Your One Wild and Precious Life...

Students have been asked to get a composition book or journal (with binding that is NOT spiral, please) that will be PRIVATE. I ask that parents do not pry or ask to read the journals; I have promised to not look inside the journals as well. It’s an “on your honor” system in which my kids will record their thoughts, hopes, fears, dreams, secrets—anything and everything that is going on in their world at this age. They may write poetry, draw pictures, write stories, use it as a diary, make lists, and more. My hope is that they delve deep into their souls to write from the heart and put their honest and true emotions on the page. In the journal, students are asked to contemplate the prompt from the last two lines of the following poem from Mary Oliver. 

The Summer Day

by Mary Oliver

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean -
the one who has flung herself
  out of the grass, the one who is eating sugar out
  of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and
  forth instead of up and down -
who is gazing around with her
  enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and
  thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open,
  and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention,
  how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down
  in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how
  to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

As you can see, the prompt is: “Tell me, what is it you plan to do / with your one wild and precious life?”

At the end of the year, each journal will be placed into a large manila envelope with each student’s name on the outside. The journals are meant to be a gift to their future selves because I intend to do my best to track down each student and mail them their journals in 20 years. (I realize this will be difficult, but I will do my best to find them.) By then they’ll be in their 30s—an age that seems so distant to them right now, so implausible. It’ll also be a time in their lives when they have experienced much more than they have now, and I’d like for them to be able to look back at what they were like at THIS age and see if they have fulfilled their dreams, broken barriers that they thought they couldn’t overcome, and I want them to have a better understanding of how the paths they’ve chosen in life have led them to where they’re at. When we make choices, we don’t know the consequences of the path that we are choosing until after we’ve traveled down that road, just like in Robert Frost’s poem, THE ROAD NOT TAKEN. 

As a sad but necessary side-note, if I suffer an untimely demise, I’ll have instructions for the journals on the box in which they’re stored. The box of “secrets” will go to someone from this class (or a student’s parent) who can promise not to open any of the envelopes and then to mail them out in 20 years from when they were given to me.

I’m really excited about this project and hope that my kids write about their desires and dreams and what they’re like at this age. I must confess that the idea is not my own, but something that a teacher did in a recent YA novel that I read; therefore I must give credit to Jessi Kirby and her novel GOLDEN for inspiring me to do what Mr. Kinney did for his students during their senior year of high school. 

The prompt goes along with our Essential Question: Who is the Future Me? As we are working on this project, students have been creating Life Maps and imagining themselves anywhere from age 40 – 110 (though they aren’t allowed to be senile). They’ve worked on their Life Maps in class for quite some time and they’ll be expected to present them to the class on Tuesday, February 4. 

They’re also going to create a Portrait Project and do a bit of self-examination, exploring their past, present, and future selves. I took photographs (much to their dismay, ha!!!) and they’ll be displayed with their writing. If you’d like to see the work of some Harvard graduate students who did something similar, you can go to www.bhs.edu/portraitproject and see what those people have written. Obviously my kids won’t be quite so philosophical, but for parents who are questioning what the project might look like, I encourage you to check out the URL.  

We’re nearly at the mid-term of third quarter, so everyone needs to make certain that they’re keeping up with their work and still striving to do their best each and every day. The time that remains for us as a class is waning, and I want us to continue working toward meeting individual goals and being successful.

As always, I appreciate the help and support from my kids’ families; I’ve got a wonderful group and I’m so fortunate to get to know my kids in the time that we share. We’ve become something of a small family of our own here in our classroom.

Warmly,

Mrs. Gott

Quarter Three Independent Book Project (historical fiction)

Quarter Three Independent Book Project

(historical fiction)

1.     Everyone has already had their book preapproved by me. You should now be reading the book so that you can plan your project.

2.     As soon as you finish your book, you’ll need to take an AR test on the computer. The test score will be a separate grade, so you want to make certain you don’t earn a zero because you forget to take your test! AR tests must be taken by March 3, 2014. (Yes, there is still plenty of time!)

3.     Create an artifact that is representative of the novel you’ve read. You are NOT to purchase an object, you must figure out how to create something unique to your character or time period or events—and, in doing so, you must use whatever resources and materials you can locate and put together in a professional manner to represent something significant from the story that you read. For instance, if I read a book about the Underground Railroad, I could make a quilt block (or even an entire quilt if I were feeling particularly crafty, I suppose!) that held clues to help lead slaves from one location to another. (Obviously this would have had to have happened in the book—you can’t simply INVENT something that has nothing to do with your story.) Be creative and imaginative! Think outside of the box; an artifact can be from the story’s setting, prominent characters, or even the plot (events).

4.     Artifact Creation Log: Keep a log of the date(s) and time(s) that you work on your artifact. Each log entry should include a neatly-written summary about what you accomplished during that time. Make sure to use complete sentences. Include not only your progress, but a reflection (in each entry) about how you believe the project is going. Are you experiencing any frustrations or roadblocks along the way or is everything going much easier than anticipated? Do you have anyone helping you? Are you enjoying yourself or are you wallowing in the depths of misery? As always, too much information is better than too little, and I expect quality log entries.

5.     Your artifact must be accompanied by a well-written summary of the artifact and clearly explain its association to the novel that you read. BE SPECIFIC. What have you created and what is its significance? What makes it important? How does it relate to the characters or setting or plot? Too much information is better than too little information. Your summary should be typed in Times New Roman, 12-point font with one-inch margins. It is due with the artifact and you’ll present both to the class on the due date. Order of presentation will be chosen by random-draw.

6.     The due date for the entire project and presentation is March 3, 2014. Everything is due when you arrive to class. If you are absent, it’ll be due when you return. If you have any questions, it’s better to ask them and clarify the project sooner than later. Please do not procrastinate!

7.     Projects will be scored using the following rubric:

·        Relevance of the artifact to the story

·        Creativity

·        Originality

·        Neatness / Appearance

·        Effort / Estimated Time Involved in Project’s Creation

·        Presentation

·        Summary (format, depth (thorough explanation of correlation to reading), appropriate voice, grammar, mechanics, overall ability to summarize)

·        Artifact Creation Log (please see requirements as noted above on number four)

Hamlet Exam (final exam / take-home essay)

Today, the students took a 20 question multiple choice exam over HAMLET. The test included short answers (which have yet to be graded) and it also includes the take-home essay question (with details below). We will discuss the essay portion of the exam in more detail tomorrow, as several students had questions and I'd like to discuss my expectations in greater detail and give them an opportunity to discuss ideas in class. They can and should use their scripts as a resource when composing their essay for this exam.

ESSAY QUESTION: HAMLET FINAL

*Make sure you use paragraphs, complete sentences, and a thesis statement that explains exactly what you’re going to prove to the reader. You’ll have an introduction, a body (generally a MINIMUM of three paragraphs), and a conclusion, and you can (and should) use examples from your own life, experiences, other literature, or similar situations to help explain the piece that you choose to write about (from the list below). Make sure to proofread and edit your writing. The final draft should be typed and double-spaced, written in Times New Roman 12-point font with one-inch margins. It is due on Wednesday when you arrive to class. Your essay will be shared with your peers, so don’t write anything that you don't mind sharing with people other than me.

 

You have learned that one theme in Hamlet is the difficulty people face in distinguishing between reality (what is) and illusion (what seems to be). Show how any one of the following illustrates that theme. Write a well-composed response that is in-depth and uses specific examples from the play to back up what your answer. Make sure you use your own words—do not simply copy parts of your script. Using your own words will help me know that YOU know what you’re talking (writing) about and that you’re not simply grappling to find an answer. Prove that you have a clear understanding. The choices follow:

A.    Hamlet’s misgivings about the ghost

B.     Ophelia’s misunderstanding of Hamlet’s behavior once he has seen the ghost

C.     Gertrude’s lack of knowledge of Claudius’s character (character being not the role he plays, but his moral fiber)

D.    Laertes’ willingness to accept Claudius’s explanation of Polonius’s death

Quarter Three Independent Reading Project: HISTORICAL FICTION

The Quarter Three Independent Reading Project requires my students to read a historical fiction novel. Historical fiction is a genre in which the book’s events and setting are rooted in actual history and, although the characters are fictional, the foundation of the events is real. The characters in the book will also behave as they would for that particular time period as are the conflicts that are experienced. For instance, you have probably seen the movie The Titanic. The historical information about the ship, the time period, and the behavior of characters is real—they’re the historical aspect. The storyline, however, about the young man’s character winning a boarding pass in a card game and then having a love affair with a rich woman before they hit an iceberg and he dies so she can live are the fictional aspect. The characters and vernacular and costumes are true to the time period, but a story has been created FOR that particular historical event. Perhaps this will help you to better understand the genre.

I’ve had some parents concerned that their children are attempting to select books that aren’t historical fiction because the “history” isn’t “old” enough. However, while the Vietnam War may be fresh in your mind, it is a part of history and a topic that is the foundation for many authors of historical fiction. We don’t need to travel back several centuries for history…in fact, even 9-11 is a topic that more authors are choosing to write about for historical fiction novels. Keep in mind that these events are vague or VERY OLD in the minds of a younger audience, and even adults can learn a lot of information while enjoying such books.  

I didn’t give a specific length requirement of the novel for this project because all of my kids read at different levels. I don’t want someone to bring in an Easy Reader book, obviously, nor do I expect them to read something that is of incredible length and meant for an adult audience. That is why I tell the students that I need to pre-approve the book: I am checking to make sure that it IS historical fiction, and I am also making certain that the length and reading level of the book isn’t ridiculously high or low.

I haven’t given my kids the paperwork that details the project, nor have I told them the due date. All I asked them to do was to come to me with a book for their independent reading project, I explained what constitutes historical fiction, and I have been asking for their titles this week. This was a strategic move on my part: I’ve found that if I give them ALL of the information at once (especially after having two weeks off for winter break), they will feel overwhelmed and fail to pay attention to everything. (And, to be honest, they didn’t focus on much of anything the first couple of days back, so giving them information in small portions and reminding them of classroom expectations and procedures are what they’ve been trying to handle.) Therefore, the focus now is finding a book. Had I given them the entire project’s details on their first day back to school, they would have been overwhelmed and ignored the details. They’ll have very specific project information once they have their books.

I realize that some parents are concerned about the due date, so I’ll divulge it on here (as I don’t believe my kids sit around reading my blog for fun in the evenings). The due date for the project is March 3. Because my grades are due on the computer by March 14, this will give the students ample time in class to present their projects and time for me to correct them and post my grades online.

I hope the information I’ve provided is useful to you. Please let me know if you need any additional details, though I just want my kids to find a book and have it approved by me before I delve into the details with THEM. They’re still quite scatterbrained after the holidays and are having a bit of trouble maintaining (or even FINDING) focus in class.

I’ll hand out a chart today that explains historical fiction, so if you’re working with your child to find the perfect book but don’t quite have a clear understanding of the genre, feel free to ask for the handout (which is a web that includes details about characters, conflict, description, dialogue, plot, and setting). I hope this helps!

Thank you for all that you do. We have only one semester remaining and most of my kids earned high marks last quarter; please help them to maintain that motivation and to continue to earn grades that they can be proud of.

Warmly (but actually shivering as my fingers, which are numb with cold, type this),

Mrs. Gott