January 13

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Forget about school for a minute and ask yourself this simple question: If you could learn about ANYTHING, in ANY WAY, what steps would you take to get the information you want?


AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Discuss HW
3. NF techniques: page layout, diction/syntax, graphics
4. NF history and types

HW:
1. Watch Bill Moyers' interview with Greg Mortenson here (for more background on the show and a transcript of the interview, go to http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/01152010/profile2.html)

2. Imagine an argument between Greg Mortenson and an American supporter of war in the region. Write the dialogue.

January 12

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Did you make any New Year’s resolutions? Why/why not? How can setting a goal help you achieve it? What goal(s) are you setting for yourself in this class this semester?

AGENDA:
1. Journal/check HW
2. Review vocab list
3. Intro to nonfiction
4. Discuss Three Cups of Tea

HW: Analyze your AZ article using the KWL table and the NF questions we discussed in class.

January 11

JOURNAL TOPIC:
Describe your lasting impressions of Greg Mortenson's Three Cups of Tea. Can you apply any of the "lessons" Mortensen learned to the shooting in Arizona?

AGENDA:
1. Journal (HW)
2. Vocab (definitions and sentences for HW due Tuesday, January 12; see list below)
3. ESSAY EXAM on The Kite Runner and Three Cups of Tea

HW:
1. Write definitions and sentences for Vocab #1 (see below)
2. Find an article about the shootings in Arizona and bring to class tomorrow

VOCABULARY LIST 1
Achieve
Accomplishment
Fulfill
Resolution
Contribute
Ambitious
Acronym
Attainable
Occupation
Vocation
Avocation
Hobby
Professional
Novice
Amateur
Dilettante

January 10

Happy New Year everyone!

Before break you were asked to check the blog prior to the first day of class. Those who remember this simple instruction will be richly rewarded, as follows:

Tomorrow you will have an in-class essay exam in which you be asked to compare Three Cups of Tea with The Kite Runner. To prepare, review your active reading notes and be sure to bring them with you. You may refer to them (if you have time) during the essay, but remembering them well will help you more than shuffling through them in the limited time you have to write.

HERE IS THE QUESTION YOU WILL BE ANSWERING:
What have you learned about the benefits and risks of helping people in a different group or culture? How can these lessons help people in Afghanistan—or Haiti, or even Americans who experience traumatic events in our communities (such as last week’s shooting in Tuscon, Arizona)?

You MAY include your own experience, or the experience of someone you know who has tried to make a positive contribution to the lives of others. You MUST support your answer with at least two quotes (each) from The Kite Runner and Three Cups of Tea that you think exemplify the differences between fiction writing and nonfiction writing.

_______
Tomorrow we will also have a vocabulary list and a journal topic; see January 11 post to get a head start and avoid having to do everything for homework tomorrow night. (If you need background on the shooting in AZ, click on the rollover link in the journal topic.)

WINTER BREAK

When it comes to thinking, there is only winter; there is no break.

REQUIRED: Read Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson

RECOMMENDED: Get a jump on your literature analyses for spring semester

See you (and your active reading notes, and your literature analyses) on January 12--Happy Holidays and best wishes for the New Year!

December 13

JOURNAL TOPIC:
(no journal today or during finals week; next entry will be January 11, 2011)

AGENDA:
1. Grade your group
2. Grade conferences (continued)
3. Final presentation prep
*rehearsal/time check
*in-class logistics (seating arrangement, tech, materials)
4. Winter break & Spring semester preview

December 10

JOURNAL TOPIC:

FINAL JOURNAL evaluation

AGENDA:
1. Journal
2. Literature circles/presentation prep