Mood

Today's bellwork is here. We discussed characterization in yesterday's assigned reading, The Things They Carried, and completed a creative writing activity that cannot be made up. We then went over mood according to this powerpoint. Finally, we read The Raven and identified its mood by listing several adjectives.

Characterization and Dialogue

For today's bellwork we made a list of interesting objects that we had in our bedrooms, one from each person in the class. From that list, we chose three objects and used those objects to describe a character. For example, what type of character would have ceramic penguin figurine, a gorilla costume and wrestling medals in their room or office? The point is to think creatively and use these concrete objects to characterize someone. Chose three interesting objects from around the house to get you going.

After this, we read Ernest Hemmingway's short story, Hills Like White Elephants, and answered these questions. If the story is confusing, try reading the Wikipedia page for some background and analysis of the story.

We also talked about the concept of in media res. Make sure you understand this for the test.

Finally, we took home Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried to read as homework. We will use this story in class tomorrow.

Characterization

Today's bellwork is here. We started the day with a grammar lesson on complete sentences. Then we read Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been by Joyce Carol Oates and discussed her use of characterization. Make sure you understand the concepts of characterization and of "showing, not telling."

Writing Strategies

Today's bellwork is here. We finished our work on the 20 plot structures and read an excerpt from Anne Lammott's Bird by Bird. We answered these questions that went along with the reading. Finally, we applied some of our creative writing skills by playing a game of Balderdash.

Plot

Today's bellwork is here. We finished our introduction speeches. Then we took notes from this powerpoint on plot. Then we read the Edgar Allen Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart and identified the five elements of plot for the story.

Syllabus/Introductions

Today's bellwork is here. We discussed what elements contribute to a good classroom. We went over the course's syllabus. Finally, we interviewed classmates for our introduction speeches using a few questions from this list. We'll finish up our introductions tomorrow.