Thursday, October 31, 2013

Agenda, October 31

NOT Due Tomorrow: The Language of Composition, pages 115-119 (Induction and Deduction), 125-131 (The Toulmin Model). You can skip the activities unless you're confused.
Due Now: Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 5-8
Due Monday:  Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 9-10
Due Tuesday:  Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 11-13
Due Thursday: Optional revision of How it Feels essay. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Paper clip your revision on top of all previous drafts.
Due Now: Walk in the door prepared to suggest potential purposes / assertions for Steinbeck's novel.
Due Tuesday, November 12: Education Synthesis Paper. You won't have a chance to revise this one, so it would be wise to conference during your drafting process. 
  1. Did you read it quiz?
  2. Research questions
  3. 5 Things I can say
  4. What are Steinbeck's assertions?
  5. Chapters 6 & 8
  6. Chapters 5 & 7

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Agenda, October 30

Due Now: Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 5-6
Due Tomorrow:  Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 7-8
Due Now: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Paper clip your revision on top of all previous drafts. It's very difficult to revise without a conference.
Due Tomorrow: Walk in the door prepared to suggest potential purposes / assertions for Steinbeck's novel.
Due Tuesday, November 12: Education Synthesis Paper. You won't have a chance to revise this one, so it would be wise to conference during your drafting process. 
  1. Search terms
  2. Search time - create a google doc that includes the links for all potential sources you find.

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Agenda, October 29

Due Now: Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 3-4 
Due Tomorrow:  Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 5-6
Due Tomorrow: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Paper clip your revision on top of all previous drafts. It's very difficult to revise without a conference.
Coming tomorrow: Lab Day for research on Education Synthesis. We'll start in class.
Due Tuesday, November 12: Education Synthesis Paper. You won't have a chance to revise this one, so it would be wise to conference during your drafting process. 
  1. Show, don't tell: I was devastated; I was hesitant; I was exhilirated.
  2. Synthesis Paragraph Notes
  3. Page 11
  4. While I was reading ...
  5. The discussion of Wrath
  6. The What Did You Highlight? Game

Monday, October 28, 2013

Education Synthesis Essay

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Education Synthesis Essay

Due November 12



Considering several of the pieces we have read in this unit – as well as your personal reading, observation, and research – write an argument that explores ONE of the following questions: 1) What is the value of education?  2) What is the best way for people to learn? 3) What is the state of contemporary education in America (or the world)?



Typed. Double Spaced. Twelve point. No blank lines between paragraphs, except to indicate a major shift in tone or setting. Three – six pages. Don’t forget a title. Don’t forget your header.



Required:

·      Include at least one sentence that employs parallelism, used to create a specific effect. Underline your parallel structures.

·      Support from a minimum of three classroom sources.

·      Support from a minimum of one additional source from a college level website. Consider looking at .edu, .gov, and .org websites.

·      At least two “synthesis” paragraphs.

·      Properly formatted Works Cited Page.



Suggested: End with a plan of action for the future. Employ anaphora in your conclusion.



Audience: 1) The editor of a nationally published magazine. 2) The well-educated readers of that magazine. 3) Yourself.



Purpose: 1) To explore contemporary issues regarding the way people learn and the way we teach 2) To evaluate the current state of education in America or the world at large. 3) To suggest a plan of action for the future.



How to approach this paper:

·      Develop an opinion on this subject.

·      Gather evidence (from our texts and from research) to support your opinion. This is an argument; therefore, personal experience is valid evidence and first person is an acceptable POV.

·      Create clear, defensible topic sentences.

·      Draft paragraphs with two quotations to support your topic sentences.

·      Draft paragraphs with an eye towards ethos, pathos, and logos.

·      Proofread to ensure your quotations are properly formatted and cited. For this essay, “you will need to include the author’s name in your parenthetical citation” (Kline 1).

·      Create your Works Cited page.


Agenda, October 28

Due Now: Synthesis Paragraph about an important issue in education. Typed. Double spaced. MLA.
Due Now: Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 1-2 (we'll go to the library tomorrow to check them out) 
Due Tomorrow: Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 3-4 
Due Wednesday:  Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 5-6
Due Wednesday: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Paper clip your revision on top of all previous drafts. It's very difficult to revise without a conference.
Due Tuesday, November 12: Education Synthesis Paper. You won't have a chance to revise this one, so it would be wise to conference during your drafting process. 
  1. We don't need no education ...
  2. The synthesis prompt
  3. While I was reading ...
  4. The discussion of Wrath

Friday, October 25, 2013

Agenda, October 25

Due Yesterday:  The Language of Composition, pages 131-137
Due Now: Editorial Review #3. Make sure your topic sentence works. Be aware of pathos in logical arguments.   
Due Now: Bring a hard copy of an image that makes an argument about education, teaching, or school. 
Due Monday: Synthesis Paragraph about an important issue in education. Typed. Double spaced. MLA.
Due Monday: Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 1-2 (we'll go to the library tomorrow to check them out) 
Due Tuesday: Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 3-4 
Due Wednesday: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Paper clip your revision on top of all previous drafts. It's very difficult to revise without a conference.
  1. Here's the link to IQ Squared. 
  2. Group 1: Editorial Review
  3. To the library!
  4. Group 2: Norman Rockwell
  5. Group 3: Your own, personal image

Thursday, October 24, 2013

How to Establish a Source

--> Establishing Positions

  1. What is the title of the source?
  2. Where was it published? When?
  3. Why is the author an expert?
  4. What is the subject of the source material?
  5. What’s the author’s purpose?
  6. What is the context of the original quotation?
  7. How does the author’s point connect to what you want to discuss?
  8. Have you introduced and set-up quotes?
  9. Have you cited the author correctly in text and in a references page?


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Example of Establishing a Source
In his 1953 song, “Lobachevsky,” mathematician and satirist Tom Leher mocks society’s tendency to reward poor quality and minimal effort.

Agenda, October 24

Due Thursday:  The Language of Composition, pages 131-137
Due Friday: Editorial Review #3. Make sure your topic sentence works. Be aware of pathos in logical arguments.   
Due Friday: Bring a hard copy of an image that makes an argument about education, teaching, or school. 
Due Monday: Synthesis Paragraph about an important issue in education. Typed. Double spaced. MLA.
Due Monday: Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck, Chapters 1-2 (we'll go to the library tomorrow to check them out) 
Due Wednesday: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Paper clip your revision on top of all previous drafts. It's very difficult to revise without a conference.
  1. TEP Talk
  2. Wait - what's a synthesis paragraph?
  3. Analyzing Visual Rhetoric
  4. Mr. Kline attempts to use technology in the classroom.

The Synthesis Paragraph Made Simple

AKA "TSQASQAC"

Topic Sentence: The topic sentence should state your opinion. The synthesis paragraph supports your opinion with evidence from multiple sources.

Set-up: You need to set up your quotation. The set-up has a number of purposes. Some set-up sentences establish your source. Where did you find the information? What makes this author qualified to support your opinion? Sometimes the source material itself is sufficient to establish your author's qualification. For example, if your article comes from the Journal of American Medicine, your author is by definition credible. If your article is from High Times, on the other hand, it might be more difficult (but not impossible) to establish your source as reliable. Appositives can be very helpful when you are establishing sources. Once you have established your source as reliable, you don't need to do it again. Your set-up also needs to provide a little bit of context. What was the purpose of the source material? What was your author writing about in the essay when your quotation appears?

Quotation: Never use a quotation as a complete sentence. At the very least, begin like this: [Author] writes, " ..." (Author Pg). Here's an example:
Kline writes, "It's most effective to use your examples in chronological order" (Kline 12).
Generic Student asks, "What if the quotation ends with a question mark?" (Student 17).

The "Author's Name" in the parenthetical citation should be the first word that appears on the Works Cited page. You don't need the abbreviation "Pg" in your citation. You don't need to invent a page number for websites that don't have page numbers.

Analysis: First, decode any figurative language that appears in your quotation. Then, explain how the quotation supports your topic sentence. You don't need to label your quotation as a quotation.

Repeat the S-Q-A steps: At some point during the first Analysis or the second Set-up you will need to transition from your first quotation to your second. Transitions of addition, emphasis, or contrast will all work here (a quick google search will provide you with endless lists of transitions).

Closing: This sentence wraps up your paragraph and transitions the reader into your next paragraph.

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Agenda, October 23

Due Now: "None of this is Fair," by Richard Rodriguez (Handout)  
Due Now:  Revision of "How it Feels ..." Staple revision on top of peer reviewed version.
Due Thursday:  The Language of Composition, pages 131-137
Due Friday: Editorial Review #3. Make sure your topic sentence works. Be aware of pathos in logical arguments.  Due Friday: Bring a hard copy of an image that makes an argument about education, teaching, or school. 
Due Wednesday: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Paper clip your revision on top of all previous drafts. It's very difficult to revise without a conference.
  1. Small group TEP
  2. Mr. Kline attempts to use technology in the classroom.

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Agenda, October 22

Due Now: "None of this is Fair," by Richard Rodriguez (Handout)  
Due Wednesday:  Revision of "How it Feels ..." Staple revision on top of peer reviewed version.
Due Thursday:  The Language of Composition, pages 131-137
Due Friday: Editorial Review #3. Make sure your topic sentence works. Be aware of pathos in logical arguments. 
Due Friday: Bring a hard copy of an image that makes an argument about education, teaching, or school. 
  1. A "Fair" Discussion
  2. Mr. Kline attempts to use technology in the classroom.

Monday, October 21, 2013

Peer Review Directions

1) Read once, looking for and noting the good: strong diction, interesting syntax, effective structural choices, inviting openings and powerful closings.

2) Confirm the short sentence/fragment is rhetorically effective and correctly labeled. Confirm that the appositive is grammatically correct, rhetorically effective, and correctly labeled.

3) Read it again, looking for areas of weakness: vague, confusing, or inaccurate word choices, awkward sentence structures, poorly developed paragraphs, bland openings (beware of declarative sentences) and didactic closings. Ask questions. Help your writer add details and content.

4) Pay special attention to places where the author is telling rather than showing. The most common comment I make on this essay is "HiF?": How does it feel?

If you only give your writer praise, you have done nothing to help him or her revise and improve the essay.


Agenda, October 21

Due Now: " 'I Just Wanna be Average'," by Mike Rose (Handout - and what do we with handouts?) 
Due Now: "None of this is Fair," by Richard Rodriguez (Handout)  
Due Now: "How it Feels to be ________ Me" Essay
Due Wednesday:  Revision of "How it Feels ..." Staple revision on top of peer reviewed version.
Due Friday: Editorial Review #3. Make sure your topic sentence works. Be aware of pathos in logical arguments. 
  1. Peer Review
  2. Rose and Emerson: What's wrong with education?
  3. A "Fair" Discussion

Friday, October 18, 2013

The Great, the Good, and the Ugly


Great:
In “The Dishonesty of Voter ID Laws,” the New York Times’s  Editorial Board argues that some states are trying to create new, unneeded voting laws in order to prevent voter fraud that doesn’t really exist.

In The New York Times editorial “When Wealth Disappears,” the author, Stephen D. King, predicts that unless we change how our political or economic systems work, the U.S. economy will only get worse.

Good (to revise, consider the verb and the purpose):
In The New York Times’ editorial “Raffling off Assault Rifles,” The Editorial Board explains how the Republican Party of Rhode Island is trying to fundraise by auctioning off the same style of gun that was used in last December’s Newtown school massacre.

The article, “A Population Betrayed,” written by the New York Times’ Editorial Board, explains that the poorest people in the country will now be without health insurance because 26 states have chosen not to expand Medicaid.

Wrong:
The editorial I found was “Electronic Devices on Planes”, on The New York Times, by The Editorial Board. In this editorial, the board informs readers that the Federal Aviation Administration is planning on being more lenient with their rules on electronic devices, due to confusion of restrictions.

“Cheating’s Surprising Thrill” is from The New York Times and was written by Jan Hoffman. She is trying to show us that we feel good after we cheat.

In the article “Terrorism and American justice” on LA Times, by The Times editorial board expresses their opinion on how they view the U.S. is handling the capture of a suspected terrorist.

In “Electronic Devices on Planes,” The New York Times, The Editorial Board discusses the sensibility in allowing airplane passengers to utilize their electronic devices while on a flight.

Agenda, October 18

Due Now: " 'I Just Wanna be Average'," by Mike Rose (Handout - and what do we with handouts?) 
Due Monday: "None of this is Fair," by Richard Rodriguez (Handout)  
Due Now: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Staple new draft on top of old draft. If you miss this deadline, you will not have an opportunity to revise this essay.  
Due Now: Vocab #3 
Due Monday: "How it Feels to be ________ Me" Essay
  1. Vocab Check
  2. TEP Talk 
  3. Topic Sentences
  4. Logos, Pathos, or Both-os?
  5. An "Average" discussion

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Scholarship Essay Contest

Here's a link to the website for the Voices of Democracy Essay Contest:

http://www.vfw.org/Community/Voice-of-Democracy/

It has all sorts of useful information.

Agenda, October 17

Due Now: "How it Feels to be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston (handout - don't leave for home without it)       
Due Now: " 'I Just Wanna be Average'," by Mike Rose (Handout - and what do we with handouts?) 
Due Friday: "None of this is Fair," by Richard Rodriguez (Handout)  
Due Friday: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Staple new draft on top of old draft. If you miss this deadline, you will not have an opportunity to revise this essay.  
Due Friday: Vocab #3 
Due Monday: "How it Feels to be ________ Me" Essay
  1. Group Disco Pie Chart
  2. TEP Talk 
  3. An "Average" discussion

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Agenda, October 16

Due Now: "How it Feels to be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston (handout - don't leave for home without it)       
Due Thursday: " 'I Just Wanna be Average'," by Mike Rose (Handout - and what do we with handouts?) 
Due Friday: "None of this is Fair," by Richard Rodriguez (Handout)  
Due Friday: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Staple new draft on top of old draft. If you miss this deadline, you will not have an opportunity to revise this essay.  
Due Friday: Vocab #3 
Due Monday: "How it Feels to be ________ Me" Essay
  1. Group TEP Paragraph

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Agenda, October 15

Due Now: "How it Feels to be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston (handout - don't leave for home without it)       
Due Now: " 'I Just Wanna be Average'," by Mike Rose (Handout - and what do we with handouts?) Due Thursday: "None of this is Fair," by Richard Rodriguez (Handout) Due Friday: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Staple new draft on top of old draft. If you miss this deadline, you will not have an opportunity to revise this essay. Due Friday: Vocab #3 Due Monday: "How it Feels to be ________ Me" Essay
  1. The "and I" test
  2. How it feels to BS
  3. How it feels to have a whole class discussion

Monday, October 14, 2013

How it Feels Assignment

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How it Feels to be ___________ Me
Due Monday, October 21

Typed. Double Spaced. Twelve point. No blank lines between paragraphs, except to indicate a major shift in tone or setting. Three – five pages. Don’t forget a title.

Required: Include at least one short sentence or fragment, used to create a specific effect. Underline and label your short sentence or fragment.

Required: Include at least one appositive, used to create a specific effect. Underline and label your appositive.

Suggested: Close your essay with a powerful analogy.

Audience: 1) A reader who does not know you well. 2) A reader who is familiar with the personalities teens bring to the classroom. 3) Yourself.

Purpose: 1) To explore one of your avowed or ascribed identities with a depth that surprises yourself and your reader. 2) To use this exploration to make a comment about society in general.

Excellent topics include identities that are unique to you, identities about which you are uncertain, and identities that are commonly misunderstood.

Agenda, October 14

Due Now: "How it Feels to be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston (handout - don't leave for home without it)      Due Tuesday: " 'I Just Wanna be Average'," by Mike Rose (Handout - and what do we with handouts?)
Due Thursday: "None of this is Fair," by Richard Rodriguez (Handout)
Due Friday: Optional revision of Education Narrative. Highlight your changes before you get to class. Staple new draft on top of old draft.
Due Friday: Vocab #3
Due Monday: "How it Feels to be ________ Me" Essay
  1. Write this down where you won't forget it
  2. What a story sounds like ...
  3. Show, Don't Tell
  4. The Sedarian learning process
  5. How it feels to have a whole class discussion

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Vocab Tree


You’re so Vain:
Words to Describe a Know-it-all
Due October 18

Provide the definition for each of the following words that you don’t know. Even if you think you are familiar with the word, you should check its definition to confirm your understanding. For words you need to define, include the dictionary definition and a translation of the dictionary definition into your own words.

Write an original sentence for each word in the list, whether you need to define it or not. Post one sentence as a comment. Please type your work.

1.     condescending
2.     contemptuous
3.     despotic
4.     dictatorial
5.     disdain
6.     haughty
7.     imperious
8.     patronizing

Agenda, October 9

Due Now: "Me Talk Pretty One Day," by David Sedaris, in The Language of Composition 
Due Now: "How it Feels to be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston (handout - don't leave for home without it)     
Due Now: Editorial Review #2. Review old blog posts for directions.
Due Tuesday: " 'I Just Wanna be Average'," by Mike Rose (Handout - and what do we with handouts?)
Due Friday: Vocab #3

  1. Do we need to finish the TEP?
  2. Did we do anything yesterday?
  3. The Sedarian learning process
  4. How it feels to have a whole class discussion

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Agenda, October 8

Due Now: "Me Talk Pretty One Day," by David Sedaris, in The Language of Composition Due Tuesday: "How it Feels to be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston (handout - don't leave for home without it)  
Due Wednesday: Editorial Review #2. Review old blog posts for directions.
  1. Did we do anything yesterday?
  2. Mrs. Haynie's note?
  3. TEP Review
  4. Sedaris is a satirist; is this a satire?
  5. How it feels to have a whole class discussion

Monday, October 7, 2013

Agenda, October 7

Due Now: "Me Talk Pretty One Day," by David Sedaris, in The Language of Composition Due Tuesday: "How it Feels to be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston (handout - don't leave for home without it) Due Wednesday: Editorial Review #2. Review old blog posts for directions.

  1. Talking Pretty in Small Groups - be sure you're looking for quotations
  2. TEP Practice
  3. The Whole Class Talks Pretty (but not all at once, please)

Friday, October 4, 2013

Agenda, October 4

Due Now: "The Allegory of the Cave," by Plato. Write all over your handout. 
Due Now: "Me Talk Pretty One Day," by David Sedaris, in The Language of Composition
Due Now: Vocab #2.
Due Now: Education Narrative. Note the change in the assignment requirements.

Due Tuesday: "How it Feels to be Colored Me" by Zora Neale Hurston (handout - don't leave for home without it)
Due Wednesday: Editorial Review #2. Review old blog posts for directions.

  1. What's your title?
  2. How do we learn?
  3. Working through difficulties with Plato
  4. You talk pretty now

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Agenda, October 3

Due Now: "The Allegory of the Cave," by Plato. Write all over your handout. 
Due Now: Grammar as Rhetoric and Style: Appositives (page 269). Preview exercises 4 and 5. Come prepared with questions.
Due Now: "Me Talk Pretty One Day," by David Sedaris, in The Language of Composition
Due Friday: Vocab #2.
Due Friday: Education Narrative. Note the change in the assignment requirements.


  1. Mr. Kline's sneaking suspicion ...
  2. Read your papers aloud
  3. Be honest as a peer reviewer
  4. Education Narrative Questions
  5. Appositive Practice (what's a noun phrase?)
  6. How do we learn?
  7. Working through difficulties with Plato
  8. You talk pretty now

Agenda, October 2

Due Now: "The Allegory of the Cave," by Plato. Write all over your handout. 
Due Tomorrow: Grammar as Rhetoric and Style: Appositives (page 269). Preview exercises 4 and 5. Come prepared with questions.
Due Tomorrow: "Me Talk Pretty One Day," by David Sedaris, in The Language of Composition
Due Friday: Vocab #2.
Due Friday: Education Narrative. Note the change in the assignment requirements.

  1. Education Narrative Questions
  2. How do I make a header?
  3. How do we learn?
  4. Open Disco on Plato

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Agenda, October 1

Due Now: "The Allegory of the Cave," by Plato (handout - don't leave class without one). Write all over your handout.Due Now: Grammar as Rhetoric and Style: Appositives (page 269). Read it. Take notes. Read (but do not do) Exercises 1-3. Come prepared with questions.
Due Wednesday: "Me Talk Pretty One Day," by David Sedaris, in The Language of Composition
Due Friday: Vocab #2.
Due Friday: Education Narrative. Note the change in the assignment requirements.


  1. Do you know Emerson's definition of the learning process?
  2. Education Narrative Questions
  3. Are you appositive about that?
  4. Working with Plato