SLAM February 24, 2007

            Too often kids do not feel that they have a voice. No one listens. No one cares. No one gets it. Who are these kids supposed to talk then? How are they supposed to get their messages out? Too often we say “talk about your problems” but then we do not listen. How can we make students feel like they have a voice, like they have something important to say, and like someone will listen? The answer could be a poetry slam.

            A poetry slam is

an event where poetry is spit out, thrown, huffed, whispered and sung rather than just read.

Then an audience, where judges are often chosen at random, rates the performer. The crowd really seems to get into to it. People are listening, and that is a powerful experience. This could give students an opportunity to have an audience larger than their own eyes and their teacher’s. Plus not only are students writing their work, but their performing it. They talk and people listen, and cheer, and cry, and clap. It makes them feel like what they have to say is important.

            Kuter, an avid slam participant, argues that you do not even have to be a master poet to participate in a slam.

Slam poetry is accessible poetry. It doesn’t ask anyone to conform to a restrictive structure or meter – you don’t even have to rhyme. You just have to be yourself and say something meaningful.

            So it does not matter if students are great at poetry or not for it to be beneficial to them. All that matters is that they have something meaningful to say, and I think if we just listen we would know that they do.

            Some slammers write about stuff that is light and funny, and the reaction of the audience gives them a self confidence booster, which nearly every high school kid can use. Kuter explains;

I’ve had people tell me that I really capture their imagination, that they like the perspective I have, and they think my poems are fresh and funny.

Other students are given the opportunity to talk about heavier issues.

I’ve written about depression, losing my mother,
America, politics and being non-heterosexual.

            The cool thing about slams is that they are cool! Students will be thinking “You mean I can rap my poetry?” It is a way to let students say what they want to say on their own terms and be heard! What an awesome idea. Students could organize a poetry slam for their high school or their community. It would give them a sense of ownership of what they are doing. They could write their poems and workshop them in class. They could practice with each other and talk about the most effective way to present their poems. Imagine the sort of dialogue this could start. This could start conversations about racial issues, drug problems, health issues, fears, mental issues, and the list goes on and on. This could help students relate to each other and others in their school or community. Imagine the power a young girl could get back slamming about rape or teenage pregnancy, or the hope a student could get back slamming about depression. It just has so many possibilities and hey, it’s still learning.

Full Article

Frunzyski, Amanda. “Poetry with an Edge.”Arizona State University Online. WebDevil.    22 February 2007.

Super Sizing Minds February 18, 2007

            “60% of all US adults are overweight or obese.” This fact will shock a lot of people, but how many people will it prompt to ask “why?” “Why are 60% of American adults overweight, or obese?” “Why has childhood obesity doubled in the last 20-25 years?”  As future educators that is what we want our students to do. We want them to ask “Why?”

            In his film, “Super Size Me,” Spurlock asks “Why are Americans so fat?” He goes beyond just stating startling facts and seeing what will happen to him if he eats only McDonald’s for 30 days. He looks for reasons. He finds that kids can identify a picture of Ronald McDonald more easily than they can identify one of Jesus or George Washington. He looks at how much money McDonald’s spends on advertising. He looks at how Happy Meal Toys, Ronald McDonald, and indoor playgrounds lure in children. He even looks at the psychology behind why we like to go to these places. Spurlock finds that the answer to “Why are American’s so fat?” is a complex one. Political, social and individual aspects are all intertwined.

            Showing this movie will help students look for a “Why?” It will prompt them to think further. It will help them get passed the “Wow, that’s an interesting statistic,” or, “Because we eat a lot” type of an answer. It shows students how social and political aspects are tied into nearly every part of our everyday lives. It also shows students different ways to find answers to the “Why” questions.

            Students can see that this type of research is fun. Spurlock’s movie is packed with information, but it is also hilarious. It is fun to watch. You could ask student’s “Why do you think Spurlock chose to make this a movie instead of a book or a lecture?” Maybe it was because he got the idea for the film while watching T.V. Maybe he knew how T.V. affects the American people. If advertising can make us buy cheeseburgers couldn’t it make us buy his movie? And, if we believe in commercials and advertising and what we see on T.V., couldn’t we also believe in his documentary? After watching his documentary you start to notice how easily we believe things, and how easily our mind can be manipulated in to thinking something. It would not be hard for Spurlock to take advantage of that either. Were we being deceived in Super Size Me? What if someone ate McDonald’s “healthier” food for a month? Could they lose weight? Did Spurlock use a lot of the media tricks on our mind?  Dr. Michael Eades seems to think so.

All in all the movie was kind of funny and definitely enjoyable to watch, but there was so much idiocy masquerading as truth and good sense that I don’t know where to begin.

  Spark your interest? That is the point of using a movie like this in a classroom, or using critical pedagogy. Well if it worked and you want to know more about Dr. Eades thoughts and the “Anti- Super Size” movie that he is starting in then click here.

            Either way, this film shows us how to question what seems strange, or even what seems normal, instead of just accepting it. Having students ask “Why” will help them see a lot about the society in which they live in. This film can make for a great learning experience.

 

            I have to put out one caution, however. Make sure that your students will feel comfortable watching this, or any movie. Be aware of your class. Are there extremely obese children in it? Will they feel uncomfortable watching this film and taking part in the activities? Will other students make fun of them? This is true for any movie. We don’t want to make outcasts of any kids and we know high school is a sensitive time.

 

*All Statistic were taken from Morgan Spurlock’s documentary Super
Size Me.  

SuperSize Me. Morgan Spurlock. Morgan Spurlock and The Con. 2004.

For more information about this documentary and Morgan Spurlock, click here.

For more information on obesity, click here.

For more information on childhood obesity, click here.

For more information on McDonald’s nutrition, click here.

 

Shakles to Scholarships February 11, 2007

      Imagine getting a job in an inner city school where violence is as common as math class. What would you do in this situation? How do you teach kids that seem to not want to learn? How do you teach kids English when they have things such as poverty, sexual abuse, pregnancy, rape, and drugs on their minds? How can you get these kids to express their feelings while still teaching what is in your curriculum? The answer: writing. But does it really work? Does it work in the way that the movie “Freedom Writers” portrays it? Does it work as well as Christensen describes it in her book
Reading, Writing, and Rising Up? I think it could. It is all up to the teacher. I found an article about a teacher who made it work.

When I began teaching, in walked in all these students who’d been in the riots, who’d been living in a town that saw 126 murders that summer — I was facing a class that thought their own futures were either in jail or six feet under, that thought ‘It’s only a matter of time before I become a statistic.

            Instead of submitting to other teachers’ warnings and giving up on his new class of uninviting faces, Erin Gruwell took it upon herself to reach out to the seemingly “unreachable” students.

            She first found a way to relate English to her students. She had to find some kind of a connection that would tap into all their hate, anger and hostility. She decided to make her students read The Diary of Anne Frank. Anne Frank was someone these kids could relate to because these students faced many of the same problems that Anne Frank did. Gruwell then gave her students a notebook to keep a journal.

What they realized as they were writing was that they weren’t the only ones who had experienced these things. They weren’t the only ones who were scared or angry.

            The kids wrote about rape, jail, abuse, gangs, and drugs. The students were also allowed to write anonymously giving the kids who are too scared to speak up a voice. This story actually inspired the movie “Freedom Writers.” It is not fiction. It is real life.  

            These kids finally got a chance to talk about issues that really mattered to them in a safe environment. Where else could these kids that opportunity? These journals helped to empower these students. They finally had an outlet to express their anger and sort their feelings. Through their writing they saw that they do belong in the academic world. Their journals gave them a way in. Imagine if students read their pieces aloud and developed a writing community. These kids could have security and safety that they never felt before. They could also have friends and allies in the outside world.

            One student in Gruwell’s class came in wearing an ankle monitor and left Gruwell’s class with a college scholarship. The student, Maria Reyes states:

Make no mistake, Erin Gruwell didn’t save my life. I did. She gave me the gift of thinking it was possible, but I did it.

            That is what school is all about isn’t it; giving students the tools to succeed in life? As teacher we just need to figure out what these tools are. It is going to be different from school to school and class to class. No matter where you go; however, students will need a safe place to talk and sort through their feelings, whether is rape and gangs or lawsuits and suburbia scandal. A writing class can be that place.  

Full Article

 

Sylvestri, Amy. “Freedom Writers Inspire Residents of Juvenille Hall.” The San Leandro Times. EbPublishing. 11 February 2007.

The Workshop and Meeting Expectations (Homework) February 6, 2007

I think writing workshops are a great idea in theory, but lack greatness in practice. An ideal workshop is a great idea, but is it practical? I personally have had more bad experiences in workshops than good ones. No one wants to hurt each others feelings with the truth. I think it would be practically impossible to have one in middle school and high school. Chances that the nerdy girl is going to be too intimidated by the popular girl to give her real feedback. People are trying to fit in in middle school and high school and telling someone that their writing needs help may not be the best way to do it. I also think that kids are going to need more specific lessons to meet all the classroom objectives.  I think one thing that can definitly be incorporated with the classroom expectations is the freedom of choice that Katie Wood Ray pointed out. Teachers can give students choices within the curriculum.