writing a letter

We began Monday's class with a review of last Tuesday's lesson about the three different types of appeals; ethos, pathos, and logos. Each student was instructed to choose a person of power, (involving their topic) and compose a letter to them. The letter is supposed to be persuasive and is ideally going to convince their audience to listen to their requests and concerns. The students found the contact information of the person they are directing their letter to, and once finished, we will be mailing out each student's letter.

Finally able to post!

The last three days have been devoted to drafting, revising, and more revising. Students have been working on their first editorial--addressing an issue that is important to them--and attempting to get the editorial into post-worthy shape. It's not an easy task. Along the way, we have also focused on constructing a Works Cited list. After paying so much attention to finding valid and reliable sources, we certainly want to make sure we cite them properly. Today is the last day for this particular assignment, so the goal is for every student to have their first (real) post by the end of the day.

Editorials

Tuesday's class began class by reading an editorial written by Leonard Pitts Jr. about Jay-Z. Pitts claims that rap has become a way of free advertising for various companies, and he accuses Jay-Z of being a pitch man rather than being a truth-teller or a world-shaker. We used this article as an idea of how to propose and support an argument, and as an example of an editiorial-a format very similar to many blog posts. Upon discussing the article, each student revisited their assignment from last week and answered as many questions as possible that they had written on their topic. Finally, we discussed ethos, pathos and logos.

Summarize, Quote, Paraphrase

On Monday we went over the importance of using quotes, paraphrasing, and summaries in writing. We clarified the differences between the three, went over the definitions, and read examples of each of them. After, an assignment was given to help the students with using the three different techniques on their own.

Quiz!

On Friday, we began the class with a quiz on the information we learned in the library on Thursday. We then discussed what to look for when looking for reliable sources. We talked about how using Google and Wikipedia are not necessarily the most legitimate ways to find accurate information. The assignment following the discussion was to use the resources we had learned about in the library the day before to find some credible sources for information on the topics chosen by each student.

Library Day

Today we went to the library and the librarian Jill talked to us about the many different resources the library holds. She mostly focused on how to use the database search engine and also how to find scholarly articles. We looked at how to know if a website is credible and if it has scholarly backing. We also saw how it is easy for people to make websites to look credible when they really aren't. Finally, we touched on citations, plagiarism, and different websites that can help students cite sources properly.

Up and Running!

Wednesday's class was devoted to getting started on the blogs. Despite a few technical glitches, each student now has his/her own functional blog--albeit with very little content at this point. For the rest of the class, we focused on the article "A Blog Is a Little First Amendment Machine" by Jay Rosen. In the article, Rosen argues for the blog as a key component in maintaining democracy in current society. Blogging, he argues, makes it possible to have a voice and make a difference in ways that were never before possible.

Day Two

On Tuesday we talked about blogging as a means of creating awareness, and explored Ava Lowery's blog site. The students were all given time to read and view the site created by Ava, a sixteen year old girl. For our second day, we focused on getting our ideas out and onto the computer about a topic. The students first did a free write on a topic they chose from the list of potential topics the class made on the previous day. After writing everything they knew about that topic, they were instructed to write questions they may have about that same topic and where they might go to find the answers to their questions. Today we stressed the idea that framing good questions is an essential element to acquiring the right information.

Group A Potential Topics

Global warming

Racism

Sexism

Politics and gender bias

Domestic violence

Violence and video games

Media & negative images

Child labor

Music lyrics

Child abuse

Suicide

Teen pregnancy

School safety

Stalking

AIDS awareness

Abandoned buildings

Education improvement

Gangs

Cell phone safety

Celebrity role models

Drugs

Steroids

Police brutality

Racial profiling

College tuition

Gas prices

Child welfare

Foster care

Taxes

Stem cell research

Peer pressure

Health and technology

2008 presidential election

Group B Potential Topics

Global warming

War in Iraq

Presidential election

Gas prices

Taxes in suburban areas

Terrorism

Women’s sports

Discrimination

Poverty

Childhood obesity

Pornography

Insurance rates

Jobs

AIDS

Sexism

Health of the auto industry

Image of Detroit

Sports & academics

DPS closings

Quality of/condition of Detroit schools

Overcrowding in jails

Progress & technology

Teen pregnancy

Teen violence

Music lyrics

Suicide

Cutting

Drop outs

Media influence

Video games and violence

Kids and drugs

Domestic violence

Child abuse

Sports and drugs

First Day!

Our first day was devoted to learning each other's names, as well as getting acquainted with the idea of blogging. We talked about different reasons a person might create a blog, and we briefly discussed the case of Ava Lowery, a sixteen year old blogger and peace activist. She created the blog Peace Takes Courage. Ava has been featured in the New York Times, Rolling Stone, and Mother Jones Magazine, and she has appeared on CNN and the Alan Colmes show. Ava's notoriety is a testament to the power of words when they are backed by passion and the desire to make a difference. In class we asked the question: What would you say if you knew you could reach thousands of people?