5th Period Wednesday 19 October/ 4th Thursday and 6th Period Friday 20 October

This class began with a free write.

Mr. Zartler presented the following
A picture of the Jamestown Bridge

Then he presented this video of the Old Jamestown Bridge.

Then he presented this web page with a story about the Jamestown bridge from this week, and the class watched the video.

The final image was another view of the bridge where the video news story (above was shot).

Students were asked to use these series of images and news coverage as a prompt for their own writing.
After writing there was a chance to share what was written, and to discuss how different writers used the prompts.

Mr. Zartler concluded this portion of the class by discussing the term "absurd." We discussed what a story that seems absurd tells us about the world.

Then the class looked at this blog.

The class discussed whether this article represented something absurd or tragic or something else.

After the discussion students were reminded that they have a Four page piece of short fiction due in the next week. The story should address death in some way. STUDENTS SHOULD BRING A ROUGH DRAFT OF THIS STORY TO CLASS ON MODNAY/TUESDAY.


Also due during the first class next week is the spiral with fifteen (15) new pages of writing.

Tuesday / Wednesday 18/19 October 4th Period and 6th Period

This lesson plan applies to 4th and 6th Period on the 18th and 19th. 

See the previous entry for 5th period on the 19th.

Today we studied the motivations behind people doing terrible things.

For a our opening free write, writers made a list of times when they were most mad, then times when they were most frightened. Then writers choose one of those time to write about; writers focused not on the events, but on the feelings involved with the event. We then discussed the similarities between the emotions (some thought there wasn't much).

We discussed "'Fight' or 'Flight'" as a biological / physiological phenomena.

Next we read and discussed three current stories about people losing control in the Oregonian:
http://www.oregonlive.com/hillsboro/index.ssf/2011/10/trimet_disciplines_bus_driver.html#incart_mce
http://www.oregonlive.com/forest-grove/index.ssf/2011/10/grand_jury_indicts_forest_grov.html
and
http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2011/10/remains_found_in_rural_skamani.html

Next we discussed various ways to use these stories as prompts through combining characters, events, motivations, etc.

Writers were reminded to keep up their daily at home writing practice, and to be working on their next short story, the Morbid Fiction that is due 28 / 31 October.

Thursday / Monday 13 / 16 October

5th Period began work for the Morbid fiction assignment by reading and Analyzing the short story "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allen Poe.


Students wrote a free write that focused on their first experience with death.


Discussion of "The Tell-Tale Heart".


Students were invited to write in a way that mimics the pacing of Poe in "The Tell Tale Heart" by slowing a moment way down, or by exploring one thing in very great detail.

Tuesday / Wednesday / Thursday 11/12/13 October

Most classes turned in their short stories.

On the back of the short stories writers wrote a self evaluation of their story including not only strengths, but weaknesses or areas of improvement (being specific), and also questions about the piece or about the class for Mr. Zartler.

HOMEWORK:
Writers have been assigned the task of filling at least 15 pages of their spirals with writing each week. This will be a graded assignment. Writer's had their spirals marked with a starting point for this assignment by Mr. Zartler, and all students should see him for the mark.

5th Period began work for the Morbid fiction assignment by reading and Analyzing the short story "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allen Poe.

Friday / Monday 7 / 10 October

NOTE: TO ACCOMODATE THE PSAT SCHEDULE PERIOD 7 HAS A DUE DATE FOR THE SHORT STORY OF TUESDAY THE 11TH!

We began class with a free write.

Next writer's checked out a copy of Writing Down the Bones from the library.

Writers were assigned the following:
Every two weeks for the rest of the semester they are to have at least fifteen (15) pages of writing completed in their spirals / writing journals. In class writing is counted, but students will need to write on their own.

We reviewed how to punctuate and format dialogue using the following as an example.

Writers were given the following criteria for their short story final drafts:

Wednesday / Thursday 5 / 6 October

Writers began with a focused free write on the "aha moment" "light bulb moment" epiphany, moment of realization.

We then study this conferencing protocol

and used it to conference on the drafts that were due today.

Students will have time to peer edit (spelling, grammar, format, etc. on Friday and Monday.

Short stories are due on Tuesday / Wednesday of next week 3-4 pages, double spaced.

Monday/ Tuesday 3/4 October

Writer's began with a prompt of their choice from the 14 Very Strong Motivators list.

We discussed the exercise that was due today; how it worked, and who it worked for andy why.

We read the piece "Sh***y First Drafts" by Anne Lamott; writers took time to review the piece. We discussed as a class her advice on drafting and revising.

Writers then choose  passage of their work to share in a random group. Responders asked "What if?" questions of the writers in order to offer them other/ new/ different possibilities for their work.