Writing Across Cultures

Period 1: Lab. Please continue working on your writing portfolio. Period 2: Classroom. Help yourself to a snack, coffee or tea. We will listen to chapter 3 of The Once & Future King. As you read, use the graphic organizer to storyboard major events in the chapter. HOMEWORK: Please read The Once & Future King . See previous post assignment and today's storyboards for details about how to keep track of the chapters in this book. Read as a writer, noting passages that you might be able to model, particularly involving characterization, setting, narrative voice, dialogue, and humor. Continue writing if you can to prepare your portfolio for the end of the marking period (Jan. 20). 

Period 1: Lab. Please work on your portfolio this morning until 8:00. We will then shift places and go downstairs for the second half of our mythology presentations. Period 2: Mythology presentations. The Once & Future King As you read along with the audio book/chapter, please complete the following tasks: A. Find a phrase, sentence, or short passage that helps create the image of the setting or a particular character. List a few examples as we read along. Try to get at least 3 on your list (you may have more than that). B. Choose one of the scenes/characters depicted on your list and sketch (sketchpad) or draw that scene/character. You might also use " snapchat ", wordle , Google Keep , popplet , mindmeister , piclit ,  storyboardthat,  puppetpals , interactive whiteboard , or some other internet program on your phone if you have one and share your work or comments about the book/characters, etc. with a friend. An alternative for those of you worried about you...

Period 1: Lab Please prepare your mythology Prezis for todays presentation (2nd period). Use your time in the lab to work on your writing portfolio. Portfolios are due Jan. 20. Where do we find myths in our contemporary culture? Here are only a few examples: Clash of the Titans (trailer, 1981) Excalibur (trailer, 1981) Conan the Barbarian (trailer, 1982) Beastmaster (trailer, 1982) Krull (trailer, 1983) Tim Burton's Batman (trailer, 1989) Eric the Viking (trailer, 1989) The Fifth Element (trailer, 1997) X-Men (trailer, 2000) Spiderman (trailer, 2002) The Fantastic Four (trailer, 2005) Percy Jackson, the Lightning Thief (trailer, 2009) The Avengers (trailer, 2012) Guardians of the Galaxy (trailer, 2014) Batman v. Trump  (mock trailer, 2016) Period 2: At 8:00, please go to the library and pick up The Once & Future King by T.H. White . Then to the classroom. Mythology Prezis Take notes on key aspects of these cultures and their myths as...

Period 1: Lab. Please complete your mythology Prezi's for our presentations on mythology. If you finish early, spend time working on your portfolio (portfolios are due the week of January 16!) Portfolio ideas: Create a comic book script of a hero's adventure Recall a favorite childhood author (like Gaiman remembers Moorcock) and tell a story about how you came to find, fall in love, and how the author helped you cope with events in life (this can be an essay or fiction or poetry or script).  Please SHARE your prezi with me at the comment link below to speed up presentation process. Classroom: Workshop. Let's finish workshopping your analysis papers. The Star Wars Analysis final draft is due in your portfolio by the end of the marking period. This is a required assignment for this class! With time remaining, please continue working on draft projects, or, if both groups have finished workshopping, let's begin our mythology Prezi's. HOMEWORK: Read ...

Enjoy this shlocky adventure film from director  Nathan Juran  with  Ray Harryhausen's  fun little claymation monsters. Seventh Voyage of Sinbad (1958)  As you watch, trace how well the film completes the male "Quest Hero" pattern in the character of Sinbad, and the female "Quest Hero" pattern in the character of Princess Parisa. Note: stories and their authors may mix up, combine, or omit these events-- they do not have to be completed in order , although some stories do follow the archetype closely. Turn in your analysis at the end of this film (today). If you were absent and missed the film, read the script here (or stream the film). HOMEWORK: Portfolio work: write your own Sinbad (or a similar hero) adventure story, film script, epic or narrative poem, play,  comic strip (see this link for this) Here's help:  the adventure archetype  (usable for any story!) and the quest archetype  (both of which should sound som...

Period 1: Lab Take a look at this article on how to write an adventure novel in 3 days  (and the actual article this website took it from) using Michael Moorcock's methods. You can read about this author at the links as well. Use your time in the lab to complete your Prezi projects. See previous posts for more details, but essentially, your "slides" should only consist of a couple of words (no more than 10 per slide) with a picture or graphic that helps illustrate (or remind you) of your point. You will give your Prezi's to the class next week (Starting Thursday). Summarize and be able to tell us about a creation myth central to your culture's mythology Summarize and be able to tell us about a significant hero central to your culture's mythology Summarize and be able to tell us about important/key gods/goddesses (and what ideas they represent) within your culture's mythological cycle. Check Eliade's essay for classifications for these myth...

Please turn in your homework. See previous post for details. Kristen Wiig: Goddesses of Creation, SNL Use the time in the lab to complete research on your mythological topic You should know the major gods/goddesses of your chosen mythological subject You should know the creation myth that goes with that tradition You should identify key cultural traditions/beliefs that are represented in the myths of this culture: for example: arête (strength) is a common cultural quality examined in many hero myths. Find examples of some others. You should identify one hero from this tradition and be able to tell this legend Use the time in the lab to prepare and begin designing your Prezi.  PREZI notes:  Prezi's and other presentations should only contain the KEY IDEAS of your presentation. You are NOT supposed to read to us. You (the speaker) should know your information. If you need to, write this in your notes, but do not copy/paste sections that you should know and del...