Friday, September 28th (Mid-term project)

The Other Wes Moore and Good Will Hunting Mid-term Project:  

DUE OCTOBER 3RD AT 7:30 AM. 

Using Google Slides as your format, you will be constructing a presentation on Theme in The Other Wes Moore and Good Will Hunting. 

You have already found evidence of the issues of IDENTITY, DECISIONS, and REDEMPTION in both texts. 

You will need to do the following: 

1. Pick one issue and write it out as a theme as seen in The Other Wes Moore. 

- Provide a minimum of three textual quotes, cited correctly, AND explanation of how the textual evidence supports your stated theme. 

2. Pick one issue and write it out as a theme as seen in Good Will Hunting. 

- Provide a minimum of three textual quotes, cited correctly, AND explanation of how the textual evidence supports your stated theme. 

3. Pick one issue and write it out as a theme and show how it is seen in BOTH The Other Wes Moore and Good Will Hunting. 

- Provide a minimum of three textual quotes for EACH text, cited correctly, AND explanation of how the textual evidence supports your stated theme. 

Presentation requirements: 

1. A title slide with your name and purpose of the presentation. 

2. A slide(s) dedicated to explaining the definition of theme, and the process of determining theme. 

3. What do you feel theme teaches you about a text/your world. 

4. A brief summary of each text- The Other Wes Moore and Good Will Hunting... needs to be in your own words, not result of a Google search. 

5. Address, cite, and explain a theme specific to WM. (See above)

6. Address, cite, and explain a theme specific to GWH. 

7. Address, cite, and explain a theme that applies to BOTH WM and GWH.

8. Proper in text citation of direct quotes within the presentation, using MLA style guide. 

9. A works cited page citing both WM and GWH, using MLA citation guide. 

10. Images scattered throughout presentation that are thoughtful and supportive of the material covered on the slide. 

11. Proper grammar and mechanics (spelling, italicized titles, capitalization, punctuation). 

Wednesday/Thursday, September 26th/27th

Theme: Cold read and on-demand assessment.

1. Read through the following short story by Kate Chopin. Be thinking about what is the most prevalent issue that the story addresses (Common list of universal issues in literature).

The Story of an Hour

You will be going through the process of determining THEME:

2. In Schoology, you will write out the issue as a THEME. Ask yourself what the author is teaching us about that issue.

3. You will need 4 textual examples to support your argument of theme.

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Finish Good Will Hunting.  Make sure that your notes are complete. Evidence of the common issues of IDENTITY, DECISIONS, REDEMPTION.

You will receive your final assignment for Wes Moore and Good Will Hunting on Friday.

Tuesday, September 25th

1. We will continue watching Good Will Hunting. Remember to be adding to evidence of the three issues of Identity, Decisions, Redemption in our notes.

Monday, September 24th

Today we begin our second text in study of THEME: Good Will Hunting. We will be using this film to look at the issues of IDENTITY, DECISIONS, and REDEMPTION.

Remember... these are only the issues within a text. They are what are universal and seen in different texts. It is what you argue the author is saying about these issues when it becomes a THEME.

1. You already have textual evidence of these issues in The Other Wes Moore.  You will now be gathering textual evidence of these three issues in Good Will Hunting.  This evidence will go on the first page of notes in the packet you are getting in class.

2. You will be completing some questions that go along with the film that will help you pick up on some significant plot elements, which can also tie into building a theme.

You will NOT do questions: 2, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 18, 30, 35, 36, 38.

You will turn in this packet with your final THEME project (announced after the film).

Friday, September 21st

1. In Schoology, I have posted an article “Theme: What Ties it All Together”. Students need to read this first. Take notes on main ideas.

The link is also found HERE: Theme: What Ties it All Together

2. In Schoology, you will need to complete the following assignment:

Pick three of your favorite movies. Go through the process of determining theme
with each of these movies.

• Start with the universal issue. 
• Think about why it is evident in the movie. 
• Write out what you think the author is saying about that issue? What are they teaching us? Remember “The author believes….”.  
• Then you will need to come up with 3 specific examples of how you see that theme in that film. 

3. If you have not completed it yet, make sure that you have your 4 pieces of evidence for the 3 themes in The Other Wes Moore that we worked on Wednesday/Thursday. 

September 19th/20th

We are going to watch this video to model the process that we are going to go through.
Theme Video

Theme: The main idea or underlying central meaning of a text.

Universal issues in literature/text:

Theme is the message about life... NOT the issue.

The PROCESS for determining THEME:
1. Pick a common issue/ universal issue in literature.
2. Why do you feel this is an evident issue in this piece?
3. What is the author saying/ message projecting about life?
4. Find textual evidence to support the theme that you have determined.

For CLASS:
We have looked at 3 major ISSUES in The Other Wes Moore.
1. Identity
2. Decisions/ Cause and effect
3. Faith/ Redemption

We are going to examine the three issues in The Other Wes Moore and develop them into three THEMES.

1. Write out the issue as a THEME in The Other Wes Moore. "The author believes that . . . "

2. Find 4 specific textual examples/quotes from The Other Wes Moore. Make sure that you collect the citation info (page numbers). PUT THESE IN  YOUR NOTES.

Tuesday, September 18th

PICTURE DAY WEDNESDAY/THURSDAY OF THIS WEEK. 

Theme: underlying purpose or universal message in a text.
Faith: a strong belief in something or someone
Redemption: The action of being saved from previous act.

1| There are several ways in which the themes “faith” and “redemption”
emerge in the book. Keep these two themes in mind and read the following examples:

• On page 3, the two Wes Moores share an understanding that they are going to mourn absences of their fathers in different ways.
• On page 36, Wes’s mom gives a financial gift to help emergency aid providers avoid making the same mistake that caused the death of Wes’s father.
• On page 122, we read how the wooded area surrounding Valley Forge played dual roles in this story. First it posed as an obstacle for Wes and then it was a haven.
• On pages 135–137, Wes describes his experience as paratrooper jumping out of the plane and the different things he had faith in as he prepared to jump.
• On page 168, Wes asks his South African host mother how she was able to forgive the pain of apartheid and she responds,“Because Mr. Mandela asked us to.”
• On page 173 we read that in prison, “Wes is now a devout Muslim. Initially, he went to Friday mosque services because they were the only opportunity he had to see his brother, Tony, who was also in Jessup, but eventually he started to pay attention to the message and decided to learn more.”

After re-reading the previous passages, please consider the themes of faith and redemption:

2| With these examples in mind, or others that you think of, write three facts from the book related
to the theme of faith.

3| With these examples in mind, or others that you think of, write three opinions from the book
related to the theme of faith.


4| With these examples in mind, or others that you think of, write
three facts from the book related to the theme of redemption.


5| With these examples in mind, or others that you think of, write
three opinions from the book related to the theme of redemption.

Monday, September 17th

1. Work on The Other Wes Moore study questions. Wes Moore Reading Questions
- 2nd hour: Select 30 to do for extra credit. Spread out through out the entire book. Turn in on Tuesday.
- 3rd hour: 63 Study questions are due Tuesday. You may choose 30 beyond for EC.

2. Finish the book for Tuesday- Quiz over entire book.

Friday, September 14th

1. Please turn in your Ted Talk notes sheet and reflection sheet.

2. Scrabble Game Day./ Work on Wes Moore.

Please finish the book for Tuesday, September 18th. We will have a quiz.

September 12th/13th

3rd Hour:

1. Turn in your six Socratic questions to Schoology.

2. Turn in your Ted Talk handout/notes- "Decisions"

3. Watch: "I am the Son of a Terrorist: Here is how I chose peace" on your own with the Ted Talk handout/notes.  When you are done, please turn in your notes.

4. We have looked at the issues of decision-making/choices/cause and effect. Keep this in mind as you are finishing the book.

5. The entire book needs to be read for Tuesday, September 13th.
The study questions are due on Tuesday. They need to be completed on your own paper, with the questions stapled on top of your responses. You must complete a minimum 63 questions through out all 93. Not JUST the first 63. You must select questions through out the 8 chapters and epilogue. You may do the remaining 30 questions for +15 extra credit points.

There will be a quiz over the book on Tuesday.

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2nd Hour:

1. Soctratic seminar addressing Ted Talk and decision-making. You have 6 total questions due for the seminar.

2. Socratic Reflection Sheet:  Please address the following questions on your own piece of paper.


Finish the book for Tuesday, September 18th. There will be a quiz.

Tuesday, September 11th

Using your charts on decision making/ cause and effect in The Other Wes Moore, in Schoology, answer the following responses with a paragraph for each prompt:

1. What is meant by the saying, “One bad decision often leads to another bad decision”? Provide an example that illustrates your response:

2. On page 67, Wes writes, “I guess it’s hard sometimes to distinguish between second chances and last chances.” What does he mean by this and how does this quote relate to the theme of “redemption”?

NEXT:

Take out your head phones, and the Ted Talk note taking sheet.

Watch the following Ted Talk: "Are we in control of our decisions?"- Ted Talk

When you are done, you will need to write 3 upper-level Bloom's questions about the Ted Talk, PLUS 3 upper-level Bloom's questions addressing The Other Wes Moore and decision making.
This is 6 TOTAL questions.  Use the Bloom's question stems/verbs to help you out.

DUE: Wednesday/Thursday-
1. 6 total questions.
2. Ted Talk notes sheet.
3. Be ready for Socratic seminar.
4. Finish book for Friday.

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This date is significant in American History and representative of the best of the American/Human Spirit.... Please take some time to look through the stories that came out of the devastation and darkness. On this day, I think of a famous anecdote told by Fred Rogers (Mr. Rogers)...

"When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.'"

911 Memorial Site

Pentagon Memorial Site

Flight 93 Memorial Site

CSPAN Video Clips- 9/11

       

Monday, September 10th

BRING HEADPHONES FOR TUESDAY. 

1. Your 12 questions on "Intriguing Images" are due today.

2. Read the following passage from page 14:
"The ambulance crew loaded my father onto the gurney and raced back out. By this point dozens of
people lined the street. They watched as he was placed in the back of the ambulance.The doors slammed shut behind him. The loud sirens and flashing lights broke the silence of the neighborhood. Mommy quickly loaded us into the car and followed the ambulance to the hospital. The car was full of sound—Shani crying and Nikki making goo-goo noises to try to calm her down, and the roar of the ambulance in front of us—but it felt as silent as a tomb. No talking. No questions. Just the white noise of the ambulance, one sister crying, and the other struggling to comfort her without words."

• In this example, what are the occurrences that cause something else to happen? 
• In this example, what are the effects that happen as a result of the items you identifed in question 1? 
• Prior to this horrible incident, what were the decisions that Wes’s father made? What were the decisions that the doctors at the hospital made? 
• What were the consequences of these decisions? How might the story have changed if different decisions were made? 
• Think about other decisions made the by the people in "The Other Wes Moore” and complete the following chart. PLEASE SELECT 6 DECISIONS AND OUTCOMES. 

PERSON   DECISION AND OUTCOME   HOW WOULD THIS OUTCOME CHANGE
                                                                       IF A DIFFERENT DECISION WAS MADE

Friday, September 7th

First read: Becoming a Critic of Your Thinking
- Take notes as you read.
- Be ready to discuss on Monday

For today, you have examined the 10 images from the NY Times. You have taken notes on the 6 general critical questions.

1. Select 4 to examine closer. You will then need to write 3 Bloom's Taxonomy Questions PER image. (12 total). Stick to the higher/upper level of Bloom's for this activity. You do not need to answer the question. I would like you to label the level of Bloom's you are attempting.  To do this, utilize the "Bloom's verbs" and "Bloom's question stems" to help you write your questions.  You can use the verb to help you start your question... or  the start of the questions on the graphics below.

Bloom's Action Verbs

2. Clearly label what picture you are examining, write your questions,  AND EXPLAIN how the level connects to the question.

Submit to Schoology BY Monday. Please utilize the MLA heading on the top of your document. (Example is found under Important Links).

Read up through chapter 6 in The Other Wes Moore for Monday.

Wednesday/Thursday September 5th/6th

1 Quiz: The Other Wes Moore. Schoology.

2. Review Bloom's Taxonomy-  Higher order thinking.

3. Discuss examples of assignments and their Bloom's order.

4. Why ask Why?

4. Open the "Intriguing Images" link. Examine the 10 images
FOUND HERE: Intriguing Images: NY TIMES

Use the 6 general critical thinking questions to get you to dig into the pictures. You will
take notes on your findings on all 10 pictures. You can jot down the questions you have. Things you notice. Patterns that you see. Connections to what you see.



The Other Wes Moore Reading Schedule:
Monday, September 10th- Chapter 6
Friday, September 14th- Finish the book

Tuesday, September 4th

For today, you should be up through the first 5 chapters of The Other Wes Moore. 
You will have a short quiz on Wednesday/Thursday.

The Art of Questioning

We have started our journey into inquiry/questioning. After watching "Why Do We Ask Questions", and being introduced to Bloom's Taxonomy...

Why Do We Ask Questions? Ted Talk

How To Ask Good Questions- Ted Talk

For Wednesday/Thursday: 

1. In your notes please pick 5 assignments/activities we have done in the first 3 weeks of school and identify the level of Bloom's Taxonomy that the assignment asks the student to employ and explain how you connect the assignment to the level.

2. Be reviewing the 6 levels of Bloom's Taxonomy... Notice the verbs in the lightbulb!