Writing a List Poem Based on "A Note"

Beginning with "Life is the only way," write your own list poem using "A Note" as a model. Your poem must use the same (with minor variations) number of words and structure as Szymborska's. Use what you learned this week to compose a stronger poem.

Try to find a rhythm to the words you choose (note the number of syllables as well as the number of words). Be careful to punctuate exactly the same way and be aware of how the poet has used punctuation to divide and compare ideas. Post a copy of your poem to the blog before coming to Wednesday's class.

Be prepared to do a recital of your poem (please practice ahead of time!) and speak for one to two minutes on the process you followed and any difficulties you experienced.  Marks will be assigned as follows: quality of poem—50%; recital—25%; remarks on process—25%.

NOTE: Check your formatting carefully after copy and pasting poem. You'll need to add spacing. Try to have your poem look exactly the same as the original handout if you can!

Choosing a Favourite Poem

To help you find a poem, here are three online sources of quality poetry. Remember that you will need to defend the poem's quality in group work that day, so be sure to choose well.

Poems at Slate.com (each poem is read by the poet; a good way to decide if you like the way it sounds)

Canadian Poetry Online (from the University of Toronto library; a list of poets that links to poems from each one)

Poetry Daily Archive (alphabetical archive of poems by title; here you can look for an interesting title and see if you can find a poem you like)

IMPORTANT: Find the missing page from your assignment for writing a list poem in the first comment. It includes two sample poems from Grade 11 students and the original poem by Szymborska (which corrects a mistake on "to seek the least of all possible mistakes" instead of "to see." Be sure to take a look.

Experiences with Poetry

Write a 50-word paragraph that refers to your personal experiences with poetry. The experiences do not have to be at school, although they may be if you wish. Be specific please. 

Homework for the story, "Katania"

Using the questions you received with your first short story (on the reverse of the sheet) or the “Guide to Literary Terms,” write an answer based on the page range given to you at class on Wednesday. You may comment on more than one example (e.g. for setting you could refer to both the physical setting and the social environment) that occurs on those pages. Remember to have one overall topic that is more general than your content so we know how you plan to answer. Write about 200 words in a single paragraph. Quote at least twice and work to integrate your quotations into your own sentences. Try to show how your page range relates to something that happens either before or after it in the story.

Notes from Friday's Writing Workshop

I've created a Word file (in older format) for the day's notes from both English 11 and 12 classes.

Here it is: Punctuation Workshop

A Persuasive RSAnimate

View two or three examples of RSAnimates and then choose the one you find most persuasive.

In a paragraph, explain why you find it persuasive (in a way, persuade us that we should also watch it!). Post your paragraph here (150 to 200 words) before coming to class.

Be sure to bring your work to class, word processed, next Wednesday.

Notes and Example from Punctuation Workshop

Find the examples and paragraph as the first comment.

Paragraph Answer for "A Spoiled Man"

Write an answer that is based on information found on the page you have been assigned. Try, as best you can, to connect what happens on that page to events that occur either before or after in the story. Use at least one literary term (setting, conflict, plot, irony etc.) in your answer. Quote the story at least once, but no more than 20 words, maximum, for all quotes. Identify the page number, please, as a heading before your paragraph. See my model answer for more ideas on what to do.

Write between 150 and 200 words. Bring your word processed work to class on Wednesday. Remember to do five annotations (on different pages than the one you were assigned) and bring them to class as well.

Link to the story online for easier cut and paste quoting.