A Word About Late Work

As of February 10, any work that is considered "classwork" (to be completed in class) will not be accepted late. If it is not turned in when it is due (during class), it will be a zero.

Friday, May 29, 2009

28 May: Julius Caesar Test Instructions

Mrs. Woodliff was not in class today. The following instructions were given to students as a handout.
1. Turn completed KWL charts in to clear bin.
2. Put everything away.
3. Take The Tragedy of Julius Caesar Test Part 1. You may not use your book or notes on Part 1
4. Mark your answers on the scantron.
5. When you finish Part 1, turn in the test packet to its designated spot and take Part 2.
6. Part 2 is open-book, open-note.
7. Continue to mark your answers on the scantron.
8. When you finish Part 2, turn the scantron in to the clear bin (make sure your name is on it!) and Part 2 to its designated spot.
9. After you finish the test: Othello Vocabulary (These are the last vocabulary words of the year. They will be on your semester exam!)
a. Use a dictionary to define Othello vocabulary words (see back of this page)
b. Make a cinquain for 5 words. Cinquains should be original (This is not group work!) Illustrate each cinquain.
c. Complete the wordsearch for fun.
d. You are expected to work on this until the end of class. Turn in if finished. If not, it is due at the beginning of class on Monday, June 1!

Remember, your Peep Shows are due June 1.
Make-up research presentations will also be presented June 1.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Julius Caesar - REVIEW DAY, May 26

Today, students took a quiz over Act V, received graded Act III & IV quiz, took a few notes, finished the video of Julius Caesar, and received a test review.

Notes: Tragedy, Tragic Hero, Tragic Flaw
• Tragedy: a story in which the main character is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow, especially as a consequence of a tragic flaw, moral weakness, or inability to cope with unfavorable circumstances.
• Tragic Hero: According to Aristotle, a tragic hero is “Man of high standard who falls from that high because of a flaw that has affected many”
– Modern tragic hero – Anakin Skywalker
• That flaw is called a tragic flaw.

KWL Chart is due Thursday, BEFORE the test!

The Tragedy of Julius Caesar Test Review

Pre-Reading, Acts I – V Vocabulary.


Quotes from Julius Caesar: Who is the speaker? What/who is s/he talking about? What does the quote mean?
• Now let it work. Mischief, thou art afoot, Take thou what course thou wilt.
• Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look; He thinks too much, such men are dangerous.
• Beware the Ides of March!
• The fault, dear Brutus is not in our stars, But in ourselves that we are underlings.
• This was the noblest Roman of them all.
• … You have some sick offense within your mind, Which by the right and virtue of my place I ought to know of…
• And therefore think him as a serpent’s egg Which hatched would as his kind grow mischievous, And kill him in the shell.
• Let us be sacrificers, but not butchers, Caius.
• It seems to me most strange that men should fear, Seeing that death, a necessary end, Will come when it will come.
• If thou read this, O Caesar, thou mayst live; If not, the Fates with traitors do contrive.
• When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept; Ambition should be made of sterner stuff.
• Et tu Brute

Characters to know for matching

• Soothsayer
• Metellus Cimber
• Cassius
• Cinna, the poet
• Decius
• Brutus
• Casca
• Calpurnia
• Antony
• Lepidus

Reading Comprehension (refer to Act questions and worksheets)

1. Tragic Hero; Tragic Flaw
2. Feast of Lupercal
3. foreshadowing
4. second triumvirate
5. Act I, Scene i – what happens and why
6. Act I, Scene ii – what troubling things have happened this day?
7. Why does Brutus join the conspiracy?
8. Why not attack Antony?
9. What is Caesar like in Act II, Scene ii?
10. Why doesn’t Calpurnia want Caesar to go to the Senate?
11. Why do the conspirators ask Caesar to pardon Publius Cimber?
12. What is Caesar’s attitude when he is at the Senate in Act III?
13. Why does Antony shake hands with the conspirators?
14. What does calling someone a “hart” (deer) mean?
15. In his funeral oration, how does Antony show that the conspirators were not honorable?
16. Act III, Scene iii – purpose?
17. Why does Antony point to Caesar’s wounds and identify the tears in his cloak?
18. What impression does Shakespeare give of the plebeians in Act III?
19. While reading Act IV, how do we know there is a change in Brutus and Cassius’s friendship?
20. How does Brutus react to Portia’s death?
21. After seeing the ghost, why does Brutus ask his servants why they cried out in their sleep?
22. What does Caesar’s ghost symbolize?
23. Before departing for battle, what do Brutus and Cassius say to each other?
24. What is Cassius’ fatal mistake?
25. How does Antony treat Brutus’ followers when they have been captured? (remember Lucilius?)
26. What is the main reason that Brutus does not want to be captured and taken back to Rome?
27. Why is this play considered a tragedy?
28. Themes (central ideas) of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar. (What can be learned about life from this play?)
29. To what does Caesar compare himself before he is assassinated? Why does he make this comparison?
30. Why does Brutus let Antony speak at Caesar’s funeral?
31. What reason does Brutus give for killing Caesar?
32. What is Antony’s true purpose in delivering his funeral oration?
33. How does Antony prove Caesar wasn’t ambitious?
34. Difference between Brutus and Antony’s funeral orations?
35. Why do Brutus and Cassius argue in Act IV? What is the real reason Brutus is so upset?
36. What happens to Portia?
37. In Act V, what ominous sign does Cassius report has caused him to fear the coming battle?
38. What does Cassius say is avenged by his death?
39. Why did Pindarus stab Cassius?
40. How does Titinius respond to Cassius’ death?
41. Why did Antony say Brutus was the “noblest Roman of them all”?
42. What is Brutus’s tragic flaw?

To view YouTube videos of the BBC's animated The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, click here.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

May 21, JC Day 6

Today, students...
  1. turned in paper corrections
  2. took a quiz over Acts III and IV
  3. read Act V.
  4. answered Act V questions in packet:
    •Page 17: 76, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 86, 88
    •Page 18: #3
    •Page 19: #1, 2, 3, 4, 5
    •Page 20: #3, 4
  5. were given the "Peep Show" project assignment, had the opportunity to form groups (if they want to work in groups), drew for acts, and brainstormed the scene they will choose. Examples of Washington Post contest peep shows can be found at this link.

Students can expect a quiz over Act V next class.

Thursday, May 14, 2009

May 14: JC Day 5


  1. Students turned in vocabulary and Shakespeare's Legacy project

  2. Students finished Act III and answered packet questions

  3. Students were given Act IV-V vocabulary definitions and were instructed to find relationships between Act III-V vocabulary words (at least 5 pairs and 2 triads)

  4. Students began reading Act IV

  5. Research papers were returned and correction options/instructions were given.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

May 12: Julius Caesar, Day 4

  1. Turn in Active Reading from Friday not completed in class.
  2. Act III vocabulary assignment: make a cinquain for each of the following words: 1.strife 2.oration 3.coffers 4.mantle
  3. Last week's test was returned.
  4. We read Act III, Scenes 1 & 2.
  5. Act III - V packet was handed out. Questions for Act III, Scenes 1 & 2 should be answered.

HOMEWORK:
1) Today’s vocabulary if not finished.
2a) Find a picture and write a sentence for the rest of Act III words.
or
2b) Make a cinquain or acrostic for each word.
3) Answer Act III, Scene 1 & 2 questions in packet.
4) “Shakespeare’s Legacy”

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Last minute Review & Practice

Acts I & II Additional Review -
Try answering questions on these quizzes that pertain to Acts I & II.

Gradesaver Quiz
SparkNotes Quiz
CliffsNotes Quiz

Don't forget about this video:


Here is another brief video of the conspirator's making plans at Brutus'.


Vocabulary Practice

  1. The preacher made his way to the pulpit when it was time to give the sermon.

  2. The people of Rome are fickle. One day they were on Pompey’s side; a few days later they were cheering for Caesar.

  3. Calpurnia had a dream that Decius construed in a way get Caesar to go to the Capitol rather than stay home like Calpurnia wanted.

  4. Cassius and Caesar were accoutered when they were swimming in the Tiber. Why would this make swimming difficult?

  5. Calpurnia believed that her dream and the wicked occurrences of the night were portentous signs that foreshadowing something bad happening to her husband.

  6. When creating a word web, all words in the web will appertain to each other.

CINQUAINS - line 1 is filled in with a vocabulary word. Line 5 should be filled in with a synonym of the vocabulary word or a word that sums up the word.
#1
cogitation
mental, thoughtful
thinking, pondering, wondering
it’s in my head
5_________________

#2
omen
scary, evil
warning, foreshadowing, threatening
sign of the future
5_________________

#3
affability
friendly, well-liked
giving, caring, understanding
he’s easy to approach
5_________________
#4
augurer
wise, psychic
interpreting, construing, knowing
we found no heart
5_________________

#5
emulation
jealous, green-eyed
coveting, wanting, desiring
wanting to be him
5_________________

#6
ambition
determined, driven
striving, motivating, obsessing
the ladder of success
5_________________

Friday, May 1, 2009

May 6: Julius Caesar Act I & II Test

Students were given the following instructions for the day.
  1. Put everything away.
  2. Take the vocabulary test. Mark your answers on your scantron.
  3. When you finish, keep the scantron, turn in the vocabulary test, and take Acts I & II test.
  4. When finished with the test, take a writing assignment. Write a rough draft. Revise and edit it. Write your final draft. Turn all drafts in.
  5. When finished with the writing assignment, take “Shakespeare’s Legacy” assignment (yellow sheet) and template (picture of treasure chest). Read the instructions. See examples on the board and on the blog. DUE: May 14

Friday, May 8 Instructions

The following instructions will be given to students on Friday, May 8.
  1. Vocabulary: Define Act III Vocabulary words using a dictionary. Use these definitions for base and mantle:
    --Base – adj. evil
    --Mantle – n. cloak
  2. Active Reading #1 & #2:
    #1 – “Shakespeare’s Coined Words Now Common Currency” Follow the instructions on the last page. When finished, turn in and start Active Reading #2.
    #2 – “Reading Shakespeare has dramatic effect on human brain” – Follow instructions at the top of the page.
    --You should work on these assignments until the end of class. They should be neat and complete. Anything not finished when announcements comes on is homework and due at the beginning of class on Tuesday, May 12.

May 4, Julius Caesar Review Work

The following is a copy of instructions that will be given to students on Monday, May 4.
  1. Check your folders if you were absent Thursday or if you want any work that might be graded. (Papers are not graded yet; you will get them back next week.)
  2. Watch video of Julius Caesar Acts I & II.
  3. Vocabulary Practice. Complete the cinquains and sentences, and match vocabulary words with pictures that illustrate/represent them. (Keep these and check the blog for hints or answers.)
  4. Paraphrasing Practice. Work in pairs to paraphrase, in Animaniac fashion, these lines from Brutus and Cassius. Use the modern version (there are 2 copies at the back of the packet, one for each of you) when trying to write Dot’s paraphrases. See examples on the board. (and an example of one paraphrase below)
  5. Act II Sequencing This is page 8 in the Act II packet (the last page). Work with your partner to put these in order and answer the questions when applicable.
  6. HOMEWORK: STUDY FOR THE TEST. If you lost your review, check the “Extras 10” folder in the crate!

About Me

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Welcome to Mrs. Woodliff's blog. The primary purpose of this site is to provide daily class updates and information to students, parents, teachers, and others who are interested. Students, if you are absent or need a reminder of what went on in class, please check here first! Please do not rely on this site for communicating with me. If you have questions or concerns, e-mail or call me!