1. Expectations and Review
2nd Semester, Day 1
Expectations and Review

2. Agenda Introduce ACT Bell Ringer Expectations for 2nd Semester
New Late Work Policy
Introduce Current Events Assignment and Expectations
Review Final Exam Argument Prompt
The Prompt
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
AP Released Student Samples
Superstar moments
Homework: Read MLK’s speech
Agenda

3. ACT Bell Ringer
Over the next two months, we will be completing an ACT Bell Ringer each day.
These will be completed your Bell Ringer Chart. You must write down ALL the information required EACH day.
DO NOT lose this sheet. You will turn this in when we have completed both sides.
Question and answer options:
Your answer and explanation:
Corrections/Explanation

4. ACT Bell Ringer Day 1
Complete the first ACT Bell Ringer practice on your chart.

5. 2nd Semester Expectations
If you thought first semester was tough….

6. New Late Work Policy All assignments MUST be turned in on time.
Formative Assessments: Daily Work/Homework
Late work on daily assignments will be accepted up to one week after the original due date. It will not be accepted after this time.
You will be given TWO Late Work Passes to use for assignments not turned in within one week. These passes must include a rational for WHY it is late and must include a parent signature.
Summative Assessments: Essays, Projects, Tests, Quizzes
A 10% penalty will be applied to essays and projects turned within one week of the due date. After a week, the assignment will only be capable of receiving 50% credit.
All tests, quizzes, and in-class essays must be made up within one week of the date given, unless it is an excused absence and a parent note is provided to the teacher.

7. Current Events Assignment
You will have 1 current event analysis due PER WEEK until mid-March.
These will be due to Turnitin.com every Friday by midnight—EVEN IF WE HAVE A SNOW DAY!
If you still can’t use Turnitin, have difficulty using it, or do not have technology at home, see me IMMEDIATELY to discuss this problem.

8. Current Events Assignment
Your task is to find a non-fiction newspaper or magazine article to analyze about a current event or issue.
You must use an APPROVED media sources (see assignment sheet).
You MUST have at least one article that falls into each of the following categories by the end of the assignment.
Let’s look at the Assignment Specifics together.

9. Final Exam Argument Essay Overview
I can analyze student work samples for essential parts of an AP argument essay.

10. A few notes from your loving, frustrated teacher…
READ the prompt and BREAK IT DOWN.
Make sure you answer ALL parts of the prompt.
BRAINSTORM your ideas so that you can have a LOGICAL order to your reasoning (this is called ORGANIZATION – use it!).
Make sure you are providing CONCRETE evidence.
Don’t forget to acknowledge and refute opposing views (counterargument) in ANY argumentative essay.
Don’t forget to use TRANSITIONS between and within your paragraphs – these are roadmaps for your reader that connect your ideas so that the reader better understands your logic.
Any time you are using history or literature, but especially for this prompt, you MUST relate it back to something current.

11. Final Exam Argument Prompt
American essayist and social critic H.L. Mencken ( ) wrote, “The average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe.” In a well-written essay, examine the extent to which Mencken’s observation applies to contemporary society, supporting your position with appropriate evidence.
Let’s break it down together.
What do you need to know?
What do you need to do?
What do you need to say?

12. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly Thesis Statements from your papers
“Between the recent attacks on Paris, America’s trauma, and Donald Trump’s claims of defense, safety over freedom is all too common.”
“The rights and liberties of people are the ultimate key to happiness and mean more than any other quality.”
“Freedom means nothing if it means we aren’t able to enjoy the protection that it so gives us.”
“I think H.L. Mencken was partially right society today will give up freedoms for safety but only to someone/something they trust.”
“From historical aspects as well as personal experiences and in literature, this claim can be proven to be very untrue.”

13. Scoring Criteria & Student Samples
Read through the scoring criteria for EACH score.
Read the three students samples together and score them.
Read the scoring commentary and rationales.

14. One last model (if time)
This sample was written by one of Dunbar’s own AP students.

15. Exit Slip: Reflect on your own writing
Pass back Fall Final Exam Essays
Read through your own writing again and my commentary.
On a half slip of paper, write down 1 major change you could have made that might have improved your score and 1 thing you would like to focus on improving in your future writing.

16. Homework
Read and annotate MLK speech