Mr. Kunz's Strive for 25

As you all know, throughout the course of the year you are required to read 25 books. I have decided that I will adhere to this requirement myself. The following list will be updated every time I complete a book.

1. Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - Mystery
2. The Once and Future King, by T.H. White - Fantasy
3. Angels & Demons, by Dan Brown - Mystery
4. Will in the Word: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare, by Stephen Greenblatt - Biography
5. A People's History of the United States, by Howard Zinn - History/Nonfiction
6. Twelve Greeks and Romans Who Changed the World, by Carl J. Richard - History/nonfiction
7. Born In Blood, by John J. Robinson - History/Nonfiction
8. Holy Blood, Holy Grail, by Michael Baigent - Nonfiction ?
9. 1776, by David McCullough - Historical Fiction
10. A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin - Fantasy
11. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Translation by J.R.R. Tolkien - Fantasy
12. Unfinished Tales, by J.R.R. Tolkien - Fantasy
13. Occidental Mythology, by Joseph Campbell - Nonfiction
14. The Hero with a Thousand Faces, by Joseph Campbell - Nonfiction
15. Purgatorio, by Dante Aligheri - Verse/Epic
16. Robert Frost - book of poems
17. A Clockwork Orange, by Anthony Burgess - Realistic Fiction
18. Eragon, by Christopher Paolini - Fantasy

Quick Write

The purpose of a quick write is to simply get your thoughts and ideas onto a page. Punctuation, grammar, and ordinary writing conventions do not apply here. Just write to get your thoughts out!

Quick writes typically last 5 to 10 minutes, and are designed to help you start a formal writing assignment. That is, by writing to get your thoughts out, you can begin to formulate a plan for the upcoming project.

Remember, it is not imperative to stay on topic. Sometimes you might start discussing your trip to Florida and end up talking about a solar eclipse. Just keep writing!

Rules for a quick write:

• Absolutely no talking!

Do not distract your fellow students. We need silence in order to focus on the task at hand.

• Do not stop writing!

No matter what, just keep writing until the allotted time runs out.

Literary Letter

Things you need to include in your literary letter:

Literary Letter:

• Heading: Literary Letter on __________
• Date
• Greeting: “Dear_______”
• Salutation: “Sincerely______”
• Title and author’s name in first paragraph
• Summary of what you read in first paragraph
• Select on of the following for your second paragraph
  -ask a question about the text
  -make a prediction
  -offer an evaluation
  -recall a connection
  -explain an image
• Closing paragraph

Literary Letter Example:

Literary Letter on Novio Boy

Dear Mr. Kunz,

I recently completed the play Novio Boy by Gary Soto. This play was about a boy named Rudy and a girl named Patricia. Rudy is in the 9th grade and he is going out on a date with Patricia (she is in the 11th grade). Rudy has a few problems. For starters, he is taking Patricia to an expensive restaurant (Steaks Steaks and more Steaks) and does not have the money. Secondly, he is afraid that he will not know what to say to her when they get there. Eventually, however, Rudy is able to come up with the money for the date and, with the help from his friends and family, is able to pull off the date without any kind of catastrophe.

I really enjoyed this play because it reminded me of a situation in my own life. That’s what I like about Gary Soto, he writes about things that can really happen, and it is easy for me to relate to. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to read realistic fiction.

The play Novio Boy by Gary Soto depicts a story of two characters, Rudy and Patricia, who go on a date to Steaks Steaks and more Steaks. In the end, the date is a success and both characters are glad they went. I would recommend this play to anyone who likes realistic fiction.

Sincerely,
Mr. Kunz

735/745 Homework Log

4th Quarter Homework Assignments:

5/25 - Complete the Virginia Hamilton Reader Response
5/23 - Have your progress report signed and returned to me
5/12 - Book group packet: this packet will be due when you finish your book and will serve as the majority of your homework assignments throughout the rest of the year.

5/4 - Your final draft of the executive summary is due

4/27 - Your polling report and interview are to be completed.

4/16 - Your interview of an "expert" for the executive summary unit should be completed by the end of this week (4/20). A copy of the questions and answers will be due next week!

4/11 - You should have all your surveys completed by now.

3/30 - Reader response and oral presentation

*It is expected that you are to be working on the polling report, interview and executive summary everynight for homework (this is on top of the 30 minutes of independent reading).

728 Homework Log

4th Quarter Homework Assignments:

6/4 - Have your progress report signed and returned to me

5/25 - Complete the Virginia Hamilton Reader Response

5/12 - Book group packet: this packet will be due when you finish your book and will serve as the majority of your homework assignments throughout the rest of the year.

5/7 - Your final draft of the executive summary is due

4/27 - Your polling report and interview are to be completed.

4/16 - Your interview of an "expert" for the executive summary unit should be completed by the end of this week (4/20). A copy of the questions and answers will be due next week!

4/11 - You should have completed all of your surveys by now.

3/30 - Reader response and oral presentation

*It is expected that you are working on the polling report, interview and executive summary everynight (this is on top of the 30 minutes of reading each night).

733/743 Homework Log

4th Quarter Homework Assignments:

5/25 - Complete the Virginia Hamilton Reader Response

5/23 - Have your progress report signed and returned to me

5/12 - Book group packet: this packet will be due when you finish your book and will serve as the majority of your homework assignments throughout the rest of the year.

5/7 - The final draft of the executive summary is due

4/27 - Your polling report and interview are to be completed by now.

4/16 - Your interview of an "expert" for the executive summary unit should be completed by the end of this week (4/20). A copy of the questions and answers will be due next week!

4/11 - You should have completed all of your surveys by now.

3/30 - Reader response and oral presentation

* It is expected that you are working on the polling report, interview and executive summary everynight for homework (this is on top of the 30 minutes of reading).

Contact Info

I.S. 93 Q
Ridgewood, Queens 11385
718-821-4882
jkunz@schools.nyc.gov

Feel free to contact me via email at any time.

WELCOME!

Welcome students, parents and teachers alike! I am looking forward to the upcoming school year and, from the looks of it, we are in for the ride of our life. I will be using this blog as a means of communication throughout the school year. So if you ever have any questions, please feel free to contact me via weblog at any time!