Grade 12 IB B: Part 1 due before class on Wednesday, October 10th, Part 2 due before class on Monday, October 15th

Part 1: What is the most important message communicated to readers in "The Pieces of Silver"? How is the portrayal of Barbados similar or dissimilar in "The Pieces of Silver" by Karl Sealy and the travel advertisement we watched in class? (the link to the video is on the ppt on Edline, if you would like to watch it again!)

Part 2: Comment on the posts of two other classmates.

Remember, "The Pieces of Silver" is an option for the mock written assignment we will be starting on the 15th, so consider this as helpful preparation! :)

Grade 10: Part 1 due by Monday or Tuesday (see post below), Part 2 due by Wednesday or Thursday (see below)

For part 1, please respond to one of the following questions. For part 2, comment on two of your peers' posts.

C block due dates:
Part 1: Monday, September 24th
Part 2: Wednesday, September 26th

G block due date:
Part 1: Tuesday, September 25th
Part 2: Thursday, September 27th

—How does reading primary sources help our understanding of a person or event?

¡What bias is involved?

¡Can we avoid bias?

—Compare the tradition and institution of marriage in your own culture with that of the Batswana culture depicted in the story. Are there traditions that you like? Don’t like? Why?

—The short story has a lot to do with changes in tradition because of Western influence. In what other ways might this culture have been affected by Western influence? How do you think Head feels about those changes?

Grade 11 IB B: Part 1 due by Wednesday, September 19th, Part 2 due by Friday, September 21st

Read and annotate Sandra Cisneros' introduction to The House on Mango Street. It is called "A House of My Own." After reading, for your Part 1 response, answer ONE of the following questions:

1. Briefly describe the neighborhood where Cisneros taught.  Why don’t the landlords and the city take responsibility?  Consider specifically p. xviii.
2. What is the difference between what Cisneros’ father wants for her life versus that which her mother wants for her life? Why were there these differences and how might this have affected Cisneros?
3. Would you be friends with a person like Sandra Cisneros?  Why or why not? Provide a couple of examples from the introduction.

For your Part 2 response, comment on at least two other posts.

Grade 11 IB L&L: Part 1 due by Monday September 10, Part 2 due by Friday September 14

The cartoons below each communicate something about cliques and shared behaviors, values, or attributes.

Consider the following situation regarding cliques.

It is likely that at our school or in your local community there are multiple social groups, or cliques, that congregate around a shared set of interests, values, or assumptions. It is equally likely that each of the "distinct" groups (there is probably as much overlap between groups as there is true distinction) has or employs a semiotic sustem to advertise its identity. List some of the groups you commonly encounter--including your own (even if your own is a distinctly anti-group group!)--and some of the signs frequently employed.

Now, in your part 1 comment, think about and respond to the following questions. If you'd like to, you can also discuss any of the cartoons above.

1. What sign systems are commonly used?
2. How are they used differently among different groups?
3. What ideas are suggested about sign and sign systems as a result of your observations?

 Then, for part 2, comment on at least two of your classmates' posts.

Grade 12 IB B: Part 1 due before class on Monday September 10th, Part 2 due before class on Friday, September 14th

Consider the political cartoons below. In your part 1 comment, present an analysis of one of these cartoons, including a connection to Kesey's One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest. Then, for part 2, comment on at least two of your classmates' posts.

 

Grade 8: Due before class Monday, December 5th

Please post the conclusion to our class essay! For extra points, compliment and critique one of your classmate's conclusions.

Grade 8: Due before class Tuesday, October 25th

Find another example of foreshadowing in A Separate Peace. First, provide a quotation and page number that shows your example of foreshadowing. Then, explain the effect the foreshadowing has on you as a reader. Please write at least one paragraph. Bonus points for students who respond to other students!

If you need help finding an example, I found a few between pages 11 and 14!

Grade 12 IB B2 and 11 IB B1: Due before Monday, October 3rd

Browse the following blog:
http://www.menspeakup.org/

Write a reaction to one of the posts. Comment on at least one other classmates' post.

Grade 10 (A and F block): A block due before Monday, October 3rd; F Block due before Tuesday, October 4th

If you were turning "The Monkey's Paw" into a movie, what would you do to create the right atmosphere? Explain using details from the text! Comment on at least one other person's post.

Want extra credit? Find a youtube video of "The Monkey's Paw" that fits what you visualized while reading. Then, explain how it fits.

Grade 8: Due before Tuesday, October 4th

How might the story "I Just Kept on Smiling" change if told from Nicky Carver's point of view? From the teacher's? Explain using examples from the text. Comment on at least one other person's post.

Grade 11 IB B1: Due before Tuesday, September 27th

Read the following web page:
http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/northamerica/after1500/government/excluded.htm
Write a reaction to the information you learn. In your response, include specific details from the web page. Please also include a connection pertinent to what we have been discussing in class, whether it be Cisneros, minority groups, or women's rights. Comment on at least one other post.

Grade 12 IB B2: Due before Monday, September 19th

Please read the following article from Science Daily, an online news source.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/11/101116081430.htm

The evidence from the study described in this articles aims to explain how teaching about differences between genders leads children to create stereotypes for boys and girls. Please respond to one of the following:

• Share a memory in which you were taught (by parent, teacher, older sibling, anyone…) what a boy should do/be like or what a girl should do/be like.
  


• Explain the stereotypes for boys and girls in your own culture.

Grade 11 IB B1: Due before Monday, September 19th

Read the following poem by Elizabeth Croll. Croll describes the evolving identities of women in China. China is a very large country and contains varying attitudes. The following poem in her book describes an attitude that could be considered more traditional within China's culture.

After reading, please post a reaction to the poem. Do you think the different treatments of sons and daughters is fair? Do you think the depiction is realistic? If so, to what extent? What connections can you make to your own culture?

Please comment on at least one other post.

Daughter Order
When a son is born
Let him sleep on the bed
Clothe him with fine clothes
And give him jade to play with
How Lordy his cry is!
May he grow up to wear crimson
And be the lord of the clan and the tribe.
When a daughter is born,
Let her sleep on the ground
Wrap her in common wrappings
And give her broken tiles for play things
May she have no faults, no merits of her own
May she well attend to food and wine
And bring no discredit to her parents.

Grade 10 (A block): Due before Monday, September 19th

Consider the story "Worry" by Ron Wallace. Pretend that you are either the wife/mother, the husband/father, or the daughter. Write a diary entry from that character's perspective. Be creative!

Grade 10 (F block): Due before Tuesday, September 20th, 2011

Consider the story "Worry" by Ron Wallace. Pretend that you are either the wife/mother, the husband/father, or the daughter. Write a diary entry from that character's perspective. Be creative!

Grade 8: Due before Tuesday, September 20th, 2011

Do you think The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas provides a realistic view of World War II? Why or why not? Comment on at least one other post.

Grade 10 (F Block): Due before Monday, September 12th

Sound check! Can everyone post?? Answer the following question. Then, respond to at least one of your classmate's answers with a question or a comment.

What is your favorite book and why?

Remember, post your first comment early in the week so that everyone has time to post a response!

Grade 8 Adv: Due before Monday, September 12th

Sound check! Can everyone post?? Answer the following question. Then, respond to at least one of your classmate's answers with a question or a comment.

What is your favorite book and why?

Remember, post your first comment early in the week so that everyone has time to post a response!

Grade 12 IB B2: Due before Tuesday, September 13th

Sound check! Can everyone post?? Answer the following question. Then, respond to at least one of your classmate's answers with a question or a comment.

What is your favorite book and why?

Remember, post your first comment early in the week so that everyone has time to post a response!

Grade 11 IB B1: Due before Tuesday, September 13th

Sound check! Can everyone post?? Answer the following question. Then, respond to at least one of your classmates' answers with a question or a comment.

What is your favorite book and why?

Remember, post your first comment early in the week so that everyone has time to post a response!