MGP 2

Studying Cultural Variations of the Same Narrative

Directions: Choose one of the poems from the link given below, and compare and contrast to how the poem is relatable to a fairytale you have read.  Whether it’s a classic fairytale from your childhood or even nothing you’ve heard of before, write a 1-2 page paper as to the similarities and differences between the poem and the tale or how this poem is unlike any fairytale you have read before.

Next: Create your own poem that goes with the poem you have chosen.  It can either be a prequel or a sequel, but must incorporate elements from the poem such as plot and characters.  Keep in mind the rhyme scheme should be the same as well.

Here’s the link: http://endicottstudio.typepad.com/poetrylist/fairy_tale_poems/

(http://www.teachingliterature.org/teachingliterature/poetry.htm)

MGP 1

         11/18/11

            I’ve often wondered what it could take for students to be actively involved in writing poetry, not only for teachers as myself to grade, but for them to enjoy.  In my experience, students that I have taught seem to despise the infamous poetry unit.  They view the lessons as pointless, confusing, and generally put limited effort, if any, to understanding the poems.

            After conferring with some of my fellow colleagues, I have gotten a few ideas as to what might make them excited about poetry and get more involved.  One option that seemed popular was to create a class poem, with each member of the class writing their own line.  This would be a way to make sure each student would have a specific say into what goes in the poem, as well as being more entertaining to see what each other comes up with.  Another idea which was suggested to me was having one student in the class read a poem allowed each day.  It must be a poem that has a special meaning to them and explain why it is so.  This would captivate the class, and make them more interested into hearing about their classmates prospective on poetry.  Lastly, a more “hands on” activity would be to assign the class into groups and have them record a short play while making sure to use every line from a poem of their choice, in the script.

            I am thankful for my colleague’s help in this aspect and am becoming eager to test these ideas out with my classes. 

( http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/85)

Conference

For tomorrow's conference, I want to focus more on the idea of history and poetry?  I'm actually more curious as to how in depth I can go, without losing focus of how to teach the actual writing.

Multi genre project

I'm not completely sure if I could do my topic on this, mainly because a great amount of this idea is social, not only educational.  Cyber bullying is extremely high among teens, especially when texting and social media outlets, such as facebook, myspace, and twitter, are everywhere.  This bullying can cause severe depression in students and can a negative impact on their schooling as well.  A few weeks ago MTV came out with a movie about cyber bulling and has caused suicide in one of the characters.  Another character, suffered depression after a picture of her which she sent to an ex-boyfriend circulated around school.  In high school, there are issues like these as well as many student's "first love," which more times than not ends in a first heartbreak.  I am interested to find out what (if at all) a teacher can do during these situations.  Should a teacher intervene when they see he/she going through something?  Or is that crossing boundaries?  What if a teacher sees something out in the hall or other school property they would deem inappropriate?  Mainly, I want to see teacher's boundaries when it comes to such common elements of teenage life-- relationships, depression, and wanting to fit in.

Writing Amid Literature.

There is nothing I hate more than writing essays.  The generic outline, the overdone exercises, and the same old repetition I'm used to doing for every other class.  Personally, I've always thought I've been good at writing essays but that doesn't mean I necessarily enjoyed writing them.  Like most people, I get more pleasure of writing about something that interests me.  I think more teachers should let their students be more creative with how they write.  In stead of assigning another lame essay, mix it up a bit.  I've even had teachers in the past who have gave the class general instructions, but we were allowed to be as creative as we wanted within those boundaries.  By doing this, there was still a general purpose, yet us as students, found enjoyment out of making the writing our own.  My goal as a teacher is to give my students that creativity.  Of course, learning how to write an essay is a necessity in order to graduate high school, but I would also want to inspire more creative exercises as well.  After all, they would be more enjoyable for me to grade.

Will My Name be Shouted Out? 4

Before:
I'm excited to see how this last installment of O'Connor's Will My Name be Shouted Out?  Like I've previously blogged I really enjoy reading the student's writing and the emotions playing inside their heads.  However, after our class discussion today I'm beginning to wonder if I would be able to teach like this.  Sure, I admire O'Connor for sort of stepping outside the box, but would I be able to do that as a teacher?  I think ethics really comes into play here because there could be some serious consequences for O'Connor if word got out that these already troubled children were reading and writing about murder and violence, as well as using racial slurs and cursing.  I'm not sure if I would be willing to risk the backlash and possibly losing my job if I was their teacher.
After:
I have mixed feelings on O'Connor's overall "success."  On one hand I thought the final play was astounding with all of the different writing pieces put together, however I think his teachings also backfired with some students.  For example, one of the students, Ali through a rock at O'Connor while screaming "I am 'Yusef Hawkins!'"  Although Ali later apologizes one can't help but wonder if the amount of analyzing Hawkins' murder has negatively impacted these students by glorifying violence.  This goes back to ethics because should teachers really spend a lot of time on such a subject matter especially with students who experience violence on an almost daily basis.  Overall, I think the project came along nicely but it only pretty much showed the positive.  None of the angrier letters were published or any of the "bad" words, so it's hard to get an actual effect on where most of the students' opinions fell.

Lending Library

I don't think I would mind having to teach poetry to 9th graders.  I feel like as far as a curriculum goes, poetry wouldn't be different from any other lesson plan.  For that age of students, I would prefer teaching a variety of different styles of poems and material that is more entertaining for that age group.  For example, I would introduce Shakespeare, because he is such an influential figure in our culture, but I would also like to study poems on Greek mythology or maybe love triangles; anything that they could find interesting.  One work of literature that I would love to teach is Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird.  This is one of my all time favorite novels, and probably my favorite that I've had to read for school.  I think it's great for students to read because not only i it very entertaining, but deal with issues such as family diversity and race.
If I had to teach five plays I would choose Arthur Miller's "The Crucible", William Shakespeare's "Hamlet" and "Romeo and Juliet", Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire", and Tracy Letts' "August: Osage County."
Since "Hamlet," "Romeo and Juliet," and "The Crucible" are so well known in today's society, I think naturally it should be taught.  There are also issues such as forbidden love, murder, and witchcraft that the students would potentially find themselves more involved with.  In "A Streetcar Named Desire" there's a very interesting  dynamic between the characters, as well as the line between fact and fiction and "August: Osage County" seems to involve a family with a great amount of flaws.  I think the students could relate to this as well.  I feel like a a teacher I would like to push the boundaries a little, and choose material which students could both relate to and enjoy.