tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9098466424566595492023-11-15T08:01:29.849-08:00Mr. Lucero's JournalThis is an online journal for Mr. Lucero's English classes. Students should leave their responses to weekly prompts as comments. Their responses will be graded twice a month.Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.comBlogger59125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-18611690351648834092014-11-04T11:31:00.001-08:002014-11-04T11:31:20.585-08:00English IV Carpe Diem PoemDevelop and write lyrics for a carpe diem poem/song in any style. Your song/poem must have a distinct tone, imagery, and must use various forms of figurative language. Due Monday, 11/10/14. Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-64481045898410107742014-10-22T10:34:00.004-07:002014-10-22T10:34:59.858-07:00English III Olaudah Equiano JournalPlease include your FIRST AND LAST NAME at the top of every journal you write. Your journals must be 150 words minimum.
Pick ONE topic to address and write about.
Journal #1
What characteristics of Equiano’s autobiography distinguish it from Phyllis Wheatley’s poem? How does the message in his autobiography differ from that in Wheatley’s poem?
Journal #2
How do you account for the depth of human cruelty described in parts of this autobiography? What current world events reveal similar horrors and violations of human rights? How would Olaudah Equiano see the United States in 2014?
Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-9800527912496623142014-09-03T07:59:00.002-07:002014-09-03T10:27:46.654-07:00Fear, Control, and Puritan Sinners (English III)Many people would agree that fear is one of the most powerful motivators in human behavior. Jonathan Edwards and other pastors at this time used harsh warnings in their sermons to make sinners understand the precariousness of their situation by actually making them feel the horror of their sinful state. Do you think fear is a great motivator?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-28938602252166480672014-09-03T07:56:00.001-07:002014-09-03T09:58:47.638-07:00Things Fall Apart Pre Reading Journal (English 4)What do you think is more important to a society and culture’s success, change or tradition? Is a culture that has outdated practices and observations still relevant? Why/ Why Not? What groups/ types of people would prefer change and what groups would prefer tradition?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-7661390021431124562014-06-02T11:52:00.002-07:002014-06-02T11:54:07.732-07:00English II Quote Analysis for the Final10th Grade Quote Analysis (Final Preparation)
Answer the following prompts and analyze the quote.
“Nearly all people can stand adversity, but if you want to test a person’s character, give him or her power.”
- Abraham Lincoln
• Who wrote the quote? What do you know about this person?
• Explain what this quote tells you, the reader, about the character speaking.
• Do you agree with this quote? Why? Why not?
• Summarize the quote in your own words.
• Can you compare this quote to another meaningful quote that expresses a similar message? Write the quote and explain the similarities between the two.
• Can you find an example in the real world where this quote rings true?
• Find examples in the sophomore texts where this quote rings true and explain the quote’s relevance and importance within the larger context of the books and plays.
Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-82639816943521014652014-05-15T08:14:00.002-07:002014-05-15T08:14:55.044-07:00English IV Final Journal (Quotation Analysis)
Given a quotation from a work/ text, students will analyze its importance in regard to the entire novel or play. Please pick ONE quote from each text.
Things Fall Apart
Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the center cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.
- W.B. Yeats (Quote from the introduction)
“Does the white man understand our custom about land?” “How can he when he does not even speak our tongue? But he says that our customs are bad; and our own brothers who have taken up his religion also say that our customs are bad. How do you think we can fight when our own brothers have turned against us? The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he has won our brothers, and our clan can no longer act like one. He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart.”
- Obierika
The Stranger
“She said, “If you go slowly, you risk getting sunstroke. But if you go too fast, you work up a sweat and then catch a chill inside the church.” She was right. There was no way out.”
“I said that people never change their lives, that in any case one life was as good as another and that I wasn’t dissatisfied with mine here at all.”
“As if that blind rage had washed me clean, rid me of hope; for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much like myself—so like a brother, really—I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again. For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate.”
Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-9522980180834694122014-04-22T09:25:00.001-07:002014-04-22T09:25:23.417-07:00English IV- Existentialism JournalTopic: Explain and analyze the pros and cons of Existentialism. Explain what the philosophy is and its stronger and weaker points. Do you agree with the philosophy of Existentialism? Why/Why not?
How are Graham Greene’s short story “The Destructors” and Big Black’s song “Kerosene” examples of Existentialism?
Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-82429990372893021492014-03-12T11:14:00.000-07:002014-03-12T12:38:30.046-07:00Fate vs. Free Will Free will is
the power of acting without the constraint of necessity or fate; the ability to act at one's own discretion.
Fate is
the development of events beyond a person's control, regarded as determined by a supernatural power
<b>Was there a time in your life when someone told you that something improbable would happen and it did? Did the fact that the event was predicted cause you to act differently in order to make the prediction happen? Do people try to make predictions come true? Is this freewill or fate?
<i></i></b>Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com37tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-67458258709199409352014-02-07T07:54:00.003-08:002014-02-07T07:54:27.215-08:00Poetry Class Journal #1 (Thanatopsis)What is the main theme/philosophy surrounding Thanatopsis and what characteristics make it Romantic? Do you think his youth plays a part in how he views mortality? How might he have written it 20-50 years later? (Due Friday)Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-9127243952430523642014-01-23T08:58:00.001-08:002014-01-23T08:58:07.586-08:00Animal Farm Journal II (English II)What is the power of a flag? Why do countries need flags and how do they use them? Is a flag a sign of control or independence? Why do politicians use so many flags when they speak?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com33tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-30604568146003424092014-01-09T10:27:00.002-08:002014-01-09T10:27:27.292-08:00English II Animal Farm Journal #1In your opinion, what is the best way government can be organized? What elements of rule, law, and order must be preserved for a society to thrive? In two-to-three paragraphs, outline a government or system and explain how it will thrive.Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com32tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-8723887496678959272013-11-13T08:22:00.000-08:002013-11-13T08:22:21.772-08:00Wollstonecraft Journal (Double Journal)In an organized, reflective journal, evaluate the relevance of Wollstonecraft's essay to our modern time. Do her observations about the role of women hold true today, or are her arguments limited to the social realities of the eighteenth century?
Which, if any, of her observations about men and women remain valid in 2013? Use quotes from the text and examples from real life to support your response.Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-41824918874470691222013-11-04T10:08:00.002-08:002013-11-04T10:08:45.456-08:00English II Creative Writing & Imagery ParagraphsPick three sensory prompts and expand them into descriptive paragraphs, each prompt deserves its own paragraph. Use sensory, show-not-tell language, figurative language and concrete details. Try to mix complex sentences with simple sentences to add to your paragraph’s musicality and syncopation.
1- Cool water running through your hair/ over your head on a hot day.
2- The smell of Thanksgiving turkey in the oven with the gravy cooling on the stove.
3- Hearing a song you used to be obsessed with years ago.
4- A horrible sunburn.
5- The smell of an orange rind when you first break into it.
6- The feel of fizzy soda on your tongue.
7- The taste of grapefruit.
8- The feeling of ice resting on your skin.
9- The caring touch of cool hands on your feverish forehead.
10- A blister from a burn on your body.
11- The smell of the ocean mixing with a bonfire and the sound of the waves crashing in the dark distance.
Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com48tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-77340806285470245882013-10-16T10:18:00.003-07:002013-10-16T10:18:36.800-07:00English III "Thanatopsis" JournalWhat is the main theme/philosophy surrounding "Thanatopsis" and what characteristics make it Romantic? Do you think his youth plays a part in how he views mortality? How might he have written it 20-50 years later? Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com27tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-4250052373388083242013-10-01T09:42:00.001-07:002013-10-01T09:42:50.062-07:00English II Journal (Going for the Look)Journal: Should companies be able to hire only people who project the company image? Is that discrimination? Why or why not?
Please write 3/4 of a page on this topic and post it on this blog with your first and last name. Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com36tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-36158251219544957622013-09-19T07:57:00.002-07:002013-09-19T07:57:54.382-07:00English III Journal #2How do you account for the depth of human cruelty described in parts of this autobiography? What current world events reveal similar horrors and violations of human rights? How would Olaudah Equiano see the United States in 2013?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-36439986784491482722013-09-19T07:56:00.002-07:002013-09-19T07:56:32.783-07:00English III Journal #1What characteristics of Equiano’s autobiography distinguish it from Phyllis Wheatley’s poem? How does the message in his autobiography differ from that in Wheatley’s poem?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-10847488734191159082013-09-11T07:58:00.000-07:002013-09-11T07:58:06.463-07:00English IV Journal #1: The Role & Relevance of TraditionWhat do you think is more important to a society and culture’s success, change or tradition? Is a traditional culture that has been outdated still relevant? Why/ Why Not? What groups/ types of people would prefer change and what groups would prefer tradition? Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-11748381761645163502013-06-04T12:38:00.003-07:002013-06-04T12:38:42.245-07:00English II Journal (End of Animal Farm Analysis)Analyze the end of Animal Farm. What is the main message you learned from the book? What does the last commandment, ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS, mean? Is this rule true in real life? Where do you see it?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-6733535694882593502013-06-04T12:37:00.002-07:002013-06-04T12:37:36.591-07:00English II Journal "First They Came for the Jews"Why did Benjamin decide to speak up at the last minute? Find the theme expressed in “First They Came For the Jews” and connect the way Benjamin lived his life to the poem. Does the theme of the poem still ring true today? Are there still people who see evil and choose to remain silent? Why?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-49322052058883534742013-04-30T08:33:00.000-07:002013-04-30T08:34:13.482-07:00English III Journal (If We Must Die)
For what reason does McKay say even a doomed resistance is worthwhile? Is reacting to violence violently stupidity or intelligence?
Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-30149050906900652562013-04-29T08:56:00.002-07:002013-04-29T08:56:47.079-07:00English II Journal (Angels & Demons)Do you believe in angels? Why/why not? What do angels look like? Why are angels depicted as humans with wings? Why does every culture have certain gods with wings? What would you do if a wounded angel fell in your backyard?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com55tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-51087378219356642162013-04-10T14:23:00.002-07:002013-04-10T14:23:28.925-07:00Extra Credit Online Journal (Hip Hop and its Lyrics)To what extent should hip hop culture hold hip-hop artists accountable for their lyrics? Would censuring/condemning artists for their lyrics promoting rape, misogynistic themes, and violence be a violation of free speech?
Do these lyrics have a pervasive element, damaging youths’ perceptions of the world?Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-42338639374371500782013-03-25T08:30:00.001-07:002013-03-25T08:30:18.669-07:00English II-IV Finding Your TribeRead the following article and use all five vocabulary words in a creative and detailed reflection where your describe key elements or members of your "tribe". Your tribe may include people who you do not know, but are inspired by; members of your tribe may not even be alive! The important task is to reflect on what gets you creative and inspired, and who helps you get in that element.
http://www.marcandangel.com/2010/08/16/how-to-build-your-tribe-finding-your-people/Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com88tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-909846642456659549.post-77956305955445755242013-02-14T15:14:00.000-08:002013-02-14T15:14:00.841-08:00English III Journal (The things you choose to keep)Imagine that you are leaving Oklahoma for the lush sate of California; you’re terrified and excited. Most of the possessions from your previous life have been sold off or needs to be left behind.
In a ¾ of a page journal entry, choose three sentimental things to take with you to California and explain why you would select them. These things cannot be anything electronic or any technology that wasn’t around during the Great Depression. They can be family heirlooms, specific pictures, or anything with powerful, sentimental value.
Organize your journal in multiple paragraphs ☺
Sam Lucerohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10212366588178756063noreply@blogger.com31