Nazareth Area High School - Comet Yearbook (Nazareth, PA)

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Group discussion is one means of stimulating new ideas, improving the old. and putting knowledge of grammer into practice, as members of Prentiss Halladay’s English class demonstrate. In addition, the infor- mal atmosphere helps students overcome their fear of public speaking. increasing our communication with others To better understand the ideas of others and to express our own thoughts more effectively, a firm foundation in English is an absolute necessity. This is one reason why English is a required subject for every sophomore, ju- nior. and senior at Nazareth Area Senior High School. Spearheaded by J. Frederic Knecht. department chair- man. the English department tries to prepare students for the future by helping and encouraging the students to perfect their speaking and writing abilities, while also opening their minds to the works of great authors. Grammar is perhaps the most important phase in the study of any language; therefore, at the beginning of every year each student is given a grammar review which continues approximately two months. Consisting of rec- ognizing different parts of speech, various types of sen- tence structures, and different forms of punctuation, this review is designed to refresh the student's memory and to cover any point of grammar previously untouched. Throughout the year, students put this knowledge of grammar into practice as they begin to write book re- ports. formal and informal essays, expositions, and themes. As they advance in years, they are expected to progress in their writing through the use of guidelines given to them by their respective teachers and finally by the end of twelfth grade, develop their own unique style of writing. ABOVE: PRENTISS HALLADAY Senior English: Senior Class Play Adviser. 23 english

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Listening to the rules of grammer taught by J. F. Knecht in his third period English class is Frederick George. After reviewing these rules, members of the class will be expected to be able to use them in practi- cal applications. ABOVE: SHARON ADAMS Sophomore. Junior, and Senior English; Blue and White Adviser. english 22

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Since reading plays is an important part in daily life, it is important that each person has an ever increasing vocabulary range. Alan Miller at- tempts to help students in Reading class increase their word power by playing word games, such as Scrabble and RSVP. by voicing ideas and opinions In order to develop their own talents as writers, students must be exposed to the writings of great authors. In their sophomore year, students become acquainted with the works of writers from all countries. Short stories, poems, and novels of well-known American authors such as Twain. Poe. and Hawthorne are introduced in the stu- dent's junior year, while British authors and their works are studied in the senior year. Ancient Foundations, a study of Roman and Greek literary works, is introduced in junior English and continued in the senior year. Rounding out the remainder of the year is the study of William Shakespeare, considered to be one of the great- est playwrights who ever lived. Each year one of Shake- speare's plays is studied along with some background material on Shakespeare and the Elizabethan stage. ABOVE: ALAN MILLER Junior English; Reading; Senior Class Play Adviser. english 24