February 26 Update

Take a peek at another episode of The Twilight Zone. This one is called, "Eye of the Beholder."

While you watch, think about these questions, then answer them in complete sentences on a piece of looseleaf paper.

1. What do you notice about how the episode is filmed, particularly the choice to not show any characters' faces (besides Rod Serling's as the narrator). Why would the author do this?

2. How does the author show the different points of view of the characters?

3. What is the twist at the end of the episode?

4. What is the author's message (theme)? How do you know?

5.Why is the episode titled, "Eye of the Beholder?"

6. Based on what you already know about the author's message in "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street," (espeically Figure 1 and 2's conversation at the end) what do you see as a pattern in The Twilight Zone? What might be the overall purpose of The Twilight Zone series?

February 24 Update

6-1 and 6-3 LA, here are the links for the examples...

Trailers
Annie
Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Written Critic Reviews
Ice Age: Continental Drift  by Roger Ebert
Finding Nemo by Roger Ebert 
*feel free to take a peek at some of the others he has done too*

Movie Posters
*type "movie posters" into Google Images and see what you notice
(How are most posters set up - where/what is your eye drawn to? What information do they include?)

Blimps

Talk Show/Interview
Ansel Elgort Interview
Pitch Perfect Review

Week of 2/23-2/27

Welcome back from vacation! I know I am excited to be back and get to work on student-led inquiry projects.

In LA, 6-2 will be drafting their character compare/contrast essays. 6-1 and 6-3 will receive their drafts back with lots of feedback so they can make revisions at home. Revisions will be due Thursday 2/26. Since their essay draft is done, 6-1 and 6-3 will be comparing/contrasting which version of "Monsters" was more suspenseful: the written text or video text. Each student will create his or her own "promotion" advertising their point of view. Each class will judge the other class's promotion, deciding which one is most effective - and the winners will be posted on this blog!

In LAX, we are exploring the questions of "What messages does the media send about what it means to be a man or woman?" The students will each be completing their own inquiry project, identifying an issue with gender and the media, finding 3 examples of this issue, an article that says something about what they noticed, and create an action plan to address this issue. They will begin by completing their proposal form here.

Also, in LA Enrichment, the students will become the teachers for Root of the Week. Each group will be brainstorming about what makes a great lesson, then planning a great lesson to teach their root to their classmates.

Just a reminder too that Q3 Reading Logs will be due March 27.

Week of Feb 9-12

This week, we are finishing up reading and performing "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street," an episode from the 1950s-1960s science fiction television series. The students will be working on their essays, comparing and contrasting 2 characters' reactions to the events on Maple Street and analyzing how those characters' reactions send the author's message about fear. 

Once finished with their draft, students will be able to explore the historical context in which The Twilight Zone was written. 
    -Check out this blog, which provides commentary of the reasons why Serling chose to write what  
    he did.
    -This video and transcript give some more detail about his inspiration.
    -And here's how The Twilight Zone reflected the 1950s. 
    -Or, if you are curious about Rod Serling himself, here is his biography

Students will explore these resources and create a list of 10 things they learned. Then, they must answer:
    -What are the recurring themes in Rod Serling's work?
    -How does Rod Serling use/change history to send his message? Why does he make these 
    changes? 
    -If Rod Serling were still creating episodes today, what issue might he make an episode about? 
    How might he mask the real issue?