Assignment DUE Thurs May 21st

–> Find a short poem or a quote that is meaningful to you. As I said in class, this should be ACTUALLY meaningful to you; not like, “This is meaningful because it’s an ad for cheeseburgers, and I care about cheeseburgers!” This assignment isn’t for silly or cheeky ideas, so take it seriously: What’s a quote or short poem that has truly meant something to you? If you don’t have something already in mind, look around (internet, ask a friend, open a book). 

Ideally, it should be something that’s been published somewhere, as opposed to simply something a friend/family member said. (You’re looking for something from a poet, author, religious figure, political figure, activist, journalist, actor, musician, etc). (And of course, not something you wrote!)

–> Cassie Murray will be filling in on Thursday, and you’ll be doing a lot of creative work with her! It’s one of the last days, but see if you can give yourself over to writing process: Take the opportunity to create, to give voice to your own ideas and experiences, and to experiment! I can’t wait to read your work!

–> Think about what food and/or drinks you’d like to bring next Tuesday (5/26) for our final day! And if you plan to ask a parent, sibling, other to bake/cook/buy for you, please give them a heads up like NOW. 🙂  Coming dressed as a character from one of our books/stories is optional!
We’ll be sharing some creative writing, creating stuff with silly GIFs, and of course…eating things.

I’ll have limited access to email, but do email me if you have end-of-the-year questions!

Assignment DUE Tues May 19th

1. Write ONE short story in 420 characters or less. To get a feel for what you should be writing, check out this link to a bunch of 420-character (or less) stories. Keep clicking “Next” at the bottom of the screen to see more. (Warning: Some of these are PG-13. Use discretion.)

If you don’t have Word Count on your word-processing program, you can use THIS SITE to make sure you’re under 420 characters.

2. Type up your “Found Poem” and bring it to class with you on Tuesday. Make sure it fits on one page (adjust margins and font if necessary, and/or us columns).

3. IF you turned in your 1984 paper without giving me your printed article along with it, bring this with you on Tuesday.  I won’t grade your 1984 papers until I have the complete versions of them — which means I need the printed article or the video link.

Assignment DUE Thurs 5/14

FINISH WRITING THAT 1984 PAPER! Due Thursday.
Check previous blog posts for paper details! (Length, etc.)

–> Please don’t email your paper to me; it must be printed & handed in at the beginning of class Thursday, along with your printed article. (If you’re discussing a video, be sure that a link to the video is on your paper somewhere so I can find/watch it again.)  🙂

If you’d like to check out more of the 420-character stories, they can be found here. User beware; some stories are PG-13.
You’ll be writing your own original story for next Tuesday (5/19); it will have to be 420 characters or less.

Assignment DUE Tues May 12

Begin writing your final 1984 project! You were supposed to have already found the article or video that you’ll “compare” to 1984 and/or analyze against 1984. Now you’ll start the paper-writing!

1. Begin by writing a great thesis. Like our last paper, it must be a thesis that ends with “_____, ______, and _____.” In other words, your thesis will be a VERSION of, “This article is like/unlike 1984 because _____, ______, and _____.”
This will give you the structure you need to write a great paper! After your introduction, you’ll write a body paragraph for each of your three thesis parts.

2. You’ll need explicit examples from the novel AND from your article/video. After writing your thesis, identify the specific moments/quotes from 1984 that you want to use, and then identify the specific quotes/facts in your article/video that you want to use. Make sure you have a very specific moment, quote, or example from BOTH 1984 AND your article, for EACH of your body paragraphs.

3. This paper is due Thursday May 14th, but I will be checking your progress on Tuesday. Therefore, by TUESDAY, you must have a solid portion of your paper completed. If you have less than a thesis, intro, and a body paragraph, it will count against you, because you need to learn that two days isn’t enough time to put together a great paper.

4. PAPER DETAILS:
– No less than 2 pages, 12-point font, 1″ margins, double-spaced. Note: This is not long.
– No more than 3 pages
– Written in third person, as usual! (Don’t use I/me/my/we/our/us, and don’t use you/your)
– Printed out and handed in at the beginning of class on Thursday May 14.

6. Be prepared to talk about your paper in class Tuesday!

Vid Links! for May 7

Griffin: http://youtu.be/EHAuGA7gqFU

Spencer: Www.cnn.com/2013/08/03/opinion/Beale-1984-now/

Ari: https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q8xz8xKEFvU

Assignment DUE Thurs 5/7

You’ve finished the last novel of the year! Great job you guys. 🙂

For Thursday: 
Find a news article (from a legit news source) OR a news video (from a legit news source) that either reminds you of 1984 OR that explicitly mentions 1984, Big Brother, Orwell, etc. BRING IT WITH YOU ON THURSDAY.

The best way to go about finding your article/video is to browse some great news sites online and look through current articles/headlines… See if you see things about surveillance, totalitarianism, government spying, data collection, or even about brainwashing, heresy, or political dissent. If you don’t find anything, you can try a google search using some of these terms.

Your article or video must be:
– From 2014 or later, and ideally within the last few months. If you find something AWESOME that’s from earlier than 2014, run it by me before using it.
– Article: 5 pages long or less. Video: 3 minutes or less.

–> If you choose a video, please EMAIL ME THE LINK before Thursday, so that I can access it on the class computer and we can watch it together.
–> If you choose an article, please PRINT IT OUT & BRING IT.

DO NOT FORGET TO BRING YOUR ARTICLE WITH YOU OR TO EMAIL ME THE LINK TO YOUR VIDEO. NO EXCUSES!  🙂  

Assignment DUE Tues 5/5

1. Finish reading 1984! (OMG we made it!!!!)
As always, mark any vocabulary words you don’t know, and define them. Also mark up your text, as always! You’ll be quizzed Tuesday on the ending of the book.
IF YOU’VE ALREADY FINISHED THE BOOK: That’s fine, but you’re till responsible for vocab and etc on Tuesday. 🙂

2. Begin looking for current news stories that either mention 1984 OR that in some way remind you of “Big Brother,” The Party, Winston’s experience, or something about the culture of 1984. Your final project for the year will require you to analyze (as we have in class) how a news article might be said to reflect 1984. (The difference between this & some of our group article discussions is that the article must be current.)

Assignment DUE Thurs 4/30

1. Finish your research paper revision! It’s due Thursday April 30th. See previous blog posts for the HOW of turning it in! Please don’t turn it in without confirming that you’ve done so correctly. Double- and triple-check!
FYI: If you received a low grade, then even fixing just a few things is MUCH BETTER than doing NO revision at all. If you got a low grade, DO SOMETHING. Make it better, to whatever degree you can.

PS. If you needed help from me on your paper, you should have asked in class or emailed me by now. Thursday is too late to come in and ask for help, an extension, etc. If you’ve been absent and it’s excused, we can talk about options; otherwise, you’ve had several weeks to work on the paper and to ask me all kinds of questions. If you have a burning question Wed, send it along and if I have time I’ll try to help.

2. AM Class Only: Finish reading Section III, which ends on p174. 

Assignment DUE Tues Apr 28

1. Work on your paper revision! It’s due in one week (Thurs Apr 30th). You’ve got this, you guys! Give yourself time and mental space, and use your resources. Revising a paper is almost ALWAYS easier than the first time through, even when you’re doing a major overhaul. You have all the ideas in you– now it’s just a matter of getting them out with skill and professionalism! 🙂

2. Read 1984 pages 239-260. We’re nearing the end!!  🙂  As always, take notes, mark things that confuse or alarm you (or that you just want to bring up in class!), and circle AND DEFINE words you don’t know. There will be a short reading & vocab quiz on Tuesday.

3. Bring your dramatic voices on Tuesday, and we’ll read some aloud together in class. IF YOU WANT, bring a baked good, snack, and/or drink to share with the class! 

Assignment DUE Thurs 4/23

1. No reading homework! (I KNOW!)  🙂   (Catch up if you need to– you know who you are.)

2. If you’re revising your research paper, go over the notes/edits I made on the draft you turned in. Consider whether there are any questions you have for me, or whether there’s a particular thing you need help with. Write your needs & questions down!

3. Then gather together all your materials and bring them on Thursday. If you have a laptop or other device for typing up your paper, you can also bring this on Thursday.

THURSDAY WILL BE A WORK DAY– The focus is on your research paper revision, so do not come without your materials. You must be able to work on your paper while in class.
I’ll be here to answer your questions and help you as much as I can.

4. If you’ve already revised your paper, or if you don’t plan to do so, bring other work to do on Thursday. Many of you have mentioned how busy this season is for you, and this time is set aside to help you with your paper and/or help you get things off your school To-Do List. DO NOT SHOW UP ON THURSDAY WITH NO ACADEMIC WORK TO DO. No exceptions.