Homework for 1/5/16:
Read the story handouts — “War of Clowns” and “School.” Take notes on:
— The inciting incident (what moves the story forward)
— The conflict(s) in the stories — what creates tension?
— Elements of reality or fantasy in the story
Homework for Tuesday, December 13 —
Rough drafts of your 20 Feet from Stardom nonfiction due.
We will be revising your best nonfiction in class next week, and this will be your final.
Homework for Thursday, December 8th —
Last class we began discussing telling other people’s stories, and watching the documentary 20 Feet from Stardom. You were given a handout which guided you on note taking and defined what the writing assignment will be after viewing this film.
The writing you do after the film will be considered your FINAL for the semester, and will be due on Tuesday. This will go in your creative non-fiction portfolio that we will begin to work on next week and after winter break.
After winter break, we will begin our unit on Fiction which will include flash fiction, short stories, and one act plays.
Homework for Thursday, December 1st —
Last class, we began discussing the Lyric Essay, which is a type of writing that — though prose — takes a lot of cues from poetry. It’s still nonfiction (meaning, you’re writing about yourself/things that ACTUALLY happened), but often Lyric Essays read like prose-poems.
We began reading examples in class. You are responsible for FINISHING the reading in the packet for Thursday, and being ready to discuss them.
Next week, we will begin revising your three works of nonfiction: Pets, Music, and Lyric.
Homework for Tuesday, November 29th —
Music is the emotional life of most people.
— Leonard Cohen
After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.
— Aldous Huxley
Rough Draft: Music Essay
This will be “flash” nonfiction. That means:
- Essays must be no more than 750 words (max). Minimum 300.
- Essays must use details. Writers are strongly encouraged to use similes and metaphors, too.
- Essays are made of sentences and paragraphs — not lines and stanzas. These aren’t poems.
- Essays should center on music: whether a single song, an artist, an album. However, essays are not necessarily about music. (For example, in “Code Talkers,” while the author talks about music and her brother’s relationship to albums, the essay is really about her relationship with her brother.)
- Essay rough drafts must be typed and emailed by the start of class on Tuesday, November 29th. Handwritten and/or hard copies of essays will NOT receive credit.
Homework for Thursday, November 17th —
Read Chabon’s essay about music (in handout), and underline 1) good description and 2) information about Chabon’s relationship to music.
Write down a song that you find inspiring/interesting/important and be prepared to YouTube it in class on Thursday.
Homework for Tuesday, November 8th —
No homework for Tuesday. Poetry Portfolios were due on Friday. Nice job with the readings!
This week we will begin our unit on Creative Nonfiction!
Homework for Tuesday, November 1st —
Be sure to have a typed draft of your free-write (interview) poem with you in class on Tuesday. You will each be getting your “best work” back in class so that we can revise and edit for portfolios.
Homework for Tuesday, October 25 —
Be sure to have your journals with your interview free writes.
Extra credit opportunity: research the origins (etymology) of a word or expression (for example, “second nature”) that people still use today. Share the information at the start of class, and get some extra credit!
Homework for Thursday, September 8 —
For Tuesday, September 13:
Rough draft “Love Poem” due by the start of class. Typed, emailed to agruber@flagarts.com
Homework for Thursday, August 24 –
Bring back your journals with your free writing on early memories. Make sure to have read the January O’Gill poem, and be ready to talk about it in class.
Thursday we will be drafting our next poems and continuing to discuss vivid imagery, simile, and metaphor.
Homework for Tuesday, August 22nd –
ROUGH DRAFT of Childhood Poems are due.
These MUST be typed and sent to agruber@flagarts.com OR printed and handed in at the start of class. If you are having trouble, please come talk to me right away.
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The course syllabus may be downloaded by clicking the link below:
Ms. Gruber's Class Page 