Thursday, March 31st, 2011

CREATIVE WRITING

 Hello, lovelies.  I am home sick today.  I hope to be back tomorrow to torment you in person; however, until that time, please work your guts out on all of the following items.  

E-mail me if you have questions.  

Thanks,

KW

TARA AND JARED:   Will you guys get the 2^nd block folders off the TOP of the wooden bookcase, and lay them out on the circle table for 2^nd block?  Thank you!

Writing Assignment #1 for Today

·      Kevin and Adam, please pass out everyone’s Earliest Memory paragraphs from yesterday.  (They are in the drawer.)

·      Everybody re-read your paragraphs.  Read over your answers to the four questions I asked you yesterday.  And look over the five details you circled.

·      Now, your job is to turn this paragraph into a poem.

·      Think about the story I told you yesterday about my brother and the tub.  And look how I turned it into a poem:

Rescue  (Earliest Memory Paragraph-Into-a-Poem MODEL)

Two babies

Up to their belly buttons

In the immense jet black tub

The girl steps out

Sees her brother, peachy-white

She sees the silver handle

Turns the knob

All the way

Towards the wall

Steam rises off the water

Drifting up to the white ceiling

Baby brother turning pink

Waving skinny little arms

Screaming

Mom runs in

His savior

Writing Assignment, Continued

·      Okay, so do you see how I did that?

·      How can you use your answers to the four questions, and the details you circled, to create your poem?

·      Open up a new Word document, head your paper with the MLA format, and create your Earliest Memory Poem.  (Try to make it at least fifteen lines—but longer is great, if you’re on a roll.)

·      SAVE it to your “Creative Writing” folder on your Student Volume.

·      Print it to room 212, but make sure you print it FRONT/BACK (if needed)—do you remember how to do that from yesterday?

·      Erin, please go over once everyone finishes printing, pick them up, hand them back to people.

·      People, staple your typed poem on top of your handwritten paragraph, and then toss them in the drawer.

Reading and Writing Assignment #2:  The Six-Word Memoir

·      Rumor has it that when writer Ernest Hemingway was asked to write a short, short story, he penned this:  “Pair of baby shoes:  never worn.”

·      That’s only six words, but it tells a story.

·      I want you to explore the six-word memoirs and stories here:  BE PATIENT--THE LINK TAKES A MINUTE OR TWO TO LOAD!
http://www.smithmag.net/sixwords

·      Spend fifteen to twenty minutes just reading people’s memoirs.  You can browse, or you can click on a certain subject area, if you’re interested in memoirs on one topic.

·      After you do the reading and browsing, I want you to create/type THREE six-word memoirs--that way, you can do a funny one, a serious one, and whatever else you come up with.

·      I’d like to share these aloud to start off class tomorrow, but you can decide which ONE you want to share out of the THREE that you write.

·      Use the MLA heading on your six-word memoirs, type all three on one page, print them, then put them in the drawer.

·      Again, let’s have Erin go over and get papers towards the end of the block, so that we are not interrupting Ms. Adrian’s class 20 times to get our papers.  

Reading Assignment--Last One!

·      Go the the website below, and browse the list of words that this organization is trying to save.

·      After you browse for fifteen minutes, find THREE that you want to save. 

·      Type the word, the part of speech, and the definition, then a sentence about why you want to save it.

·      Save this document in your Creative Writing folder, print it, then throw it in the drawer after Erin brings it back.  (Erin, tomorrow someone else will be the gopher.)  

·       http://www.savethewords.org
BE PATIENT--THE LINK TAKES A MINUTE OR TWO TO LOAD!

Last Fifteen Minutes of Class (9:20-9:35)

·      Survival Tips Worksheet—get back with the partners you discussed these with two days ago.  Work on filling in as many blanks as you can in the fifteen minutes you have.  We’ll talk about these more as a class tomorrow.

Homework

·      None, unless you need to finish any of the items listed above.




EARTHBOOK
Read aloud for the first half of class--1:15-1:55.  Remember, we won't discuss any pieces--just say if you need them read over, or go straight to a vote.  Dalton, you know what to do.


Someone from ART COMMITTEE can go find Dayton Schluetter, and ask him/her if we can use his her design for the t-shirt.


Talk about t-shirt design, but only for fifteen minutes--Dalton, you keep time.  Marissa, you moderate.  Glenda, you take notes.  Use the monkey!  :-)


Get together with one of your committees, and get on an iBook, and read the advice from last year's group.  These pages are gathered in the "Handbook" folder in the Student Volume in our "Earthbook" folder.  You'll all be able to open the documents, I think, but it's going to tell you it has to open as a copy.  If that doesn't work, one person can read the advice to the rest of the group.
What does your group think?  What's helpful?  What questions do you still have?


For the last part of class, continue on the "Read Quietly" folder.  Glenda and McKenzie, please keep those pieces moving like you did the last time, and tally votes as necessary to determine "in" or "out".