May16

Humanities 8.

               We had a class discussion where students shares their thoughts and experiences based on my questions: “What have you ever lost?” “What have you ever had stolen?” Students were asked two rhetorical questions: Have you ever been bullied? Have you ever been a bully? Then we talked about what was the worst thing about being a victim of theft or bullying: POWERLESSNESS.
                Then students did a writing activity for the last 20 minutes of class about their experiences with bullying or imagining being bullied. They could write about any situation where they felt powerless or made another feel powerless. They were told that they didn't have to share the writing with anyone - not even the teacher - if they didn't want to. The class ended with two things to think about: Writing has power. Writing is therapeutic.

English 10.

                We explored the idea of ‘love’ versus ‘in love’ as well as ‘infatuation’. Pairs discussed what they thought was the difference between the terms and we discussed their understanding. Then they reported out their concepts of the meaning of ‘love’ and ‘in love’. We also talked about ‘infatuation’ and how it could be related to falling in love. Before we moved on, the class was asked what challenges may confront lovers from different backgrounds.
                Class was introduced to the film “West Side Story” and that this unit they would be studying Romeo and Juliet. After vaguely describing the plot to "West Side Story" students were aware of the similarities between the two stories. Finally, we watched the first 40 minutes of "West Side Story".