Filming Skits

Mr. Dreyer said that the process will go much more smoothly if we have a wee bit more time for filming the skits. I hope that Ms. Margolis passed this onto you on Friday.

Be safe, healthy and happy this holiday season.

I look forward to seeing you in 2013

Ms. B

I'm Re-Posting This!

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2012

Images of Nigeria (thank you Aaron and Maia!)

I have added these images to remedy some of our classroom technological deficit. Please continue past the pictures to view the homework update as well as other reminders.

The image above was requested by Aaron who couldn't picture the kinds of huts the family of Okonkwo were constantly tending to and later, when they are banished, building.

                                               Below you will see several images of the Kola Nut

 The Kola Nut symbolizes peacefulness and harmony. It is broken to offer of  friendship. This is very similar to the idea of "breaking bread" an act of sharing that is also deeply symbolic.

In case you didn't know... 

Below is an image of a Nigerian King as documented by a french photographer whose mission was to make a visual record of African Royalty.

Further Information : Between the years of 1988 and 1991, French photographer Daniel Laine spent about 12 months on the Africancontinent tracking down and photographing figures of royalty, and leaders of kingdoms.  During this time he managed to photograph 70 monarchs and descendants of the great African dynasties with his work on this series.

 Shell money is a medium of exchange similar to money that was once commonly used in many parts of the world. Shell money usually consisted either of whole sea shells or pieces of them, which were often worked into beads or were otherwise artificially shaped. The use of shells in trade began as direct commodity exchange, the shells having value as body ornamentation. The distinction between beads as commodities and beads as money has been the subject of debate among economic anthropologists.^[1]

Some form of shell money appears to have been found on almost every continent: America,Asia, Africa and Australia. The shell most widely used worldwide as currency was the shell ofCypraea moneta, the money cowry. This species is most abundant in the Indian Ocean, and was collected in the Maldive Islands, in Sri Lanka, along the Malabar coast, in Borneo and on other East Indian islands, and in various parts of the African coast from Ras Hafun toMozambique. Cowry shell money was important at one time or another in the trade networks of Africa, South Asia, and East Asia.

Film Your Newscast!

Dr. Dreyer will be available tomorrow during our 3rd period class and Friday during our 5, 6, and 8th period classes to film the skits. Friday classes please let Ms. Margolis know at the beginning of the period if you intend to have your skit filmed. I anticipate the process would be no more than 10 minutes per group if you go down to his studio one at a time. I will leave further instructions with her.
Have a wonderful break! Enjoy the free-time if you are finished with the book or use the time to keep up. Extra dialogue journals are in the southwest corner of the classroom if you need them.
I loved your creativity shown today in your rousing performances! Wonderful work all of you!
Ms. B
See you in 2013!

REMEMBER TO SCROLL DOWN!

If you are interested...

Explore Nigeria

Country Profile

Nigeria is an oil-rich country situated in West Africa. It is considered a regional superpower and is listed as one of the 'Next Eleven' major economies of the world. It is also the most populous country in Africa with one out of five African being Nigerian (150 million people).

The capital city is Abuja, but the largest economic centre and chief port is the former Colonial capital of Lagos.

Located in south-west of Nigeria, Lagos State was created on May 27th 1967. The state is divided into twenty local Government areas.

Lagos City

Lagos is not only Nigeria’s largest city but also its administrative and economic centre, and its chief port. Industries include railroad repair, motor vehicle assembly, food processing, and the manufacture of metal products, textiles, beverages, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, soap, and furniture

Lagos Population Profile

Population: 8,100,000
Area: 69.7 sq km (27 sq mi)
Ethnic composition: About 67% Yorùbá; remainder cosmopolitan (every tribe in the country and different nationalities of the world).
Nicknames: The Island City, Fountain of Common Sense, Gateway to the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Center of Excellence

12/11 HW Update Period 3

Period 3: 

On the reading schedule you'll notice that you are to read Chapter 21 by Thursday. The last four chapters are to be finished over the break but I would suggest finishing as much as you can this week so that you can begin break without work to take home. I will give you time on Thursday in class to read and work on dialogue journals (about a half hour). The rest of class will be devoted to reading and analyzing an anthropological study of a culture.

FREEBIES!
I am creating a Chapter 16 dialogue journal for you. You have two other dialogue journal freebies, so, if you like, choose two chapters (I'd suggest the last two) that you will not turn in. Make sure to write a note to that effect on the dialogue journal packet you've chosen to omit two chapters from.

As for SSR, I want to reiterate that we will revisit our objectives for independent reading in January. For the time being I would like for you to feel free of the requirement to record pages on the calendar or to write up a book review for the Month of November 19 through January 7. I will not collect them. If you have been taking notes diligently and would like credit for what you have done, choose a time to show me your work and I will apply it to your grade.

Challenge Criteria Reminder:

You need 2 by the end of the semester if you are A or B seeking. These are assignments that show you have extended your learning. See 8 options below:
Choose to:

1. Make an appointment this week with Ms. Brandy to be filmed as a group performing your Newscast.

2. Choose an Igbo proverb from the list and illustrate it (beautifully, showing understanding and using symbolism).

3. Read a multicultural novel as an independent book and create a project representing your learning (check with Ms. Brandy about the project first).

4. Write a short narrative (typed and double-spaced) from the perspective of Okonkwo, Nwoye, or Ekwefi.

5. Research some aspect of the book based on a question you have, ie. How did they have guns if they hadn't seen white people before? What is the natural history of the yam? How widespread was its use? Reference at least two sources, cite them and compose a brief report of your findings.

6. Illustrate some aspect of Things Fall Apart, either in a poster or storyboard.  Remember, quality is everything. If it's not meaningful to you, it won't be worth the effort.

7. Free Rice--Spend time on the site and earn 10,000 grains. Once you have done this, take a picture of your score with your phone, or print the image of the screen and turn in.

8. Propose a small project that relates to our unit inspired by your own interests.

HW--Update 12/10

Beautiful Praise Poems All of You! I am so impressed with your writing and your presentations! Bravo! 

Period 3: Read Chapter 20 in TFA by tomorrow! Be ready to run through your Newscast Skits and present! You must turn in your scripts tomorrow.

Also, remember that allowing your sketch to be filmed later this week fulfills one Challenge Criteria opportunity of the two needed for A and B seeking students.

Period 5,6 and 8: Read Chapters 20 and 21 by Wednesday. Remember, I am not collecting dialogue journals for 20-15 until after break but I recommend keeping up so that you can go into break without homework! Be prepared to present your Newscast sketches on Wednesday and turn in your scripts.

As for SSR--we are going to revisit a way to make reading and the whole SSR business more meaningful and enjoyable. Keep reading a book for fun, especially over break but don't worry about recording pages!

Homework Due 12/10

Hello Lovely Students!

Homework reminder:

Chapter 14-19 dialogue journals due stapled together on Monday

You should have finished reading Chapter 19 in Things Fall Apart.

Periods 5 & 8: Your Praise Poems are due, typed, and ready to be read on Monday.

Performances for the Newscasts will take place on Tuesday (Period 3) and Wednesday (Period 5,6, & 8)

You will need to turn in your scripts. They do not have to be typed, but each student needs to have a copy of the script so I recommend photo copying it, or typing it and making enough copies for the performance to flow smoothly.

I will provide the following props: Yams (3), something like a microphone, and a tie or two. The rest is up to you. I encourage you to be creative, professional and polished.


Worth 75 points (25 for the performance, 25 for the script and prep work, and 25 for the focused, in-class work).

Please remember to scroll down and read any other pertinent information!!!

Have a good weekend!

Ummmm...it seems some of you were confused so here's this

Albert Chinua Achebe, the author of Things Fall Apart, was born on November 16, 1930, in Ogidi, a large village in Nigeria. Although he was the child of a Protestant missionary and received his early education in English, his upbringing was multicultural, as the inhabitants of Ogidi still lived according to many aspects of traditional Igbo (formerly written as Ibo) culture. Achebe attended the Government College in Umuahia from 1944 to 1947. He graduated from University College, Ibadan, in 1953. While he was in college, Achebe studied history and theology. He also developed his interest in indigenous Nigerian cultures, and he rejected his Christian name, Albert, for his indigenous one, Chinua.

Things Fall Apart is set in the 1890s and portrays the clash between Nigeria’s white colonial government and the traditional culture of the indigenous Igbo people. Achebe’s novel shatters the stereotypical European portraits of native Africans. He is careful to portray the complex, advanced social institutions and artistic traditions of Igbo culture prior to its contact with Europeans. Yet he is just as careful not to stereotype the Europeans; he offers varying depictions of the white man, such as the mostly benevolent Mr. Brown, the zealous Reverend Smith, and the ruthlessly calculating District Commissioner.

Achebe’s education in English and exposure to European customs have allowed him to capture both the European and the African perspectives on colonial expansion, religion, race, and culture. His decision to writeThings Fall Apart in English is an important one. Achebe wanted this novel to respond to earlier colonial accounts of Africa; his choice of language was thus political. Unlike some later African authors who chose to revitalize native languages as a form of resistance to colonial culture, Achebe wanted to achieve cultural revitalization within and through English. Nevertheless, he manages to capture the rhythm of the Igbo language and he integrates Igbo vocabulary into the narrative.

HW December 6/7--Remember to scroll down!

Period 3:
Come prepared with Praise Poems typed, and Chapter 15 read Thursday December 6.

Periods 5, 6, 8:
Have Chapters 16 and 17 read for Friday December 7.

*If you have not yet watched the Chinua Achebe article linked below, please watch it and come with 3 questions, notes or comments responding to it.

If I introduced the Praise Poem to your class, it is due on Friday. If I have yet to introduce it, it will be due on Monday.

As always, I am so proud of your depth, insight, questions, and willingness to tackle a story with an unlikable protagonist, to wrestle with his flaws and a culture that is unknown to you.

Images of Nigeria (thank you Aaron and Maia!)

I have added these images to remedy some of our classroom technological deficit. Please continue past the pictures to view the homework update as well as other reminders.

The image above was requested by Aaron who couldn't picture the kinds of huts the family of Okonkwo were constantly tending to and later, when they are banished, building.

                                               Below you will see several images of the Kola Nut

 The Kola Nut symbolizes peacefulness and harmony. It is broken to offer of  friendship. This is very similar to the idea of "breaking bread" an act of sharing that is also deeply symbolic.

In case you didn't know... 

Below is an image of a Nigerian King as documented by a french photographer whose mission was to make a visual record of African Royalty.

Further Information : Between the years of 1988 and 1991, French photographer Daniel Laine spent about 12 months on the Africancontinent tracking down and photographing figures of royalty, and leaders of kingdoms.  During this time he managed to photograph 70 monarchs and descendants of the great African dynasties with his work on this series.

 Shell money is a medium of exchange similar to money that was once commonly used in many parts of the world. Shell money usually consisted either of whole sea shells or pieces of them, which were often worked into beads or were otherwise artificially shaped. The use of shells in trade began as direct commodity exchange, the shells having value as body ornamentation. The distinction between beads as commodities and beads as money has been the subject of debate among economic anthropologists.^[1]

Some form of shell money appears to have been found on almost every continent: America,Asia, Africa and Australia. The shell most widely used worldwide as currency was the shell ofCypraea moneta, the money cowry. This species is most abundant in the Indian Ocean, and was collected in the Maldive Islands, in Sri Lanka, along the Malabar coast, in Borneo and on other East Indian islands, and in various parts of the African coast from Ras Hafun toMozambique. Cowry shell money was important at one time or another in the trade networks of Africa, South Asia, and East Asia.

12/4 HW

Only two weeks until Winter Break! I hope you all had a nice weekend and used the class period today to get caught up or get ahead. Dialogue journals were due today, chapters 8-13, stapled together and turned into the box.

Period 3 will need to finish chapter 14 by Tuesday.

Periods 5, 6, and 8 will need to finish 14 and 15 by Wednesday. Remember, dialogue journals are due stapled together every Monday, so I won't be collecting dialogue journals on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Tomorrow I will introduce your Praise Poem assignment. For period 3 it will be due on Thursday, typed.

For periods 5, 6, and 8 it will be due on Friday, typed.

Expect to share!

Have I told you lately how lucky I feel to be working with you? You are lovely, bright and interesting people and I feel grateful everyday for our chance to work together this year.