Socratic Seminar Preparation - The Kite Runner

Address the following quotes from Chapters 1-12 from The Kite Runner. Choose ONE of the two following quotes. Write a DETAILED response, answering each component of the prompt. I would recommend 8-11 sentences for FULL credit.

Tomorrow, you will be responsible for responding to at least ONE of your peers' comments.

Prompt #1:
 
"There is a way to be good again." (2)
-What are the underlying assumptions?
-What did Amir do?
-What should he do? Do you agree?
-What would make him good again? Who decides?
-Is Amir following the teachings of Pashtunwali? Is Rahim Khan?

Prompt #2:
 
"And I'll tell you this, Amir jan: In the end, the world always wins. That's just the way with things." (99)
-Does this conflict with Rahim Khan's earlier statements?
-What does the world winning look like?
-What is the role of free will for the characters?
-Is Amir following the teachings of Pashtunwali? Is Rahim Khan?

The Shocking Reality of Literacy in America

In Extended Learning, students in Ms. Shaw's FUSION Reading Intervention have started the decoding strategy titled "The Bridging Strategy". In today's lesson, students learned about the 2004 American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino and her shocking secret of being functionally illiterate. After our discussion how the shock that a celebrity (or any other American) is functionally illiterate, students watched the following video clip. Students were shocked to learn that over 40 million Americans lack the basic skills in literacy society demands. Students gasped at the fact that 4 out of 10 reading-aged students in American schools could not read the video.

While interventions might not always be popular with our students and their families, largely out of fear of labeling or ostracizing them, FUSION Reading has brought great gains to the strategic group of freshmen and sophomores at Clayton Ridge High School. Upon completing "The Prediction Strategy", each student made significant gains on the Winter Benchmark assessment, each student has advanced in bi-weekly progress monitoring (some so much so that their data is off the charts AIMSweb graphs), and each student significantly improved from the pre-test to the post-test of "The Prediction Strategy". Several students' scores in each of these areas suggest that FUSION Reading has improved these students' basic skills in reading and brought them a sense of achievement they may not otherwise have been rewarded.

As you'll see in this video, we have to have a reading revolution. And, we need students' support. We need parents' support. We need teachers' support. We need board support. We need political support. And with this support, we CAN make a difference and change our nation's current trends.

Kite Runner Journal Prompt #2

Chapter 7 in The Kite Runner is a pivotal moment in not only plot development, but also character development. This is an event, as Amir expressed in the opening chapter, that haunts Amir well into his adult life. Try to imagine yourself in Amir's position; how might you have responded. Keep Assef's threat to get even with both Amir and Hassan in mind. Also consider your thoughts on friendship from your post in Journal #1 in your decision.

Why does Amir say that he is both a hero and a coward during Chapter 7? What are some options Amir could have had? What does this situation say of Amir's "friendship" with Hassan? What do you think may happen as a result? How might the rape play into the overall plot development?

Respond with a minimum of EIGHT sentences. Pay attention to grammar, spelling, and conventions.

Kite Runner Writing Journal Prompt #1

What does friendship mean to you? Would Amir say that Hassan is his friend? Why? Would Hassan say that Amir is his friend? Do you think that Amir and Hassan are friends?

Respond to these questions in one paragraph (8-11 sentences) and give evidence from the novel to explain your stance.

The Clayton Ridge English IV Six-Word Memoirs

Each year, students are excited to try their hands at one of the literary world's newest movements – the six-word memoir. Both of my English IV sections participated in the project, with each student creating his/her own depiction of identity through an image and a mere six words. As a class, each section then chose a song to accompany their six-word memoirs.

English IV: Period 1

English IV: Period 2

Drama Class Silent Film Stage Fighting Video

In the last weeks, the Clayton Ridge High School drama class has been learning about and practicing stage fighting. As a cumulative project, students worked in groups of three to create a Charlie Chaplin-style silent film. The students were given the roles a store owner, a thief, and a policeman. The following video is one of the finished projects.

Fundamentals of Speech Document

Click HERE to access the handout. You will need to access this EVERY day.