For Seniors: The Real Macbeth

Copy and paste this link

http://www.kingmacbeth.com/fragments.htm

in a new window to read the real story of Macbeth. Then in the comments, post your reaction AND tell why you think Shakespeare might have fabricated so much of the story for his play.

Results of Senior Survey

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0AsW8qnsdH_yedHNrR1h5eVJULUdyLVBrLWpVV09Camc&hl=en

Seniors: Please open a new window and copy and paste the above link in the address bar to access our survey results!

For My Sophomores

Hey guys--keeping in line with what we started talking about yesterday, please read the article below and then respond to it in comments. Write a sentence or two reacting to what the article describes. I'll be looking for your comments!


Unknowing twins married, lawmaker says

LONDON, England (CNN) -- British twins who had been separated at birth learned they were related only after they had become husband and wife, according to a senior British lawmaker.
art.lordalton.jpg

Former British MP David Alton says twins separated at birth went on to marry each other.

Lord Alton of Liverpool told the House of Lords that a court annulled the union as soon as the twins' true relationship became known.

"They were never told that they were twins," he said during the December 10 debate on a law covering human fertility and embryology.

They had been adopted by separate families and "met later in life and felt an inevitable attraction, and the judge had to deal with the consequences of the marriage that they entered into and all the issues of their separation," he said.

No further details about the case were revealed by Lord Alton, and it is not known when the marriage took place or how long they were together before they discovered the truth.

Adoption groups said Friday the case proved the need for openness and transparency during the adoption process.

Mo O'Reilly, director of child placement for the British Association for Adoption and Fostering, said released a statement saying: "Thirty or 40 years ago it would have been more likely that twins be separated and brought up without knowledge of each other."

However, she said, greater emphasis in recent years on ensuring adopted siblings stay in touch meant this "traumatic" case will remain "incredibly rare."

Daisy O'Clee, a spokeswoman for the agency, said that of more current concern is the lack of legislation surrounding fertility treatment.

Under British law the parents of a donor-conceived child do not have to declare that fact on the child's birth certificate, O'Clee told CNN. This means a child conceived with a donor sperm or egg may never know their true origin.

Lawmakers will vote Tuesday on whether to pass a law covering human fertility and embryology that would relax the rules on who can have fertility treatment.

O'Clee warned that in its present form the proposal does little to address the rights of donor-conceived children.

"The rights of donor children are being ignored," she said.

For All Students

Hello guys and welcome to Central Cabarrus! Are you looking forward to the school year? I know I am--you can see from the blog's time stamp I've started work a bit early.

Sophomores, English II is no longer a year-round class. This semester, we'll be reading a little bit of everything--some ancient Greek works, a harrowing first-person account of the Holocaust, a graphic novel showing a young girl's experiences in pre and post-revolutionary Iran, a French love story with mistaken identities...plus articles, poems, journal entries, and blogs. You'll also be preparing for the Writing Test in March and getting in lots of writing practice!

Seniors, as you know, you have the graduation project coming up. We'll start work on it immediately. If you already got your topic approved last year, you may begin your research from the start. If you didn't, and if you still aren't sure what to do, don't worry! I am here to help.

All students, please get a gmail account immediately. We'll be doing a lot with Google Documents and it will be easier if you get a gmail account from the start. This does not need to replace your regular email address--you can use this one simply for school if you wish.

Also, I expect all major papers to be typed for the final draft. Homework, rough drafts, journal entries, etc. may be handwritten but all final drafts for all major papers MUST be typed. If you have computer access at home, great. If not, you will have to utilize your time at school very wisely.

For those of you unfamiliar with blogs, let me explain. A web log, or blog, is an online journal. What I like about it is that readers can post comments, questions, and concerns whenever they wish to. Also, other readers can respond to others' comments. So if there's something you would like to ask or tell, post it here.

In fact, practice right now. After you're done reading this post, click the comments link at the bottom and post a comment that includes your full name and grade level. You can say whatever you want--if you want to just say "Hello" for right now that's fine--but make sure to put your full name and grade level in the comment.

Let's get ready to have a great year!

For Seniors Only

Hey guys--I need you to fill out a quick survey about the graduation project. Please answer all questions honestly, thoughtfully, and completely. The questions marked with a red asterisk are the ones you must fill out.

The results will be sent directly to me. I plan to use this to see how you guys feel generally about the upcoming project and especially areas of concern you have. I plan to publish the results on our blog.

Parents, you are welcome to view the questions, but please don't answer any of them. If you have concerns about the graduation project, please feel free to email me or post your issue in the comments section here.

Seniors, the survey begins below: