Sarah McLachlan's "World on Fire"

Check out this link to view the "World on Fire" video we watched in class.  Here are the lyrics and below are the charities she donated to:

World On Fire by Sarah McLachlan

Hearts are worn in these dark ages

You’re not alone in these stories’ pages

The light has fallen amongst the living and the dying

And I'll try to hold it in

Yeah I'll try to hold it in

The world's on fire, it's more then I can handle

I'll tap into the water try and bring my share

Try to bring more, more then I can handle

Bring it to the table

Bring what I am able

I watch the heavens but I find no calling

Something I can do to change what’s coming

Stay close to me while the sky’s falling

I don’t wanna be left alone don’t wanna be alone

The world's on fire, it's more then I can handle

I'll tap into the water try and bring my share

Try to bring more, more then I can handle

Bring it to the table

Bring what I am able

Hearts break hearts mend love still hurts

Visions clash planes crash still there's talk of

saving souls still the cold's closing in on us

We part the veil on our killer sun

Stray from the straight line on this short run

The more we take the less we become

The fortune of one man means less for some

The world's on fire, it's more then I can handle

I'll tap into the water try and bring my share

Try to bring more, more then I can handle

Bring it to the table

Bring what I am able

World On Fire Donation List

Charity	For	Amount	Total Donation
Caroline for Kibera www.cfk.unc.edu	12 room clinic and land deeds Medicine for 5000 people for 6 months in Nairobi Kenya	• $22,500 • $7,500	$30,000
Comic Relief	Running street children’s hospital in India for a year Feeding 10 street children in Calcutta 3 meals daily for 1 year Schooling for 100 street children in Tanzania Education for 200 students in Ethiopia	• $11,050 • $3,000 • $2,500 • $400	$16,950
CARE USA www.care.org	Building of 6 wells in S.E Asia, Latin America & Africa Helping 100 widows to develop income generating activities in Afghanistan Sending 145 girls to school for one year in Afghanistan Equipping 10 classrooms in Afghanistan Training 10 teachers in Afghanistan	• $10,200 • $5,400 • $5,000 • $480 • $400	$21,480
DORCAS www.dorcas.net	Total running costs of orphanage in South Africa Improving the lives of 10 elderly people in Eastern Europe	• $16,500 • $3,500	$20,000
Engineers Without Borders - Canada www.ewb.ca/en/index.html	To purchase and implement a Multi-Function Platform in Ghana Christy Yaa: scholarships Nana Yaa: scholarships	• $15,000 • $1,000 • $1,000	$17,000
Help the Aged www.helptheaged.org.uk/en-gb	Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) vehicle providing medical treatments	• $15,000	$15,000
Film Aid www.filmaid.org	Entertainment & escapism for refugees	• $9,500	$9,500
War Child www.warchild.ca/	70 former child soldiers to receive schooling & psychosocial support 7 young people in Sierra Leone to receive job training Education, shelter & food for orphans in Ethiopia	• $3,500 • $1,500 • $500	$5,500
Heifer International www.heifer.org/	1 heifer, 2 goats, 1 buffalo 2 sheep, 4 goats, 2 llamas and 1 heifer A pig Chicks Ducks	• $1,000 • $1,500 • $120 • $20 • $20 • $20	$2680
ITDG www.itdg.org	Scheme which would allow 300 families to remove smoke from their homes 10 smoke hoods 5 bicycle ambulances Nuts & bolts to secure houses of monsoon victims Sudanese irrigation	• $1,925 • $250 • $1,300 • $500 • $1025	$5000
Action Aid www.actionaid.org.uk	To aid and implement programs in Khlaipathar village, Orissa, India to encourage families to be able to stay together 5000lbs potato seeds for planting vegetable gardens	• $5000 • $160	$5160

 TOTAL  $148,270

Next Steps for Blog Work + All Star Mentors!

All Star Mentors

After reading through recent blog posts, there are a few we think you should check out, which we will call "All Star Mentors" from here on out! These are posts that are really thought provoking and/or well written that we think will inspire you in your blog writing.  They are also a great place to comment!

This time around we recommend you check out responses to "Darkness Too Visible", which can become mentors for your next blog post:

803:
Leonardo
Niko
Lars
Lia

806:
Zach
Jaylene
Najal

809:
Kayla
Shanthi
Steven

Next Blog Post: 

Next up on your blogs will be a non-fiction response to a non-science article in the latest Upfront magazine (save the science articles for your weekly science current event!).  This should be posted by Wednesday, November 12th, along with 2 comments on your classmates' blogs.

Please follow the guidelines for a nonfiction response (the one you used for "Darkness Too Visible).  Below is a picture of the graphic organizers we used (and extras are hanging by the homework board if you want one):

Notes and links for Banned Book Research!

We read "Darkness Too Visible" together in class to study how readers can make meaning from lengthy and challenging texts and the craft moves authors use convey those ideas:

Here are links to those articles, as well as the ones available to you during our independent reading research  periods that you can use as support in your argument essay or read to broaden your knowledge of the topic:

Age Rated Books: Right or Wrong?  from BBC News

Man from Ministry Bans Potter from The Boston Globe

Darkness Too Visible from The Wall Street Journal

Has Young Adult Literature Gotten Too Dark? from Salon.com in response to Darkness Too Visible

Sherman Alexie, author of The Absolutely True Story of a Part Time Indian, responds to Darkness Too Visible 

Ellen Hopkins' Banned Book Manifesto

Yes, teen fiction can be dark, but it shows teenagers they aren't alone, The Guardian's response to Darkness Too Visible

Megan Cox Gurdon's follow up to Darkness Too Visible: My "Reprehensible" Take on Teen Literature in the Wall Street Journal

Reading Improves Empathy from The Guardian

Sick Lit Books Aimed at Children by The Daily Mail

The Guardian's response to "Sick Lit" article from The Daily Mail

Perks of Being a Wallflower removed from the Chicago Tribune

Students ask school board to reconsider Perks of Being a Wallflower from The Chicago Tribune

Perks of Being a Wallflower reconsidered from the Chicago Tribune

Creating Community Through the Comment!

Part of the reason why we love posting reading responses online rather than just having them live in your notebooks is because it enables us to easily share about our reading lives.  We believe that by reading one another's work, great things will happen.  For instance: 

• You can get book recommendations
• You can get into conversations about books you have read, too, or topics that are interesting to you
• You will become a better writer because not only are you reading work, but you will begin to care more when you know that people are reading your work

So, in order to create a tighter knit reading and writing community, you are now required to create a "blog list" (if you haven't already) of the blogs that you want to keep up with regularly.  You are required to thoughtfully comment on at least 2 blog posts from your class when we have a post due (more information as that happens).  Our hope is that you will get to know each other better as readers and writers AND that you will learn from one another.We  will be checking these responses.

A good, thoughtful blog comment might:

• praise interesting ideas in the original post, specifically (don't just say "nice job")
• ask for clarification of any unclear parts of the original post
• add the responder's own thoughts to original ideas to build strength
• contradict or challenge (respectfully!) by explaining another aspect or asking a question to further dialogue
• contain connections (to the self, the world, another text, or another part of the same text) to deepen thinking about the post

Sample starters: 

• When you said __________ I thought________
• I love the line ____________ because___________
• When you said ____________ it got me thinking about________

***  AND good, thoughtful blog responses  always

• are respectful
• use standard vocabulary, spelling, and grammar (so that everyone can understand)
• show consideration of the original blogger's work and thought

Additionally, as a writer, you will want to begin crafting your blog posts with your audience in mind.  Think about how you might invite people into the ideas you are writing about.  For instance: 

• how could a creative title draw people in? 
• how can the use of questions invite people to comment?
• how can you craft your blog post so that it sounds less like a boring homework assignment and more like a conversation people are dying to join? 

Are dystopian heroes usually male or female? (And other interesting tidbits)

Goodreads just posted these interesting graphics about YA literature: http://ebookfriendly.com/young-adult-fiction-infographics/

What kinds of questions do they make you ask? What kind of infographic could you design?

Does Grammar Matter?

This week we're interjecting some grammar into our lessons with a focus on reviewing the parts of speech. Check out these videos for some thought-provoking (and funny) ideas about why and when grammar is important. 

(And the answer is "yes", grammar does matter. It just matters more in certain situations (i.e. written assignments, interviews, important conversations) than others (i.e. texting, note-taking, social media conversations with friends).

How Do I Set Up A Blog?

ELA Blog Directions, Guidelines, & Set Up

We will be creating an online community of readers, writers, and thinkers using blogs this year.  It is an incredible opportunity to share your work with a REAL audience, rather than have your thoughts live just in your notebook.  We will be doing plenty of work together on how to make this way of reading response work for you.  For now, follow the directions below to set up your blog and then try out writing a reading response based on a book you read this summer.

1. Set up a google account at www.gmail.com if you don’t already have one with a “professional” sounding name that you can use beyond 8th grade.  Be sure to write down your password somewhere safe! Google requires that you are 13 years old or have your parent/guardian's permission to have an account, so please talk to your family about it when you give them the permission slip. You will also be using this account to access other google applications in other classes this year.

2.  Create your blog using the directions below

3. Turn in the permission slip and URL form by _______________________________

4. Write your first post, which will be a reading response based on a summer reading book.  Please write your response based on what you know about reading response from last year.  Due:________________________________________

Please try not to wait until the last minute to set this up! If you need help setting it up, please schedule a time to sit down with a teacher ASAP. We are happy to help.

How do I start a web log?

1. Go to www.blogger.com (a google app) and sign in with your gmail account.

2. Click on the “Create a Blog” button.

3. Follow the directions to name your blog and create its URL.  The name and URL do not necessarily have to match.  (For example, my blog is called “Books Upon Books,” but that URL was already taken, so my URL is www.Room116ELA.blogspot.com .)

4. Click on the “simple” template, and your blog is ready to go!  Feel free to adjust the design if you want.  

Privacy Settings and Options

1. It is important to first adjust the privacy settings.  Click on the blogger icon and then your blog’s name or just go to the “Design” link at the top right hand corner of your blog’s page. You will see a list come up on the side.  Click on “basic” to get to the privacy settings and click on “edit.” Answer “no” to both questions so that it won’t come up in a search.  Click on the “save changes” button. 

2. Click on “posts and comments.” Change it to “user with google account.”

Adding Gadgets

Click on “design” at the top right hand corner again.  Click on “layout” on the left hand side.  Click on “add gadget”.  When you find one you want, click on the “+” sign.  Be sure to save changes! As you customize your blogs, feel free to utilize all the tools available to you on blogger. The following are required:

Blogroll: you can create a list of blogs you are reading on the sidebar. Everyone will be responsible for commenting on their book group's blogs, so this is a great place to put links to them for easier access.  Each time an author posts something new, it automatically moves that blog to the top of your list. You can add in those blogs by copying and pasting the URL once I add them to our home base blog, www.room116ELA.blogspot.com.

List: this is an online “Finished Book List.” As you finish a book, add it here. 

Additional Guidelines

1. This blog is a part of a school project.  Therefore, all content on your blog must be related to your reading and writing life in some way.  Please do not use this blog as an online journal.

2. My expectation is that we are a community of readers and writers.  We will be monitoring all blogs and trusting that the words that appear online will come from a place of respect for your fellow classmates as well with a tone that is appropriate for school. 

For our own sanity, please:

• Do not add any kind of sound gadgets to your blog. 
• Please type in readable colors (no pink or yellow).
• Please type in readable fonts (avoid ones that are cursive or all caps, especially).
• Avoid backgrounds that make your blog hard to read.

Amazing Nonfiction Blog Mentors!

Check out these great examples of non fiction blog posts! They are organized, consider the author's craft, and thought-provoking!

Lizzie

Augie

Waniso

Ava R.

Marley

Sadie

Sophia L. 

More Ideas for Your Next Book!

Brought to you by Teach.com

More reading recommendations...

Consider this: Reading is LIFE WORK, not homework.

Also: Submit a post for McNally Jackson's young adult tumblr

Places to find more book recommendations:

• School Library Journal's Best Adult Books for Teens

• Parade Magazine: YA Authors Recommend favorite new YA novels

• Bookriot: If you like Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, try these next

• NPR's Must Reads for 9-14 year olds: what have you read? Do you agree?

• The Nerdy Book Club's 2013 finalists (these teachers are my kindred spirits & I highly recommend anything they recommend!

• New York Times Best Young Adult of 2013

• You can find other lists to explore here.