**Parents, I'm here to work with you. Don't see any available sections or times that match your needs? Please send me a message if you are interested in this course!**
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"So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives life to thee."

Let's learn about some famous love poems, written by none other than the esteemed poet and master of words, William Shakespeare.

In this class, Mrs. Grysko will equip students with strategies to successfully read and comprehend five of Shakespeare's love poems (the sonnets). Students will feel confident, with their new knowledge, in facing the challenge of analyzing these complex texts! The course will include information on key poetry terms, figurative language, Shakespearean sonnet structures, paraphrasing, summarizing, inferencing, and the SOAPSTone strategy--identifying Speaker, Occasion, Audience, Purpose, Subject, and Tone. The teacher will provide direct instruction and guided learning techniques to facilitate students' reading & literature analysis skills. There will be a multitude of comprehension checks sprinkled throughout each class so that the teacher can ensure ALL students are “getting it” (demonstrating mastery), and so that students can monitor their own understanding. This class serves as a terrific introduction to poetry and to Shakespeare's style & language!

Class 1
Poetry analysis skills, Part 1:
*Figurative Language: Simile, Metaphor, and Personification 
*An overview of Shakespeare’s Life, Language, & Style
*Meter, Rhyme Scheme, Iambic Pentameter, & other key poetry terms
*The structure of a Shakespearean sonnet
*How to paraphrase, line by line 
Teacher models all skills using Sonnet 18 “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?”

Class 2
Quick review of poetry analysis skills, Part 1
Kahoot! Review Game - Sonnet 18
Poetry analysis skills, Part 2: 
*The SOAPSTone Technique
*How to determine: "Speaker,” "Occasion,” “Audience,” “Purpose,” “Subject,” and “Tone”
Practice & Apply all skills with Sonnet 130 “My mistress’s eyes are nothing like the sun” 

Class 3
Review poetry analysis skills 
Kahoot! Review Game - Sonnet 130
Practice & Apply all skills with Sonnet 27 “Weary with toil, I haste me to my bed” 
AND
Sonnet 29 “When in disgrace with Fortune and men’s eyes”

Class 4
Kahoot! Review Game - Sonnets 27 and 29
On your own: Apply all skills with a cold-read sonnet
(A cold read is a text you have not read before and are analyzing for the first time)
Kahoot! Quiz - Cold Read Sonnet
Short paragraph written response (analysis prompt)

Course Format:
The format of this course will include on-screen guided reading and teacher instruction with Google slides (only as a screen-share), verbal or typed question-and-answer between students and teacher, and verbal discussion between students. Teacher assistance and feedback will be provided throughout the lesson. Students will also access learning games via teacher-provided code through Kahoot.com (no account required). Students will be directed to use first name only on the Kahoot games. 

Mrs. Grysko's Teaching Style:
I use the instructional model of “I Do, We Do, You Do.” 
*I first teach terms, definitions, and reading skills directly, all while showing exemplars and demonstrating how to apply the new knowledge (hence, “I Do” the teaching). 
*Next, in the “We Do” stage, I guide students in practicing the key skills by helping them look at a text closely. I provide immediate, in-class feedback, such as clarifying misunderstanding and assisting with correct application of skills. (When we read something new, no one is expected to be perfect, and in my class, we positively support each other while we learn!)
*Finally, it’s the “You Do” stage: Students show off what they’ve learned by trying out the reading comprehension techniques on their own. Of course, I’ll be there to help, but this part of the process is the key to retention and ownership of the learning. 

Mrs. Grysko’s Class Participation Expectations:
*During class, I'll ask learners to respond to various questions and quick check-ins. This helps me 1) assess each student’s progress and 2) offer immediate help if needed. Learners may choose to respond by speaking, typing in the chat, and/or using the “reactions” feature on Zoom. 
*Zoom's video feature is very helpful for me to monitor your child’s learning and understanding. I encourage all students to keep their Zoom video on during the duration of class. Learners may, however, choose to turn their video off after an initial video check-in if they prefer. Active participation verbally and/or in the chat is required so that I know the student is working and understanding the content.
*I have so much planned for your child’s learning! Any class activities we do not get to during the live class will be assigned for homework. In most circumstances, the homework is optional (but recommended), and, unless otherwise stated, the homework should take no more than 10-15 minutes. FOR ANY WRITING HOMEWORK: I will assign the homework via Outschool student message and/or parent message. Learners should reply to the message with their homework responses, and I will give feedback within 24 hours. I highly recommend that students complete any assigned homework to get the most out of the class!