Day 14

In theory, we have 2 quizzes tomorrow: vocab and Act 1. STUDY!!

For this evening:

Imagine an alternative ending in which Tituba does not confess to witchcraft. What would be another way to get herself out of this situation. Or, if she were to confess who eles could have she brought into the situation with her? How do you think Rev. Parris and Rev. Hale would have reacted if she had not "confessed?"

Day 13

Remember to re-read anything we read. Also make sure that your reader journals are up to date based on the scene we have completed. We will be done with Act 1 tomorrow and will have a quiz on it after the vocab quiz on Friday.

For tonight:

Write about a time when jealously (your own or someone else's) caused a problem for you. What was the problem? Were you able to resolve this problem? Why is jealousy a problem in our society?

Day 12

Good classes today. I want to again congratulate 6th hour who had 65.5% of the class receive a 20/20 on the quiz and for all others in the class who raised their point total on the quiz. Make sure you all study again this week. I also commend my fifth hour students who receive a perfect score.

For this evening:

Discuss the relationship between Abigail and John Proctor. What did we learn about them today? (Just a one or two line summary not a long summary)How could this effect the role Abigail is playing with the other girls who were in the woods? Would people have the same reaction today about Abigail's behavior? Why or why not? Lastly, what is your view of the characters so far and why?

Week 3 Day 11

Hope all went well today. Realize that you cannot answer all the questions from
Act 1 as we only read the first scene. Just answer the ones which are covered.

For tonight:

Write about a time when . . .You made a bad choice that you wish you could go back and change. How has this choice also formed other decisions you made after?

Day 10

Hope everyone did well on the vocab quiz today and enjoyed the beginning of the play. With the themes that this play encompasses and some of the events yet to come, you will truly get into the reading. As I will be out on Monday, those who read this get a bonus which is that you will have time in class Monday to re-read what we read and finish through page 175 and have time to work on the readers log.

For this evening:

Think of a time when false rumors damaged a person’s reputation. How easy was it for people to believe the rumors? How did the accused person react? What were the results of the false rumors?

Have a great weekend and I will see you on Tuesday. The sub will let you know who has to stay on Tuesday for blogging issues. You know what my dream is? To not have anyone stay and everyone blog.

Day 9

I am very excited to get into "The Crucible" as I think you will like it as long as you are willing to read, pay attention and get out of the "I hate it because they are making me read" mindset.

Tonight we will be free blogging. Again, make it appropriate and make it have some realistic value. You can respond to another persons blogging as long as you do it with go taste and no meanness involved.

Have fun and see you tomorrow.

Day 8

Make sure you have begun studying for the vocab quiz on Friday.

For this evening, look at "The Crucible" anticipation/reaction guide that we did today in class. Pick any 2 of the 10 statements and explain why you answered the way that you did. Also, how do the statements you picked effect the way that people act within society?

If you were absent, check out the following website to get the sheet so you can do the blog:http://www.mrjeffrey.com/English%20III%20P/The%20Crucible/Anticipation%20Guide.doc

Day 8

Good discussion which will make it easier to understand "The Crucible" when we begin reading tomorrow.

For this evening:

The search for personal identity, and knowledge of oneself and others regardless of personality quirks or flaws is a common concern. When does a person start this search? Can one person's search affect the lives of others? Think of 2 examples.

Week 3, Day 7

Remember that we will be working fast and like a class that can stay on topic tomorrow as we need to complete the discussion and do another activity to stay on schedule.

From the discussion questions:

Although fear can have beneficial effects on an individual, what are some likely destructive effects? Where does fear come from? Past experiences? Other people? Ignorance? Use examples from your personal life or from society.

Day 6

Today is a current event blog. You may not do sports or entertainment. Make sure you cite your source. NO CITE, NO POINTS

Day 5

Today we discussed more about McCarthyism and the idea of it being a witch hunt. Joe McCarthy was the leader of this hunt and used fear to get people to follow him. Once it was discovered that he had no evidence he was removed from his powerful position.

For this evening:

1. Read the letter to HUAC from Lillian Hellman and explain what her goal was. In other words, what or who was she trying to protect?
2. Read the testimony of Eric Allen Johnston. Who was he? Who did he work for? What was the message he was sending to the committee?
3. Last, read the speech by Joe McCarthy at Wheeling, West Virginia. Explain the message that he was trying to give to those in attendence.

Last, what is your opinion on this event in history? Are you surprised that in America this happened? Why or why not?

Truly, you will need more than 7 sentences to answer this blog so do not rush to get it done but think and do it well.

Day 4

So the movie was in black and white which probably was annoying to some of you. Yes, they do sometimes purposely make films in black and white to highlight the time they are supposed to describe. I truly hope you gained a greater understanding of McCarthyism based on this movie and how scary it was that in a country that is supposed to be open to differences that we focused in on a group like that. Yet, it was a scary time because of the invention of atomic and nuclear weapons and the fear that they would be used to overthrow our democracy. It is ironic that some of the greatest critics of Hitler in America where proponents of the McCarthy hearings. This rings true to the same feelings after 9/11 with Muslim Americans who saw their lives changed because of something that people they did not know or were not related to caused. It is scary what we will do when we are frightened by the unknown.

For this evening please respond to the following:

“An era of chemical McCarthyism is at hand, and "guilty until proven innocent" is the new slogan.”

What does this quote mean to you? Based on the movie, how is this quote potentially true? Make sure you use two examples from the movie to prove this point and explain each example.

Week 2, Day 3

Welcome back. I hope you took some time for yourself and relaxed during your many days off. It is time to get back to the grind and I warn you that we will be working fast and furiously up to the Winter Break.

Today in class, we began discussing the idea of the Red Scare of Communism. If America is supposed to be so open minded to the ideas of others, why during the
1950's did we freak out so much about Communism? What events of the 30's and 40's led to this fear of Communism in America? Could this happen today or is it happening today? Explain your answer.