11/22/63

Stephen King had a big question of his own when he wrote this book.  It's not the same question I am thinking about after reading it, but ultimately, the two may be related.  So -- if you've been in love, you might have done some crazy things for your significant other.  If not, you might have done some crazy things for the people that are really close to you: mother, brother, sister, father, etc.  This is a book about true and real love and what one man would do to preserve it.  It makes me wonder.  What is a person willing to do for true love, whether that love be platonic, romantic or familial? That darn Meatloaf song is now running through my head.  Speaking of Meatloaf, King is essentially making his point in the book.  Most people would give their lives for true love.  Many would sacrifice someone else's life.  However, there is a point where a person would stop and think about the ramifications.  In the case of this book, it is when the fate of the world is a stake.  Jake/George (he goes by both), the protagonist, falls in love after traveling back in time to 1958 in an attempt to stop the Kennedy assassination.  His girl is Sadie, and they go through quite a bit, only to be separated after the attempt to stop Oswald (I will refrain from spoiling the plot).  He heads back to 2011 determined to go back and try again with Sadie but finds that the changes he has caused are for the worse.  The world has essentially been cast into chaos, and he has a decision to make.  Go back in time to secure the love of his life or reset the whole thing and forget it ever happened.  Well, as Meatloaf would say, "I would do anything for love.  Yes, I would go to Hell and back.  I would do anything for love, but I won't do that."  

Paradise Lost: The Modern Version 5th Hour

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2nd Hour Paradise Lost: The Modern Version

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Paradise Lost: The Modern Version

Write the modern English version!

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

"The Rime of the Ancient Mariner"  

As we listen to the poem, we will stop at the end of each section.  You will comment by sharing your thoughts and questions about what's happening in the poem.  Also, make sure to compliment someone in your post, if you are not the first to respond.

The Coroner's Lunch

This is such a fun book.  I started it on Monday morning and just finished it.   Very engaging.

This book is captivating from the beginning. Siri is a seventy-two-year-old coroner living in Laos which has just been converted to a socialist state, the fight between the capitalists and socialists now at an end. The old man was hoping to retire; however, in the newly created state, every able bodied person must play a role, and Siri is no different. He is forced to become the coroner (a job title he has never held) and though he is reluctant, he eventually becomes enthralled in his work after a few mysterious circumstances come to light. With the questionable death of Miss Nitnoy, a murder mystery is unveiled, and he, along with his young nurse, Dtui, and an assistant with down syndrome named Mr. Geung, starts to dig into a case that becomes deeper than anticipated.

So many elements of this book stimulate the mind. There is the murder mystery, an element of the supernatural and questions about the role of human nature in a socialistic society. One statement that really stands out occurs when Siri is trying to present evidence in the case to a higher official.  The official tells him that one can not get too ambitious in a country such as Laos.  It's one of the many jabs that is taken at a society that exists without capitalism.  However, the book demonstrates the truth about human nature, and one aspect of it resides in the idea of advancing or moving up the ladder.  If one's hard work has no reward, then it is less likely that one will work hard.  Cotterill seems to be arguing about the danger of a society that doesn't allow mobility and the importance of discovering something you are passionate about.  For example, in the book, Siri is totally captivated by his work, regardless of whether he wanted to do it in the first place.  Motivation is the key to moving forward and learning.  This short work of fiction essentially proves it.

John Dies at the End Again!

Beware!  The wig monsters are everywhere!

I must admit to being profoundly sad about finishing this wonderfully funny and horrifying book.  All of John and Dave's epic adventures into other universes filled with hideous and strange creatures will be missed.  Although, the rumor is that Mr. Wong (not actually the author's name) will have a sequel.  The book will be titled This Book is full of Spiders.  When it hits the shelf, pure elation will be the only feeling.  I can't wait to delve back into Wong's dry humor and strange imagination.  

Beyond the great voice and strange creatures, John Dies at the End brings about many deep questions.  It explores many of the seemingly mundane paranormal experiences of a majority of humans and adds some, albeit crazy, explanation. Are we alone?  This is something the author must have pondered before writing the book.  It's a question most of us think about.  This is why tales of UFOs and ghosts persist.  What are aliens?  What are ghosts?  Scientifically speaking, we know that there are probably many other oxygenated planets with intelligent life forms in our vast and infinite universe.  However, we also know that they are very far away, and it would be impossible, even travelling at the speed of light, to make it to one of these planets in a lifetime.  Wong sets out to give us a fictional explanation that may hold some water.  He brings about this idea of parallel universes.  Places that one can pass to through a wormhole in a wall or by stepping into a floating black sphere.  Whether this is possible or not is up for debate.  Something that may get you to think like Wong is the story of the green children.  Look it up!  Now!

Agreement with Singular Indefinite Pronouns

Knowing when to use italics or quotes for titles in your paper.

Bangarang

Conjunctive Adverbs

They Rock!

Avoiding the Run-on Sentence

More videos coming soon!

John Dies at the End

     John Dies at the End is a fantastic book so far.  I am 250 pages into the 480 page novel, and every paragraph brings new, shocking descriptions and hilarity.  The book itself is a frame story told to a reporter named Arnie by a young man named David Wong.  Although it so far proves to be a horror comedy, there are a lot of serious questions and ideas brought to light about our mortality and connection with the overall universe.  It certainly has me thinking and asking questions that I have never thought about before.

     One question that comes to mind very early in the book is, "what enables our subconscious to know the future?"  This is brought about when Dave meets Bob Marley (not the real Bob Marley) at a party.  Bob says that he can tell Dave about the last dream Dave had in perfect detail, and it will be done for the small price of a beer.  Of course, Dave doesn't believe him, but Bob does not disappoint.  One thing Dave thinks about while having his nightmare rehashed is that somehow, in his dream, he predicted the future.  The dream was set up in such a way that when there was an explosion, his alarm clock rang and woke him up.  Dave goes on to contemplate this.  How did the dream sequence itself in such a way?  How could his subconscious have possibly known the exact timing of the explosion and synced it to the alarm?  Most of us have had a dream like this, and I, for one, never thought about it in this capacity.  It proves that there are some greater mysteries of the universe and of the mind that we do not fully understand. 

      I can't wait to get back into the book tonight.  Here is the movie trailer.  It features Paul Giomatti as Arnie.  

Can we teach math this way?

A Learning Revolution

Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,

Enwrought with golden and silver light,

The blue and the dim and the dark cloths

Of night and light and the half-light,

I would spread the cloths under your feet:

But I, being poor, have only my dreams;

I have spread my dreams under your feet;

Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.

       Ken Robinson ends this speech perfectly with this poem by William Butler Yeats as a reminder that everyday in our classroom, kids are spreading their dreams under our feet.  We must, therefore, tread softly.   Is it true that schools kill creativity?  Is it true that we tread heavily on the dreams of our students, even stamp them out?  What is the solution?  Robinson poignantly advocates for an educational revolution that moves away from the standardized, industrial model of the previous age and into an organic, agricultural model for the new age, a model that allows for students to discover the things that they love and do well.  There is no formula for this; however, it will take good teachers and technology to move us forward.  It will take moving away from a style of education that focuses only on rote memory and suppresses creativity into a style that focuses on inquiry and self discovery through stimulating, meaningful assignments that are not spoon fed to the students.  It sounds like a big task, but reforming a broken system is no longer an option.  Can the revolution begin today?  

          There is a simple answer, and it is yes.  Many educators across the country are catching on, moving away from test prep style lessons toward more meaningful, thoughtful presentations and activities.  They are creating an environment for lifelong learning and self-discovery.  As an English teacher, I feel that my classroom can serve as the perfect poster child for the beginning of the revolution.  It will begin in the form of choice and inquiry.  Allowing students choice in what they read and in the way they approach the reading will ultimately lead to deeper critical thought, self-discovery and synthesis.  Asking big questions (thank you, Socrates and Jim Burke) about literature and the world around us to arrive at a conclusion or solution is how innovation is born.  It's how discoveries are made.  This is what caused the great discoveries of the past, and it will guide us into the unknown terrain of the future.  Take nothing for granted.  Forge on, and disenthrall from the archaic chains that bind our minds.