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Sunday, December 31, 2017

start 2018 with some great stories

Hi Everyone,
I hope you and your families are enjoying the holiday season, and I wish you all the best for 2018! 

Here is a list of 20 great American short stories:

https://americanliterature.com/twenty-great-american-short-stories

Please choose at least three and:

1. Read the story
2. Create a blog post (use the title of the story for the title of your post)
3. In your post, explain:
  • what interested you about the story and/or attracted you to it in the first place;
  • what happened in the story (plot)
  • what the story was about (theme)
  • what the story made you think about after you finished reading
  • whether or not you would recommend the story to others, and at least one reason why/why not
Oh, and the answer is: Yes, of course.  If you read and write about more than three, you will receive more credit.  Happy reading, and see you next year! -DP

Saturday, December 16, 2017

5 posts for break

Between now and the time we get back to school, please post the following to your blog (titles for each are in CAPITAL letters):

1. A description of your BIG QUESTION and why it interests you;

2. A brief summary of THE ROAD to your Big Question (how did you get interested in the topic?);

3. A description of THE BENEFIT to investigating your Big Question-- how will learning about this help you and the world in general?

4. The NEXT STEPS you will take in exploring your Big Question;

5. What you hope to ACCOMPLISH in your learning by June 2018.


Happy Holidays & Best Wishes for 2018! -dp


Friday, December 15, 2017

welcome to the halftime show

Language is important.  The words we use create thoughts, feelings, and expectations.  Take the word final for instance.  Final means "last" or "ultimate" -- it signifies the end of something.

So many people have been using the words final exam this week that it makes us feel like this is the end of something.

Wrong.

We're just getting warmed up.

Use the break to recharge your batteries and regain your momentum.  And check back here before 3:00 P.M. PDT today.  This is just getting interesting.

Happy Holidays to your and your families. -dp


Wednesday, December 13, 2017

sometimes i'm not sure what to write

Every once in a while, just like you, I sit down to post to my blog -- and find that I have no idea what to write. 

Plus, I wonder: will anyone read this?

Please comment if this has ever happened to you.  How do you deal with writer's block, especially when it happens in front of an audience?

Monday, December 11, 2017

period 6 final

The final for this class is one of my favorite moments throughout the year.  It's the only time we get to spend two whole hours together, which is just enough time to let the conversation get interesting -- and think our way through it with each other without being interrupted by the bell.  You can see an example of what this looked like in last year's class here.

We all play a part in making the final a success.  You all will be doing most of the talking.  As we discussed in class, you will also be doing the cooking and feeding.

Since we don't have today's class to plan, we're going to have to do this online.  Please comment to this post with the following information:
  • What are you bringing?
  • What if anything do you need?  (Plates, utensils, cups, microwave, or... ?)
(PLEASE NOTE: This post is for Period 6 students to sign up.  If you are in Period 2 or 3, please go to those posts and comment there.  Mahalo.)

If you have any other comments or questions, please feel free to comment with those as well, or send me an email, or find me tomorrow immediately before or after the period 6 final.  Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow at 9:40 AM (I will be there earlier if you want to arrive ahead of time or drop something off).

period 3 final

The final for this class is one of my favorite moments throughout the year.  It's the only time we get to spend two whole hours together, which is just enough time to let the conversation get interesting -- and think our way through it with each other without being interrupted by the bell.  You can see an example of what this looked like in last year's class here.

We all play a part in making the final a success.  You all will be doing most of the talking.  As we discussed in class, you will also be doing the cooking and feeding.

Since we don't have today's class to plan, we're going to have to do this online.  Please comment to this post with the following information:
  • What are you bringing?
  • What if anything do you need?  (Plates, utensils, cups, microwave, or... ?)
(PLEASE NOTE: This post is for Period 3 students to sign up.  If you are in Period 2 or 6, please go to those posts and comment there.  Mahalo.)

If you have any other comments or questions, please feel free to comment with those as well, or send me an email, or find me tomorrow immediately before or after the period 6 final.  Looking forward to seeing you Wednesday at 11:00 AM (you can come to class anytime before then if you want to drop something off; the classroom will also be open at lunch).

period 2 final

The final for this class is one of my favorite moments throughout the year.  It's the only time we get to spend two whole hours together, which is just enough time to let the conversation get interesting -- and think our way through it with each other without being interrupted by the bell.  You can see an example of what this looked like in last year's class here.

We all play a part in making the final a success.  You all will be doing most of the talking.  As we discussed in class, you will also be doing the cooking and feeding.

Since we don't have today's class to plan, we're going to have to do this online.  Please comment to this post with the following information:
  • What are you bringing?
  • What if anything do you need?  (Plates, utensils, cups, microwave, or... ?)
(PLEASE NOTE: This post is for Period 2 students to sign up.  If you are in Period 3 or 6, please go to those posts and comment there.  Mahalo.)

If you have any other comments or questions, please feel free to comment with those as well, or send me an email, or find me tomorrow immediately before or after the period 6 final.  Looking forward to seeing you Wednesday at 8:30 AM.

december 11: best laid plans of mice and us

The title of today's post is an allusion to Robert Burns' poem "To A Mouse," which he wrote after turning over a field mouse's nest with his plough.  The basic idea is that however we plan, and however hard we work, sometimes forces far larger than we are screw everything up.

Which brings us to the fires, and the classes we aren't having today.

Today I planned to have you all sign up and tell us about the food you are bringing to the final exam.  As you may remember, we are not having a "party," for the simple reason that classroom events have been ruining that word for decades.  We will have a fully catered learning experience that will include your food, your stories about your food, and a structured conversation about your Big Questions, your work over the break, and our course calendar for the spring. 

Today I also planned to have you write your self-assessments so that I could include your thinking as I file grades this week.

Since none of that will be happening in person today, I am going to post sign-ups for each period next.  Please comment to the post for your period and let us know what you'll make and bring.  We will do the self-assessments during the final exam period, and I will just have to hustle harder to get grades done toward the end of the week.

Keep a good thought for the many people whose lives and homes are being threatened by the fires, and stay inside if you can.  Breathing this air is like sucking on an ashtray.

Friday, December 8, 2017

high school student wins $250k

When students post their work on the Internet for experts to see, things like this can happen.  Check out the award-winning video below:


december 8

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Please write today's journal on a separate piece of paper.  Please slip that piece of paper into the front cover of your journal and put both into the box for your period.  Mahalo.

1. What have you learned in this course this semester?  Please describe in detail.
2. What have you done well, and what do you want to do better in the spring semester?
3. What have you tried hard to do, and where can you try harder in the spring semester?
4. Given what others can see-- your blog, your journals, your projects, your essays-- and what others can't see (what/how you think), what grade do you believe you have earned this semester?  Why?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Presentations
3. Planning for next week

Thursday, December 7, 2017

december 7

JOURNAL TOPIC:
(After you finish the final) Did you do as well as you planned?  Why/why not?

AGENDA:
1. Final exam
2. Journal

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

december 6

JOURNAL TOPIC:
We spend so much of our lives looking forward and looking back-- in fact, much of what we call "American Literature" consists of historical fiction or futuristic imagining.  How would you describe your life RIGHT NOW, in this present moment?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
* [Call for presentations]
2. Q & A / Final Review
3. Check notes for those who want to use them

december 5

JOURNAL TOPIC:
What's exciting to you about finals?  What's making you nervous about finals?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Return/ discuss proposals
3. Study/review for final

Monday, December 4, 2017

december 4

JOURNAL TOPIC:
What did you do over the weekend to prepare for our final and your project?  What will you do this week to achieve the results you want in this course?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Project proposal
3. Final review/ Q&A

Friday, December 1, 2017

project options

Thanks to all of you for contributing ideas for end-of-semester projects!  Please have a look at the three most popular recommendations below.  If you are passionate about doing something different that you think will more effectively highlight what you learned in this course this semester, please persuade me via email. 


OPTION ONE: PAPER

Please write a 3-5 pp. paper in which you explain how any of the texts we read this semester create understanding of their themes through at least three of the following: tone, figurative language, allusion, symbolism, diction, or syntax.


-OR-

Please write a 3-5 pp. paper in which you explain your Big Question.  Specifically, you must: 1) describe your topic; 2) explain why this topic is of interest to you; 3) share the steps you have taken to explore the topic so far; 4) share your plan for further exploration between now and June 2018; and 4) introduce leaders in the field and/or prospective mentors for you as you progress.


OPTION TWO: VISUAL ARTIFACT

Please create a visual representation of a concept you learned through reading any of the texts we read as a class this semester.  You may use any digital or analog medium, as long as you post a one-page explanation of the artifact on your blog.  (Also, please note that posters are notoriously easy to produce, and as a consequence they very often suck, so if you choose such a traditional approach, make it AWESOME.)


OPTION THREE: INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCE

This may take the form of anything you do with a live studio audience-- performing a song or a skit, or presenting with Prezi/PowerPoint/GoogleSlides/etc., or leading participants on a treasure hunt, for example.  Experiences must be 4-6 minutes long and incorporate at least three literary elements and two texts we read this semester.



the student has become the master

Thanks Lesley!  Here is the link to the resources she described in class:


december 1

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "A Hazy Shade of Winter" by Simon & Garfunkel; "A Hazy Shade of Winter" by The Bangles]

Today you have a choice.

You can either write about winter-- whatever comes to mind-- or you can listen to the two versions of this song and think on paper about how two different bands can interpret the same idea.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Review

poetry resource

I was just nosing around the Internet and found this great resource for "Immigrants in Our Own Land"-- and then I smiled, because this was Jessica Parra's original post when we studied the poem years ago...  Enjoy.


Thursday, November 30, 2017

november 30

JOURNAL TOPIC:
This morning I drove around a bend in the 101 -- and traffic stopped.  I got off the freeway (feeling not very free at all, and looking for a better way) and drove into more traffic.  Very, very frustrating.  Then I came over a hill and saw the accident that was blocking the 101.  I quickly realized that the drivers of those crumpled cars were having a much worse morning than I was, and I felt very, very fortunate to be alive, safe, and on my way to work.

We are all aware of the obstacles in our lives, but what about the good things?  Describe something that makes you feel lucky to be you today.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Two Things

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

net neutrality

Do you have any idea what is going on?  The FCC (Federal Communications Commission) is planning to end Net Neutrality.

What does that mean?  It means we're screwed.

Right now, when you go on the Internet you can get to every website at the same speed.  If there's a delay it's a delay for every website, not just the one someone else doesn't think you should see.

But if the FCC goes through with its plan, it will give ISPs and big, wealthy websites (think Facebook) a huge advantage.  These sites will pay the ISP to "fast track" their information to you, and everyone else will be stuck in the slow lane.  This is terrible news for individual bloggers (like us) and small businesses.  Under the FCC's proposed plan, if you want anyone to see your website you will have to pay AT&T, Verizon, and the other huge corporate ISPs for the privilege.  Otherwise, you'll be stuck behind people and companies with more money.

This will make Internet access harder for everyone except big companies and rich people. (Huh.  Is that starting to sound familiar?)

But there is something you can do about this.  Go to https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/filings/express
and fill out the quick form.  I just did. See the image below; you can copy the Proceeding # (17-108) and the comments (I support Title 2 oversight of ISPs and I support net neutrality.)


If saving the Internet isn't worth 2 minutes of your time, then you don't deserve to use it.


november 29

JOURNAL TOPIC:
It's often been said that, "You never get a second chance to make a first impression."  What does this mean to you?  Who are the impressive people in your life, and what impressed you about them in the first place?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Work Wednesday: poetry analysis, blogs, Big Questions, life after HS

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

november 28

JOURNAL TOPIC: (Today's Tunes: "What's So Funny 'Bout Peace Love & Understanding" by Elvis Costello & The Attractions)

Every culture throughout history has had some idea about peace.  Some cultures do peace better than others.  What do you think is necessary for peace?  You can think about peace within yourself, peace within your close circle of family or friends, or peace between nations.  How can you relate the idea of peace to Jimmy Santiago Baca's "Immigrants in our own Land"?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Table discussion:
b) Compare your answers to the questions about theme, tone, mood, and devices
c) Change your mind about (at least) one of your answers based on the conversation and update your blog

PLEASE NOTE: Either every single one of us will have a blog entry to show for this week's thinking about the poem, or we will have a gut-wrenchingly difficult in-class exam on the poem Friday.

Monday, November 27, 2017

immigrants in our own land

Immigrants in Our Own Land 
We are born with dreams in our hearts,
looking for better days ahead.
At the gates we are given new papers,
our old clothes are taken
and we are given overalls like mechanics wear.
We are given shots and doctors ask questions.
Then we gather in another room
where counselors orient us to the new land
we will now live in. We take tests.
Some of us were craftsmen in the old world,
good with our hands and proud of our work.
Others were good with their heads.
They used common sense like scholars
use glasses and books to reach the world.
But most of us didn’t finish high school.

The old men who have lived here stare at us,
from deep disturbed eyes, sulking, retreated.
We pass them as they stand around idle,
leaning on shovels and rakes or against walls.
Our expectations are high: in the old world,
they talked about rehabilitation,
about being able to finish school,
and learning an extra good trade.
But right away we are sent to work as dishwashers,
to work in fields for three cents an hour.
The administration says this is temporary
So we go about our business, blacks with blacks,
poor whites with poor whites,
chicanos and indians by themselves.
The administration says this is right,
no mixing of cultures, let them stay apart,
like in the old neighborhoods we came from.

We came here to get away from false promises,
from dictators in our neighborhoods,
who wore blue suits and broke our doors down
when they wanted, arrested us when they felt like,
swinging clubs and shooting guns as they pleased.
But it’s no different here. It’s all concentrated.
The doctors don’t care, our bodies decay,
our minds deteriorate, we learn nothing of value.
Our lives don’t get better, we go down quick.

My cell is crisscrossed with laundry lines,
my T-shirts, boxer shorts, socks and pants are drying.
Just like it used to be in my neighborhood:
from all the tenements laundry hung window to window.
Across the way Joey is sticking his hands
through the bars to hand Felipé a cigarette,
men are hollering back and forth cell to cell,
saying their sinks don’t work,
or somebody downstairs hollers angrily
about a toilet overflowing,
or that the heaters don’t work.

I ask Coyote next door to shoot me over
a little more soap to finish my laundry.
I look down and see new immigrants coming in,
mattresses rolled up and on their shoulders,
new haircuts and brogan boots,
looking around, each with a dream in their heart,
thinking they’ll get a chance to change their lives.

But in the end, some will just sit around
talking about how good the old world was.
Some of the younger ones will become gangsters.
Some will die and others will go on living
without a soul, a future, or a reason to live.
Some will make it out of here with hate in their eyes,
but so very few make it out of here as human
as they came in, they leave wondering what good they are now
as they look at their hands so long away from their tools,
as they look at themselves, so long gone from their families,
so long gone from life itself, so many things have changed.

Sunday, November 26, 2017

november 27

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Describe your Thanksgiving.  Start with the details: Who was around your table?  What did you eat? 

Then think back:

What were you especially grateful for?  As you look back on last week and consider today, what are you grateful for right now?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Every good story suggests a question for us readers.  Today we will ask it of each other. 

About the next few weeks...


What Happens Next?
 
3. Meet Jimmy Santiago Baca

Friday, November 17, 2017

november 17

JOURNAL TOPIC:

Just now, on my walk from the classroom to the parking lot, four different people said to me, "Man, almost there..."  I suppose many people on campus are giving thanks that we won't be here next week. That's totally understandable, and also a little bit sad-- wouldn't it be nicer to spend our days where we WANT to be, doing what we WANT to be doing?  Today we're going to focus on what we choose.  Start by writing in your journal about why your Big Question is interesting to you.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. The Week in Review
3. The Week of You

Here are some things to think about as you plan for next week (please feel free to add more with a comment to this post):
  • How do you want to invest your time in general?
  • Regarding your Big Question:
    • What do you want to read?
    • What do you want to watch?
    • Who do you want to meet?
    • What do you want to write?
    • What do you want to create/build?
    • What do you want to practice?
    • What do you want to listen to?
    • What do you want to...
    • What do you WANT? 

Thursday, November 16, 2017

november 16

JOURNAL TOPIC:
How did you use the class period yesterday?  Be honest-- did you follow the steps you planned, or did you get sidetracked?  How is it for you to have more independence in how you use your time in class?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Return Emerson essays and discuss next steps (post to your blog; title ON SELF-RELIANCE)
3. Return résumés and discuss next steps (type a version and bring on Friday or...)

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

crap detection

We're going to deal with this.


november 15

JOURNAL TOPIC:

Yesterday we all got a little clearer on our Big Questions.  (Hooray! :)  Today you have the period to think and work.  PLEASE USE IT.  Begin by writing in your journal-- list three things you can do that will help you learn more about your big question.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Post to your blog about your Big Question and what you have accomplished in class yesterday and today (title: ROOM TO THINK)

HW:
Get your minds right and catch up on anything you haven't done.  We have a big day tomorrow!

Tuesday, November 14, 2017

november 14

Today we are celebrating "Low-Tech Tuesday" in class with a conversation about your Big Questions.  At the end of class please write in your journal on the following topic:

JOURNAL TOPIC:

At this point in my life, what am I really interested in learning?  How can I use the weeks without school over the next two months to learn more about it?

Monday, November 13, 2017

november 13

JOURNAL TOPIC:

What's the point of tests?  Why do your teachers and the school give you so many?  Describe a time you did well on a test and/or a time you did poorly.  Are you prepared for today's test on "Sound of Thunder"?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Test

Thursday, November 9, 2017

november 9

JOURNAL TOPIC:
One year when I was a kid I went to a summer day camp.  At the pool on at hot, sunny San Fernando day, a guy named Brick (I don't know if that was his real name :) was trying to impress a girl.  "I love the rain," he said, "it washes away the..."  I don't remember hearing the end of the line.  I don't know if it was poetry or his personal philosophy.  But for the last 40 years or so since I heard him say it, every %&*$!!! time it rains, I find myself saying silently, "I love the rain, it washes away the something something something..."  Literally.  I finish the line with something something something.  This is both funny and deeply dissatisfying.  So, dear colleagues, I am asking for your help today.  Whether you love the rain or not, please rewrite this line with a better ending.  Mahalo.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Résumés

HW:
Finish reading "The Sound of Thunder" and post a response to the ending of the story (title: A THUNDEROUS ENDING)

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

november 8

Today is only a test.  Meet in the MMLC.





(Extra credit if you can explain why I included the image above.)

the power of the phone

I love teaching because every day I have a chance to learn.  This morning before period 2, I looked around the room and it hit me again: our tools have changed our behavior in very powerful ways.  It seems like every conversation about technology is infused with marketing/celebration, or judgement/criticism.  I'd like to continue building our awareness without all that.  I'm just curious about how we can adapt to the changing technology around us.




november 7

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Time Warp" by Richard O'Brien from The Rocky Horror Picture Show*; "Time" by Pink Floyd; "Time in a Bottle" by Jim Croce]

Think of a moment you'd like to last longer.  Or go by quicker.  Or that you'd like to revisit in the past.  Or go back to long ago.  Or see in the future.

Describe the moment in detail.
 
AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Discussion: journal and "A Sound of Thunder"

HW:
1. Write a vignette in time

*The Rocky Horror Picture Show came out in 1973-- it was a cult classic when I was in high school.  Midnight shows with audiences in full costume and makeup, rocking out in the aisles of the theaters.  Or so I was told.  I was at home doing my homework. :) 

Monday, November 6, 2017

résumé objectives

Here are templates and examples for the three types of objectives we discussed in class:

1. FOR A SCHOLARSHIP

(template)
To win the [AMOUNT/NAME OF SCHOLARSHIP] Scholarship that will help me pay my tuition at [NAME OF SCHOOL] where I will earn my degree in [MAJOR/FIELD] and realize my dream of [CAREER/ACCOMPLISHMENT].

(example)
To win the $1000 Santa Maria Chamber of Commerce Scholarship that will help me pay my tuition at the University of California Los Angeles, where I will earn my degree in Biology and realize my dream of curing Asthma.

2. FOR A JOB

(template)
To apply my experience in [SKILL] and my knowledge of [FIELD] as a [JOB TITLE] at [COMPANY].

(example)
To apply my experience in customer service and my knowledge of cosmetics as a Makeup Guru at Sephora.

3. FOR UNIVERSITY ADMISSION

(template)
To apply my passion for [FIELD/MAJOR] as a student at [NAME OF SCHOOL] in order to earn my degree and become a [CAREER TITLE].

(example)
To apply my passion for law as a student at Harvard University in order to earn my degree and become an environmental attorney.

our ta is really a TA

In high school, the term "TA" is often reserved for a student who had a free period and got a teacher s/he liked to sign off on a form that ensured one free period a day would be reserved for doing a whole lotta nothing much.

As she has done with everything else she takes on, Lesley Aguilar has destroyed the mold.  Without me asking, Lesley has taken on the role of TEACHING ASSISTANT.  She participates in (period 2) class discussions, she is taking on a/nother Big Question, she posted a translation of "On Self-Reliance," and she has posted her personal email address in class for anyone who needs help.

Now she is offering yet another support for those of you who need it.  As you've seen in some of your other courses, the "Remind" app can help you with those things you still haven't managed to record and remember elsewhere.  To access the reminders that Lesley posts for our course, please text 81010 @d36694.

And when you see Lesley, please thank her.

november 6

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Put two hands on your heart.  Think about a moment that made you grateful.  Click "Pause" on everything else.  Wait a couple moments after you think you're done.  Then pick up your pen and write.  (Did you notice any change in yourself?  Does this exercise feel the same as the first time you did it, or do you notice change over time?  What is on your mind now?)

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Big Question work
3. Begin "A Sound of Thunder"

HW: Finish and test your "Big Question" page on your blog 

Friday, November 3, 2017

résumé template

Please see below-- we will discuss in class. 


november 3

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Describe something you count on in your life.  This can be a person (a parent will not move your entire household out of state today while you are at school), an assumption about the physical world (the ground beneath you will not give way so that your next step will land you in free fall for eternity), or a social contract (if you attend and stay out of trouble, you will graduate high school and live a life better than your parents').

What is the benefit of depending on our perceptions of people, the world, and society?  What happens when our trust in these is shaken?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Feedback on Literature Analysis & WHAT'S NEXT
3. Resume template
4. Preview of Coming Attractions

HW:
1. If you haven't posted your Literature Analysis yet, it's late-- please get to it.
2. Please comment to this post with your Big Question
3. Please preview "Sound of Thunder" here -- we will discuss next week.

Thursday, November 2, 2017

november 2

JOURNAL TOPIC:

Emerson's transcendentalist contemporary (there's a mouthful!) Henry David Thoreau once wrote, "Men have become the tools of their tools."  What do you think he meant?  Do you agree?  Why/why not?
 
AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Table conversations: What's next?  How can we transcend our current circumstances?  How can this learning experience help us?
3. Please comment with your personal takeaways to this post
4. Please post your thoughts to your blog (title: WHAT'S NEXT FOR ME?) -- suggested ingredients: a) what you've learned in this course so far, b) the assets / opportunities you have available to you, and c) action steps.

Wednesday, November 1, 2017

november 1

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Oh Well" by Fleetwood Mac; "In One Ear" by Cage the Elephant]

When is it best to speak up and be honest even though you know it's going to piss someone off?  When is it best to "go along to get along"?  Do you think Emerson would ever recommend following the herd to fit in, even when it goes against your best self or your truest instincts?  Why/why not?  Explain your answer.

AGENDA:
1. Journal/ collect Emerson revised essays
2. Standing out & fitting in
3. Brag sheet --> résumé

HW:
In a post to your blog, describe what you've learned from "On Self-Reliance" in one paragraph that any ten year-old could understand (title: EMERSON FOR THE YOUNG BUCK)

Tuesday, October 31, 2017

october 31

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Riders on the Storm" by The Doors]

This week the skies are threatening.  Rain is often used as a literary device in stories.  Why?  What does it symbolize to you?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Emerson feedback & revision
3. Dust off your resume


HW:
1. On your blog, post a reflection on your Emerson writing.  What did you do well?  What do you need to work on?  (blog post title: AUTHOR IN PROGRESS)
2. If you haven't already, read "On Self-Reliance" to the end and post your notes you took from your reading and our class discussions (title: I'M SELF-RELIANT)
3. It's great reading weather... curl up with a good book-- and work on your current literature analysis #DueFriday
4. Do you have a résumé or a brag sheet?  If you do, bring it to class tomorrow.

Monday, October 30, 2017

emerson essay

Explain Emerson's title and thesis.  How was Emerson's main idea supported by his tone, diction, and syntax?  In your answer, please use at least one quote/example from the essay.  Please also give one example of how you either: a) you can use Emerson's idea to help you in your own life, or b) disagree with Emerson and think you can't use his idea to help you in your own life.

october 30

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Today may seem like an average Monday to you, but someone very special to me is celebrating a birthday so the day itself takes on a special meaning.  What makes a day special to you?

AGENDA:
1. Emerson test
2. Journal (you probably won't have time to write this in class so please do it sometime before class tomorrow)

Friday, October 27, 2017

october 27

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "People Get Ready" by Rod Stewart with Jeff Beck]

Think about your Time Investment Portfolio for a moment.  Did the short school days this week make a difference in your life?  Why/why not?

-AND/OR-

How will you prepare for Monday's test?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Emerson review/FAQ

"People get ready, there's a train a-coming..." -Rod Stewart
"Winter is coming." -Game of Thrones

You have a test on Monday.  Prepare.

Thursday, October 26, 2017

literature analysis #1 is due

The questions are HERE.  Your answers are due in a post to your blog no later than 8:00 AM PST on Friday, November 3.

october 26

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Describe a time that your day changed unexpectedly.  How did you adapt?  How did you feel about it?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Preview of next week's coming attractions
3. Wrapping up this week

Wednesday, October 25, 2017

october 25

I won't be in class today, so please be self-reliant.  And email with any questions.  Mahalo.

JOURNAL TOPIC:

I had a different journal topic in mind until I walked to class the other day with Angel and got to talking tamales.  Then I got hungry, so:

Describe your favorite memory of a meal.  Was it with family?  On a date?  At a fancy restaurant?  At home?  What made it special?  Was it the taste?  The company?  The emotions you felt?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Read all the way to the end of On Self-Reliance and create a list of (at least) three questions with your table group for us to discuss tomorrow

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

progress report 2 self-assessment

Please rate yourself on a scale from 1-10 (10 being best) on the following elements of the course.  After you give yourself the number score, please write 1-3 sentences explaining your reasons, including your performance and your effort.

Journals

Vocabulary

Formal writing/ essays

Readings

Blog posts

Big question work

Literature analysis

october 24

JOURNAL TOPIC:
In what ways are you self-reliant?  In what ways are you NOT self-reliant?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Progress report self-assessment

Monday, October 23, 2017

100!

This is the 100th post on the course blog this year.  How many posts are on your blog?

october 23

JOURNAL TOPIC:
"Do not think the youth has no force..."  Find this quote in Emerson's essay (it's in the paragraph just after where we left off reading on Friday) and explain why you think he says this.  Do you agree or disagree?  Why?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. "On Self-Reliance" continued
3. Mind map & next steps

Friday, October 20, 2017

october 20

JOURNAL TOPIC:
There are two ways to look at things that are difficult: 1) we can wish they were easier; or 2) we can adapt and respond more effectively, either in a way that solves the problem or helps us accept what we can't change.  Choose something that is difficult in your life, and describe your response using approach 1 and/or 2.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Emerson/table conversations
3. Emerson conference w DP

Thursday, October 19, 2017

october 19

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Describe one important idea you've gotten so far from Emerson's "On Self-Reliance."  How is it relevant or helpful to think about this idea in 2017?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Emerson continued
3. Mapping our minds

HW:
1. Log in and make edits to the mind map
2. Describe your map work on your blog.  Why did you do what you did?  How did it/will it help you understand Emerson's writing?  (title: MAPPING MY MIND)

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

october 18

JOURNAL TOPIC:
"This is only a test..."  What does the word test mean to you?  Is it an obstacle in life, a thing you do in school for a score, or something else?  What should it mean?  What is the value of a test?  Do you see any value or importance in doing something that is difficult or inconvenient?  Why/why not?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Yesterday's students /today's masters
3. Mind map prep

HW:
1. Post to your blog (lit analysis, Emerson)
2. Tweet to #dpamlit
3. If you have a strong opinion about which mindmap platform we should use, please comment to this post

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

october 17

JOURNAL TOPIC:
We attach a lot of importance to achievements like making money, or getting famous, or even a high G.P.A.  What is your greatest accomplishment so far?  Agree or disagree with Emerson: "To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment."

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. This essay ain't for children
3. Pro Tools: Mind maps
4. Preview: Brain with 200 legs

HW:
1. Post something interesting about the Literature Analysis book you're currently reading (title: SOMETHING INTERESTING ABOUT THE BOOK I'M READING)
2. Research mind map tools and come to class tomorrow (Wednesday) prepared to advocate for one

Monday, October 16, 2017

october 16

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Choose your own.  What's on your mind?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Self-Reliance: Notes about Literature Analysis and Big Questions
3. Self-Reliance: Notes about resumes and cover letters

HW:
Have you done Literature Analysis #1?  Select a book and post about your choice tonight.

Friday, October 13, 2017

is the sky real?

These are the moments I love the most.  Last night I got a message telling me students were collaborating on a brilliant idea.  This morning I made a connection as I stretched on my deck and watched the sunrise.  Then Christian walks up first thing in class and tells me to read this post on his blog.  Brilliant.  So it begins...


october 13

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.”  What does this mean to you?  How can you do this in a world that seems to pressure you in so many ways to be something else?

-OR-

Why do some people believe Friday the 13th is bad luck?  Do you really think that the day or date can somehow influence your experience of being alive?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. "Art of Hosting" quiz
3. Vocabulary Q&A
4. Independent work/collaboration time

5. Post. (Post. Post.)

Thursday, October 12, 2017

october 12

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Give some advice to the people who design and run school.  What could be changed that would help you the most? 

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. The Art of Hosting Good Conversations Online

HW:
Post your thoughts about online conversations to your blog in the form of an advice column, entitled -- you guessed it-- HOW TO HOST A GOOD CONVERSATION ONLINE

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

october 11

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood?" from Sesame Street]

How do you meet people and build relationships?  Offline? (Through school/classes, extracurricular activities, community organizations...)  Online? (Through general social media like Instagram, FB, Snapchat, or forums of interest, or...)

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Vocab
3. Networking
4. Online conversations

HW:
1. Define and write sentences for the vocab words (or create graphics, or a vid, or post something else to your blog to show you know what they mean and/or why they're important)
2. Please finish reading "How to host..."  and "How smartphones..."

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

how smartphones hijack our minds

Thanks to Leslie, I just realized that the article below has a paywall that prevents you from reading the whole thing. Rather than complain about this, I'd like to report three things we can learn from this moment: 
1) Reading the first paragraph of the article has value, because it clarifies how much we use our smartphones by citing research that puts a number on it (we look at those things at least 80 times each day!) 
2) The fact that the Wall Street Journal makes us pay for this is a lesson in economics and culture -- what does it tell you? 
3) Internet (and especially social media) companies who monetize data (that is, they let you use their services for free and then sell all your data) are doing some serious damage to the fabric of our society. Don't take my word for it-- read this editorial (which I think is available for free :) by Pierre Omidyar, founder of ebay. 


You've heard some of this from me already-- check out the rest in this Wall Street Journal article.


transform our shoebox (via @leslie)

Wow.  I watched her type furiously in period 2 but I didn't know what she was thinking until just now.  You never know what someone's thinking-- until they say it or, in this case, write it.  Have a look at this post:

https://leslerzaguilarsmhs18.blogspot.com/2017/10/our-american-literature-shoebox.html

and start the conversation.  Our learning environment may never look the same again.

october 10

JOURNAL TOPIC:
The next progress report comes out one week from this Friday.  What do you hope to accomplish in this course and your other courses between now and then?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Vocab discussion
2. The Art of Hosting Good Conversations Online

Monday, October 9, 2017

the art of hosting good conversations online

(original online here)



The Art of Hosting Good Conversations Online


By Howard Rheingold

WHAT AN ONLINE HOST WANTS TO ACHIEVE:

vocabulary: fall list #6

meme
virus
viral
blog
wiki
URL
website
www
Internet
2.0
open source

october 9

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Consider your friends, your relatives, your teammates, your co-workers.  What makes a good relationship?  What makes a relationship good?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Last week's vocabulary this week
3. This week's vocabulary this week
4. Story and choosing our next study
5. The art of hosting good conversations online

HW:
1. Vocab
2. Recruit 3 followers to your blog by Friday 10/13

Friday, October 6, 2017

october 6

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Today it happened again.  There I was, minding my own business, walking from my car to the classroom, when someone said it: "Happy Friday!"

Why?  Why should Friday be happier than Wednesday?  For that matter, what did Monday ever really do to you?

Someone please explain this.  There is an entire restaurant chain called "TGIF" and I just don't understand.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Wrapping up the week

Thursday, October 5, 2017

announcements for october 5

GENERAL


§ Attention students attending the Allan Hancock Career Exploration Day:
Please meet at the Bus Drop Off on Stowell at 8:30 a.m. (2nd period) Friday morning. You will be lining up alphabetically and must have your student ID in order to board the buses. There will be NO

october 5

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Write an introductory paragraph (as if you were writing an essay) in response to this prompt:

Explain the differences in the themes and tones of "Earth on Turtle's Back" and "Young Goodman Brown."

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Read "Is This The Time to Stick to Our Guns?" and post a comment in response.  Please cite at least two of the references in the links
3. How we write (guided)
4. Review vocab

HW:
1. Finish any late work and post to your blog
2. Make sure your Time Investment Portfolio is up to date
2. Be a Good Human Being and post about it to your blog (title: TODAY I'M A GOOD HUMAN)

Wednesday, October 4, 2017

is this the time to stick to our guns?

Please read and comment.  Mahalo.

It’s on everyone’s minds this week. Amid all the other serious issues facing our country, the Las Vegas shooting has once again put guns in the middle of the national conversation.

Crisis creates trauma. This affects our decision-making in a variety of ways. Some people respond heroically, like the husband who died shielding his wife from a hail of bullets. Other people go into shock. Still others respond in fear and recoil from the public. Public figures have also reacted differently; late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel offered a serious, heartfelt message to the nation and our political leaders. Our political leaders offered empty, ritualized condolences — even as they contemplate legislation that will open more land to hunting and legalize silencers for guns.

You might think that mass shootings in America would make people realize that we need less semi-automatic killing machines in the hands of people who can snap even if they do pass a background check. But every time one of these tragedies occurs, gun sales go up — investors see this as such a sure bet that gun stocks soared after the Las Vegas shooting.

And these shootings are happening more often. In the last 1,735 days (since January 1, 2013) there have been 1,516 mass shootings. As of August of this year, there were more mass shootings than days in the year. They are so common that sometimes the news doesn’t even bother to report them all. Did you know that there was a shooting in Kansas on the same day as the Las Vegas shooting?

What happens to one of us happens to us all. Even if you didn’t know anyone in Las Vegas, the event caused you to think or talk or feel or listen or look. It caused me to write this. Which led you to read this. There is a ripple effect. Call it the collective unconscious, or interdependence, or empathy, or mirror neurons, or ubuntu, or whatever your belief system suggests. But know this: There is a link that joins us all. It doesn’t matter how we identify with race, or politics, or gender, or whatever. Today we are simply human. And we are all affected by Las Vegas.
 
Yesterday afternoon I was driving my eight year-old daughter home when she said something that made me wonder, so I asked: “Have you heard anything recently about Las Vegas?” She said yes, that the iPad she plays with at her mother’s house has a news app and that she saw pictures of dead people and a headline that didn’t make sense. “Daddy,” she said, “Why did that happen?” I looked at her in the rear view mirror and I told her the truth. “I don’t know, sweetheart. I’m not sure that anyone knows. What I do know is that there are ways we can be safer and hopefully stop it from happening again.”

I wonder whether our leaders have what it takes to make those changes. Even a superficial glance at our laws, culture and behavior — have a look at these charts, for instance — prove beyond a shadow of a reasonable doubt that, when it comes to guns, the United States of America is out of its mind. Some people can’t even take things like this seriously anymore so they resort to coping through humor (which in this case is explicit, so please don’t click the link if you’re sensitive to profanity).

Whether I can change anything or not, I can’t afford to stop trying. My daughter, my students, and all the young people in this country deserve better. We have to do a better job of valuing what’s good for Americans (think healthcare, clean drinking water, freedom from police brutality and deportation, access to the Internet, and about 500 other things). We have to force the politicians who work for us to enact and enforce laws that support our rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of not being shot.

For some strange reason, we Americans admire figures who stubbornly refuse to change their minds in the face of all reasonable evidence. “Good for you, man,” we say, “Way to stick to your guns.”

Learning is nothing if we don’t change our minds. New information adds neuronal pathways that didn’t previously exist — when you learn a new idea or a new skill, you change the shape of your brain. You literally change your mind. Deliberately resisting this is self-destructive.

I want my daughter — and you, dear reader — to grow to a ripe old age in a society where you can go out to a concert without getting your brains blown all over the sidewalk.

Maybe it’s finally time for us to reconsider whether we should stick to our guns.

(Also published on Medium.)

lost key

Someone found the key to California on the floor after 2nd period.

october 4

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Everyday I Write the Book" by Elvis Costello & The Attractions]

Describe your writing process from beginning to end.  What do you do when you are faced with a prompt and the blank page?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Those who Can, Do

Tuesday, October 3, 2017

free speech?

Where is the line between teaching young people about their right to free expression and determining what they can and can't say?  What do you think about students being kicked off a team and out of school for raising a fist or kneeling during the national anthem?  You can read the full article HERE.  Please comment to this post with your thoughts.




announcements october 3

Bulletin for Tuesday, October 3, 2017


GENERAL

october 3

JOURNAL TOPIC:
If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be?  You can pick someone close to you, or someone famous, or even someone from the past.  Why this person?  What would you talk about?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Your letters

Monday, October 2, 2017

announcements october 2

GENERAL


§ Collaboration Day: Every Monday (early out).

§ Attention, 10th and 11th Graders: If you have a 2.5 GPA or higher, and are serious about attending a 4-year university right out of high school, come to the PSAT pre-registration TODAY. 10th grade sign-ups will be during 3rd period and 11th grade during 5th in the Ethel Pope Auditorium. This preliminary test prepares you for the SAT that will be held on Wednesday, October 11th.

§ Freshmen!! You are invited by Link Crew leaders to come to Link Crew Movie Night!! It will be held on Friday October 6th right after school in the Ethel Pope Auditorium! Get ready for fun, snacks and friends! See you then!

§ Juniors! On sale now class of 2019 T-shirt for only $12. See Samantha Lopez or Ms. Turner for order forms and details in room 613.


§ SENIORS! Your fundraiser will be coming to an end on Friday! Be sure to sell, sell, sell to keep the cost of Prom down and to earn some of the senior free prizes.

§ Junior class meeting will be held Tuesday, October 3rd, at lunch in Ms. Turner's room, 613, at 12:40 sharp. Grab your lunch and sign in, so we can plan Homecoming. Class of 2019 T-shirt order forms will also be available.

CLUBS

§ Attention Alpine Club students: There is a mandatory lunchtime meeting on Tuesday for students who plan to attend the upcoming hiking trips. Please arrive early!

§ The Fellowship of Christian Athletes meets on Tuesday at lunch in room 352 (math hall). Come by for pizza and sharing, bring a friend!

§ Attention ETS students: If you are planning to attend the field trip to Sacramento, this is a reminder that your prearrangement for absence form will be collected tomorrow during the after-school workshop.

october 2

JOURNAL TOPIC:

Use five of this week's vocabulary words to describe your experience in this class.  Is it different for you when Dr. Preston isn't here or bugging you about an assignment?  How?  Why does the teacher (not) matter to your learning experience?


AGENDA:
1. Vocabulary
2. Journal
3. Big Questions
4. Reaching out: letter to a mentor

HW:
1. Post your letter to a mentor (title: LETTER TO A MENTOR DRAFT 1)
2. 10 mins. min. on vocab
3. Please post Literature Analysis #1 by Friday

vocabulary: fall list #5

  1. venomous
  2. stolid
  3. hypnotized
  4. suspended
  5. transformed
  6. accuse
  7. anticipate
  8. fringe
  9. melancholy
  10. earnestly
  11. dissolve
  12. aggravate
  13. illuminate
  14. capillary
  15. proboscis

the test


If you weren't in class on Friday, please give yourself 35 minutes (you're on the honor system) and complete the following test on a piece of paper.  Please do not use notes (you're on the honor system).  Due by this Wednesday, October 4.

SECTION 1
Write the letter of the correct choice next to the number on your paper.

1. Theme                              a. the words an author chooses
2. Syntax                              b. information such as setting/time/place
3. Diction                             c. the author's attitude toward the topic, character, or audience
4. Mood                               d. the reader's emotional state
5. Tone                                 e. the central message of a text
6. Allusion                           f. clues as to what happens later in the story
7. Dynamic Character         g. a reference to something the author thinks we should know
8. Foreshadowing                h. using something to stand for something else
9. Flashback                        i. the way an author arranges words
10. Exposition                     j. a character who changes from the beginning of the story to the end
11. Symbolism                    k. moving backward in time suddenly during a story

SECTION II
Choose at least FIVE of the literary elements above, and give an example from something we've read in class so far this year.  If you choose to do more than five, you will receive extra credit for each additional item.

SECTION III
Describe how the tone of "Conscience of a Hacker" is different from the tone of "Richard Cory."


Friday, September 29, 2017

september 29

This is only a test. 

1. Take the test.
2. JOURNAL TOPIC: How did you do on the test?  Why?

Wednesday, September 27, 2017

september 28

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Alive" by Pearl Jam]

What makes you feel Alive?  Not just like you're functioning, not just surviving, but really, truly Alive?  (My inner surfer might call this "stoked.")  Describe a moment that you conquered a fear, did something that made you feel triumphant, or experienced anything else that shocked you into a feeling of being totally Alive.  It can be as simple as the hot water shutting off or realizing you walked into a room for something and totally forgetting why.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Actual TIP v. Ideal TIP
3. Exam review (if necessary :)

Tuesday, September 26, 2017

september 27

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Time" by Pink Floyd]

Describe your understanding and experience of time.  Is there ever enough?  When does it go faster or slower?  Do you have the sense you use it well?  Why/why not?

-OR-

What are you doing here?  Seriously: why are you in class today?  What do you WANT?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Time: Language, Conflict & The American Way
3. Time & Your Goals

categories of time allocation

To build on today's class, here is some more information about the categories of time allocation:

SELLING TIME
When you go to work or school, you agree to allocate a specific amount of time to activities determined by your involvement with an organization.  In return, the organization to which you allocate your time agrees to compensate you with a specific amount of money.


In making this exchange, you place a dollar amount on the time you sell to your employer (or client).  Selling time activities are those which generate benefits recognized in the marketplace; the currency of selling time includes money, grades, professional development, and prestige.

Working is a clear illustration of selling time.  However, we engage in many "selling time" activities without even thinking about it.  If an executive goes to the dentist, and picks up a business magazine because he sees an article about his company's main competitor, is he selling time?  You bet.

Because an activity is defined by the benefit it provides, selling time is not limited to work.  Attending school, studying, and reading trade publications are all examples of selling time.  Even reading the newspaper or watching TV can be examples of selling time, if they help us make money, get grades, or advance our professional development.


GIVING TIME
This category of time use involves creating and maintaining relationships with other people.  Human beings are social animals, and we depend on interaction with others for our emotional and social well-being.

Giving time refers specifically to the activities that create and enhance your personal relationships: friends, family, loved ones.

Many people believe they are giving time when they're working.  However, when they are asked in confidence, many coworkers confess that they would not socialize with each other if they didn't work together.

The times when you interact with family and friends create warm feelings of affection, belonging, and love.  Our need for these feelings is intense, and yet we often find it difficult to reserve time for these activities.  When I was young, I wondered why my grandmother ran around with the camera at family events.  Now I know she was trying to capture the feelings of those all-too-rare moments.

Advertisers understand this dynamic, and they try to convince us that our giving time needs can be met through buying things.  We are bombarded with information on products that will supposedly enable us to create and sustain relationships.  But there is no over-the-counter solution.  As the saying goes, if you want to dance you have to pay the band.  And, if you want communicative, loving, honest relationships, you have to invest time in them.

Activities that yield social benefits include conversations, writing (in any channel), or sharing memorable events.  On a broader scale, you can also give time through volunteering and community participation.


SPENDING TIME
When we sell or give time, we focus our attention outward, toward the marketplace or other people.  Spending time addresses our individual, internal needs.  We spend time on things we love, things we do for free when no one is watching, things that make us better people.

Spending time activities may include spirituality, hobbies, talents, or passions.  You can spend time through meditation, or prayer, gardening, exercise, woodworking, playing a musical instrument, scuba diving, painting, skiing, or thousands of other activities.

Spending time is as individual as the person who does the spending.  When he was alive, my Uncle Charles spent many hours with his stamp collection (*he was the world's leading authority on Maltese stamps).  He also composed music (that was played at Albert Hall in London) and he played the violin and piano-- when he wasn't treating patients in his dental practice.  He proficient in these and other areas of his life, but it was really the stamps that brought him joy.  He would spend hours poring over auction catalogs.  Why?  Not for the money.  Not for the company.  Uncle Charles collected and curated stamps simply because it fascinated him.


PASSING TIME
Passing time is a misnomer.  We do not pass time.  True, there are times when we choose not to do something active, but that is when time passes us.

In terms of achieving our goals, passing time helps us indirectly.  We need the opportunity to rest and recover, so that we can approach our next activities with renewed energy.  The value of rest is evident throughout history, as in the concept of the Sabbath.

Selling, giving, and spending time all have directed purposes.  Passing time activities are designed to distract us from the concerns and pressures of the real world.  Entertainment products such as TV shows and movies typically relieve us of the need to think, worry, or actually do anything. (NOTE: video games can fall into this category, but often they exercise more of our brains than we think, and so may be more accurately categorized as spending, giving, or even selling time activities.)

Goal-oriented people typically pass time only for the purposes of getting relief or recharging their batteries, perhaps at the end of the day or during the weekend.  It is worth noting that people who have a keen sense of the future do not pass much time.  Our awareness of the consequences of our actions, and of time's rapid progress, compels us to achieve our goals (or feel stress if we are unable to take action).

september 26

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "It's the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine) by R.E.M. & "Time is on My Side" by The Rolling Stones]

Oh yeah, right-- the world was supposed to end on Saturday.  What if you lived every day like it was your last?  What if you learned and loved and laughed and made every second your masterpiece?  What would that actually look like?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Vocab
3. Time Investment Portfolio categories

Monday, September 25, 2017

vocabulary: fall list #4


intermittent
ebb
regress
tendency
antiseptic

september 25

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "Are You Real" by Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers]

Last week we talked about how we see reality and distinguish it from dreaming.  As you think about characters in stories and people you know, what gives you the sense that someone is real?  Why do you think the phrase "keeping it real" became popular?  What does the word "real" mean when we use it to describe how people act in their communication/relationships with others?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Goals and how we use our time
3. vocab: fall list #4

Friday, September 22, 2017

Thursday, September 21, 2017

september 22

JOURNAL TOPIC:

What is it about a good story (movie, book, TV show) that gets our attention?  Describe a time you got sucked in by a good story.

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Essay critique
3. SMART goals
4. Next week in advance

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

september 21

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Please Note: Today's journal is designed to be written in reflection, AFTER you write your essay.

What did you do well?  What part of the assignment gave you clarity and an opportunity to do your best work?  What challenged you?  What part of the assignment required you to stretch and figure something new out?  What can you improve?

AGENDA:
Please choose one of the following prompts.  Respond on your blog with a post entitled, ON THE PATH.  Your response should written in the form of a well-organized essay that demonstrates your clearest thinking, best grammar and spelling etc.

Prompt 1
What is the theme of the short story "Young Goodman Brown"?  Describe at least three elements (such as diction, syntax, tone, characterization) or textual samples (quotes) from the story that led you to your conclusion.

Prompt 2
What is the tone of the short story "Young Goodman Brown"?  Describe at least three elements (such as diction, syntax, tone, characterization) or textual samples (quotes) from the story that led you to your conclusion.

Prompt 3
Compare "Young Goodman Brown" with the poem "Dream Within a Dream."  Apart from the fact that one is a poem and one is written in prose, what else describes the similarities and differences between the two?

Prompt 4
Is Young Goodman Brown a static character or a dynamic character?  What is he like at the end of the story?  Did he experience something real in the woods or was it a dream?  Please use at least two elements or quotes from the story to support your points.

Prompt 5
Research the authors of "Young Goodman Brown" and "Dream Within a Dream."  How did their lives influence their writing?  Use at least three facts you learn about their lives to make educated guesses about how they wrote.

september 20

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Compare and contrast "Young Goodman Brown" with "Dream Within a Dream."  Apart from the fact that one is a poem and one is prose, what do the two pieces have in common, and how are they different?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Essay topics
3. SMART goals

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

september 19

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: Theme from the movie "Inception"]

Describe a nightmare or a bad dream you had. (If you haven't had one, think of a fearful daydream.)  How did you know it wasn't real?

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Finish YGB
3. "Dream Within a Dream"
4. Essay / topics
5. Big Questions / SMART goals

HW:
1. Post essay (due Friday)
2. Post SMART goal (due Friday

Monday, September 18, 2017

september 18

JOURNAL TOPIC: [today's tunes: "You Can't Always Get What You Want" & "Satisfaction" by The Rolling Stones]

Do we still want what we want by the time we get it?  Kids want to be older, adults want to be kids.  We want more independence, we want someone to take care of us.  Do you know what you want?  Does it feel good to get what you want?  Have we just gotten really good at wanting?  Give this your best thinking, to be continued in discussion tomorrow...

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. "Young Goodman Brown" -- ending and interpretations
3. "A Dream Within a Dream" by Edgar Allen Poe

HW:
1. Post definitions/images/sentences/whatever for vocab list #3 (title: FALL VOCAB 3)

i just had an idea

At some point I'm going to ask you what the image below has to do with T.S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock":


goalllllllll

 

"Why bother creating our own goals," a student asked me once, "when we're already told what it means to succeed in school?  Aren't we just supposed to get A's?"



Being able to set and achieve goals is important in every endeavor: sports, organizations, self-improvement, emptying the dishwasher before your mother gets home.  Even though they know their roles and agree on the idea of winning, for example, Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski requires his players to set goals for themselves and the team each season.  In Coach K's words, “Mutual commitment helps overcome the fear of failure—especially when people are part of a team sharing and achieving goals. It also sets the stage for open dialogue and honest conversation.”

When you share your goals you're sharing ideas that inform and inspire your colleagues.  These goals will form the basis for your Learning Plan for the rest of the year, so please don't delay: get the job done. 

Keep something else in mind.  Unlike players on a basketball team, you are being allowed, encouraged, and required to change the game itself.  Why not analyze a political argument by comparing it with your favorite book or movie?  If you zone out and watch somebody's cat on YouTube for a while, fine. (!)  And then think about how to demonstrate what you just experienced in your mind in such a way that it will help us.  What's that?  You'd rather build a robotic cat that writes, reads, interprets, and explains political arguments to irritating teacher types?  Cool.  You can do that too.

If you are still thinking of this as a high school course to be gamed, please immediately find your closest friend and ask her to roll up a newspaper and smack you on the nose with it.*  (*If this doesn't work the first time, ask a friend who reads the newspaper on a computer.**) [**In this day and age, I should probably point out that this is not a literal instruction. Hands are not for hitting. Baseball bats are, but that isn't really relevant or appropriate here and now I find myself wondering how Montaigne ever righted the thinking ship once he got off on one of these tangents.] If you're one of those people who cut corners and thought we didn't notice, she will be doing you a favor.  It's better that you get your act together in private before we get started, before everyone sees what you do all the time, before 70% of your course grade is determined by your learning network.  Yep.  That's right.  You won't succeed without them.

The first month was rehearsal.  This is showtime.

More on how to achieve your goals and develop your community of critique tomorrow.