Famous First and Last Lines: Make them yours...

In a New Post on your blog, type up the original writing of about 400 words or more  inspired by the purple famous first line and the pink famous last line you glued into your journal.  This could be one continuous piece or two separate pieces.  Include an image and an interesting title to your post. Put the lines you used in bold.

Famous First and Last Lines

In a New Post on your blog, present the following information  for each of the lines you chose.  Title this post Famous First and Last Lines.  You could link to relevant informational sites.  

Be sure to include the following for EACH:

• the line word for word
• the author, his or her birth/death years, and a bit of info about him or her
• the year it was published
• a 40-50 word summary of the novel in your own words
• 40-50 words on why you personally would or wouldn't like to read this book
• at least one image for each

Here's an example:

Famous First Line:

"You better not never tell nobody but God."

This line opens the novel The Color Purple, published in 1982 by author Alice Walker, who was born in Georgia on 9 February 1944. Through letters written back and forth to one another, the novel traces the story of two poor, African-American sisters who are separated, one married off to an older, misogynistic neighbor and the other called to serve as a missionary in Africa. The main character Celie also writes letters to God because she has no one else to share her shameful secrets and her deepest feelings with. 

I first read The Color Purple in a college class at Drury, a class taught by one of my favorite professors who I have long admired and tried to emulate as a teacher myself. I had read the work of Maya Angelou and found myself drawn to the stories of African-American women, and this story captivated me. I have since read the book 6 or 7 more times, and every single time I find something to shake my head at, mumble a "yup!" to, laugh about, cry about...Such a powerful work to me--I will read it many times more, I know. I wrote about a passage that reminded me of the turmoil in Ferguson, Missouri, back in 2014.

Famous Last Line:

"So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past."

F.Scott Fitzgerald ended his most famous novel The Great Gatsby with these words, considered by some to be the best closing lines of any novel ever. The novel came out back in 1925 but still shows up on collections of all-time classics and high school reading lists. Narrator Nick Carraway offers insight into the vapid society of West Egg, New York, in the 1920s, as well as the mostly empty marriage between Tom and Daisy Buchanan. The action centers on languid afternoons and extravagant parties at the mansion of Gatsby, an enigmatic millionaire.

I read The Great Gatsby in English class my junior year in high school. I re-read it again a couple of summers ago and enjoyed it very much. I liked the film starring Leonardo DiCaprio (so cute! totally one of my girlhood crushes) as Gatsby released a couple of years ago. The director, Baz Luhrman, also did one of my all-time favorite movies, Moulin Rouge, so I knew I'd really like what he did with Gatsby.

The lines were pulled from this list of Best Opening Lines and this list of Best Last Lines.  You could browse them for other writing ideas or inspiration.

Be ready to post some new writing of your own Friday using the first and last lines as a starter...

I Write Like...

As we do some thinking about how what we read inspires or influences what we write, I thought it might be fun for you to check out a website I've seen that analyzes a bit of your own writing and tells you what published author your writing is similar to.

I tried it with one of my blog posts and evidently I write like Dan Brown. I know who that is, but I haven't read any of his books. Interesting.  I also found this interesting tidbit which confirmed my suspicions that there wasn't much heft to this particular tool, but hey...

Go to I Write Like and try it yourself. 

Go to the ProProfs What Famous Writer Are You? quiz and try that one.

Leave a comment on this post telling us your results (and what you think of them) when you do.  You might have to look up the author for more information if you don't recognize the name.  The ProProfs quiz said I write like our very own Missouri native Mark Twain.  Hmmm...

Memorable Passage

Post a passage (probably no more than a paragraph or so) from a book that was memorable to you. Type the passage in word for word and add some of your own thoughts (250 words or more) before and/or after, explaining why this particular set of words caught your attention or has stayed in your memory.  Title this post Memorable Passage.  Include an image with this post, too.

I write quite a bit on my own blog about what I read, if nothing else just to remember, but often to reflect on words that stuck with me. If you are so inclined or need some ideas about books to read or what you might write about reading, you can check out my posts here and here and here and here and here.  Also here and here.  But that's totally optional.

Don't quote me on that...

We often turn to the words of others for inspiration, guidance, or even just a good laugh. These words might come from favorite pieces of literature, song lyrics, a wise family member or friend, even movies or TV.

Please create a New Post on your blog featuring some of your favorite quotations.  You can find interesting looking versions of them on Google Images or elsewhere, or you can simply type them in (you could change up the font and colors to make it interesting).  Be sure to give credit to the writer or speaker.

Here are a few quotes that I like:

"Love is the answer,

at least to most of the questions

of my heart."

Jack Johnson

Your quote may be from a person you know or a person you don't. It may be funny or serious, thought-provoking or light-hearted. Just so it speaks to you.  You might also want to jot your quote(s) down in your journal for something else I hope we can do this week.

On the topic of "quotes," I'm adding a link here to a funny site that documents superfluous (extra, unnecessary) uses of quotation marks. Maybe it's only funny to me as an English teacher, but take a look: http://www.unnecessaryquotes.com/. Be on the lookout for unneeded quotation marks in your world...maybe you could send one in.

Writers as Readers

I'd like you to do some thinking and writing about how what we read plays into our creative process, how the stories we read might inspire our own character and plot ideas, how we might both consciously and unconsciously pick up sentence patterns, vocabulary and writing styles from the authors we are exposed to. 

Choose 5-6 of these to answer in a post (500 words or so)on in a New Post on your own blog.  Title this post “Writers as Readers” and include 2-3 images. You can even add links to author's web pages or book reviews or other related websites if you'd like. I can show you how to do this.

1. When you read, what do you need to be comfortable (environment, snacks, lighting)?

2. What genres (types of writing) interest you? What specifically about this genre interests you? Why are you drawn to science fiction books, for example?

3. Which author do you think your writing style is most like?  Do you purposely imitate certain writers and/or try to avoid writing like certain writers?

4. What is one of your best memories connected with reading?

5. Have you ever picked up a book and been excited to turn the next page, then the next, then the next? What book? Why couldn’t you stop reading?  Is there a book you had to just trudge through to the finish?

6. Who was your first reading teacher? Why do you remember her/him?  Was it a “teacher” or someone else (a family member?) who “taught” you?

7. What was the first book you remember reading? Why does this book stand out in your memory?

8. What is your favorite book or series? Why is this your favorite?

9. Complete the one or more of the following sentences and explain your answer.

“When I finished reading (blank), I was angry afterwards because….”

“When I finished reading (blank), I was sad because…”

“When I finished reading (blank), I was happy because…”

10. Some people refuse to read popular novels, such as the Harry Potter series due to themes they deem as glorifying the occult. Do you think books have the power to move people to action in something they have no interest in before they begin the first page?

11. When you write, do you continually envision the “reader” of your piece?  Who do you think would be interested in reading your work?  Does having a reader in mind affect how you choose your words, themes, ideas?  What’s different if you just write for yourself knowing no one else will ever read what you come up with?

12. Do you think that someone who reads a lot might become a stronger writer?  Do you think we pick up vocabulary, sentence structures, themes, etc. from the books we read that come out directly or indirectly in our own writing?

13. Do you think you’d ever write a book someday?  Do you know what it would be about?  How would you want to be described on the “About the Author” at the front of the book?

TOMORROW (Tuesday):  Please bring 2-3 books that have mattered to you in some way and be prepared to share them with the rest of the class.

ALSO THIS WEEK:  Think about a passage in a book that mattered to you (a paragraph or so) that you could include word-for-word on your blog and do some writing about.  Instructions to follow.

I'm sure many of you are avid readers. I just think there's such endless inspiration and personal growth that is possible when you take the time to consider the ideas others have put in print. There is so much out there to read...how will we ever get through all of it we want to?

Catching up/moving on

Please use class time today to:

• finish and post all dream-related blog posts
• finish any other dream-related work you don't have points for on your grade check (silhouette, dreamcatcher...)--it's too late for color or object work
• write journal entries (should have 5 new, full pages)

Other optional things you could do:

• leave friendly comments on your classmates' work if you have time
• customize or add a gadget to your blog if you have time
• add images to your posts that don't have any
• work quietly on something else if you're all caught up for this class

Circle any new work you do today or any work I've missed seeing somehow on your grade check and turn it back in.

We are moving on to BOOKS/TEXT as inspiration next week, so this is the last day to turn in dream-related work for points.  

Have a great weekend!  I'm so happy to know you all!

You may say I'm a dreamer...

...but I'm not the only one. Some people say they never dream when they sleep, and I've read that isn't true: Everyone dreams many times every night (the average dream lasting only 3-5 seconds) but we remember so few (or none) of our dreams because they're sent straight to our short-term memories. Unless you do something like write the dream down or share it with a friend to transfer the information to your long-term memory, that dream is gone and you may never remember having it at all.

I've done a lot of thinking and even a little writing about dreams over the years--what dreams mean, why I always have the same ones, how to avoid really scary ones...I wonder if this is a topic that is interesting to you? I've heard that it's really fun for us to talk about our own dreams but it isn't all that fun for everyone else listening?  I'm not sure anyone really wants to know about my recent dream regarding my neighbor in the buff drinking coffee in his backyard or the one where I'm sorting through tornado rubble in only a towel.  :)

I have a couple of recurring dreams, meaning dreams I have had several times throughout my lifetime, and I have to say they are mostly bad, or at least very uncomfortable. I often dream that I am still in high school and I have a volleyball game or track meet to go to and I'm not ready. I've either forgotten my uniform or shoes or I can't remember going to any practices beforehand to train. I haven't played high school sports for 20 years...why would this keep showing up in my subconscious?  Another dream I've had a lot (although not in quite a while, now that I think of it) is that my teeth are really chalky and they're crumbling out of my mouth, or they're all loose and if you tapped one they'd all fall out in a sort of domino effect.

I've read that you're likely to have nightmares if the room you are sleeping in is very warm and if you sleep with your arms above your head...I wonder what conditions make for more pleasant dreams? Do you think that what you have in your head right before you fall asleep will come out in your dreams, or do the littlest things from earlier in the day somehow pop up? Do you think you can control your dreams? I have a friend who is into "astratravel," which is, very simply, being able to will yourself to go places in your dreams. She said she could think about checking in on her cousin before she fell asleep and then she'd dream something about her cousin that would let her know how she was doing. She also told me that if you ever see yourself in your dreams, like you're looking down at yourself from above (in video games isn't that the third-person view?) instead of seeing the dream through your own eyes (like first-person in video games?) that you have astratraveled without even trying. Interesting...

I hope you've also done some thinking about how dreaming can play into the writing process. Please post a brief but thoughtful comment on this post answering one or more of the following:

...a recurring dream you have

...the worst dream you've ever had

...the best dream you've ever had (PG-13 or tamer :) )

...what you think causes dreams

...books you've read about dreams or dreaming

...if you think dreams are symbolic or have deeper meaning

...what you found in the dream interpretation books

...if you think astratravel or lucid dreaming is possible

...your daydreams or your dream day chart

...your dreams for your future

...if you think dreams could inspire writing for you

...something else connected to dreams?

We are moving on to a new theme (BOOKS/TEXT) next week, so all work connected to DREAMS needs to be posted by the end of class on Friday, 23 September to receive credit.  Use your grade check to see which posts you might need to catch up on today (just the ones connected to dreaming; it's too late to turn in the work on color).  Circle anything you finished and need points for and leave your grade check for me.  You should also have 5 new, full pages in your journal to be on track for the week.  If you have free time you could leave a friendly comment on your friends' blogs...

Caged-Bird Inspired Piece

"The caged bird sings of freedom." ~Maya Angelou

In a New Post on your own blog by the end of class on Friday, please share a poem of at least 10 lines inspired by Maya Angelou's "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings."  You might use the prompts I shared in class Wednesday as a start.  Include an image and give your post/poem a creative title of your own making.  

Here are the prompts I shared in class if you need one of these to get started:

I know why...

I know...

I don't know why...

Birds...

Being caged...

Freedom...

Singing...

I sing of...

Flying...

Flying away from..

Something else you thought of as you listened to Maya's Master Class video

Caged Bird

The free bird leaps
on the back of the wind
and floats downstream
till the current ends
and dips his wings
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings
with fearful trill
of the things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom

The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.

But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing

The caged bird sings
with a fearful trill
of things unknown
but longed for still
and his tune is heard
on the distant hill
for the caged bird
sings of freedom. 

Maya Angelou

Maker Project: Dreamcatchers

As a part of our discussion about dreams and how they can relate to writing inspiration and processes, let's try to create dream catchers in class this week!  

Dream catchers have been a part of Native American and other cultures for many years.  You can read a little bit about them here or do your own research.  This, on the other hand,  appears to be something different... :)

To prepare, when you have some time, take a look at some online tutorials and do some thinking about what you'd like yours to look like. Click here and here and here and here for some ideas.

These are certainly not the only ones--feel free to do your own search.  You'll be using a tutorial of your choice to create your dream catcher during class.

I will provide the hoops, basic supplies, and a few embellishments.  If you'd like to or are able to get your own supplies to really customize your dream catcher, please do so and bring them to class tomorrow.

Writers Dreaming

Thank you for taking the time to consider author Maya Angelou's ideas about how dreams play into the writing process. Please do a New Post on your blog  with your answers to 4-6 of the questions on the yellow handout I gave you. Your post should be a decent length (500 words) if you've provided thoughtful answers. Title the post Writers Dreaming.  Also include an image (of Maya, of something connected to dreaming or an aspect of one of your answers) on this post.

If you're interested in learning more about Maya Angelou, her interesting life and her beloved works, you can start at her official website. I  bought this t-shirt showcasing her autobiography (one of my favorite books) I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings from a little store downtown next to Maria's called 5# Apparel. Most of the proceeds the store nets are donated to charities around the world. You can also find the t-shirt and others featuring classic, challenged books (ones that have been put on banned books lists at one time or another) at Out of Print. Click the "Shop" link to get to the t-shirts--the site donates a book to Books for Africa for every purchase made. I'd like to do some thinking next week about books that have made a difference to us as people and as writers, and I wonder if you've read any of the classics featured on their other shirts...

You can continue to customize your blog layout with gadgets in the right column, maybe a new background or header. Click on the Edit Profile link on your Dashboard and fill in the information about yourself. You can also have a look at your classmates' pages. If you're inclined to comment, be sure to be positive and supportive and write in the best English you can. Please don't be lazy and write in all lowercase with no punctuation, and don't leave only meaningless "what's up/i heart you" type comments.

I love that several of you have mentioned you "dream" of becoming professional writers. Leave a comment here telling us why you'd like/not like to be a professional writer and/or what kind of writing you see yourself doing. Stephenie Meyer said on Oprah (in a clip I'd like us to watch this week) that she always heard that was an unrealistic, financially hopeless goal, but I hope that no matter what anyone says, if that's your dream, you go for it. Seems like you'd regret not trying more than you'd regret taking a shot at it...

Dream Threads

"Rappel Upward on Dream Threads" by Joji

Also in a separate New Post today try the following writing activity using the interesting sentences regarding dreams that you and your classmates came up with on Wednesday.  We'll call these sentences "dream threads," little bits that you've pulled from a bigger piece and that could be "woven" back together in interesting ways.

• Choose one of the sentences to begin your story.  You may use it word for word or alter it slightly if necessary.
• Choose another sentence to end your story.
• Fill in the space in between with a story connecting the two sentences. This will likely be fiction but it doesn't have to be.  It also doesn't need to be especially long and may only be a portion of a bigger, more complicated story--maybe 200 words or so--but it could be.
• Put the sentences you took from other people in bold or another color.
• Include at least one image.

{Pillow} Talk

Create a New Post on your blog and include some new writing connected to the drawing of a pillow we sketched and discussed in class on Wednesday.  You might include some poetry (maybe your haiku?), but also post a longer bit of prose.  Try for about 250 words at least on this one.  You can copy and paste the image from here, and if you'd like to, you can leave a comment on this post.  I've included some writing I did below.

Dream Marks on My Pillow by Ana Lancu

Last night before bed, I stepped out onto the front porch while Booker T. raced with a predatory growl towards the woods behind our house.  I waited for him to return, a triumphant skip in his step telling me all was safe and sound thanks to him, and from there on the front steps I noticed there was no moon out, or at least not one I could see.  A few stars dotted the sky but the yard was darker than usual and my big black dog crept back up beside me almost camouflaged.

I had been thinking of her off and on all day--my sweet Nanny who left us in June--and another round of loss swept through me there...no moonlight only made me miss her more. I scratched Booker's ears and cried, soft so that no one would hear, as if anyone was listening at that time of night.

I'll never be a little girl again.
I'll never see her shrug her shoulders
the way she always did.
I'll never see her handwriting on a
letter in my mailbox.
I'll never see her listening with interest
to my little boy's chatter the way she
always delighted in whatever I had to say.
I'll never see her again.

Ryan let Macauley sleep with us--a real treat on a school night--and with puffy eyes I slipped into the tiny sliver of our king size bed left for me, my son's now long legs tucked in close to mine and my big black dog in a ball at my feet, my husband miles of blankets and pillows away. Our room was dark and warm and I read only a few pages of my book before I floated into sleep.

And then, she was there...standing on my front walk, reaching out to me with a piece of paper in her hand.  He was there, too, a few feet behind her and to the side in dark blue jeans and the striped shirt he had on in their only picture with Macauley when he was a baby.  I grabbed her and squeezed her and cried for her to stay.  She just stood there and let me, still holding the paper.

I blinked and turned to see the numbers on the clock pushing me to start another day. I stared at the ceiling, making myself remember seeing her, knowing how dreams come and go if you don't commit them to long-term memory...like so many days I spent with her or spent not with her...they just slip away.

I could have cried in the car this evening when I told Ryan on the way to dinner. He said maybe it was a sign but he didn't say of what.  If I cry for her again tonight, will she be there on my front steps when I close my eyes?

This song reminds me of what I wrote...how uncanny that it came on Pandora in class just as I was sharing my piece with you...

If I Were in Charge of the World...

In the spirit of DREAMING big, do some thinking about how you might shape the world if you could...what you would change or eliminate, what you would add or emphasize, what you would want for yourself and all of those you share this big place with.

Using the "If I Were in Charge of the World" poem by Judith Viorst as a starting point and a template, gather some of these ideas you have about what you'd like to see in a world of your own dreams or making. Polish and share your poem in a New Post on your own blog by the end of class Thursday. Include at least one image, maybe several.  

Another optional musical bonus I thought of putting this together...

COLORful comments

By the end of class Monday, be sure all your COLOR Pieces are posted to your blog and each:

• has a creative title (something more than Object Piece...) and that you have 
• includes at least one image (ask me how to do this if you don't know)

THEN...

Find your name in the groups below.  

Read just the COLOR-Inspired Pieces of the classmates in your group and leave a comment with 1 brief but  specific, supportive and complimentary remark regarding each piece and how it was written.   Nothing critical or suggesting changes at this point...Include a greeting at the beginning of your comment (like "Hi, Taylor!) and a brief statement of encouragement at the end of your comment (like "Thanks for sharing this!" or "I look forward to seeing more of your work.")  Go beyond a short, generic comment and get specific.  Don't cop out and put a rushed, generic comment like, "It was good" or "Nice job."  

Then copy and paste the comments you made into a New Post on your own blog so I can quickly give you credit for offering feedback today.  If you run out of time during class to leave comments, please do so on your own by Tuesday.

We'll be moving on to a new theme after today (DREAMS!)...I'll be reading and commenting on all your stuff, too...it just takes a while for me to get through it all, so thanks for your patience.  I really love seeing what you all have to say and I do read ALL of it...

Side note:  Your journal with 20 full pages of writing will be due at the end of class this Friday, 16 September.

Groups:

Lily
Mallory
Cindy


Katheryn
Karlee
Haley


Taylor
Charli
Samantha


Matt
David
Hannah


J.L.
Rah Rah
Kelli


Charles
Ryan
Will


Merideth
Echo
Nichole


Anastasiya
Kat
Kam


Alec
Katelynn S.
Keaton

Just a little bonus to start your week that you are more than free to ignore:  An icon of my childhood performing a song I've loved since then (you may know her "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" or my favorite "Time After Time...")  Don't ask me to explain/interpret Cyndi Lauper's video for "True Colors"  but I love what she wore to perform on Letterman in 1986.  She wrote about how nervous she was that night in her memoir.  We wore some fun stuff back then but no one was a colorful as Cyndi...She was kind of a rebel figure I looked up to when I was young--can't wrap my mind around the fact she's 63 now (and still singing!)...I heart/miss the 80s so much...Okay, I'll stop now. :)

Optional Opportunity: Poetry Out Loud

A message from Ms. Romay, who sponsors the Poetry Out Loud recitation contest....Let me know if you're interested in participating!

Hello!

 

The annual Kickapoo Poetry Out Loud Competition is only 2 ½ months away! I will be putting an announcement in Chief Chatter, but I need your help. If you have the time, please spread the word to students you think would be interested in this awesome opportunity.

 

Students memorize three published poems and recite them to an audience. While, this does involve public speaking, it is not an acting event. So, if you have students who write their own poetry or have an immense love for literature this may be something they enjoy.  For more information about the competition visit the POL website - http://www.poetryoutloud.org/

 

I will be having an informational meeting next Wednesday, immediately after school. Send students to my room (141), Wednesday, September 14^th if they are interested in competing.

Color Walk Poem

My green paint chip called Bamboo Leaves reminded me of 70s appliances and kitchens from my (very early!) childhood...it's also the color of the cabinets in the back of my classroom, which used to be a science lab, probably installed in 1971 when Kickapoo was built.  

In a New Post on your own blog, please post a poem of 8 or more lines inspired by something you thought of when you sought out your chosen paint chip color in your life (home, work, nature, etc.) or at KHS during class on Thursday.  

The color may or may not make an appearance in your writing.  Your poem might describe a place, an event, a memory, a feeling, a person, or a combination of those.  It might take the form of a Narrative Poem, a Free Verse Poem, a Rhymed Poem, an Acrostic Poem, or a series of 3 or more Haiku Poems.  

Please include an image to go along with your writing and give your post a creative title.  If  you'd like to, you could include an Author's Note about the origin of your idea. Please post this poem by the end of class on Friday.

Color Collage Poem

In a New Post on your own blog, please post a poem of 8 or more lines inspired by some aspect of your magazine cut-out collage in your journal featuring the paint chip shade you selected.  

The color may or may not make an appearance in your writing.  Your poem might describe a place, an event, a memory, a feeling, a person, or a combination of those.  It might take the form of a Narrative Poem, a Free Verse Poem, a Rhymed Poem, an Acrostic Poem, or a series of 3 or more Haiku Poems.  

Please include an image to go along with your writing and give your post a creative title.  If  you'd like to, you could include an Author's Note about the origin of your idea. Please post this poem by the end of class on Friday.

Color Story (in 4 paragraphs)

In a New Post (of at least 300 words, with at least one image and a creative title) on your blog by the end of class on Friday, write a short story (fiction or non-fiction narrative) that begins with a sentence that includes the word BLUE.

Start each of the paragraphs (at least 4 total for your story) following with  a sentence using a different COLOR word.  Include at least one image.  If you need more than 4 paragraphs to tell your story, that's fine.  

Use the COLOR word only once in each paragraph, but suggest the color in as many ways as possible. Highlight the details you've used in the color they're suggesting.

For example:

The world had turned GREY. Nothing but mud and asphalt surrounded the unpainted house, little more than a box made of concrete blocks. Charlie, dressed in faded work pants, rubber boots, and a thick wool sweater, steadied himself with a hand on the top rail of a weathered cedar fence. Behind him, nothing but ash-coloured sky, bare trees, and plumes of smoke belching from the factory in the distance. A lone sparrow rested on a branch, one beady eye watching.

Once everyone has had a chance to post today, read as many of your classmates' pieces as you can and leave them a brief, positive comment naming one line or phrase you found especially descriptive or well-written.  

We are moving on to a new theme after today (DREAMS!) so be sure that you have posted all the color-related pieces and responded to as many as you can before you leave today.  

Here's a link to an example of a Color Story from one of my past students that might inspire you...