Thursday, May 29, 2008

Paper due dates have changed! :)

Research Paper due Thursday, June 5th!

Honors Option Frankenstein Paper due Monday, June 9th

Organizing the Body

In the body of your paper, you will describe the process of your search.

Where did you begin? (Refer back to "What I Know" and your "What I Want to Know" questions)

What did you learn from each of your sources? Be sure to cite from each source using MLA format. ex:"------"(Smith 5). What information were you unable to find?

How did your interview go? Describe who you interviewed and what you learned.

Conclude & be sure to write in a compelling fashion!

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Error #4: Apostrophes

Mini-Lesson:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_apost.html
Online Quizzes:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/interact/g_apostEX1.html
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/interact/g_apostEX2.html
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/apostrophes_ex1.htm
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/apostrophes_ex2.htm

Error #3: Subject-verb agreement

Mini-lesson:
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/agreement_sv.htm
Online Quizzes
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/agreement_sv_ex1.htm
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/agreement_sv_ex2.htm
http://www.quia.com/quiz/281066.html

Error #2: Sentence Fragments

Mini-Lesson:
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/fragments.htm

Online Quizzes:
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/fragments_ex1.htm
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/fragments_ex2.htm

Error #1: Run on Sentences

Mini Lesson:
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/run-ons.htm
Online Quizzes:
http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/run-ons_ex1.htm
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/GRAMMAR/quizzes/runons_quiz.htm
http://www.quia.com/pop/35933.html

The Body

The next step to this paper is composing the body. Look back at your ten initial questions and begin to tell the compelling story of your search to answer these questions. Be sure to refer to and cite from each of your five sources-including your interview. Your introduction, body, and reflection (the next step) should total 5-7 pages. Due Friday!

Monday, May 26, 2008

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Honors Option Frankenstein Assignment

Due Date: June 9, 2008

The following research essay assignment related to the novel Frankenstein is a required component of the honors option portfolio.
Background:
If we have learned anything from Mary Shelley and her novel Frankenstein, it is that playing "God" can be dangerous and irresponsible. Even today, modern science still grapples with some of those same issues and moral dilemmas.
Task:
Your task is to write a 2 page paper connecting your research topic to the novel. The challenge of the assignment is to make a connection between the moral dilemmas raised in the novel and those occurring in the field of technology/science today.
Guidelines:
*Be sure to reference the titles and authors of all sources used
*Include a thesis statement in your introduction that relates to both the novel and the issue
*Use at least three quotes from the articles and at least three quotes from the novel to support your major points
*Thoroughly compare the issue in the article to similar issues in Frankenstein.
*Include a Works Cited page
***If you are finding it difficult to connect your research topic to the novel, please speak with me to get permission to complete the following assignment:
Alternative Paper Topic:

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Honors Option Information

Here is a link to the end of the year reflective essay assignmnet which is due the day of your final exam.
http://branfordhighschool.wikispaces.com/End+of+year+portfolio

*Summer Reading Meeting for all students taking English 11 Honors will be held on Wednesday, May 28th during Advisory in the F-Wing Lecture Hall.

*There will be an important meeting next Thursday to review all of the end of the year requirements. The meeting will be about 15 minutes. I will let you know next week where it will be held. If you would like to go over the SAT vocab. definitions for the final, plan to stay for an additional twenty minutes or so. Mr. Mattheissen was kind enough to compile a list of 27 additional words from the final exam that may be troublesome.
1. antiquity
2. arsonist
3. balk
4. belated
5. blistering
6. deem
7. discreet
8. displacing
9. elicit
10. entreat
11. epitaph
12. excommunicate
13. floundered
14. founder
15. frugal
16. indict
17. insinuate
18. lofty
19. monetary
20. plummet
21. thwarting
22. patronizing
23. precipitated
24. prescribed
25. premonition
26. pyromaniac
27. serenade

Monday, May 19, 2008

Writing the Paper: The Introduction

Introduction Due: Tuesday, May 27th

The helpful information below is taken from Mr. Malley's Class Blog:
http://rm305.blogspot.com/

The iSearch paper is different from your standard research paper because it demands "processing information and compellingly communicating [this information]." Compelling means evoking interest in a powerful, irrestistable way. In other words, your content is good, and your storytelling is even better. The storytelling begins in your introductory section, which is usually 3/4 to 1.5 pages.

A good introductory section usually answers three questions:
* How did you become interested in the topic? - tell a story. What happened in your life that made you want to investigate abandoned houses and their effect on a neighborhood? What made you interested in school violence? Self Mutilation? Pull your reader in by making it relevant.
* What do you know about the topic already? What do you assume?
* What is the specific question you will be trying to answer?

The most successful introductory sections will devote one or more paragraphs to the first question, one or more paragraphs to the second section, and get to the research question in the last paragraph.

Click below for a sample from one of Mr. Malley's students at Mack High in Buffalo, NY.
http://rm305.blogspot.com/2007/04/isearch-introductions.html

Sample Interview Questions

*As discussed in class, your interview questions will differ from your "What I want to know" questions because they need to be tailored to the specific person you are interviewing. See below:

Dr. Lima Interview Questions:
1. What advice do you generally give your patients about cord blood banking?
2. If you don't mind me asking, what would you do if/when faced with making this decision?
3. Is there an option for public banking in CT? at Yale?
4. Do you recommend certain private banks over others?
5. Have you ever had a patient helped by a family member's cord blood?
6. Do you recommend CBB for patients that have a strong genetic predisposition to various diseases?
7. I read that I need to make this decision by 34 weeks. Should I alert the office to my decision?8. Have you done this procedure on a patient before? Is it a simple procedure?
9. What are your thoughts on CT starting its own public bank? Is it in the works?
10. Can patients donate cord blood to other states that have already started public banks?

Sample Interview Request Email

May 19, 2008

Dear Dr. Lima:

The purpose of this email is to request a brief interview with you regarding your thoughts on cord blood banking. I am currently researching this topic at Branford High School, and I am interested in getting your professional opinion so that I can make an informed decision in the next few weeks. I have approximately 10 questions to ask you, and it should only take 15 minutes. I can meet in person, or if it is easier you can respond to my questions via email. Thank you for considering my request.

Sincerely,

Mindy Baker
Branford High School
185 East Main Street
Branford, CT 06405
mbaker@branford.k12.ct.us
(203)***-****

Final Paper Due Date:

June 2, 2008!

You will present your research findings during our final exam.

Honors Option Frankenstein Section Due June 4th.

Step V: The Interview

Find an expert in a field related to your paper, and contact this person to arrange an interview. Try to obtain a face to face interview if possible. Otherwise, you may hold a telephone, IM, or Email interview. Once you have a candidate in mind, develop 10 interview questions. Please post your interview questions by Wednesday.

Interview should be completed by Tuesday, May 27th

Typed Transcript of Interview due Wednesday, May 28th

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

STEP IV-The Notes- DUE THURSDAY!

At this point, you are ready to start taking notes on your sources. In the shared data drive (S-Drive), there is a template that you can use during this process. Click on "Mrs. Baker English Class" and "Note-taking Template." This is the format:

I. Article Title, Publication Information & Link if Available


II. Important facts, statistics, quotes found in the article (include page numbers if available):

III. Thoughts During and After Reading the Article

Homework: Notes from each of your four sources are due on Thursday. You should also be considering who you will interview. The interview is a requirement for all students. We will talk about this topic in class on Thursday.

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

"I Search" Part III- The Search

Today, we begin the search for information. Some of the topics we will cover today & tomorrow will be:

*Helpful Hints for Searching Online
In Google, add "Newsweek, Time, or New York Times" at the end of your topic
*Is Wikipedia a Reputable Source?
http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/article/1328/wikipedia-founder-discourages-academic-use-of-his-creation
http://www.pbs.org/teachers/learning.now/2007/02/wikipedia_receives_a_citation_1.html
*How can you tell if a website is fraudulent?
http://www.eduscapes.com/tap/topic32.htm
http://www.zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/
http://www.bigredhair.com/boilerplate/index.html
http://www.malepregnancy.com/
*What are some sources recommended by Mrs. Roy?
(InfoTrac, Gale, Opposing Viewpoints, Science Resource Center)

***CLICK BELOW TO ACCESS THE GALE SEARCH FEATURE:

http://infotrac.galegroup.com/galenet/s0143?cause=http%3A%2F%2Ffind.galegroup.com%2Fmenu%2Fcommonmenu.do%3FuserGroupName%3Ds0143%26finalAuth%3Dtrue&cont=&sev=temp&type=session&sserv=no

http://rqst-agent.auto-graphics.com/homepages/customerwide/iConnLogin.asp?cuid=rqst&cusrvr=minerva&lid=&dataid=&class=&barcode=&term=&qmisc=&s=&URLEncode=


You will need to have at least five different sources including the interview. You can use magazines, newspapers, reputable websites, books, encyclopedias, and/or film.

You have the entire class to begin to search for information. Please copy and paste the link for each reputable site into a Word document. Skim the article and write a comment summarizing its usefullness (see below) You may ask permission to print some of the more useful articles.

See below for a suggested format:

1. http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1717283,00.html
This magazine article, "Creating a Cord-Blood Lifeline" was published in the 2/26/08 edition of Time. It discusses several states that are trying to set up public cord blood banks where people would sign up as they would for organ donation. It talks about the advantages of cord blood over bone marrow transplants. The average cost of private banking is discussed. It mentions several medical organizations that encourage public donating over private banking. It is a good overview of the topic & easy to understand.

2. http://www.latimes.com/features/health/medicine/la-cpalsybox7apr07,1,7405944.story
This newspaper article, "Private Banking as Insurance," was published 4/7/08. It highlights the statements given from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists suggesting the odds of using privately banked blood to treat a child or family member as being very low. One doctor mentioned in the article suggested that parents be able to donate the blood to a public bank, but have it on reserve for their exclusive use for one year. This is a short article, but it would be good to use for quotes from doctors and professional organizations.

3. http://parentsguidecordblood.org/content/usa/banklists/listusa.shtml
This is a website ("Parents Guide to Cord Blood Banks") created by a mother, Dr. Frances Verter, in memory of her daughter Shai. It has also been referenced in other articles that I have come across. This site contains a table that compares the costs of all the cord blood banks. There is also a list of 52 children who have been helped by their own cord blood. Verter states, "I believe the long-term future of this industry will be for cord blood banks to compete and consolidate until only a single business model survives. The surviving type of bank will be for-profit and will be a full-service banking portal which offers parents both options of public donation and/or private storage. The surviving banks will all sell some portion of their donations to research programs. Economists call this business model a "hybrid" bank." The site seems to be extremely comprehensive. It will help me to answer many of my questions.

Homework:
A typed and printed document is due tomorrow that lists at least four of the sources you intend to use and a brief synopsis of each. I will also check this weekend to make sure you have posted your Blog Entries 1 & 2. If it is not there by Sunday evening, you will not get credit.

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

"I Search" Blog # 2

First...
In class, we will work in groups to practice coming up with narrowed topics for the following:
School Safety
Poverty
Crime
Teen Driving
Smoking

Second...
Using MS Word, you will follow the directions below & then copy, paste & post your questions on the blog. Click on "comment" below.

Part II--What I Want to Find Out
At this point, you will begin to generate questions about our topics. These questions will help guide your reserach. The more passionate your questions are, the more interesting your search will be. Please generate at least 10 questions & one overall, specific question. Take a look at what I've produced for my topic if you need guidance.

*If I have spoken to you about narrowing your topic, try to focus your questions to look at an aspect of your topic, then you will not feel overwhelmed in your search and will be more likely to find answers.

Monday, May 05, 2008

"I Search": Blog #1

Directions: Click on "comment" below to leave a comment following the guidelines below.

I. My Topic: List your overall topic here.

II. What I Already Know: Please write one or two paragraphs, discussing what knowledge, experience, or background you already have about your topic, BEFORE having done any research on it.

I have included my post as a comment. I have also included a link to an excellent site with some good examples. It is a good idea to use MS WORD to complete this section, save your work, and then copy and paste it onto the blog.

Sample from Gallaudet University: http://depts.gallaudet.edu/englishworks/writing/formatsheet.html

Final Exam Schedule

Exam Schedule:

Wednesday, 6/11
Period 1
Honors Option: 7:45-9:45
All Students: 8:15-9:45

Thursday, 6/12
Period 3
Honors Option: 7:45-9:45
All Students: 8:15-9:45

Friday, 6/13
Period 5
Honors Option: 7:45-9:45
All Students: 8:15-9:45

Monday 6/16:
Period 7:
Honors Option: 7:45-9:45
All Students: 8:15-9:45
Period 8
Honors Option: 10:00-12:00
All Students: 10:30-12:00

Sunday, May 04, 2008

I-Search Papers: Step One

Today we wil begin to go over the requirements for our I-Search Paper. Your most important goal today is to find a topic that you truly want to investigate that is interesting to a general audience, informative, and lends itself to research. I will take you through my process of finding several topics and then you will begin to generate your own topic ideas. Tomorrow in class, we will begin w/ a sharing of our topics in small groups. We will also post on our class blog the answers to the following questions: What is my topic? & Why am I interested in this topic? So, it is important to enter class with a topic tomorrow!