Quick Wrap Up

First of all, thank you all for a wonderful school year. Though I appreciate the fact that you were awesome to work with this year, I also think it's really unfortunate that I had such a wonderful bunch during a school year in which I'll be absent for a good chunk of time (darn you all for being such pleasant, hard-working students!;)

As I've assured you many times before, you are in very apt hands, and I think you will really enjoy having Mr. B as a teacher. You're very lucky indeed, trust me.

The control freak in me would like to address a few things before I leave:

1. Please make sure to pay attention to the calendar I gave you. Know what's on the agenda. If it says to bring your books, bring your books!
2. PLEASE remember to sign up for the AP Lit exam. I'm not going to lie--the fact that I have a measly two sign ups in is giving me slight panic attacks. I'm going to assume that everyone is just procrastinating and really will turn it in before the deadline. You have two weeks! Don't forget!

And, finally, a word about those timed writings. As many of you have noticed, the grades have been entered. You may pick your papers up from the stackable trays in the front of the classroom. Stapled to your timed writing you will find the scoring sheet, which should give you some specific info as to how essays were scored (by the groups). You will also see a grade (or rather, two grades) in my handwriting.

As I explained previously, this timed writing is worth 100 points (as is every timed writing), but it has been entered into the grade book as two separate grades. First, you'll see a 50/50 completion score. EVERYONE got a 50/50 for having completed the timed writing. Next, you'll see a group score (out of 50). This is the score the group who read your essay chose to give you. On your paper, you might see a 50/50 + 35/50. This means that you got your 50 completion points, and you were scored a 70% on the essay. So, math whizzes, this averages out in your favor to an 85% in the essay category. I say "in your favor," because I did review each essay and score to make sure I was comfortable with that designation, and if your paper says 70% for the group score, I wholeheartedly agreed that that was an accurate assessment and likely what I would have graded the essay (out of 100) had I been the sole grader. (Note, some of you will see that I did NOT agree with what the group scored you, and your grade was adjusted accordingly). I say all of this simply because I want to assure you that I made every effort to make this whole process as fair as possible. (And a side note here: you all did an amazing job with this scoring, and I think it shows how knowledgeable you are about the writing process and how to prompt-fondle and construct that 8-9 range essay :) I have no doubts there will be some amazing AP test scores from this bunch.

If you have any questions, feel free to email me. I'll do my best to respond and help you out in any way I can. Have a wonderful rest of the year!

Mrs. Linneman

Vocab Reminder

If you've paid attention to your handy calendar, you've noted that there's a vocab quiz on Thursday. Here's a copy of the Week 6 word list:

1. expectorate: v—to spit, to remove mucus by spitting and/or coughing

Cough syrup is a great expectorate when one is sick.

2. palpate: v—to examine by touch

The nurse palpated the patient’s stomach.

3. preemptory: adj—putting an end to or making impossible an action, debate, delay

The teacher made a preemptory gesture in giving the kids an extra day to complete their essays.

4. pusillanimous: adj—lacking courage and resolution

He despised himself for entertaining such pusillanimous considerations in the country’s time of need.

5. surfeit: n—an overabundant supply; excess

He looked at the surfeit of homework which laid on his desk.

6. allay: v—to make less severe; relieve

The parents tried to allay their children’s fears about the upcoming storm.

7. capacious: adj—able to contain a great deal; not narrow

Her capacious bag was ridiculous; it looked like a small suitcase.

8. diurnal: adj—reoccurring every day

The students completed a diurnal journal which required several entries.

9. extricate: v—to free or remove from an entanglement or difficulty

He could not extricate himself from the Halloween maze.

10. ignominious: adj—marked by disgrace or shame; dishonorable

The British were forced into an ignominious retreat in the Revolutionary War.

Essay Outline Information

Remember, Purdue's OWL website is a wonderful resource for all things essay. I would encourage those of you who are still losing MLA points on essays to check it out before your next round of essay submissions (and keep it bookmarked on your computer for easy reference).

OWL is also a good resource for tonight's homework assignment. If you're having difficulty figuring out how to construct an essay outline, see the information explained here. I am not picky about which outlining format you choose to use, but for this particular assignment, I do want to see your thesis statement and topic sentences in complete sentences (everything else can be listed/bullet-pointed). I realize that may seem awkward with some outline formats, but the whole purpose of this assignment is to a) practice organizing your writing and b) (more importantly) pay attention to structuring your arguments with a strong thesis statement and topic sentences to avoid the dreaded plot summary trap.

Happy essay planning! :)