September 14th to 18th

Grade 9:
In addition to last week's notes on short story, the following has been added:
Theme: The theme is the moral or lesson of the story. The reason the story was told in the first place. The theme can also be discussion created from the story, among the readers.

Point of View: There are three points of view:
1stperson: considered reliable. “I”
3rd person: He, She, John
Omniscient: All-knowing, or God-like.

Symbolism: One thing represents or stands for something else. This usually occurs when something tangible (something we can see, feel, describe) represents something intangible or abstract ( an idea, or concept that is not tangible). We try to explain the unexplainable, i.e. Death, with something we understand—the colour black, the grim reaper, or love, with a heart or rose.

We are also learning some new vocabulary words. Words are made up of root words, and prefixes and suffixes.
The following root words are to be learned:

annu, ennu: year
Example: annual (yearly), semiannual (every six mnths), biennial (every two years), annuity (a sum of money paid annually), millennium (1000 years), anniversary (a date that occurs once a year)

anthrop: human being
Example: anthropod (human like), anthropology (study of human beings), misanthropy (hatred of mankind), philanthropist (love of mankind, so gives money to good causes)

aqu, aqua : water
Examples: aquatic centre (public building that has a swimming pool), aquamarine (colour of the ocean), aquifer (pourous rock that contains water, can feed wells), aqueduct (a channel to transport water), aquaculture (farming in water)

arch: first, chief, rule, govern
Examples: anarchy, absence of a ruler
matriarch: woman who is leader of a family or group
patriarch: male leader of a family or a group
oligarchy: government by a family or a few people
monarchy: government by one ruler, such as a king
architect: chief designer of buildings

astro: star
Examples: astronomy (study of the stars)
astronaut: a spaceship crew member
astronomer (one who studies the stars)
astrodome (glass roof--capable of seeing the stars)

aud: hear
Examples: audible (capable of being heard)
auditorium (large room for gatherings to hear a speaker of presentation
audio (pertaining to transmitting or receiving sound)
audiometer (a machine to testing hearing)
audience (a group of listeners)

Vocabulary for “Jade Peony”
Page: 13:
camphor: a compound use in medicine to relieve irritation or itching
impeccable: flawless
Page 14:
Ginseng: a herb
Decoction: to boil ingredients to make a potion
Diminutive: very small
Trove: a collection of objects
Somber: serious, gloomy
Wracking: destroy
Skein: ball of yarn, or anything that looks like that
Page 15:
Ostensibly: pertended, not true
Exasperation: irritating
Page 16:
Mandarin: Chinese language from northern China near Beijing
Cantonese: Chinese language from Canton province, in southern China, near Hong Kong
Perplexed: bewildered, confused
Babble: idle chatter
Reprieve: to take back or to take away
Page 17:
Reprieve: to suspend temporarily some punishment of bad intent
Remark: make a comment
Immensely:vast, huge, a great amount
Page 18:
Embroidered:to make patterns on cloth with thread
Deftly: skillfully, cleverly, smoothly with skill
Calligraphy: a fancy style of writing, using a special pen and ink, or a brush.
Pantomime: act out without any words
Cabalistic: having a mystic meaning
Ancestral: having to do with ancestors, or very old
Page 19:
Chromatic:increasing the tone of sound by a half tone
Translucent: to see through by not clearly
Shimmering: to appear to shine in a quivering state


Grade 12:
Quiz on Friday, Sept 18th
We are studying the Anglo-Saxon Period. Notes for the period are on last week's blog. This week we read:
"Caedmon's Hymn", a poem written to thank God for creating the Heavens and the Earth.
We shall also look at "Beowulf."
Notes on epic:
A epic is a long narrative poem, themed around "good" versus "evil." The epic hero is larger-than-life--he would be stronger, more handsome, braver, and more intelligent than the average man. The antagonist would be a formidible foe, almost matched to the hero, but the antagonist will be defeated. The setting of an epic is vast--covering a long period of time, and spread over a large distance.