Toby Was...

This post is for juniors only.

In a thoughtful, thorough paragraph, answer the following question:

What word or phrase best describes Toby in the first third of the book?

Include two correctly cited quotations in your paragraph. Make sure your paragraph has a clear topic sentence. Here are some of the required criteria for your paragraph:

• write in third person (not first or second)
• write in present tense
• avoid contractions
• set-up and explain both quotations

If you have any questions, be sure to consult an instructor.

Take This Advice...

This post if for JUNIORS only.

Last week you wrote advice to your younger, ten-year-old self. Below you'll find some of it - organized by the period in which it was written. Toby, from A Boy's Life, could use some of your advice. Your task is as follows:

Select a piece of advice from your class period that you think would best help Toby. Then, in a thoughtful, thorough, multi-paragraph, short essay, explain why and how that piece of advice would benefit Toby.

Use the following criteria as a revision checklist:

• correct spelling and capitalization
• multiple paragraphs
• specific details
• at least one cited quotation
• no first person (I, me, we, us, my, myself, our, mine, ourselves) or second person (you, your, yours, yourself, yourselves) - except when used in a cited quotation

Please ask a teacher if you have any questions.

PERIOD 1

• Good friends accept you for who you are: you don’t have to act like someone else to impress them.
• Never judge a person by how they look.
• Not everyone is going to judge you as harshly as you assume they will.
• Nobody stays around forever. Don’t let this upset you, because there are so many others to meet down the road.

 

PERIOD 3

• Make sure your parents know how much you care about them.
• Make sure you lean from your bad decisions.
• When your parents fight or divorce, make sure you remember that it’s not about you and it’s not your fault.
• You shouldn’t trust everyone. They should earn YOUR trust.

 

PERIOD 7

• Some things you might see as a huge problem to get upset about are actually very small. Don’t get upset because later on these things won’t matter to you.
• Telling the truth is better than lying. You might get yourself in trouble, but as long as the truth comes out, you won’t feel as guilty.
• Do not worry too much about mistakes, because making mistakes is part of growing up.
• Life is a pain. You will have a hard time adapting to new situations, but you will learn to deal with it.

Ready to Rumble?

This post is for freshmen students only.

There's an old saying, that "knowing is half the battle." The joke, of course, is, "What's the rest of the battle?" Fighting? Pain? Losing? Cats with laser beams?

Using this notion as a jumping-off point, address one of the following ideas in a thoughtful, thorough paragraph.

What 'battles' are being fought in Ellison's "Battle Royale"?

Who is likely to succeed in battle, and who is likely to fail?

Which battle is most worthy of being fought?

Which is least worthy?

We're not just speaking literally, here. We're speaking figuratively. Be sure to consider all the characters and conflicts: the narrator, his grandfather, the other contestants, the women, the men holding the event, the audience members. Consider the narrator's speech, his dream at the end, his hopes and worries. Consider that some conflicts are external, others internal. Consider that by the end of the story, some battles have been resolved while others have just begun.

Post your response in the comments section. Be sure to include your name so you can get credit. Remember, these are simply ideas - prompts to get you started. All I'm looking for, really, is some thoughtful, interesting discussion. Therefore, feel free to post additional comments in which you respond to your peers' comments. You might also consider checking back in to see if anyone has responded to your comments, so you can reply.

You can receive extra credit for each additional response.

Again, I'm looking for a discussion here, not simply a list of unconnected thoughts. So, make connections and claims, draw conclusions, provide evidence and explanations. I'll be checking in periodically.

In case you're interested, all of these paintings are by a guy named George Bellows, one of the 'Ashcan' artists.