Practice Blog

 Just type something with and without your name.

Behave

Leadership and Our Literature

 

Can our books teach us anything about being a leader today?

[Choose 1-2 of the following to post about]

*You may wish to compare and contrast the 2 books you have read (or should now be reading) --i.e. Mod 1 with Mod 2

*What new information have you learned about your main character (as a leader or not) that you have started reading?

*What surprises you about your character and how does he/she compare with your own leadership thus far?

*How is an "American" hero different from (or similar to) as a society than what you are currently reading about? There may be cultural variations.

You may discuss any beginning segments of your new novel but do not spoil the end of the book (yet).   I should be able to tell that you completed reading book 1 by now. 

Funny pun names based on any of the literature--encouraged :)

For full credit, you MUST have quotations as support of your points from 2 texts, you MUST show reading and avoid online summary info, you MUST respond to a minimum of 2 other classmates' posts.  Points will be deducted for those students who wait until the last 12-24 hours, for spelling problems, repeating information already stated, confusing responses, attacking classmates verbally, simply agreeing without saying much of anything, or off-topic commentary.  

------APA documentation must be used----
Your argument will be judged harshly, so be prepared to defend yourself!

**This blog will end at 10 a.m. or sooner on 10/31.  Remember that starting on the last 12-24 hours prior will result in loss of points since your discussion will be limited.

Draft #2: Character draft=give helpful commentary without repeating

Read the draft here:  

Extra Credit--Help with Commentary for these drafts:

 Draft #1

Read the link here:

  

Real Hero or Mock Hero?

[Choose 1-2 of the following to post about]

You should be able to write about past half of the novel.  Do not reveal the end.  If you are in the TH White, first half of the novel is fine.

*What heroic aspects does your main character have or lack?

*What is being mocked in your book and how does this compare with the farce/satiric play we viewed from NMU?

*What aspects of the government or society are being made fun of in your book and/or the play we viewed?

You may discuss any beginning segments of your new novel but do not spoil the end of the book (yet).  

Funny pun names based on any of the literature--encouraged or post as yourself.  

PLEASE DO NOT POST WITHOUT A NAME

For full credit, you MUST have quotations as support of your points from 2 texts, you MUST show reading and avoid online summary info, you MUST respond to a minimum of 2 posts.  Points will be deducted for those students who wait until the last 12-24 hours, for spelling problems, repeating information already stated, confusing responses, attacking classmates verbally, simply agreeing without saying much of anything, or off-topic commentary.  

------APA documentation must be used----
Your argument will be judged harshly, so be prepared to defend yourself!

**This blog will end at 10 a.m. or sooner on 10/27.  Remember that starting on the last 12-24 hours prior will result in loss of points since your discussion will be limited.

Leadership and Literature

 

Can books teach us anything about our leaders today?

[Choose 1-2 of the following to post about]

*You may wish to compare and to contrast the 2 books you have read (or should now be reading) 

*What new information have you learned about your main character (as a leader or not) that you have started reading?

*You may incorporate any satirical aspects covered in your new text (up to about 1/2 or 3/4 through)

*You may also compare and contrast All My Sons to your new text, or all 3.

*How are you as a person compared to your new text in terms of leadership qualities?  What is similar/different?  What about the prior text that you just finished?

You may discuss any beginning segments of your new novel but do not spoil the end of the book (yet).   I should be able to tell that you completed reading book 1 by now. 

Funny pun names based on any of the literature--encouraged :)

For full credit, you MUST have quotations as support of your points from 2 texts, you MUST show reading and avoid online summary info, you MUST respond to a minimum of 2 posts.  Points will be deducted for those students who wait until the last 12-24 hours, for spelling problems, repeating information already stated, confusing responses, attacking classmates verbally, simply agreeing without saying much of anything, or off-topic commentary.  

------APA documentation must be used----
Your argument will be judged harshly, so be prepared to defend yourself!

**This blog will end at 10 a.m. or sooner on 10/19.  Remember that starting on the last 12-24 hours prior will result in loss of points since your discussion will be limited.

Is your book a tragedy? Blog Post #2

 

Can books teach us anything about our leaders today?

*Argue which tragic elements from your new novel and Oedipus Rex are displayed.  

*You may wish to compare and to contrast the 2 books you have read (or should now be reading) using Oedipus as the "perfect" tragedy.

*Does your book display tragic elements?  If so, explain what aspects are (or are not) present:

*What new information have you learned about Sophocles or about tragedy from the REQUIRED database search?  Copy/paste this to the end of your blog posting

*You may incorporate feminism, historical elements, comparison to Shakespearian tragedies, hubris, hamartia, catharsis, or any other tragic elements.  You may also argue that your book has no tragic elements, but be careful to back up with quotes/evidence.

*We should have most of Oedipus covered by now as well, but if we did not finish in class, add in content we have covered most recently.

You may discuss any beginning segments of your new novel, but do not spoil the end of the book (yet).   If you need more tragedy elements, please consult our notes, Sophocles notes, and/or the "pure" definition by Aristotle in these 2 websites here and here. 

Funny pun names based on anything Greek or Oedipus--encouraged :)

For full credit, you MUST have quotations as support of your points from both texts, you MUST show reading and avoid online summary info, you MUST respond to a minimum of 2 posts.  Points will be deducted for those students who wait until the last 12-24 hours, for spelling problems, repeating information already stated, confusing responses, attacking classmates verbally, simply agreeing without saying much of anything, or off-topic commentary.  

------APA documentation must be used----
DATABASES REQUIRED FOR THIS BLOG, but your argument will be judged harshly, so be prepared to defend yourself!

**This blog will end at 11 a.m. on 10/28.  Remember that starting on the last 12-24 hours prior will result in loss of points since your discussion will be limited.

Mental Illness and Leadership: Blog Post #1

 

Can people with mental illness teach us something new about our American society?

*Argue which work of literature did a better job, your choice book/s or the play and why?

*What new information have you learned after you finished your book?  How did it change your perspective about your character/s?

*You may incorporate feminism, and historical elements to the book you just finished reading--any changes in society in the last 20-30 years in regards to mental illness?

*What did you learn about yourself as well?

*What aspects of your main character show he/she still has leadership qualities, even with this illness.

For full credit, you MUST have quotations as support of your points from both recent texts, you MUST show reading and avoid online summary info, you MUST respond to a minimum of 2 posts.  Points will be deducted for those students who wait until the last 12-24 hours, for spelling problems, repeating information already stated, confusing responses, attacking classmates verbally, simply agreeing without saying much of anything, or off-topic commentary.  

I expect you will have completed your reading, so avoid repeating things you already said during the discussion.

------APA documentation must be used----
DATABASES NOT YET REQUIRED FOR THIS BLOG, but your argument will be judged harshly, so be prepared to defend yourself!

**This blog will end at 8 a.m. on 10/14.  Remember that starting on the last 12-24 hours prior will result in loss of points since your discussion will be limited.

Extra Credit Option #2

 Same as essay #1, but from a male writer in class.

If you help with both essays (non repeating) then you can earn up to +5 on top of your marking period score.  If you were chosen, you will earn up to +2 for being chosen.

Ranked fourth in my grade of eighty-three students, top of my class in debate, numerous scholarships, a 4.0 overall, and winner (with my girlfriend S.J.) of this year’s national debate competition. These are all some of the great academic achievements that I have received from my hard work and dedication that I put into everything that I do. My name is  Justyce, I am a senior at Braselton Preparatory Academy in Atlanta, Georgia. I am one of the few African American students in my school. 

Having different colored skin comes with many trials. I have learned that no matter how much time and effort I put into making a future for myself, it still won’t change what people think about me because of the color of my skin. I experienced this type of behavior earlier this year when I was falsely accused of carjacking my ex-girlfriend’s car. I was walking down the streets of Oak Ridge when I saw her leaning up against her car and really drunk. I told her that she can’t drive like this and I took her keys and started putting her in her car. This is when I heard it. Whoooooop! Whoooooop! I keep going about my business, trying to get her into the car, when I feel a big tug on my shirt. Pulling me back from the car was this white, male policeman. I tried telling him that it was all a big misunderstanding, but he would just keep cutting me off and telling me to “Shut up!”. He put me in handcuffs and made a comment about how he saw me walking down the street earlier, and he knew that I was trouble. This made me feel like what I have accomplished so far just didn’t matter. This was a real eye-opener and a very traumatic experience for me. From this point on I became more aware of the racism at my school and just everywhere in the world. It wasn't just what happened to me, but what was happening to other African Americans throughout the world. I had been seeing on the news other incidents like mine; only,these ones ended differently. Policemen are seen killing African Americans, from what it seems, for protection,but other people who have witnessed it and have encountered similar experiences know how poorly some policemen view African Americans. I couldn’t help but think that I could have been the African American, on the news, that got shot by the policeman. This deeply scared me, and made me question how I was able to live amongst the white people of higher class. It doesn’t matter if I am the smartest one in my school; they will always be viewed as smarter, nicer, and all-around better people. After the incident, I started to focus a lot of my time on getting ready for a debate with my teammate. We decided that we would do the debate on how African Americans are viewed as being bad people. This ended up really catching the judges’s attention, which ended in us winning the debate. I was proud that I was able to talk about that kind of stuff and spread the word around. I realized that I would never escape my skin color and everything else that goes along with it. I have learned to not get so hurt by what other people say or do to me. I try to present my thoughts to as many people as I can so that maybe I could change somebody's mind on how they view African Americans.

Extra Credit Option #1

 Comment on the essay below.  You may help in any way you like, but try to limit your response to 1-2 ideas so that others may also help.  Use the checklists also where possible to help this student's essay to be "A" work:

Extra credit is due by Nov 2:  3 p.m.

Being a black woman in this world is much more difficult to handle than being a white woman. Although white people may have it easier than black people, I believe we can all learn and benefit from each other. One white lady that has motivated me as a person is Mary Dalton. She is a young lady with a lot of ambition to support the black community. Mary comes from a very wealthy family that all lives together and takes care of each other on the south side of Chicago. Her father is a successful realtor who also donates to the black community. Along with her father, Mary’s mother is also an advocate when it comes to helping people of color. I only hope to be able to make a family as picture perfect as the Dalton’s one day and make a difference to others just like they do. 

Mary puts in many different efforts to make people of color feel more normal and accepted. I have even witnessed some of her efforts: for example, Mary and another white man brought my significant other, Bigger, to Ernie’s Kitchen Shack and invited him to sit along with them and eat. Being a man of color, Bigger was nervous about what people would think seeing him eat with such prestigious white people but Mary was supportive and encouraging. Bigger was chauffeuring Mary and the white man as a job but she made it known that everything was going to be okay and it did not matter if he was just working for her or not. Mary was overjoyed when Bigger finally agreed to eat a meal with them. Accepting Bigger as any other person has really shown the type of person Mary Dalton is. She is a caring and down to earth person and I strive to show the same integrity and grace as her. 

Mary Dalton wishes to be very interactive with the cause that she supports. She even says “No, I want to work among the Negroes. That’s where people are needed. It seems as though they’ve been pushed out of everything.” (Wright, 1940, p. 87). Wanting to work hands on with the black community shows her dedication and drive to make a change. Working hands on also shows that Mary is serious about the cause and that it is important to her. Mary’s actions will push me to be involved in good causes in the future and help me build up on my leadership skills. Mary also shows a true interest in the cultural background of the black community. I recall her saying “And their songs-the spirituals! Aren’t they marvelous?” (Wright, 1940, p. 88). I believe it is important to be curious about whatever cause you are supporting  because educating yourself better on the issue can increase your effectiveness as an advocate for the black community. 

I am very grateful to be able to witness all of the good Mary Dalton has done for people like me. Her efforts may even help me have a smoother future. Watching Mary take action in such important causes has encouraged me to work hard to be a better person. I spend a lot of time working at my job in hopes of saving up my money. Working a job has also taught me many different things. Working has taught me patience and the importance of time management. Being at my job has also taught me how to build my work ethic to be an important part in my working environment. It has helped me develop more leadership skills and communication skills. Without the motivation that Mary Dalton has given me, I may not have been able to succeed in my work life or could have been a poor worker. Overall, I am extremely grateful for everything Mary Dalton has done and will continue to be motivated by her and use her personal experiences to help me learn and better my future self.