for incoming freshmen …

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When you watch a thought-provoking movie, binge a compelling series, or read an interesting book, you might pause for a minute to consider what’s going on here? I’m asking all of my incoming students to find books of their choice to read over the summer. If you’re not sure where to start, here are some fiction recommendations from this year’s Florida Teens Read list. I ask that you come back from summer with an analytical thesis statement hammered out based on whatever text you choose.

To get a head-start on some writing mechanics, please complete this writing diagnostic and, if you’d like, some subsequent skill practice over the summer: just join up with our class on Quill.org with the class code singer-pebble. (Once you complete the diagnostic, Mr. Benton will open up some activities to help you brush on your conventions.)

Oh, and here’s the syllabus for curious minds. Should you need any help at any point, or if you have any questions about the year ahead with Pre-IB English 2, feel free to email Mr. Benton anytime at bentonro@pcsb.org. Or join the summer Remind group on the Remind app with the code @bentonds.

Here’s the Padlet used at Success Camp for some theme claim attempts.

100 Books Worth Reading

If you’re looking for a book to challenge yourself with this summer (on top of summer reading), peruse this list.  Each of these works is very meaty, deep in meaning, ambiguous enough for interpretation, yet forceful enough to have had a lasting impression on Western culture.  Some are old; some are new.  There are writers of all nationalities included here, and the books’ years of publication range from the 16th century to today.  They have nothing in common other than the fact that they’re all legit literature.  Look a few up on Wikipedia; read the first chapter/scene: get a feel for the work.  If you find one that grabs you, read it in a scholarly way.  You’ll enjoy it more anyway if you grab onto some big theme early on.  Plus, you’ll remember it all the better.  I’ve intentionally avoided listing books that are already a part of SPHS’s assigned reading, so this is a deeper cut of works.  (A note of caution to sensitive minds: Some of these stories do include some sketchy content, so read at your own peril.)

  1. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison (not the sci-fi story by H. G. Wells)
  2. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
  3. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevski
  4. Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
  5. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
  6. King Lear by William Shakespeare
  7. Billy Budd by Herman Melville
  8. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
  9. Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
  10. The Awakening by Kate Chopin Continue reading

Literature Improves Thinking

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Are you uncomfortable with ambiguity? It’s a common condition, but a highly problematic one. The compulsion to quell that unease can inspire snap judgments, rigid thinking, and bad decision-making.

Fortunately, new research suggests a simple antidote for this affliction: Read more literary fiction.

A trio of University of Toronto scholars, led by psychologist Maja Djikic, report that people who have just read a short story have less need for what psychologists call “cognitive closure.” Compared with peers who have just read an essay, they expressed more comfort with disorder and uncertainty—attitudes that allow for both sophisticated thinking and greater creativity.

“Exposure to literature,” the researchers write in the Creativity Research Journal, “may offer a (way for people) to become more likely to open their minds.”

Djikic and her colleagues describe an experiment featuring 100 University of Toronto students. After arriving at the lab and providing some personal information, the students read either one of eight short stories or one of eight essays. The fictional stories were by authors including Wallace Stegner, Jean Stafford, and Paul Bowles; the non-fiction essays were by equally illustrious writers such as George Bernard Shaw and Stephen Jay Gould.

Afterwards, each participant filled out a survey measuring their emotional need for certainty and stability. They expressed their agreement or disagreement with such statements as “I don’t like situations that are uncertain” and “I dislike questions that can be answered in many different ways.” Continue reading

’24–25 at the End

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How fortunate I am to have had something that’s so difficult to see come to an end. Thank you, my students, for your part in our class this year. It’s been an honor and a privilege to know and to work with each of you: I’m grateful for all the highs and lows.

My classroom will be empty for a little while; I’m sure it appreciates the disco nap before August. I’ll leave all the current Remind groups open should anyone need to get in touch. Email works too.

Freshmen, read something! Practice your grammar on Quill. Rest up for sophomoric adventures. (The new freshmen will benefit from your kindness and guidance.)

Seniors, go be incredible. If you learned anything from me, please use it. Refine your talents. Defy convention. Serve others. I’m so proud of you.

Literature Improves Empathy


Have you ever felt that reading a good book makes you better able to connect with your fellow human beings? If so, the results of a new scientific study back you up, but only if your reading material is literary fiction; pop fiction or non-fiction won’t cut it.

Great Expectations from great literature … empathy occurs in the spaces between characters, such as Joe and Pip, pictured here in the 2012 film adaptation. Photograph: Moviestore/Rex Features

Empathy occurs in the spaces between characters, such as Joe and Pip in Great Expectations. Photograph: Moviestore/Rex Features

Psychologists David Comer Kidd and Emanuele Castano, at the New School for Social Research in New York, have proved that reading literary fiction enhances the ability to detect and understand other people’s emotions, a crucial skill in navigating complex social relationships.

Continue reading

Final Exams (5/23–29)

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Freshmen: Exam Study Guide, Essay Feedback Mark-Key, Omni-frames & Analytical Verbs, Literary Analysis Essay Rubric, Macbeth E-text, Outline & Rubric, Theme Log, TFA E-text

Diploma Support: Rotation Calendar, Say Something, Eduaide.ai, CAS Handbook / Research: Gale Databases, Google Scholar, JSTOR, Sci-Hub / EEs: Full EE Guide, MLA Template, MLA Sample PaperCat. 1 (28/34)Cat. 1 (30/34), EE Rubric, English EE Scoring, Prescribed Reading List, Works of Literary MeritWorld Studies EEs, Benton EE Timeline

Week 4:9 (May 19–22)

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Freshmen: Khanmigo Task, Essay Feedback Mark-Key, Exam Study Guide, Final Exam Schedule, Omni-frames & Analytical Verbs, Literary Analysis Essay Rubric, MLA Template, Macbeth E-text, Outline & Rubric, Choice-Emphasis Tracker for Films, Theme Log, TFA E-textTFA (Pre-)Notes

Diploma Support: Rotation Calendar, Say Something, Eduaide.ai, CAS Handbook / Research: Gale Databases, Google Scholar, JSTOR, Sci-Hub / EEs: Full EE Guide, MLA TemplateMLA Sample PaperCat. 1 (28/34)Cat. 1 (30/34), EE Rubric, English EE Scoring, Prescribed Reading List, Works of Literary MeritWorld Studies EEs, Benton EE Timeline

Week 4:8 (May 12–16)

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Freshmen: Exam Study Guide, Khanmigo TaskOmni-frames & Analytical Verbs, Literary Analysis Essay Rubric, MLA Template / Macbeth: E-text, Outline & Rubric, (Pre-)Notes, Reading Shakespeare, Choice-Emphasis Tracker, Theme Log, Performance Prep Sheet, Choices & Emphasis Tracker, Performance Roles & Responsibilities (A1–2, B1–2, B3–4, C3–4)

Diploma Support: Rotation Calendar, Say Something, Eduaide.ai, CAS Handbook / Research: Gale Databases, Google Scholar, JSTOR, Sci-Hub / EEs: Full EE Guide, MLA TemplateMLA Sample PaperCat. 1 (28/34)Cat. 1 (30/34), EE Rubric, English EE Scoring, Prescribed Reading List, Works of Literary MeritWorld Studies EEs, Benton EE Timeline