Extra Credit 2: Due Friday, December 11th by 9am

1. Read the article of the link below:
http://www.jhunewsletter.com/home/index.cfm?event=displayArticlePrinterFriendly&uStory_id=3ac66193-a48e-49fc-b8fd-281f25361092

2. In 200-300 words, discuss what your opinion is. Make sure you cite the reading from the above link and at least two other sources we have read this year. Be sure to consider whether or not you fully agree with the author. Some questions to consider (these are not the only questions):

• Even though our poor are not as impoverished as other countries, does it mean the American Dream is still thriving?
• Is the American Dream available to everyone?
• Do you agree with the author of the above opinion article? Disagree? Agree with reservations? Disagree with reservations?
• What solutions do you propose?
  

3. Make sure you pay attention to grammar, punctuation, and appropriate citing procedures.

Extra Credit 1: Due Friday, December 11th by 9am

1. Read the article of the link below:
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-sullivan7-2009nov07,0,5025811.story

2. In 200-300 words, discuss what your opinion is. Make sure you cite the opinion article (at least twice) and any other sources you might research to support your opinion (hint: if you use an outside resource, it might strengthen your grade).

3. Make sure you pay attention to grammar, punctuation, and appropriate citing procedures.

Homework Due 10/20/09 (considered on-time up until midnight)

Hello students:
I'm hoping that these blog posts, in conjunction with your classroom reading and discussions, are allowing you to obtain a better picture of the ways that the United States still has issues of slavery and oppression today. Below is the homework that is due Tuesday night:

1. Read the last two sections of the following link: http://www.asian-nation.org/racism.shtml.Those sections are entitled "The Formation of Solidarity," and "The Definition of Cruel and Unusual Punishment."

2. Respond to both pieces in one post of 100 words, just as you did with the previous postings. Consider your thoughts, feelings, opinions, similarities to the Gaines text, connections to discussions, and parallels to other topics we've mentioned in the past.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:
I know some of you have been bummed about missing tutorials for two weeks. Fear not! Tutorials will return the week of the 26th. In fact, we will hold them on the 26th and 28th as well as twice the following week. Project presentations will be pushed to the final week as well :).

Also, this upcoming week (the 19th-23rd) will go as follows:
Monday: Reading Gaines and projects in the lab
Tuesday: Reading Gaines and current events
Wednesday: Reading Gaines & Projects
Thursday: Reading Gaines & Current Events
Friday: Finish Gaines & Current Events

Due Friday, October 16, 2009

Hello, folks.
Mrs. Noyes came into my 3rd period class yesterday and encouraged us to read a poem. It is posted below. I want you to do a tad bit more reading than you have done with the other two blog posts, but you can finish the reading and writing within 30 minutes. Directions are also included below.

1. Read the poem below.
2. Read the sections of the following link entitled "Ethnic Competition Leads to Violence" and "License to Commit Murder=$3,700": http://www.asian-nation.org/racism.shtml
3. In 100 words or more connect the poem to the Gaines text we are reading in class and the text about injustice against Asian Americans.
4. You're awesome!


Poem:

"If We Must Die"

If we must die, let it not be like hogs

Hunted and penned in an inglorious spot,

While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs,

Making their mock at our accursed lot.

If we must die, O let us nobly die

So that our precious blood may not be shed

In vain; then even the monsters we defy

Shall be constrained to honor us though dead!

O kinsmen! We must meet the common foe!

Though far outnumbered let us show us brave,

And for their thousand blows deal one death blow!

What though before us lies the open grave?

Like men we’ll face the murderous, cowardly pack,

Pressed to the wall, dying, but fighting back!

Source: Claude McKay, “If We Must Die,” in Harlem Shadows: The Poems of Claude McKay (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1922). Taken from http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5130/

Reading Due 10/14/09 (I fixed the link)

1. Read the article by clicking on the following link:
http://ahmedismailibrahim.wordpress.com/2007/04/29/racism-against-hispanics-among-us-army-lines/

2. Respond to the article in about 100 words. Some things to consider: Was the commanding officer over-reacting? Was the officer racist? Was the army racist? What do you propose the army should do? How would you respond if you were one of the soldiers? What do you think this situation says about the state of society?
* Keep in mind that you do not have to respond to all of these questions; they are just small prompting questions that will help you consider your response.

Homework 10/06/09

Directions:

1. Click on the following link:

http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/articles/article/Mexico/Mexican-American-Discrimination/1072

2. Post a 100-word response that discusses your viewpoint and connections to other topics you've read about this year and in the past.

Homework for 10/05/09

Class, we are discussing different types of contemporary slavery. As a result, we will be reading articles that address types of discrimination and oppression that various groups are experiencing in the United States. The link below leads to an article about oppression of Hispanic/Latino people in the United States.

Directions:
1. Click on the following link: http://newsbusters.org/node/17442/print
2. Copy the whole article and paste it into a word document (if possible)
3. Print the article
4. Read it tonight for homework and annotate
5. When annotating, ask questions about the meaning, relate ideas to the MAIN IDEA, underline/highlight key words and words you don't know, write in definitions of new words, and make connections to slavery.

Frederick Douglass 4: Chapters 9-11

Tons of important things happen in chapters 9-11. Douglass experiences freedom of the mind and then he begins freedom from slavery. In the first paragraph, discuss either Douglass' freedom of mind or literal freedom (or both). In the second paragraph, discuss a time when you felt completely free and compare that to Douglass' experience.

Frederick Douglass 3: Chapters 5-8

I know I'm completely behind on these. I have had quite an eventful summer. Here is the posting for chapters 5-8. This is also two paragraphs. In the first paragraph, I want you to summarize Douglass' literacy experience. Discuss the who, what, when, where, and why in order to fully cover this. In the second paragraph, compare his experience to a time in your life when you "broke the rules" for all the "right reasons."

Frederick Douglass 2

Ladies and Gentlemen:
I apologize for not getting the post up this past week. I have had my mind in a million places. If you already posted your own version of chapters 3 and 4, that's okay. The format of this post is different than the last one, but because I was slacking, you're off the hook if you posted already. Also, the timeline for the 3rd post (chapters 5-8) will be slightly different. Because I am behind, I won't be looking for responses for the 3rd assignment until August 2nd. If you post before then, that is fine, though. Just make sure that you don't post until the actual post for that particular assignment is online. I'll have put it up later this week. Here's another thing: please, please, do not exceed 250 words. I seriously do not want you to do more than 250 words or less than 200.

Douglass 2 (Chapters 3 & 4):
In your own words, compare and contrast the master, Colonel Lloyd, and the overseer, Mr. Gore. Make sure to use specific examples from the text to support your comparison of these two men.

*Remember the master is the typically the owner of the plantation, and the overseer is like the master's assistant or the manager of the plantation.

Frederick Douglass 1

Chapters 1 and 2: Introduction to Life on the Plantation

In the first two chapters, Douglass discusses his early life on the plantation. He talks about his birthplace and primary years, his relationship (or lack of a relationship) with his parents, the types of slave masters and overseers (the people in charge of making sure the slaves are on their job), some of the punishments, and the role of music/singing on the plantation. Summarize an idea from one of the first two chapters. Find a quote that you think represents this concept or idea. Connect that idea to present-day society or to your life.

Example: [Topic: Dogs (note: there is no specific mention of dogs in the first two chapters)].
In Chapter 1 of Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass, Douglass mentions how his dog is an important part of his early development. His dog was the only individual who supported him in his quest to obtain freedom. In the middle of the chapter, he mentions, "Pluto was more than just a dog; he was a member of the family, a fellow soldier in the fight for freedom" (9). Douglass' words show the power of his relationship with his pet, and they give an example of the importance of pets in a society.

I think I share a similar sentiment with Mr. Douglass. My pet fish, Beto, seemed to be the only one who understood my problems. True, he could not speak English, but his flapping, swimming, and attentiveness were enough to make me feel validated and appreciated. I believe pets play a similar role in society. They are the glue that keeps our country together, because just like Beto, they have the ability to see into the hearts of people and provide us with hope. In Douglass' Text, Pluto was able to inspire him to make significant changes in his thinking, and I think that if we made those connections to pets today, the world would be a better place. (212 words).
--Robert Robinson

WELCOME TO THE AVIDHALSPOT

Hello students:
This blogspot will be our communication for the summer reading and for any other important summer communication. Please make sure you check it at least every two weeks, so that you can see the discussion prompt and prove that you've been here.

If you have a hotmail.com, aim, google, or similar account, please subscribe to this account so you will have access to this blogspot.

Have a great summer!