We studied William Blake's poems "Lamb" and "Tyger". We first identified the speaker in each poem and discussed how the simplicity of the language belies the deep underlying question of each poem: who created good and evil and how and why could a benevolent God have created both? We noted the use of the lamb and the "tyger" as symbols and how Blake's artwork enhances the meaning of each poem. Specifically, the lithograph of the tiger so fiercely described in the poem illustrates a tame smiling cat like creature. I noted how Blake sees society and the church as taming the imagination i. e. the "tyger" and how the poem acts as a criticism of both church and society. For homework, I assigned reading the few remaining poems in the poetry packet and for each poem noting the speaker, the format, and figurative language.

Olivia was absent today.

We opened our poetry unit by examining the thematic relationship between Browning's "My last Duchess" and the novel, "Daisy Miller". Olivia evidenced a strong understanding of the tragic fate of the wife of the narrator of the poem who ,like Daisy Miller, is a flirt met with death. I then provided instruction on poetry first noting the two types: lyric and narrative , then noting how poetry achieves meaning, followed by instruction on techniques or steps for analyzing a poem. Olivia took good notes on these topics . I further began instruction on the characteristics that separate the British Romantic poets from the British Victorian poets. We will delve into this more as we study the different eras. For homework due Tuesday , I assigned reading some selected poems by Blake, Keats, and Shelley (the Romantics)as well as one more by Browning. I provided some brief background on the poetic narrators of each poem to orient Olivia in her initial examination of each poem. We will elaborate on symbols and themes in greater detail in class next week.

Taylor is writing an essay comparing and contrasting two characters from 'Nightingale'. She spent the hour looking for quotes to support her thesis statement.

We concluded revising Olivia's essay on "Daisy Miller" which she intends to submit as an additional writing sample with her college applications. As Olivia's most recent rewrite addressed most of my concerns, today we refined a few verbs for precision, checked MLA format ,spelling , and punctuation , and discussed adding a few phrases in areas where Olivia wished to elaborate her thesis.

Olivia continued to revise her college essay/personal statement as well as her test essay on the novel,"Daisy Miller". With respect to the literary essay, we worked on adding additional textual support and ensuring proper use of MLA citations . Likewise, we read over the personal statement and discussed areas where the language could be clarified or where additional details could enhance the essay. Olivia completed the personal essay and will finish the rewrites on the "Daisy Miller " essay tomorrow. We will then begin our British poetry unit.

We analyzed and revised Olivia's essay on "Daisy Miller" which focused on the behavioral double standard for men and women in Victorian society. The instruction focused on the importance and procedures for revising and editing . First, I reviewed the need for proper punctuation so that Olivia could address run-on sentences. We then examined maintaining a consistent tense throughout the essay, followed by methods to write more direct and clearer sentences. Olivia's work displays a lot of insight and also evidences strong structural organization.She is very cooperative about addressing these areas which will improve her prose as she prepares to enter college. For homework due Monday, I assigned following up on the revision process, and reading Robert Browning's poem,"My Last Duchess" as we will begin our poetry unit next week.

Per Olivia's request, we today reviewed and worked on Olivia's college essay/personal statement. I generally reviewed her draft and addressed any grammatical or word usage errors. We then discussed how to address and to expand on her thesis of the benefit of encountering and then overcoming obstacles .We further looked at some of the individualized questions posed on the UCF application. For homework, Olivia is completing her essay on" Daisy Miller."

Olivia has recently completed essays on both "The Scarlet Letter" and "Daisy Miller". Today,we analyzed the essays and worked on revisions and grammar corrections. As Olivia's essays referenced good quotes as textual support, we looked at ways to better incorporate the quotes into the flow of the essay by including the quoted material in surrounding sentences. . We further developed introductory paragraphs to have them more clearly and directly respond to the essay question. Last, we revised any misused or vague words to sharpen the very perceptive positions Olivia's essays advance . For homework, I assigned handing in the "Daisy Miller" essay that was due before the break, and incorporating the revisions discussed in class into "The Scarlet Letter " essay.

Olivia worked on completing her test essay on Daisy Miller during today's session. Since she was late, she did not have the opportunity to complete the essay in class and will complete the essay for homework and hand it in tomorrow.