Assignment for Thursday, Sept. 11

In The Craft of Research, read and annotate pp. 31-50. Begin the process of answering the questions on pp. 40-45. Keep track of those answers; you'll need them later. Email to me your answer to the "So what?" question (pp. 45-46) for your research paper (mrmontasmph@gmail.com). If you have found your Pocket Style Manual, bring it to class. Also, bring 50 Essays to class.

Assignment for Tuesday, Sept. 9

Prepare for the in-class essay on the book you chose to read this summer. Be mindful of the rhetorical aspects we discussed in class. You may bring the book with you and use it while you write the essay. The question you will have to answer will be something like this: What is your author trying to accomplish in his/her book, and does s/he accomplish it? Support your position with evidence from the text and specific reference to the rhetorical qualities we reviewed in class.

Also, look for your Pocket Style Manual this weekend.

Assignment for Friday, Sept. 5

Read and annotate ch. 2 of The Craft of Research, "Connecting with Your Reader" (handout). In class, you will answer the questions on pp. 26-27, but you will find them helpful for thinking about the following writing assignment: In one page or so, describe the ideal reader for your research paper, describe your role as a researcher (based on pp. 18-20), and describe the reader's role in developing your research (based on pp. 20-24). Even if you send the homework as an attachment, please email it to mrmontasmph@gmail.com, not my MPH email or my other Gmail address.

Assignment for Wednesday, September 3

Read and annotate the handout distributed in class from The Craft of Research. Write at least one well-developed paragraph that describes or explains any concerns you have about conducting research for your senior thesis.Your paragraph may be improved if you reflect on how The 5 Elements of Effective Thinking might help you write the senior thesis. Email this assignment to me as a Word document or share it with me via Google Docs (mrmontasmph@gmail.com).

Summer Assignment

Hello, and welcome to AP Lang! I hope your summer is off to a great start. Click here for your summer assignment. (It is also posted to the right.) If you have any questions over the summer, don't hesitate to get in touch with me. See you in September!

More college essays

Below are some college essays by graduating seniors that were published in The New York Times. These focus on issues related to money. First there is a link to the article that discusses the essays, then there is a link to the essays themselves.

College Essays That Stand Out from the Crowd

Four college essays about money and privilege 

Assignment for Monday, May 20

Read the handout of college essays by college presidents. Come to class prepared to discuss what makes them effective or ineffective college essays. If you missed class because of an AP, here are links to these readings:

College Essay by the President of Barnard
College Essay by the President of Vassar
College Essay by the President of Wesleyan

Assignment for Thursday, May 16

Write the first two paragraphs for two of the Common App essay topics. (If you misplaced the handout, follow the link to the right.) I will have laptops for you to use in class, but you may bring your own if you wish.

The satirical essay will be due Friday, May 25. The college essay will be due Wednesday, May 29.

AP Exam Score Information

Your AP score will be ready in July, and you can access it online. Click here for more information from the College Board about obtaining your score.

For Tuesday, April 30

Write one page of the satire on civil rights or immigration. If you haven't read Wallace's "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again," read it for Tuesday; we will discuss it. Lastly, Mr. Cardamone will speak (for roughly half the class) to each AP Lang class about writing the college essay. You might find it helpful to prepare a question or two for him in advance of his visit.

Homework for Wednesday, April 17 and other upcoming assignments

For Wednesday: First, read this background on W. E. B. Du Bois. Then, read Du Bois's essay "Of Our Spiritual Strivings," from his 1903 book The Souls of Black Folk, twice. You have no questions to answer; just read this essay. We will also discuss the satirical essay I mentioned last week.

Friday, April 19: Read and annotate Henry David Thoreau, "Where I Lived, What I Lived For" (handout; excerpt from Walden Pond).
Wednesday, April 24: Read and annotate William Hazlitt, "On the Pleasure of Hating." Also, read this New York Times article about resolving cold cases from the civil rights era. You will attend a presentation during tutorial by the Syracuse University law professors who direct the Cold Case Justice Initiative. In class, first block multiple choice practice exam. (It's a Day 6.)
Friday, April 26: Read and annotate David Foster Wallace, "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again" (handout). In class, first block multiple choice practice exam. (It's a Day 2.)
Tuesday, April 30: Satire on immigration or civil rights due.

Homework for Tuesday, March 12 and Subsequent Assignments

Read and annotate pp. 89-132 of Gladwell's The Tipping Point. As you continue reading The Tipping Point, think about how these theories could apply to MPH. If something needed to happen here, who are our connectors, mavens, and salespeople who could make it happen? How does the stickiness factor apply? How does the power of our context affect the ways members of our community behave within it?

Also, the first block class will complete the multiple-choice section of an AP practice exam.

Here's the upcoming schedule of readings and assignments:

Thursday, March 14 (Day 2): Read and annotate The Tipping Point, pp. 133-192. The first block class will complete the multiple-choice section of an AP practice exam.

Monday, March 18 (Day 4): Read and annotate The Tipping Point, pp.193-259.

Wednesday, March 20 (Day 6): Read and annotate The Tipping Point, pp. 260-280.

Friday, March 22 (Day 2): You will write two in-class essays about The Tipping Point. One will require you to write a rhetorical analysis of a passage, the other will require you to make an argument in response to The Tipping Point.

Tuesday, March 26 (Day 4): Read the sources for the take-home synthesis essay on The Tipping Point. (This assignment is similar to, but briefer than, the Two Trains Running essay.) The assignment is posted to the right.

Thursday, March 28 (Day 6): Take-home synthesis essay on The Tipping Point is due.

Assignment for Thursday, March 7

Bring both your original Two Trains Running essay and the revised version of the essay. I want to see how the essay has changed since Tuesday morning. Also, bring your copy of The Tipping Point.