Tuesday, April 5, 2011

4-6-11

1. Daily Journal: What was your worst experience ever at a restaurant (or eating in general)?

2. Lyrics

3. You will work on your final story today

Monday, April 4, 2011

4-5-11 Final Story

1. Daily Journal: Imagine you opened your own restaurant. Tell the name of your restaurant. Explain what the restaurant looks like, who works there, and what you serve.

2. Lyrics

3. Write your final assignment

Sunday, April 3, 2011

4-4-11

1. Daily Journal:

2. Lyrics

3. Final short story - 3-5 pages, twist ending, personal narrative?

Thursday, March 31, 2011

4-1-11 Finish Sci Fi Stories

I'm not going to be in class today. Please help the sub get the projector (use NEC remote to turn on projector and turn to Video 1) and audio (Video 2) ready.

1. Daily Journal: "Behind her the noise escalated..."

2. Lyrics: Kyle Anderson

3. Finish peer editing your science fiction stories. The final version is due on your blog at the beginning of the hour on Monday.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

3-31-11 Short Stories

http://www.miettecast.com/2006/06/27/the-life-you-save-may-be-your-own/

http://faculty.smu.edu/nschwart/2312/lifeyousave.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flannery_O%27Connor

3-30-11 Peer Reviews

1. Daily Journal: The clock winked....

2. Lyrics

3. Today we will peer review your papers using Track Changes in Microsoft Word. Your final version of your story needs to be posted to your blog by tomorrow.

Monday, March 28, 2011

3-29-11 Peer Editing?

1. Daily Journal: What did you do over spring break?

2. Lyrics

3. Where are we with our sci fi writing projects? Peer editing in Microsoft Word - Track Changes?

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

3-17-11 Characters

3/17/11
1. Daily Journal: "I once dreamed about..."
2. Lyrics
3. Creating characters: http://www.fictionfactor.com/characters.html
http://www.how-to-write-a-book-now.com/create-characters.html

3/18/11
1. Daily Journal: If you could invent one thing to help mankind, what would it be?
2. Lyrics
3. Write your short story. Try to be finished before class begins on Tuesday, 3/29/11.

3/28/11
1. Daily Journal: Write from the point of view of a spoon inside a dishwasher.
2. Lyrics
3. Write your short story. Try to be finished before you come to class tomorrow.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

3-16-11 Elements of a Short Story

1. Daily Journal: "I wish someone had told me..."

2. Lyrics

3. Elements of a short story: http://hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca/engramja/elements.html

4. You will do a freewriting exercise brainstorming those elements for your science fiction story.

Monday, March 14, 2011

3-15-11 Science Fiction Writing

1. Daily Journal:


2. Lyrics

3. Finish technology presentations

4. Science fiction assignment

Sunday, March 13, 2011

3-14-11 Technology Writing Presentations

1. Daily Journal: Write a short story titled, "My Journey on a Pirate Ship." You and your friends/family star in the story.

2. Lyrics

3. Technology Presentations

4. Science Fiction/Fantasy Assignment: http://www.writesf.com/

Imagine you were cryogenically frozen for 100 years. What would life would be like when you wake up? What new technologies exist? How do people would look and behave? What species are extinct or new (aliens)? Has there been a worldwide disaster? Your story needs to be at least five pages in length and will be due next week.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

3-10-11 Technology Project Presentations

1. Daily Journal: Write about this:



2. Lyrics

3. You will present your assignments to the rest of the class.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

3-9-11 Technology Writing

1. Daily Journal: Think of a fictional character you really like (from a book, movie, or TV show). Craft a story with that person losing the most valuable item to him or her.

2. Lyrics

3. Try to finish your technology writing project by the end of the hour. We will present these projects in class tomorrow.

3-8-11 Technology Writing

1. Daily Journal: Write from the point of view of a stack of paper a few inches away from the shredder.

2. Lyrics

3. You will work on your technology writing project today.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

3/7 - 3/10 Technology Writing Project

1. Daily Journal: Marian Bartsch and Joey Catsalgi met on his first day of work...
(One of them had a rough childhood. Write their story)

2. Lyrics

3. Here's the plan for the week:

Monday - Choose one of the following technology writing tools to create your writing project:
http://cooltoolsforschools.wikispaces.com/Writing+Tools

You need to post a brief treatment to your blog before the end of the hour. You will freewrite about the technology you will use and about what topic you will write.

Tuesday - Writing

Wednesday - Writing

Thursday - Present Your Projects to the Class

Thursday, March 3, 2011

3-4-11 End of Poetry Unit

1. Daily Journal: You have just found out you are going to die. You are given all the money you could want. What would be your perfect day?

2. Lyrics

3. Villanelle Poetry Due

4. Write your own poem using what you learned during the first half of the course.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

3-3-11 Villanelle

1. Daily Journal:What are the 10 most important moments in your life to this point?

2. Lyrics: Moe

3. Etheree Poetry is due

4. Villanelle Poetry:

In a traditional Villanelle:

  • The lines are grouped into five tercets and a concluding quatrain. Thus a Villanelle has 19 lines.
  • Lines may be of any length.
  • The Villanelle has two rhymes. The rhyme scheme is aba, with the same end-rhyme for every first and last line of each tercet and the final two lines of the quatrain.
  • Two of the lines are repeated:
    1. The first line of the first stanza is repeated as the last line of the second and the fourth stanzas, and as the second-to-last line in the concluding quatrain.
    2. The third line of the first stanza is repeated as the last line of the third and the fifth stanzas, and as the last line in the concluding quatrain.
  • Thus the pattern of line-repetition is as follows:

    A1 b A2 - Lines in first tercet.
    a b A1 - Lines in second tercet.
    a b A2 - Lines in third tercet.
    a b A1 - Lines in fourth tercet.
    a b A2 - Lines in fifth tercet.
    a b A1 A2 - Lines in final quatrain.


CRETE - 1941 AND 1971 by J. Zimmerman.

At the village entrance, the glass casket, full
of human bones, meets the traveler to Crete.
The moon gleams like a skull upon each skull.

Fishermen (fathers, husbands, or sons of these sorrowful
fragments) ferried to ships the Allies in retreat.
At the village entrance, the glass casket, full

of ghosts of women and children torn fearful
from cottages, remembers the Nazi military elite.
The moon gleams like a skull upon each skull,

upon slim bones from arms that once could lull
babies, and upon bones from babies feet.
At the village entrance, the glass casket, full

of thighbones, commemorates those too slow to haul
themselves into the hills. In the evening heat,
the moon gleams like a skull upon each skull.

Three decades later, German sailors, dull
to history, laugh together jostling on a seat
at the village entrance - the glass casket. Full
the moon gleams like a skull upon each skull.

3-2-11 Etheree

1. Daily Journal: How ridiculous I was as a...
Include the words drench, silly, goofy, twist, octopus

2. Lyrics

3. Acrostic poetry due
4. Etheree Poetry
The poetry form, Etheree, consists of 10 lines of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 syllables.  Etheree poems can
also be reversed and written 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Get creative and write an Etheree with
more than one verse, but follow suit with an inverted syllable count.

Reversed Etheree: 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

Double Etheree: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 10, 9, 8, 7, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1

...Triple Etheree, Quadruple Etheree, and so on!

Example #1:
Your Wild Awakening

Scent
of woods;
callouses
on hands I stroke
speak of hard-spent days.
I trace a stubbled chin
and hear my name unspoken
in a warm unwavering gaze.
Pressing kisses taste of surging need.
I revel in your wild awakening.

Copyright © 2003 Andrea Dietrich
Example #3:
The Lair

Where haze invades iniquitous corners;
raucous music saturates the room,
the Ecstacy-induced twining
of hot, pulsating bodies,
a mimicry of mass
lewd copulation,
slows the thick air;
emptiness
stifles
me.

Copyright © 2003 Andrea Dietrich

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

3-1-11 Acrostic Poetry

1. Daily Journal: Write about ways you would change the world if you could. Start with our own government and then move out to the real world.

2. Lyrics: Bree

3. Concrete poem due

4. Acrostic Poetry (Name Poem): A Name Poem, or Acrostic Poem, tells about the word. It uses the letters of the word for the first letter of each line.

Nicky
by
Marie Hughes

Nicky is a Nurse
It's her chosen career
Children or Old folks
Kindness in abundance
Year after year

Your assignment is to do an acrostic poem with your first and last names (you can include your middle name if you'd like).

Sunday, February 27, 2011

2-28-11 Concrete Poem

1. Daily Journal: The house was made of…
Include the words: Wobbly, wagon, twinkle, squint, gabby.

2. Lyrics

3. Sonnet is due

4. Concrete Poem (Visual Poem): poetry in which the typographical arrangement of words is as important in conveying the intended effect as the conventional elements of the poem, such as meaning of words, rhythm, rhyme and so on.


Triangle

I
am
a very
special
shape I have
three points and
three lines straight.
Look through my words
and you will see, the shape
that I am meant to be. I'm just
not words caught in a tangle. Look
close to see a small triangle. My angles
add to one hundred and eighty degrees, you
learn this at school with your abc's. Practice your
maths and you will see, some other fine examples of me.

Friday, February 25, 2011

2-25-11 Sonnets

1. Daily journal: If you could invite three people (living or dead) to the dinner table, who would it be and why?

2. Lyrics

3. Assonance poem is due

4. Write a sonnet
How to Write a Sonnet

Iambic Pentameter Information

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

2-24-11 Assonance

1. Daily Journal: Describe a time in your life when you were really scared of something

2. Lyrics

3. Word Clouds due

4. Assonance writing assignment: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds and is used to set the mood or add to the meaning of the writing. It is hard to spot sometimes as it is very subtle.

“The Wreck of the Deutschland” by Gerald Manley Hopkins:

And frightful a nightfall folded rueful a day
Nor rescue, only rocket and lightship, shone,
And lives at last were washing away:
To the shrouds they took,—they shook in the hurling and horrible airs.
Is out with it! Oh,
We lash with the best or worst
Word last! How a lush-kept plush-capped sloe
Will, mouthed to flesh-burst,
Gush!flush the man, the being with it, sour or sweet,
Brim, in a flash, full!—Hither then, last or first

Your assignment is to write 12 lines of poetry that contain assonance. You can structure your poem however you'd like.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

2-23-11 Onamatopeia Poem

1. Daily Journal: Write whatever you'd like

2. Lyrics Assignment

3. Alliteration Poem is due

4. Onamatopeia word cloud assignment
Create a word cloud that includes at least 5 examples of onamatopeia
Go to http://www.wordle.net/ and create your word cloud
Publish it and copy the HTML code
Make a new post on your blog
Click the Edit HTML link and paste that code into your post

THE BELLS
By Edgar Allen Poe

Here the loud alarum bells-
Brazen bells!
What a tale of terror, now their turbulency tells!
In the startled ear of night
How they scream out their affright!
Too much horrified to sprak,
They can only shriek, shreik,
Out of tune,
In a clamorous appealing to the mercy of the fire,
In a mad expostulation with the deaf and the frantic fire,
Leaping higher, higher, higher,
With a desperate desire,
And a resolute endeavor,
Now- now to sit or never,
By the side of the pale-faced moon.
Oh, the bells, bells, bells!
What a tale their terror tells
Of Despair!
How they clang, and clash, and roar!
What a horror they outpour
On the bosom of the palpitating air!
Yet the ear it fully knows,
By the twanging,
And the clanging,
How the danger ebbs and flows:
Yet the ear distinctly tells,
In the jangling
And the wrangling,
How the danger sinks and swells,
By the sinking or the swelling in the anger of the bells-
Of the bells-
Of the bells, bells, bells. bells,
Bells, bells, bells-
In the clamor and the clangor of the bells!

Monday, February 21, 2011

2-22-11 Alliteration

1. Daily Journal: What is your earliest childhood memory? Write as much detail as possible.

2. Lyrics Assignment

3. Five Senses Poem is Due

4. Alliteration Poetry

Examples of alliteration in Shakespeare:

Shakespeare’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream”
whereat with blade, with bloody blameful blade he bravely broached his bloody boiling breast

Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 30″
When to the sessions of sweet silent thought

Shakespeare’s “Sonnet 12″
Borne on the bier with white and bristly beard

Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”
Good night! Good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow

4. Your assignment is to write an 8 line poem (2 stanzas of 4 verses) that contains alliteration in each line. The poem should have an ABAB CDCD rhyming pattern.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

2-18-11 Sense of Time Poem

1. Daily Journal: A man/woman walks out into the cold night air. His/her hands are shaking from what just happened…

2. Lyrics: Alex

3. SENSE OF TIME POEMS
When writing these poems, select a different time for each one: Day of the week, month, season or holiday.

TITLE Pick a period of time from the list above and write it as a title
LINE 1 Assign a color to that time period
LINE 2 Describe the color with an example. The color of . . .
LINE 3 What does this time period feel like?
LINE 4 What does this time period sound like?
LINE 5 What does this time period smell like?
LINE 6 What does this time period taste like?
LINE 7 Sum up your feeling about the time period in a sentence.


EXAMPLE

February
February is bright red
The color of cherries and valentines
February feels like slick satin slipping
Between your fingers
It sounds like hot rock ‘n’roll
It smells like perfume and cologne
February tastes like sweet chocolates
February is here and gone in a flash

2-17-11 Parts of Speech Poem

1. Daily Journal: Write whatever you'd like

2. Cinquain poem is due

3. Daily lyrics: Stu

4. Parts of Speech Poem

LINE 1 One article and one noun
LINE 2 One adjective and one conjunction and one adjective
LINE 3 One verbal (ed or ing word) and one conjunction and one verbal
LINE 4 One noun that relates to the noun in the first line (It can be two or three words).

EXAMPLES

The Church
Big and Tall
Singing and Praying
House of God

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

2-16-11 Cinquain

1. Daily Journal - I wake up and try to take a deep breath, but the deeper the breath the more severe the pain. The ground is hard beneath my back, and I feel a dull pain in my arm…

2. Metaphor poems are due

3. Lyrics: Maddie

4. CINQUAIN

The Cinquain is not of Japanese origin. It consists of 5 lines.

LINE 1 2 syllables Squirrels
LINE 2 4 syllables deftly scampers
LINE 3 6 syllables up our big Birch tree
LINE 4 8 syllables to hide his acorn treats
LINE 5 2 syllables from me.

Monday, February 14, 2011

2-15-11 Metaphors

1. Daily Journal: Tell me about your best friend/ a good friend (Appearance, Personality, Stories that show personality and why you like them).

2. Similes poem is due

3. Lyrics: Peter Beckwith

4. Metaphor Activity

Langston Hughes'
Mother to Son

Well, son, I'll tell you:
Life for me ain't been no crystal stair.
It's had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor --
Bare.
But all the time
I'se been a-climbin' on,
And reachin' landin's,
And turnin' corners,
And sometimes goin' in the dark
Where there ain't been no light.
So boy, don't you turn back.
Don't you set down on the steps
'Cause you finds it's kinder hard.
Don't you fall now --
For I'se still goin', honey,
I'se still climbin',
And life for me ain't been no crystal stair.

Read "Mother to Son" and answer the following questions.

1. What is the poem about?
2. What is the theme?
3. What does the mother want the son to do?
4. What is the metaphor of the poem?

Write your own poem with a metaphor about life

Sunday, February 13, 2011

2-14-11 Similes

1. Daily Journal: Out of the dark we came into the…
You need to include: Trumpet, Squeal, Dangerous, Reek, Crafty.

2. Change Poem is due

3. Lyrics Assignment - Kevin B.

4. Similes Activity

Similes

Seeing the world in a strange and different way requires imagination. A powerful help to your imagination is to make comparisons. In this activity, concentrate on making simple comparisons between different things. There are no right or wrong answers to any of the questions.

1. A calendar is like a mirror because_________________.
2. A sandwich is like a _________________ because______________.
3. An ice cube is like a cookie because______________.
4. A knife is like a whisper because________________.
5. Kissing is like a careful collision because_____________.
6. ___________ feels like a peeled grape.
7. ___________ feels like leftover spaghetti.
8. Falling in love sounds like_________ because__________.
9. A dentist’s drill feels like __________ because__________.
10. Tomato soup tastes like bleeding hearts because____________.

Now create a poem that includes at least 5 similes. You can choose if your poem rhymes or not.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

2/10/11 Change Poem

1. Daily Journal: Write your bucket list (around 10 things you need to do before you die). Explain why they are on that list.

2. Limerick are due

3. Lyrics assignment: Jenn

4. Change Poem due at the beginning of the hour on Monday

Change poem

1. Write a poem describing a single change or multiple changes using one- word lines and stanzas.
2. The changes you show should be unpredictable and surprising. However, for this poem, your changes should show leaps through time.
3. Events work well for this assignment.


Examples:

Autumn

Dead
Leaves
Flutter
Like
Butterflies

To
The
Ground

Red
Orange
Brown

Spreading
Out
Like
A
Sheet
Of
Ice


Metamorphosis

First,
a
cell
exploding.

Next,
a
slithery
blob,
darting
nervously.

Now,
a
bungling
tadpole
trudging
through
murky
sands.

Finally,
a
dignified
frog,
springing
onto
lilypads;
croaking
arrogantly,
its
nose
in
the
air.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

2-9-11 Limericks

1. Daily Journal: A day in your life (10 years from now). Where are you? What you are doing? Family? Job? What makes you happy? Etc.

2. Ode Poems are due

3. Lyrics Assignment: Marlon

4. Assignment for tomorrow: Write a limerick
http://www.poetryteachers.com/poetclass/lessons/limerick.html

Monday, February 7, 2011

2/8/11 Ode

1. Daily Journal: Describe your most embarrassing moment

2. Lyrics: Allie Moore

3. Auto-Bio Poem is Due

4. We will write an Ode in class (due tomorrow)

ODE
Select a person, place or thing that you want to write about.
Write phrases describing how your item makes you feel and why you feel this way.
Write many phrases telling unique qualities of your subject.
Now, explain why your subject is important to you and why you adore it so much.
Join some of your phrases into lines for your ode. Remember they do not have to rhyme.

Now revise your lines following these steps:
• Take away any lines that are too similar
• Add more feeling to any meaningless lines
• Pick a good opening line or sentence
• Order the remaining lines into their best sequence
• Select a good closing line that clearly expresses your feeling about that subject.

EXAMPLE

ODE TO A TURTLE

Turtle oh turtle you are so small
I found you on the green of the 7th hole
You helped me through the day
When I take a break, you jump into your lake
I adore your cracks and shell
You’re a great swimmer, far better than me
You take a lap before I get in
Everything around you is fake and mine
From the pond to the rocks, all aren’t his
But he flips and runs on the sand and in the water
Without a care in the world
To what might happen around him.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

2/7/11 Auto-Bio Poem

Your Daily Journal Prompt:
You are walking down the street and out runs a zebra, you hear a roar and then out strolls a lion. It turns and looks your way…

Lyrics Assignment: Sean Duchek

Haiku Assignments Due Today (Pair Share)

Assignment for Tomorrow:

Line 1: Your first name John
Line 2: Four descriptive traits Honest, caring, curious, energetic
Line 3: Sibling of... Sister of Kenneth
Line 4: Lover of (people, ideas) Laughter, learning, challenge
Line 5: Who feels... Joy when traveling
Line 6: Who needs... Sunshine every day
Line 7: Who gives... Friendship, encouragement, and smiles
Line 8: Who fears... Pain, hunger, and the end of summer
Line 9: Who would like to see... Contentment for all living things
Line 10: Resident of (your city) Phoenix
Line 11: Your last name Doe

You can format your poem anyway that you like. Use more punctuation or less. Change the line breaks. Align the words with the margin. Use capital letters, play with the arrangement of the words on the page, and so forth. Be creative!

This poem is due before you come to class on Tuesday.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

2-4-11 Daily Lyrics

Today's Journal Entry:
Write a thank you to someone for everything they have done for you. It could be a parent or friend for always being there for you, a sibling who supports you during a difficult time, etc.



Daily Lyrics Lesson

What is it?
Every day a different student will present a song to class. You will write a one page summary using the form I have provided, which you will hand in to me before you give your presentation. Your presentation will begin with the playing of your song (we will place the lyrics on an overhead as the song plays). You should then talk about your answers to the questions. The presentation should be no longer than ten minutes (5 minutes for song and 5 minutes of your description).

Why are we doing this?
We are surrounded by the English language every day without knowing it. Music is an integral part of our daily lives, culture, and society. We rarely think of these songs as pieces of poetry played with music. This assignment will make us more aware of the poetry in our daily lives and help us understand the songs that we hear every day.

What is required?
• A one page typed response to the questions provided posted to your blog and e-mailed to me.
• A typed version of the song posted to your blog and e-mailed to me. This will allow me to make sure the song is appropriate for the class.

What is not appropriate for class?
Use your judgment on this. The song should have appropriate language and subject matter. This assignment is meant to be an interesting and enjoyable way to study the language used in our popular music. If it becomes a problem, we will stop using this assignment.

How much is it worth?
The assignment is 10 points total, 5 points for the written portion of the assignment and 5 for the presentation. THIS ASSIGNMENT CANNOT BE MADE UP AT A LATER DATE.

Daily Lyrics Assignment:

Name_________________________________Date__________

Song Title :

Artist :

1. Why did you choose this song? Why is it important to you?

2. What is the story in the lyrics?

3. What is the structure?

4. What is the emotional tone or mood?

5. What is the message or lesson?

6. What is the intention of this piece of music?


Assignment for Monday:

Write a haiku from the brainstorm list you created yesterday (memories).

What is a haiku?
http://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Haiku-Poem

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

2/3/11 Daily Journal and Course Overview

Rules for Daily Journals:

Write quietly for 10 minutes (the whole time)
Write thoughts as they come to you.
If you miss a prompt you must make it up at a later date.
These ideas may serve as examples for later assignments.

Prompt for Today:
1. Describe in detail the most beautiful/ peaceful/amazing place that you have ever been. and/or
2. Describe in detail the ugliest/most horrible/ worst place you have ever been.

“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.” – Steven King, On Writing

Course Content:

Introduction to Poetry
• Imagery
• Simile & Metaphor
• Meter & Rhyme
• Types of Poetry

Introduction to Prose
• Character Description
• Description
• Dialogue
• Types of Prose
Portfolios
Workshops
Writer’s Journal

2/2/11 Gmail and Blogger

You should create a professional e-mail account in gmail.

You will all set up your blogs for this class. We will create a link to all of your blogs at www.eastviewwriting.blogspot.com

You will create your blogs at blogger.com.

You will all send me an e-mail from your gmail account to tylerjkrebs@gmail.com that includes your name and blog url.

Sunday, January 30, 2011

1/31/11 - 2/1/11 Introductions

Welcome to creative writing class. Today we will do introductions and get to know all of the students in the class.

Thursday, January 27, 2011

End of Course

What assignments did you enjoy most? What would you improve about the class?

Thanks for all of your hard work in the class.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

1/18/10 - 1/27/10 Catfish Movie Review and Final Paper

“Catfish” Movie Review Final Paper

Task: You will write a five paragraph movie review about “Catfish” and what you’ve learned in Writing for the 21st Century class. You should compose the paper in Microsoft Word. It will eventually be posted on your blog.

Five Parts (Paragraphs) of a Movie Review

1. Opening: Catch the Reader's Attention
Think about how advertisements sell movies: "trailers" show you a few seconds of the movie to get you interested.

When you begin your movie review, make your own "trailer." If you liked the movie, then your trailer should make people want to see it; but if you didn't like it, the trailer should be something that shows why you didn't like it. Don't explain why you liked it or didn't like it; make the reader like or not like the movie by what you describe. Begin your review by retelling an incident or moment from the movie which you think captures the spirit of the movie as you understood it.

Alternative: Begin your review with another kind of story or interesting fact--about one of the star actors, or about the making of the movie, or about documentaries in general.

2. Second Paragraph: Take Care of Business
Near the beginning of the review, you have to tell the reader all the NEEDED stuff--the title of the movie, the directors, the studio, the main actors, the year it was made. This paragraph tells the reader the things they have to know about the movie. Also, in one sentence or two, you should explain very simply what the movie is all about--not necessarily what happens, but that might work, too, if you can say it in one or two sentences. You don’t want to give away any important plot details.

3. Third Paragraph: Character and plot summary
What happens in the movie? You shouldn't tell everything that happens--and especially not the ending. But you want to summarize the basic plot of the movie, in more detail than you do in the paragraph above.
One way to do this might be to write a sentence about each main character.

4. Fourth Paragraph: A Key Moment or Idea
In this paragraph, go into detail about something important that interested you about the movie. If you liked the special effects, the use of language, etc, you should say something about that. Or if the soundtrack was good, talk about that. Or write more about one character who was really intriguing. Or retell another big moment from the movie and explain why it is important. If you think the "idea" behind a movie was really interesting, explain that idea and talk about it a little bit. In this paragraph, you must go into depth about the movie.

5. Fifth Paragraph: Evaluate the Movie
Do you recommend it or not? Who will like it (kids or adults)? The most important thing here is that you must also explain why you are making your recommendation.
You must justify your opinion--and that opinion should grow out of what you write in the rest of the review. Give at least two reasons why you liked or didn't like the movie.

Some Items to Consider (you can write about these in your book review):

1. What does the title “Catfish” mean?
Quote from Vince Pierce: “They used to tank cod from Alaska all the way to China. They'd keep them in vats in the ship. By the time the codfish reached China, the flesh was mush and tasteless. So this guy came up with the idea that if you put these cods in these big vats, put some catfish in with them and the catfish will keep the cod agile. And there are those people who are catfish in life. And they keep you on your toes. They keep you guessing, they keep you thinking, they keep you fresh. And I thank god for the catfish because we would be droll, boring and dull if we didn't have somebody nipping at our fin”.

2. How does “Catfish” relate to what you’ve learned in this class (the future of social media, the future of writing/communication, etc.)?

3. Does the movie tell us anything about privacy with social networking sites like Facebook? What lessons can be learned from what happened in this movie?

Monday, January 17, 2011

1-17-11 Final Projects?

Mark Zuckerberg on 60 Minutes:
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/Mark_Zuckberberg_on_60_minutes_new_profile_videos.php

The Future of Social Media:
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/special_reports/20080519thefuture.htm

What is the Web 3.0?
http://www.labnol.org/internet/web-3-concepts-explained/8908/

Here are some of the topics we have covered over the quarter:
Blogs
Wikis
Twitter
LinkedIn/Facebook
Collaborative Writing (Google Docs)
Web 2.0 (Social Bookmarking, Wordle, etc.)
Photoshop
Dreamweaver/HTML/Web Pages
Online Publishing Tools
Track Changes in Microsoft Word

Monday, January 10, 2011

1/10 - 1/14 Dreamweaver Unit

We are going to spend a couple of days learning Adobe Dreamweaver and HTML and then you'll create your own website.

Here's a reference site if you miss any days: http://www.district196.org/evhs/academics/multimedia/onlineclass/

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

1/3 - 1/7 Photoshop Writing Assignment

We will learn Adobe Photoshop on Mon and Tues.

You will then create a writing assignment in Photoshop and build an electronic image based on that writing.

This project should be finished and posted to your blog on Friday.