

7. stagger

8. traumatic

9. heroine

10. agony

11. ivory

12. shore

13. hilariously

14. stunning

15. pitiful

16. surpasses

17. glamorous

18. collapse

19. giddy

20. embroidered

Quiz prep questions from the groups

From John and James:

Fact Questions
1. What is the name of the kid of Ed and Carrie?


2. How many buildings in Beechwood Island?


3. Which college did Harris go? When did he graduate?


4. What is Ed's job?


5. Who are "The Liars"? And who are the littles?


Thinking Questions
1. Do you think Cadence and her parents love each other?

2. What do you think would happen between Cadence and Gat? If Gat was in higher class?

3. Do you think the grandparents know their daughters are lying?



From Miranda and Valerie:

1.in what summer did Gat and cadence meet?

2.Who is Gat's uncle?


3.what is the name of the girl who Gat like?

4.what are the names of cadence grandparents?

5.who is the first grandson in the Sinclair family?



1.what did cadence grandmother think about Gat when they first met?

2.what dose it mean to be a Sinclair?

3.is the letter really sending to the girl in New York?


From Olivia, Kelly, and Jack:

Who is gat?

Where does penny and cadence live on island?

Who is the eldest grandchild?

What's the name of Gat's girlfriend in New York ?

What is the name of the island where Sinclairs spend summer?

Think about what do Sinclairs think of Gat.

Analyze what is the relationship with gat and Cadence?

Why do you think four young children lie?

From Leo and Joseph:

1.What kind of accomplishment should a Sinclair has?

2. Why Gat comes to the island every summer?

3. Describe what kind of personality does Johnny has?

4. Why Cadence's father choose to leave her?

5. How many girls do the Sinclairs have?

1.How did Gat consider himself in relationship with Sinclair family.

2. Why do you Cadence fall in love with Gat?

3. Why did Gat choose Raquel but not Cadence?

From Jack and Cherrie:

5 FQ and 3 TQ of we were liars

What are the names of the twins?

What is the name of the island?

How did cadence find out gat was not really love her?

Why did cadence's father leave the family?

Who are those four liars?

Why gat feel he is a outlander? 

Why cadence loves gat? 

Why are they lying

Me and You

In the novel Me and You, there are some parts that are ambiguous (unclear).  Here is a good review of it that might help you if you are confused while reading.

Student Choice Books

And the winners are...

1. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

2. Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry

We will read both of these in Marking Period 4.

Some book ideas

1. Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry

This book follows The Giver but is set in a primitive society where the people do not have music, art, etc. The main character, Kira, discovers the secrets of the society in this novel.

Read more here.

2. Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

A book about teenagers, love, bullying, etc. Two interesting characters and a good story!

Read more here.

3. Maus by Art Spiegelman

This is a graphic novel about the Holocaust of Jewish people during World War II. It is very creative.

Read more here.

4. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon

The "improbable story of Christopher's quest to investigate the suspicious death of a neighborhood dog." Good story.

Haiku Quiz

Haiku Quiz

11.     How many lines comprise (make up) a haiku poem and how many syllables are in each line? (10 pts)

22.     What culture does haiku originate from? (5 pts)

33.     Choose the best word from the list below to complete the following haiku poems: (15 pts each for correct syllables and good description)

a.     Sweet scented _______________

Confetti _____________ from heaven

With a ___________ breeze

Word list: rose, sent, floating, gentle, happily, blossom, nice, smells, outstanding  

b.     Spring __________ winter’s tide

Nature comes __________ alive

Bees __________, hope for brides

Word list: buzz, changes, fast, so, turns, quickly, buzzing, transforming, nature

44.     Write 2 haiku poems about spring. (25 points each) Use at least four of the following words in each (use 8 different words altogether in the two poems): season, bright, sunshine, daffodil, tulip, cool, puddle, umbrella, happily, skip, cloudy, lighthearted, shady, flower buds, green, fields

55.     Name one element that makes a haiku effective or fun to read. (5 pts)

Student Haiku

If you jump I jump,
I'd rather never meet you,
Love is dangerous.


Dali's clock

A wonderful clock
Which seems to be Dali's pride
Why he draws so odd?



"I am not that smart

My parents keep telling me..."

Musical is life

No biology,

Life will be much better then,

I love CS more.

The man

Handsome and clever

Always full of energy

He is John Jiang the man

Changing world 

Winter is coming. 

Weather becomes changeable. 

People stay indoors.

I enjoy my life

Everything is good to me

So I am happy

The girl walks around
Then she meets a handsome man
They both fall in love



 In the wind
Wind blows through the tree

Takes away the lonely leaf

It floats far away


Cheers

The sounds around me

Feel near but are far away

Do they cheer for me?


Lightning

The light sweeps the dark

Divides the sky in half

Oh! Please wait for sound

Haiku

Fridays are funny;
Some students are distracted
by love, food, events -- weekend!

Music moves my heart
makes my blood beat and feet bounce
and calms my crazed soul

Come see Spelling Bee
Miranda doesn't like it
but it is funny!

Paper expectations

1. Title -- original, interesting

2. Introduction --

     a. hook (attracts interest)
     b. thesis

3. Body Paragraphs -- (2-5 paragraphs)

     a. topic sentence
     b. evidence, details, info to prove thesis
     c. analysis of quotes -- what does it show you
     d. ending sentence -- connect back to thesis

4. Conclusion --

     a. reinforce thesis
     b. leave the reader with something to think about

5. Sentence level --

      a. formal language: correct, exact, no errors
      b. interesting sentences
      c. clear and organized

6. Works Cited --

Choi, Sook Nyul., and Sook Nyul. Choi. Gathering of Pearls. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1994. Print.

7. Make sure the quotations you include in the paper (try for one in each body paragraph) are correctly cited: Ex. (Choi 15)

8. Make sure the title of the novel is underlined or in italics: Gathering of Pearls or Gathering of Pearls

Chapter 15 Group Work

Summary:

Sookan went to the town want to buy a present for her family and she
passed a little boutique she saw a really exquisite black short-sleeved.
Want went to the boutique and try it on. That dress I'd really fit her. And
she spend all the money on the dress but not have the money for the p
present sookan got herself dressed before telling Ellen and she gives
Ellen a surprise. In the dance party she meet Kyle’s roommate Tom. After
the dance with Tom they went to the hilltop for drinks. Sookan try alcohol.
After they left the hill top sookan go back to the dorm. In the dorm she talk
with Marcy. When sookan know she drink alcohol she feel guilty she think
her sister will tank she lose her value. And she also feel guilty become she
spend all the money on the dress even she do not have enough money
for the present she has possible and negative emotions that she think this
is the life for the collage student but she also think she should obey her
sister.
So Sookan become reprimanding her self when she thought about her
mother that she mother will said you had done every thing well.
Woman are like oysters, they take that painful experience and enrich
themselves, become stronger.


Thinking Questions:

Why did Sookan feel guilty after she drank alcohol?
 Why did Sookan buy that fancy outfits although she didn't
have that much money?
 What kind of emotion did Sookan has to her mother when
she regard the experience?

Analysis:

The dance party is first time that Sookan has chance to relax herself and
enjoy the real college life, so this is a important experience for her. And
this part made other students change their mind to Sookan, they knew
Sookan was not a bookworm. And in this chapter, when Sookan regarded
this experience, she realized that her mother has taught her something
important. Women should be like oysters, they take the painful experience
and prevent it hurt them, and be stronger

Chapter 16 Group Work

Summary:

Sookan's first year ended and everyone packs up to go home except Sookan. When she get back to her dorm, she sees Ellen's note for leaving. Ellen says that Sookan is welcome to visit and she should visit Tom as well. She admits that she likes Tom but she doesn't have time to date with him and answer his phone calls. She gives Marci her paintings and decides to mail her paintings to Ellen. Marci sends Sookan a bracelet when they go for a drive. They talk about being roommates together and choosing photography classes for sophomore year. After that, they speed down the highway. 


Analysis: 

It is important that Sookan decides to choose photography class for her sophomore year. She chooses it base on her interest instead of her sister's demands. She just chooses it and didn't even think about her sister. She had changed. 

3 thinking questions:

1. Do you think Sookan should date with Tom?
2. Do you think Marci really likes Sookan's painting? 
3. Do you think Sookan really wants to be roommate with Marci and Ellen? 

Chapter 14 Group Work

Summary:

Sookan came back the school. Sookan wrote a letter about her life for her all family members. Sister Reed gives Sookan a pearl necklace from her aunt. Ellen is engaged with Kyle, and Sookan had a argument with her. Because Ellen thinks she can decide her own life. However Sookan thinks that she should care more about her parents' opinions. 

Analysis:

Important: She gets argument with one of her best friends. Because it is about her relationship with her best friends. It is really important to find the reason and study it. 

Questions:

1. Why does Sookan get into argument with Ellen?
2. How would people in the dinning hall feel when they heard Ellen gets engaged? 
3. If you were Ellen, what would you say to Ellen? Would you argue with her?

Chapter 17 Group Work

Summary:

According to chapter 17, the summer vacation starts and Marci goes to Greece. Sookan goes to airport. Then, when she comes back to college, she got letters from her brothers, which tells about Father Lee's plan to visit her; and a letter from her mother with some useful advices that shows her concern and love about her. The letter has been written a month ago and she thinks if she is wrong by not contacting her family so long. Then, Father Lee visits Sookan and brings her the information of the death of her mother. He explained the reason that her mother doesn't want her to be sad or does bad on her works. So they hasn't tell anything in the letter. Then, Sookan cries in her room all day and feels regretful. She realizes her mother's love; also she thinks she's selfish by leaving her mother when her mother needs her.

Analysis:

Mother's death in chapter 17 is important because it's a big turning point for Sookan. From her mother's death, Sookan starts to grow up. She starts to understand more about her family members such as her sister. Also, she starts to plan for herself, which means she starts to live her own life without obeying the elders' order. Mother's idea of seeing problems and hardness as sand and turns it to pearl. And her thoughts is important to Sookan, it not only gives Sookan mentally support, but also make her a firm of studying in America and seek for dreams.

Questions:

Why Sookan's brother starts to write to Sookan?
What does her mother's death brings to Sookan?
From things the mother has done for Sookan, what kind of personality does she have?

Quiz 2

Identify the speaker(s) of each excerpt below and write a few sentences about what the significance of the passage is: what does it show about the character and the situation and why is it important? Do not simply summarize what is happening in the passage; be sure to analyze what the passage shows you.

1. "In many ways I feel so comfortable here -- sometimes more comfortable than I felt at home....I think it is because your culture encourages people to speak openly and frankly."

2. "But soon I'll tell them, and they will just have to get used to the idea. He is the man I will marry....I am eighteen years old, after all. I have to lead my own life."

3. "You're a college student and need to enjoy college life. You're not a diplomat, you know....I feel like marching up to Ms. Mullen and telling her that you simply don't have time for all you do."

4. "Another thing I have marveled at is the open communication between different age groups. Freshmen can talk to seniors about all sorts of things. They can be good friends and go places together. The distinction in age and rank is not so rigid."

5. "I feel that ! can provide you with a little advice. There is an English expression about doing things like a Roman when you are in Rome. I thought that expression was very wise. My main concern is that you always want to do everything so perfectly. Give yourself some time."

        6. "What is going on with this child? You were told to leave campus and rest"
             "I'm sorry. These two insisted on using the kitchen."
             "What a stubborn girl," she said shaking her head, "Full of surprises."

         7."My work at the hospital and school is difficult, and often very sad. So many people are in need                   

           of so many basics. I cannot wait for you to return and join me in my work. We can do so much         

           good together. It is a noble life to help others."

         8. "It just gets so hard after a while. I keep falling further and further behind in my studies. And      

           I'm tired of this feeling of always having to explain myself. I have to work for every little bit of      

           acceptance and understanding."

         9. "They all looked so elegant in their high heels and gloves. I pictured myself all dressed up,       

          walking with them in a leisurely way, and chatting about the last mixer. But I could not daydream    

          long, for it was time to pick up my tray to begin serving."

        10. "It's a waste of time to pretend I like things just to please them. I refuse to do that anymore. I 

         know what I want for my life. I want to be a classics professor."

Information about the author

"Through my writing, I want to bring to life the history and culture of Korea to share with all my American friends." -- Sook Nyul Choi

Also, here is a good resource for information on the author:

http://comminfo.rutgers.edu/professional-development/childlit/choi.html

And here are some notes from today's class (because I am not sure everyone was taking them down!):

b. 1937 N Korea
fled to S Korea because of war (Japanese and Russian occupation)
studied in U.S for college -- Manhattanville
became a teacher in NY, then moved to MA to become a writer
5 books, based on her life, many awards
1st book: Year of Impossible Goodbyes features story of Sookan as a child
our book: theme of American culture vs. Korean culture, roles of women
purpose: teach Americans about Korean culture
genre: historical fiction

Gathering of Pearls

New year...new book. A novel this time. It is about a young woman who leaves Korea to study at an American university in the 1950s. There are vocabulary words and study questions posted on the portal under the topic page for this book.