There she is, actress Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in the super-popular movie adaptation of The Hunger Games, complete with weapon in hand.  Perhaps a look at Katniss within Suzanne Collins' best-selling trilogy can shed some more light on today's Chalk Talk, discussing the nature of violence.

I really tried to avoid this conversation today.  As I was planning my classes for you guys this summer, I looked at the texts I knew I would teach, over and over again, in order to find some other common strand.  The prominence of violent acts, intentions, and motives were so overpowering that I couldn't really see anything else.

It all began with your summer reading assignment...

Yeah, that blasted thing you turned in today (and the blasted essay you will submit next Tuesday) shows a side of nature that we seem to be comfortable watching in others, but when we turn that reflection on ourselves, we begin to squirm a little.  Sure, there are some of us who have fought with our brothers and sisters over petty effects, but how many of us can actually say we have committed an egregious act of violence?  I'm not just talking about getting in a schoolyard fight...  I'm talking more about something we read in our stories, but brought to life, like this kid from my former high school (I wish I was kidding)...

But I digress; let's get back to today.  One of the most interesting discussions I read was about whether or not people are intrinsically violent, or if it is a learned behavior.  This brings me to The Daily Rant's featured heroine, Katniss.  From Collins' narrative, we know this:  Katniss lived in a hostile environment.  The government that ran her area of the world ruled from afar, keeping its people encased inside electric fences, patrolled by "peacekeepers" who flogged lawbreaking citizens as examples of potential punishment.  Her mother was emotionally absent, leaving her alone to raise her sister and acquire food through any means possible (including hunting with her trusty and illegal bow).  On top of all that, she was subject to a scene much like The Lottery, where (only) the kids of her district where herded once a year to pretty much decide who was going to die...because the district said so. 

Now, nature or nurture:  Which made Katniss a violent person?

Let's go into the arena.  When Katniss has her bow in hand, she knows what to do with her enemy:  pierce them through.  Yet, when she approaches Peeta in the cave, or Rue in the forest, we see her slow down that rather automatic reaction to be...well...downright tender.  But, we clearly read that Katniss has no problem making a split second reaction between saving her own life or letting someone else do the same.  And, because the story ran three books, we know which way that went...

Many of you stated that we all harbor violent tendencies, but it is up to us to control them.  Why, then, is it so fascinating to see when others choose not to do the same, via literature or otherwise?  Is it because a character or persona refuses to hold back what we must in order to stay socially adept?  Is it because we reason that violence is senseless, and that we are intelligent enough to override our primeval urges? 

Or, do we even think about it that much?  Food for thought, my children.  We'll think about it plenty over the course of this school year.

Tomorrow, we have a review of story elements on deck.  Essays are due on Tuesday.  You should have begun your foray into your writing, especially since part of your short stories are now in my possession (ha). 

Tomorrow is the sexiest day of the week:  FRIDAY.  Get ready, y'all.  This week's been a doozy, but you all have made it so enjoyable.  I am looking forward to this year, fo'real

Today in class, we read Sherman Alexie's essay about how he found his love of words, and how he feels compelled to share that with people like him in order to "save [their] lives". Tonight, you are to respond to the four discussion questions at the end of the essay (no giant answers, please) and be ready to end the back-to-school introductory section of this course.

Some food for thought from today:

1. Who are your heroes? Who are the people you try to emulate? We fall in love with the idea of superheroes because they seem to be able to do more, be more than us. Is that really true (unless fictitious, of course)? Maybe Alexie is pushing us to go forward and try to emulate our heroes, even if we try and fail. We might surprise ourselves with what we can do.

2. We are "paragraphs". Let's dissect this like we did in class. Alexie said that a paragraph was a "fence that holds in words". Wow...I just think that is such a powerful line to learn from. Just think about how powerful our writing would be if we concentrated our ideas, one at a time, in a single paragraph. THAT is what writing should be. And, even though some of you attempted to encapsulate yourselves in a single sentence, don't you think the idea of 'you' should be fuller? (Sorry, Marina, though you are awesome.)

3. Reading/writing as a life saving measure: Alexie is not the first to write about this. Recording what we know and learning from what we read is exactly how history carries itself. It is so essential to all we do. Shouldn't we do that to the very best of our ability?

By enrolling in this course (and doing that darned summer reading), you are doing exactly that. Cheers to you.

Tomorrow's discussion: violence, and the people that commit it.

Until tomorrow,
Ms. B

Just a brief recap of the first two days: 

The last two days were about one word:  EXPECTATIONS.  I wanted you to leave class with the understanding that we are hear to learn, but we can do it in cooperation, with collaboration, and have a pretty good time in the process. 

Last night, I gave you an assignment to do a write-up on a piece of artwork - "Las Dos Fridas" by Frida Kahlo.  In our discussion, we learned thath her work is largely autobiographical...but how do you tell a story about yourself in a picture? 

That brings us to the word TEXT.  What is a text?  Simply put, a text is anything that can convey a message.  Kahlo's art clearly tells us something about her life, and through analysis of color and shape, we know that this is not a joyful story she is trying to tell. 

Many of you commented on one of Frida's artistic interpretations of herself, especially the one that has more masculine features.  You have to wonder:  why would Frida place a more feminized version of herself next to a more masculinized version of herself?  Why a wedding dress next to work clothes?  And...WHY ARE THEY HOLDING HANDS? 

There's a lot to dissect here.  I'm hoping you can pull a few symbols out of the art and create some meaning for yourself.  This painting may tell a different story to many of you, especially if the symbols represent something unique to you and your experiences.  That's okay for now; just make sure you give some explanation (just like I would ask you to do on every other assignment). 

See you later in T4,
Ms. B

This will be some of you on Monday morning.

This might be some of you on Tuesday, Wednesday, and especially Thursday morning...if you haven't been working on your summer reading assignment.  I know summer is coming to a close, and soaking up every last minute of freedom from academic responsibility is a must right now, but I wanted to give you guys a solid warning to you...if you're one of those lovely procrastinator types. 

The first wave of summer reading assignments are due on Thursday.  We will go over the submission procedures in class.  It is important that you have your activities AND your annotations ready to go.  One of the policies at Austin is that late work is never accepted.  We know this is different from middle school.  We still expect the work, completed with a little care.  Why do I mention this?  You WILL have homework during the first week from multiple teachers.  You need to focus on getting THAT done.  If you need to do your summer reading this weekend, then get busy.  That's my advice - take it or leave it.

Now, on another note:  you might have a couple of friends that are thinking about Pre-AP English, but are either scared of the difficulty, the workload... or the summer reading.  If they have any questions, tell them to come see me during the first week.  I'll be happy to talk to anyone who is thinking about leveling up.

My classroom is almost ready, and I am sending my syllabus to print tomorrow.  I am so frickin' excited to kick off this year, and I truly hope you are as well.  We're starting with some stuff that might be familiar to you, but a little more 'high school', a little more challenging, and a little more mature.  I look forward to hearing your voice and input, working together to get our learn on.  :-)

Grab a sno-cone from The Ice Barn, finish your summer reading, and do something fun this weekend

First things first:  you won't be this kid.  That's a good thing, right?

You'll be close.  Oh, indeed, you'll be close.  The need for social acceptance and looking downright cool amidst the first days of high school is so desperate, it is almost painful for teachers to watch.  Yeah, you're going to be judged by upperclassmen - they went through it, and now it's their turn.  So, what do you do?  Are you going to be that over-prepared child, or will you try to play dumb with the teachers in order to save face? 

Well, my children, I have a couple of pointers that might help you get through your first day/week of Austin High School with as little pain as possible.  (Disclaimer:  this does not guarantee absence of swirlies and sarcastic remarks from upperclassmen.  All I'm doing is trying to help.)

1.  School supplies get a little tricky, and you won't need all of them the first day.  As you go from your advisory period to visit all of your assigned teachers, you will begin to see a pattern:  first, a speech; then, a syllabus; then, a period where expectations are let out.  You might also have a survey or two.  But, let's get back to that syllabus, which will contain your supply list for that course.  You'll need to add it up, and your teachers won't expect you to have everything on day one, but you should look like you didn't just fall off the middle school truck.  So, in your backpack, bring pens and pencils, notebook paper, and a folder to keep all the handouts the teacher will give you. 

2.  Fashion can kill you.  Seriously.  The once-carpeted floors on the upstairs corridor have been replaced tile...shiny, freshly waxed tile.  Teachers are already taking bets on how many kids will bust their rear on the first day (not really, but maybe...).  Girls, for the love of whatever you pray to, please DO NOT WEAR HEELS.  It is one thing to chance the floors, but why would you torture your feet like that on the first day of school?  Take a lesson from the guys on this one:  wear something comfortable and not too complicated.  You don't have to wear your Trues on the first day, just because they are new and cost more than your firstborn.  You don't want to futz with your outfit all day, either.  Nobody will really care that much about what you are wearing.  You have too much to do and too much information to collect.  So, girls and guys...please be comfortable (within the confines of the dress code).

3.  Pay attention.  First impressions speak volumes for student/teacher relationships.  Trust me, no student wants to make a poor impression on the person that assigns their earned grades.  So, when a teacher has information to give, be attentive.  Participate in the first-day goings-on.  If a teacher gives you an assignment on the first day, don't moan in disapproval.  Roll with the punches.  It's high school, folks.  It's time to be the mature young adults you know yourselves to be.

4.  Bring your lunch every day for the first week, and bring your money to pay for lunch if you plan on buying at school.  Over 2000 students have to put money in their cafeteria accounts that first week, and you may not get the opportunity prior to the beginning of the school day.  The lunch lines get very long and very slow during the first week, and this helps to guarantee you get your necessary fuel to finish the day.  Trust me:  freshmen go hungry every single year during the first week because they didn't abide by this rule.  Do it.  You can start buying lunch during week 2.

That's all I have for now.   Stay tuned, and I will post more info as I find out.  Relax this week, finish up your summer reading assignments, and stay classy, my Austin High freshmen.  I've got one last mini-road-trip this weekend and a week's worth of planning to do for you guys.  Can't wait to meet all of yous.  :P

Until the 27th,
Ms. B