AGENDA:
Discuss Montana 1948. Finish animated poems.
Work on short stories for Friday. First drafts due.
HMWK: Montana test on Friday
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Monday, September 28, 2015
Montana 1948 Discussion Questions
AGENDA:
Finish Montana 1948.
Discussion questions
1. Bentrock is a fictitious prairie town in Montana that recurs as a setting in Larry Watson’s novels. How would you characterize Bentrock? In what ways is the setting, both time and place, reflected in the characters?
2. What is the role and importance of loyalty in the Hayden family and how does it influence Wesley’s reaction to the accusations brought against his brother? How would you characterize the relationships between the Hayden men, Grandpa Hayden, Frank, Wesley and David?
3. How would you characterize Wesley’s opinions about the Indian characters in the novel, such as Ollie Young Bear and Marie Little Soldier? Do you think his prejudices complicate his role as sheriff?
4. David idolizes many of the adult characters in the novel—for what qualities does he admire Marie, Gloria, Uncle Frank and his parents? How do these affections contradict one another as the story unfolds? How do David’s opinions of these characters evolve as the novel progresses?
5. Did you form any predictions as to why Marie was reluctant to see Dr. Frank Hayden, and if so, how accurate were they? At what point in the story did you begin to suspect Frank’s character?
6. David’s mother, Gail readily accepts Marie’s allegations against Frank, while Wesley is reluctant to investigate. What factors do you think make Wesley hesitant to investigate Marie’s accusations and what factors prompt Gail to believe her?
7. Toward the end of the novel, David observes a reversal of his parents’ roles: “My mother now represented practicality and expediency; my father stood for moral absolutism” (144). What, in your opinion, causes this reversal? Do you agree with the assessment that releasing Frank is the practical and expedient option? Do you
agree with the alternate implication, that prosecuting him is morally absolute?
8. At the novel’s conclusion, it is decided to keep the scandal a secret from the larger Bentrock community. What do you think motivates this decision? If the accusations against Uncle Frank were publicized, who would it have affected and how?
9. In the epilogue David states that he “could never believe in the rule of law again” (164). Why do you think he is disillusioned with the justice system? To what extent do you think his father’s, uncle’s and grandfather’s actions in 1948 shaped this opinion?
10. Montana 1948 has been featured as required reading for high school students while simultaneously appearing on a few banned books lists. In what ways and to what degree is Watson’s novel controversial? Inwhat ways is it educational?
( Questions issued by publisher.)
Work on short stories.
TEST ON FRIDAY!
Finish Montana 1948.
Discussion questions
1. Bentrock is a fictitious prairie town in Montana that recurs as a setting in Larry Watson’s novels. How would you characterize Bentrock? In what ways is the setting, both time and place, reflected in the characters?
2. What is the role and importance of loyalty in the Hayden family and how does it influence Wesley’s reaction to the accusations brought against his brother? How would you characterize the relationships between the Hayden men, Grandpa Hayden, Frank, Wesley and David?
3. How would you characterize Wesley’s opinions about the Indian characters in the novel, such as Ollie Young Bear and Marie Little Soldier? Do you think his prejudices complicate his role as sheriff?
4. David idolizes many of the adult characters in the novel—for what qualities does he admire Marie, Gloria, Uncle Frank and his parents? How do these affections contradict one another as the story unfolds? How do David’s opinions of these characters evolve as the novel progresses?
5. Did you form any predictions as to why Marie was reluctant to see Dr. Frank Hayden, and if so, how accurate were they? At what point in the story did you begin to suspect Frank’s character?
6. David’s mother, Gail readily accepts Marie’s allegations against Frank, while Wesley is reluctant to investigate. What factors do you think make Wesley hesitant to investigate Marie’s accusations and what factors prompt Gail to believe her?
7. Toward the end of the novel, David observes a reversal of his parents’ roles: “My mother now represented practicality and expediency; my father stood for moral absolutism” (144). What, in your opinion, causes this reversal? Do you agree with the assessment that releasing Frank is the practical and expedient option? Do you
agree with the alternate implication, that prosecuting him is morally absolute?
8. At the novel’s conclusion, it is decided to keep the scandal a secret from the larger Bentrock community. What do you think motivates this decision? If the accusations against Uncle Frank were publicized, who would it have affected and how?
9. In the epilogue David states that he “could never believe in the rule of law again” (164). Why do you think he is disillusioned with the justice system? To what extent do you think his father’s, uncle’s and grandfather’s actions in 1948 shaped this opinion?
10. Montana 1948 has been featured as required reading for high school students while simultaneously appearing on a few banned books lists. In what ways and to what degree is Watson’s novel controversial? Inwhat ways is it educational?
( Questions issued by publisher.)
Work on short stories.
TEST ON FRIDAY!
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
Animated Poetry
Animated poetry:
Go to Poetry 180: Billy Collins' web site:
http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/
Select a poem to "animate" (shorter poems work best).
Copy and paste your poem on a Word document.
Find images on Google that help to express the mood or imagery of the poem.
These will be backgrounds for the text.
Go to Movie Maker. Take a tour and follow the instructions on how to use it.
Copy and paste text into Movie Maker.
Copy and paste your images as well into Movie Maker to support the text.
ANIMATE YOUR POEM!
continue to work on your Montana Short Story.
Go to Poetry 180: Billy Collins' web site:
http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/
Select a poem to "animate" (shorter poems work best).
Copy and paste your poem on a Word document.
Find images on Google that help to express the mood or imagery of the poem.
These will be backgrounds for the text.
Go to Movie Maker. Take a tour and follow the instructions on how to use it.
Copy and paste text into Movie Maker.
Copy and paste your images as well into Movie Maker to support the text.
ANIMATE YOUR POEM!
continue to work on your Montana Short Story.
Friday, September 18, 2015
Montana Story/Adjectives
Agenda:
Bellwork: Adjectives
Writing: Work on Montana Stories
Homework: Read Part II of Montana 1948 for Tuesday
Bellwork: Adjectives
Writing: Work on Montana Stories
Homework: Read Part II of Montana 1948 for Tuesday
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Montana Short Story/I Remember Exercise
AGENDA:
Warm up:
Warm up:
Permission to practice:
“Through practice you actually do get better. You learn to trust your deep self more and not to give in to that voice that wants to avoid writing.”
— Natalie Goldberg Writing Down the Bones
The challenge: I remember
- Your earliest memory. Capture every detail. Document the quality of the memory — is it as sharp as HDTV or hazy and ethereal, enveloped in fog? Write for 10 minutes. Go.
- Your happiest memory. Tell us the story of the happiest memory of your life. What happened? Get it all down, no detail left behind. The clock is ticking — get writing.
- Your worst memory. Record the pain, the anger, the shame, the terror, the hurt. You’ve got ten minutes to relive it. Keep your fingers typing.
- Freestyle memory. Write I remember at the top of your post, hit start on the timer, and write about the first memory that comes to mind. Ten minutes. Don’t stop.
- I remember/I don't remember
- Work on Montana Short stories
- HMWK: Read to pg. for Friday
Sunday, September 13, 2015
Montana Short Story assignment
Work on short story:
Your Montana story is to be written in the first person POV (I). It should begin with a prologue in the present that may be only a paragraph or so long from the point of view of the protagonist several years after the main incident in the story (he or she is older and wiser). Then FLASHBACK to the key incident that made him or her "grow up." Let your story be a "coming of age" story. At the end, write an epilogue from the point of view of the character in the present.
USE MLA HEADING, TIMES NEW ROMAN font 12 pt. only, and double space!
HMWK: Read to page 102 (Part Two) in Montana 1948 for Wednesday.
Your Montana story is to be written in the first person POV (I). It should begin with a prologue in the present that may be only a paragraph or so long from the point of view of the protagonist several years after the main incident in the story (he or she is older and wiser). Then FLASHBACK to the key incident that made him or her "grow up." Let your story be a "coming of age" story. At the end, write an epilogue from the point of view of the character in the present.
USE MLA HEADING, TIMES NEW ROMAN font 12 pt. only, and double space!
HMWK: Read to page 102 (Part Two) in Montana 1948 for Wednesday.
Montana Study Guide part 1
AGENDA:
BELLWORK: Pronouns
Study Guide, Part I
Montana, 1948, prologue (and chapter one, pages 11-54)
CLOSE READING:
Guiding Questions
1. Before you even begin reading, the novel story announces in its title the importance of its setting. What expectations are established with this title? What do you know about Montana, about 1948, about Montana in 1948? What do you know about novels and stories set in the West?
2. In the prologue, the narrator, David Hayden, explains a few things: how old he was when the story took place, how old he is now, and what has happened since. List this information, and then speculate: why, perhaps, is he telling the story now? What expectations does this establish for the story to come?
3. Also in the prologue, David offers a list of images. What do these images suggest? And what do you make of his insistence, on the following page, that these images, and others like them, be viewed simultaneously, not chronologically?
4. Lastly, David describes himself at the bottom of page 12 as "a witness." What does this word mean? List all its possible meanings.
5. On page 15, David introduces the setting promised in the title. What are the important facts, figures and details of this description? What kind of place is Mercer County?
6. On page 16, he describes that time in his life as "a new, blessedly peaceful era." How so? And how is this related to David's own age? (Why is 12 more peaceful than, say 10, or 15?)
7. On the same subject, what do we already know about Mercer County that tells us to be suspicious of this idyllic description?
8. The following pages are devoted to a description of David's father, in particular his job. In what ways does he defeat our expectations of the typical Western lawman?
9. Along the same lines, a great deal of time is devoted to a description his gun and holster. How does this encapsulate his failure to conform to our image--and David's image-- of a "typical" Western sheriff? How does Dave seem to feel about this?
10. The badge, too, gets some attention, and here David comments on something he later learned about it (page 19). What is the significance of his new, adult understanding of the reason his father never wore a badge?
11. On pages 19-21, we learn that the Hayden family is something of a dynasty in law enforcement. Later, on page 21, David describes his father as a man "who tried to turn two ways at once." Describe this conflict, including in your answer some thoughts on David's reference, in the same paragraph, to his "grandfather's domain."
12. A patriarch is a father figure, one who heads a family. A patriarchy is a society that is ruled by men. If the world of Mercer County is a patriarchy, what values are its principle values? What is the LAW?
13. On page 22, David lays out a second conflict. What is it?
14. Why is it significant that David and his family live "in the middle of town"? (page 23) What does this positioning suggest?
15. Comment intelligently on David's other life--his country life--at his grandfather's ranch. Is he, like his father, a man pulled two ways?
16. What do you make of the story of the toothless Indian woman on page 25? What does it show about Bentrock, and the general attitude of whites toward Indians? And how does this foreshadow the accusations later made against David's uncle?
17. On the following pages, 25 to 29, David descibes Marie Little Soldier and his feelings for her. Comment on two details: the incident, mentioned on 29, in which he accidentally sees her naked (what else in the story does David see that is naked?); and his remark on page 25 that "her body could be ready, at a moment's notice, for sex or work."
18. Why do you think David mentions his own encounter with chicken pox on page 28? Hint: he's speaking of a childhood disease, suffered as an adult.
BELLWORK: Pronouns
Study Guide, Part I
Montana, 1948, prologue (and chapter one, pages 11-54)
CLOSE READING:
Guiding Questions
1. Before you even begin reading, the novel story announces in its title the importance of its setting. What expectations are established with this title? What do you know about Montana, about 1948, about Montana in 1948? What do you know about novels and stories set in the West?
2. In the prologue, the narrator, David Hayden, explains a few things: how old he was when the story took place, how old he is now, and what has happened since. List this information, and then speculate: why, perhaps, is he telling the story now? What expectations does this establish for the story to come?
3. Also in the prologue, David offers a list of images. What do these images suggest? And what do you make of his insistence, on the following page, that these images, and others like them, be viewed simultaneously, not chronologically?
4. Lastly, David describes himself at the bottom of page 12 as "a witness." What does this word mean? List all its possible meanings.
5. On page 15, David introduces the setting promised in the title. What are the important facts, figures and details of this description? What kind of place is Mercer County?
6. On page 16, he describes that time in his life as "a new, blessedly peaceful era." How so? And how is this related to David's own age? (Why is 12 more peaceful than, say 10, or 15?)
7. On the same subject, what do we already know about Mercer County that tells us to be suspicious of this idyllic description?
8. The following pages are devoted to a description of David's father, in particular his job. In what ways does he defeat our expectations of the typical Western lawman?
9. Along the same lines, a great deal of time is devoted to a description his gun and holster. How does this encapsulate his failure to conform to our image--and David's image-- of a "typical" Western sheriff? How does Dave seem to feel about this?
10. The badge, too, gets some attention, and here David comments on something he later learned about it (page 19). What is the significance of his new, adult understanding of the reason his father never wore a badge?
11. On pages 19-21, we learn that the Hayden family is something of a dynasty in law enforcement. Later, on page 21, David describes his father as a man "who tried to turn two ways at once." Describe this conflict, including in your answer some thoughts on David's reference, in the same paragraph, to his "grandfather's domain."
12. A patriarch is a father figure, one who heads a family. A patriarchy is a society that is ruled by men. If the world of Mercer County is a patriarchy, what values are its principle values? What is the LAW?
13. On page 22, David lays out a second conflict. What is it?
14. Why is it significant that David and his family live "in the middle of town"? (page 23) What does this positioning suggest?
15. Comment intelligently on David's other life--his country life--at his grandfather's ranch. Is he, like his father, a man pulled two ways?
16. What do you make of the story of the toothless Indian woman on page 25? What does it show about Bentrock, and the general attitude of whites toward Indians? And how does this foreshadow the accusations later made against David's uncle?
17. On the following pages, 25 to 29, David descibes Marie Little Soldier and his feelings for her. Comment on two details: the incident, mentioned on 29, in which he accidentally sees her naked (what else in the story does David see that is naked?); and his remark on page 25 that "her body could be ready, at a moment's notice, for sex or work."
18. Why do you think David mentions his own encounter with chicken pox on page 28? Hint: he's speaking of a childhood disease, suffered as an adult.
Thursday, September 10, 2015
Montana 1948
AGENDA:
Bell Work: Noun handout
Montana 1948
Continue to work on web quest
If you haven't finished the "Prologue Writing exercise," Finish that and save.
STUDY GUIDE: Working with a partner or small group, work on the study guide to record your understanding of the text. Pay special attention to the page numbers. CITE TEXT EVIDENCE to support your CLAIMS (or refer to page numbers),
As time permits, we will discuss the study guide questions as a whole class.
Bell Work: Noun handout
Montana 1948
Continue to work on web quest
If you haven't finished the "Prologue Writing exercise," Finish that and save.
STUDY GUIDE: Working with a partner or small group, work on the study guide to record your understanding of the text. Pay special attention to the page numbers. CITE TEXT EVIDENCE to support your CLAIMS (or refer to page numbers),
As time permits, we will discuss the study guide questions as a whole class.
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Grammar/Montana 1948
AGENDA:
Period 3: Take the grammar quiz from the previous post and post your results.
Period 4:
mcdn1.teacherspayteachers.com/thumbitem/Montana-1948-Larry-Watson-Family-Tree-with-Key-1061932/original-1061932-1.jpg
Read the Prologue aloud and discuss.
Write Montana 1948 exercise.
If time permits, let's do a WebQuest
and create a padlet (formerly known as wallwisher):
http://montana1948webquest.weebly.com/
http://padlet.com/marcy_gamzon/mf8qb2uff6n7
isearch for images and information on the web:
http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/1948.html
http://www.brainyhistory.com/years/1948.html
Period 3: Take the grammar quiz from the previous post and post your results.
Period 4:
mcdn1.teacherspayteachers.com/thumbitem/Montana-1948-Larry-Watson-Family-Tree-with-Key-1061932/original-1061932-1.jpg
Read the Prologue aloud and discuss.
Write Montana 1948 exercise.
If time permits, let's do a WebQuest
and create a padlet (formerly known as wallwisher):
http://montana1948webquest.weebly.com/
http://padlet.com/marcy_gamzon/mf8qb2uff6n7
isearch for images and information on the web:
http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/1948.html
http://www.brainyhistory.com/years/1948.html
Tuesday, September 1, 2015
Welcome Back, Creative Writing Majors!
AGENDA:
1. Explanation of seating arrangement, how to sign in to the computer for the year and save this blog as a favorite
2. Review Course Criteria/Writing Lab procedures and assign lockers!
3. Activity: Pass out journalls. Watch how to be awesome: Write your response in your journals
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwlhUcSGqgs
2. Introductions--About the Author--Using Word on the Mac--How to log in, go to blog, save as favorites,
Write a short biographical paragraph about yourself in the 3rd person (he or she) for the publication of your new book. Describe yourself to let your reading public know more about who you are, what you have accomplished, what interests you, and what your life is like.
Example:
Alexander Christie is currently a 9th grade creative writing major at School of the Arts. He is 13 years old. He currently lives with his parents in Rochester, New York and has a sister studying theatre in New York City. In his free time, he enjoys reading books and writing short stories. His family is very supportive of his writing and everything else he is invested in. Although he hasn’t written any long term pieces of writing, he hopes to write and publish a novel someday. Aside from writing, he also enjoys singing, dancing, and acting in various productions. He loves living in an arts community and being able to do the things he loves. Going into his 9th grade year, he is excited to be learning new things about writing and himself. He hopes that he can continue to express himself through the arts after school, and share his knowledge with the world.
Share these bios. Learn how to post in comments on blog.
3. Visit Grammar and Style Websites--Using the internet
Stephen Fry on Language:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7E-aoXLZGY&feature=youtube_gdata
Grammar Girl
www.grammar.quickanddirtytips.com
Grammar Bytes
http://www.chompchomp.com/menu.htm
The Blue Book
www.grammarbook.com
Take the pretest and post your results:
http://www.grammarbook.com/grammar_quiz/grammar_pretest.asp
HMWK: Get course criteria sheet signed for 10 points
Read Montana 1948 to pg. 54 (Part 1) for Tuesday's class
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