Post #6: Profiting From a Child's Illiteracy

Post a response to the article we read for practice in class. Pick a quote that stood out to you, share your opinion on the ideas in the article, just make sure you use text evidence in your CCEJ response. 

Post # 5: "Pulp Princess"

Respond to the arguments different people voiced about "street lit" in the article we read in class. Remember to use textual evidence in your response!

Post #4: "When I Was Puerto Rican"

Post a CCEJ response that analyzes a specific literary element.  You must talk about why the author uses this techniques and how it contributes to a theme in the text.  Below is a list of literary elements for your reference.  Remember, you should not agree with another student's post and analyze the same literary element OR THE SAME QUOTE.  You must analyze a different element in the text or DISAGREE with a previous post.

LITERARY ELEMENTS: simile (like/as), metaphor (figurative language), irony (opposite of expected outcome), characterization (how character is described), mood (feeling text creates in the reader), diction (word choice), imagery (vivid description), details, setting,foreshadowing (hints at ending), symbolism (objects represent thematic ideas), allusion(reference), allegory (2 meanings, literal and figurative), satire (humor), tone (author's attitude towards topic), theme (message about humanity)

Unit Four: Post #3 "School is Bad for Children"

Respond to the article in a CCEJ paragraph.  Agree or disagree with the author's argument and refer back to the supporting details he gives in the text.  Have you encountered any of these examples in your own education?  Feel free to comment on each other's posts, but make sure to use TEXT EVIDENCE in all responses for full credit.

Unit Four: Post #2

For your second post you should read (re-read for some of you who read it in 9th grade) "How to Tell a True War Story" by Tim O'Brien.  You can find the story at the link below:

How To Tell A True War Story

As you did with the last post, choose a literary element to analyze and connect your analysis to the theme of the text.  Think about the unique structure of the narrative when you think about theme.  Some questions you may consider are below:

• Why does O'Brien repeatedly talk about the act of writing the story? 
• What is he saying about writing a war story?

Unit Four: The Self and Education/The Self and Stories

The next three weeks we will be preparing for the HSPA by reading short texts in class and responding to various HSPA-aligned questions.  Based on the texts we read in class, you will be responsible for posting CCEJ responses that analyze specific literary elements.  You must talk about why the author uses these techniques and how it contributes to a theme in the text.  Below is a list of literary elements for your reference as well as a model post.  Remember, you should not agree with another student's post and analyze the same literary element.  You must analyze a different element in the text or DISAGREE with a previous post.

LITERARY ELEMENTS: simile (like/as), metaphor (figurative language), irony (opposite of expected outcome), characterization (how character is described), mood (feeling text creates in the reader), diction (word choice), imagery (vivid description), details, setting, foreshadowing (hints at ending), symbolism (objects represent thematic ideas), allusion (reference), allegory (2 meanings, literal and figurative), satire (humor), tone (author's attitude towards topic), theme (message about humanity)

Model Response: based off "Dinosaur"

Dinosaur

In the oral narrative, "Tinfoil Dinosaur" by Sam S. Mullins, the author uses satire to convey a deeper theme about the power of human connection.  Mullins describes a desperate time in his life when he was working at a Macaroni Grill and contemplating suicide.  The setting of the chain restaurant also enhances the satire of the story that contributes to the heartwarming theme.  On a typical miserable dinner shift Sam gets a table that he instantly bonds with. They banter back and forth and when the author asks the final customary question, "Can I get you anything else," the head of the family responds with a straight face, "A tinfoil dinosaur, please."  The absurdity of the request is lost on Sam; all he wants to do is please the family.  He complies and builds two meticulous sculptures.  He realizes as the family is leaving with their dinosaur that he is feeling happy -- an emotion he hasn't experienced in months.  This realization and the emotional relief from his depression were made possible by the absurdity of the family's request and the feeling of having a true connection with a stranger. The satire the author uses to describe the family's conversation with their waiter develops this theme of the power of human connection when the family ends up lifting Mullins out of his depression.

FOR ANYONE WHO WANTS THE LINK TO THE CARLY JOHNSTONE STORY  "A PERFECT CIRCLE," HERE IT IS: 

A Perfect Circle