Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Act V Comprehension Questions

In the Google Form link below, please complete the comprehension questions for Act V of Romeo and Juliet.


Act V Comprehension Questions

Friday, March 2, 2012

Find Juliet: Extra Credit

The first English I student to post the correct location of Juliet in this hidden image person will be rewarded with extra credit.


Romeo and Juliet Logic Puzzle: Extra Credit


For some time we tried to make these little reptiles perform the feat allotted to them, and failed.
The Professor, however, would not give away his solution, but said he would instead introduce to us a little thing that is childishly simple when you have once seen it, but cannot be mastered by everybody at the very first attempt.
"Waiter!" he called again.
"Just take away these glasses, please, and bring the chessboards."
"I hope to goodness," exclaimed Grigsby, "you are not going to show us some of those awful chess problems of yours.
'White to mate Black in 427 moves without moving his pieces.'
'The bishop rooks the king, and pawns his Giuoco Piano in half a jiff.'"
"No, it is not chess.
You see these two snails.
They are Romeo and Juliet.
Juliet is on her balcony, waiting the arrival of her love; but Romeo has been dining, and forgets, for the life of him, the number of her house.
The squares represent sixty-four houses, and the amorous swain visits every house once and only once before reaching his beloved. Now, make him do this with the fewest possible turnings.
The snail can move up, down, and across the board and through the diagonals.
Mark his track with this piece of chalk."
"Seems easy enough," said Grigsby, running the chalk along the squares.
"Look! that does it."
"Yes," said the Professor: "Romeo has got there, it is true, and visited every square once, and only once; but you have made him turn nineteen times, and that is not doing the trick in the fewest turns possible."
Hawkhurst, curiously enough, hit on the solution at once, and the Professor remarked that this was just one of those puzzles that a person might solve at a glance or not master in six months.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Act IV Comprehension Questions

Below is a link for comprehension questions for Act IV of Romeo and Juliet. Please use your book for assistance in answering the questions. This is a graded assignment.

Romeo and Juliet Act IV Comprehension Questions Form

Monday, February 27, 2012

Social Offenses

Consider the following social offenses. Rank each offense between 1 and 4 in the degree of seriousness, with 1 being the most serious and 4 being the least seriousWhen everyone in the group has completed their rankings, compare your answers with each other. Why does one person rank an offense with a 1, while another person ranks the same offense as a 3? Discuss your differences in opinion and support/defend your rankings.
____ Planning to trick/deceive someone
____ Lying to parents
____ Killing someone for revenge
____ Advising someone to marry for money.
____ Marrying someone for money.
____ Continuing a feud that your family has had for generations.
____ Selling drugs
____ killing someone by mistake while fighting with that person
____ suicide
____ crashing a party
____ marrying against parents’ wishes
____ giving the finger or another vulgar gesture
____ picking a fight
As a comment, each group needs to post its findings on the following: (Be sure to list all group members' names in the post.)

Which THREE offenses did your group members agree were most serious? Add a sentence or two justifying each offense as being most serious.



 Which THREE offenses did your group members agree were least serious? Add a sentence or two justifying each offense as being least serious.


After your group has posted, each individual needs to post answering the following questions. Use complete sentences and defend your answers with discussion.

How do we decide what offenses are most/least serious? What aspects or experiences come into play when evaluating the above offenses?

Friday, February 24, 2012

Parent-Child Relationships in Romeo and Juliet

In Act III, we saw Juliet openly disobey both Lord and Lady Capulet. She clearly stated she would not marry Paris, bringing a fit of rage to her father. We have all experienced those times when we didn't wholeheartedly agree with our parents, and from the looks of Romeo and Juliet, this feeling and the events that often arise from the dissent were even typical in Shakespeare's time. Yesterday, we discussed Shakespeare's purpose in creating this great argument and the tense feelings surrounding Juliet's situation as a means to make the situation feel more urgent and more dire. We discussed how this creates more sympathy for both Romeo and Juliet, as well as helps to build climatic action.

Discuss the relationships between parents and children in Romeo and Juliet. How do Romeo and Juliet interact with their parents? Are they rebellious, in the modern sense? How do their parents feel about them? Consider examples as to where this type of family argument might occur in today's times.

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Romeo and Juliet Act III Quiz

After reading Romeo and Juliet Act III in its entirety, click here to access the assessment. Be sure to remember the academic honesty policy you agreed to and remember that cheating has dire consequences, including: a 0 on the quiz, a failing grade for the quarter, and even possible expulsion. Use standardized test taking tips to eliminate any unlikely answers and to help to decide the best possible answer.

Good Luck!

Romeo and Juliet Act III Quiz

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Insight from English I Students

21st Century Romeo and Juliet
From the perspective of either Romeo or Juliet, write about the feelings he/she must be having about their forbidden love, their family feud, or their plan to marry without permission. Be sure to incorporate class discussions, the rules of marriage from the time, and the thoughts of you as a 21st Century teenager.

Student Reflections as Characters from Shakespeare's Greatest Tragedy




Students in Ms. Shaw's English I class are currently studying Shakespeare's greatest tragedy Romeo and Juliet. As part of their study on characters, setting, and drama, students will be posting informed insight from the perspective of a 21st Century teenager. Students will continue to add thoughts and character analysis throughout our reading of Romeo and Juliet.