In the midst of the holiday season--with presents to wrap, traditional foods to indulge in, family and friends to visit, and good cheer to spread--students are wrapping up their reading of The Giver. They are exploring their own visions of utopia in poems they are writing, and they are creating storyboard posters focused on an element of fiction: character, conflict, theme, or the dystopian genre. Our schedule this week will be to work on poems at home and the storyboard in class. The goal is to complete at least one (most likely the poem) by Thursday to turn in. If students are not finished with the storyboard by the end of class Thursday, they may turn it in upon return in January. We will kick off 2018 with a new unit on nonfiction during which students will read a nonfiction book of their choice.
I wish everyone happy holidays and a fun winter break!
Homework:
Monday-Wednesday: work on utopia poem. If finished by Thursday, can turn it in.
Thursday/Friday (break): Can turn in storyboard at end of class on Thursday if finished; if more time is needed on poster, finish over break and turn in 1/2.
Giver Storyboard Activity
Monday, December 18, 2017
Monday, December 11, 2017
The Truth Will Out...Or Does It?
Toward the end of the novel, Jonas begins to realize some truths about his community. Through his Assignment as Receiver of Memory and the power inherent in it, he comes to understand the sacrifices people have made to achieve this place in which conflicts are rooted out, strong feelings are neutralized, and everyone seems to co-exist in harmony. However, underlying this supposed utopia are profound sacrifices: color and music no longer exist, love and family connection is obsolete, life is about the group not the individual...and most significant, people have no freedom of choice--about anything--and thus have relinquished their individualism. As readers, we are beginning to understand the irony that the very things they tried to eliminate to achieve utopia make this community a dystopia. As we approach the resolution of the novel, we are reaching some conclusions about the philosophical question of whether utopia is even possible. Lois Lowry teases readers in the end to make their own interpretation of Jonas' fate: does he reach Elsewhere? And where/what is it?
Students are working on a vocabulary activity using words from the novel. Later this week, upon completion of the book, we will read and analyze some poems about utopia, and then students will begin to create their own.
Homework: (vocab activity is due on Thursday)
Monday: Rd. ch. 20/21 w/charts
Tuesday: Rd. ch. 22/23 w/charts (to be turned in tomorrow)
Wednesday: Vocab activity due tomorrow
Thursday: Work on utopia poem--due Wed. 12/20
Friday: Utopia poem due next Wed.
Utopia Poem
Students are working on a vocabulary activity using words from the novel. Later this week, upon completion of the book, we will read and analyze some poems about utopia, and then students will begin to create their own.
Homework: (vocab activity is due on Thursday)
Monday: Rd. ch. 20/21 w/charts
Tuesday: Rd. ch. 22/23 w/charts (to be turned in tomorrow)
Wednesday: Vocab activity due tomorrow
Thursday: Work on utopia poem--due Wed. 12/20
Friday: Utopia poem due next Wed.
Utopia Poem
Monday, December 4, 2017
"Early Release" on Wednesday...
...takes on a new meaning when you're reading the The Giver. During our morning announcement, Ms. Wilson reminded students of their "early release" (aka half-day) on Wednesday which sent many students into a tizzy because in the novel, release appears to mean banishment or even death! It was a serendipitously appropos choice of words, unbeknownst to our principal, as we are looking at euphemisms in the novel and pondering why Lois Lowry might use them. It seems ironic given the community's value of "precision of language."
In addition to this language study and reading and discussions of the novel, we will take a look at short articles on utopias, including one attempted right here in Florence in the 1800s. The Northampton Association of Education and Industry was established in 1842 as a utopian community in which "the rights of all are equal without distinction of sex, color or condition, sect or religion." A core value of this community, of which Sojourner Truth was a member, was the abolition of slavery. There is a link below to the article and Historic Northampton website; the virtual tours are interesting and informative. As we analyze the community of The Giver, we will be deciding whether it is a utopia, and whether the trade-offs to achieving this are worth the result.
Homework: reading & completing charts as needed:
Monday: Ch. 10 & 11
Tuesday: Ch. 12 & 13
Wednesday: Ch. 14 & 15
Thursday: Ch. 16 & 17
Friday: Ch. 18 & 19; Vocabulary activity introduced today due 12/14
Northampton Association of Education and Industry article/Historic Northampton
Giver Vocabulary Activity/Rubric
In addition to this language study and reading and discussions of the novel, we will take a look at short articles on utopias, including one attempted right here in Florence in the 1800s. The Northampton Association of Education and Industry was established in 1842 as a utopian community in which "the rights of all are equal without distinction of sex, color or condition, sect or religion." A core value of this community, of which Sojourner Truth was a member, was the abolition of slavery. There is a link below to the article and Historic Northampton website; the virtual tours are interesting and informative. As we analyze the community of The Giver, we will be deciding whether it is a utopia, and whether the trade-offs to achieving this are worth the result.
Homework: reading & completing charts as needed:
Monday: Ch. 10 & 11
Tuesday: Ch. 12 & 13
Wednesday: Ch. 14 & 15
Thursday: Ch. 16 & 17
Friday: Ch. 18 & 19; Vocabulary activity introduced today due 12/14
Northampton Association of Education and Industry article/Historic Northampton
Giver Vocabulary Activity/Rubric
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