The Flom Ingo

Study Rhetorical Terms - Free Study Guides | Word Dynamo

2011-10-16T17:46:00.000-07:00

Study Rhetorical Terms - Free Study Guides | Word Dynamo

MLA Help Sites

2010-05-24T07:25:00.000-07:00

http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/DocMLA.html

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/

Thursday, April 29th Having Fun With the Newspaper!

2010-04-28T16:52:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Flom is not in the classroom today, but will be back tomorrow...

Turn in your Rodriguez essay about bi-lingual education. Staple the white rubric sheet to the top as I will use this rubric. Then . . . 1. Read today's Minneapolis Star Tribune and do the following (you may work with a partner):
-A Section: Read through the section. In your notebook/journal, jot down topic ideas as you read. When you get to the Opinion/Editorial section (toward the very end of the A section), read through the editorials and letters to the editor (left side) and then read the column/ists on the right side. Using the argument/thesis triangle that's on the board, write 5 thesis statements that are arguable, clear, and appropriately qualified that connect to anything in the editorial/op ed section. Be prepared to share these tomorrow.
-B Section: Read through the B section (State/local) Write down the top five pieces of local news that might have position paper possibility.
-Obituaries (end of B section): Read through the obituary section. Select the most interesting obituary and write a short eulogy from one of their friends, colleagues, enemies, etc. 3-4 paragraphs. Be creative and think outside the box (or coffin -- ba dump bump!)
-Variety: Read the advice columns. Discuss whether you agree or disagree with the advice. Take the Isaac Asimov Quiz. Are you a PhD? Do the Sudoku, wuzzles, and the crypto quip. Then challenge a neighboring group to crossword puzzle contest. Speed and accuracy are key!
- Taste Section: This is a Thursday treat (pardon the pun)! Discuss what you would cook or bake if you were in a kitchen and had the appropriate ingredients. Maybe you'll even get ideas for our post AP exam pot-luck (Friday after the AP exam)!

I will be back on Friday. We're going to talk about your newspaper fun and share some of the writing you did. Also, we'll talk about next week's practice test.

CLEAN UP YOUR NEWSPAPERS WHEN YOU ARE DONE!

Places to go to find columns....

2010-04-08T07:29:00.000-07:00

On-line Sources
New York Times
Washington Post
Wall Street Journal
Blue Eagle Commentary (database of columnists)

Contemporary Columnist Analysis

2010-04-08T06:40:00.000-07:00

For this activity, you will select and analyze three recent columns from a nationally recognized columnist (David Brooks, Thomas Friedman, Peggy Noonan, George Will, Garrison Keillor, etc.). Closely read each column and respond to the following for each:
1. How does he/she open the column?
2. How does she/he close the column
3. What is the thesis for the column? Is it directly stated or is it implied?
4. How soon is the thesis announced in the column?
5. How much is based on observation? Personal experience? Interviews? Fact?
6. Are outside sources used in the column? If so, how does the columnist synthesize the source material?
7. How is the writing arranged/organized/developed/supported? What mode(s) of arrangement are used - compare/contrast, definition, description, process analysis, exemplification, division and classification, narration, cause & effect. See chapter one of your text if you need to review these.
8. Characterize the columnist's diction.
9. Characterize the columnist's syntax.
10. What audience does the columnist assume? How do you know?
11. How does the columnist address the other side of the issue?

Reaction Essay (One that synthesizes the three columns you studied)
After completing the analysis for each of your three columns, students need to write a 1-2 page (typed, DS) personal reaction to the readings/columnist. In this short essay, you might speak to the following:
• What you liked/disliked about the writing
• Whether or not you tended to agree or disagree with the columnist
• Any questions, objections, ideas, learning that the writing might have generated for you, the reader.

Imitation Paragraph
Select any ONE paragraph from the writing. Copy and paste it to your word document. Then write a paragraph of your own that imitates the style of your chosen columnist.

The columnist project is due NEXT Friday (4/16)

The Company Man

2010-02-10T13:25:00.001-08:00

Now that you've read and discussed Goodman's, "The Company Man", I would like you to imitate her style and write an obituary for another type. You may consider a role that you play in life (daughter, volleyball captain, student athlete, AP Student, Office Max worker, minister's son, etc.) OR you may play with another role that is not connected to you (the lunch lady, the teacher, the cheerleader, the beauty queen, the farmer, the politician, etc.). Consider the following about Goodman's style:
Syntax
Tone
Organization
Irony
Quotes/dialogue

I'd encourage you to use Goodman's opening sentence, but swap the "worked himself" out with what fits for the role/type you are writing about. I'd also encourage you to use her ending repetition to close things up. Be prepared to share and submit your example on Monday.

Experimenting with other styles improves your writing range, so experiment and have fun with the writing.

Final Project for Fast Food Nation - Multiform

2010-01-10T14:44:00.000-08:00

For this final project you will adopt a persona and create a three-part multiform project. The writing choices you make will be determined by your selected persona. Due to the length and formatting, you will be receiving a paper copy of this assignment. We will use the blog as we work.

Fact Check Paper for Fast Food Nation -- Assessment Criteria

2010-01-05T07:24:00.000-08:00

4=Sophisticated
3= Skilled
2= Proficient
1=Revision needed

The Claim
Writer thoroughly addresses the claim made by Schlosser. Writer shows a clear understanding of Schlosser’s ideas and the claim he makes in Fast Food Nation and explains the issue carefully for the reader. Writer also explains the support and evidence from the book. It is clear that the writer has carefully read and understands Fast Food Nation.
4 3 2 1
The Research and Findings
Writer has carefully and thoroughly researched the issue by using at least three credible sources from 2001 or later. Writer has explained what he/she learned when he/she researched the issue and has used this information to carefully assert the accuracy of the claim made in FFN.
4 3 2 1
Style/Tone
Writer’s tone is conversational and informative. The paper is interesting and enjoyable to the reader. It is clear that the writer is an informed and reasonable voice. First or third person is acceptable.
4 3 2 1
Diction and Syntax
Writer has used diction and syntax to achieve his/her rhetorical goals. Words are correct and accurate. Writing is clear and concise. While fat may flavor a good steak, it ruins writing. Cut the fat!
4 3 2 1
Mechanics
Writing is correct. Spelling, punctuation, and grammar are correct and precise.
4 3 2 1
MLA Citing Conventions
Paper is formatted in MLA style – headings, title, etc. Writer has skillfully used MLA citing conventions for in-text and parenthetical citations. Writer has included a correctly formatted works cited page.
4 3 2 1

Overall Score ______

Fat Food Nation Fact Checking Assignment - Due 1/8/10 (Friday)

2009-12-21T07:37:00.000-08:00

Select ONE claim made by Eric Schlosser in Fast Food Nation. Check his sources for this information and then do a little muckraking of your own. Structure your writing in the following:
1. Schlosser says .....here you address his claim as well as where (page # and chapter) in the book he makes this claim. Feel free to quote and paraphrase Schlosser's claim.
2. Schlosser uses _______________ to support his claim. Address what he writes to support the claim. Also, check the sources he credits in the source section.
3. Then research the issue on your own. I would like your research and data to be dated AFTER 2001. Use credible and trustworthy sources. You should use at LEAST THREE sources. Address what you found out about the issue when you researched on your own.
4. Finally, assert the accuracy of Schlosser's claim. It does not have to be a black and white response. There may be some nuance or shades of gray.
5. You may also find that things have changed since the book's publication. This is definitely worth explaining and expanding upon.
6. Use MLA format and MLA citing conventions for in-text, parenthetical, and works cited.

Purpose = Investigate a claim from FFN
Audience = Other readers of FFN/Peers in AP Lang & Comp
Tone = Conversational
Length = Approximately 2-3 typed, DS pages

Fast Food Nation Related Articles

2009-12-18T07:08:00.000-08:00

Begin by Reading (Everybody reads this one):
Week of 12.15.06
Meatpacking in the U.S.: Still a "Jungle" Out There?

http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/250/meat-packing.html

Read your assigned article - find the link below (your article correlates to the number you were assigned)

1. Blood BLOOD, SWEAT, AND FEAR
Workers' Rights in U.S. Meat and Poultry Plants
Human Rights Watch
http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2005/01/24/blood-sweat-and-fear

2. Meat-Processing Firms Attract Hispanic Workers
to Rural America
Hispanics increasingly meet labor demand arising from
industry restructuring.
http://www.ers.usda.gov/AmberWaves/June06/Features/MeatProcessing.htm

3. The Shame of Meatpacking
By Karen Olsson
This article appeared in the September 16, 2002 edition of The Nation.

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20020916/olsson

4. Processing plants' dangers don't scare off migrants
One in 10 workers injured each year at meatpacking factories
12:15 AM CST on Tuesday, November 21, 2006

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/dmn/stories/112106dntexcactusindustry.33da6e4.html

5. Big Food vs. Big Insurance
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http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/10/opinion/10pollan.html

6. Power Steer
By Michael Pollan
Published: March 31, 2002
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/31/magazine/power-steer.html?pagewanted=1

On a sheet of notebook paper (or you can type it), do the following for your assigned article. You will turn these in on Monday:

The Assignment:
Read it carefully respond to the following:
Speaker: Who wrote it? Who is the speaker?
Argument: What is his/her argument? What is his/her purpose for writing?
Evidence/Support: What does he/she use to support the argument?
Does the information seem fair? unbiased? What bias (if any exists)?
Audience: At whom is the writing directed? Who is the intended audience? How do you know this?
Mode(s) of Discourse: What is the dominant mode of discourse? Why do you think this?
Describe the TONE of the writing. Provide examples from the writing that show this tone.
How does this connect to Fast Food Nation?
Does this article bring up any other issues? If so, what?

Be prepared to share what you read and your responses on Monday in class.

Take Home Final for Upton Sinclair's The Jungle: Due Tuesday, November 24th

2009-11-20T06:43:00.001-08:00

To show your careful reading and understanding of The Jungle, you will write a poem inspired by Carl Sanburg's "Chicago", which you can readily access on-line. Consider how Upton Sinclair would write a poem about the Chicago presented in his book. Your original poem should reflect a careful understanding of the events in the novel as well as an insight into what Sinclair was trying to expose in his muckraking work.
Consider the following as you begin to craft your poem:

Speaker= The speaker of the poem can be Upton Sinclair or a character from his book.
Audience = To whom would you like to address your poem? What do you want your reader to learn about Sinclair's Chicago at the turn of the 20th century? What do you hope to reveal?
Purpose= To expose the reality and truth the experiences presented in The Jungle.
Tone = One that is appropriate to your purpose.

Your poem should be similar in length to Sandburg's poem and can be a close imitation of his style. Spend some time really analyzing his poem. I'd suggest that you do the following with a hard copy of Sandburg's poem:

1. With a pen or highlighter in hand, read the poem aloud and note specific things you admire and can imitate. Here are some possibilities:

• Beginnings
• Repetitions of language and/or sounds
• Strong, vivid exact images
• Comparisons—similes and metaphors
• Places where the poem sounds musical or rhythmically interesting
• Patterns of images; echoes of images and sounds
• Line breaks that create surprises or interest you and/or shifts in tone or style

2. Still working with your copy, copy-change the beginning three times (or more). Imitate the way the model poem gets under way.

3. Look over your marked-up copy of the model poem. Read your three revised beginnings. Select the one that seems most promising, or the one that seems the best imitation, and develop it fully. Keep one eye on your exact copy as you work, going to the text when you want or need to, leaving the original text behind when your own poem is moving well.

4. Your poem need not be an exact imitation of Sanburg's. As you begin to sculpt your own poem, you may find that you leave Sanburg's poem behind. In this case, your poem is simply insprired by Sandburg instead of a direct imitation. Either choice is acceptable.

5. Keep your copy of The Jungle close by. Are there words, descriptions, and phrases that you'd like to use in your poem? Are there words so memorable that you'd like to weave them into your poetry?

6. Title your poem. Pick something other than "Chicago". Underneath your title write: Inspired by Carl Sandburg's "Chicago" and Upton Sinclair's The Jungle.

7. At the end of you poem, include a works cited for Chicago (from wherever you found it) and for The Jungle.

Please type your poem. Poems will be holistically assessed in the following manner:

Poem reveals the writer's clear and deep understanding of The Jungle
Poet uses sound, syntax, diction, punctuation, and imagery to achieve his/her rhetorical purpose
Poem is adequately developed
Poem is correct in terms of spelling and mechanics

Questions for Higher Level Thinking

2009-11-09T07:51:00.000-08:00

Level 1: Answer is explicitly stated in the text (textually explicit). These are factual/comprehension questions.

Level 2: Answer is textually implicit. In other words, the reader has to make inferences from the details in the text to respond to the question. These questions make the reader read between the lines.

Level 3: These questions ask the reader to make a connection from the text to something else. Text to self connections, text to text connections, text to history connections, etc. Asks the reader to apply something gained/learned from the reading to something else.

Upton Sinclair's The Jungle

2009-11-08T17:13:00.000-08:00

In this muckraking novel, Upton Sinclair exposes the truth about the filthy Chicago stockyards at the turn of the 20th century. His work exposed the deplorable conditions and human suffering in "Packingtown." In this story, we follow the story of Juris Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant, and his family as they try to achieve the American dream. Sinclair's work lead to a government investigation of the packing industry and lead to political reform. As we study this work, we'll also explore how many of the issues presented in this classic work of fiction, are still relevant in 2009.

Reading Schedule

Date Chapters Assigned (must be read by the following class session)

Monday 11/9: Introduction and Chapters 1-2

Tuesday 11/10 Chapters 3-7

Thursday 11/12 Chapters 8-11

Friday 11/13 Chapters 12-15

Monday 11/16 Chapters 16-19

Tuesday 11/17 Chapters 20-24

Thursday 11/19 Chapters 25-26

Friday 11/20 Chapters 27-the rest of the book

Monday 11/23 Discussion Activity

Tuesday 11/24 Take home essay exam (due Monday)

Project: Welcome to Packingtown Project

Discussion Groups

2009-11-08T15:25:00.000-08:00

During our study of The Jungle, students will be in groups of four with one member of the group facilitating the discussion each day. When it is your turn to be discussion leader, you need to do the following:

1. Write 5 level one questions from the text. Craft level one questions that are relevant.

2. Write at least FIVE discussion questions. These questions should be level 2-3 questions and should promote worthwhile discussion about the reading and the reading's connections to life and society today. Have a copy of the questions for each member of your group and for Mrs. Flom.

2. Select at least TWO passages/quotes from the text that you think are worthwhile and memorable. Discuss these passages with your group. You should include the location of theses passages on your question sheet (page # and paragraph).

We will be using the group questions for some whole class work and writing.

Background on Upton Sinclair

2009-11-08T15:09:00.000-08:00

http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/sinclair.htm

Characters in The Jungle

2009-11-08T15:04:00.000-08:00

Marija Berczynskas (ma-REE-ah ber-JIN-skas): Ona’s cousin, a 20-something orphan, but a strong woman.
Ona Lukoszaite (OH-na luke-oh-SHY-tay): Marija’s 16-year-old cousin and Elzbieta’s step-daughter.
Jurgis Rudkus (YER-gis rudd-KUSS): a strong Lithuanian immigrant who comes to America looking for the American Dream.
Teta Elzbieta Lukoszaite (tay-Ta Luke-oh-SHY-tay): Aunt Elizabeth, Ona’s stepmother, and mother of six.
Tamoszius Kuszleika (tam-ohsh-YOOS kuz-lie-KA): a fiddle player who intends to marry Marija.
Dede Antanas Rudkus (Day-da on-TAN-us rudd-KUSS): Grandfather Anthony, Jurgis’s father, about 60 years old.
Jokubas Szedvilas (YO-koo-bus jzed-VEE-lus): delicatessen store owner and Lucija’s husband.
Aniele Jukniene (ann-eel-AA yuk-NINE-uh): a widow with 3 children; she rents rooms in her home.
Jonas (YO-nus): Elzbieta’s brother.
Stanislovas (stah-KNEES-lo-vas): Teta Elzbieta’s 13-year-old small son.
Mike Scully: a powerful Democrat and owner of much of “underground” Packingtown.
Phil Connor: a foreman at Brown’s, where Ona works.
Jack Duane: a thief that Jurgis meets in jail.

Building Background

2009-11-08T14:50:00.000-08:00

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/jan-june06/jungle_5-10.html