Winter Update: English Department

March 4, 2015

The English department is moving through the winter keeping the intellectual fires stoked!

Mrs. Wang-Birnbaum has been focusing on Freud and Feminism in her AP class and is helping students prepare their independent final papers. Her 10th grade is looking at themes of isolation and otherhood through their Shakespeare reading.

english blog 1Mr. Gotlieb is comparing the differences between a hand written manuscript of  “I Saw in Louisiana a Live Oak Growing” and various published versions with his 11th grade class while Mr. Dunton is having his 9th graders study Jungian personality types and symbolism in Golding’s Lord of the Flies. He is also working on Realism with the 11th grade and the poetry of James Wright with the 12H group.

Rabbi Rosen just completed a unit on the image of Jews in film with the 12th grade and is working with the 10th grade on the notion of the independent female character in literature.

Ms. Frey is having her students write about their recent Freezefest experience – watch for her top papers on her blog www.teentraveltalk.com!

Second semester in Public Speaking is off to a great start.  Students have spoken about their aspirations for greatness, coping with interesting neighbors, and more. The class has learned the Ten Commandments of Public Speaking, discussed the difference between manuscript, impromptu, and extemporaneous speeches, learned how to make a proper outline and much much more.