http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/GRAMMAR/quizzes/runons_quiz.htm
Thanks Mrs. Thompson
Thursday, February 26, 2009
First Visit
Whenever you are visiting especially for the first time, please make a comment on the titles you have read. I am trying to keep a record of how many people are reading the blog and the most read posts.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Chapter 4
In this chapter, Mary tries to help Tom memorize Bible verses. But Tom was unable to.
Mr. Walters had set up a ticket system:
2 verses = 1 blue ticket
10 blue tickets = 1 red ticket
10 red tickets = 1 yellow ticket
10 yellow tickets = 1 Bible
.: 2000 verses = 1 Bible
That morning, Tom traded :
1. a piece of lickrish and fish hook for a yellow ticket
2. a couple of white alleys for 3 red tickets
To impress the visitors, Judge Thatcher and his family, Mr. Walters was desperate for a candidate who qualified to receive a Bible.
The only person that qualified was Tom. He had:
9 yellow tickets
9 red tickets
10 blue tickets.
Mr. Walters knew that it was impossible for Tom to have honestly earned these tickets, but he was desperate to impress the Judge.
Judge Thatcher was indeed impressed and gave a speech of the value of such learning. To close, he asked Tom one simple question,
Who were the first two appointed disciples?
Tom was unable to answer this simple question correctly. His response was:
David and Goliath.
This made it clear to everyone that Tom:
dishonestly got the tickets,
was too lazy to try to learn verses
was a trickster who tricked the boys into qualifying for a Bible
liked to impress
doesn' like to work for rewards
likes attention.
Mr. Walters had set up a ticket system:
2 verses = 1 blue ticket
10 blue tickets = 1 red ticket
10 red tickets = 1 yellow ticket
10 yellow tickets = 1 Bible
.: 2000 verses = 1 Bible
That morning, Tom traded :
1. a piece of lickrish and fish hook for a yellow ticket
2. a couple of white alleys for 3 red tickets
To impress the visitors, Judge Thatcher and his family, Mr. Walters was desperate for a candidate who qualified to receive a Bible.
The only person that qualified was Tom. He had:
9 yellow tickets
9 red tickets
10 blue tickets.
Mr. Walters knew that it was impossible for Tom to have honestly earned these tickets, but he was desperate to impress the Judge.
Judge Thatcher was indeed impressed and gave a speech of the value of such learning. To close, he asked Tom one simple question,
Who were the first two appointed disciples?
Tom was unable to answer this simple question correctly. His response was:
David and Goliath.
This made it clear to everyone that Tom:
dishonestly got the tickets,
was too lazy to try to learn verses
was a trickster who tricked the boys into qualifying for a Bible
liked to impress
doesn' like to work for rewards
likes attention.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Tom Sawyer Chapter1-4
Minor characters are those characters whose physical presence is not that prominent, but they can play significant roles as it relates to developing the main character, exposing themes and pushing forward the plot.
Written around 1870, the novel initially began as a series of letters from Twain to an old friend (Letters to Will Bowen) about their boyhood pranks, schooldays, and childhood mischief.
The novel describes the youthful adventures of the young protagonist, who embodies the ideal of American youth during the frontier era that preceded Industrialization.
At the start of the novel, the reader is immediately introduced to the core characters. The character portraits that are unfolded in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer are extensive and intricate, a quality that makes this piece a distinct work of Mark Twain. In the first chapter, Aunt Polly is introduced as a religious, pious, and stubborn mannered lady; Tom's first impression leaves the reader thinking he is mischievous, lazy, and irresponsible. But as the story unfolds, Twain develops both Aunt Polly and Tom into multi-dimensional characters whose emotions and actions are somewhat unpredictable. The reader, then, must discern between the superficial and the meaningful portrayals of each character.
· In chapter two, this narrative plays an especially important role in portraying Tom Sawyer's true intellect and understanding of the world around him
Tom not only loves to fight and play in the dirt, but also has a profound knowledge of human nature that is astounding for his young age. Using his "smarts," he is able to fool his peers as well as outsmart Aunt Polly and other authority figures. Tom may behave like a little boy, but he is able to think greater than perhaps any adult.
In the previous chapters we have seen Tom as carefree, but there is a darker side to Tom's character. He is willing to trade his worldly possessions for the glory of receiving a Sunday school Bible, and he loves to show off. But when he feels unloved, he falls into a kind of depression where he questions his own existence by imagining his funeral.
Mary is portrayed by Twain as a "saintly" figure in the novel. First, we see that Mary is perhaps one of the only authority figures Tom trusts. He allows her to help him with his verses, wash him, and dress him. Second, we see that Mary also trusts Tom. Twain's first blow to the Church comes when Tom is able to underhandedly trade for enough tickets to earn a Dore Bible, showing how even the Church could not make the distinction between hard work and bought favors.
Written around 1870, the novel initially began as a series of letters from Twain to an old friend (Letters to Will Bowen) about their boyhood pranks, schooldays, and childhood mischief.
The novel describes the youthful adventures of the young protagonist, who embodies the ideal of American youth during the frontier era that preceded Industrialization.
At the start of the novel, the reader is immediately introduced to the core characters. The character portraits that are unfolded in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer are extensive and intricate, a quality that makes this piece a distinct work of Mark Twain. In the first chapter, Aunt Polly is introduced as a religious, pious, and stubborn mannered lady; Tom's first impression leaves the reader thinking he is mischievous, lazy, and irresponsible. But as the story unfolds, Twain develops both Aunt Polly and Tom into multi-dimensional characters whose emotions and actions are somewhat unpredictable. The reader, then, must discern between the superficial and the meaningful portrayals of each character.
· In chapter two, this narrative plays an especially important role in portraying Tom Sawyer's true intellect and understanding of the world around him
Tom not only loves to fight and play in the dirt, but also has a profound knowledge of human nature that is astounding for his young age. Using his "smarts," he is able to fool his peers as well as outsmart Aunt Polly and other authority figures. Tom may behave like a little boy, but he is able to think greater than perhaps any adult.
In the previous chapters we have seen Tom as carefree, but there is a darker side to Tom's character. He is willing to trade his worldly possessions for the glory of receiving a Sunday school Bible, and he loves to show off. But when he feels unloved, he falls into a kind of depression where he questions his own existence by imagining his funeral.
Mary is portrayed by Twain as a "saintly" figure in the novel. First, we see that Mary is perhaps one of the only authority figures Tom trusts. He allows her to help him with his verses, wash him, and dress him. Second, we see that Mary also trusts Tom. Twain's first blow to the Church comes when Tom is able to underhandedly trade for enough tickets to earn a Dore Bible, showing how even the Church could not make the distinction between hard work and bought favors.
website for Tom Sawyer
There are a number of students who till do not own a copy of Tom Sawyer, they asked for a website they could log on to to read the text, online. Here it is:
http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/mtwain/bl-mtwain-tom-8.htm
http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/mtwain/bl-mtwain-tom-8.htm
Tom Sawyer Chapters 5-8
· The town of St. Petersburg is small, poor, and quiet; the church, with its cracked church bell that resounds through the town, becomes a quintessential symbol of small-town life.
· The antics between Tom, the dog, and the beetle provide comic relief to the church. What is most important, however, is the fact that the attendees pay more attention to the antics of the pinch-bug than they do to the speech given from the pulpit.
· This dichotomy between the serious and the playful - the moral and the mischievous - parallels Tom's constant struggle between his need for adventure and his will to "be good.
· Huck's different standard of living is exemplified by the way in which he and Tom discuss their various rituals and superstitions. Both Tom and Huck are believers of the mysterious. They believe in witches' spells, bad luck, and try to cure everyday ailments like warts by performing strange incantations. No matter how far-fetched their ideas sound, Tom and Huck discuss their secret rituals and chants with the utmost seriousness.
· The antics of Tom, Joe, and the tick during their study time at school depict how useless Tom thinks education to be.
· Robin Hood's gallantry appeals to Tom's sense of the romantic: Robin Hood is loved by all, and hated by only the people he steals from. His desire to be like Robin Hood stems from his need to be the center-of-attention. We also see that Tom's aspiration is not to cause mischief, but to be a "noble" figure like Robin Hood. But in actuality, the only way Tom can again attention is to misbehave.
· The antics between Tom, the dog, and the beetle provide comic relief to the church. What is most important, however, is the fact that the attendees pay more attention to the antics of the pinch-bug than they do to the speech given from the pulpit.
· This dichotomy between the serious and the playful - the moral and the mischievous - parallels Tom's constant struggle between his need for adventure and his will to "be good.
· Huck's different standard of living is exemplified by the way in which he and Tom discuss their various rituals and superstitions. Both Tom and Huck are believers of the mysterious. They believe in witches' spells, bad luck, and try to cure everyday ailments like warts by performing strange incantations. No matter how far-fetched their ideas sound, Tom and Huck discuss their secret rituals and chants with the utmost seriousness.
· The antics of Tom, Joe, and the tick during their study time at school depict how useless Tom thinks education to be.
· Robin Hood's gallantry appeals to Tom's sense of the romantic: Robin Hood is loved by all, and hated by only the people he steals from. His desire to be like Robin Hood stems from his need to be the center-of-attention. We also see that Tom's aspiration is not to cause mischief, but to be a "noble" figure like Robin Hood. But in actuality, the only way Tom can again attention is to misbehave.
Fragmented, run-on and ambiguous sentences
Incomplete sentences or sentence fragments are sentence parts that are written as complete sentences. They do not express complete thoughts; their meaning is incomplete.
Example: Kenya is an African country. Along the coast of the Indian Ocean.
Correction: Kenya is an African country that lies along the Indian Ocean.
Run-on sentences are sentences with two independent clauses together with no punctuation and no conjunction separating them.
Example: They wanted to go swimming the pool was closed.
Correction: They wanted to go swimming. The pool was closed.
or
They wanted to go swimming but the pool was closed.
Ambiguous sentences are sentences that have more than one possible meaning.
Example: Put the box on the table by the window in the kitchen.
Correction: Put the box onto the table that is by the window in the kitchen.
Take the box that is on the table and put it by the window in the kitchen.
Take the box off the table that is by the window and put it in the kitchen.
Other Examples: Kids make nutritious snacks.
Milk drinkers are turning to powder.
Example: Kenya is an African country. Along the coast of the Indian Ocean.
Correction: Kenya is an African country that lies along the Indian Ocean.
Run-on sentences are sentences with two independent clauses together with no punctuation and no conjunction separating them.
Example: They wanted to go swimming the pool was closed.
Correction: They wanted to go swimming. The pool was closed.
or
They wanted to go swimming but the pool was closed.
Ambiguous sentences are sentences that have more than one possible meaning.
Example: Put the box on the table by the window in the kitchen.
Correction: Put the box onto the table that is by the window in the kitchen.
Take the box that is on the table and put it by the window in the kitchen.
Take the box off the table that is by the window and put it in the kitchen.
Other Examples: Kids make nutritious snacks.
Milk drinkers are turning to powder.
Departmental Examinations
Here are the skills needed for the upcoming exams.
LANGUAGE
- Find synonyms and antonyms for given words
- Indentify and correct fragmented, run-on and incomplete sentences
- Write expository compositions (Compare and contrast essays)
LITERATURE
- Identify and successfully define terms related to Drama
- Identify the correct response to basic questions related to the novel, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
- Write essays/ compositions based on the said novel.
Language Arts
Welcome students and parents.
I have created this blog to assist my first form boys in studying and keeping up with the syllabus.
I realise the challenges of having 39 classmates competing for the attention of the teacher and the teacher wishing she could give each student her undivided attention. But the reality is the school system, unfortunately, isn't set up that way.
Ihope this blog will prove to benefit all parties involved.
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