Week 38

It is with some melancholy that I create this last BLOG of the school year. I want to thank those who have diligently checked in weekly...I did notice...I did have my "cult" following. We have come to the conclusion of the school year and of Ken Kesey's great novel. Two questions need to be answered: does McMurphy win or lose his battle with Nurse Ratched? and why does Bromden smother Mac?

I want to thank my students for a wonderful school year...each of you have made an impact in my life.....smile abundantly and enjoy your summer....

Mr. D.

Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoos' Nest reading schedule:

Wednesday, June 11: finish the book.

We will review for the ELA assessment ALL WEEK.

Have a good week and stay focused. Remember, "the road is better than the inn."

Week 37

Here are your assignments/Agenda for Week 37:

Week 37 MS Word

Week 37 pdf

If you have questions about these assignments, please leave a comment or email me directly. Remember, I will check the blog until 9:59 pm. You know I need my Seinfeld fix.

Week 36

Why does MCMurphy fight Nurse Ratched?

The Nurse is obsessed with the need to control her patients and her ward. She cherishes order, authority, and conformity. McMurphy is a rebel, a nonconformist. Intitially, he fights her because she imposes regulations which limit his freedom. His first battles, eg. the World Series episode, may be largely self-serving; he manipulates the patients as well as the staff to assert his will. But gradually, as Mac begins to comrehend the extent of Nurse Ratched's power over the staff, the other patients, and himself, he challenges her authority for nobler reasons...pay attention to these reasons during your readings.

Have a good week and we will talk more!

Here are your assignments/Agenda for Week 36:

Week 36 MS Word

Week 36 pdf

If you have questions about these assignments, please leave a comment or email me directly. Remember, I will check the blog until 9:59 pm. You know I need my Seinfeld fix.

Week 35

Some writers will forever be identified with a time period. Ken Kesey will forever be labeled and pigeon holed into the 1960s, along with the Grateful Dead. The movement in the 60s was the psychedelic revolution. The first “acid tests” were happening and LSD was being introduced. Kesey, part of the counterculture movement, and his friends became known as the Merry Pranksters. They were notorious for their “acid tests” and use of LSD. It was his experience with LSD that altered Kesey professionally and personally. While he worked at a psychiatric ward, he had hallucinations about an Indian sweeping floors. Thus, this became the foundation for his novel.

Have a good week and we will talk more!

Here are your assignments/Agenda for Week 35:

Week 35 MS Word

Week 35 pdf

If you have questions about these assignments, please leave a comment or email me directly. Remember, I will check the blog until 9:59 pm. You know I need my Seinfeld fix.

Week 34

Congratulations on completing your first college level examination. Your preparations for this exam date all the way back to September; that is 33 weeks of training--writing, reading, and sharing. This is impressive! But, there is life after the AP exam! In fact, we have to meet two objectives: one is to read and study our last work, Ken Kesey's One Flew Over the Cuckoos' Nest, and two, prepare ourselves for the New York State Regents Exam (ELA). So, this means the year is not over...let's continue to work hard through the next six weeks.

This week I will work with you on frontloading information about the novel and the author. For next Monday's class read pages 1-90. The first scene sets up the novel, where we are taken through the daily life of a mental institution (ward). It is an example of "in medias res" or beginning in the middle of things. Be patient with your narrator, the Chief. He has too much electroshock and drugs.

Also, you will take parts of the ELA exam to determine strengths and weaknesses (there are 4 parts).

Have a good week and we will talk more!

Here are your assignments/Agenda for Week 34:

Week 34 MS Word

Week 34 pdf

If you have questions about these assignments, please leave a comment or email me directly. Remember, I will check the blog until 9:59 pm. You know I need my Seinfeld fix.

Week 33

AP Literature Exam Thursday, May 8, 2008

YOU ARE SMART AND WELL-PREPARED

Have a good week and ask questions that need answering.

Here are your assignments/Agenda for Week 33:

Week 33 MS Word

Week 33 pdf

If you have questions about these assignments, please leave a comment or email me directly. Remember, I will check the blog until 9:59 pm. You know I need my Seinfeld fix.

Week 32

AP Literature Exam Thursday, May 8, 2008

YOU ARE SMART AND WELL-PREPARED

Have a good week and ask questions that need answering.

Here are your assignments/Agenda for Week 32:

Week 32 MS Word

Week 32 pdf

If you have questions about these assignments, please leave a comment or email me directly. Remember, I will check the blog until 9:59 pm. You know I need my Seinfeld fix.