Fight The Power

Much non-fiction writing is aimed at speaking out against a force of opposition.  Take a look at Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter From Birmingham Jail" and you will see exactly how non-fiction writing fights the powers that be. 

Your life is surrounded by forces that push and pull you in different directions.  Using a 5 paragraph Schaffer Model you will explore the powers that you fight. 

For the next five days of class we will build towards this essay piece by piece.  Don't rush ahead until you know where you are going.

Odyssey Love

 

Valentine's Day is on the way; love is in the air.  With that in mind, LOOK at this picture by Romare Beardon.  Use this picture as your inspiration for a discussion of "love" in The Odyssey.  Think about these questions:

Who is loving who?  Is their love true?  You can talk about love as shown in the painting, or love as represented in Homer's "The Odyssey".  300 words or more.

THIS IS NOT A DISCUSSION OF LOVE IN YOUR OWN LIFE

Adventure Writing

Webster’s Dictionary defines an adventure as, “an exciting or remarkable experience,” or, “an undertaking usually involving danger and unknown risks.”

Write a minimum of 300 words describing an adventure you have had in your life.  Describe in detail the people and the places involved.  Make sure you discuss the conflicts encountered in your adventure and discuss the resolutions.

Laws of Life Essay

Please read the following document: 

How to Write a Laws of Life Essay

Then, post your Laws of Life essay here.

Remember to check the following:

 Is the essay 500 to 700 words?

 Does the essay clearly state a Law of Life, expressed as a saying or quote?

       Does the essay relate to YOUR life experiences?

Bonus Blog--Semester Reflection

In 300 words or more reflect on the first semester of your freshman year in high school.  Use the following questions to guide your reflection:

How can you improve next semester?
How did you grow or change as an individual?
What mistakes did you make and how can you correct them or how DID you correct them?
Is your experience at Westlake meeting your expectations so far?

Remember, these questions are just a guide and you are free to structure your reflection however you see fit.

Thanksgiving Stanzas

Write a poem about Thanksgiving.  Your poem can be about what giving thanks means to you, or it can be about the food, or it can be about Indians and Pilgrims. 

Your poem must follow the following form:

3 Stanzas

4 lines per stanza

Rhyme scheme ABAB CDCD EFEF

For example:

Thanksgiving leaves crunch;

The west-wind blows in cool.

Families gather in a bunch

Children act a fool.

The bird goes in the oven hot,

Plucked clean and basted juicy.

The gravy steams out of the pot;

Let's eat the golden goosey!

Assembled 'round the table set

The dinner makes us happy.

After dinner we soon forget

And take a November nappy.

Personal Poetry

1.  Select a poem from The Poetry Foundation.

2.  Paste your poem into the blog.

3.  Who wrote the poem?

4.  What is the poem about?

5.  How does it make you feel?

6.  What words does the poet use to evoke imagery?