Check This Out

http://www.rootstrikers.org/who_are_you_really_voting_for

Formal Essay #1

You have read the first chapter of Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States as well as an article by Michael S. Berliner, the Executive Director of the Ayn Rand Foundation. Here is another source to complement Berliner's. Any other information necessary to complete this essay will need to be researched. Please make sure your essay makes direct and significant reference to at least two of the texts.

Homework Journal for October 24th

Please listen to this round-up, oh and the one embedded below, on the foreign policy debate to help with your journal and to help with tomorrow's class discussions.

Assignments: 10/22/12 During Scarlet Symposium

Tonight's debate centers on foreign policy. Naturally, I would like you to watch it. I will get an available internet version of it posted to the blog ASAP. This is journal # 7.

For Periods 5 - 8, Thursday and Friday (Ignore this APers, Not for You)

Mr. Costal absent Day One

Make sure the Trayvon case timeline is reviewed so students understand the facts of the case. 

Here is a video of George Zimmerman walking the Sanford police through the events of the evening.

Discussion Questions: 
1. Do you believe him? Why or why not?
2. What most sticks out in your mind about his

Now listen to the call George Zimmerman makes to Sanford Police. Use this to compare and contrast Zimmerman's take on the evening's events.

Discussion Questions: 
1. Do you feel differently about Zimmerman, now? Why or why not?
2. One thing that many people made a case of was Zimmerman's comment: "they always get away." How can this statement be construed in two different ways? Does this reveal something about Zimmerman in your opinion? Why or why not?

Now, just before you think that this is one big accident that Zimmerman's fate changed so quickly, please watch this piece from Democracy Now...one of the media outlets that was pivotal in having Zimmerman re-arrested. There is a lot of footage about all the different controversies raging.



Mr. Costal absent Day Two

As a class, read the article I left from the NY Times, stop to discuss along the way.

Journal # : So...now that you have learned about Trayvon Martin, do you disagree with John Adams' sentiment that "we cannot allow our emotions to dictate law." Are there circumstances in which public outcry is more powerful than the law. Do you agree that "laws are made to be broken?" Why or why not?

Monday...Don't Forget...

Ms. C's party...and vocab test!!!

Scarlet Symposium Topics and Guidelines...because everyone keeps asking me

Scarlet Letter Seminar Topics -- Symposium will be Oct 22 & Oct 23, both periods. 

1. Compare & contrast the varied ideals of Puritanism and how Hawthorne, through the novel’s theme, presents the religion. Provide a brief history of the religion in the United States, and cite other examples of the religion in literature. Describe how the religion's effects are still evident in the values and traditions of the United States.

2. Describe and present the inner turmoil of Dimmesdale’s and Hester’s characters in the novel. Describe the psychological conflicts. Be sure your presentation covers the breadth of the characters through in-depth analysis and profiling. Be sure to chronicle their relationship and the important role each plays in expounding the thematic importance of the other.

Extra Credit to the First Commentor

A silly little company tweeted this to me and millions of others today. Identify the error and fix the sentence. 10 points on next vocab quiz to the victor:

Once Andre the Giant, in a hotel bar drank 127 beers and wasn't moved until he woke up after he passed out in the lobby because of his size.

De Fishes love debates!

No debate about it: Big Bird is small potatoes when it comes to federal budget - Chicago Sun-Times

No debate about it: Big Bird is small potatoes when it comes to federal budget - Chicago Sun-Times

Journal #5: U.S. military in Japan

Listen to this segment about frustrations concerning American military's use of Okinawa in Japan. Do you think the American government should concede to the Japanese wishes? The land we occupy was taken as part of treaties after World War II. Should that supersede the Japanese sentiment? How does it make you feel to see our own government as "occupiers" rather than "liberators," a role we seem far more comfortable publicizing?