Friday, April 28, 2017

Week 6, Post 4

Class Poetry Project

Alexie, S. (2007). The absolutely true diary of a part-time indian. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Inline image 1

Write several journal entries using the below prompts. Use complete sentences. Be thoughtful and clear. Connect to the reading as much as possible:

Examine the types of communities you consider yourself to be a part of, both in school and for school, as well as the types of communities you consider yourself to be a part of completely outside of school by making lists.

Compare and contrast these communities. Are there any similarities? What are major differences? 

Do you face any obstacles when you move from one community to another? Consider the obstacles Junior faces when he moves between Wellpinit to Rearden. Can you relate at all to his experience? Can you empathize?

“Well, life is a constant struggle between being an individual and being a member of the community” (Alexie, 2007, p.132). What do you think this quotation means in the context of Junior's life? What could it mean in the context of your life? 

The need to belong is a powerful drive in the human experience, especially in high school. Junior desperately wants to belong, but can't help but want a better education more. He is willing to risk belonging in his community "on the rez" in order to pursue a better education with greater opportunities beyond the reservation. 

If you had a big dream that resulted in you having to leave the support of your community, being called a traitor, and having to feel like you are an outsider as a result, what would your fears be? One example might be, "Fear of sitting alone in the cafeteria."

As a class, we are going to compile a list of your fears using Twitter. Write them in the form of "Fear of..." and use the hashtag #classfearpoem. Submit at least two fears. As a class, we will consider trends, word choice, phrasing, and rhythm, organizing the phrases for greatest effect, so that it so that it becomes a more than a list, but instead a fully formed poem.

For example, Raymond Carver wrote a poem in the same style:
Fear
Fear of seeing a police car pull into the drive.
Fear of falling asleep at night.
Fear of not falling asleep.
Fear of the past rising up.
Fear of the present taking flight.
Fear of the telephone that rings in the dead of night.
Fear of electrical storms.
Fear of the cleaning woman who has a spot on her cheek!
Fear of dogs I've been told won't bite.
Fear of anxiety!
Fear of having to identify the body of a dead friend.
Fear of running out of money.
Fear of having too much, though people will not believe this.
Fear of psychological profiles.
Fear of being late and fear of arriving before anyone else.
Fear of my children's handwriting on envelopes.
Fear they'll die before I do, and I'll feel guilty.
Fear of having to live with my mother in her old age, and mine.
Fear of confusion.
Fear this day will end on an unhappy note.
Fear of waking up to find you gone.
Fear of not loving and fear of not loving enough.
Fear that what I love will prove lethal to those I love.
Fear of death.
Fear of living too long.
Fear of death.

I've said that.



Junior began the book by identifying himself as a "weirdo kid" and lists all the things wrong with him that make him not belong and be an outsider. He ends the book with this list of all the ways in which he does belong and feels like an insider. Junior finds a way to be part of his community, or communities after all:

"I used to think the world was broken down by tribes...By Indian and white. But I know that isn't true. The world is only broke into two tribes: The people who are assholes and the people who are not...It all gave me hope. It gave me a little bit of joy" (Alexie, 2007, p.176).

"I realized that, sure, I was a Spokane Indian. I belonged to that tribe. But I also belonged to the tribe of American immigrants. And to the tribe of basketball players. And to the tribe of bookworms.
             And to the tribe of cartoonists.
             And to the tribe of teenage boys.
             And to the tribe of small-town kids.
             And to the tribe of of Pacific Northwesterners.
             And to the tribe of tortilla chips-and-salsa lovers.
             And to the tribe of poverty.
             And to the tribe of funeral-goers.
             And to the tribe of beloved sons.
             And to the tribe of boys who really missed their best friends.
             It was a huge realization.
             And that's when I knew that I was going to be okay"
             (Alexie, 2007, p.217).

Junior's list is kind of like the poem about fear. As a class, let's make another poem. Let's compile a list of "tribes" where we feel we belong by Junior's example. Think about ideas that "give you hope and a little bit of joy" (Alexie, 2007, p.176). Think about ideas that have universal appeal like sleeping in. Think about the human experience that ties us all together. Submit at least two examples in the form of "And to the tribe of..." using the hashtag #classtribepoem. The poem will begin "We belong to the tribe of Period C English Class." We will compile this poem in the same way as the "Class Fear Poem."

You will be asked to compare and contrast the "Class Fear Poem" and the "Class Tribe Poem" once they are finished in a five paragraph essay. Consider the following as you do so: How does each one make you feel? What was it like to contribute? What it was like to put them together? What does each poem say about our class as a whole? 

Image result for belonging
Week 6, Post 3

Literary Devices and Poetry


Alexie, S. (2007). The absolutely true diary of a part-time indian. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Metaphor:
"The people at home...a lot of them call me an apple...because they think I'm red on the outside and white on the inside" (Alexie, 2007, pp.131-132).
Image result for bite of an apple

Junior being called an "apple" is an example of a metaphor. A metaphor is a comparison. Usually, metaphors are used as a literary device to explain an abstract concept by comparing it to something more tangible, or to make something more vivid. In this case, a metaphor is being used at hateful and hurtful language; it goes beyond name-calling because it is heavy with racism. Junior is 100% Indian, but even if he was mixed race, this would still be inappropriate language. Junior interprets being called an "apple" as being called a "traitor." People of his community consider him to be a traitor for seeking better education and opportunity. Junior appreciates why (even though he knows it is not the same); the Indian population was forced by whites to be educated in white schools to learn their white ways and their white history and white language, and Junior leaving the reservation school to learn at a "white school" feels similar to that hurtful past to the members of his Indian community living "on the rez." Junior is being called a traitor even though he knows deep down that he is not. Still, he is willing to accept this hurtful language in order to pursue his dream of a better education and a brighter future full of opportunity.

Have you ever been called a traitor? If not, have you ever felt like a traitor? What was it like? What were the circumstances? Were they anything like Junior's? Did you end up having to leave you community as a result?

Image result for traitor

Personification:
"And sure, Oscar was only an adopted stray mutt, but he was the only living thing that I could depend on. He was more dependable than my parents, grandmother, aunts, uncles, cousins, and big sister. He taught me more than any teachers. Honestly, Oscar was a better person than any human I had ever known" (Alexie, 2007, p.9).

This statement certainly reveals how important Oscar is to Junior, but more importantly, it reveals how much the people around Junior have let him down. The very people who are supposed to love and support him have fallen short in a big way. This passage explains why Junior needs the challenge of a different school and is willing to be at odds with his community to go to one; he was already at odds with his community.

Image result for dog dressed like a person

When Junior says, "Oscar was a better person than any human I had ever known," that is personification, because Oscar is a dog and cannot be a person. To Junior, Oscar taught Junior the things we expect to learn from our family and teachers like being "dependable" and being a "good person" (Alexie, 2007, p.9).

I think Junior would really be able to relate to the following poem, which uses a dog to explain an important part of life. It seems Oscar did that a lot for Junior.


How Falling in Love is Like Owning a Dog
Taylor Mali

First of all, it’s a big responsibility,
especially in a city like New York.
So think long and hard before deciding on love.
On the other hand, love gives you a sense of security:
when you’re walking down the street late at night
and you have a leash on love
ain’t no one going to mess with you.
Because crooks and muggers think love is unpredictable.
Who knows what love could do in its own defense?
On cold winter nights, love is warm.
It lies between you and lives and breathes
and makes funny noises.
Love wakes you up all hours of the night with its needs.
It needs to be fed so it will grow and stay healthy.
Love doesn’t like being left alone for long.
But come home and love is always happy to see you.
It may break a few things accidentally in its passion for life,
but you can never be mad at love for long.
Is love good all the time? No! No!
Love can be bad. Bad, love, bad! Very bad love.
Love makes messes.
Love leaves you little surprises here and there.
Love needs lots of cleaning up after.
Sometimes you just want to get love fixed.
Sometimes you want to roll up a piece of newspaper
and swat love on the nose,
not so much to cause pain,
just to let love know Don’t you ever do that again!
Sometimes love just wants to go out for a nice long walk.
Because love loves exercise. It will run you around the block
and leave you panting, breathless. Pull you in different directions
at once, or wind itself around and around you
until you’re all wound up and you cannot move.
But love makes you meet people wherever you go.
People who have nothing in common but love
stop and talk to each other on the street.
Throw things away and love will bring them back,
again, and again, and again.
But most of all, love needs love, lots of it.
And in return, love loves you and never stops.

This poem by Taylor Mali is a Literary Device, can you spot it? What do you think of his comparison, does it work?Why or why not? What else stands out to you about this poem?

Have you ever had a pet teach you an important life lesson? Describe the experience. Does it compare at all to Junior's experience with Oscar?

More Literary Devices:
Characters, Conflict, Setting, and Symbols 

Sherman Alexie is very clever thoughtful and clever about how he writes his characters and settings as he builds the conflicts. He always stays true to the same theme: a sense of belonging.

The characters Junior and Rowdy have a friendship that struggles when Junior decides to go to Rearden, a school "off the rez." This major conflict--whether or not they will be able to repair their friendship--is symbolic of an even larger conflict involving the two major settings of the book: Rearden and Wellpinit (the reservation). The larger conflict is Junior's dreams and ambitions to have opportunities beyond the reservation while remaining true to his roots as an Indian; finding a way to reconcile his "place" in both of these settings would show a greater reconciliation within himself and his internal struggle (which is reflected by Junior's external struggle with Rowdy and the two different settings). It is amazing that Alexie took the theme of belonging and infused it into his characters, settings, and conflicts. Everything fits beautifully together and sends the same powerful message no matter what aspect you choose to look at: when you know and accept who you are, you belong anywhere.

Image result for belonging
Apple is no longer negative. It is just a fruit. They may have different skin colors, but they all have the same name and they all belong to the fruit family.
Image result for belonging

Week 6, Post 2
Quotation and Poetry

Alexie, S. (2007). The absolutely true diary of a part-time indian. New York: Little, Brown and      
            Company.

Junior chooses to go to a school "off the rez" because he is hopeful that it will provide him with a better education with better opportunities. His community does not support him in this decision. Junior describes the toll this decision takes on him, how he doesn't feel like he belong anywhere:

"Traveling between Rearden and Wellpinit, between the little white town and the reservation, I always felt like a stranger. I was half Indian in one place and half white in the other. It was like being Indian was my job, but it was only a part-time job. And it didn't pay well at all" (Alexie, 2007, p.118).

This quotation explains the title of the book. No matter where Junior goes, being an Indian is part of it (even if sometimes it is about not being Indian enough). It is interesting that he feels like he is "half Indian" and "half white" because he is biologically 100% Indian; clearly, biology is not what matters here, but how Junior feels, or rather, how his surrounding communities make Junior feel. From this quotation, one thing is abundantly clear: Junior continues to feel like he does not belong, no matter how hard he tries.

Junior is especially discouraged because he is paying such a high premium in the hopes of gaining a better education with better opportunities. As he said, "it doesn't pay well at all." Sometimes, putting so much pressure on one thing to solve all worries and answer all dreams can come with fear. I think this quotation reflects Junior admitting to himself that perhaps going to this new school may not be the answer to all of his problems, because clearly it is starting some of its own. Still, he has high hopes for his education and presses on, regardless of how uncomfortable he feels within both communities. I think he is worried, still, if it is all for nothing: what if he can't get ahead because of his own shortcomings? I think this sentiment is captured beautifully in the Billy Collins poem
"Forgetfulness."

Forgetfulness

The name of the author is the first to go
followed obediently by the title, the plot,
the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel
which suddenly becomes one you have never read,
never even heard of,

as if, one by one, the memories you used to harbor
decided to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain,
to a little fishing village where there are no phones.

Long ago you kissed the names of the nine Muses goodbye
and watched the quadratic equation pack its bag,
and even now as you memorize the order of the planets,

something else is slipping away, a state flower perhaps,
the address of an uncle, the capital of Paraguay.

Whatever it is you are struggling to remember,
it is not poised on the tip of your tongue,
not even lurking in some obscure corner of your spleen.

It has floated away down a dark mythological river
whose name begins with an L as far as you can recall,
well on your own way to oblivion where you will join those
who have even forgotten how to swim and how to ride a bicycle.

No wonder you rise in the middle of the night
to look up the date of a famous battle in a book on war.
No wonder the moon in the window seems to have drifted
out of a love poem that you used to know by heart. 
Have you ever hear the phrase, "don't keep your eggs all in one basket?" Do you think that is what Junior is doing with going to this new school? If you were in his position, do you think it would be worth all the pressure and having to deal with feeling like you didn't belong anywhere for the greater purpose of gaining better opportunities for your future?

After reading the Billy Collins poem, "Forgetfulness," have you ever felt so much pressure to succeed that it felt like your brain was mush and you were worried you were going to let yourself and everyone around you down? Write a journal entry about that experience and connect it to the Billy Collins poem "Forgetfulness."



Wednesday, April 26, 2017

Week 6, Post 1



I chose to read Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. I knew this book would deal with the tensions involved with participating in different and conflicting communities, and I thought that would be a great discussion topic for a high school English class. I hope to inspire students to examine the types of communities they consider themselves a part of both in school and for school, as well as the types of communities they consider themselves a part of completely outside of school. I wonder what comparing and contrasting those communities would look like or even feel like for students. The need to belong is a powerful drive in the human experience, especially at their age. Alexie's book does a great job of starting this kind of thinking and dialogue.


Friday, April 21, 2017


Lesson 2, Discussion

Subject/Course: English
Topic: Compare and Contrast To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Lesson Title: Compare and Contrast Unique and Unconventional Parenting Styles of Atticus Finch, Rose Mary Walls, and Rex Walls using “Golden Lines” Discussion Technique
Level: 9th Grade
Lesson Duration: 2 classes (upon completion of class reading of The Glass Castle and To Kill a Mockingbird)
Lesson Objectives: evidence-based discussion regarding unique and unconventional parenting styles and its positive affect on children as displayed by the main characters in each novel

Summary of Tasks/Actions:
  • ·       Asks students to keep a “Golden Lines” log of quotations which highlight the unique and unconventional parenting styles of Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird and Rose Mary Walls and Rex Walls in The Glass Castle as they read each novel. Examples should lead to positive outcomes for their respective children. (Negative outcomes are a different discussion, as all parents experience negative outcomes).
  • ·       Students will be asked to have a minimum of 5 “golden lines” per book, complete with examples of unique parenting and corresponding positive outcome, even if some of it requires paraphrasing.
  • ·       Along with these specific “golden lines,” students should journal the following prompts to go along with them regarding their responses to these unique and unconventional parenting styles:

I thought…
I liked…
I wondered…
I felt…

References:
Lee, H. (1960). To kill a mockingbird. New York: Grand Central Publishing.
Walls, J. (2005). The glass castle. New York: Scribner.

Take Homes Tasks:
After class discussions are complete, use your “golden lines” and journal entries to guide you in writing an evidence-based “compare and contrast essay,” comparing and contrasting the positive aspects of the unique and unconventional parenting styles of Atticus Finch, Rose Mary Walls, and Rex Walls. Be sure to make a clear position in your thesis statement and support it with evidence in the body of your essay (using your “golden lines.”) This essay should be at least five paragraphs.

Reference Materials:

Examples of “Golden Lines” from To Kill A Mockingbird describing the unique and unconventional parenting skills of Atticus Finch and its positive outcomes:
1)    Perhaps the most obvious aspect of his unique and unconventional parenting is the decision to have his children call him by his first name: Atticus, just as everyone else does. This is out of respect for his children, believing them to be equals. He shows he is not ageist or classist or particularly hung up on authority.
2)    Atticus is a widower, always tied up with work, always needing personal time to read the newspaper, but finds the time to spend one-on-one with his children.
3)    He never spanks or yells, and patiently answers any and all questions, “When a child asks you something, answer him, for goodness sake. But don’t make a production of it. Children are children, but they can spot an evasion faster than adults, and evasion simply muddles ‘em” (Lee, 1960, p.116). This is the foundation of his parenting philosophy, in addition to modeling the behavior he expects to see in his children.
4)    He even comes up with compromises to help his children navigate their very small world as evidenced by the conflict Scout has in school because she already knows how to read (Atticus advises Scout allow her teacher the dignity and pride of teaching her by attending school and participating in exchange for extra reading lessons and one-on-one time with Atticus at home; it is, after all, his fault that she learned to read early) (Lee, 1960, p.41).
5)    Atticus makes a point to teach his children about empathy and understanding, and does it in a way that suggests it is a lesson to be used as they live the rest of their lives; he takes these learning opportunities to try and raise better people, “If you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks… You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view—Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it,” Atticus Finch is not only patient, he clearly thinks about the long-term consequences of his lessons (Lee, 1960, p.39).
6)    “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do” (Lee, 1960, p.149).
-There is so much wisdom packed into this quotation: Atticus’s position on guns, on fighting a fight even if it isn’t a fair one, about the importance of finishing what you start, about putting in the work for the sake of the work and not the win. There are so many lessons here, and they were all taught in the context of the death of a belligerent neighbor.
7)    “According to [Mrs. Dubose’s] views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody. She was the bravest person I ever knew” (Lee, 1960, p.149).
-This is a powerful quotation coming from Atticus, because Atticus is the bravest man Scout and Jem know. For Atticus to admit to feeling that way about someone else is to admit his humanity, and for a person that Jem and Scout really did not like at all. This single statement brings Jem in particular to feel like his world is turned inside-out for a moment, where he needs to reconsider everything, especially everything he thought about Mrs. Dubose, because he respects Atticus’s opinion so much and holds it in such high regard. A simple statement goes a long way for the Finch children; Atticus taught them how to think; given the opportunity, he gives them things to think about to alter and broaden their world-view. Atticus says as much to Uncle Jack about Scout, “the answer is she knows I know she tries” (Lee, 1960, p.116)
8)    “Best way to clear the air is to have it all out in the open” (Lee, 1960, p.366). Atticus believes in transparency, even if the truth is ugly and doesn’t show him in a favorable light. Atticus believes in the truth first, and always. Honesty is an incredibly important aspect of his parenting, both in his teaching and in his modeling. He was tested near the end when Jem was suspected of murder, and even when Jem’s name was cleared, Atticus was skeptical, “I don’t want [Jem] growing up with a whisper about him, I don’t want anybody saying, ‘Jem Finch…his daddy paid a mint to get him out of that’ ” (Lee, 1960, p.366). Atticus would only accept Jem’s innocence if it was the absolute truth. A clear conscious is something that drives Atticus. It drives him to take Tom Robinson’s case, even when the town was pressuring him to do the opposite, “but before I can live with other folks I’ve got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience” (Lee, 1960, p.140). Integrity is everything to Atticus, “I couldn’t go to church and worship God if I didn’t try to help that man” (Lee, 1960, p.139).
9)    During a visit with Uncle Jack, Scout has an encounter where she explains why Uncle Jack hands a situation poorly (as in, he did not handle it the way Atticus does), “I love you even after what you did, but you don’t understand children much…In the first place you never stopped to gimme a chance to tell you my side of it—you just lit right into me. When Jem an’ I fuss Atticus doesn’t ever just listen to Jem’s side of it, he hears mine too” (Lee, 1969, p.113). Atticus’s parenting style is likely inspired by his profession as a lawyer, but modelling that there are two sides to a story is a great way to begin teaching his children about empathy, something he values very much and tries to teach them in a variety of ways.


Examples of “Golden Lines” from The Glass Castle describing the unique and unconventional parenting skills of Rose Mary Walls and Rex Walls and the positive outcomes of said unique parenting:
1)    “You can’t cling to the side your whole life, that one lesson every parent needs to teach a child is ‘if you don’t want to sink, you better figure out how to swim’ ” (Walls, 2005,p.66)
-both a specific incident and a general approach to parenting
2)    “After dinner, the whole family stretched out on the benches and the floor of the depot and read, with the dictionary in the middle of the room so we kids could look up words we didn’t know. Sometimes I discussed the definitions with Dad, and if we didn’t agree with what the dictionary writers said, we sat down and wrote a letter to the publishers. Occasionally, on those nights when we were all reading together, a train would thunder by, shaking the house and rattling the windows. The noise was thunderous, but after we'd been there a while, we didn't even hear it” (Walls, 2005, pp.56-57).

-Here is example of a peaceful scene occurring within the Walls family (which are not often depicted). Learning was encouraged in the Walls household by both parents, and Rex Walls especially loved teaching lessons on psychics, geology, and astronomy to his children. Being poor does not mean being uneducated. Rex Walls even showed his children how to advocate for themselves (by writing letters to the publishers, as an example).

3)    “She’d been reading books on how to cope with an alcoholic, and they said that drunks didn’t remember their rampages, so if you cleaned up after them, they’d think nothing had happened. ‘Your father needs to see the mess he’s making of our lives,’ Mom said” (Walls, 2005, pp. 112-113).

-Rose Mary Walls was just as unconventional in the way she treated her husband as she was in parenting.

4)    “ 'Oh Yeah?' I said. 'How about Hitler? What was his redeeming quality?' / 'Hitler loved dogs,' Mom said without hesitation” (Walls, 2005, p.144)

-As a result of the frustration Jeannette feels toward her grandmother and her prejudice, Rose Mary tries to teach her daughter a lesson in compassion by explaining even the worst person Jeannette can think of had a good quality. Rose Mary hopes to teach her daughter to understand what caused her grandmother to become prejudiced instead of merely judging her, and to take-away a larger lesson which is not to judge but to understand.

5)    Later that night, Dad stopped the car out in the middle of the desert, and we slept under the stars. We had no pillows, but Dad said that was part of his plan. He was teaching us to have good posture. The Indians didn't use pillows, either, he explained, and look how straight they stood. We did have our scratchy army-surplus blankets, so we spread them out and lay there, looking up at the field of stars. I told Lori how lucky we were to be sleeping out under the sky like Indians. / 'We could live like this forever,' I said. / 'I think we're going to,' she said” (Walls, 2005, p.18).
-This passage can teach us a lot about the various characters in The Glass Castle. Rex Walls always has some creative adventure planned that is a sharp turn from reality to make life more exciting for his children. This passage also reveals that Jeannette is the only one who really plays along with her father’s fantasies (which becomes clear in the first pages of the memoir during the very first adventure: escaping the hospital). It is understandable why Rex so desperately wants to keep his children from seeing the reality of their circumstances, because he has so little control over what he can do about them; he wants them to have a happen childhood in spite of said circumstances. Thus, he gives them what he can: fantasies and adventure and lessons on what he knows. Still, Lori is cynical and chooses to see reality.

6)    “Mom, however, told us that the FBI wasn’t really after Dad; he just liked to say they were because it was more fun having the FBI on your tail than bill collectors” (Walls, 2005, p.21)
-Here is another example of Rex Walls telling tall tales not only to make his life more interesting and creating a canon of stories his children loved to hear over-and-over, it was a way for him to keep a sense of pride and dignity by avoiding reality.

7)    “When Dad wasn’t telling us about all the amazing things he had already done, he was telling us about the wondrous things he was going to do. Like build the Glass Castle” (Walls, 2005 p.28)

-Beyond her father’s dream, this “glass castle” became a family dream, so much considered that Rex Walls carried actual blueprints with him for his children to work on as a distraction or when hope was needed. This also give context to the memoir title.

8)    “ ‘That was the thing to remember about all monsters,’ Dad said: ‘They love to frighten people, but the minute you stare them down, they turn tail and run.’ ” (Walls, 2005, p.43).
-Right before this quotation, Rex Walls took Jeannette “Demon Hunting” to “chase away” the “demons” she imagined. This is a very creative, hands-on approach to parenting. Rex Walls did not dismiss, Jeannette; he took her seriously, and took action to assuage her fear.






Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Lesson 1, Technology Connections

Subject/Course: English
Topic: Compare and Contrast To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Lesson Title: #life@home, a Twitter Assignment
Level: 9th Grade
Lesson Duration: 3 weeks (alongside class reading of The Glass Castle after reading To Kill a Mockingbird)
Lesson Objectives: making personal connections to unique and unconventional parenting in students' experience

References:
Lee, H. (1960). To kill a mockingbird. New York: Grand Central Publishing.
Walls, J. (2005).  The glass castle. New York: Scribner.

Atticus Finch, Rose Mary Walls, and Rex Walls are characters who all approach parenting in unique and unconventional ways. Most of the time, it adds to the fun of childhood, but sometimes it can lead to embarrassment. Nobody is perfect. We don't get to choose our family, but we do get to choose what we do with it; look at how Jeannette Wells chose to look at her parents and her childhood after everything she experienced in The Glass Castle!

Consider your own life at home and what makes it unique on a daily basis. Make at least 5 posts on Twitter over a three week period using the hashtag (#life@home). Use pictures as often as you can. You want these posts to reflect anything that sets your life at home apart; aspects that make it unique and special. It could be positive things, funny things, something that makes you smile, something to share, even something where we can all relate to the embarrassment of it all. Think about what funny things have your parents or guardians done to be your friend instead of your parent? Has anyone in your household tried to "act cool" and totally failed? Do you have family dinner? What kinds of things do you do together as a family? What makes those times unique (good or bad)? If you have siblings, what is it like to have them around, and what makes them special (good or bad)? These are some questions to get you started on thinking about what to post.

Have fun with this project! Have a good laugh, and share it with the class as your peers do the same over the coming weeks. I am looking for a personal touch, not a meme you can relate to already posted online.

Here are some generic examples:

When your dad makes you lunch, and guilts you into eating it #life@home
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When your mom cuts your hair and leaves a lightning bolt behind #life@home
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Watching the big game at home, rooting for different teams #life@home
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#life@home
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(Note: The concept is good, but please do not post memes like this one. Post your own photos with original text explaining them).

Displaying image.png
#life@home
(Note: This would be a good one if it was a picture of you wearing something your mom made you try on. Or, it would be a good one if it was a post about something your family does to your dog. Be very clear about the message you are saying and make sure the picture you post matches your caption).

When your parents try to be cute #life@home
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When your mom tries to be cool in front of your friends #life@home
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Sunday, April 16, 2017

Questioning Strategies and Discussion Strategies

Golden Lines
Golden Lines provide evidence-based thinking. Students collect quotations (also known as “golden lines”) as they read, considering and responding to the following questions as they record them:
I thought…
I liked…
I wondered…
I felt…
Students can use these to discuss as a class. They can compare which “golden lines” they chose, and note which ones were chosen the most. They can also compare and contrast the way the same “golden line” may have affected the ways in which readers responded to the above prompts in different ways, and consider why this might be.
Image result for reader's digest quotable quotes
Activity
Using the following “golden line” from Elie Wiesel’s Night, respond to the above four prompts as a journal entry:
“I have more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He alone has kept his promises, all his promises, to the Jewish people” (Wiesel, 1958, p.81) (said the man in the hospital bed beside Elie Wiesel.)

Response Log
Students use a response log to respond to their reading as they read. They consider the following prompts:
I would like to discuss …
I would like to ask them what they think of….
I wonder why?...
It was interesting that…
These prompts prepare students for class discussion. Sometimes, even when students complete the assigned reading, they do not know how to discuss what they have read. This technique allows students to take time prior to class discussion to consider ways to reflect upon what they have read, and package these thoughts in a way that makes class discussion less intimidating. This method can boost confidence for reluctant participators and make them feel prepared for class discussions. This technique is excellent for those students who are prepared but are slow-to-warm-up to discussions and take more time to answer questions than class discussions allows. This provides a way for them to have the time to prepare and gain confidence without slowing down the rest of the class.

Activity
The following quotation in Elie Wiesel’s Night makes a direct connection to the role faith plays in survival, “If only he could have kept his faith in God, if only he could have considered this suffering a divine test, he would not have been swept away by the selection. But as soon as he felt the first chinks in his faith, he lost all incentive to fight and opened the door to death” (Wiesel, 1958, p.77). Write in your response log answering the above prompts, preparing to discuss the meaning of this quotation in class tomorrow.

The Question Wall
This is an anonymous way for students to communicate questions about their leaning as they read. This is a way for teachers not only to gauge class comprehension and understanding as well as for the entire class to consider trends, but it is also an opportunity to study the questions themselves. Students can rate the quality of the questions and offer input on how to improve questions. Small “workshops” like this allows students to appreciate questioning as an art, and to improve their own questions as the year goes on (Bent, 2017, Essential Questions Week 4).
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Vislocky, E. (2017). Engaging learners through the power of questioning. Retrieved by <https://www.nwea.org/blog/2014/engaging-learners-power-questioning-teacher-professional-development/>.

Socratic Questioning
Inquiry-based learning is on the rise, but it all began with Socrates who believed that all learning begins and ends with questioning. Socratic Questioning is a structured way to create a critical atmosphere to investigate student thinking and comprehension. Students studying these questions are likely to benefit in the development of their own question crafting, which is an important side-benefit of this technique.
There are six main categories:
1.       Clarification: Why do you say that?
2.       Probing Assumptions: How can you verify or disprove those assumptions?
3.       Probing Rationale (providing evidence): Why do you say that?
4.       Questioning Viewpoints: What is the counter argument?
5.       Probing Consequences: What are the consequences of this assumption?
6.       Questions on the Questions: What was the point of that question?

Use below visual for more questions under each category:





https://alfredovela.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/procesosocratico.jpg
Lee, M., Kim, H., & Kim, M. (2014). The effects of socratic questioning on critical thinking in web-based collaborative learning. Education as Change. 18.2. pp.285-302.

Activity
After reading Night by Elie Wiesel:

Consider the concept of stereotype. Look up the definition. Now look up the definition of genocide. Think about how you might stereotype in your world. Consider how stereotyping is used in governmental/systematic programs such as “racial profiling.” Can you see how stereotyping could lead to genocide? Write a well-crafted argument in the form of an essay. Use evidence when necessary. Be sure the essay considers the six Socratic Questions and holds up to them.

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

I have completed all roles involved in a Literary Circle while reading Cynthia Lord's Rules chapters 1-11. The roles made more sense as I completed them. They definitely helped me process the material. I am only halfway through the book. I can't wait to see where the story goes and what becomes of our Literary Circle!

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  • Travel Tracer-carefully track the action in words or diagrams
                              1) Mom is in the kitchen prepping burgers for tomorrow cookout (hoping the new neighbors will                                                   join)
                                  Dad is outside teaching David how to hit tennis balls
                                  Catherine is trying to invite the new neighbors to the cookout without being embarrassed by her                                                brother while doing it
                               2) Occupational Therapy Clinic(this setting has been described in the first five chapters)
                                  David and his mom are there, but the focus is on Catherine and Jason's positive interaction (which is                                         surprising, because Catherine began the 
                                  chapter eager to spend David's appointment at the park)
                               3a) Home where David is in the living room watching a section of Thomas the Tank Engine over and                                              over
                                      Mom is in her office, on the phone, working (we learn that Mom keeps a puzzle in the office as an                                             emergency distraction, because David's autism will not allow him to just leave the pieces as they                                               are. More details on page 86).
                                       Catherine is supposed to watch David, but wants to work on Jason's cards at her desk, so she props                                            a mirror so she can do both
                               3b) Kristi enters Catherine's house where the two girls spend time in Catherine's room exclusively (with                                           a couple of interrupted visits by David)
                                      (The setting of Catherine's room was described in the first five chapters.)
                               4a) Catherine goes to Kristi's house because Catherine's house is so chaotic. They go straight to Kristi's                                            room, "Kristi's room looks like a page from a catalog, the sort of shiny catalog I get in the mail and                                          can only afford a toothbrush or a poster from. But Kristi's new pink-swirled curtains match the fat                                            comforter on her bed, which matches the pink and blue rug on her floor. It's all beautiful, but what I                                          envy most is the nice row of things on her bureau. Photographs, makeup, her jewelry tree, and a long                                        row of nail polish bottles--everything out in the open, not jumbled in drawers like mine, out of                                                  David's sight" (Lord, 2006, p.90).
                               4b) Kristi's Garage/ Driveway where Kristi and Catherine play Basketball
                               5)   Catherine goes home from spending time with Kristi around dinner-time to learn Jason was                                                       disappointed she wasn't there and brought carrots for Catherine's guinea pigs.
                               6)   Occupational Therapy Clinic-The focus is entirely on Catherine and Jason this time. Catherine brings                                       her guinea pig to make up for not showing up and she gives him the cards she made and they                                                     have a nice conversation. Catherine asks to go to the mall to pick up supplies to make more                                                       cards for Jason.
  • Connector-Find connections between you and the book, the book and the world
In these five Chapter Catherine deals with a lot of internal struggles. She has put a lot of hope in making a new friend next door and imagining the things they can do together. When Catherine meets Kristi she "knows she will be popular" (Lord, 2006, pp.79-80). Think causes Catherine to realize Kristi will not be the person she imagined Kristi to be in her head and she worries even more about how David acts. Catherine is excited about the opportunity to become friends with a popular girl, but deals with the internal conflict of what she will have to do differently to have such a friendship. For example, Catherine will need to be more selfish. She choose to go to Kristi's house instead of going to OT to bring Jason his new cards and she knew she was being selfish and possibly hurtful in that choice. Also, Kristi has become friends with Ryan who has been mean to David and Catherine does not like for this reason, but Catherine says nothing about this because she wants to be accepted in Kristi's world, even if Ryan is a part of it. Kristi needles Catherine on the point of if she has a boyfriend named Jason and Catherine is uncomfortable with this question, more uncomfortable than the reader would expect. Catherine lets Kristi think Jason is her boyfriend thinking they will meet, but the summer dance at the community center has been foreshadowed for the second time. 
Growing up, we all want that opportunity to live next door to our best friend and have flashlight signals through our window. I actually got to do this. I had my best friend who lives 2 streets down from me in my neighborhood. She then moved into the house next door, and her bedroom window was facing mine, so we actually could have flashlight signals. We were fifth graders at the time, so it really was the coolest thing in the world. Little did we know that this was a temporary, "stepping stone" move, where they were renting until they found a house all the way in Florida. So I was able to experience the dream situation for about 6 months but I paid a big price: my best from moved far away for good.
In a more general sense, I think everyone tries to "play it cool." We all have a deep desire to fill our sense of belonging, especially at Catherine's age. Catherine's world is different than most of her peers, and she worries about things that most people do not have to worry about. This chapter shows how frustrated that makes her. When she chooses to be selfish, she finds it to be a freeing experience, but it is likely because she knows how temporary is. Catherine never explicitly says or wonders what it would feel like to be selfish all of the time/only have to worry about yourself all of the time. I think this is because she loves her brother and takes her roles as big sister very seriously, as frustrating as it may be, she does not wish David away. Regardless, I don't think any reader is surprised by Catherine's actions or word choices when talking to Kristi as she is clearly trying very hard to fit in and be liked by Kristi. We have all been there. This is the most relatable experience in the world (I know that is hyperbolic, but it is such a relatable experience!) 

Week 6, Post 4 Class Poetry Project Alexie, S. (2007).  The absolutely true diary of a part-time indian . New York: Little, Brown and Co...