Here is the link to Chapter 1 TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD assignment.
https://docs.google.com/a/isd317.org/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dGFoclJNZ1BMRFJSUWVodHNkRDVkVmc6MQ
Chapter 1 To Kill a Mockingbird assignment

For Bible Lit: Pick a Psalm

“PICK A PSALM” STUDY

Directions:  Pick a psalm.  (There are 150 to choose from.)  Answer the following questions about your psalm.  You may type right on this page.  Be sure to put your name(s) on it.  

1.        What psalm did you choose to write about?

2.        What version of the Bible are you using?

3.       How many verses are in your psalm?

4.       Does your psalm tell who wrote it?  If yes, what’s the psalm writer’s name?  (If none is given, delete the name questions and this comment.)

5.       What is the overall TONE (happy, sad, angry, excited, etc…) of your psalm?  Answer the question in a complete sentence and explain WHY you think so.  [What words of the writer show that emotion?]

6.       Copy a line or sentence from the psalm you chose that is a little confusing to you.  Put quotation marks around it.  Then, tell what you think it means.

7.       Copy a line or sentence from the psalm you chose that you like best of all.  Put quotation marks around it.  Then, in a complete sentence tell why you like it.

8.       Find at least two of the following literary elements in your psalm.  Copy them and put them in quotation marks.  Then tell what literary element it is.  You will get one point for every literary element you identify up to a maximum of 10.                                                                                              

Simile (comparison using like or as)
Metaphor (comparison not using like or as)
Colloquialism (regional or cultural saying)
Personification (giving an object human characteristics)
Hyperbole (great exaggeration)
Vivid Imagery (Creating a picture with words)
Parallel Structure (Repeating words or phrases)

Assonance (Repeating vowel sounds in words, i.e. “How now brown cow”)

Alliteration (Repeating initial consonant sounds, i.e. “Peter Piper Picked a Peck”)

9.        Write a summary of your psalm.  In three sentences and in YOUR OWN WORDS summarize what this psalm was about.

Source Analysis

Unexplained Mysteries & Legends Project  Part 2:

ANALYZING SOURCES OF INFORMATION

You should have several slides for each source, explaining the following information:

1.  Identify the Source:         Title of article –

                                                Title of source (website) –

                                                Author  (if given) –

                                                Retrieval Date –

                                                URL –

                       

2.  Fact vs. Opinion

a. Overall, does this article seem to be mostly factual or mostly opinion?

b.  Identify or give an example of the factual content.  Identify or give an example of opinion statements, if possible.

3.  Identifying main ideas and supporting ideas of the article

a.  Summarize the main ideas of the source/article.

b.  Identify any important ideas that disagree with other sources. 

    

4.  Recognizing bias, point of view, and the author’s intent

a. What is the position of the author?  What is his/her bias or view of your topic?

Explain why. Bias means unacknowledged shaping of the information to match the author’s position.  Information may be omitted, understated, or overemphasized.

b. Why do you think the author wrote this article?  (What was his purpose? To inform?  To persuade you to buy or do something?  To warn you?  etc.)

5.  Identifying relevant background information about the source.

a.       What do you know about the author’s credentials?  (His/her background, education, experience, etc.)  Are they good or not?

b.      Would you trust this author’s opinion?  Why or why not?

c.       If you do not know the author, what else do you know about the source?  Is it a credible, good source?

d.      If you can’t find the author’s name, does that tell you anything about the value of this source?

6.  Judging content credibility of this source.

a.       Does the article use logical reasoning and explanations?   Explain.

b.      Does the article offer adequate support for its assertions (main points) to prove them?  In other words, has the author convinced you or would you need more information to believe that what he says is true?

c.       Did you read anything in other sources that contradicts the information given in this source?   If so, what is different?

d.      What kind of source/medium is this?  (Online article, TV show, newspaper article, book etc.)  Does the medium affect the way the information is presented?  How? (For example, movies tend to be more dramatic than print.)

Review for Tech Writing - "Cut and Paste" to your own document

QUOTATION MARKS RULES REVIEW              Name:____________________
Assignment:  Add and fix quotation marks, commas, capitalization, italics, and other punctuation in the sentences below.  PRINT

1. Do you know Dorothy Porter's poem The Ninth Hour?

2. “Of all the poems in my latest book she said this is the best. It's very dramatic she added

3. Lee's lecturer asked him why he hadn’t handed in his assignment.

4. Who said To be or not to be, that is the question asked Dr Meehan.

5. In his article Punctuation Tips Smith discusses the importance of commas 

6. Turning towards his student, he said Don’t leave yet He was frowning and clearly disapproved of something

7. Why haven’t you referenced that book he asked

8. I forgot where I got the quote she answered

9.  Have you ever seen the Statue of Liberty? Jerry asked.

10.  “I’m not going to the movie Hunger Games,” Tom said, Because I don’t have any money.”

11.  Mom is watching reruns of I Love Lucy on TV, the little girl said to the man at the door.

12.  Why don’t you go over to Kim’s house after school? Sally asked.

13.  Did Kara say, I can’t figure out problem # 9”

14.  Mrs. Curtiss said “Quotation marks can be complicated.

15.  I hope this wasn’t a test said Bryce.

Here's the document you need for the Daniel study

Bible Lit:  Cut and paste the part in Blue to a Word document to complete your study on Daniel.  You can read the story here.  Don't put the story on your document.

Daniel in the Lion's Den

Introduction

Daniel’s story takes place between 605 and 540 B.C. As a teenager, he was captured in Jerusalem and taken to Babylon. He was a slave in the court of King Nebubuchadnezzar. In his lifetime, he would serve three kings and become a trusted advisor to all of them. Daniel was considered a prophet because the book he wrote contains detailed prophecy about the times following him and the coming of the Messiah and the end times described in the Book of Revelation.

Step I: Go to Bible Gateway and read The Message version (see link below) or use your own Bible to read the story of Daniel in the Lion's Dean. This story is about the prophet Daniel who has been taken captive to Babylon. As he grows older, he has found favor with the king, but he still has enemies. You'll find this story in the Book of Daniel, Chapter 6.

Go here to read it in The Message version at Bible Gateway. http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=dan%206;&version=65;

Step 2: After you read the story, answer these questions:

1. Why are some people plotting against Daniel? Why are they upset with him?

2. Describe the character of Daniel. What kind of a person is he? Use at least three good adjectives in your description.

3. What does Daniel get into trouble for doing? Have you or someone you know ever gotten into trouble for doing the RIGHT thing? If so, explain.

4. A colloquialism is an expression that is used by a particular culture to express an idea in a colorful way. For example, if I said, "You are pulling my leg," I really mean you are teasing me. Find 2 colloquialisms in The Message version of this story and write them down.

5.  What is the punishment Daniel must endure? What happens to him?  How does the King react when Daniel survives?

7. Look at the famous painting of Daniel in the Lion's Den by Rubens. Describe the facial expression of Daniel in this painting. What seems unusual about the den itself? You can view the painting here. http://www.abcgallery.com/R/rubens/rubens1.html
Daniel 6

Daniel in the Lions' Den

 1-3 Darius reorganized his kingdom. He appointed one hundred twenty governors to administer all the parts of his realm. Over them were three vice-regents, one of whom was Daniel. The governors reported to the vice-regents, who made sure that everything was in order for the king. But Daniel, brimming with spirit and intelligence, so completely outclassed the other vice-regents and governors that the king decided to put him in charge of the whole kingdom.

 4-5 The vice-regents and governors got together to find some old scandal or skeleton in Daniel's life that they could use against him, but they couldn't dig up anything. He was totally exemplary and trustworthy. They could find no evidence of negligence or misconduct. So they finally gave up and said, "We're never going to find anything against this Daniel unless we can cook up something religious."
 6-7 The vice-regents and governors conspired together and then went to the king and said, "King Darius, live forever! We've convened your vice-regents, governors, and all your leading officials, and have agreed that the king should issue the following decree:
    For the next thirty days no one is to pray to any god or mortal except you, O king. Anyone who disobeys will be thrown into the lions' den.
 8 "Issue this decree, O king, and make it unconditional, as if written in stone like all the laws of the Medes and the Persians."
 9 King Darius signed the decree.
 10 When Daniel learned that the decree had been signed and posted, he continued to pray just as he had always done. His house had windows in the upstairs that opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he knelt there in prayer, thanking and praising his God.
 11-12 The conspirators came and found him praying, asking God for help. They went straight to the king and reminded him of the royal decree that he had signed. "Did you not," they said, "sign a decree forbidding anyone to pray to any god or man except you for the next thirty days? And anyone caught doing it would be thrown into the lions' den?"
    "Absolutely," said the king. "Written in stone, like all the laws of the Medes and Persians."
 13 Then they said, "Daniel, one of the Jewish exiles, ignores you, O king, and defies your decree. Three times a day he prays."
 14 At this, the king was very upset and tried his best to get Daniel out of the fix he'd put him in. He worked at it the whole day long.
 15 But then the conspirators were back: "Remember, O king, it's the law of the Medes and Persians that the king's decree can never be changed."
 16 The king caved in and ordered Daniel brought and thrown into the lions' den. But he said to Daniel, "Your God, to whom you are so loyal, is going to get you out of this."
 17 A stone slab was placed over the opening of the den. The king sealed the cover with his signet ring and the signet rings of all his nobles, fixing Daniel's fate.
 18 The king then went back to his palace. He refused supper. He couldn't sleep. He spent the night fasting.
 19-20 At daybreak the king got up and hurried to the lions' den. As he approached the den, he called out anxiously, "Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve so loyally, saved you from the lions?"
 21-22 "O king, live forever!" said Daniel. "My God sent his angel, who closed the mouths of the lions so that they would not hurt me. I've been found innocent before God and also before you, O king. I've done nothing to harm you."
 23 When the king heard these words, he was happy. He ordered Daniel taken up out of the den. When he was hauled up, there wasn't a scratch on him. He had trusted his God.
 24 Then the king commanded that the conspirators who had informed on Daniel be thrown into the lions' den, along with their wives and children. Before they hit the floor, the lions had them in their jaws, tearing them to pieces.
 25-27 King Darius published this proclamation to every race, color, and creed on earth:

    Peace to you! Abundant peace!
         I decree that Daniel's God shall be worshiped and feared
   in all parts of my kingdom.
         He is the living God, world without end. His kingdom
   never falls.
         His rule continues eternally.
         He is a savior and rescuer.
         He performs astonishing miracles in heaven and on earth.
         He saved Daniel from the power of the lions.
 28 From then on, Daniel was treated well during the reign of Darius, and also in the following reign of Cyrus the Persian. 

Early Spring

I have totally enjoyed the early spring we are having this year!  I've already been kayaking along the shore where the ice has gone out on Pokegama.  My grandson Eli, who is 19 months old, enjoys walking down our driveway with me.  We don't even have any puddles anymore.  Best of all, we've had terrific weather for just sitting outside on the deck reading or enjoying the sunshine.

Tell me how your the early spring has affected you.  What have you enjoyed about it?  Has there been any down side to the warmer weather we've been having?  Let me know how you feel in a journal entry.
Thanks.
Mrs. C.

Monday, Jan. 23, 2012

FIX FRAGMENTS #1     Name: _____________
Part one:  Fix the fragments by combining the sentences or adding words to them.

1.  While I was sleeping. My dog began to bark.
2.  The winter of 2011 is shaping up to be one of the worst on record for several states, 3.  SUNY Rockland has already had several snow days and more storms are on the way.
4.  I stopped at the grocery store to pick up chips and salsa. Before the Super Bowl began.
5.  I enjoy skiing it is my favorite winter sport.
6.  I prefer reading mysteries over romances. Especially mysteries with a paranormal element.

Part Two:  Put these sentences into paragraph form, and get rid of fragments. Get rid of the numbers.

1.  Children receive conflicting messages from a variety of sources.
2.  Which cannot be silenced: teachers, books, friends, and television programs.
We have, from time to time, experimented in this country with limited access to potentially damaging or offensive materials.
3.  Such as books and movies.
4.  But these experiments have not withstood legal challenges.
5.  The courts have decided that Americans have the right to choose what they see or hear and that writers and others have the right to create what they wish.
6.  Although,  certain extreme circumstances, like child pornography, are so offensive and damaging to the children being filmed that as a society we have said that such products are repugnant.
7.  Which is the argument that Charren is making about advertisements directed at children.
8.  But as a society having agreed to limit speech only in the most extreme cases.
9.  There is nothing in the making of advertisements that is as purposefully vulgar or harmful as there is in child pornography.
10.  If anything, advertising more closely resembling the language of our everyday speech.

Part Three:  Combine these sentences to eliminate fragments and make them complete sentences. 

          While only eight microbreweries existed in the United States a decade ago. Today seventy microbreweries are brewing more than 65,000 barrels of specialty beers a year. Microbreweries are winning awards for the tastiness of their products. Which has caused the large producers to alter their production and advertising techniques. Because microbrewery beer is often free of additives. It must be sold locally. Local production, distribution, and advertisting has become a key to microbrewery success. Which depends on creating the perception among buyers of a freshness and healthfulness not available in mass-market beers. Even though image is important. Quality of the product is what has convinced an increasing number of American beer drinkers to buy from local, smaller breweries.