Do you remember the very first thing that I asked you to do this year?

If you recall, the first thing you wrote this year was the first sentence of the story of your year.  If you don’t remember, I’ve typed them up for you (I did a bit of editing for those of you who wrote more than one sentence).

Your task today (to be finished and voted upon tomorrow) is this:

Choose one of the first sentences from our class (you don’t have to use your own) and use it to write a story of fewer than 100 words.  It does not have to be about your year in school — it can be about anything you like.  Your story must be a story – that is, it must have a beginning, middle and end, a conflict, a climax and a resolution.  This requires great economy in your writing — choose your words carefully.  Use evocative, active language.

You have today’s class to write your rough draft.  Wednesday, you will have part of the class to write out your final draft, and then we will share the stories and vote for a winner.

Good Morning lovelies!

I may be a few minutes late to class today, as my middle-school homeroom has an assembly and are making a presentation. They are first up in the order of things, so I should not be long, but in the meantime, please get started on your Journalism task for Animal Farm.

I will be there shortly. Remember, the point is to learn, not to be graded.

See you soon,
Mr. Pitter

Please remember to link your blog reflections from last class to your name in our class notes (select your name, click the link icon in the toolbar and paste in the URL of your blog post).  In today’s class, please to the following (in the order they appear):

1. Next class, we will be watching a documentary called Outfoxed, about the use of rhetoric in the presentation of television news.  The documentary covers several important events in American politics, which isn’t ideal, but it provides such clear examples of rhetoric, it is still worth watching.  So you have to do a bit of background research to be familiar with some of the important events the film will talk about.  You may work in groups of three to do this work, but be sure that each member of the group has all of the information.

Given the range of opinion about these topics, it is particularly important that you verify your findings by finding the same information in more than one source.  Find out about each of the following:
a. George Bush (Sr.)
b. George Bush (Jr.)
c. John Kerry
d. Rupert Murdoch
e. The Florida Recount (2000)
f. Republican Party
g. Democratic Party
h. Partisan (political)
i. Characteristics of Journalism

2.  Read Chapters 7 and 8 of Animal Farm (this is homework if not completed in class).

3.  If time permits, read and respond to the reflections of (at least) the TWO students whose names are below yours on the list above.  Ryo will read and respond to Jeong Hyun and Kelly, Daniel will read and respond to Khaled and Tyus.  A response requires you to add something the discussion.  Simply saying, “I agree”, or “that’s a good point”, is not a full response.  You can respond by expanding on an idea raised, disagreeing with something that has been said, agreeing and adding a further example, or asking a relevant question that invites further discussion. (this is NOT homework)

Read the following article about women risking death in order to write poetry in Afghanistan:

Why Afghan Women Risk Death to Write Poetry

Why is literature important? How is writing political, subversive, rebellious, empowering? We will have a discussion to learn your thoughts.

Image by Jeff Daly, http://www.flickr.com/photos/dalydose/324264361/
used under license CC-by-nc-sa

To conclude our study of Romeo & Juliet, here’s our last task:

Romeo & Juliet, Creative Response

Please read the task sheet above.  Please read the instructions carefully, especially as I will not be there to explain them to you in person.  After everyone has read the instructions, take a few minutes and brainstorm possible projects as a class.  Then, with the creative juices running, decide what you want to do for your project (it doesn’t have to be something that was discussed by the class.  it should be unique to you, as it is your expression of your response to the play).  Go ahead and get started.

One of the most interesting things about drama as a literary form is that it is highly interpretive.

Take a look at this scene from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

And then have a look at this interpretation made for a Levi’s jeans commercial:

Hi everybody. Welcome back!

A quick reminder that your essay is due on Wednesday morning. Please add the word count of your essay to the bottom of the final draft.

4. In class today, Saka mentioned that she thought Mercutio is the hardest character in the play to understand. Do you agree? Why or why not?

3. Would you have married Romeo and Juliet if you were a priest?

2. To what degree does Friar Lawrence believe in Romeo and Juliet’s love? Why does he do what he does?