Battle of the Bands

Congratulations to the SAVE club for their terrific work on Battle of the Bands!

Want to learn more about the situation in Sudan? The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has a site on Responding TODAY to Threats of Genocide and the Save Darfur website has more ideas about how you can get involved.

Class Calendar: January 26th to February 2nd

Monday, January 26th (F)
• Due: Read chapter from Salvaged Pages.
• Class: Understanding “choice-less choices”; revisiting the film through the lens of moral complexity in a time of crisis.

Tuesday, January 27th (S)
• Due: Read chapter from Salvaged Pages.
• Class: Exploring diaries as literature: perspective and voice.

Wednesday, January 28th (U)
• Due: Draft of one-page analysis of diary excerpt through the lens of choice-less choices.
• Class: Share diaries with the class; review responses.

Thursday, January 29th (M)
• Due: Revised one-page analysis of diary excerpt.
• Class: Jigsaw discussion on the Nazis in power.

Friday, January 30th (T)
• Class does not meet today.

Monday, February 2nd (W)
• Due: Start reading assignment (TBA) in Ordinary Men, taking notes (due Tuesday).
• Class: Interactive website exploring ghetto life from Yad Vashem.

Class Calendar: January 19th to January 26th

Monday, January 19th
• Martin Luther King Jr. Day. No school. Remember this week’s food drive!

Tuesday, January 20th (M)
• Due: Enjoy the long weekend.
• Class: Reactions to the inauguration; introduction to diaries as historical artifact and literary genre. Why do we keep diaries? What do we hope to gain from reading them?

Wednesday, January 21st (T)
• No class today.

Thursday, January 22nd (W)
• Due: Begin work on independent eugenics investigation (reading, internet exhibit, and blog post).
• Class: Screening and discussion of I’m Still Here: Real Diaries of Young People Who Lived During the Holocaust.

Friday, January 23rd (H)
• Due: Wrap up independent eugenics investigation (reading, internet exhibit, and blog post). Post is due before class begins.
• Class: Wrap up screening and discussion of I’m Still Here: Real Diaries of Young People Who Lived During the Holocaust.

Monday, January 26th (F)
• Due: Read excerpt of a diary not included in the documentary.
• Class: “Choiceless choices” and the diaries of young people.

Eugenics Homework

Directions for homework follow:

1. Read the article “Controlling the Unfit” from Facing History (received in class).
   
2. Click here to explore the archive on the American Eugenics Movement hosted by Cold Springs Harbor Laboratory. Read about a minimum of four different areas, including “Sterilization Laws” and “Eugenics Popularization.
   
3. Post a comment on your investigation to the blog, signing with your initials or first name only for privacy. Comment on the question below AND share an observation on something you saw in the archive. Strong responses will also refer directly to a previous post in the discussion. The question I would like you to consider is:

Laws requiring sterilization violated the basic rights of the victims. How did eugenicists and their supporters seem to justify those civil rights violations? What arguments might you offer in support of the victims?

Source: Facing History.

Posts are due before class begins on Friday.

Class Calendar: January 12th to January 20th

The detailed calendar will depend on what you all got done in my absence. 

Our major assignment this week is the paper on Kindertransport. Expect to write a draft for Thursday and a final paper for Friday. Papers should be about three pages, typed, double-spaced. 

Class Calendar: January 5th to January 13th

Monday, January 5th (F)
• Due: Return rested and ready to work, okay? Hope you had a great vacation!
• Class: Begin Kindertransport by Diane Samuels. Read Act I, Scene I and discuss in small groups; 3-2-1 report.

Tuesday, January 6th (S)
• Due: Read Act I, Scene II and write reaction (see below).
• Class: Discuss the play: body sculpting, character charts, dramatic choices.

Wednesday, January 7th (U)
• Due: Read Act II, Scene I and write reaction.
• Class: Discuss the play: connections and staging.

Thursday, January 8th (M)
• Due: Read Act II, Scene II and write reaction.
• Class: Discuss the play: exploring identity and its loss.

Friday, January 9th (T)
• Class does not meet.

Monday, January 12th (W)
• Due: Prewriting exercise for Kindertransport paper (details to be announced).
• Class: Academic conference on Kindertransport.

Note: For each scene in Kindertransport read for homework, I would like you to write a short reaction. Your “reactions” may be typed or handwritten and should use textual support and fill at least half a page for sufficient depth of response (if you don’t have enough to say, think harder). For each reaction, choose one of the following:

• What do you see as the most significant or compelling spoken line in this scene? Explain and explore your response. What does this line suggest about characters and their relationships, themes, etc?

• What do you see as the most significant or compelling relationship in this scene? Explain and explore your response. What does this relationship line suggest about the broader message of the play?

• What do you see as the most significant or compelling physical object in this scene? Explain and explore your response. What is this object’s significance, what character is it most closely related to, does it carry symbolic weight?