Friday, May 30

Immigration Reform Argumentative Essay

Essay due: Friday, June 6
Bean Trees test Wednesday

Brief summary of The Immigration Bill--the crux of the issue: PATH TO CITIZENSHIP

—The estimated 11 million people living in the U.S. illegally could obtain "registered provisional immigrant status" six months after enactment of the bill as long as:

(1) The Homeland Security Department has developed border security and fencing plans, per the specifications set out in the bill.

(2) They arrived in the U.S. prior to Dec. 31, 2011, and maintained continuous physical presence since then.

(3) They do not have a felony conviction or three or more misdemeanors.

(4) They pay a $500 fine.

—People in provisional legal status could work and travel in the U.S. but would not be eligible for most federal benefits, including health care and welfare.

—The provisional legal status lasts six years and is renewable for another six years for $500.

—People deported for noncriminal reasons can apply to re-enter in provisional status if they have a spouse or child who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, or if they had been brought to the U.S. as a child.

—After 10 years in provisional status, immigrants can seek a green card and lawful permanent resident status if they are current on their taxes and pay a $1,000 fine, have maintained continuous physical presence in the U.S., meet work requirements and learn English. Also the border triggers must have been met, and all people waiting to immigrate through the legal system as of the date of enactment of the legislation must have been dealt with.

—People brought to the country as youths would be able to get green cards in five years, and citizenship immediately thereafter.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/immigration-bill-summary-93557.html#ixzz33E6BRnKI
Immigration Reform S 744--Summary 1
Summary of Immigration Bill 2013

Human Trafficking in Portland
 

May 21

Vocabulary for Final Exam: Norman Shur's 1000 Most Important Words
Quizlet cards for 50 most important words from the book The 1000 Important Words
Immigration Reform
Read Bean Trees to the end of Ismene for Friday

Vocabulary for Final Exam: Norman Shur's 1000 Most Important Words
Quizlet cards for 50 most important words from the book The 1000 Important Words
Read The Bean Trees to page 70

Hand in poems. Enjoy!

Discuss characterization
Taylor (Missy)
What She's Like                                      Evidence--What she says, does, others say
1.  Stands up for herself                          1. "You think being busted is a joke?" (21)
2.                                                               2. "There was enough of destiny in it to satisfy me (16)
3. insecure; didn't believe in self            3. "I had expected more of a fight . . . " (7)
4. Wants to make some thing of self      4. "If I had wanted a baby, I would have stayed . . . (24)
5. Humble                                                 5. "He didn't treat me like teacher's pet . . ." (8)
6. She doesn't like abusive males          6. ". . . didn't have daddy, that I was lucky that way (12)
7.                                                               7. " I asked him how come he was giving me the job..."(8)
8. nonconformist         8. "...if I couldn't dress elegant I'd dress memorable." (6)
9.                                                               9."Which is not to say that we, me and Mama, were any        better than Harbines or had a dime to our name."(2)
10. "I'd probably seen the worst I was going to see so there was no reason to quit now." (13)
11. Wants to be free, to have vision       11. "In Kentucky, you could never see too far, since there were always mountains blooking the other side of your view." (17.)
12. Mrs. Hoge hinted in every imaginable way that she was retarded, but I mantained that she had her own ways of doing things and wasn't inclined to be pushed." (49)


Lou Ann
What She's Like                                      Evidence--What she says, does, others say
1. humble                                                  1. '... but thought of herself as just an ordinary Kentuckian...' (33)
2. Used to being objectified by men        2. "To be able to relax this way on a crowded bus was a     new experience for her..." (40)
3.  She focuses on the inside of a 
person and not appearances                    3."Lou Ann could never see why the accident needed to change his life at all" (36)
4. not confrontational--passive                 4. "thinking about herself and Angel splitting up... didn't particularly do anything about it..."(33-34)
5. very quiet and submissive                 5. "But Lou Ann rarely corrected anybody on anything." (38)
6. can't stand up for self; manipulable   6.'...Lou Ann had not experienced before. the arguments made her feel like the rubber in a Gumby doll, that her body could be bent into any shape and would stay that way.' (34)
7. Very self-conscious                           7. "As she was getting ready for bedshe caught sight of herself in the mirror and thought she looked disgusting and pornographic in her nightgown..."
8. Not ignorant                                        8. "Angel had warned her to keep them shut, but she had wanted to see where she was going."

2013 SAT Practice Test (Collegeboard.com)

A Near Summer Day

Today we will be writing nature poems. Use Mary Oliver's "The Summer Day" as a model.
(Homework is to read chapter 2 of The Bean Trees)



The Summer Day

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-- the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down--
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

Mary Oliver, The House Light Beacon Press Boston, 1990.

Write your own nature poem today. Here's the process I'd like you to follow:
1. Either sit and look at the natural world or remember a time when you were in nature. 
2. Then write a list of ten very specific things that you see.
The best way to do this is to focus on something like Mary Oliver's grasshopper and write down details. These details will not be confined to the object you are focusing on but will include your surroundings.
2. Think in terms of how you perceive it and then write five images describing that place or thing 
(what you see, hear, smell, feel) Your descriptions of images might include wording similar to the following: "colorless and frail," "a watercolor painted peak," "like little devil horns"(simile) "behind hugging trees,"  (imagery; personification)"plastic imposter" (metaphor) "kids lightly, freely, innocently tossing the ball"  "on a morning like this, even the trash is beautiful"
5.(optional: Write your thoughts concerning at least one of these things)
6. Rewrite everything, making it a poem. 

Ripley's poem--An example of how to write the poem
1. Write a list of ten very specific things that you love about nature. Riplee's example is her camping spot

• 1. Camping spot on the Alcea river
• 2. Our cabin
• 3. Path to the edge of the water
• 4. Bright reflection of light off the water
• 5. Warm sun on my skin
• 6. Cold water
• 7. The rock where we dove in
• 8. The smooth texture of the rock
• 9. Laughter
• 10. The feeling of the water making my hair float in the water

2, 3 Describe five aspects of that place or thing 

• The camping spot lies next to the water's edge
•  there are tall trees, that give you 
• The trail of sand leads down to the babbling brook 
• The light is beautiful with blankets of shade and spots of sun
• The water is cold
• There is a rock with ridges and holes
• I dive in head first into the sparkling water
• the water makes my hair float in the water

5. Write your thoughts concerning at least one of the images
I feel free at the camping spot lies next to the water's edge

I'm at the height of pure bliss

I feel enclosed but free

Baking in the sun, you long for the cold water 

and give in to the desire.



6. Rewrite everything, making it a poem. 

We have a place on the Alce where your freedom is found, A place of pure bliss. A place with the tall trees, that give you blankets of shade and spots of sun. The trail of sand that leads down to the babbling brook and open rocks. Baking in the sun, you long for the cold water and give in to the desire. The awkward rock with ridges and holes, running out to jump, you meet the water, head first. Enclosed but free, looking up at the sparkling water, and wavy sun. For a second you wait at the height of pure bliss.

Examples of other nature poems
Wild Geese, by Mary Oliver
Mary Oliver reading her poem: Wild Geese
Text for Wild Geese

May 9, 2014

Vocabulary for Final Exam: Norman Shur's 1000 Most Important Words

Read The Bean Trees to page 30

April 24

Holden's voice is unique, or at least it was unique in literature in 1951 when The  Catcher in the Rye was published. No doubt you've encountered other similar voices in novels, films, and music that were written after this pivotal novel introduced the disillusioned teen to the world. For example, in the 1955 film Rebel Without  a Cause, James Dean plays a character that is reminiscent of Holden, and more contemporary films like Igby Goes Down do the same.

Here's a familiar story told in the voice of Holden. I think that you'll like it.

The Catch Her in the Oatmeal--Goldilocks, as told by Holden Caulfield

Assignment: In a group of 1-4, write your own story in the voice of Holden. Anything goes. Make it good, though. The top story in class (as judged by you) will receive 10/10, the next two 9/10, and the rest 8/10. Have fun!

Ongoing assignments for The Catcher in the Rye:

1. Jot down examples of the following:

Things Holden Hates               Things That Depress Holden            Things Holden Likes

Brief references are fine, but include page numbers. I'm guessing that you'll end up with about ten things he hates, five things that depress him, and three things that he likes. That's just a guess, though.

2. For the next few days, part of the period will be spent looking into the quesion:
Is Holden a normal teenager? To understand this, we will look into some resources dealing with mental disorders as well as normal teenage rebellion. More or less, what we're doing here is a debate version of the District Writing Assessment (please don't tune me out upon hearing those words!).
Take 1/3 - 1/2 page or so of notes on each of the following sources. You only need to write down important points that might relate to Holden. 

How Do We Define Normal?

In class we will take notes on the following source documents:
Notes 1/3 page: Understanding and Surviving Your Teenager's Rebellion
BPD test: Do I Have Borderline Personality Disorder?
Notes 1/3 page: Bipolar Disorder Overview YouTube video: Bipolar Overview
Notes 1/3 page: Is Holden a Typical Teenager? Holden Caulfield As a Typical Teenager  (Currie (2007)

Your homework for the next three nights is to read three additional articles, two of which are listed below. You will need to find a third article on your own. I'd recommend choosing an article that clarifies just what it is to be a "normal" teenager.
Notes 1/3 page: Is My Teen's Behavior Normal?
Notes 1/3 page: Mental Disorders in America
Your Article or YouTube Video


The Fault in Our Stars by John Green is heavily influenced by Salinger's writing style. We will listen to ten minutes of the book, and as you listen, jot down five examples from the book that seem to you to be influenced by Salinger.
The Fault in Our Stars, read by John Green himself

Songs that Holden might like:
Mad World by Gary Jules (originally by Tears for Fears)
Brick by Boring Brick by Paramore
The End by Mayday Parade
The Kill by 30 Seconds To Mars

April 21

Holden's voice is unique, or at least it was unique in literature in 1951 when The  Catcher in the Rye was published. No doubt you've encountered other similar voices in novels, films, and music that were written after this pivotal novel introduced the disillusioned teen to the world. For example, in the 1955 film Rebel Without  a Cause, James Dean plays a character that is reminiscent of Holden, and more contemporary films like Igby Goes Down do the same.

Here's a familiar story told in the voice of Holden. I think that you'll like it.

The Catch Her in the Oatmeal--Goldilocks, as told by Holden Caulfield

Assignment: In a group of 1-4, write your own story in the voice of Holden. Anything goes. Make it good, though. The top story in class (as judged by you) will receive 10/10, the next two 9/10, and the rest 8/10. Have fun!

Ongoing assignments for The Catcher in the Rye:

1. Jot down examples of the following:

Things Holden Hates               Things That Depress Holden            Things Holden Likes

Brief references are fine, but include page numbers. I'm guessing that you'll end up with about ten things he hates, five things that depress him, and three things that he likes. That's just a guess, though.

2. For the next few days, part of the period will be spent looking into the quesion:
Is Holden a normal teenager? To understand this, we will look into some resources dealing with mental disorders as well as normal teenage rebellion. More or less, what we're doing here is a debate version of the District Writing Assessment (please don't tune me out upon hearing those words!).
Take 1/3 - 1/2 page or so of notes on each of the following sources. You only need to write down important points that might relate to Holden. 

How Do We Define Normal?

In class we will take notes on the following source documents:
Notes 1/3 page: Understanding and Surviving Your Teenager's Rebellion
BPD test: Do I Have Borderline Personality Disorder?
Notes 1/3 page: Bipolar Disorder Overview YouTube video: Bipolar Overview
Notes 1/3 page: Is Holden a Typical Teenager? Holden Caulfield As a Typical Teenager  (Currie (2007)

Your homework for the next three nights is to read three additional articles, two of which are listed below. You will need to find a third article on your own. I'd recommend choosing an article that clarifies just what it is to be a "normal" teenager.
Notes 1/3 page: Is My Teen's Behavior Normal?
Notes 1/3 page: Mental Disorders in America
Your Article or YouTube Video


The Fault in Our Stars by John Green is heavily influenced by Salinger's writing style. We will listen to ten minutes of the book, and as you listen, jot down five examples from the book that seem to you to be influenced by Salinger.
The Fault in Our Stars, read by John Green himself

Songs that Holden might like:
Mad World by Gary Jules (originally by Tears for Fears)
Brick by Boring Brick by Paramore
The End by Mayday Parade
The Kill by 30 Seconds To Mars

Many students say that they can relate to Holden.