You're here! That's great! Thanks for visiting. Let me show you around a bit. You're currently reading the enriched classes' blog. No, you don't have to be in the enriched class to be reading this, but it will probably make more sense if you are.
You see, we are currently reading a rather, let's say, unnerving tale from the master storyteller Edgar Allan Poe called "The Masque of the Red Death". It's got everything you expect from a Poe short story. Blood? Violence? Death? Screams? Gothic setting? Rich vocabulary? Yup, it's all here. And yesterday and today you've been discussing the story on a very simple level, trying to demonstrate a level one depth of knowledge. This turned out to be trickier than I thought it would be. On the one hand, you were all trying to look at the story from a figurative/symbolic/metaphorical perspective. Usually, I would say, "FANTASTIC!" However, it also soon became clear that there were some misinterpretations on that level as well. We didn't fully grasp why Prospero and 1000 of his closest friends were in the castle; we weren't exactly sure when the masked figure appeared; we struggled to understand what exactly happened in the end. Through your small group discussions and your creations of tools to demonstrate your level one comprehension, we worked out any misunderstandings.
Having a solid understanding of what happened in the story allowed you to move to level two and to effectively demonstrate your level two understanding. While our goal was to reach level three in the groups, it soon became clear that time was not on our side. That was okay because we will pick it up there tomorrow. Not only will we discuss the story in a more interpretive, critical level, but you will also be doing a bit of writing tomorrow. I'll be showing you a picture, and you'll be explaining the imagery of the picture using "The Masque of the Red Death" as your source. You'll have about fifteen minutes to examine it, make a decision on your approach, and put together a solid paragraph explanation. I'll be collecting and assessing it tomorrow as well. Your level one knowledge, coupled with our discussion in class tomorrow should be enough to enable you to respond to the picture prompt effectively.
Does that sound like something PARCC would come up with? Would the end of quarter Performance Tasks ask such a question? That's a big Y-E-S on both accounts.
I also want you to go to sleep tonight with one word on your minds: zombies. They're coming!
Before I go, I'll toss you a chance for an Archer card signature. Click on the link above. It's a fabulous site that takes you to Poe's museum located in Richmond, the town where he spent his youth. Read carefully and tell me what genre Poe is widely acknowledged to have invented.
Thanks again for coming. See you tomorrow. Zombies.
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