Sex, Drugs, and Violence

INTRODUCTION

A Sex, Drugs and Violence unit has the potential to receive heat from parents and—if not carefully presented—create havoc inside the classroom. Historically, these topics have either been reserved for Health professionals or ignored in their entirety. However, these adolescent outlets are imperative for all ages and demographics; without acknowledgment, how can we expect our students to act when faced with a potentially stressful situation? With that, we have created a Sex, Drugs and Violence unit for both primary and secondary ages—a first grade student deserves the same age-appropriate opportunity as an eleventh grader. If educators begin by accurately conveying love or bullying to a primary student, the system can progressively build upon that foundation and delve into potential red flags in relationship abuse, for example, or the effect a poor decision had on a protagonist’s life. By intertwining multimodal texts, genres, and focus, this unit holds the ability to reach all ages and reading levels. The Sex, Drugs and Violence unit is not only essential for literacy growth and development, but it also has the ability to change lives and provide insight for students of all ages, colors, and ability.

In their essential state, sex, drugs, and violence are themes of importance and relevance for students. As such, it is necessary for a safe space to be established in classrooms for students to have discussions about these themes, which are extremely sensitive and important.  In many cases, this space does not exist.  In an ethnographic study, a team of educators noted that a “lack of willingness to deal with sexual molestation in any real way makes it virtually impossible for the victims to reach out in ways that are healthy and that could protect them” (Freedman & Johnson, 2000, p. 363).  Although the themes of sex, drugs, and violence are relatively explicit or mature topics, they can be scaled to a variety of levels of appropriateness so that both primary and secondary grade levels can be engaged.  Within this text set, such variety is attended to and the target grade levels range from second to twelfth.  At the earlier grades (second—fifth), this text set focuses on violence in the form of bullying so that grade level appropriateness can be ensured.  Bullying occurs at all ages and the many public cases (which comprise a miniscule percentage of the whole topic) which have profiled tragic bullying stories provide a glimpse of the impetus for such lessons in both primary and secondary classrooms.  It is arguable that the lack of explicit instruction on these topics results in a “cycle [of oppression and prejudice that] continues as myths are validated and reinforced by institutions, culture, media, family, religion, and friends and then become socialized into the cycle” (Miller, 2005, p. 88).  The texts for the secondary grade levels combat this cycle and blend sex, drugs, and violence in multi-modal fiction and non-fiction forms.  These themes represent problems faced by many adolescents as they struggle to explore and shape their emerging identities.  Indeed, as educators, “We can no longer waste the ethical opportunities literature provides in the face of increasing teenage apathy, anger, and violence” (Alsup, 2003, p. 162).  This text set approaches these crucial topics from various positions and grade levels and serves as an active approach to use the classroom as a space for such critical learning.

The texts that we have chosen to implement are creative, well-written, credible, and would serve as excellent anchor--and supporting--texts in a unit centered around sex, drugs, and violence. They range in appropriateness for age and grade level in addition to spanning across technology types. We chose some of the texts for their originality and new take on the topic, and others because they were written by well-known authors or have been accredited for excellence.

Damned by Chuck Palahniuk, is one of the newest texts on the list. Palahniuk is known for his explicit language and violent content in other books like Fight Club. However, this is watered down and transformed in Damned. In a review by the New York Times, the book was described as Palahniuk’s comeback and “a book full of ...hilarious gallows humor.”

Another book in our collection, The Basketball Diaries by Jim Carroll, has a different sort of reputation. An edited version of the author’s own life, this book provides a caustically real depiction of sex and addition. In fact, the book was made into a movie in 1995, starring the “it boy” at the time, Leonardo DiCaprio. Carroll was known for his music and other artistic talents. Like Damned, this book had a very serious impact on pop culture at the time of its release, which is a critical component to take into consideration while choosing texts for this particular theme.

For this unit, many of our texts utilize different modalities in order to target numerous learning identities. This notion ties back to pop culture; in order to make the strongest connection with children and adolescents about this highly sensitive topic, the newest and most interesting texts must be utilized. The collection includes speeches, music videos, news articles, short sample non-fiction texts, memoirs, and novels. With this variation, the unit appeals to students with any range of literate ability and extends to numerous demographics.

The activities have been designed to align with these texts span across age ranges and focus on many different strengths. They can even be combined and/or mixed around to better fit a particular group of students if need be. The activity for the youngest grade level is a discussion of bullying- or violence- in the children’s picture book, The Recess Queen. The concept of a large group discussion would be familiar to the children and allow them to express their moralistic knowledge of bullying in a comfortable environment.

Another activity we chose to implement in this unit is a silent journal discussion on hot topic issues, in this case gun violence. With The Basketball Diaries serving as the anchor text for this activity, the students will make text-to-text connections with song lyrics from the artist Eminem. A silent journal discussion requires the students to write down their responses to questions, then passing it along to their peers who will then read it and respond to them, almost as if they are having a discussion. It takes away the hesitation and shyness that often comes with large group discussions so the students are all required to hear what one another have to say.

The final activity we chose utilizes Twitter to bridge the gap between different cultures represented in the TED Talks by Sunitha Krishnan about sexual violence and human trafficking. If the students do not have access to Twitter, a class blog or any other type of communication via technology will suffice.

References

Alsup, J. (2003). Politicizing young adult literature: reading Anderson’s Speak as a critical text: Critical texts confront difficult topics. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 47 (2), 158-166.

Freedman, L. and Johnson, H. (2000/2001). Who’s protecting whom? I hadn’t meant to tell you this, a case in point in confronting self-censorship in the choice of young adult literature. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 44 (4), 356-369.

Miller, S. (2005). Shattering images of violence in young adult literature: Strategies for the classroom. English Journal, 94 (5), 87-93.

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Carroll, J. (1987). The basketball diaries. New York: Penguin.

The Basketball Diaries, by Jim Carroll, is an autobiographical collection of memoirs addressing adolescent life in New York City. Set in the 1960’s, the diaries—which Carroll wrote between the ages of 12 and 16—provide a detailed account of an adolescent’s spiral into addiction. At age 12, Carroll’s life revolves ar

ound an outstanding athletic ability and basketball endeavors. Carroll, however, begins huffing glue with his teammates and friends, which serves as a catalyst into his eventual heroin addiction. The diaries provide vivid accounts of prostitution, sexual experiences, neighborhood fights, theft, and extreme drug addiction. This coming of age memoir highlights a hustling lifestyle and depicts a progressive dive into homelessness and helplessness. Moreover, Carroll’s sensual, emotional writing enables the reader to join in the search for purity and self-identity. Carroll’s prose brings his childhood memories to life and creates an atmosphere in which the reader can almost feel the pain and misery. Beginning as an experimental ‘nod,’ Carroll quickly created habitual practices needed to get through simple tasks; by the age of 16, dreams of basketball and success turn into nightmares of survival and loneliness.

        This particular text works quite well in a Sex, Drugs, and Violence unit. The memoirs provide explicit detail into Carroll’s world. For example, on page 127, Carroll paints a sexual image for his audience—“She pulls me behind a tree and socks her tongue in my mouth and grinds her sweet bottom up against me, then suddenly a hand up my leg and grabbing my gizmo as she’s still whipping that tongue” (Carroll, 1987). The writing style continues throughout the memoir and explicit imagery is used to portray heavy drug use and the extreme up-and-down emotions that follow. Carroll’s no-nonsense writing—“I get greeted at the door by Bunny, we smoke some grass, we fuck, we smoke some more, we fuck some more, we dig the logopoeia”—enlightens readers with a lifestyle that is surrounded by these three particular themes (Carroll, 1987, p. 166). It is not just one or two diary entries that correlate within this sphere; the entire text circulates around Carroll’s spiral into desolation, which, in return, provides the unit with an outstanding anchor text.

        With such graphic language and questionable actions, this text would undoubtedly receive heat from parents and administration alike. However, this collection remains valuable to the adolescent world as serious life lessons can be extracted from Carroll’s struggle. The language limits the text to a mature audience—upperclassmen mature enough to handle such prose.

However, as educators, we must get over the politically incorrect diction and hold Carroll’s collection as a valuable escape for adolescents in similar situations. Our student’s lives are not perfect; an adolescent’s search for identity may rest in parallel with Carroll’s trepidation. An author’s language must not deny students from the opportunity to experience beautiful memoirs and poetry. This collection of memoirs aligns cross-curricular with Cold War and Vietnam lessons. Most adolescents—pardon the vast assumption—will cross the pressures Carroll faced in his early adolescents. While these experiences may not come at the same age—or in the same fashion—Carroll’s failure to surpass life’s obstacles must be held as a foundation for our students to build upon.

Danielewski, M. Z. (2000). House of Leaves. (2nd ed.). New York: Pantheon Books.

This book chronicles the dark adventures of Johnny Traunt, the central narrator, as he seeks to discover the secrets of the mysterious book written by his dead neighbor, Zampanò.  The point of view oscillates between the first-person Johnny Truant and the third-person tales of the House of Leaves, written by Zampanò.  Apart from language usage, this transition is denoted by the font—Courier New and Times New Roman for Johnny and Zampanò’s narrator respectively.  The story within the story, House of Leaves, is about an award-winning photographer, Navidson, who moves into a rural house to reconnect with his wife.  Shortly after moving in, Navidson discovers a peculiar property of his new house: the space within certain rooms is larger than the parameters of the rooms themselves.  Unnerved and disturbed by this, Navidson and a team of scholarly experts set out on an expedition to discover what lies in the depths of a particularly cavernous closet.  Blending his love of photography and video, Navidson records his efforts to reach the bottom of an unimaginably expansive spiral staircase, ultimately leading to the death of several others and possibly to his own.  Johnny Traunt edits the scraps of Navidson’s adventures and commentates on them as he does.  Johnny becomes obsessed with the story of Navidson and, convinced it is a true account, sets out to find the mysterious house.  As Johnny’s story grows alongside the dark rooms of Navidson’s house, he becomes increasingly unreliable and paranoid.  His own adventures are linked to the dark underworld of tattoos, drugs, sex, and ultimately violence as he, mirroring the movements of Navidson, spirals downward into a black void from which he cannot resurface.

This text links to the theme of sex, drugs, and violence in that Johnny Traunt engages with all three regularly.  Readers respond to his encounters with these activities with unsettling apprehension, because it is clear that the physical and psychological well-being of Johnny is being destroyed as a result.  The intensity with which Danielewski includes sex, drugs, and violence makes this text real in a gritty, subversive way that captures the lifestyle and mindset of one who has crossed the threshold of addiction and depression.  These are important aspects to discuss when learning about this particular topic.

This text is best suited for older students due to its explicit content and convoluted structure.  The format of the text, however, provides excellent opportunities for textual analysis and author choice.  Its unique organization often prompts readers to ask the question: Why did Danielewski write like this?  This unavoidable intrigue appeals to readers who like to engage with text and may draw in readers who have previously never been motivated to do so.  Additionally, the sex, drugs, and violence filled stories, combined with male narrators, appeal to male readers in particular.  For these reasons, this text is perhaps best suited for literature circles as an optional read alongside others that represent the female voice more so.

Eminem and Rihanna: Love The Way You Lie

         “Love the Way You Lie” is a song that was composed by Eminem and Rihanna in 2010. This particular song expresses an intense break-up between two young adults. Often violent and disturbing, the song’s diction stresses violence and physical pain between a pair in search for the willpower to part. The song—involving threats, warnings, and both physical and emotional abuse—places relationships under a lens that is rarely opened for the public to absorb. The aggressiveness from Eminem’s lyricist style—coupled with Rihanna’s relationship history—forces listeners to understand the difficulty of domestic abuse.

This multi-media outlet focuses primarily on violence; the battle between two clashing personas stimulates rage and helplessness. The music video, moreover, brings words to life through painful images of fighting, screaming, and emotional turmoil. Eminem states, “I snap, ‘Who’s that dude?’/I don’t even know his name/I laid hands on her,/I’ll never stoop so low again/I guess I don’t know my own strength” which presents a perpetual pit of aggressive behavior. The vivid imagery continues as Eminem explains that “There won’t be no next time I apologize,/even though I know it’s lies…I know I’m a liar if she ever tries to fuckin’ leave again/I’ma tie her to the bed/And set this house on fire” which clearly defines an unhealthy relationship for both parties involved. While we must take into consideration that this unit may be sensitive for some students to discuss, the inclusion of this text shows the harmful repercussions of living through abuse and havoc.

        Although this modality does not cover all of the spheres in a Sex, Drugs, and Violence unit, the song covers a theme in which many of our students either live in or around; domestic abuse continues to play a large role for students of all color, ability, demographic and class. Due to the graphic nature of the song, its usage should not be placed below the high school level. Additionally, we must keep in mind that early high school students are often at the beginning stages of relationship curiosities and identity development; this song provides youth with a transparent look into the pain caused by an abusive relationship. The violence expressed in this song can be placed in parallel with a text revolving around this theme. Although it cannot be held as a central anchor, its supporting ability—with modern superstars—motivates students to absorb a novel’s message and bridge the lessons to their current world. If, for example, the anchor text of a unit surrounding relationship violence was Sapphire’s PUSH, this video would help link the novel’s themes by making them current and realistic. It is imperative for teachers to provide students with the opportunity to experience a novel through many different medias. While content and age appropriateness must be considered, this theme is real in many of our student’s lives. Many students will have heard the song countless times; it is always amusing to see their reaction when modernized literacy vehicles fit so perfectly with an anchor text.

Giovanni, N. (2008). Hip hop speaks to children: A celebration of poetry with a beat. Naperville: Source  

Jabberwocky.

“Hip Hop Speaks to Children,” a collection of poetry and songs, was compiled and edited in 2008 by Nikki Giovanni. While the text does not hold a central plot, setting, or conflict, it discusses an array of adolescent struggles, surprises and accomplishments. Whether the poem is addressing love, or being sent to the principal’s office—this collection modernizes poetry through the inclusion of hip-hop stars such as Kanye West, Mos Def, Common, Tupac, Queen Latifah and many more. Perhaps more importantly, however, is the connection Giovanni makes between the modern hip-hop world and the historical poetic works of W.E.B. Du Bois, Langston Hughes, and Maya Angelou. These historically separate worlds collide in an exciting and refreshing poetry experience. Giovanni’s ability to intertwine canonized poetry with modern starts eliminates the tension between these two fields and opens up poetic doors for adolescents to not only explore, but also enjoy doing so.

        While this collection does not address the Sex, Drugs, and Violence unit the same way a middle or high school text-set would, it still holds the ability to teach adolescents at an age-appropriate level. Poems such as “Who Will Cry for the Little Boy,” by Antwone Fisher, asks adolescents, “Who will cry for the little boy?/Who knows well hurt and pain./Who will cry for the little boy?/ He died again and again” (Giovanni, 2008, p. 57). While the violence is not as explicit as other texts in this collection, but the audience can imagine the physical and emotional pain the little boy has encountered. Additionally, Common’s “Love Is…” points out “how beautiful love can be” which places sex and relationships under a positive lens (Giovanni, 2008, p. 36). This unit does not have to revolve around pain and sorrow. There can be positive, uplifting events that arise from sex, drugs and violence. Adolescents deserve to see true, emotional love—as well as triumph and success—with certain texts.

        The application for a text such as Giovanni’s collection should be steered towards students ranging from 4th to 6th grade (this does not mean that this collection cannot be used with older adolescents). This particular text screams urban poetry; the beautiful thing about hip-hop, however, is that students of all colors and demographics may find an escape through these artists. The multi-media aspect of this collection—a CD is provided with the purchase of the collection—enables students to listen to artists read their work, which addresses many multiple learning identities. This collection—in particular Langston Hughes’ “The Negro Speaks of Rivers”—can very well be included in parallel with the history of slavery in a cross-curricular setting. This text is special; it allows students to engage with material by Giovanni’s brilliant notion of a continuous and concurrent bridge between modernized hip-hop and the poetic cannon. Additionally, the age-appropriate definitions of sex, drugs, and violence—and not what Hollywood and the pressures of the outside world say—create an atmosphere in which students can embrace and enjoy.

TED Talks - Sunitha Krishnan “The Fight Against Sex Slavery” Krishnan, S. (2009, December). The fight against sex slavery . Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/talks/sunitha_krishnan_tedindia.html

Over the last few years, multimedia texts have become a staple in the classroom. TED Talks, which are short speeches given by credible sources to large audiences, have become an increasingly popular medium for raising awareness about sensitive topics. All of the Talks can be found on their website, where there are a number of different topics that can be incorporated into almost any theme.

Sunitha Krishnan’s 20-minute long TED Talk discusses the issues surrounding “sexual exploitation.” Sunitha is a former sex-slave herself, and now spends her days rescuing women and young female children from the industry. Her speech also touches on the issue of AIDS and the mentality around the children who are sold into slavery, in the Middle East and in America.

Krishnan’s discussion of her own experience with rape is graphic and chilling, and gives a very real voice to the issue of sexual violence. While she talks explicitly about rape and the violence of the sex trade, she also gives suggestions for help- which is something that not every text in this collection does.

This text could be used in collaboration with many other regarding the rights of women, no not just in regards to sex trafficking. A comparison of freedom that Krishnan describes could be used to make a text-to-text connection to a more canonical novel, like A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen, which explores the greater idea of imprisonment.

Krishnan’s speech is compelling and informative, about the sex slave trade and the politics around it, but is incredibly graphic. It could be listened to, to avoid the graphic pictures, and presented to a younger audience in 10th grade, but it should be carefully presented to students in 11th and 12th grade. While it opens with some very graphic imagery, it is realistic, and it sends a very strong message about who can rape and what violence--and courage--look like.

Memoir Course Reader

Lyon, J. (2009). Pillhead: The secret life of a painkiller addict . Hyperion.

Strauss, D. (2010). Half a life . New York : Random House

Kiedis, A. (2004). Scar tissue. Hyperion.

Contents:

Pillhead (prologue) by Joshua Lyon

Half a Life by Darin Strauss

Scar Tissue by Anthony Kiedis

This course reader features samples of non-fiction pieces, mostly memoirs of former drug addicts, from an array of authors. Some are funny, others are squeamish, but all are entertaining.

Pillhead follows the drug addiction Joshua Lyon, and the prologue tells not only how his pill addiction came to be, but also the speed found in a day in the life of a drug addict. It is short, but speaks loudly about how easy it can be for a person to fall into the downward cycle of addiction. Additionally, this except briefly discusses how anyone, no matter what their background, can come into contact with drug use.

The excerpt from Half a Life describes how author Darin Strauss’s life was changed forever when he accidentally hit a young girl with his car in high school. Though short, it is extremely graphic and highlights the stomach-turning reality that is a car accident. The descriptions are not violent or graphic, but do discuss a violent event, which can introduce the concept of group discussions to younger audiences.

Scar Tissue is a memoir by Red Hot Chili Pepper’s frontman, Anthony Kiedis. The book in its entirety talks about his life as a musician and drug use. This particular excerpt, which is the first right pages of the books, tells of a particularly violent attempt at buying drugs. Kiedis is approached by someone with a knife, and must defend himself to get out. While a way to jump-start the book, he does discuss the sad consequences of buying the drugs, including how his relationships began to falter and how pathetic he felt. The language use is descriptive, honest, and distanced, as if Kiedis tells it from the mind of another body.

The overarching theme of Sex, Drugs, and Violence, can be considered a general one. The collection of memoirs give a individual voice to consequences of actions that can seem very far away. While often graphic, they give a realistic take on the horrors of drug use and guilt from somewhat sloppy adolescent behavior. It does not glorify violence, but rather serves as a medium for discussion.

Though mature and sometimes graphic, the content of these excerpts leave a lot of room for inference and discussion about the emotions behind actions and can therefore be presented to students in middle school grades. This text is flexible because it portrays men and women of varying ages, as well as fluctuating mental states and socioeconomic statuses. It shows how drug addiction and strokes of luck can lead to impoverished states and what life is like during that time.

O'Neill, A., & Huliska-Beith, L. (2002). The recess queen. New York: Scholastic Press.

The Recess Queen is known by the name of Mean Jean, and she is true to her name.  Mean Jean bullies the other children around every day at recess, often threatening physical violence.  She picks on vulnerable students, harasses her classmates, and takes what is not hers.  No one stands up to her—until Katie Sue arrives.  Katie Sue is a small red-headed girl who topples the reign of Mean Jean the Recess Queen by playing first.  When Mean Jean confronts Katie Sue, Katie Sue turns to kindness, offering to play with Jean—something no other child did before.  The act of friendship does what fear or retaliation could not, and Mean Jean turns friendly and no longer bullies on the playground.

The text is best suited for grades K-4.  This picture book utilizes written text mostly in rhyming format.  This style is helpful for learning readers who are developing independent reading skills.  For kindergarten and first grade, teachers should read aloud while showing the pictures to the students.  For 2nd-4th grade, students are able to read the text because of its simple language.  The book is a grade-level appropriate text for discussing violence and bullying.  This connects to the theme of sex, drugs, and violence only in the category of violence as that sex and drugs are not topics well-suited for 2nd grade classrooms, whereas violence (particularly in the form of bullying) is an everyday occurrence in most if not all primary schools.

What makes this book especially good for teaching about bullying is the methodology employed by Katie Sue as she deals with her playground bully, Mean Jean.  Rather than fighting violence with violence, which is something especially popular in the media these days, Katie Sue asks Mean Jean to play with her.  This act of friendship proves to be more powerful and meaningful than violence or fear could ever have been.  Apart from teaching about a way to handle bullying problems, this teaches students empathy—a very important trait necessary for creating safe and understanding communities.  Children understand why Jean was so mean and learn that friendship and acceptance can be the most powerful and effective ways to turn violence into friendship.

Palahniuk, C. (2011). Damned. Doubleday

This is a modern-day tale about a young, privileged American girl. The daughter of activist movie stars that rival Brangelina, Maddy Spencer attends a remote but exclusive private school when she dies of what she believes to be a marijuana overdose. She spends the rest of the novel in a cell in hell, where she spends her days making friends with the adolescents around her (who are described to look like high school stereotypes) and working as a telemarketer who calls the living during dinner time. Maddy uses her superficial knowledge to navigate the depths of hell with the self-conscious demeanor of a high school freshman. Eventually, and with the help of her surrounding mal-contents, Maddy makes the best of her situation to become a leader of the underworld. When it is discovered that there was a mistake in the paperwork and Maddy was actually meant to be sent to heaven, she realizes that this is the place she was meant to be and decides to stay. Maddy thinks constantly about sex, and describes different situations in which she would be the object of male desire. Maddy’s first person narration tells not of her drug use or sexual activity, but very mildly discusses the use of others. Additionally, the Dante-esque mythical battles against the demons of the underworld deal with a type of physical and mental violence that can be paralleled to ethereal connections, as well as valued for their role in the story.

The book is written simply, and leaves a lot to be interpreted about religion and what it takes to get a person into Hell. Her language use is simple and can be read by younger audiences in 9th or 10th grade. While it includes many adolescents of varying backgrounds (economically and personality-wise) it does not represent the reality of race or disability in America.

Ideally, this book would be used in a thematic unit that could parallel the journey found in Dante’s Inferno. As he travels through the depths of hell, so does Maddy, though they have significantly different experiences. In a complete unit, it could also be compared to the characteristics of “stereotypical” adolescents in iconic movies like The Breakfast Club, comparing how each of characters approach their “imprisonment.”

Sicilia, J. (2012, September 10). A father’s plea: End the war on drugs. CNN Opinion. Retrieved

from http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/10/opinion/sicilia-cartel-killed-son

This news article, dated September 10, 2012, details the Mexican poet, Javier Sicilia’s, attempts to draw attention to the extreme violence resulting from drug laws.  Javier’s 24-year-old son, Juan, and six friends were kidnapped, tortured, and killed by a Mexican drug cartel.  Juan was not a drug user and was targeted by a splinter gang of a prominent drug trafficker.  The hit that resulted in the manslaughter is just one of thousands like it, according to Javier.  Javier writes that had drugs laws been different, less war-like, his son would not have been murdered.  Javier put a halt on his poetry writing and is currently leading a caravan of peace throughout Mexico and the US, attempting to end the violence that results from the war on drugs.

This text is best suited for grades 9-12.  This article represents a current, non-fiction account of the influences of drugs and violence.  This topic, of drugs and violence, is here intertwined and all the more moving as a result.  The article connects explicitly to this topic and Javier’s first-hand experiences with loss and tragedy provide for meaningful conversations on perspective.  The fact that he is calling to “end the war on drugs” rather than saying that governments need to do more to crack down on drugs makes room for substantiated two-sided discussions.  This article, especially because of Javier’s stance on drug laws, demonstrates the extreme difficulty and controversy associated with drug related legislature.

LITERARY ACTIVITIES

Literary Response Activity (One)—The Recess Queen

Grade: 2

CCSS:

       Reading Literature

3. Describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges.

11. Make connections between self, text, and the world around them (text, media, social interaction).

Writing

11. Create and present a poem, narrative, play, art work, or personal response to a particular author or theme studied in class, with support as needed.

Objectives:

• Using the text, The Recess Queen, students will describe how Katie Sue responds to the threats of Mean Jean (RL 3) by talking to a partner and contributing to a whole-group discussion so that they will understand that there are safe and friendly ways to respond to bullies.

• Students will think of a time when they were bullied in some way (RL 11) and write a poem to the person(s) who bullied them in which they express how they felt (W 11).

Activity: Think about a time where you were bullied in some way. It might have been like when Mean Jean bullied Katie Sue [show appropriate picture to class], or it might have been something very different.  With this in mind, write a poem addressed to the person or people who bullied you.  Tell your bully how you felt when they picked on you and why you think they were wrong to treat you how they did.

Assessment: Teacher will use the written poem, observations, and group discussions to measure whether these CCSS have been met. Teacher will use a class log to with a 4-column chart to indicate met learning standards. Teacher will use a 0, 1, 2 scale to indicate the degree to which the standards are met. 0 = not met, 1 = kind of gets it, 2 = gets it

Assessment Chart

	RL. 3	RL. 11	W. 11
Student 1	2	2	1
Student 2	2	1	0
Student 3	2	2	2
Etc.

Literary Response Activity (Two)

Silent Discussion

Grade: 11

CCSS:

W.1.11

Write arguments to support claims in an analysis or substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence. Explore and inquire into areas of interest to formulate an argument.

B. Develop claims and counterclaims fairly and thoroughly, supplying the most relevant evidence for each while pointing out the strengths and limitations of both in a manner that anticipates the audience’s knowledge level, concerns, values, and possible biases.

W.4.11

Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

SL.1.11

Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11-12 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.

B. Work with peers to promote civil, democratic discussions and decision-making, set clear goals and deadlines, and establish individual roles as needed.

D. Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives; synthesize comments, claims, and evidence made on all sides of an issue; resolve contradictions when possible; and determine what additional information or research is required to deepen the investigation or complete the task.

E. Seek to understand other perspectives and cultures and communicate effectively with audiences or individuals from varied backgrounds.

SL.2.11

Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) in order to make informed decisions and solve problems, evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source and nothing any discrepancies among the data.

RI.7.11

Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in different media or formats as well as in words in order to address a question or solve a problem.

Students will break into groups of four depending on the number selected out of a hat once entering the classroom. Once in groups, students will be given two articles regarding the parallels between violent video games and shootings. Once complete, show a brief YouTube video of Jim Carroll discussing this issue in an interview (SHOW FIRST FOUR MINUTES OF VIDEO)

Article One

Article Two

Jim Carroll Interview

Note: It is imperative to hold all discussion about the articles and interview until the silent discussion has begun.

Students will be instructed to take out a piece of paper and clear their desks. The first question will appear on a PowerPoint and students will be given 1 minute to react.

Question 1:

“They say music can alter moods and talk to you

Well can it load a gun up for you , and cock it too

Well if it can, then the next time you assault a dude

Just tell the judge it was my fault and I'll get sued”

-Eminem, “Sing for the Moment”

Do violent video games, movies, and books have a negative impact on society? Why or Why not?

Respond critically to the question posted, pass papers to the left, and respond thoughtfully to their peers’ initial statement. For assessment purposes, it is important for students to put their first and last name next to their responses. Continue the rotation until original paper returns. This form of discussion continues for the next two questions.

Question 2:

What societal rules (appropriate) do you disagree with? Do you ever wonder why certain rules are put in place and who put them there?

Question 3:

“Its just that I get this complete urge to get a machine gun and start firing like mad toward my right side. Not at anyone or anything unless they got in the way but that wouldn’t matter much because I would aim fairly high. I’d just do that for a few seconds, like one whole round…I guess it would release some tension”

-Jim Carroll, “The Basketball Diaries

Do you think President Obama is attacking our liberties by implementing new gun control laws? Do you think gun control will stop (or slow down) violence?

Assessment Table	W.1.11	W.4.11	SL.1.11	SL.2.11	RI.7.11
Student 1
Student 2
Etc…

Literary Response Activity (Three)

Anticipated Grade: 10th English Language Arts

TED Talks, Sunitha Krishnan “The Fight Against Sex Slavery”

http://www.ted.com/talks/sunitha_krishnan_tedindia.html

 Objectives  CCSS Standards Assessments

SWBAT: Interpret the messages in Sunitha Krishnan’s speech into his or her own words and through the language and dialogue associated with Twitter. Goal: Post Video Discussion & Twitter Awareness Activity

W. 9: Draw Evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. W. 6: Use Technology, including the internet, to produce and publish writing and to interact and collaborate with others. W. 11: Develop personal, cultural, textual, and thematic, connections within and across genres as they respond to texts through written, digital, and oral presentations employing a variety of media and genres.

1. Discussion question sheets will be handed in for evaluation, students that demonstrate a clear understanding will have answered the questions accurately and if the students are able to lead a discussion with one another about the TED Talk with limited teacher prompting or intruding in a mature, accurate, and cohesive manner. 2. (Presuming all students have a Twitter account and internet access, if they don’t an alternative after school session will have already been established) Students will tweet between 4-6 times about: their interpretations of the speech.