Week of March 19-23 Literature and History

Hi, Students!

I hope you're having a happy and fun spring break. I wanted to get this information on the blog while I was planning. Be sure and look it over--especially next week!

Shades of the prison-house begin to close

Upon the growing Boy,

But he beholds the light, and whence it flows,

He sees it in his joy.

The stanza from the poem above was written by William Wordsworth, a great poet of the 1800s. What do you think it is talking about? What do you think the boy see that makes him joyful? This stanza is used at the beginning of the novel we will start in class on Monday, The Light in the Forest, by Conrad Richter.

We will be immersed in the colonies of Pennsylvania and Delaware, and be reading about the relationships among the British soldiers, the American colonists, and the Native Americans of the region--and one boy who finds himself confused about all three groups of people.

This week, all of our reading will be done at school since you have your Stanford tests. HOWEVER, if you do not finish your reading at school, you must finish it at home (Chapters 4 & 5). You will be keeping a chart as you read, and must be able to participate in our discussions next week in class. Your spelling and vocabulary words will be taken from this novel. They are below. You must be able to spell the words correctly, and recognize the correct definitions for the words. Your test over these words will be Tuesday, March 27.

MONDAY, March 19: We will read Chapter 1 (i=pp. 3-8) in class aloud, and fill in Chapter 1 on our chart. HOMEWORK: Read Chapter 2 (ii=pp. 9-16)—fill out chart and be ready to discuss on Tuesday.

TUESDAY, March 20: We will have questions over Chapters 1 and 2, and read Chapter 3 during class, filling out our chart together. No Homework.

WEDNESDAY, March 21 and THURSDAY, March 22: Read Chapter 4 (iv=pp. 25-35) after Stanford test and fill out chapter chart.

FRIDAY, March 22: Read Chapter 5 (v=pp. 36-43) after Stanford test and fill out chapter chart.

SPELLING WORDS for Test on Tuesday, March 26. You will need to be able to match the word with its definition.

1. aversion = a strong dislike for something or someone

2. palaver = flattering speech

3. doughty = strong and brave

4. spunky = courageous

5. frontier = unexplored territory

6. excitation = being in an excited state

7. grimace = a facial expression of dislike or pain

8. acknowledge = to recognize

9. soberly = with seriousness

10. cumbersome = burdensome and clumsy