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March/April 2020 Home Learning Resources and Assignments
English Students
Dear students,
Hello, seniors! I hope you are all feeling well and enjoying this unscheduled break! Ms. Dunn has asked for all teachers to provide enrichment activities until the school reopens. What that means is that anything that was due BEFORE March 13th can be graded (for example, if you didn't do a quick-write, or didn't hand in the summaries for Frankenstein chapters 6-10), but I cannot grade anything that was due after that date until after school resumes. Those of you that need to make up papers and homework ought to consider this a great opportunity! I hope and expect all of you to send me stuff in the next few weeks, so we can get your grades nicely back up where they are supposed to be! I'm not sure what to do for those that missed tests - I would love to give you some way to make those up as well, but I don't really see how we could. If one of you has an idea, I would love to hear it. Also, the Macbeth scenes for those of you who still need to do those...I don't suppose you would be willing to send me a video you could make of it? If not, we may have to just make those up when we get back.
Meanwhile, the next two weeks actually won't be much different for our class. I still want you all to work on your research papers. I have already received rough drafts from about a fourth of you. I will begin working on those early next week. The rest of you, get them in as soon as you can! I hope that I can receive everyone's research paper and give them feedback on it before we get back to school. I am attaching some resources that Ms. Gonzalez shared with us, in the hopes that they may be useful. Here is a link to Rams Book Den:
sites.google.com/site/ramsbookdenorg/page-2.
I have attached a few videos: one on how to format your paper in MLA format, one that gives a step-by-step process for making a research paper, and another one that shows how to use Google Slides as a way to organize your research. Not everything in these videos is completely relevant to us, but I hope it is helpful.
Also, remember you can use Easybib to create the MLA format for your works cited page:
www.easybib.com/mla8/source
I am also attaching the beginnings of a rubric for the finished research paper. This rubric is a work in progress, honestly - The elements that you need to do will not change, but the relative weight of each item probably will.
The other thing that I want to keep working on is Frankenstein. I do recommend that you keep reading the novel, and send me brief summaries when you finish each chapter. This is much less intense than the research paper, and I hope it is actually enjoyable as well. I have attached the powerpoint that I was going through in class. Presently, it is complete up to chapter 10. I recommend that as you finish each chapter, you go through the slides having to do with that chapter. That ought to help you to engage with the material, and start thinking about the deep themes of the novel.
Send any messages to me through Jupiter, or to ailshiem@lynnschools.org. If you have a google doc that you want to share me on, I recommend using that email address. Stay safe, and keep watching Jupiter for further updates.
Sincerely,
Mr. Ailshie
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Dear Students,
First of all, I hope that all of you are safe and healthy, and are taking precautions to keep yourselves and your families safe through this situation. Ms. Dunn has asked for the teachers to provide Enrichment Activities for all students. What this means is that if you send me something that was due before March 13th - like a performance reflection or homework - then I can grade it, but any of the assignments that are set for the next few weeks will not be graded.
I think this is a great opportunity for all of you to find a really great monologue and memorize it and get ready to perform. I have attached the "monologue project" rubric to remind all of you what is expected. Remember, there are two parts of the project: the writing, and then the performance. Many of you have already found a monologue that you want to use. For those of you who have not, please remember that monologue can come from any play, movie, or TV show. Make sure to choose a monologue that you LIKE. You will find this activity much easier and more fun if you enjoy what you are working on. Here are some resources to find a good one:
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Monologue Database -- www.monologuedb.com/
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Monologue database is a great site for this project. If you look at the upper right, you can look for a certain kind of monologue (comedic, dramatic, male or female, etc). You can also search for a particular movie or TV show (every movie or show is not included on the database, though!). One problem with this site is that it will sometimes give back quotes and one-liners which are too short for this assignment. Make sure your monologue is a decent size. A good rule of thumb is that it should be at least 5 or 6 sentences
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IMDB - www.imdb.com/
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The Internet Movie Database is a fantastic resource for any movie or TV show. You can find the writer, the actors, and a lot of quotes – often including monologues. Search for the movie or TV show, then click on “more”, and under the heading “did you know” click on the link that says “quotes”. Look through those quotes for a long line by a single character. Again, it should be at least 5 or 6 sentences.
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The Monologuer – www.backstage.com/monologues/
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The Monologuer has hundreds of great monologues from PLAYS specifically. You can search by author or play, or by the kind of monologue you want (comedy, Shakespearean, etc). Another great thing about this site is that it gives you information about the scene and the play that the monologue comes from.
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Shakespeare’s Monologues - www.shakespeare-monologues.org/home
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For those who want a great challenge, this site has EVERY monologue from the plays of William Shakespeare.
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Other – www.youtube.com ?
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If none of those websites can help you, I recommend you find the monologue you want on youtube or Netflix, or something like that, and just watch it over and over writing down the words. It is a more tedious process of transcribing your monologue, but on the other hand, hearing it over and over may help you with memorizing as well!
Once you have chosen a monologue, the next thing you need to do is find out what kind of monologue it is and start to memorize it. The written part of the project is intended to help you to think about your monologue, who is speaking, and what is happening in it. This should help you discover what is going on in it, so your performance will be stronger.
As for memorizing...There are a lot of ways. You need to fins what works best for you. I will link several videos and articles about memorizing that might be helpful.
www.backstage.com/magazine/article/memorize-lines-fast-12848/
I will be posting some more material later about Monologues, and also Theatre History. If anyone has questions, or wants to check out if a monologue you have chosen will work for this project, send me a message.
Regards,
Mr. Ailshie
Videos to help with memorization! Here you go:
Video 1
Video 2
Video 3
Good luck, and have fun with it!
Dear Bethany and Maddie,
I hope you are both healthy and safe, and making the most of this unscheduled vacation. Ms. Dunn has asked that we provide enrichment materials for all of our classes during the school shut down. I will be periodically adding things that I think you will find useful and interesting.
In the mean time, our class will not actually be changing that much! At this point, most of the class involves you each writing and revising your work. Consider this time off as a wonderful gift! I recommend that you take the time to write creatively EVERY DAY, whether in your plays or in something else.
Maddie, I would ask for you to send me a copy of your monologue as soon as possible (Bethany, did you keep a copy of your work? If not, I will scan your work back to you, because you need to have a copy for yourself!) I will read your monologues and give you feedback beginning on Monday.
In the meantime, I would like you to begin the next part of the writing process. Please watch the attached powerpoint on "Playwriting Structure." This should give you some valuable insight into how you write, and get you started thinking about the whole play. When you have finished the powerpoint, download the attached "story spine worksheet" and use it to help you begun thinking about your own work. Send it to me when you finish. At that point, you can begin the "expand to a scene" project, attached.
The other issue is reading and thinking about "Death of a Salesman." At this point, you should all finish reading the play on your own, and fill out the worksheets to begin thinking about it. Because those were already due before the 13th, I can actually grade those as soon as you send them to me! If you need copies let me know, and I will download the worksheets to Jupiter for you.
Once you have finished reading, start working on the attached "Director's Analysis". How would you direct this play on our stage? What are the themes and relationships and other issues that should be considered?
I would love it if all of this stuff was sent to me before we got back to school. How great would it be if we didn't fall behind at all, or even got ahead of what we were missing! Let me know how you are doing, and if there is any way I can help you along. If you need to contact me or send me stuff, either contact me through Jupiter or at ailshiem@lynnschools.org.
Regards,
Mr. Ailshie
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Welcome To My Classroom!
Mark Ailshie is an actor, a director, a novelist, and a playwright. He holds a BA from Brigham Young University, and a Masters’ degree from Emerson. Mr. Ailshie has worked in the Lynn Public Schools for seven years teaching English, ESL, and Theatre Arts. He teaches Theatre Arts at Lynn Classical High School, and is also the director and advisor of the Lynn Classical Drama Club.
Mr. Ailshie’s night back is Wednesday, from 2:30 until 3:30 PMand he is usually after school working with the drama club on Tuesdays and Thursdays as well, from 2:30 until 5 PM. He can be contacted at ailshiem@lynnschools.org
