Extra Credit: 9th English regular

The following is a bonus opportunity for 9th English regular. It is completely optional. Your work must be turned in by 2:20 (the tardy bell for 7^th if we're on regular schedule) on December 9. I will not accept late assignments or assignments that do not meet the requirements listed below. I will grade them and replace the lowest test grade of this term with whatever score is earned--even if it is lower than the original. Do not waste your time or mine by turning in inferior work.

The Assignment

Create a model of a setting in Animal Farm. The students can use any medium--wood, shoe boxes, cardboard--as long as the model is three-dimensional. The model should be labeled in detail. The students will write a one-page explanation that coincides with the model, demonstrating that they understand not only what is happening, but why it is significant to the story.

Your explanation must meet the following requirements:

• one full page, typed
• double spaced
• size 12 Times New Roman font
• one inch margins
• one full page

The diorama is worth 50 points. It will be graded on accuracy, aesthetics, and creativity. The one-page explanation is worth 50 points. It will be graded on accuracy and proper grammar and mechanics.

Extra Credit - 9th English Advanced

The following is a bonus opportunity for 9th English Advanced. It is completely optional. Your work must be turned in by 2:20 on December 9. I will not accept late assignments or assignments that do not meet the requirements listed below. I will grade them and replace the lowest test grade of this term with whatever score is earned--even if it is lower than the original. Do not waste your time or mine by turning in inferior work.

The Assignment

Read "Harrison Bergeron." If you do not have the copies that I made available to the class, you may go here or download the pdf here. In a well-developed essay, compare and contrast the societies in George Orwell's Animal Farm and Kurt Vonnegut's "Harrison Bergeron," paying special attention to how those societies handle the concepts of freedom versus equality. Your essay must meet the following requirements:

• typed
• double spaced
• size 12 Times New Roman font
• one inch margins
• 2-3 full pages

Things to avoid:

• Unnecessary summary. While I expect you to use specific examples from the stories, I do not want you to retell large portions of the stories themselves. Use specific details to prove your point, not to take up space.
• "You." Avoid using "you" in the essay unless directly quoting one of the works.

Do not turn in someone else's work as your own. If you do, you will receive a zero for a test grade, and you will be reported to the Honor Council for further consequences.

Because the only works that you will quote in your essay are the two stories, it is not necessary to include citation or to have a "works cited" page. Your paper does not need a title page or a fancy folder. Just make sure that your name is on it.

Start the assignment early enough that you can ask me questions that arise. If you wait until the night before it is due, I cannot help you.