Unit two of the common core curriculum includes a study of civil rights, human rights, and the rights of the child. While it is important that we view these issues through a historical lens, we must also focus on what is occurring in this moment. You may be the catalyst or the voice for change that the world needs – that a girl needs – today.

http://www.itsagirlmovie.com/

Girls not allowed – (added October 8, 2013)

http://newint.org/features/2013/10/01/girls-not-allowed-keynote/

“‘Hate the sin and not the sinner’ is a precept which, though easy enough to understand, is rarely practised, and that is why the poison of hatred spreads in the world…
Man and his deed are two distinct things. Whereas a good deed should call forth approbation and a wicked deed disapprobation, the doer of the deed, whether good or wicked, always deserves respect or pity as the case may be.

Those who seek to destroy men rather than manners adopt the latter and become worse than those whom they destroy under the mistaken belief that the manners will die with the men. They do not know the root of the evil.

It is the acid test of nonviolence that, in a nonviolent conflict, there is no rancour left behind, and in the end the enemies are converted into friends. That was my experience in South Africa, with General Smuts. He started with being my bitterest opponent and critic. Today he is my warmest friend.

The principal implication of ahimsa is that the ahimsa in us ought to soften and not to stiffen our opponents’ attitude to us; it ought to melt him; it ought to strike a responsive chord in his heart. ” Mahatma Ghandi

http://www.biography.com/people/mahatma-gandhi-9305898

A Rhetorical Précis: “Poetry in The Hobbit”

Stella Quinn, in her article “poetry in The Hobbit” (2009) suggests that the poetry in The Hobbit is used to catch the reader’s attention. Quinn develops this suggestion by writing in the article that “The Hobbit is a novel and not an anthology of poetry yet it contains dozens of poems within the text. Quinn’s purpose in “Poetry in the hobbit” is to reveal why poetry is being established in The Hobbit. Quinn uses an academic tone in her article to show why poetry is being established in The Hobbit and what it is used for.

Final Draft

A Rhetorical Précis: “Poetry in The Hobbit”

Stella Quinn, in her article “Poetry in The Hobbit ” (2009), suggests that “J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit is a novel and not an anthology of poetry yet it contains dozens of poems within the text.” Quinn develops this suggestion by drawing the readers’ attention to several of Tolkien’s poems. Quinn’s purpose is to establish how Tolkien uses poetry to catch the reader’s attention in order to make the book interesting and to help the reader understand the differences in the Middle Earth characters. Quinn uses an academic tone in her article to appeal to Tolkien readers and scholars of all ages.

When I watch this talk with Mya, I am reminded of the importance of asking the right questions: What is Quinn’s argument about Tolkien? How does she support her claim? What is her purpose? What does she want her readers to realize about Tolkien and his craft? All the things we discussed the day before – when the camera was not rolling. So, my talk with Mya about Stella Quinn’s article was a teachable moment for me. In a separate post you may view Mya’s draft and revision. What are some of the challenges you think students and teachers face when having conversations about the work?

“Poetry in The Hobbit ” (2009) Stella Quinn

If some one is trying to annotate a text they have to: Read and reread the text and scan through the text quickly the first time, just to get a sense of its contents. Then they have to start annotating, circling or underlining important, interesting or surprising passages. If I had to explain this process to a fifth grader I would tell them that annotating a text is the act of writing notes and making marks on the text you are reading.- Madisen

For our daily journal prompt today, I asked my students to explain in detail what a rhetorical précis is without looking at their notes. This is one of the strategies in the common core that is both novel and challenging for them. In addition to being very structured and precise, it requires the writer to be able to determine the arguments and purpose of the text while avoiding the habit of just copying and pasting from the primary source. We began the year practicing the strategy after closely reading and annotating a picture book, The Very Best of Friends by Margaret Wild. Samples of that work are posted on our website.

Students are currently posting their responses to an article suggested by the common core, a review of Toklien’s work titled “Poetry in The Hobbit” by Stella Quinn.

Annotating text is not a new strategy. However, the fusion of the Common Core and the Georgia Performance Standards has placed emphasis on annotating text in the middle grades. Briefly discuss what annotating is and why teachers are explicitly teaching students to annotate text.

The Seventh Grade Single Gender Female Academy at Brown Middle School is embracing the rigor of the Common Core Georgia Performance Standards (CCGPS). As touted, the curriculum is embedded with more complex text as well as argumentative writing that is aligned to college-level course work. What are some of the changes and challenges you are encountering with the CCGPS?