
Annie Piotrowski
eNotes Educator
Achievements
2
Educator Level
69
Answers Posted
10
Answers Bonused
About
It was a dark and stormy night....when this high school English teacher decided to move from the classroom (four walls, motivational cat posters, chalk dust) to online learning. A good opener? Or one that shows the need for revision? I am a recent graduate of Duke University, and I have taught middle school and high school English.
Earned Badges
-
eNotes Educator
This badge is awarded to all eNotes Educators. Only official Educators can answer students' questions on our site. Educators are teachers, professional researchers, and scholars who apply to our... -
Expert
An expert badge distinguishes Educators who demonstrate strong knowledge in a particular topic, such as Hamlet or Math. It is awarded when an Educator has posted more than 25 answers on a given topic.
Recent Activity
-
Answered a Question in To Kill a Mockingbird
In To Kill A Mockingbird, Boo Radley is the most prominent example of the maxim, “People fear what they do not understand.” The neighborhood, of course, fears Boo Radley. Boo Radley was once a... -
Answered a Question in The Outsiders
Tim Shepard is the leader of an organized gang that is likely to use violence and fight dirty, especially in contrast to Ponyboy’s friends, who rumble for fun and rarely go looking for trouble. In... -
Answered a Question in The Outsiders
The Outsiders, a young adult novel written by a sixteen-year-old in the 1960s, contains many references to the history and culture of her youth. The Outsiders shows how 1960s teenagers broke away... -
Answered a Question in An Anthropologist on Mars
In the chapter “A Surgeon’s Life,” Oliver Sacks further develops one of the main themes of An Anthropologist on Mars by examining a spectacular case of an individual who is not only able to... -
Answered a Question in The Outsiders
There are several reasons why Ponyboy is quiet and sensitive. Ponyboy himself puts it quite simply: “I’m different that way.” Even though he was raised in the same environment as Sodapop and Darry,... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
I believe that Mr. Fisher reacts this way out of his own guilt. He realizes that he has been enabling a monster. He is only able to see this after the police and others are involved. Once the wider... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
The Lake Windsor Downs homes are covered by tents because of a termite infestation. Termites are a type of insect that can quickly destroy the wooden walls of homes. They’re considered a pest... -
Answered a Question in Macbeth
Macbeth is one of the most famous plays by one of the world’s most legendary authors, William Shakespeare. William Shakespeare, who wrote in the late 16th century and early 17th century,... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
While Paul chooses soccer, Erik chooses football. I’d argue that the popularity ratings of both sports show differing aspects of the brothers’ personalities. As of right now, in the United States... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
The Fishers ignore Erik’s cruelty because Erik is a master manipulator who is easily able to mask his true self when his parents are around him. He quickly morphs into a sweet, innocent boy when... -
Answered a Question in Flowers for Algernon
Frank and Joe's actions were not a sign of true friendship.I think readers should be suspicious of Frank and Joe because of their previous inhumane behavior towards Charlie. Before his surgery,... -
Answered a Question in Flowers for Algernon
Charlie’s job loss is directly related to his increased intelligence after the surgery. On the surface, Charlie’s increased intelligence made him a better worker. He took on new responsibilities,... -
Answered a Question in The Giver
The characters’ choices in The Giver should seem unbelievable and horrific to its audience. For example, Jonas’s father, a seemingly “good” man, does not show any guilt after euthanizing the... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Both Lake Windsor Downs and Paul’s life are built on shaky foundations. Paul’s parents use secrecy and evasion to convince both of their sons that a traumatic event, Erik’s cruel attack on Paul,... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
The brothers’ relationships are much more different than they are alike. This difference stems from the fact that Mike Costello is a foil to Erik. A foil is a character whose traits contrast... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Mr. Fisher remarks that he focuses on Erik due to the particular importance of his football season. Since Mr. Fisher wants Erik to play competitive college football in order to enter the... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
There are two possible answers to your question. Erik, Paul’s despicable older brother, is responsible for Paul’s visual impairment. Because Erik suspected that Paul told Mr. and Mrs. Fisher about... -
Answered a Question in The Pearl
I would recommend that someone read The Pearl to gain historical understanding of the struggles that Native Americans of the Baja Peninsula faced during the years of Spanish occupation from the... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Luis is the older brother of Theresa and Tino Cruz, Paul’s classmates at his new school, Tangerine Middle School. Luis used to play soccer even though he is slightly disabled after an injury in the... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
The Lake Windsor Middle School soccer team is known as the Lake Windsor Seagulls. It’s obvious that Tangerine author Edward Bloor had some fun with the school team names. The Tangerine Middle... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Paul’s opinion of Florida’s landscape changes as he and his mom drive closer to Tangerine. At first, Paul passes “miles and miles of green fields overflowing with tomatoes and onions and... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Joey Costello says “Mike always felt better when he got his shoes off,” to Paul. Joey says this after Erik and Arthur Bauer make fun of the death of Joey’s brother, Mike Costello, right in front of... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
A metaphor is a figure of speech that makes a comparison between two unrelated things. Unlike similes, metaphors usually don’t use “like” or “as” to make a comparison. Examples of metaphors in... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Joey’s comments tell us that, unlike his friend Paul, Joey is unwilling to embrace Tangerine Middle School’s diversity and adapt his attitude to its culture of sarcastic comments and tough-guy... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
The emergency relocation meeting occurs after a good portion of Paul’s middle school, Lake Windsor Downs, is destroyed by a sinkhole. The students are given two options. They can either attend Lake... -
Answered a Question in Tuck Everlasting
This is a simile because the author makes a comparison between two unlike things using the words “like” or “as.” In this case, the author is comparing the feeling of being under the treetops... -
Answered a Question in Flowers for Algernon
Charlie is chosen for the experiment because he is a hard worker who desperately wants to learn, despite the many setbacks and limitations he encounters. The researchers know this because Ms.... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Paul makes a joke with Victor because he recognizes that Victor creates friendships through jokes. Victor’s jokes can often come across as mean-spirited to people who don’t know him. This is the... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Paul is willing to play second string on the Tangerine Middle School soccer team because he was completely barred from playing soccer at Lake Windsor Downs due to an unfair interpretation of his... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Paul’s family moves from Houston to Tangerine-the inciting incident, which is a term for the event that kicks off all of the action. Paul’s school is almost swallowed by a sinkhole-the rising... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Paul Fisher didn't have any official jobs-he's an eighth grader, so he wasn't working quite yet. However, to answer this question, here are some of his roles in the community: Student: Paul... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
If you move to Tangerine, your life may become more difficult and you’ll have to worry about natural disasters. It has sinkholes, including one that swallowed a classroom, and muck fires, which... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Paul is impressed with Mike Costello because Mike Costello stands up to Erik. Most people, including Erik's parents and coaches, are so wowed by Erik's football skill that they let him walk all... -
Answered a Question in Tangerine
Paul uses ironic figurative language to show his family’s unwillingness to see the truth about its dark secret: Erik, star football player and the oldest Fisher brother, is a completely immoral... -
Answered a Question in Their Eyes Were Watching God
Through Nanny’s speech to Janie at the beginning of the novel, the reader learns Janie inherits a history of domination. During her early life, she was raped by her slavemaster, and his wife... -
Answered a Question in Annie John
Jamaica Kinkaid’s novel Annie John is a bildungsroman, a novel that tells the story of a protagonist’s development from childhood to adulthood. Consequently, its title character, Annie John,... -
Answered a Question in The Lion and the Jewel
In Wole Soyinka’s 1959 play The Lion and the Jewel, the chieftain of the village, Baroka, has a conflict with Lakunle, the area schoolteacher. On one level, both are fighting for the affection of... -
Answered a Question in An American Childhood
It’s important that Annie Dillard fills An American Childhood to the brim with allusions, brief references to people, places, historical events, or other literature, because while An American... -
Answered a Question in A Midsummer Night's Dream
Your question about characters' accents brings up a really interesting point! The characters in A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream shouldn’t have fixed accents--unlike Shakespeare’s history plays (for...