Tuesday, January 8

Welcome back!  Welcome to new peeps!

New Seating Chart Paradigm

NEW PROJECT COMP BOOK RESET!

1. Start anew at the top of your Digital Comp Book.  Space down all of the content from first semester so that it isn't battling for attention.

2. Create a header that says "YOUR NAME My Life on Earth: Starters/Journal" at the very top.

3. Work under this header for the duration of the project.

4.  Continue to label starters and journals clearly as labeled on my DP. (Starters will always be signified with the date; journal entries will usually have the date plus a title or label.)

5.  As before, see the link on my Resources/Links tab to catch up on starters and journal entries.  I will highlight necessary entries in blue on my DP each day.

Let’s start!

Starter 1.11:  Watch Alan Watts' "What do you desire?" and freewrite on the following questions:

• What is the purpose of your existence?
• What gives your life meaning?
• How do you define happiness?

Oh wow! A reader! How exciting!

Philosophy Project Preview:  Your Life on Earth

Second Semester Honors Preview:  Philosophical Inquiry and Literary Studies

Stanford Research Reveals...

READ "The meaningful life is a road worth traveling"

In PAIRS, discuss and jot down some notes:

• Briefly summarize 3 different ways the researcher distinguishes between happiness and meaning
• Overall, how would the researcher, Jennifer Aaker, define happiness? How would she define meaning?
• According to her definition of these two concepts, which do you think is more important? Why? 

JOURNAL 1.8 Stanford Research Reaction:

• Do you agree with Aaker's classifications of happiness and meaning? In other words, are they as separate as Aaker makes them out to be?  Can they exist without each other? Which do you feel is more dominant in guiding your choices and thoughts in your current phase of life?  Explain your thoughts thoroughly and give examples. (These comp books are just between you and me!) 

Work Time/Homework:

Read/annotate “The Meaning of Life” by James Rachels.  Think about the questions that this article brings up and/or attempts to answer.  (Do you see intertextual connections?)

Honors (and anyone else):  Check out and read The Stranger, our first Honors book and a core text of the philosophy we call “Existentialism.”

Friday, December 14

1984 Seminar!

FISHBOWL:  When in outer circle, take notes on interesting points.  You will need to incorporate these notes into your reflection assignment.

Group A: 45ish minutes

(break)

Group B: 45ish minutes

Seminar Groups

Seminar Reflection and Synthesis (Email me by Sunday!)

1. Reflect on the outcome of the seminar.  Consider your own performance and the seminar overall.  How did you do personally and how did the group do collectively?   Based on the rubric, what grade do you deserve on the seminar? *  Please explain why you think you deserve this grade.
2. React to something one of your peers said when you were in the outer circle.  Was there anything that enlightened you? Something you particularly disagree with?  How did your thinking about the book change as a result of this seminar?
3. Write a paragraph about one of the themes of the book, using one quote or illustrative example from the text to make your point.  (Make an interpretive claim about the book and support it with evidence.) Your claim may be something you develop further from your seminar prep, or it may be a new idea that you acquired during the seminar.  

*If you are not happy with your seminar performance, you may write out answers to the seminar prep questions using textual evidence for an improved grade. See: Seminar Make-up Assignment

Thursday, December 13th

Shall we watch this Thug Note together?
O brave new world that hath such people in't!

Literature Circle Seminar Prep 1984

Organize yourselves into groups of 3

Choose scribe(s). Make a copy of this document so that you can annotate the main points of your conversation.

1. Plot clarification:  What questions do you have about the storyline and plot?  Are you confused about anything? Help each other clarify the plot!
2. Character Analysis:  Review the characterization and discuss the significance of the following characters. Bullet-point the main points of your discussion.
• Winston
• Julia
• O’Brien
• Mr Charrington
• Big Brother
• Emmanuel Goldstein
3. Discussion Questions:  (Bullet-point the main points of your discussion.)
• Discuss the significance of the Party’s slogans (WAR IS PEACE. FREEDOM IS SLAVERY. IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH) and the names of the government Ministries.
• What is the purpose of the Two Minutes Hate?  
• What is up with the Proles?  Why doesn’t the Party bother much with them
4. Intertextuality: (Document the main points of your discussion)
• What are the connections between 1984 and Brave New World?  What are the differences?  Which seems more realistic?  OPTIONAL: Include The Hunger Games in your intertextual discussion. (‘Tis the dystopian story of your generation.  Take it in, kids!)
5. Seminar Question Generation:  As a group, come up with at least 5 seminar questions that might help us get at the deeper meaning of 1984 in tomorrow's seminar.

Tuesday, December 11th

Four Corners

• Government surveillance is necessary to keep us safe.  You shouldn’t worry about it if you are not doing anything wrong. 
• Torture is an appropriate way to gather intelligence as long as the prisoner does not die.
• If the government can prove you were thinking about a crime, they should be able to arrest you.
• We are living in a “post-factual world.”

What are some of the prominent themes you are seeing in this novel?  What textual evidence do you see for those themes?

Any questions about the vocab list?  Please ask me!

Here is a good overview of what you see in fascism:

The 14 Defining Characteristics Of Fascism
Go over the list and think about the subtleties.  In each case, what might we want instead to ensure continued democracy?

TODAY:  
Carry on with your preparations for seminar. 
SEMINAR PREP DOC
 It should be your goal to be close to done with the book by tomorrow, in preparation for your literature circle seminar coaching meeting.  (Do we need to push back?)

Possible extension to your seminar preparation:  Do further research on totalitarian and/or fascist regimes.  (Not because I told you to, but because you are curious...)  Any additional research and insight into other fascist regimes (both historical and fictional,) can only enhance and add to the quality of your seminar!

Monday, December 10

Dearest students: 
Last week of first semester classes!  Today is a great day to tuck yourself away into your own thoughts and learning and get lots of work done.  Be productive and resourceful and calm and quiet.


TO-DO TODAY
1, If you haven't submitted your projects yet, please do so, as per Friday's guidelines.  I will be grading today, so it is very important that you do this piece.

2. If you haven't finished your reflection and DP update, those are also due TODAY.  DP update and Reflection assignment. Send me your DP LINK TODAY!

3. 1984!
Continue to read the novel and the accompanying readings with attention to the Seminar Prep assignment
There are hard copies of the additional readings on the table by the door if you would like to read and annotate them that way.
Electronic versions are linked to the seminar prep doc.

1984 Audiobook online

Friday, December 7th

You guys make me proud!!!!! Last night filled my bucket:)

DP update and Reflection assignment

Project Submission and Self-Assessment (due Friday, December 7)

1. Submit an annotated version of your project where you have used the bullet points of the rubric to demonstrate how your project meets the standards (or doesn’t).  For video projects, this “annotation” can be done on your script and/or by giving a detailed run-down of where in your video you have met the rubric standards.
2. Include a copy of the rubric scored on parts A-D.  What grade do you deserve on this project?

Reflection (due Monday, December 10)-  

(Approx 750 Words, First Person)

• Describe the project that you did and your experience at exhibition.
• Now that you have looked at both sides more deeply, how and why has your perspective shifted?  
• What do you now understand about your own values that you didn’t before?
• What do you understand about the “other side’s” values that you didn’t before?
• What have you learned about democracy after completing this project?
• How have your political views changed as a result of this project?
• What role could Rogerian rhetoric and/or a “willingness to be disturbed” play in a democratic society?

DP UPDATE (due Monday, December 10)

Post on your DP:

• Title
• YOUR REFLECTION
• YOUR PROJECT (WITH VISUAL and WRITTEN PROJECTS)
• Send me a link!

Thursday, December 6th

Exhibition Day!!!  Let's get ready!

Be at the Fairgrounds by 5:15.  If you can get there a little bit earlier to help set up, I will be there at 5.  

Get your writing ready!  
Clever title, centered, bold, 14 pt font
Name under title, centered, 11 or 12 pt font
If you aren't exhibiting a formal piece of writing, please prepare a brief project description/artist statement to put in front of your digital project that has the aforementioned formatting for your title and your name.  Your project should still have a clever title even if it isn't writing!

Artists: BYO easel if necessary!

Digital artists: Bring a computer, charger, and headphones for your project to be consumed by your audience!

Seminar Practice!
Here are your groups!
1. Speed dating on the questions
2. Inner circle/Outer circle
Get meta...what order might the questions flow best?  What questions might be missing from the paper you all have.
3.  If you haven't done the prep, do that now!