Eng 9: To Solve a Mockingbird Continues: Analysis Before the Designing

On Thursday and Friday, Monday and Tuesday, we'll be designing solutions to the problems the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird face in a two-day design sprint.  We'll be working Little Bits into the options for solutions so we may create working prototypes at the next level.

Before we get there  . . .

You have two pieces of analysis you need to complete.

1.  FLIPGRID: Scene Analysis.

In class we took a look at the jailhouse scene in To Kill a Mockingbird and explored how the filmmakers used angles, framing, composition, costuming, production design and more to deliver important messages about equality, tolerance, innocence, fear, ignorance, strength, knowledge, and more.

Now you must go to this flipgrid, choose a still shot from the collection linked there (and shared with you on Google Drive) and complete a two to three minute analysis of your own.

You might want to find the film (it's available on Netflix and can be taken out from the MBC Library on DVD) and see the moving images.  You might find some more clips on the MovieClips YouTube channel.

Post it on your BLOG and then link to that blog post on the blog tracker.

2. To Kill a Mockingbird Foreshadowing REVISIT.

Shared with you on Google Drive is a new version of the foreshadowing and symbolism graphic organizer you used the other day.  The difference?  Now you've seen the whole film.  These are no longer predictions.

Determine the extent to which your predictions were successful.   What have you now noticed about these potential symbols?  What do they mean?

Eng 9: Personal Brand, Storytelling as Marketing and More

With the hectic and irregular schedule before February break, I thought it might be helpful to write up a blog post that captures where we are at in English 9.  There is a LOT of info here.

Anything with a B* should be posted on your class blog and linked on the English 9 blog tracker.

PERSONAL BRAND.

By the time we reach mid-April, you will be ready to make your personally branded website/blog go live.  Between now and then, you have to develop some content.  Experiment with your design. Empathize with your potential audience and figure out what you want to do.

a. Personal Brand Graphic Organizer (In English 9 OUT Folder) B*

Complete the organizer and post the completed organizer on your blog.

b. Mood Board.  (Examples from Lorri Brown in English 9 OUT Folder) B*

Complete a mood board for your personal brand and post it on your blog.

c. Weekly content for your personal brand.  B*
Video? Images?  Audio?  Writing?  You choose based on what you're establishing as your brand.

Week of 3/3/07   B*
Week of 3/10/07 B*
Week of 3/17/07 B*
Week of 3/25/07 B*

You will choose the best of your content to use as a demonstration of content standards. (Writing/Media-Presentation/MUGS-Language)

MARKETING AND STORYTELLING

Understanding Stories

a. Use the 100WordStory.org selections to explore the story cycle.
Complete 2 story cycle graphic organizers.   (In English 9 OUT Folder)
Place in your English 9 personal IN folders.

b. Complete the Comparison Matrix graphic organizer and watch the three branded content videos.


Write a blog post in which you find another example of branded content, explain what is being advertised, discuss the effectiveness of the ad and how well it tells a story.  B*

b. Read 1 short story/memoir/poem per class and complete notice/wish/wonder organizers. (Notice/Wish/Wonder in English 9 OUT Folder)  (Put Finished
(I will update as we offer up more options.)

Reading 1.  Is This Love/A Release/Pull the Next One Up

This one is from the poet Marc Smith himself! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Reading 2.

Reading 3.

Reading 4.

c. 3rd Narrative Writing Assessment:  How Might We Write Branded Content Stories to Market Our Focus Fidgets.  (See the Rubric in the English 9 OUT Folder)

Draft Due 3/3/2017

ROOTS and VOCABULARY

a. Roots Quiz 10.
b. Roots Quiz 11.

MUGS.

a. Mistaken Words
b. Capitalization

SHOW YOUR WORK.

Blog.  Be Certain to Update Your English 9 Blog AND the Blog Tracker.

Personal Brand.  Be Certain to Create Content for your Brand EVERY WEEK.  

Something meaningful.

1st Due 3/3/2017

3rd Narrative Writing.  Content Branded Focus Fidget Story.

Due 3/3/2017.

Eng 9: Mahershala Ali, Songs of Myself & Stations

Eng 9: Mahershala Ali, Songs of Myself & Stations

Today we'll start a new routine for us: a video, reading, or listening about a current event or issue and a comprehension/critical creativity exercise to explore that understanding.

We're going to review sketchnotes quickly and then take ten minutes to sketchnote this video from the actor, Mahershala Ali, who won a Screen Actors Guild award yesterday for his performance in the film, Moonlight.

How might we capture the essence of what Ali is saying via a combination of word and image?  Take pics of your sketchnotes.  You'll be putting them up on your class blogs during our station work.  We'll have a ten minute or so discussion of his ideas.  

STATIONS. 

THREE Key Stations Today.

1.  Three Songs of Myself.  You'll have twenty minutes to complete this work described in this FlipGrid.  

2.  Blog Set Up.  I'll sit with this group and make sure everyone has their class blog set up and has figured out how to post content to their class blog.  I'll also help folks get links to their blogs going on the blog tracker.  The what?  Yup.  During that station.

3.  Roots 9.   The other stations are pretty intense.  This one will be a bit more mellow.  Roots 9 will simply be digging into the Roots 9 terms on Quizlet (check the links in the sidebar here) and then making sure you're also reviewing Roots 6-9 for the Quiz NEXT WEEK.

SHOW YOUR WORK

Blog. Finish the Songs of Myself work and get it posted on your blog; include your Potent Quotable of a lyric that relates to you.

Blog.  Sketchnotes of Mahershala Ali speech.

Eng 9: Mahershala Ali, Songs of Myself & Stations

Today we'll start a new routine for us: a video, reading, or listening about a current event or issue and a comprehension/critical creativity exercise to explore that understanding.

We're going to review sketchnotes quickly and then take ten minutes to sketchnote this video from the actor, Mahershala Ali, who won a Screen Actors Guild award yesterday for his performance in the film, Moonlight.

How might we capture the essence of what Ali is saying via a combination of word and image?  Take pics of your sketchnotes.  You'll be putting them up on your class blogs during our station work.  We'll have a ten minute or so discussion of his ideas.  

STATIONS. 

THREE Key Stations Today.

1.  Three Songs of Myself.  You'll have twenty minutes to complete this work described in this FlipGrid.  

2.  Blog Set Up.  I'll sit with this group and make sure everyone has their class blog set up and has figured out how to post content to their class blog.  I'll also help folks get links to their blogs going on the blog tracker.  The what?  Yup.  During that station.

3.  Roots 9.   The other stations are pretty intense.  This one will be a bit more mellow.  Roots 9 will simply be digging into the Roots 9 terms on Quizlet (check the links in the sidebar here) and then making sure you're also reviewing Roots 6-9 for the Quiz NEXT WEEK.

SHOW YOUR WORK

Blog. Finish the Songs of Myself work and get it posted on your blog.

Blog.  Sketchnotes of Mahershala Ali speech.

English 9: This Week. One Goal. Take Your Work to the Next Level.

This week we start experimenting with FlipGrid.  Take a look



Following these experiments, each day will be 100% about this little sketchnote.

Make sure everything is your Google Drive English 9 IN folder.
Make sure you have named each document.
Make sure you submitted evidence.

Think about tools you can use to PROVE YOUR INTENTIONS with your Tiny House.
You could take us through a video walk through using YouTube.
You can mark up photos using Pages or Google Drawing or Preview.
You can create interactive images with ThingLink.

Lots of tools.

Also Roots 8 (6, 7, 8) on Thursday/Friday!

Eng 9: Presenting Tiny Houses & Stations in Transition

This week we continue sharing our Of Mice & Tiny Houses design challenges.  Remember to check out the rubric available here and to use the empathy map and intention map graphic organizers in your Google Drive English 9 OUT folders.

We will be using stations to help our transition from Of Mice & Men into our Marketing with Empathy unit that will result in us taking over WickedFocus.com from last year's classes.

Stations this week will include.

Jenga Your Roots.  Create Jenga constructs to represent Roots 7 terms.  Post images in your Google Drive folder.  Prepare for a quiz next week.

Frankenword.  Design new words using your Roots 6 & 7 terms.  Put them to work in sentences that relate to the bigger messages and themes from Of Mice & Men.

Theme.  Complete a Notice/Wish/Wonder over this video on Theme.

No Red Ink: Commonly Confused Words II.   Complete the diagnostic on No Red Ink and the practice, if you so choose, to prepare for a quiz next week.

Designing & Writing:  Several folks still need to complete their narrative writings and their tiny house designs.  There will be some time to do that at one of the stations.

Potent Quotables:  At the Potent Quotables station, you will be learning how to combine words from a text -- in this case Of Mice & Men -- and images from a source -- in this case, Unsplash.com -- to create a visual worth of sharing on Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, Pinterest and beyond.  That visual will speak to one of the THEMES evident in Of Mice & Men.  You will need to explain your thinking and intentions as this will end up being a reading assessment for the quarter.

Here are some examples from the first sessions of Potent Quotables.

SHOW YOUR WORK.

OF MICE AND TINY HOUSES.
All work due ASAP.
Documentation (any photos, videos, notes, graphic organizers, etc.) must be in your Google Drive Eng 9 IN folder.

NARRATIVE WRITING 2.  Tell a story about the lesson you learned from the Cardboard Challenge.  Use powerful imagery and meaningful details to deliver a well organized story.
Revisions and Drafts due ASAP.
Must be in your Google Drive Eng 9 IN folder.

ROOTS QUIZZES.
NO RED INK MUGS Quizzes.
Coming up next week.
Retakes require evidence of practice.

Eng 9: Writing Assessments, Cardboard Challenge Prototypes & Ready for Roots 3

4G. On Wednesday you have 30 minutes to work on your narrative writing assessment.  It is absolutely due on Friday.

Then you have 30 minutes to work on your low-res prototype.   (You will have 30 minutes to build on Friday)

You also have Roots 3 quiz on Friday.

Your finished hi-res prototype is due next Thursday.  You will have time on Tuesday to build as well.

2B & 4B.  On Thursday, you will have 20 minutes to work on your narrative writing assessment.  It is absolutely due on Thursday.

You will also take your Roots 3 quiz on Thursday.

And you will have the rest of time to build your low-res prototype.



Here's the narrative writing  rubric and suggestions on the format/content again -- also available in your Eng 9 OUT folder on Google Drive.

Personal Narrative Essay

Single Point Rubric

Options.  Any of these may be fictional (made up) OR non-fiction (true stories)

1. Tell a story about a time your “super power” saved the day or your “kryptonite” lost the day.
2. Write a letter in which you advocate for yourself by asking a teacher, friend, parent or someone else for help.  Within the letter, tell a story that shows why you need that help OR Write a letter in which you advocate for someone else by asking a teacher, friend, parent or someone else to help that individual.  Within the letter, tell a story that shows why they need that help.
3. Tell a story about a time you met someone else’s needs OR a time when your needs were met by someone else.

Criteria	Evidence of Exceeding the Standard (clever, insightful, unique, powerful, creative, meaningful, professional)	What Meeting the Standard Looks Like	Evidence of Needs for Improvement (gaps, missing pieces or evidence, incomplete thoughts)
Details (WRITING)		I like how your personal narrative (story) is full of showing details by appealing to the five senses in  your descriptions.  I like how you move beyond just listing what happened and get into describing how it happened, what it looked like, what it felt like.
Narrative Sequence & Organization (WRITING)		I like how your narrative is well organized, with a clear beginning, middle and end.  I like how the order of your story makes sense and seems intentional.
MUGS (MUGS)		I like how any writing included is properly spelled and features proper capitalization
Timeliness (HABITS of WORK)		I like how you turned it in within 24 hours of the agreed upon due date
Perseverance (HABITS of WORK)		I like how you created pre-writing evidence (sketchnote, storyboard) and more than one draft (working draft, submission draft) of your essay to show that you worked through the process.  I like that you took the feedback given and put it to use.

OUTLINE and EXAMPLE

PARAGRAPH ONE.  INTRODUCTION.  

How might you lead your reader into this story?  

How might you hook your reader to be interested in the person, place, or object?  

How might you focus on the big ideas of this story -- the emotions, the learning, the message to get your reader hooked?

BUG LIST..

Have you ever . . .?

Everyone . . .

SInce the beginning of time . . .

Did you know . . .?

Webster’s Dictionary defines . . .

“Are you seriously wearing that?”

It is gross and disgusting to most of my friends.  To me?  It is a symbol, a totem, a remarkable piece of myself in the shape of a Kansas City Royals baseball cap.  This one piece of dilapidated headgear represents not only my growing up, but reminds me of one of the most important experiences of my life:  the spring I pooped my way to popularity.

PARAGRAPH TWO.  DESCRIPTION.  

Describe the person, place, or object.  

How might you include details that help your reader see, feel, experience that place?

TELL. My hat is blue.  It has a dirty spot on it.  It is banged up.  The letters are ratty.

SHOW.  When I put my Kansas City Royals hat on my head, I can hear the brown stains crack around my scalp. I don’t mind it, but the odor of twenty-plus years of canoe races, hikes and 5Ks have taken its toll on the noses of those around me.  

5 Senses.  Sight. Sound. Taste. Touch. Smell.

PARAGRAPHS THREE, FOUR, FIVE, SIX . . ?

Tell a story about that person, place or object.  What happened?  Use as many paragraphs as it takes to tell a good story.

Pay careful attention to the order of your details.

FINAL PARAGRAPH.  CONCLUSION.  

So what?  So you’ve told the story.  

What’s the big takeaway you want people to understand about your story?  

Why does this story stick with you?

I will never get rid of this hat.  It means so much to me as a symbol of who I used to be and who I managed to turn out to be thanks to some fantastic people in my life.  I know it’s gross.  I’m aware.  And yet sometimes it’s the gnarly objects in our life that remind us that the most unpleasant experiences are often the ones that give us the greatest rewards.

Eng 9: Roots Quiz 2, Manila Folder Design Challenge, Blogs & Gearing for the Cardboard Challenge

ROOTS QUIZ 2.

Today we'll start with Roots Quiz 2.

It'll be just like the last one.  And if you've been studying, you'll likely crush it in the face.  Hard.

MANILA FOLDER CHALLENGE.

We'll be tackling this big ol' question:  "How might we bring joy to others?" following Mary Cantwell's DEEPdt design process.  We'll be using DEEPdt  all year long to practice empathy fueled, human centered problem solving.

Your creative constraints for this challenge?
1 manila folder.
4 paper clips.
Design kits (tape, scissors, markers, colored pencils glue, etc.).

DISCOVER.  What brings joy/what takes joy away.
EMPATHY.  Interview a partner.  What brings them joy?  What takes their joy away?  Ask for a story.
EXPERIMENT.  Doodle possibilities. Make. Make. Make.
PRODUCE. Deliver a prototype.  Get feedback.  Bask in the joy.

And all of this . . . in  20 minutes.

We'll see where we are at the end of this to figure out how we'll use the rest of class.  There's a number of things we need/can/should/might do.

OUT OF CLASS WORK.

BLOG.  Document your manila folder challenge.

What did you learn about others?  How did they respond to your design? What did it feel like to design for another?  What was successful about your design? What would you change?

AND

What was it like to have someone design for you?  How did they do meeting your needs?

If you haven't turned this in.

Write a one page letter in which you ask a teacher, a parent/guardian, a friend, a coach or some other specific individual for help.  Explain what it is you need help with, why you need that help, and how specifically that person might help you.

OR

Empathize with an individual struggling with one of the challenges we've explored in class.  Adopt that person's point of view and write a letter in which that person asks for help from a teacher, parent/guardian, friend, coach or some other specific individual for help.  Explain what it is they need help with, why they need that help, and how specifically that person might help them.

OR

Empathize and advocate for an individual struggling with one of the challenges we've explored in class.  Ask one of their teachers, parent/guardians, friends, coaches or another specific individual to help that person.  Explain what it is they need help with, why they need that help, and how specifically that person might help them.

English 9: Empathy & Advocacy Stations

Thursday and Friday we experienced a series of stations designed to help us empathize to those with struggles and to learn how to advocate for ourselves and others -- how to bring help and ask for help.

This is a continuation of the work we did with Lawrence Hill's "What Are You, Anyway?" the work with growth and fixed mindset, multiple intelligences, and "Who Am I (Right Now)?"

BTW. Next week we have a Roots 2 Quiz on Wednesday and Thursday.  Heads up.  It's over BOTH ROOTS 1 & 2.

Here are the stations and some pics from each.

GO & GET.

BUILD A LEGO SET.

ORGANIZE THE INSPIRATION SHELVES

JENGA THE ROOTS

And one class was able to play JUST KEEP TALKING

We debriefed about what we discovered about our challenges, our successes, advocating for others and ourselves.   All of this is heading toward our first big design challenge next week around need finding, understanding ourselves and more . . . 

English 9: Who Am I (at the Moment) and Who Do I Want to Become Begins . . .

Last week we started our year long theme, though I didn't say anything about it being our year long theme because . . . uh . . . I'm not sure why.   But I didn't . . .

Who Am I (at the Moment) and Who Do I Want to Become is all about exploring our identities, our personalities, our values, our abilities, as they are right now, determining who we want to become in the future, and asking the most important question: how might we get ourselves from here to there?

Last week we looked at our multiple intelligences and our mindsets.

We used this survey from LiteracyWorks to help determine our multiple intelligences and took screen shots of our results.  Here's an example:

Later in the week we examined to extent to which we have growth and fixed mindsets.  We started by looking at objects in the room that represent how we feel about our intelligence.  We each chose one, took a picture of it that highlighted how it represents our feelings, and then put it back.

We watched this video that helps explain the difference between the two.

Two of the three classes did some work with scenarios, looking at how someone with a growth mindset would respond to a situation vs how someone with a fixed mindset would respond.

Then we used this inventory from Mindset Works to determine where our mindsets fall on the spectrum between fixed and growth.  

We took screenshots of the results again.   This time, however, we also found a sentence from the results that we believe describes us very well -- the inventory nailed it -- and a sentence that we were not so sure accurately describes who we are -- ehhhh..not sure sure about that one- -- and put those sentences in a Google doc.

To bring it all around full circle, we then wrote about how the object we found at the beginning represents our mindset -- whether fixed, growth, or somewhere in the middle.   We put that on a Google doc and then some folks started to copy and paste that information to their blogs.

Here's a sketchnote of how we went about doing this work. 

If you were able to get all of this work done in class last Thursday and Friday, you did not have homework.  Otherwise, you needed to finish completing the survey, finding the sentences that describe and do not describe your mindset, and then explain how that object represents your mindset.

It should be on a Google doc and placed in your English 9 IN folder.

Also in your English 9 IN folder should be your super power/kryptonite writing.

Now . . .  Monday and Tuesday . . .

Tuesday may look a little different but here's what happened on Monday . . .

We explored the basics of sketchnotes!

Then we worked with poetry Jenga and created a few poems in the moment.

Then we started reading "So What Are You, Anyway?" by Lawrence Hill, a story about a young woman on a plane dealing with some less than kind fellow travelers.  I explained how the Notice/Wish/Wonder graphic organizer works.

Then we broke into 4 Stations, each of which are described on the sketchnoted signs below with instructions.  Anything that was not completed in class became homework due at the next class.

Here's a link to the 8 Box of Who Am I (at the Moment)

Links to Roots 2 are over in the toolbar to the right under "Roots & Quizlet"