Snow days

Soon we are likely to get a day or two off of school due to snow.  What do you think the greasers would do on a snow day?  What do you think the Socs would do on a snow day?

Make sure to expand on your answers, explaining why you think each group would engage in the activities.

Writing briefly

Write a main idea statement based on any character in The Outsiders other than Darry.  Support your statement with three details, listed as bullet points below your statement.  Below is an example using Darry.


Darry is under a lot of pressure in his daily life.
   - He has to work two jobs to support himself and his brothers financially.
   - He has to make sure Ponyboy does well in school, so that Pony can reach his potential.
   - He was unprepared for this role, since it landed in his lap when his parents were killed. 

Projecting an image

Some people love their hair.  Others don't.  Some people change their hairstyle as styles and trends change, rendering their old hairstyle less fashionable.  Others still do their hair the same way they have since high school.  Some people try to make a statement with their hair.  Others make the statement, "I have more important things about which to worry than how my hair looks".  Some play with, style, twist, turn, braid, fidget with, ruffly, shake, or otherwise manipulate their hair almost constantly.  Others only touch it when they wash it.  Some maintain their hair at a high level.  Others choose a style specifically because it is low maintenance.

What does your hair say about you?  How do you think others perceive your hair?  Do you care about what others think about your hair.  When getting your hair cut, do you think about what others might think when choosing your style?

The future

Typically when we write a story we write about something that has happened; naturally when doing this we use the past tenses.  Write a five sentence story about a day in the life of a student 30 years from now.  Try to imagine how schools and learning might change.  Keep in mind that some things will remain the same; for example, 30 years ago students sat at desks.  Students today sit at desks.  It's entirely possible that students 30 years from now will sit at desks.  Be creative, have fun, and write about how things WILL BE.

Tense

Verbs have five characteristics - person, number, tense, mood, and voice.  Tense is used to tell when an action happens or a state of being exists.  Helping verbs help us to control the tense.  As such, they can be very useful in describing a sequence of events.  I was thinking about what to type.  I am typing words.  I will walk away from my computer.

Write three sentences about this picture.  The first sentence should be in the past tense; it should describe what was happening immediately before this picture was taken.  The second sentence should be in the present tense; it should describe what is happening in the picture.  The third sentence should be in the future tense; it should describe what will happen next.

Fall

Authors are often inspired by visually beautiful scenes from nature.  These scenes not only add inspiration to our daily lives, they also remind us of the rhythm of the seasons.  The glorious transition of leaves from green to bright yellows, reds, and oranges can be visually stunning.  Additionally, the crispness of the air can be a welcome respite after summer's heat.  In the back of our minds, though, we know that the fall foliage is temporary beauty that will soon be replaced by the stark, bare scenery of late autumn and early winter.

What do you like best about fall?  What do you like the least?  For bonus, include three abstract nouns in your response and underline each one.  You may use the passage above as a reference for these, but do underline any of the abstract nouns from above in your writing.

Practice makes better

Dustin Johson is a talented golfer.  Some of his ability is natural; some comes from dedicated practice.  At one point in the video he mentions that he occasionally gets results that are not ideal; he has determined that often these results come from a mechanical problem in his swing.  This is great for him to know, because he  can fix the problem when it arises by concentrating on that specific element of his swing the next time around.  Just as a certain swing can generate a great shot, a good study routine can generate great results on a quiz or test.  What is the most important part of your study routine?  What do you do, and how can you adjust this if it isn't producing the results you desire? 

The power of water

Thursday was certainly an unusual day; it's rare to use a "snow day" in September!  While many of us weren't directly affected by flooding, quite a few people were either impacted personally or knew people who were impacted by rivers and streaming leaving their banks behind.  How did the rain and flooding affect you and those you know?  What did you do with the unexpected day off yesterday?

Learning from our history

If I could travel in time to spend a week in any other year in American history, I would spend a week in 1933.  During the Great Depression many were called upon to find strength beyond what they thought they possessed because of truly desperate circumstances.  Many who had worked hard and done the right things saw everything for which they had worked snatched away through no fault of their own.  I believe that by spending time with people who clung to hope and resolve during such trying times I could learn some valuable lessons about the depth of human courage and our capacity to overcome misfortune.  Spending this time would make me feel better about the human race; it would also help me appreciate my circumstances rather than taking them for granted.

If you could travel through American history to spend a week in another time, what year would you choose?  What would you hope to learn from the time you spent?

Let's talk about the weather.

It seems that damaging weather has become more frequent and more severe. It might just be that the news channels are increasing their coverage of each event, capitalizing on our desire to see sensational news. Do you think that weather systems have changed since the mid-1900s, or do you believe that our reporting of weather in the media has merely brought it more immediately to our attention? Make sure to reference at least two events from each time period in your response.

Honesty

Bruce Pearl lost his job as the men's basketball coach at the University of Tennessee about a month ago. After breaking some NCAA rules, he lied about what he had done. Many think that had he simply told the truth about his actions, he would still have his job.

What can we learn from Bruce's mistake? What other prominent coach should have learned not to lie to the NCAA? What do you think will happen to this other prominent coach?

(hint: google prominent coach lying NCAA)

Finding help on the internet

There is a vast amount of information on the internet, and given how complicated diagramming can be at times it would be a shame not to use available resources when we run into problems. If you miss a class because you are sick, you might want to reinforce your knowledge of diagramming, and possibly add to it. If you miss a moment of class because you were unavoidably distracted, you might want to reinforce your knowledge of diagramming, and possibly add to it. Which of these three sites is most helpful in brushing up on what you already know? What about the site makes it so helpful? Which of these sites is least helpful in learning more about the topic? Why do you think that this is the case? Which of these sites would you recommend to a friend that you know is stressed about studying for the next knowledge evaluation? Why is this site the best for preparing for a test or quiz?

Site One

Site Two

Site Three

Preposition practice.

This would undoubtedly be an incredible view. What did this climber go through to get to this point? Were there any moments of frustration? Were there times when the climber had to evaluate one strategy, possibly ditching it in exchange for another? Most importantly, if the climb had been simple to accomplish, would the climber feel any different than he or she seems to feel at this moment?

Research and write.

Who is Anthony Robles? What accomplishment did he recently add to his list of achievements? Whom did he defeat in the finals?

There are some who would say that Anthony was able to turn his disadvantage into an advantage. What possible advantage did he gain?

Finally, do you believe that it took more physical strength or emotional strength to accomplish what he did? Why do you believe this?

Spatial relationships.

Using five sentences, describe the picture above as completely as possible. Each sentence should contain a prepositional phrase.

The writing process

Often we think of writing as an event. When we have an assigned paragraph, for example, we write out a paragraph and turn it in. If we are compelled to check it over, we look for obvious spelling, grammar, and capitalization errors. Seeing none, we are confident that we have done good work and should get at least a 90. After all, we did the assignment.

Doing good work often involves multiple steps. When I check back over what I have written, I should do so with the assumption that improvements could be made. When the drafters of the Declaration of Independence wrote that very important document, they wrote out a draft (it is the old document in the picture above). They then made some adjustments to the draft to express their exact thoughts and ideas more clearly.

Your assignment this week is to re-write the paragraph below. There aren't any spelling or grammar errors; you must re-write it in such a way as to make the meaning more clear. Feel free to move sentences, dramatically alter them, or eliminate them altogether. Your paragraph should clearly and completely state what mine rambles on about.

Edit the following:

I don't always love February very much. Sometimes I think it is like one of the months that I don't like too much, especially since I like some other ones better. It might be because it sort of tempts us to think that spring is on the way, but then it yanks the rug out from under you by becoming cold and miserable again. I really like it when it is warm out, because then I can play outside and be comfortable. I don't like playing in the snow for too long because I get cold. In February the days begin to get noticeably longer, and the increased daylight makes me think I'll soon be spending more time outside. Then it gets cold again and I realize that February was just teasing me, and it will take more time before I get to enjoy being outside again.

Making connections

Click on the picture of Tom Hale to read about him and the arguably tragic end to his life. What two characters in The Outsiders have the most in common with Tom? What similarities do they share?

Fair?

In the picture, there are young students dressed as Socs and greasers, looking ready to rumble. The instances of conflict in chapters 1 through 7 have been very different from this picture, though. Who do you think will win this fight? Why?

In order to earn full credit, you should use what you know from the book about Socs and greasers as well any evidence you can find in the picture to support your opinion.

The content of your character

In what is widely regarded as his most famous speech, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

In The Outsiders, many of the characters are quick to judge the other characters based on appearances. Cherry and Marcia step outside of normal Soc behavior by talking in a friendly manner with some greasers. After chatting for a while, it is obvious that Cherry and Ponyboy get along well and have some important similarities. Why is it that she explains to Pony that she probably won't talk to him if they cross paths in school? What does it reveal about Cherry's character that she doesn't want to even be seen talking to him by other Socs?

More adjectives!

Describe the young men in the picture. Use at least 15 adjectives; put the adjectives in all capitals.

Using adjectives

Describe the picture. In your description, include at least 10 adjectives. Each adjective should be in all caps.