regentswork

Subjects for Regents-based compositions:

1. "From Shakespeare to Leonardo Di Caprio"
How did several authors (writers, playwrights or directors) present the topic of tragic love?

2. "The Power of Love"
Use the following quote from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet to write about the power of love as it is presented by different artists, poets, musicians, theater and movie directors.
"O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?
Deny thy father, and refuse thy name."
In your answer:

Refer to at least four pieces of art and literature
Interpret in detail two scenes that give meaning to the quote (do not summarize the story)
Refer to literary, theatrical, musical or choreographic techniques used by artists and writers to convey the meaning of passionate love
Show the motivations the lovers bring to sacrifice everything for their love
Describe how the world receives the lovers' sacrifice
Write a conclusion on what the message of passionate love means to you and the others around you.

3. "The Image of Beauty in Literature and the Arts"
In your essay you will present the different descriptions of beauty that you have read and seen in stories, novels, plays, movies, and the arts.

Use as many references as possible (minimum 5)
Discuss the meaning of beauty, love, and sacrifice for love.
Present the literary and artistic techniques used by writers and artists (metaphors, similes, hyperbole, personification, artistic devices).

Romeo and Juliet in High School
Final Project

Students will work in groups at the following project: the writing of a play adapting the subject of R & J to modern times and to the setting of a city high school. Initially, the students will set up the general outline of a plot. Innovation will be encouraged. Students may add other characters and may depart from the original plot.
Next, each group of students will pick up an act and will start writing the dialogues.
Each group will contain the following functions (positions):

Screenplay writers (2-3 positions)
Setting coordinator (1)
Music and choreography (1)
Costumes and light (1)

After each act in drafted, the group will present it to the class. It is possible to use a camcorder from the ESL/FL Department to tape each act or performance. Comments and suggestions from the public are welcome. The second draft will be typed in the computer room by the members of each group. The final draft will bring all acts together and will also include drawings and sketches of setting arrangements, lights, costumes, as well as ideas for the musical score.
The class will make additional comments on the draft.
The final product will be published as a separate publication and distributed school wide and also on the internet. If the enthusiasm of students allows it, the teacher will consider a theatrical production of the play in the school's auditorium.

Other Regents-Oriented Activities

Task One: Listening and Writing
Students will listen to a literary passage on the topic of love. Students will write a composition with the title: Poetry and Love.
Guidelines:
- show the meaning of love (satisfaction, sacrifice, family, romantic, passionate ) as presented by the author.
- describe the figurative language (style) used by the poet to send the message (metaphors, hyperbole, similes, personification, rhyme, rhythm, etc).
- compare the poem you heard to your previous literary knowledge. Use more than three references (authors and their poems).

Task Two: Reading and Writing for Information
Data will be presented on teenage pregnancy. See next piece.
Example of essay:
Teenage Pregnancy
In your essay you will present the causes and the risks of teenage pregnancy, as supplied by the article. Comment upon the data, but do not copy them. Present additional pieces of information you know from your health teacher, your parents, or the media. Describe comments students in your school make about this subject and their attitude. Make up a plan to reduce the teenage pregnancy among the teens living in your community. Conclude by showing how important teenage pregnancy prevention is.

The causes of teenage pregnancy

Recent statistics have shown a continuing increase in teen pregnancy in the United States. This increase is of particular concern because teen mothers and their babies face increased risks to their health. The birth rate for young teens (age 15 to 17) is steadily rising. Between 1986 and 1991, the rate increased by 27 percent (from a rate of 30.5 to a rate of 38.7 per 1,000 women). In 1991 (the most recent year for which data are available), nearly 4 in 100 girls ages 15 to 17 had a baby. About 1 million teenagers become pregnant each year, and more than 530,000 give birth.
Nearly 13% of all U.S. births in 1991 were to teens. Teenage pregnancy and birth rates in the U.S. exceed those in most developed countries.
Health Risks to a Teenage Mother
Teens too often have poor eating habits, and may smoke, drink alcohol and take drugs, increasing the risk that their babies will be born with health problems. Pregnant teens are least likely of all maternal age groups to get early and regular prenatal care. In 1991, 11 percent of teen mothers received late or no prenatal care. The overall average is 6 percent.
A teenage mother is more at risk of pregnancy complications such as premature or prolonged labor, anemia and high blood pressure. These risks are even greater for teens who are less than 15 years old.
Three million teens are affected by sexually transmitted diseases annually, out of the 12 million cases reported. These include chlamydia (which can cause sterility), syphilis (which can cause blindness, death, and death to the infant) and AIDS, which is fatal to the mother and can infect the infant.
Health Risks to the Baby
A baby born to a teenage mother is more at risk than a baby born to an older mother. Nine percent of teenage girls have low-birthweight babies (under 5.5 lbs.), compared to 7 percent of all mothers nationally. Low-birthweight babies may have organs that are not
fully developed. This can lead to lung problems such as respiratory distress syndrome, or bleeding in the brain. Low-birthweight babies are 40 times more likely to die in their first month of life than normal-weight babies.

Task Three: Literature
Two literary fragments (a poem and a narrative fragment) that describe the theme of sacrifice in love will be presented (ex: Romeo and Juliet, Orpheus and Eurydice, etc.). After reading the literary fragments carefully, write an essay based on the following observation: Many poets and writers believed that true love is not possible without the risk and the abandonment of total sacrifice. Love is everything is life; However, it is never complete without sacrifice. To experience true love is to be ready to give yourself up completely without the fear of death or destruction. Your essay title is:
Is Sacrificial Love Possible and Necessary in Today's Society?
In your essay you will:

State your opinion clearly and present 3-4 arguments drawn from the literature presented here, as well from the literature you read in class.
Refer to the two literary works presented here, discuss their message on the subject of love.
Present each author's literary devices he/she used to convey the message.
Use arguments from your own experience
Write a conclusion that will briefly review your opinion and the arguments.