One-Word Biographies: September 28, 2018

Focus: How can a one-word biography help you uncover a shift you've undergone?

1. Warming up with Grammar You Must Know #2: Pronouns

2. Offering you an overview of our memoir unit

3. Friday freewriting: Click HERE for today's memoir slides on creating one-word biographies

4. Five-minute spontaneous share

HW:

1. Read pages 174-207 for next Tuesday in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close; complete your journal entry using either the three passage, three question format or one of the more creative choices. Do what works for you! 

If you miss a Fishbowl or Socratic, you must make it up. Read over the syllabus and blog comments, then add an extended comment to the class blog. 

2. We will continue our READING JOURNAL CONFERENCES in class next Monday and Wednesday. Click HERE for the rubric. 

3. TODAY IS THE FINAL DEADLINE FOR SUBMITTING ANY WORK FROM THE LAST SIX WEEKS. 

Alas, Poor Yorick: September 27, 2018

Focus: Why does Foer include the play Hamlet in his novel? What does it help us understand about Oskar's role?

1. Warming up with a crash course on Hamlet

• Read "Hamlet in a nutshell"
• In your journal or in your ELIC Google folder, spend some time listing possible parallels (strong similarities) between the play Hamlet and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. In particular, what conflicts do Oskar and Hamlet share?

• Read/act out Act 5, scene 1 from Hamlet using No Fear Shakespeare (pages 8 and 9).
• What's Hamlet struggling with in this scene?

• How might Hamlet's struggle relate to Oskar's struggles?

2. Optional: Watching the "Alas, poor Yorick" scene from the 1990 Hamlet (in the book, Oskar plays the role of the Yorick, the skull)

3. Enjoying Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close Discussion #3: Pages 142-173

4. Wrapping up with takeaways/reflections

HW:

1. For Tuesday: Read pages 174-207 in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close; complete your journal entry.

If you miss a Fishbowl or Socratic, you must make it up. Fishbowl: Read over the syllabus and blog comments, then add an extended comment to the class blog. Socratic: Read over the syllabus and the class notes, then add an extended comment to the class blog.

2. We will continue our READING JOURNAL CONFERENCES next Monday. Click HERE for the rubric. 

3. THIS FRIDAY IS THE END OF 6 WEEKS. All make-up work from the first 6 weeks must be submitted by tomorrow. After Monday, any grade in IC will remain as is.

Crossing the Threshold: September 26, 2018

Focus: How will the characters' quests unfold?

1. Warming up with a crucial step in the first stage of the hero's journey: Crossing the threshold

• Viewing an example from Moana; in your "in-class thoughts" document, please respond to the follow questions (start around 13:10-32:00):

• What is Moana's safe zone? Why compels her to leave it?
• What is her "dangerous unknown"? What makes it so risky?
• What happens on her first attempt to cross the threshold? Why?
• What happens on her second attempt? Why is the outcome different?
• What gives her the courage to cross the threshold?

• What is Oskar's safe zone? What compels him to leave it?
• What is his dangerous unknown? Why makes it so risky?
• What gives him the courage to cross the threshold? 
• What won't he venture into yet?

• What about Thomas? And the Grandmother? What are their safe zones and what is their dangerous unknown? To what extent have they crossed the threshold?

3. Reading ELIC, journalling, and conferencing (click HERE for the conference rubric)

HW:

1. For Thursday: Read pages 142-173 in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close; complete your 4th journal entry. You can continue journalling in the same way, or you can try out some of the creative options above! Whatever you do, make sure you post it on your blog:

If you miss a Fishbowl or Socratic, you must make it up. Fishbowl: Read over the syllabus and blog comments, then add an extended comment to the class blog. Socratic: Read over the syllabus and the class notes, then add an extended comment to the class blog.

2. All make-up work, missing work, and revisions must be submitted by this Friday, Sep 28. After this date, grades from the first 6 weeks will stand as they are.

Unpacking the Grandparents' Emotional Baggage: September 25, 2018

Focus: What do we understand about the characters in ELIC so far, and what are we wondering?

1. Warming up by taking ten minutes to comment on each other's reading journals

2. Opening the tightly packed emotional baggage from the grandmother's and grandfather's narratives

Left side of the room: 

• Find a chapter written in the grandfather's voice. 
• Identify one short sentence or phrase that alludes to his history/background/emotional baggage. 
• 2nd hour: Stand up and read it aloud. 6th hour: Write it on the front whiteboard.

Right side of the room: 

• Turn to the chapter written in the grandmother's voice. 
• Identify one short sentence or phrase that alludes to her history/background/emotional baggage. 
• 2nd hour: Stand up and read it aloud. 6th hour: Write it on the back whiteboard.

Everybody

• What are noticing about the grandparents?
• What are you wondering?

3. Enjoying our first Fishbowl discussion: Pages 85-141

Outer circle reminders:

• Hit F5 to refresh the screen.
• When you're replying directly to someone, hit "reply."
• Bring a quotation into at least one of your comments/questions.
• Stay consistent from the beginning of the conversation to the end.

4. Wrapping up

HW:

1. For Thursday: Read pages 142-173 in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close; complete your 4th journal entry. You can continue journalling in the same way, or you can try out some of the creative options below! Whatever you do, make sure you post it on your blog:

• Write about your day in Oskar’s voice, or Thomas’ voice, or any of the character’s voices.

• If you had a book like Thomas’ in which you wrote out the phrases you needed most, what would they be this week? What does that suggest about you as a character?

• Turn a chapter you just read into a poem. Give it a title.

• Take pictures. Use them to seek connection/understanding in the same way Oskar does. Or draw. Make sure you explain the connections.

• Find clues to your own life (it’s up to you to decide what you’re trying to figure out). You could use headlines from newspapers, from social media, or any other “artifacts” from your daily life. Describe your journey compares to Oskar’s (or the grandparents’).

If you miss a Fishbowl or Socratic, you must make it up. Fishbowl: Read over the syllabus and blog comments, then add an extended comment to the class blog. Socratic: Read over the syllabus and the class notes, then add an extended comment to the class blog.

2. For tomorrow: We will begin our READING JOURNAL CONFERENCES in class tomorrow (Wednesday). Click HERE for the rubric. 

3. THIS FRIDAY IS THE END OF 6 WEEKS. All make-up work from the first 6 weeks must be submitted by this date. After Friday, any grade in IC will remain as is.

A 9-Year-Old's Quest: September 24, 2018

Focus: Why is Oskar's quest important to us?

1. Warming up with three good things and Grammar You Must Know #2: Pronouns

2. Viewing the hero's journey as depicted in Finding Joe; mapping out the Joseph Campbell hero's journey as a class (around 4:00--13:34)

"Here it is: there's only one story. There, I said it and I can't very will take it back. There is only one story. Ever. One. It's always been going on and it's everywhere around us and every story you've ever read or heard or watched is part of it." 

-- Foster, How To Read Literature Like a Professor

3. Trying out Campbell's hero's journey with your favorite quests, then using the hero's journey to understand the start of Oskar's quest

4. Reading, journalling, and conferencing on Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Tuesday leaders: You have this time to prepare your syllabus.

HW:
1. Read through page 141 in ELIC and complete your third journal entry if you have not yet done so to prepare for Tuesday's Fishbowl discussion

2. Leaders need to prepare a syllabus and post it to the class website before class tomorrow.

3. THIS FRIDAY IS THE END OF 6 WEEKS. YOU HAVE UNTIL THEN TO SUBMIT ANY MISSING WORK, TO RETAKE ANY "QUIZZES," AND TO ALERT TO ME TO ANY INCORRECT GRADES. AFTER MONDAY, THE GRADES WILL STAND AS THEY ARE.

Protecting Ourselves from Sadness: September 21, 2018

Focus: How are the characters in ELIC protecting themselves from sadness?

1. Warming up with a Friday Freewrite (scroll down to the bottom and find the Sep 21 prompt)

2. Giving you 20 minutes to read and journal; remember that by Tuesday, you need to have read through page 141 and have completed your journal entry on the blog

To clarify: By Tuesday, you should have THREE journal entries posted on your blog

• Journal #1: Pages 1-15 (we did this in class)
• Journal #2: Anywhere from pages 16-85 (you either did this Wednesday or Thursday night)
• Journal #3: Pages 86-141 (you can do this today, over the weekend, and/or on Monday)

3. Watching the first twenty minutes of the film adaptation of ELIC to help you picture the characters and understand the plotline; use the film notes to guide your deep thinking

HW:
1. For MONDAY:10 pages of ELIC; start journal.

2. For TUESDAY: Read through page 141 and complete your third journal entry; leaders should prepare and post their syllabus.

ELIC Fishbowl #1: September 20, 2018

Focus: How do we discuss Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close?

1. Warming up with a triple Venn diagram for our three narrators

As we diagram...

• What are you learning about our three narrators?
• What are you wondering?
• What's unique about each narrator?
• How do the narratives overlap / relate to each other? What similarities can you find?

2. Enjoying our first ELIC fishbowl discussion (pages 1-85)

3. Wrapping up with kudos, lingering questions, and epiphanies

HW:
1. For TONIGHT: Read 10 pages of ELIC.

2. For TUESDAY: Read through page 141 and complete your third journal entry; leaders should prepare and post their syllabus.

Weaving the Narratives Together: September 19, 2018

Focus: How do we journal on Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close?

Tribe: Shortened Class

1. Warming up with your ELIC journal possibilities and an overview of how conferences work

2. Reading and journalling through page 85; Thursday's leaders may use this time to prepare your syllabus for tomorrow

HW:
For TOMORROW: Finish reading through page 85 for Thursday's first Fishbowl discussion. For your second journal entry, I'd like you to perform the same activity we did in class yesterday: 

• Find three passages from pages 16-85. Type them out (or reference the image if you're using an image).
• For each one, ask a Level 1 and a Level 2 question (or two Level 2 questions if nothing is confusing you).
• Hit the "Publish" button!

• Note: If you'd like to listen to someone read the book aloud, click HERE for the audiobook. You can do a free 30-day trial, but I believe you do need a credit card number.

Figuring Out Our Second Narrative Voice: September 18, 2018

Focus: What background do we need to understand our first two narrators?

1. Warming up with your first journal entries and answering each other's questions

• Find three passages from the first 15 pages. Type them out.

• For each one, ask a Level 1 and/or a Level 2 question (or two Level 2 questions if nothing is confusing you).

• Hit the "Publish" button!

Sample: When Oskar asks his dad why the earth doesn't fall through the universe, his dad replies, "The earth does fall through the universe...It's constantly falling toward the sun. That's what it means to orbit" (Foer 12).

Level 1 Question: Why is Oskar so interested in science?

Level 2 Question: How is Oskar "constantly falling" in the first chapter of the book, and what is keeping him in orbit?

Rinse and repeat. Rinse and repeat. You want to do have at least three passages, each with two good discussion questions.

• Note: If you'd like to listen to someone read the book aloud, click HERE for the audiobook. You can do a free 30-day trial, but I believe you do need a credit card number.

2. Discovering background on Dresden; using a Venn diagram to consider 9/11 and Dresden side-by-side; add to your "in-class thoughts" documents with things you're learning, images, and your reactions.

• Click HERE to read about the bombing of Dresden.

• Click HERE for before and after pictures of Dresden (before the bombing and after).

• Click HERE to read a survivor's story (he was a POW in Dresden at the time).

• Click HERE to read another survivor's story (this one was a child at the time).

• Click HERE to watch an interview with a Dresden survivor (contains war footage).

3. Reading aloud Thomas's narrative (he's a Dresden survivor)

As we read...

• What are you learning about Thomas?
• What are you wondering?

After we read...

• How do Oskar's and Thomas' narratives relate?

HW:
1. For TODAY: Double check your final draft using the Night-Before Checklist. Submit it to www.turnitin.com by 4:00 pm today.

2. For THURSDAY: Finish reading through page 85 for Thursday's first Fishbowl discussion. For your second journal entry, I'd like you to perform the same activity we did in class yesterday: 

• Find three passages from pages 16-85. Type them out (or reference the image if you're using an image).
• For each one, ask a Level 1 and a Level 2 question (or two Level 2 questions if nothing is confusing you).
• Hit the "Publish" button!

• Note: If you'd like to listen to someone read the book aloud, click HERE for the audiobook. You can do a free 30-day trial, but I believe you do need a credit card number.

Figuring Out Our First Narrative Voice: September 17, 2018

Focus: What background do we need to understand our first two narrators?

1. Warming up with three good things, your Night-Before Checklist, and www.turnitin.com

Turnitin.com

Class ID: 19130809

Enrollment Key: Leclaire

2. Composing your first journal entries and answering each other's questions

• Find three passages from the first 15 pages. Type them out.

• For each one, ask a Level 1 and/or a Level 2 question (or two Level 2 questions).

• Hit the "Publish" button!

Sample: When Oskar asks his dad why the earth doesn't fall through the universe, his dad replies, "The earth does fall through the universe...It's constantly falling toward the sun. That's what it means to orbit" (Foer 12).

Level 1 Question: Why is Oskar so interested in science?

Level 2 Question: How is Oskar "constantly falling" in the first chapter of the book, and what is keeping him in orbit?

Rinse and repeat. Rinse and repeat. You want to do have at least three passages, each with two good discussion questions.

• Note: If you'd like to listen to someone read the book aloud, click HERE for the audiobook. You can do a free 30-day trial, but I believe you do need a credit card number.

3. Responding to at least two other people's questions and group-sharing your favorites

4. Setting up our Fishbowl discussions (all handouts linked to class website)

HW:
1. For TUESDAY: Polish your final draft using the Night-Before Checklist. Submit it to www.turnitin.com

2. For THURSDAY: Finish reading through page 85 for Thursday's first Fishbowl discussion. For your second journal entry, I'd like you to perform the same activity we did in class yesterday: 

• Find three passages from pages 16-52. Type them out.
• For each one, ask a Level 1 and a Level 2 question (or two Level 2 questions if nothing is confusing you).
• Hit the "Publish" button!

• Note: If you'd like to listen to someone read the book aloud, click HERE for the audiobook. You can do a free 30-day trial, but I believe you do need a credit card number.

What the? Oskar's Voice: September 14, 2018

Focus: What the? What are we learning about Oskar, our unusual narrator?

1. Warming up with a quick assessment on subject-verb agreement

2. Creating your ELIC journal:

1. Go to www.blogger.com.
2. Sign in with your school Google account.
3. Create a new blog for this class. Include your First name (and last initial, if your name is Ethan), and whatever else you want to call this blog. It will serve as your reading journal for the year.
4. E-MAIL YOUR WEB ADDRESS TO ME.
5. Choose the layout, template, etc. that makes you happy.
6. Note: If you're a handwriter and/or an annotator, you can simply snap a picture of what you wrote and upload that to the blog. Do what works for you.

3. Reading Oskar's narrative; try to get to page 15 (finish tonight if you do not finish in class).

• Your first journal entry/blog post: 

• Find three passages from the first 15 pages. Type them out.

• For each one, ask a Level 1 and a Level 2 question (or two Level 2 questions if nothing is confusing you).

• Hit the "Publish" button!

• Note: If you'd like to listen to someone read the book aloud, click HERE for the audiobook. You can do a free 30-day trial, but I believe you do need a credit card number.

4. Setting up your Fishbowl discussions (links to all of today's handouts are on the website)

If you're interested, here is a quick timeline of what actually happened on 9/11.

HW:
1. For MONDAY: Finish reading through page 15 if you did not finish in class. We can do the journal entry together in class on Monday, but the reading needs to be done.

2. For Tuesday: Finish revising your draft and submit it to www.turnitin.com by 4:00.

3. For Thursday: Read through page 85 in ELIC and compose your second journal entry; Fishbowl leaders need to prepare and post their syllabus.

9/11: Shattering and Rebuilding: September 13, 2018

Focus: What story of 9/11 can we learn from the images and voices from that time?

1. Warming up with a quick preview of the text

• As a class: What do you notice about the cover? What about the title page? What might be the intent behind these designs?

• Which pages stand out to you? What exactly are you looking at?

• What patterns are you starting to notice?

• What are you wondering?

2. Exploring Time Magazine's Photoessay: "Shattered"

• New Google Folder: Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (inside 1st Semester)

• New Document: In-Class Thoughts (inside Extremely Loud...folder)

Take your time on these photos; if there are some too difficult to look at, move to the next one.

Get inside a photo: Select one photo that resonates with you. Spend some time describing it, imagining that you are the photographer. What are you trying to capture in this photo? What senses can you use to describe what's happening here? What's the tone, or emotion of this photo?

Step outside the photos: If this photoessay had a written thesis, what do you think it would be? What story do they tell about 9/11?

Face the book: The main narrator of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is Oskar. He's nine years old, and he has just lost his father to the 9/11 attacks. Based on the photos you've just spend time with, what three adjectives might you use to describe Oskar's state of mind?

3. Listening to voices of resilience; click here for their stories, to be followed by small group discussions:

• What were your takeaways from these videos? What specific things struck you?

• What do you make of the cover of this book and the title page? Can you make some connections between what you've learned/seen today and the design of the title?

4. Revisiting the warm-up with your new background knowledge

HW:
1. Continue revising / adding to your essay (check out the rubric!). Stop in for a conference or send me an e-mail if you need help.

2. The due date for the final draft of this essay is Tuesday, September 18. Remember to submit it to www.turnitin.com by 4:00 pm.

3. Click HERE for the ELIC reading schedule.

Re-Envisioning Your Essays: September 12, 2018

Focus: How do we strengthen the content of our essays?

1. Warming up with the ground rules of peer editing

• Rule #1: Be honest, but kind. Build trust.

• Rule #2: The first eight minutes at each station will be quiet; the last two minutes will be for talking about your feedback.

• Rule #3: Phrase your feedback in a way that suggests what the author can/should try (rather than criticizing them for failures).

• Rule #4: Follow the steps carefully. There are only ten minutes at each station; work efficiently.

• Rule #5: Be generous with your feedback.

2. Strengthening each other's essays by riding through the five editing stations

• Number them in the order in which you want to peer editor to address them. Which stations serve your greatest areas of need?

3. Wrapping up with goals for tonight and the weekend

HW:
1. Continue revising / adding to your essay based on today's feedback. Stop in for a conference or send me an e-mail if you need help.

2. The due date for the final draft of this essay is Tuesday, September 18. Remember to submit it to www.turnitin.com by 4:00 pm.

2. Wanna buy Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close? There's still time! We start this Thursday.

Styling up Your Essay's Opening and Closing: September 11, 2018

Focus: How do we open and close our essays in a compelling way?

1. Warming up with a goal and a little image-inspired creative writing

2. Writing what you really want to get across in your intro and/or conclusion

Introductions:

• Establish who/what/when/where/why?
• Define important terms you'll be using.
• Funnel down into your thesis, which should be the last sentence.

Conclusions:

• Wrap up your argument without restating it word for word.
• Establish why your hysteria is important in a larger context. How does it connect to other hysterias? To who we are as a country? To what we fear and what we do to feel safe?
• Offer solutions or ideas about why there's a lack of resolution.

3. Reviewing lead-outs on your own; click HERE for the slides.

4. Self-assessing areas of strength and need with the official rubric (if you have time)

HW:
1. COMPLETE ROUGH DRAFT DUE BEFORE CLASS TOMORROW (30-point Attempt and Completion grade); tomorrow will be our final day of in-class work time on this essay.

2. The due date for the final draft of this essay is Tuesday, September 18. Remember to submit it to www.turnitin.com by 4:00 pm.

2. Wanna buy Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close? There's still time! We start this Thursday.

You've Been Drafted, Take 2: September 10, 2018

Focus: How do I use evidence to make my argument?

1. Warming up with three good things

2. Improving our writing with Grammar You Must Know, Lesson #1: S-V Agreement

3. Offering you a brief mini lesson on using evidence: quoting, paraphrasing, and leading in (click HERE for the slides)

4. Using your annotated bibliographies for your cited evidence

Option 1: Try making a comment on each statistic/quotation/fact you might bring in.

• Will it be in quotations or paraphrased? 
• Are there any areas where you need to do some more research? Make yourself a note.

Option 2: Copy and paste directly into your outline or draft

• Either paraphrase or leave in quotations. 
• Go ahead and CITE it right now (will save you time later).

3. Drafting, drafting, drafting with a focus on using and leading into your evidence

***If you need ideas on what to focus on in your paragraphs, click HERE for the class-generated guidelines.***

HW:
1. For TOMORROW: Continue adding to / revising your draft based on today's lesson; focus on choosing compelling evidence and leading it to smoothly.

2. For WEDNESDAY: Complete rough draft due Wednesday BEFORE class; this will be a 30-point Attempt and Completion grade. Also, Wednesday is our final day of in-class work time.

3. For FRIDAY: Open-note mini quiz on Grammar You Must Know, Lesson #1 this Friday.

One-Minute Speeches, Round 1: September 7, 2018

Focus: What are your strengths as a presenter? What speech skills do you want to work on?

1. Warming up with an assessment of Puritan Words, List 2

2. Setting you up with partners and delivering your one-minute speeches

3. Offering feedback on your partner's claim and evidence; reflecting on your own speech

4. Working on your draft of the Cultural Hysteria essay

HW:

1. For MONDAY: Compose one page of your first draft (double-spaced). It can be an intro and part of a body paragraph, or your first body paragraph and part of your second. Think about what writing routine works for you and for this particular assignment.

2. Heads-up: 

• FINAL DRAFT IS DUE TUESDAY, SEP 18 BY 4:00 PM in www.turnitin.com

• We will spend Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of next week on your essays; on Thursday, we transition into Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

You've Been Drafted, Part 1: September 6, 2018

Focus: How do I build a strong first draft?

1. Warming up with literal and metaphorical building (10 min)

• Build a boat. What's the most important part about the structure of a boat?
• Build a tree. What's the most important part about the structure of a tree?
• Build a house. What's the most part about the structure of a house?

• Build an essay. What's the most important part about the structure of an essay? 

2. Workshopping a thesis statement together on the class blog for the following qualities:

Is it clear?

Is it specific?

Is it analytical?

Is it provable?

Which of the criteria above do you need to work on with your own thesis? Take a few minutes to either revise your thesis or to type yourself note with specific criteria to work on.

3. Taking your Lego ideas and applying them concretely to essay-writing (in small groups)

• Read the sample student essay.
• Help each other find structures for building an essay by generating a guideline sheet.

4. Figuring out where you need to go next:

• Reworking your thesis?
• Developing an outline?
• Researching more?
• Writing your introduction?
• Composing a body paragraph?

Note: Please start a new document called "Draft" and save it in your Cultural Hysteria folder.

HW:

1. For TOMORROW (Friday): 

• Review your Puritan Words, List 2 for tomorrow's brief assessment.
• Prepare (and time) your one-minute speech for tomorrow.

2. For MONDAY: Compose one page of your first draft (double-spaced). It can be an intro and part of a body paragraph, or your first body paragraph and part of your second. Think about what writing routine works for you and for this particular assignment.

3. Heads-up: FINAL DRAFT IS DUE TUESDAY, SEP 18 BY 4:00 PM in www.turnitin.com

Building a Thesis: September 5, 2018

Focus: How do we develop a routine for building a structurally sound thesis?

1. Warming up with Puritan Words, List 2

2. Observing: Look over your research with a curious mind, and try the following:

a. Make a few simple observations regarding your topic/research that you think are important and/or that interest you the most.

• As Y2K approached, people were quick to panic.

• Many assumed that a technical glitch would essentially lead to the end of civilized life.

• People hoarded goods, build underground shelters, and prepared for the new millennium as though preparing for a natural disaster or a war.

b. Based on your observations, ask a Level 3 question that you hope to answer as you dive into your research. TYPE IT AT THE TOP OF YOUR ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY.

Remember: A Level 3 question has many possible answers and can be applied to many situations.

• Ex: Why is paranoia contagious?
• Ex: What is the link between reliance on technology and mass panic?

• Once you have your Level 3 question, you will know exactly what you will spend your essay trying to prove!

3 or 4. Shaping your structure:

• What might you discuss in your first body paragraph? Your second? Do you need a third or a fourth?

3 or 4. Making your thesis:

• Looking at your structure, develop a thesis that makes an argument, hopefully by answering your big, Level 3 question, and lays out the overall structure.

• My Level 3 question: Why is paranoia contagious?

• My rough thesis: The events of Y2K expose that paranoia is most contagious when it's rooted in dependence on technology and fear of poverty.

• POST YOUR THESIS ON TODAY'S CLASS BLOG. DUE BEFORE CLASS TOMORROW.

HW:
1. For Thursday: Please finish your thesis if you did not finish in class. I will be reviewing them with you individually in class tomorrow. POST IT ON TODAY'S CLASS BLOG.

Also, if you need to add to / modify your annotated bibliography to support your thesis, please do so tonight.

2. Spend five minutes a day with Puritan Words, List 2. You will have another assessment this Friday.

3. Prepare your one-minute speech for this Friday.

Researching Your Way to the BIG Question: September 4, 2018

Focus: How can simple observations lead to important questions?

1. Warming up with three good things

2. Offering you little scientific inspiration on the importance of what you're doing

Questioning --> Researching --> Observing --> Better Questioning --> Thesis

3. Gathering and evaluating research by finishing your annotated bibliography

• Click here for an overview of the what/why/how of the annotated bibliography
• Click here for a sample annotated bibliography from last year.

4. Cleaning up your Annotated Bibliography:

• Have you proofread your Annotated Bibliography for grammar and spelling?

• Are your entries alphabetized?

• Is your annotated bib on a document labeled "Annotated Bibliography," and is this doc inside your Cultural Hysteria folder?

• Is the whole document evenly double spaced with no extra spaces?

• Have you checked out the rubric? No? Click here.

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5. Observing: Look over your research with a curious mind, and try the following:

a. Make a few simple observations regarding your topic/research that you think are important.

• As Y2K approached, people were quick to panic.

• Many assumed that a technical glitch would essentially lead to the end of civilized life.

• People hoarded goods, build underground shelters, and prepared for the new millennium as though preparing for a natural disaster or a war.

b. Based on your observations, ask a Level 3 question that you hope to answer as you dive into your research. Put it in bold font at the top.

Remember: A Level 3 question has many possible answers and can be applied to many situations.

• Ex: Why is paranoia contagious?
• Ex: What is the link between reliance on technology and mass panic?

• Once you have your Level 3 question, you will know exactly what you will spend your essay trying to prove!

HW:
1. Finish your annotated bibliography by tomorrow (Wednesday) if you did not finish in class. Please make sure it's on its documents labeled "Annotated Bibliography" in your Cultural Hysteria folder. This grade will go in your Growth category.

Click HERE if you'd like to see the rubric I use to grade the Annotated Bibliography.

2. Spend five minutes a day with Puritan Words, List 2.

3. Prepare your one-minute speech for this Friday.