Monday, February 4th

FINAL LIT CIRCLE: This Thursday, on the rest of the book

Starter 2.4: Write a haiku that attempts to capture one thought snapshot of your personal relationship with nature or another philosophical perspective.

(5 syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables)

Maybe next lifetime

I could be a butterfly

Who glides through this fog

Discuss: What are our takeaways from the forest bathing article and the lit circle questions? What are humans getting out of their time in nature?  How might our culture impact our personal relationships with nature? How does this play out with Chris?

Lesson:  Transcendentalism

Reading Assignment: Excerpts from Walden

JOURNAL 2.4 Thoughts on Transcendentalism:  How does transcendentalism speak to you personally?  Which pieces resonate and which do you reject? Why? Choose at least one quote from the Thoreau reading OR the Powerpoint lesson and react to it in the context of your response.

Thursday, January 31st

Starter 1.31:  What might human beings find in the wild that they do not find in civilization?  (Relate your answer to the assigned chapters and/or to your own personal outdoor experiences.)

Lit circle meeting #2

Start a fresh document:  Make a copy of the protocol, share with all group members and Jessica.

GROUPS

The Human Connection to Nature:  Spiritual or Scientific?

1. Watch this video

2. Read "Take Two Hours of Pine Forest and Call me in the Morning"

Journal 1.31

React to the content of the article and relate it to the bigger questions of our project and/or your own personal experience and/or philosophies.  What connections might you see between the scientific worldview and spiritual belief systems?

-OR-

Tell a story about an experience that you had in nature that had healing powers.

Wednesday, January 30th

WORK TIME

Seminar Post-write (due midnight)

Here is a link to some movie quotes that you may want to integrate into your synthesis.

TO-DO when finished with Seminar Post-write:

1. Get ready for Lit Circle #2 meeting.  Finish assigned chapters and work on the pre-write.  Notice, I have combined the last two lit circle meetings into one for expediency.  If you are ready for tomorrow’s lit circle and you want to keep reading, PLEASE DO SO!  The final 70 pages are due next Thursday with an additional pre-write.
2. On Monday, we will look at transcendentalism.  If you want to get a jump on your weekend homework, read Excerpts from Walden, in your reader on pages 47-49.  

Tuesday, January 29th

SEMINAR: Harold and Maude

SEMINAR GROUPS

When you are not in seminar, work on your post-write and/or read Into the Wild and work on pre-write for Thursday’s lit circle #2 meeting.

TURN IN YOUR SEMINAR PREP!!!

Seminar Post-write (due Wednesday midnight)

Monday, January 28th

Film Screening: Harold and Maude



Homework:  Get ready for tomorrow's seminar

Thursday, January 24th

Starter 1.24:  How are Aristotle’s ideas on Happiness and a Meaningful Life resonating with you?  What do you reject? What questions does it raise for you?

LECTURE:  Aristotle’s Philosophy of Happiness and Meaning

Review Virtues and Vices Table: Are there words or other elements we are confused about?

DISCUSS: Do the concepts of Virtue Ethics remind you of other beliefs systems or programming?

Journal 1.24:  Identify some of the ways you are exercising virtue in your life, using the table of Virtues and Vices and/or the 24 Character Strengths from Positive Psychology

1. Choose 3 strengths that you feel guide you or are inextricably bound to your personal moral code. How does each add happiness/meaning to your life?
2. Choose 3 you wish to improve in, in order to live a more happy and meaningful life. Explain how strengthening these attributes could lead to a more fulfilled sense of being.

IF TIME:  

Read Into the Wild and work on pre-write for Lit Circle #2

OR:  (optional): Do additional research on positive psychology and how it might play a role in helping us lead a happier and more meaningful life

Wednesday, January 23rd

Starter 1.23:  What is your personal definition of “a life well-lived”?  At the end of your life, what do you hope to be able to look back and say?

Solo or with a partner, answer the following questions on a piece of paper or a Google doc. Share the doc with Jessica and be sure both partners' names are on it.

1. Define "Eudaimonia."  Google it beyond this reading.  Does this Google search add to your definition?  How might Aristotle's definition of happiness differ from the way Stanford researcher Jennifer Aaker defined it in the very first reading we did in this project? (see JOURNAL 1.8 on "The meaningful life is a road worth traveling")

2. According to Aristotle, what makes humans different than the other forms of nature?  What does this difference have to do with the purpose of our existence and our pursuit of happiness?

3. For Aristotle, how do we live a happy and meaningful life?  What might this involve? Give specifics.

4. Explain the Golden Mean.  Use the table on the last page of your reading to help you understand it.  Look up any words on the table that you don't already know; annotate the meaning and add it to your vocabulary!

5.  What might an existentialist say to Aristotle's theory of a meaningful life?

LECTURE:  Aristotle’s Philosophy of Happiness and Meaning