Getting to Paragraph Two in Synthesis

Alright! Today we sauntered our past past paragraph one in our synthesis essays and arrived--not yet exhausted--at paragraph two. Here is the link for some examples of our first paragraph synthesis statements, which we worked on yesterday. And here is the synthesis assignment (in case space gnomes have stolen it).

And HERE is a link to a video on how to create your synthesis statement for your introductory paragraph in case you need a review or were absent. 

Today, we worked on crafting topic sentences for our second paragraphs for our synthesis essays. The rough draft of paragraph two is due tomorrow, and here is an example from our back whiteboard of the process:

The cool thing about synthesis is that--since A + B = C--we already have our topic sentences for Habibi. It's going to be what we used for A yesterday! This second paragraph explores the theme of Habibi on its own terms, and our work is to prove why this theme is actually IN the novel (using two events from the novel). 

Also, before diving in to paragraph two today, we did some editing of our first paragraphs. Here is a picture of our front whiteboard, with the questions we used to revise our first paragraphs: 

And last but not least, our word of the day today was ELICIT, which means to draw out by clever questioning--as in this example: The lawyer elicited the real story during a thirty-minute cross-examination. 

AAAAHHHH! What is Synthesis!? And how do I create a Synthesis Essay?! Aaaahhhh!

Lovely Students!

If you are trying to write your introductions for this synthesis essay assignment, and you are beginning to wonder if Mr. Reynolds is insane, or if synthesis is even a real thing or not, cease and desist!

It is going to be okay. We will get through synthesis together. And forever afterwards, whenever you hear the word SYNTHESIS, you will smile a wide, knowing smile, rub your chin, and say, "Synthesis and I, we're old friends, we are."

You might also say, "Synthesis? I've taken Synthesis around the dance floor for a few twirls. I surely have."

You might even find yourself saying, "Synthesis changed my life forever. In a good way. In a great way. I see the world, now, through the lens of SYNTHESIS."

Can't envision yourself saying any of that stuff? Really? Did you try actually saying that stuff out loud? You did? And that didn't work? Hhhhhhmmmm.

It might be because we need more practice! Yes! As you are working on writing your introductory paragraphs tonight for your synthesis essay, here is a video which goes over some of the key ideas that we explored in class today. It walks through one example of how to create a synthesis essay.

Here goes!

If you'd prefer to watch the video via link, click here and you'll see the same video explanation of synthesis! Yes!

And if you would like to check out some of the models we created in class, here you go! These are some examples of how we found thematic statements for our two texts, and then put them together to create a Synthesis statement. 

Our word for the day is REVERBERATE, which means to echo, or to continue onward even after the action /words have ended. An example of our word in a sentence is this: A kind action can reverberate for years.

Finding Meaning and Connecting Messages

Today, we continued screening our documentary film, Emmanuel's Gift. The documentary explores the life of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah, who first rode 400 miles, across the entire country of Ghana, to change perceptions about people with physical challenges.

As we finish the documentary tomorrow, we will begin to connect the film to our novel, Habibi, and start to practice synthesis for our next writing assignment. How do these two powerful, remarkable stories work together to create a new message?

Along with our synthesis essay, we will be exploring how change actually occurs in the world. How do people, perceptions, and policies authentically change to become better?

There was no word of the day today as we were progressing with the documentary. See you all tomorrow for the finish!

Peace,

Mr. R

Synthesis Essay! (And Changing the World)

Today, we began a discussion of our next writing project: the SYNTHESIS essay! After our reading of HABIBI, we will screen a remarkable documentary entitled EMMANUEL'S GIFT, which reveals the story of Emannuel Ofosu Yeboah. Born with a deformed leg, Emmanuel's mission is to change the country of Ghana's perceptions and laws about people with physical deformities.

After we screen the film, we will begin our SYNTHESIS ESSAY (click here for the essay assignment in case you need to review it, lost a copy, or would like to use it for wrapping paper, love notes, or wall paper for your bedroom walls). 

In unison with our essay assignment, our word for the day is SYNTHESIS, which simply means the combination of two things in order to produce a new, fresh, whole thing! Yes! Think: A + B = C. An example of our word in a sentence is: my wife and I ran a half-marathon recently; alone, we would have quit, but the synthesis of our energy and hope helped us both to finish!

Complexity...or Simplicity?

Today in class we talked about how our word of the day, LUGUBRIOUS (i.e. mournful, gloomy, dark) connects to Picasso's Guernica painting and to our novel, Habibi.

We then segued (remember that awesome word from a while back!?) into a Quick Write for five minutes, and then a discussion of Poppy's actions with the woman who claimed to be a distant relative. You all shared insightful comments about why Poppy acted with malice or with wisdom--and each class tended to be split on opinions about Poppy's actions.

Which makes us ask: are characters (including ourselves!) simple or complex? Are the characters we read about in any novel clear, easy to understand, and consistent? Or are the characters we read about complex, inconsistent, and unpredictable? If we believe William Shakespeare, then we'd say, with him, "Nothing is either good or bad, but thinking makes it so."

However, can we judge Poppy's actions--or those of any character in our novel or in our lives--without really knowing what it's like to walk in their shoes.

Let's think about this together after you finish your reading tonight (up to page 140 in Habibi). Once you've read, share your ideas about this question below: Liyana responds to the Jewish boy she meets in the marketplace, "I am with myself," (128). What do you think Liyana means by this? And would you say the same about yourself? Do you know yourself, and do you see yourself as simple or complex? How do you see Liyana and Poppy--simple or complex? Why?

Whoa, dude! Loads of questions coming at you from Mr. R tonight. And they are all in bold font!? What is with the bold, Mr. Reynolds!? And what is with the copious amount of questions!?

Have fun exploring them. Share what comes to mind and heart. I can't wait to read.

Peace!

Mr. R.

Responding to Cruelty...

Today, you all worked perspicaciously on the Vocabulary quiz, and did a great job connecting our words to a section within Habibi. I loved seeing you all flip through the pages of our novel, and figure out how to connects words as diverse as LACONIC and EMPATHY to a section from our book.

It's all about the connections! As we continue to read, explore, think, debate, wonder, and challenge ourselves in Room 340 this year, keep contemplating how all kinds of texts, art, words, ideas, and experiences connect to one another. It's what makes us beautifully human--what helps our hearts grow and our brains form new synapses (remember those 10,000 gooey neuron connections we talked about!? Huzzah for neuron connections!).

Our word for the day, today, is APATHY. It is the exact opposite of EMPATHY. APATHY means the total lack of feeling / concern for someone else or for a situation. Here is an example of the word in a line: Sometimes, we feel apathy because we are being mean; other times, we feel apathy because--like Poppy in The Absolute Value of Mike--we are struggling with out own grief or problems. But we always hope to come out of apathy and into...EMPATHY!

Tonight, be sure to read to page 106 in Habibi. After reading, share your insights about this question below:

In our reading for today, Liyana talks with Bassam at his spice shop. A man enters the shop and is quite mean to Bassam, calling him an animal. After the man leaves, Nye shares how Liyana felt: "Later, Liyana wished she had chased him through the streets and hit him with her little spice bag," (95). 

Why do you think Liyana wishes this? And, if you were Liyana, what would you wish you had done? Do you think it would be your responsibility to respond to the man's mean comments and defend Bassam or not? Why or why not? 

The Effects of War...

Today, you all became art explorers and cross-cultural thinkers and even social scientists! IN pairs, you explored Picasso's famous mural, Guernica. Without knowing the artists or the painting asyou discussed it, you made insightful observations and then connected your ideas about the painting to a passage from Habibi.

I enjoyed watching you figure out what the painting might mean, and how to connect that meaning and symbolism to our class novel. Even though the themes of the painting are quite tragic, you explored how those messages can also speak hope about how suffering can be prevented.

Here is the mural of Guernica which we analyzed in class:

Our word for today linked to our discussion of Picasso's painting and also our discussion of your passages from Habibi: EMPATHY, which means the ability to imagine how someone else feels or experiences life--to walk in someone else's shoes, enabling them to not feel so alone. An example of our word in a line would be: When one person has empathy for another, it can be a life-changing difference. 

For tomorrow, we have our vocab quiz on five of the following six words: EMPATHY, CIRCUMNAVIGATE, CREDIBILITY, INTREPID, LACONIC, and MOROSE. Bring your Habibi books with you for the quiz tomorrow, as you'll need them.

Thanks for sharing your insights today; looking forward to tomorrow. 

Peace,

Mr. R.

Understanding the Human Heart of Conflict

Today, we began to explore the Palestine-Israel conflict together, using what you have been exploring in Social Studies as our foundation. You worked in pairs to create a page-large visual of what you already know about the conflict, and about how and why it started.

We then shared our information with one another on our classroom's whiteboards and smartboard.

This will give us the basis for our upcoming novel, Habibi, by Naomi Shiab Nye. Habibi tells the story of a teenage girl whose family relocates to Palestine from America. Throguh her eyes, we see the painful transition of life, and we watch as she and her family must learn to deal with the pain and tragedy of such deep conflict.



For tonight, be sure to find one newspaper article on the Israel-Palestine conflict and print it out (or cut it out), annotate it, and then bring it to class tomorrow. 

Some great sites to explore for credible news articles are: The New York Times (nytimes.com), The Washington Post (washpost.com), and the Wall Street Journal (wsj.com).

Our word for the day is CIRCUMNAVIGATE, which means to go all the way around something. An example of the word in a sentence would be: The explorer circumnavigated the Earth and learned remarkable lessons from people everywhere.

See you tomorrow!

Peace,

Mr. R.

Outside or Inside...Or Neither?

Welcome back! It has been great to see you each today, and to dive back into English class with a Quick Write and a few more Ideal School presentations. Your presentations are engaging, thought-provoking, and insightful. What strikes me most is that in almost every single Ideal School you have created, hands-on, active learning is a theme.

Our word for the day, today, is LACONIC, which is an adjective that means using few words. It is the opposite of one of our previous vocabulary words, LOQUACIOUS, which means highly talkative. Here is an example of the word LACONIC in a sentence: The shy student seemed laconic at first, but once he got to know everyone, he became downright loquacious!

Read the following quote from the novel Habibi by Naomi Shihab Nye, and then share your ideas about the question that follows it (in the response section of our blog):

"Let's believe together in a world where no one is either inside or outside, yes?" 

Even though we have not yet read Nye's novel, if you had to make a guess, what do you think this quote is suggesting? Why?

No wrong answers--share your thoughts below! Peace! Mr. R.

Creating Power

Today, we are exploring symbolism, and how writers use symbols to convey powerful messages and meanings. In Joan Bauer's short story, we can see sharks not as sea creatures, but in the face of Madge, in the store manager, and possibly even in the police officer. These characters try to attack Beth in different ways--they are symbolically like sharks!

You took your third vocabulary quiz today, in which you read a crazy story about your (normally) sane teachers, and you had to annotate the story using our five words from the week.

Our quote for the day is from a novel we'll read later on in the year, Habibi, by Naomi Shihab Nye: "Let's believe together in a world where no one is either inside or outside, yes?"

Our word of the day was symbolism, which means the practice of using an object or a visual to represent an idea or a character.

Have a fabulous weekend! The only homework is to begin thinking about what your short story might include. No need to write anything over the weekend, as we'll explore our first big (and creative!) writing project next week. Have fun, and get outside! (But watch out for the Jello-O aliens.)