Monday-Friday 20-24 October

This week students had Monday to finishing preparing to complete the work sample for the following prompt. The next two class periods were spent producing the synthesis paper.

I’m not You, So Who Am I?

Prompt: A cultural-anthropologist from PSU is conducting research on Millennial’s attitudes and understanding about how they identify themselves and how that has or hasn’t changed from previous generations.  You have been selected to write an essay that compares and contrasts your perspective as a Millennial to those of past generations. Use Truth, Momaday, Mason, Kaplan, Casares, and/or Mukherjee’s essays to define identity as they seemed to have defined it, as they collectively represent earlier generations.  You can also refer to the series of caricatures from the late 18^th and early 19^th Centuries, the Radio Lab excerpt we listened to, and the film Crash.  In your expository synthesis essay define how these authors describe who they are and how they compare and contrast from the way you identify yourself or how your generation defines itself. Try to identify the various aspects of self that you consider important, referring where appropriate to the essays in this chapter citing the source with the author’s name and page number.  Be sure to discuss your own identity, in other words define who you are, how you see yourself, how others might see you, and how yours and your peers’ attitudes differ from previous generations.

Final Product: Your final written product will be an expository synthesis essay with the cultural-anthropologist’s as your audience.  Use MLA format

Materials and Resources Required:

·      Copies of the Thomson Reader: Conversations in Context 2007 Edition by Robert P. Yagelski

·      You may use your notes.

You’ll only have two block periods to complete this task; we will be in the computer lab next week. It is obviously VERY, VERY important that you be in class

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Thursday / Friday 16 / 17 October

Students should have turned in their independent reading dialogue journals in class.

Students were introduced to a major writing assignment that will be completed next week:

I’m not You, So Who Am I?

Prompt: A cultural-anthropologist from PSU is conducting research on Millennial’s attitudes and understanding about how they identify themselves and how that has or hasn’t changed from previous generations.  You have been selected to write an essay that compares and contrasts your perspective as a Millennial to those of past generations. Use Truth, Momaday, Mason, Kaplan, Casares, and/or Mukherjee’s essays to define identity as they seemed to have defined it, as they collectively represent earlier generations.  You can also refer to the series of caricatures from the late 18^th and early 19^th Centuries, the Radio Lab excerpt we listened to, and the film Crash.  In your expository synthesis essay define how these authors describe who they are and how they compare and contrast from the way you identify yourself or how your generation defines itself. Try to identify the various aspects of self that you consider important, referring where appropriate to the essays in this chapter citing the source with the author’s name and page number.  Be sure to discuss your own identity, in other words define who you are, how you see yourself, how others might see you, and how yours and your peers’ attitudes differ from previous generations.

Final Product: Your final written product will be an expository synthesis essay with the cultural-anthropologist’s as your audience.  Use MLA format

Materials and Resources Required:

·      Copies of the Thomson Reader: Conversations in Context 2007 Edition by Robert P. Yagelski

·      You may use your notes.

You’ll only have two block periods to complete this task; we will be in the computer lab next week. It is obviously VERY, VERY important that you be in class.

Students were provided the following graphic organizers for the project, and the class wrote about and discussed identity and worked on organizing data for the graphic organizer.

Tuesday / Wednesday 14 / 15 October

The class was reminded that dialogue journals for independent reading is due next class. Journals should be typed and neatly assembled.

Class had SSR.

Students shared the interior monologues based on the Vargas piece, and considered the question, "Is there a consistent difference in the way allies understand or perceive a situation as compared to the way a "victim" or persecuted person sees the same situation?"

4th Period class ended by writing on the prompt:

Write about a time when faced with a moral dilemma. Mention or indicate what written or unwritten law was violated, and describe the dilemma and the actions taken in detail.


7th period class spend time writing about a conflict they were part of in which they played one of the roles: target, perpetrator, bystander, or ally.

7th period began discussing the questions, "What makes it easier or more difficult to relate to a character in a text?" and "What factors do people consider wen identifying themselves?"

9 / 13 October

Students read and jigsawed a memoir by Jose Antonio Vargas "My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant".

Students in 2 and 3rd periods began developing an interior monologue based on the piece.

Students were reminded that dialogue journals for their independent reading are due on Monday, 17 October.

7 / 8 October

Class studied a variety of graphic texts relating to the history of immigrants in the United States.

Monday, 6 October

Students completed the "Radio Lab" piece from last class.

Students had some time for SSR.

Students received a grade print out to check their progress and for errors.

Students were reminded that Mr. Zartler would be out next week.

Students were also given the following letter to bring home; this letter was also emailed home.

October 6, 2014

Dear Parent or Guardian,

Teachers at Grant have shown the movie Crash for several years now because the movie brings to the forefront the themes of conflict and racism, two themes we have been studying this last month as part of our identity unit.  We haven’t received any complaints from students or parents about studying this R rated movie in classrooms in the past, but I want to be sure you are fine with your student seeing this movie.  Crash was nominated for six awards at the 78th Academy Awards and won three, including for Best Picture. It was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, one for Best Supporting Actor (Matt Dillon) and the other for Best Screenplay (Paul Haggis and Robert Moresco). 

The following is from a website called Common Sense Media that rates films for families.  I’ve copied and pasted here what the website has to say about the drawbacks of the film:

Parents need to know that, as the film interrogates urban fears, violence, and racism, the language, particularly the use of racial epithets, is rough. The film also features several violent scenes, including a carjacking, a pedestrian hit by a car, a five-year-old child shot by a handgun (with her parents watching), and several car crashes. Policemen, detectives, district attorneys, and an insurance adjuster prove untrustworthy; characters steal cars, do drugs, drink, smoke cigarettes, and have sex (including implied oral sex in a car and a cop putting his hands on a woman's private parts, in front of her upset husband, under the guise of "patting her down.")

Viewing this list alone, the film would appear to be inappropriate by some parent’s standards.  However, I’ve seen the strong positive influence the film has on students as they study the effects of prejudging another and how that can snowball into something unpleasant.  What the review doesn’t include is a synopsis of the many random acts of kindness that occur in the film.  Also, the film isn’t any worse than what one sees on broadcast television, with the exception of the swearing that would be bleeped out.

I strive to treat my seniors like adults and prepare them for a college experience that many will have next year but they are still considered minors.  I do believe, however, that the material is appropriate for high school seniors, and will provide for a rich addition to our curriculum.

If you have an objection to your student viewing this film, please let me know and I will provide an alternative assignment.

Sincerely,

Jamie Zartler

Thursday / Friday 2/3 October

Class began with SSR.

Students were reminded to continue reading and creating journal entries about their independent reading.

The class used the QAR sheets to structure a discussion on identity and assimilation and hyphnated identity (Mukherje and Casares).

Next we read the essay "Black Like I Thought I was" as an introduction to the ideas in the Radio Lab story "Race Doesn't Exist. Or Does It?"

The class used the following to organize their listening:

Directions:  As you listen to the program write down at least 5 statements that you found interesting or that you questioned.  Be sure to have ones that cover the scope of the program.  You can just paraphrase, so you don’t need to worry about exact quotes.  I have left room for you to comment about what you wrote down (what did you find interesting about the comment?  If you asked a question, what do you think the answer is?).  I suggest saving your responses for after we listen to the show so that you don’t get lost.  You may want to write your responses on the back.

Pre-Listening Question:

If you were to have a DNA analysis of yourself, what percentage of what race do you think the test would divulge?

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