“When I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished, and I was alone again in the unquiet darkness.”

Agenda 3/19 Focus: Walking into the wonderfully weird world of Modernism A tale of three paintings Options for reading tickets Reading “The Short, Happy Life of Francis Macomber” Setting up tomorrow’s ALIS fiesta HW: Finish reading “The Short, Happy Life” and create your first reading ticket.

Agenda 3/20 Focus: Celebrating the end of ALIS; getting to know F. Scott Fitzgerald ALIS fiesta! (And fishbowl signup) Gathering biographical background on the wild and tragic life of F. Scott Fitzgerald What aspects of his life might influence his writing? HW: Please finish “Short, Happy Life” if you haven’t finished it already; most importantly, enjoy your spring break! 

Agenda 3/30 Reminder: End of 6 weeks is this Friday Focus: Defining what makes a “good love story” in the Modern world Opening thought: What makes a good love story? Finish biographical video of F. Scott Fitzgerald F. Scott and Zelda: Good love story? Reminders: Fishbowl and reading tickets HW: Finish Chapter 1 and prepare your reading ticket for tomorrow’s fishbowl Honors

Agenda 3/30 Reminder: End of 6 weeks is this Friday Focus: Defining what makes a “good love story” in the Modern world Review & cumulative vocab. quiz: Units 1-7 Finish biographical video of Fitzgerald F. Scott and Zelda: Good love story? Time to read “Winter Dreams” HW: Finish “Winter Dreams” and prepare your reading ticket for Wednesday’s fishbowl.  5th hour

Happy Post-Spring Break Vocabulary Review Sit back, relax, and enjoy your flight to vocabulary paradise! Finish the peaceful sentence… A worrisome thought you’d like to expunge from your mind… Something that would abet you in feeling relaxed… For the adventurer: An act of temerity that you would like to do on vacation A docile animal you might encounter in a tropical setting

Something you wouldn’t want to do on vacation because you would fall into ignominy A type of food you would like to eat a copious amount of while vacationing A song that would appease your level of rancor An entertaining movie that you would extol An enigma that you might ponder while gazing at the stars, causing you to feel ambivalent Something you will do this week to augment your knowledge and help you grow erudite

Reading Ticket Possibilities for the Outer Circle The goal: Show me that you’ve done the reading thoughtfully Annotations/reading journal Pick your favorite passage and type a response to it. Create a meaningful character sketch that shows your interpretation of a character. Find a song that relates and explain the connections. Write a poem in response to the themes of the chapter. Pick a character and rewrite a part of the chapter from his/her perspective.

“Beautiful” Lyrics As you listen, try to make two connections to the video on F. Scott and Zelda, and two connections to The Great Gatsby. Find one line from Chapter 1 of The Great Gatsby that fits in well with this song, and be ready to read it aloud.

Goals of Socratic Seminar To have a powerful conversation about a powerful book. To give everyone a chance to participate. To give everyone a chance to listen. To create a comfortable, yet college-like atmosphere that’s based on interest, not competition.

“Yet high over the city our line of yellow windows must have contributed their share of human secrecy to the casual watcher in the darkening streets, and I was him too, looking up and wondering. I was within and without, simultaneously enchanted and repelled by the inexhaustible variety of life.”

Agenda 3/18 Focus: Investigating Chapter 2 of The Great Gatsby SAT Word of the Day—it’s back! Close reading of the end of Chapter 1; ticket check Debriefing yesterday’s Socratic seminar Socratic seminar: Chapter 2 HW: Follow the website calendar. 

Close Reading Time! Reread the last few paragraphs of Chapter 1. Just as though you were analyzing a poem or a piece of art, find three examples of Fitzgerald’s diction that you think are significant. Brainstorm what you think each example signifies, and connect it to one other line from Chapter 1 or 2. When you finish, make sure that you have at least a few questions and comments prepared for Socratic seminar—I want to hear your voices!

4th Hour: Ms. Leclaire’s Feedback What you did well: You shared many original ideas (comment on Fitzgerald’s partial physical descriptions of his characters). You stayed focused, and conversation evolved naturally. You were polite and inviting to each other—no one was “competing” to be heard. You challenged each other’s ideas in a literary way, not a “personal attack” way. What you need to work on: More participation—come prepared, and expect to share your thoughts. Keep making references to the text, and wait for everyone to find the passage. You need to take charge of changing the topic when necessary. Be active listeners; this means looking up passages and TAKING NOTES in your book as we discuss. Put your heart into it, not just your mind.

“In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars.”

I’ll miss you—please have a fun, safe spring break! Agenda 3/19 Focus: Partying in the world of Gatsby SAT word of the day! Partner ticket exchange A little prep. time (2 questions, 2 comments) Socratic seminar: Chapters 2 and 3 Wrap-up HW: Follow the website calendar.  I’ll miss you—please have a fun, safe spring break!

Agenda 3/31 Focus: Exploring affairs, compatibility, and unrealistic expectations in Chapter 5 Introduction to speed dating and assigning roles Speed dating prep sheet Five minute dates HW: Follow the website calendar. 

Speed Dating Prep Sheet Take a look over the speed dating link posted on our class website. Pick your 10 favorite questions and paste them into a Microsoft Word document. This document will be your speed dating sheet. Before we start speed dating, answer each of these questions in character. Create a “rating scale” that fits your character. Think about how they would rate potential dates. For example, if you think Nick values honesty above all else, your rating scale might be something like “Definitely dishonest, Questionable, and Trustworthy.”

The Rules of Speed Dating Stay in character. Take notes on your partners’ responses. At the end of each “date,” rate your partner based on the scale that you’ve created. There are three different female characters and three different male characters. You need to “date” one of each character of the opposite sex. The “women” will stay seated while the “men” move. Debriefing—what do these characters value? Is it possible for them to find happiness?