Bruce's Best

            Playing in Traffic by Gail Giles

            This book automatically appealed to me because of its title. One of my close friends wrote a novel titled Freeze Tag on the Highway, and Giles title reminded me of Brian Krans’ second book. Giles book is about Matt who is a high school nobody. Matt’s life is transformed by a Gothic girl named Skye when she offers him experiences he would have never thought possible. Don Gallo’s article “The Very Best Possibilities, Part Two” brought this book to my attention. 

            Harlem Summer by Walter Dean Myers

            I have always been interested in Harlem. Again, I was immediately attracted to this book because of its title. Once I read Gallo’s description in his article “ Summer Reading 2008,” I was hooked. In this work sixteen-year-old Mark Purvis gets a job at a magazine and subsequently meets some of Harlem’s finest, such as Langston Hughes and W.E.B. DuBois. This adventure story could easily be paired with a unit on the Harlem Renaissance. 

            Street Love by Walter Dean Myers

            I really need to read Walter Dean Myers apparently. In “Off the Shelves” Myers rap inspired verse novel is described as “ideal for reading aloud” (90). This is the type of book I would love to use in the classroom. The verse also reads like rap lyrics, which could be very appealing to students today. I could see this novel working very well in urban areas. The book also is related to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet because it follows a teen romance and the theme of star-crossed lovers. 

            Paper Towns by John Green

            I’ve been hearing all about John Green in our class, so it is only fitting I choose one of his novels for my list. This novel follows Quentin as he is reunited with Margo who soon disappears sparking a road trip search for her. Quentin’s narration outlines a comical and reflective journey for love. This book will obviously appeal to high school students. I could see this novel working very well in any environment because of the familiar themes discussed throughout its pages. Mark Letcher’s article “Off the Shelves” is a great resource for texts that will appeal to high school students, and John Green’s Paper Towns seems to be one of the most interesting.

            Black Duck by Janet Taylor Lisle

            In Don Gallo’s article “Rarefied Air” many gritty Young Adult novels are discussed. The one that stuck out the most to me was Janet Taylor Lisle’s Black Duck. I was attracted to this novel because I have always been intrigued by the Prohibition era. I would love to teach a unit on it. I think students love the stories of the Untouchables and Al Capone. I always enjoyed learning about the stories of that unique time in American History. Lisle’s novel revolves around an old man in Rhode Island and his experiences with a liquor smuggling operation when he was younger. According to Gallo, “there are mystery, suspense, intrigue, betrayal, and a satisfying ending” (115). 

Nonfiction: Clear and Close

            Until College I was not exposed to a great deal of nonfiction reading in the classroom. Nonfiction writing was always a part of my schooling, but it usually seemed dry and boring. It was not until I started reading scholarly articles and more periodicals that I began to appreciate and enjoy nonfiction.  Publications like The New Yorker and The Economist perked my interest in the library during study breaks, and I found myself reading more and more newspapers and editorials. My professors also made great use of nonfiction. I specifically recall my time in Dr. Grant’s Rhetoric course when we would read through nonfiction works and pick them apart slowly. This deconstruction of rhetorical pieces helped me to become a better constructor of arguments. Now I truly believe nonfiction to be a valuable and engaging classroom tool that is clear and very close to students. Nonfiction is all around us, and it is written in such a way that captivates and calls the reader to action.

            In Jennifer Wells’ article “’It Sounds Like Me’: Using Creative Nonfiction to Teach College Admissions Essays” the author describes how nonfiction opened up an entire new set of knowledge for her students. Wells used nonfiction because “it is grounded in truthfulness, requires authorial reflection, and reflects stylistic techniques usually ascribed to fiction” (48). I believe nonfiction is truly one the best types of literature we can rely on for the reasons stated above. Not only that, but I believe nonfiction is more effective in helping teachers improve student writing. Nonfiction tends to be what students respond to most. The issues and problems addressed in nonfiction are done so in a much different way than fiction. When reading nonfiction it is clear what you are reading about. Nonfiction also offers a degree of freedom and a change from the usual academic assignments. Anything in which “the author doesn’t pretend to be objective and unbiased” seems to appeal to students (48). I know it appealed to me.

            The appeal of nonfiction also stretches to the idea of motivating students to speak and take action. The main goal of nonfiction works is sometimes just that. According to Pace and Adkins “nonfiction addresses important issues in a way that is interesting and easy for a reader to understand” in order to engage students (Fist 48). The authors state that nonfiction is about “real people with intriguing stories” (49). Those are exactly the types of stories students need to read if they are struggling with English or Language Arts classes. It is those types of works that get students thinking, talking, and writing. Nonfiction is close to students, and it can ignite a flame within the classroom if used correctly. The issues found in nonfiction works can be the spark teachers are looking for. I wish more time would have been spent on nonfiction during my high school days, but thanks to this week’s reading I am definitely more invested in becoming an expert.  

Dr. Pamboukian interviewed by Pittsburgh City Paper

A local English professor looks at portrayals of medicine in Victorian lit — and how they inform thought today.

Dylan Thomas Recording

A Brazen Approach

            I should first state that I am an avid supporter and reader of poetry. I also try my best to compose my own poetry. I have been working on a chapbook for the last six months, but I am definitely reserved about my talent. I believe my personal experience with poetry has helped me to better understand why it appears so difficult for most students. Poetry is not form. It is not vocabulary. Poetry is most definitely not something that can be explained entirely. It means different things to different people. I believe we must recognize how close poetry can be to someone. For this reason we should also figure out how to tie poetry in more closely with our students. One approach I have seen work is having them actually write their own poetry. Below is an example of a poem I have been working on titled “The Brazen Head.”

The Brazen Head

We don't fully comprehend the foundation,

the bricks, the mortar,

and the legends of the oldest pub in Dublin.

We drink fiercely.

Underneath stars and stone we are overtaken by the spirits of drink and dream.

Our heads full of grainy imagery from days past,

we waltz with the wonder of words once whispered within these walls.

Are we a part of history as well?

Will the Irishmen tell stories of the rowdy Americans:

the men with spotty mustaches,

the woman a bit plump?

There is no way of telling.

The dark black pints make us more honest.

We slide over to share our stories with the stone faced locals.

We clink our silver trimmed glasses

and we tend to the scroll written in the stone.

The scripture of stone rarely shows its face,

so let us have another pint.

A round for all my new friends.

If history be made let us not remember it.

            I’m not sure if this poem is effective in conveying the message I hope it will, but I do know that I’ve learned a lot from writing and reading poetry. I tend to imitate my poetic idols in one-way or another. This particular poem was inspired by the life of Dylan Thomas and the work of William Butler Yeats, who are two of my favorite poets. Thomas is an interesting character to me just because the way he lived his life. He had immense talent, but choose to throw it away at the bottle of a bottle. Yeats is probably my biggest inspiration. Something about his words just speaks to me in a way that few poets have. I study their poetry to unlock my own feelings on their subject matter, and I often style my work after theirs. This has helped me to become a better poet and to define my own style. I think activities like imitating or transcribing other poets’ work could be very valuable in the classroom. 

            Here are a few more poems I would like to use in my classroom:

W.B. Yeats “No Second Troy”

Dylan Thomas “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night”

William Carlos Williams “A Celebration”

Walt Whitman “O Captain! My Captain!”

Samuel Taylor Coleridge “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”

Carl Sandburg “Chicago”

Langston Hughes “The Weary Blues”

Joan Bauer “On a Flight to Cedar Rapids”

“At the lake shore there was another rowboat drawn up.”

            Ernest Hemingway is one of the most intriguing personalities in Modern English Literature. For quite some time I have been engrossed in not only Hemingway’s works, but in his life as well. My interest started in high school when I read The Old Man and the Sea, but has continued to this very day. I am currently reading A Farewell to Arms, and I have watched the HBO original film Hemingway and Gellhorn multiple times. When searching for short stories I was naturally attracted to some of Hemingway’s shorter works. Once my eyes set on his story Indian Camp I knew it would be a text to further discuss and examine.

            Indian Camp is truly a great short story to teach in the classroom mainly because of the importance of the themes found in the work. Initiation, death, and race are just a few of the themes found in Indian Camp. The story got me thinking about my feelings on those themes, and I could see the story sparking great discussions within a high school classroom.  Most high school students have experienced some sort of death by the time they would read this story, and students could easily relate to the questions Nick Adams has at the end. The short story is very clearly written and, Hemingway’s simplistic style makes it very easy to read and understand.

            After reading Indian Camp one activity quickly came to mind. I would link Hemingway’s biography, specifically his work as a journalist, to a unique writing assignment. I would have my students re-write Hemingway’s short story as a newspaper article. I would also ask the students to create a photograph or illustration to accompany their newspaper article. After the articles were turned in I would organize them onto an online newspaper blog for all students to read. From there we could vote as a class on which article should be the front-page article, or we could critique each others article as well. After the blog has been explored we could develop one issue of the Hemingway Times as a class featuring articles relating to Indian Camp or Ernest Hemingway.

            I believe this short story would be a great introduction to a Hemingway novel, specifically The Old Man and the Sea, because it presents the author’s true style as one students could handle. After reading Indian Camp I think students would feel confident about tackling The Old Man and the Sea and possibility other Hemingway novels. For this reason and the reasons stated above, I would recommend Ernest Hemingway’s Indian Camp to just about any English teacher.

           

The Battle on Student Loans Continues

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obama-and-house-republicans-face-off-over-student-loans--again/2012/06/21/gJQAtJ3osV_story.html