CYCLE 10 - DAY 5 - SEMESTER 1: What does it mean to "follow"?

After we took a brief quiz on Unit 5 Vocabulary, we broke into small groups to discuss last night's reading and your paragraphs. Here are the specific issues I asked you to address.

Each small group discussed:

• Remember our opening activity to the book when we talked about teams and leaders? We were reticent to use the word “follower” because it seemed like a backhanded compliment. Together, discuss HOW your ideas about followership have changed as a result of getting this far in the novel, reading these articles, and analyzing the character you chose for your 12-sentence paragraph today.
• Together, create a list of key traits that the articles suggest are essential to good followership.
• Consider this: Being a member of a class is also being a follower of sorts. The articles don’t cover all the traits required to being a good class member. What traits are missing from the discussion so far? Write your list in answer to questions 2 & 3 on the board

When the group reconvened, we reviewed the list and came up with the top three rules that, if followed by everyone, will make class meaningful, enjoyable & productive. (Ultimately, these three simple terms summarize what we want our lives to be, so why not begin that journey of a thousand steps here and see where it takes us?) There are certain base assumptions we made in this: we assume that everyone in the class wants to do well and that everyone does his or her best to be prepared for class. If this isn't describing your attitude and approach, see me, please.

Group 2 came up with the following rules:

• Demonstrate respect toward others, always.
• Think before you speak (and think all the time).
• Challenge yourself and others in a useful way.

HOMEWORK:

Revise your paragraph, adding 2 to 3 sentences to it (you may do more), however you choose, that address the class dynamic we discussed today. You may choose to focus on your own participation or on the class dynamic as a whole. You can put the sentences wherever you wish. They need to be integrated into the paragraph and not just tacked on. That means you'll need to give some careful thought to transitioning (e.g. Just as Fiver tried to appear curious when looking at the fish so that others would follow him onto the bridge, I've feigned interest in passages just to get the conversation going again...). Look for parallels between your experience, the articles and the novel. My goals in assigning this are three-fold:

1. I want you to focus on transitions in your writing.
2. I want you to synthesize fiction, non-fiction and discussion in your thinking.
3. I want you to articulate your authentic ideas and reflections.

The paragraph, typed and double-spaced, is due on Wednesday. To cite the newspaper articles, you need only place the author's name in parentheses.

CYCLE 10 - DAY 4 - SEMESTER 1

Today, we began with the review section for lessons 13-15 in the sentence diagramming workbook. This includes Direct Address, Prepositional Phrases (modifying nouns), and Appositives.

For those of you still experiencing issues about what to put on the main line in a sentence diagram, I recommended that you follow these steps:

You can download a better copy of this chart by clicking here.

PLEASE come see me with questions!

Then, we moved on to discuss last night's reading, pages 369-394 -- the extraordinary escape from Efrafa! Most of you thought Bigwig did a fairly good job getting the does out of Efrafa, and while plenty was out of his control, he managed to make the best of the opportunities presented to him. To view the class notes for the day, click here.

HOMEWORK:
There is no new reading in the novel for tonight. Instead, you are to read two articles about followers today, and to write a 12-sentence paragraph in response to the question: Who in the novel exemplifies admirable followership? Your paragraph must quote directly from the novel AND the articles!

You may find the articles on the class wikispace.

Also, your Unit 5 vocabulary quiz will be on TUESDAY. The format will be identical to the one for Unit 4.

CYCLE 1 - DAY 3 - SEMESTER 1: Watership Down 336-365

Hi all,
No new vocabulary today: YOUR QUIZ WILL BE TUESDAY. It will be identical in format to the Unit 4 quiz. In sentence diagramming today, we covered appositives, nouns that rename nouns that came before (e.g. George Bush, the forty-forth president). Remember, the second noun is always the one that goes in parentheses.

Today, we discussed last night's climactic reading. In addition to the discussion guide questions provided to you on the study guide, we also talked about:
1. How the rapid scene changing heightened tension.
2. How relying on dialog for so much of the reading heightened tension.
3. How Adams used setting and weather symbolism to heighten tension.

More than one class noted that the extended conversation between Woundwort and Bigwig smacked of cheesy Hollywood silliness, because really, who gets into extended conversations when it's time to put up the fists (or in this case, paws)?

We found it helpful to consult the map on page 357 and to write in the page numbers of where we can find information about what happened at that spot (e.g. 354/ash tree).

Just to confirm, Bigwig DOESN'T die in this section: he's just badly wounded.

Check out your class notes on the wikispace.

HOMEWORK:
Read 369-394. You can find the studyguide here. YOU MUST WRITE AN INTERPRETIVE QUESTION FOR TOMORROW'S CLASS!

CYCLE 10 - DAY 2 - SEMESTER 1

Hi all.  It's Blood Donation day, and while mine went fine, my blood pressure dropped insanely low and has stayed low (lesson learned: eat before donating), so I am woozy and out of it and going directly to bed. Tune in tomorrow for details of today's class.

Thank you very much to the blood donors and supporters of donors today.  This is such an important thing to do, and your typical commitment and enthusiasm today (often in spite of fear) is most impressive.  You folks are really extraordinary, and no, that's not the wooziness speaking.

Have a good night.

HOMEWORK

Read 336-365.  Long but dramatic.  I may or may not have had brains enough to put the study guide on the wikispace.

CYCLE 10 - DAY 1 - SEMESTER 1

Today, everyone took a grammar quiz wherein I asked you to identify how words operated in sentences, both diagrammed and undiagrammed. Afterwards, I asked most of you (section 2, I don't think you got this) to place yourselves on the following spectrum, both on the top and the bottom. Answering both of these questions can tell both of us a lot about where problems lie. Is it in degree of preparation or methodology? What is the correlation between your investment of effort and your return on that investment? If you found yourself on the left on the top half of the scale, but on the right on the bottom half, COME IN TO SEE ME!

Then, everybody but group 4 covered vocabulary (moment of idiocy there, group 4. Mea culpa).

After that, we covered a variety of discussion questions in each class:

• Is Hazel's fear getting the better of him?
• Is Fiver improving in his leadership?
• Just how much of a price are these two willing to pay for their warren?
• Is General Woundwort entirely unsympathetic? What motivates this ruthless dictator?
• Why does Adams spend so much time describing setting, anyway?  Is he excessive in this, or are we unappreciative because culturally we tend to think of the outdoors as something we go through to get elsewhere (i.e., is the fault with us or the book?)

There are other great points you folks made today, which you can find by perusing the class notes on the wikispace.

HOMEWORK

Read 312-336.  The study guide is available on the wikispace.

Write sentences on the wikispace, too.

CYCLE 9 - DAY 5 - SEM 1: Watership Down 261-289

Today, we covered words 11-15 in the vocabulary book, and we took a practice grammar quiz. Why did we do this? BECAUSE YOU WILL HAVE A QUIZ THAT COUNTS TOMORROW! SEE THE HOMEWORK SECTION FOR DETAILS!

Today, we discussed pages 261-289, focusing mostly on Bigwig, the Black Rabbit of Inle, and Hazel's response to Bigwig's rash action. Please see your respective class notes on the wikispace.

HOMEWORK
PART I: READING
Read pages 289-312. Study guide #12 is available on the wikispace. We will DEFINITELY be speaking about the following question:

1. What does Adams do best as an author? Check your literary terms list from the beginning of the year to help out! COME PREPARED WITH A MINIMUM OF THREE PIECES OF EVIDENCE!
   a. Create setting
   b. Establish tone
   c. Write dialogue
   d. Develop characterization

Leaders, you should consider additional topics of interest, as well as strategies to get everyone involved.

PART II: WRITE SENTENCES
Add sentences to your section on the wikispace.

PART III: GRAMMAR QUIZ
You will be given sentences and sentence diagrams and asked in each to identify which part of speech is represented by a circled term.

There will NOT be a word bank. What are the specific grammatical terms we have covered so far?

• Definite article - the
• Indefinite articles – a/an
• Linking verbs – be/become/get/sensory verbs; they operate like an equals sign in a sentence. If you can replace a verb with an equals sign (tense doesn’t matter here) and the meaning of the sentence is pretty much unchanged, then you have a linking verb. (Sally is angry. Sally = angry. Yes, that’s a linking verb. Sally smells horrible. Sally = horrible. Yes, that’s a linking verb. Sally smelled the soup. Sally = the soup. Nope. That’s not a linking verb.)
• Helping verbs – words that work with verbs to establish tense (will be, have been, etc.)
• Modal auxiliaries - a type of helping verb that identifies condition, possibility, or obligation (must, might, may, could, would, should, can)
• Predicate nominatives – Nouns or pronouns that follow a linking verb and further define/rename the subject. They are doctors.
• Attributive adjectives – Adjectives that come before the nouns they modify and name an attribute of that noun: shiny pen, fluffy puppy, little sister, mighty wind.
• Predicate adjectives – adjectives that follow linking verbs and further define the subject. She will be delighted.
• Possessive pronouns – Some function like adjectives and modify nouns: my, your, his, her, its, our, their. My car, your binder, his blazer, her game, its burrow, our trip, their pet. Others function like nouns and do not appear next to the nouns they rename: mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs. That book is mine, yours is blue, this is his, give me hers, we have ours, I’d prefer theirs.
• Direct objects – nouns or pronouns that receive the action of NON-LINKING verbs. To find out what they are, ask verb + who? Or verb + what? She ate chili. Ate what? Chili. You need to be able to rule out linking verbs before you do this test, however.
• Adverbs – words that modify adjectives, verbs, and other adverbs. Adverbs answer the questions, where? How frequently? To what degree? (too, very, often, frequently, etc.)
• Prepositions – Words that explain its objects relationship in time, space, or logic to the rest of the sentence (on the desk, under the cabinet, through the window, without fear). Prepositions take objects (nouns).

Review your sentence diagramming workbook and do the exercises on line!

CYCLE 9 - DAY 4 - SEMESTER 1: Rabbit Commandments

We covered the next five words in Unit 5 of the vocabulary book.

Today, you led the class work.

Group 4: Michael=leader, Shelby=typist, Billy=bouncer.
Small groups of 3 or 4 people worked together to:

• define "commendments."
• develop a list of ten of their own, using the previous night's homework.
• consider consequenes of breaking those commandments to refine the list to essentials.

Large group reconvened, created a larger list, and then winnowed it down. Final notes are available on the wikispace.

PROPOSED COMMANDMENTS

• Thou shalt not compromise thy warren.
• - Your individual actions should never hurt the group.
• Thou shalt trust thy Chief Rabbit.
• Thou shalt respect Frith and follow El-Ehrairah’s example.
• - Be cunning and resourceful
• Respect instinct first and Chief Rabbit second. Thou shalt be precocious (wary).
• - “If it is too good to be true, chances are it is” (Ostermeyer)
• Thou shalt look for a friend in all possible places.
• Honor thy group member’s abilities. Thou shalt know thy role as rabbit.
• Thou shalt act with modesty.
• - “If a rabbit gets too cocky, he/ she will make bad decisions” (Ostermeyer)
• Don’t let emotion cloud your judgement.
• Thou shalt keep thy goal in mind.
• Thou shalt be proud to be a rabbit.

Useful "bouncer" technique developed in this class: Hand gesture signaling "STOP" the conversation.

Group 6: Lilly=leader, Wil=typist, Alex=bouncer.

Small groups of 3 or 4 discussed last night's homework, each agreeaing on two principles for the four episodes. Large group reconvened, each small group then listed what it came up with, and the master list was then winnowed down:

Top 10 Rabbit Commandments:

• Trust each other
• Stick together, use teamwork
• Be patient with one another
• Listen to the wise
• Don’t judge a book by its cover
• Do what is best for the group
• Create alliances after weighing pros and cons
• Be resourceful and creative
• Sacrifice yourself for the team
• Don’t carry out your plan without a group consensus (first make a plan)

Group 2: Henry=leader, Daniel=typist, Jack=bouncer

After we read the comments posted on the last blog entry about why discussion has not been all it could be lately, Henry led the class. We began with vocabulary.

Small groups developed 5 commandments each. When the large group reconvened, each group offered the two that they thought most important. Please see the wikispace for full class notes.

Our Class’s 10 Commandments for Rabbits:

• Thou shall respect thy wisdom of Fiver-rah.
• Thou shall treat thy fellow anamalia with dignity and respect.
• Thou shall use the gifts of El-ahrairah for survival.
• Thou shall trust thy instincts.
• Thou shall trust in thy kin.
• Thou shalt not leave thy kin behind.
• Thou shall respect thy leaders/superior.
• Thou shall listen to thy comrades when they haveth something to contribute

Afterwards, Henry offered discussion questions:

• How do these rabbots' morals differ from our own? (Ours are meant to prevent harm; theirs promote survival.)
• How do their religious beliefs influence their moral codes?
• Are their values religious in nature?
• What is the role of Frith in the rabbits' lives?
• El-ahrairah is clearly a transcendent figure in their mythos. What are his morals?

HOMEWORK:

Read pages 261 through 289 in Watership Down. The study guide is posted on the portal, and available on the wikispace.

You are to write ONE study guide question related to this reading. While it should relate to the book, it does not need to be limited to the book (in other words, you may relate the reading to real life events, other books, etc.). You are to post your comment to the class blog, to the post entitled: "CYCLE 9 - DAY 5 - SEM 1: Watership Down 261-289." Just click the link here to get to it. If, for some reason, you are having issues posting your question, please just email it to me.

Also, please write 5 new sentences on the wikispace.

CYCLE 9 - DAY 3 - SEM 1 Watership Down 229-257

IN CLASS TODAY:
We covered the first five words of Unit 5: Acuity, Delineate, Depraved, Enervate, Esoteric.

Then, Groups 2 and 4, we spoke about the reading for today: pages 229-257 in Watership Down. Group 6, as half the class did not finish the reading, we did not progress. Group 2, our conversation was lackluster at best. What gives, folks? Why the significant number of weak links? It seems ironic that after two weeks of addressing the critical elements of a functioning team, our own teams show signs of disarray. While I see great potential in you to steer the ship, I'm getting the sense you want me to take back the wheel. At least, that's what I saw today. Is this so? You've been most impressive in previous classes. Is the format merely losing its novelty?

Please comment on this because I would:
A) like to know what is causing the problem;
B) like to know your suggestions for solution.

We've got half of the novel to go; let's make a great go of it! I've been very impressed with the way you analyze the dynamics between characters, extrapolate larger, applicable meaning from the book, challenge each other to develop your ideas and create a meaningful, useful record of your conversation. How can we keep that going?

HOMEWORK:

WRITE SENTENCES ON THE WIKISPACE FOR THE WORDS COVERED TODAY.

WRITE DOWN TWO CENTRAL LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM EACH OF THE FOLLOWING EPISODES:
1. The River Crossing: Pages 36-39
2. The Time in Cowslip’s Warren: Pages 70-118
3. Creating an Alliance with Kehaar: 178-193
4. The Nuthanger Raid: 197-229, 242-253

You should have a list of 8 lessons overall.

In class tomorrow, we will create a list of Top Ten Rabbit Commandments. Leaders, YOU design the classes tomorrow. Rely on everyone to help you reach the goal, and structure activities/create roles that you think will help.

Again, please comment on the post above if you have an insight or suggestion. Today took me by surprise, and I'm sure no one wants a replay.

CYCLE 9 - DAY 2 - SEM 1: Watership Down 205-228

In our abbreviated class period of twenty minutes, we addressed the question of whether or not Hazel should lose his status of Chief Rabbit for the debacle the Nuthanger Farm raid turned into.

Your comments about why he should all related to the following points:

• It was an unnecessary risk
• It was too impulsive: all they had to do was wait for Holly's return
• It jeopardized everyone's lives for a payoff of questionable value; can the does breed?  Their lack of knowledge about living in the wild puts everyone at risk.
• It demonstrated cockiness on his part
• He was not truthful to others in the group

Your comments about why he should not all related to the following points:

• The raid demonstrated a finely trained team acting in concert
• He was decisive and willing to take risks of his own
• He did get does for the warren, which is what they need

While there was an unquestionable payoff, the vast majority of you felt that, in the end, it just wasn't worth it.  I asked you to determine where you

 would place Hazel on the following spectrum:

Most of you fell to the middle and the left, indicating that at the very least, Hazel deserves to be seriously reprimanded for his dangerous behavior.

YOUR HOMEWORK FOR THE WEEKEND:

Read pages 229-257 in Watership Down.  The study guide will be on the wikispace by Saturday afternoon.

CYCLE 9 - DAY 1 - SEM 1 Watership Down 178-205

More review sentences today in the Sentence Diagramming workbook.

Today, you led discussion again, after nominating and voting on lead roles. Notes are available on the wikispace. Be sure to check out each other's sections--you all developed great ideas, and collectively, you nailed just about all of the issues.

Group 6, we didn't talk about the moonlight, but should have. Check the other two section's notes from yesterday. Others did, and if you would like to revisit it, let's.

HOMEWORK
Read pages 205-229. See if your predictions came true! The study guide is also available on the wikispace and the portal.

CYCLE 8 - DAY 5 - SEMESTER 1 Watership Down 150-178

We moved on in Sentence Diagramming today, covering Direct Address.

Then we talked about 150-178.  Please see class notes on the wikispace (yes; it's up and running.  You can disregard this afternoon's email.).  

One area I was hoping we would get to but did not is the idea that "It's lonely at the top."  El-ahrairah must keep so much secret.  Hazel starts to conceal some of his real thoughts, too.  Do you think this is necessary for them to lead effectively?  Alas and drat, much of what we got to was just review.

Perhaps tomorrow we can get to the question.

In all sections, we reviewed some of the roles from last week, not as they pertain to the rabbits, but to ourselves.  We've spoken about followers, and we know that being a follower isn't a negative; followers keep the group goals in mind and pitch in wherever they are able, without waiting for instruction.  Are you doing that?  Leaders don't just bark out instructions; they listen to what their followers say and select a course that is the best channel for the group's energy.  That means a leader must pay very careful attention to the group dynamic, listen well, keep everyone's strengths in mind, and motivate people.  That's a tall order, yes, but one for which many of you are very well suited (all of you are in the right circumstances!).  For those of you who like the spotlight and the chance to showcase your talents, pay attention to your listening skills, too.

Tomorrow, we will look at the study guide questions again, but we have some other unresolved issues.  Tomorrow, you will nominate and vote on roles rather than volunteer for them, so be prepared to go!

HOMEWORK:

Read 178-205.  The study guide is available on the wikispace.

CYCLE 8 - DAY 4 - SEM 1 - Roles in Watership Down

No new vocabulary or sentence diagramming today. I asked you to be sure to review the GRAMMAR REVIEW page on the wikisite, as you simply must have that material down pat before we move on.

Today in class, you assigned roles to the various rabbits of the Watership Down warren. Some of you decided that new roles needed to be added to the list to accomodate your understanding of the characters. These roles included "dissenter" (one who points out flaws in the group's decisions and behaviors) and "adviser" (one who, based on personal knowledge and experience, suggests specific improvements to the group). Notes for class discussion can be found on the wikispace, and thank you to the students who led, moderated, and recorded discussions.

After assigning rabbits to their roles, we assigned one another to roles, and simply did not get as fas in that conversation. This is a pity because assigning these roles indicates the strengths everyone brings to the table, and suggests how we can best capitalize on one another's talents. We'll pursue that line of reasoning a bit further when we reconvene.

HOMEWORK:

1. Be sure you have mastered all of the basic material for sentence diagramming before we move on. You should re-read each of the descriptions at the beginning of diagramming units 1-12, and make ample use of the links on the wikisite.
2. Read pages 150 through 178 in Watership Down. Use the study guide (#7) to guide your thinking and use the reading tips and review section as well. We will be addressing the following questions in class:
3. FOUR DISCUSSION QUESTIONS FOR THE NEXT CLASS:
   1. Holly says that men are the source of all evil (151). What were Toadflax’s last words? Why bother to put these details in? What is Adams telling us about human nature in this book?
   2. What are the other rabbits’ reactions to Hazel’s idea about working with other animals? What does that tell us about human nature?
   3. Why do you suppose it is “’one of El-ahrairah’s rules never to let anyone see when he was angry’” (167)? What purpose does that serve for him?
   4. What are the specific skills El-ahrairah possesses that make him a good leader, and where are those skills echoed in Hazel’s warren?