Subject Complements Quiz

For students to study, here is an advanced look at the Sentence Composing Subject Complements Quiz #07.

Suggested use:

1) Print out the link below.  Make several copies.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1BQLflxtJjynkyoTzOIoZfhbGfAwVYq_b/view?usp=sharing

2) Attempt to identify all of the subjects, predicates, and subject complements that you can on your own.

3)  Check the blog to correct your answers.  Repeat this process a couple of times until you have them down.

That's it!  Good luck.

This Week's Agenda

Echo Week 4 Comprehension Questions

Echo Week 4 Comprehension Questions 

DIRECTIONS:

Read Part 1, Chapters 10 - 15, Pages 105 - 133,

Answer the following questions in complete sentences.

Submit your answer sheet to Turnitin.com by the due date of 1/3/18 at 8:15 AM.


* * * * *

Part 1, Chapter 10

1. How was Elisabeth acting at the beginning of the chapter? Why did this offend Friedrich?

2. How were Elisabeth‛s actions similar to Anselm? Use evidence to support your answer.

3. Why does Elisabeth believe that her and Friedrich had a different childhood? Do you agree? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

4. “He‛d been oblivious to Elisabeth‛s childhood” (111). Do you think Friedrich was oblivious? Why or why not?


Part 1, Chapter 11

5. How was Uncle Gunter acting differently? Why is he acting this way? Use evidence to support your answer.

6. “Elisabeth was pensive” (113). What does the word pensive mean? Use evidence from the text to show how you determined the meaning.

7. Give an example of personification on page 114. Why did the author include this personification in her novel?


Part 1, Chapter 12

8. Why do you think Elisabeth left her family the way that she did? Use evidence from the text to explain your thinking.

9. “Trust no one” (116). Why can they not trust anyone? What about their family members?

10. Why does Father continue shopping at a Jewish grocery store? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

11. “But he doubted Father would keep his word” (118). What do you think Father will do? Use evidence to support your answer.


Part 1, Chapter 13

12. Do you think Friedrich should trust Anselm? Why or why not?

13. On page 121, Friedrich did not mind that people were staring at him on the street. Why did this not bother him?

14. What did Father find out from Dr. Braun? What could be Friedrich‛s saving grace? Do you think this will work? Why or why not? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

15. What had shaken Father‛s strength and resolve?


Part 1, Chapter 14

16. Why will Friedrich not be allowed to audition with his harmonica?

17. How do Father and Friedrich currently feel about Elisabeth? Use evidence to support your answer.

18. Regarding Father and Friedrich, who do you think is right? Why?

19. What could be possible foreshadowing on page 129? What do you think could happen?


Part 1, Chapter 15

20. Who is coming over to Father‛s house? Why could this become an issue? Why does Father choose to ignore this possible problem?

More Examples of Themes

MORE EXAMPLES:

From the Cat in the Hat:

When we let unusual people into our lives, our world can be thrown out of whack and take a while to make adjustments.

     (or)

It’s fun to embrace chaos.  We just need to make sure to set things right when we’re done.

From Sam I am

It’s important to be open to new experiences because you’ll never know what you might be missing.

Horton Hears a Who

Even the powerless and weakest of people deserve to be valued and protected.

The Lorax

Once our natural resources are gone, they’ll never come back.  The world will become a sad, empty place.

Frozen

Being different shouldn’t be a cause of shame and isolation.  Differences should be celebrated.

Zootopia

Different groups or types of people can all get along if we let go of prejudice.

Why Theme and Finding Theme Board Notes

WHY KNOWING WHAT A THEME IS IS IMPORTANT

Reading a good book without understanding its theme is like visiting Disney World and not having seen any Disney movies.  Sure, there’s a bunch of stuff that happens, but you’re disconnected to the meaning of it all.

I like to think of theme as being like a great whale moving below the surface of the story, creating ripples and changing its current.   If you’re lucky, you can catch a glimpse of the theme when it momentarily breaches the surface and then – in a flash – it is gone.

When a writer uses theme, it informs their choices and pulls the many parts of the story into an organic, unified whole, where every choice the writer makes – from which characters they use to what happens in the plot – is influenced by big ideas they have and their statements about the way the world works.

As a reader (or member of the audience), you first feel the theme intuitively… like there’s something there and you can tell.  Then if you think about it (or read it again), if you can articulate or understand the theme it increases your pleasure in the telling of the story.  It’s like you’re an insider to a secret joke or code that only you and the author can really understand.  It makes you appreciate the artistry, the creative choices, and the power of the writer’s message.

Think of it this way.  Let’s say on Thanksgiving your family is gathered to watch a football game on TV.  You might have one person in your family who played football, reads about football, studies trades and stats, and knows different plays.  And you might also have another person in your family who couldn’t care less about football, but will watch it with everyone else when it is on.  The first person is appreciating the experience much, much more than the second person.  It’s the same thing for getting theme when you’re reading.

HOW TO IDENTIFY THE THEME

You can use any of these three techniques to determine the theme for a work.  Movies are used as examples because they are familiar to most people.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN – Find the “THEMATIC SEEDS”

First, start by identifying the single word big abstract ideas, topics, or subjects the story is dealing with. 

Examples:  Brotherhood.  Love.  Family.  Death.  Addiction.  Courage.  Racism.  Justice.  Social Class.  Redemption.  One’s place in the world.  Hope.  Despair.  Depression.  Hatred.  Revenge.  Wealth.  Friendship.  Charity.  Ugliness.  Beauty.  Transcendence.  Hierarchy.  Oppression.  Significance.  Exceptionalism.  Peer pressure.  Character.  War.  Peace.  Tragedy.  Fulfillment.  Self-Actualization.  Loneliness.  Despair.  Divorce.  Birth.  Rebirth.  Power.  Truth. 

Note that these aren’t themes for the purpose of writing a literary analysis.  Movie and book reviewers like to throw out these single word themes to communicate the thematic ideas or broad topics that the story deals with.  They might say something like, “Star Wars deals with themes of good and evil, family and friendship.”  Instead, think of these isolated words as “Thematic Seeds” – or the beginning of what will become your thematic statement.

Theme is what they author is saying about those big ideas through the story. 

For example:  The pursuit of material wealth and professional success is meaningless without the love of family.   (Jerry Maguire)  Notice the big ideas of “success” and ”love” and “family”

Or another:  Winning is not about the final score, but is instead about overcoming obstacles and enduring.  (Rocky)  Notice the big ideas of “winning” and “obstacles” and “enduring”

TOOL #1:  Look at your protagonist’s journey.  How does the main character change throughout the course of the story.  What do they learn?  If you substitute your main character for all of mankind, then your protagonist’s journey and how they change can be a theme.

For example:  Frodo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings begins as a carefree country hobbit and at the end is a damaged, world-weary hero who saved the world.  One theme might be:  The cost of great victories require great sacrifice.  Or maybe, Even the smallest, most seemingly unimportant person can change the world.

Or another:  Tony Stark in Iron Man begins as a narcissistic war profiteer and at the end is a man who takes ownership of his mistakes and uses his talents to better the world.  One theme might be:  It’s never too late to put things right when one has done wrong.  Or maybe, Great talent must be used as a tool to better mankind, not to be used for personal gain.

TOOL #2:  Look at the central conflict of the story.  What are the opposing forces?  By opposing forces, think of the more abstract, generalized definition. 

For example, instead of thinking about the T100 Terminator and Sarah Conner as they opposing forces in The Terminator, think about man versus machine.  The later are universal abstract ideas, whereas the former are specific characters in a specific world.   Go with the universal abstract ideas.

Which one wins? And why?

For example:  The central conflict in The Terminator is between a T-100 cyborg assassin attempting to hunt down and kill Sarah Conner.  Sarah Conner trying to survive and not be killed.  Change the T1000 to the abstract concept of “machines” or “technology.”  Change Sarah Conner to “humanity” and you have:   Mankind can overcome machines because of our human instincts, our ability to improvise, and our ability to endure hardship for causes greater than ourselves. 

Or another: Think about the central conflict in The Titanic.  Rose is being forced to marry Caledon against her will in an arranged marriage for the wealthy.  She meets Jack, who is a dreamer but is poor, and falls in love.  The choice of marriage based upon social class cannot stand against the true calling of the human heart. 

Or maybe the central conflict is between an iceberg sinking the Titanic and Jack and Rose trying to escape.  Change that iceberg to the abstract concept of “tragedy” and Jack and Rose’s relationship to the abstract concept of “love” and you end up with:  Even the greatest of tragedies cannot diminish the enduring power of love. 

TOOL #3 Sometimes a character can flat out state the theme in dialogue.   It doesn’t always happen, but sometimes it does.  Then all you have to do is rephrase what that character said into a universal statement using abstract ideas. 

For example:  In Spider Man Peter Parker’s Uncle Ben tells Peter, “With great power comes great responsibility” or restated another way: To those whom much has been given, much is expected.

Or another:  In The Incredibles Mrs. Incredible / Elasta-Girl tells her husband, “If we work together, you won’t have to be.”  This restated another way is:  If we work together, we can conquer anything.

THEMATIC LITMUS TEST

___ Is the theme too vague or obvious?  Does it seem too broad and general?

o   For example, “Family is awesome.” Or “Love is blind” or “love conquers all” or “friendship is important”

___  Is the theme supported by evidence from the work itself?

___ Does the theme come out in different moments in the plot or through the issues that different characters are facing? 

Theme Video and Board Notes

Media Resources:

Although this focuses on movies and screenplays, this video is excellent.

Watch this:  https://youtu.be/rIuKNVny9cM

Use this:  http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson800/theme.pdf


Most common mistakes with theme:

1 – Not being universal enough.  Themes need to be about big, abstract ideas that connect to everyone everywhere, not about specific characters in a specific plot.

2 -  Having only one or two words.  Thinking of themes as single words or ideas like “justice” or “true love" are great topics or story ideas, but they aren't themes.

3 – Being shallow, or vague where the theme doesn't really say anything – “love conquers all”  “good defeats evil”  “Everyone has a destiny."  Better themes need to drill deeper into an idea and not be able to apply to every story ever told.


Examples of theme from movies:

Part of loving someone is letting go of control and giving people (children) the freedom to make their own mistakes.
   or
Through friendship you can overcome your fears and insecurities.
     (Finding Nemo)

Revenge destroys everyone and everything including the person seeking it.
     (Many Stories)

We must all take responsibility for our actions because at the end of the day nobody else will.
(or)
No matter how many mistakes you’ve made, it’s never too late to set things right.
     (Iron Man)

No matter how advanced our creations become, they can never replace the human spirit.
     (The Terminator)

Too Vague:  If we work together, we can conquer anything.
Better:  With family and marital unity, anything is possible.
    (The Incredibles)

Turnitin.com Hiccups

Several students have reported that they submitted work into Turnitin.com only to have their files not show up as having ever been submitted.

Unfortunately, many of these students are clicking "Submit" but not waiting to click "Confirm" after the file is loaded. You have to wait for the file to finish loading and then click confirm, otherwise it won't go into Turnitin.com.

Also, extra cautious students tell me the then go into Turnitin.com to verify that the file is actually in there.  In the future in order to avoid problems, I recommend students double check to make sure that the file is actually in Turnitin.com.

Students will be using this program in high school, so it's a actually a good thing to get over the learning curve now as opposed to next year.

Whenever transitioning to a new system, there's always a learning curve and some mistakes are to be expected.

Echo Vocabulary for Book Two on Quizlet

The vocabulary list for Echo Book 2 (pages 191 - 363) is up on Quizlet. 

The tentative schedule for the quiz will be after the Winter Break on Monday 1/8/18.  Mark your planners.

Here is the link for future studying:

https://quizlet.com/_4689b7

Echo Comprehension Questions Week 3

DIRECTIONS:  Read pages 69 - 104.  Answer questions 1 - 18 below with complete sentences.  Submit your answers to Turnitin.com before 8:15 AM on Monday, 12/18/17.  

Part 1, Chapter 6

1. Why is Friedrich apprehensive about applying to the conservatory? Use evidence to support your answer.

2. Do you think his birthmark matters at a school like the conservatory? Why or why not?

3. “‘And now, more than ever, Germany needs its true citizens to rise to their potential to be shining examples‛” (82). What can you tell about Elisabeth from this statement?

4. What news does Elisabeth deliver to Father and Friedrich? Why do you think she made this decision? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

Part 1, Chapter 7

5. What is the League of German Girls? What are they advocates of?

6. What does Elisabeth believe is offensive? Why does this offend Father?

7. What does Father believe about music? Use evidence to support your answer.

8. “Intellectualism is frowned upon” (87). Explain what this means in your own words.

9. Who is allowed to join the Hitler Youth?

10. What is there such a difference between Father‛s beliefs and the beliefs of the family in Berlin? Why do you think there is such a difference in the same family? Use evidence to support your answer.

11. “His eyes filled with something Friedrich couldn‛t decipher- pity or fear or apprehension” (91). What do you think Uncle Gunter was thinking? Use evidence to support your answer.

Part 1, Chapter 8

12. What did Friedrich discover on his birth certificate? What does this discovery mean?

Part 1, Chapter 9

13. “Each week, your birthmark had become more prominent, as did the gossip and superstitions” (97). What are superstitions? What type of superstitions would there be about a birthmark?

14. “‘Adding the stigma of epilepsy would be too much‛” (97). What is a stigma?  Why would this be too much?

15. How did Friedrich‛s birth possibly ruin Elisabeth‛s change of a leadership position?

16. What is The Law for the Prevention of Genetically Diseased Offspring? How does this new law impact Friedrich?

17. Do you think Elisabeth would report her own family? Why or why not? Use evidence from the text to support your answer.

18. Identify an example of personification on page 104. Why do you think the author made this decision as a writer?

This Week's Agenda

Extra Credit Opportunity - Sentence Composing Colors

*Extra Credit Opportunity

When we turn in our digital copy of sentences #51 - #100 later this school year, students who correctly color their words according to the patterns we use in class will receive 10 points of extra credit if all of their sentences are highlighted correctly.

These colors include:

Simple Subjects should be underlined and the font should be red.

Simple Predicates should be colored in green. 

Prepositions should be colored in orange.

Prepositional phrases are enclosed in [square brackets.]

Subject compliments should be colored in blue.

DO NOT use the purple brackets that w use in class for chunking on your sentences.

Board Notes on Sentence Composing Quiz

FOR THE HARD COPY (worth 50 points)
• Underline the subject(s)
• Circle the predicate(s)
• [Bracket the prepositional phrases]

FOR TURNITIN.COM (optional, worth 5 points)
• Underline the subject(s) and make them red
• Make the predicate(s) green.
• [Bracket the prepositional phrases] and make the preposition(s) orange.

This Week's Agenda

Echo Reading Comprehension Questions - Week 2

DIRECTIONS:

1. Read Echo, pages 33 - 68

2. Answer questions 1 - 27 below in COMPLETE SENTENCES.

3. Turn in assignment by Monday, 12/11/17 at 8:15 AM to Turnitin.com



QUESTIONS:

Part 1, Intro

October 1933- Trossingen, Baden-Wurttemberg
Germany

1. What is the significance about the setting?


Part 1, Chapter 1

2. Why do you think this lullaby begins the chapter?

3. “...Friedrich Schmidt stood on the threshold of his half-timbered house, pretending to be brave” (40). What can you tell about Friedrich from this piece of evidence?

4. Why do you think Father had to watch Friedrich like a hawk?

5. What was Father‛s job?

6. Describe Friedrich‛s family life. If you make an inference, make sure you use evidence from the text to back up your thinking.

7. What was Father‛s advice to Friedrich as he walked to school? Why would that be his advice?

Part 1, Chapter 2

8. “Father would never have tolerated this posture” (44). What does posture say about a person? Can you infer a character trait about Freidrich about his posture? Use evidence to support your answer.

9. What group was Father a member of? What happened to this group?

10. What do we learn about Hitler in this chapter?

11. Why might Friedrich be targeted by Hitler and the Nazis? Use evidence to support your answer.

12. Why is Friedrich not in school? Use evidence to support your answer.


Part 1, Chapter 3

13. What does Friedrich hear that makes him different from other kids?

14. What problems was Friedrich having in school? What happened because of these issues?

15. What did the headmaster recommend for Friedrich‛s future? How does Father respond?

16. After Friedrich is pulled out of school, he attends work with Father. How does Father‛s business respond to having an eight year old there? Why would they act this way?

17. “Had Father not been holding him, he too might have floated away on the wind, like a dandelion‛s white-seeded parachutes” (58). Is this a good or a bad thing? Use evidence to support your answer.


Part 1, Chapter 4

18. “The energy inside the factory was palpable” (59). What does the word palpable mean?

19. How does Anselm react to Friedrich receiving private tutoring? Why do you think he reacts this way? Use evidence to support your answer.

20. “‘You know, the new Germany doesn‛t like favorites‛” (61). Why are favorites a bad thing?

21. Why does Ernst think the harmonica emblem will be going away? Use evidence to support your answer.

22. What does the company‛s emblem represent? Do you think they should get rid of their emblem for business? Why or why not?

23. What is Dachau? Describe the setting there.

24. If Friedrich and his family were forced to join the Nazi party, what do you think they would do? Use evidence to support your answer.


Part 1, Chapter 5

25. Where did Friedrich go during his lunch break? What did he discover?

26. “‘Friedrich, my boy, you‛ll be a hero if the men find out you went to the graveyard alone. Most of them wouldn‛t dare!‛” (76). Why is this ironic? Hint: Think about what Friedrich was afraid of at the beginning of Part One?

27. Identify an example of personification on page 77. Why do you think the author included this in the chapter?

Sentence Composing Quiz #06 - Prepositional Phrases

For study purposes, many students print out copies of the quiz and attempt to identify the subjects and predicates.  They then check the blog for the correct answers.


Sentence Composing Quiz #06 - Prepositional Phrases

Link:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1y1HjokEoHuQDQsBCNbceOyknglpeFnd6/view?usp=sharing