Happy Thanksgiving from AP English Language and Composition

Today is the last day before the Thanksgiving holiday.  May everyone enjoy a little family time and A LOT of turkey!

James Thurber

“I think that maybe if women and children were in charge we would get somewhere.” 
― James Thurber

The author and cartoonist James Thurber was the focus of Friday's vocabulary quiz story.  Using the vocabulary terms and the context clues, you learned a little bit of biographical information about him.  Some of you may remember his short story, "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", which is coming out on film shortly.

If interested in a blog bonus, find a quote or a cartoon by James Thurber and apply it to a personal life situation.  Explain the quote or the cartoon and identify how it connects to you personally.

10 points
due Wednesday, November 13th.

Scrabble Fun

Once or twice a year, English 11 likes to play a modified Scrabble vocabulary game.  8th period was victorious as they problem solved 37 out of 40 vocabulary terms on our "Scrabble board."  (Period 2 came in 2nd with 35 and Period 4 came in 3rd with 25)

Great efforts!  Thanks to those who participated in all classes.

"The Gettysburg Address"

To help close off the quarter, English 11 was asked to create digital projects of "The Gettysburg Address." Stupeflix and Prezi were common technological resources used.

Although just under two minutes in length, Lincoln's speech had a huge impact on the audience.  It will forever remain an icon in honoring those we lost in the Civil War as well as in any war!

Here are a couple of examples.

Stupeflix Gettysburg video

Gettysburg video

National Honor Society 2013

Congratulations to those inducted to the Prairie du Chien National Honor Society (Monday, October 21st, 2013).  We are proud of your accomplishments.  Continue with all of your efforts in academics, service, leadership and character!

Positively Pronoun

It is time to review pronouns in all shapes and sorts.  There are personal pronouns, intensive pronouns, reflexive...relative...indefinite...interrogative...nominative...objective...possessive...take a breath!

Pronouns are everywhere.  It is important to make sure we use them well.  We need to remember that pronouns must be clear in reference.  Ambiguous pronoun usage is confusing.  We also need to remember pronoun agreement.  The pronouns must agree with their antecedents.  (Lack of pronoun/antecedent agreement can also affect subject/verb agreement, which affects one's writing even more.)

Review pronouns.  Know the above pronoun types.  For those of you who had English 10 last year (as well as English in even earlier years), these are all review.  If the pronoun types are not familiar, explore some.  Look online for notes.  Come ask questions.  Talk with a neighbor.

Our goal in discussing pronouns is not to necessarily memorize every pronoun but to make sure we use any pronoun well!

Take a moment to watch a Blast from the Past...School House Rocks...pronoun style!
Schoolhouse Rock--Pronouns

Artistic Forms of English

Did not mean to trick you...Maybe this looks more like a math problem to you.  English 11 has used a chunk of the first quarter to explore a traditional form of a grammar lesson through the "art" of diagramming.  Some students love it; others...