The rubric (required elements) that will guide essay writing:
1. Colorful opening. There are 3 recommended ways to create an interest-getting opening: a) use a quote b) ask a question c) write with vivid description.
2. Blend the topics continually in the paper. Do not write a block of material about one topic and then write a separate block about the other topic. Integrate the topics as you offer insight and evidence.
3) Use comparison terms:
* different from,
* the same,
* both,
* similar to,
* Neither, ... nor,
* like X is (adjective),
* ... than X is (adverb) than.
* both, ...
* either...or
* likewise
* similarly
* although,
* but neither...
* nor
* however
* on the other hand
4. Specific examples must be used to support generalities. An example: generality - The Incredibles was an awesome movie. specific - The Incredibles appealed to me because the characters (especially the mom and the teen sister) were believeable. They sounded like people I know.
5. Grammar counts.
6. Spelling, too. When in doubt, see a dictionary or ask me.
7. Punctuation is paramount. Again, ask me or your Grammar Check software.
8. Include documentation via "according to ...". This means include your source - from World Book to your little brother - in the body of your writing. Usually you place it at the end of the first or second sentence, says Grammar For Today.
9. Write a snappy title. Ways to make a title fun are to tweak a song or movie title or use alliteration. Also, write an explanatory subtitle. Example: "Dinkas are Incredibles;" "Many refugees from the Sudanese Dinka tribe have moved from poverty in east Africa to comfort in the US."
Finally, please don't put quotation marks around your title - unless you are quoting someone.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Semester exam guidelines for Comparison essay, Dec, 2012
Friday, December 14, 2012
Swing Kids / Geography
"You've got to go along. We're not in charge. . . just make the best of things."
- Thomas, in expressing the average German's cooperation with the Nazi regime.
"Anytime you go along with them, it makes it easier for them."
- Arvid's statement as he encouraged fellow Germans to stand up against the Nazis.
"The whole country is Nazi."
- Peter's mother as she justifies her relationship with a Gestapo officer.
Deutsche vocab -
Juden: Jew.
Verrator: traitor.
Verboten: for bidden.
Herr: Mr.
Frau: Mrs or M'am.
Guten nacht: Good night.
Hitler's ethnocentric big lie: that Germans were descendants of the Aryans, an ethnic group of fair-skinned warriors.
Faust: ancient German tale of a man who sells his soul to the devil in return for prolonged youth and magical powers.
Albert Einstein: German physicist, a Jew, who was visiting the US when Hitler came to power in 1933. Einstein remained in the US and became a citizen in 1940.
1933 - 1945: Hitler's Third Reich.
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Swing Kids: jazz culture reaches from Harlem to Hamburg
"It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing," is a notable lyric from Duke Ellington in 1931. The melody, used as a signal whistle by the swing kids, is widely known.
cerebrally - having to do with the brain and thought processes.
visceral- felt in or as if in the internal organs of the body : deep. Not intellectual : instinctive, unreasoning.
dissenters - protestors or those who express disagreement.
Swing Kid trivia quiz.
For very readable material on the life of Adolph Hitler, see timelines.com/topics/adolf-hitler
Quiz! Please see below.
Quiz - Harlem to Hamburg in the 1930's, the Great Depression as well as theSwing Jazz Era
Harlem to Hamburg
1. Hamburg is in the ___ of Germany. a) north west b) southwest c) center d) Rhineland.
2. In Bavaria, the southeast of Germany, is the city of __ . a) Frankfurt b) Munich c) Bonn d) Cologne.
3. The westernmost borough of NYC: a) Manhattan b) Bronx c) Brooklyn d) Staten Island.
4. City that has a neighborhood named for the Dutch city of Haarlem. a) Los Angeles b) NYC c) Chicago d) Hamburg.
5. Two small islands in NY harbor: one has a museum of US Immigration, one bears a giant statue. There's one correct answer: a) Statue of Peace and Harmony b) Ellis Is. c) Roosevelt Is. d) Statue of Democracy.
6. The body of water that separates Long Is, the Queens and Connecticut is a bay with an archaic name: Long Island __. a) Bay
b) Sound c) Cape d) Peninsula.
7. Name the 3 island boroughs that surround New York harbor: Long Is, Staten Is and __ Is. a) Manhattan b) Liberty c) Brooklyn d) Ellis.
8. On the Northeast of Germany is the __ __ coast, which is shared with Poland and Sweden. a) Baltic Sea b) North Sea c) Atlantic Ocean d) Arctic Ocean.
9. A great port city in the north of Germany is close to the North Sea: a) Munich b) Berlin c) Bonn d) Hamburg.
10. The Gestapo executed their nefarious duties while driving sedans made by __ .
a) Rolls Royce b) Peugot c) Ferrari d) Mercedes.
11. In which nation do we find the origin of the Rhine River? a) Switzerland b) Germany
c) Netherlands d) Austria.
12. In the East, near the border with Poland, is the capital of the Deutsche. __ a) Bonn
b) Berlin c) Bach d) Bremen.
Sunday, December 09, 2012
Swing Kids: a movie about German kids who loved jazz, swing dancing and Harlem, USA
Swing Kids review / Trudeau
1. This movie is set in the city of a) Hamburg b) Munich c) Berlin d) Amsterdam.
2. The movie takes place some 6 years after Hitler took power as Chancellor, or a) 1933 b) 1939 c) 1941.
3. The American music and slang treasured by the swing kids originates mostly in
a) Brooklyn b) Harlem c) the Bronx d) Lower East Side.
4. German swing kids favored a clothing style reflective of __ style. a) American
b) British c) Dutch d) German.
5. In the 1930’s there was a new style in jazz groups: a) small combos b) big horn sections c) an electric guitar alongside the bass.
6. Hitler’s regime is referred to as the a) Blitz b) Reich c) Rotterdam d) Seig.
7. In the 1930's German authorities have banned American __ if they were created by Negroes or Jews. a) books b) records c) art d) all the above.
8. Peter Muller has lost his father through Nazi imprisonment. Was the father Jewish? Y / N
9. The father of Thomas Berger, a physician, is taken away by authorities; basically he would be accused of a) protecting Jews b) avoiding military service c) treason d) favoring the Communists.
10. Thomas Berger informs the SS about people not loyal to the Nazis. He is thus a valued member of the a) Swing kids b) Hitler Youth c) University students d) Nazi party.
11. Arvid is a jazz guitarist who is reminsicent of the Belgian gypsy guitar player named a) Benny Goodman b) Gene Krupa c) Django Reinhardt d) Duke Ellington.
12. Peter Muller is disappointed in his mother for her response to the Nazis. Her attitude is one of a) defiance b) compliance c) despair d) neutrality.
13. The smooth, seemingly helpful Herr Knopp is a member of the Nazi secret police, or the a) Panzers b) Blitzkrieg c) Gestapo d) SS, or Schutzstaffel.
14. Peter works as a delivery boy for Herr Schumler. “Herr” means a) store owner b) Mr. c) Professor.
15. In the jazz world a blindfold quiz is one in which you must name the a) musicians b) lyrics c) feeling that you get when you hear the record.
16. Jazz was born about 1900 in the city of a) Chicago b) New Orleans c) NYC.
17. Name a jazz composer who was also a pianist: a) Duke Ellington b) Louis Armstrong c) Antonio Vivaldi d) Cab Calloway.
18. Exercise and athletic competition in the German mountainside as well as bonuses like a motorbike were strategies used by the a) universities b) Hitler Youth c) jazz clubs d) Communists.
19. The Nazis were effective at building a type of super-patriotism. To convince the youth of the Nazi point of view they used exaggeration and fabrications. This is called a) propaganda b) advertising c) nationalism d) enthusiasm.
20. The National Socialist German Worker’s Party, the Nazis, was not at all a) socialist b) German c) national d) a party.
21. Hitler demanded a cheap auto design from a) Mercedes b) Porsche c) Audi d) BMW.
22. A former swing kid named Emil says "I just wised up." He meant that he joined the HJ, Hitler Jugend, to a) disguise his rebellion against the authorities b) have a better life through cooperation with the authorities.
23. "We just play along. We get whatever we want." This form of complicity with the Nazis was the theme of a) Peter Muller b) Thomas Berger c) Arvid Hitmann d) Mrs. Muller.
24. "You think that just because you're not murdering people yourself that you're not part of it? Well, I refuse to do my part." a) Peter Muller b) Thomas Berger c) Arvid Hitmann d) Mrs. Muller.
25. "You've got to go along; make the best of things. We're not in charge. We can't really know what's going on." a) Peter Muller b) Thomas Berger c) Arvid Hitmann d) Mrs. Muller.
26. "Outside the doors of sensible Germans all they hear is Hitler's voice of hate." a) Peter Muller b) Thomas Berger c) Arvid Hitmann d) Mr. Muller, Peter's father.
27. The word for Jew in the German language, or Deutsch: a) Yehudi b) Ebreo c) Juif d) Juden.
28. Following the Holocaust of the 1940's, many of the surviving European Jews migrated to a) Palestine b) Judaea c) Israel d) Syria.
Basic phrases in German, or Deutsche
Guten Morgen
goot-en mor-gen
Good Morning
Guten Tag
goot-en tahk
Hello/Good Day
Guten Abend
goot-en ah-bent
Good Evening
Gute Nacht
goot-eh nakht
Good Night
Tag / Hallo / Servus
tahk / hah-loh / sair-voohs
Hi / Hello / Hi & Bye (Southern Germany & Austria)
Auf Wiedersehen
owf vee-dair-zayn
Goodbye
Tschüs / Tschau
tchews / chow
Bye!
Gehen wir!
geh-en veer
Let's go!
Bis später
biss shpay-ter
See you later
Bis bald
biss bahlt
See you soon
Bis morgen
biss mohr-gen
See you tomorrow
Bitte
bih-tuh
Please
Danke (schön / sehr)
dahn-kuh shurn/zair
Thank you
Bitte schön
bih-tuh shurn
You're welcome
Es tut mir leid.
ehs toot meer lite
I'm sorry
Entschuldigen Sie
ehnt-shool-dih-gun zee
Excuse me
Verzeihung
Pardon me
Wie geht es Ihnen?
vee gayt es ee-nen
How are you? (formal)Wie geht's?
vee gayts
How are you? (informal)(Sehr) Gut / So lala
zair goot / zo lahlah
(Very) Good / OK
Schlecht / Nicht Gut
shlekht / nisht goot
Bad / Not good
Es geht.
ess gate
I'm ok. (informal)
Ja / Nein
yah / nine
Yes / No
JS Bach: German composer was also director, teacher and organ specialist
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer and organist who wrote sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments, says Wikipedia.
He enriched the prevailing Baroque style with contrapuntal technique, control of harmonic organisation, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms and textures from Italy and France.
Revered for their technical command and artistic beauty, Bach's works include the Brandenburg concertos, the Goldberg Variations, the Partitas, the Well-Tempered Clavier, the Mass in B Minor, the St. Matthew Passion, the St. John Passion, the Magnificat, The Musical Offering, The Art of Fugue, the English and French Suites, the Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin, the Cello Suites, more than 200 surviving cantatas, and a similar number of organ works, including the celebrated Toccata and Fugue in D minor and Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor.
Bach was born in Eisenach, Central Germany, into a very musical family. He held several musical posts across Germany: he served as Kapellmeister (director of music) to Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen, Cantor of Thomasschule in Leipzig, and Royal Court Composer to August III.
German folklorists Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm collected historic tales, including Little Red Riding Hood
Arthur Rackham's illustration for the Brothers Grimm tale of Little Red Riding Hood, a photo by trudeau on Flickr.
Such stories as "Cinderella" (Aschenputtel), "The Frog Prince" (Der Froschkönig), "Hansel and Gretel" (Hänsel und Gretel), "Rapunzel", "Rumpelstiltskin" (Rumpelstilzchen), and "Snow White" (Schneewittchen) were collected in the early 1800's by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm.
The tales are available in more than 100 translations, says Wikipedia, and several have been adapted to popular Disney films.
In the mid-20th century the tales were used as propaganda by the Third Reich; later in the 20th century psychologists such as Bruno Bettelheim reaffirmed the value of the work, in spite of the cruelty and violence in the original versions of some of the tales.
The tales with harsh material were sanitized by publishers hoping to sell more publications.
Germany is Deutschland; Germans are the Deutsche - the Dutch are their western neighbors
This map inquiry lesson is both an exploration of the map and a discussion of the cultural forces that shape the nation.
1. Name the capital of Bavaria, which is the Alpine or southern region of Germany.
2. The city in the northwest of Germany that is almost on the North Sea is a port on the Elbe River. It is the second city of Germany and one of the most affluent cities in Europe. It is ___ .
3. In the East, near the border with Poland, is the capital of the Deutsche. __
4. A Chicago-like city near the Rhine valley whose name means "Where the Franks cross the river." __ .
5. On the Rhine River is a city that was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999. __
6.What is Germany's western neighbor on the North Sea? __
7. What is Germany's neighbor on the Rhine? __
8. In which nation do we find the head , or origin, of the Rhine? __
9. Adolph Hitler was not born in Deutschland. He was born in the neighboring nation on the southeast: __ .
10. Most of the German death camps of WWII were not built in Germany but in the large nation east of Germany: __ .
11. There is a great range of mountains in southern Germany that extend from France and Switzerland all the way to Slovenia. __
12. One of Germany's direct neighbors is a nation famous as a home of the Vikings. __
13. Does Germany have a Baltic coastline?
14. Was there a period in relatively recent history when there was a military alliance between Germany and Italy? If yes, then when? __
15. The name of this famous German auto company translates as "People's Car." Would that be Audi, BMW, Daimler Benz, Opel, Porsche, or Volkswagen?
Tuesday, December 04, 2012
Make a colorful map of France using this 16-question guide
In-class activity -
1. A French river that is comparable to the Mississippi in length and usefulness. __
2. The only consecutively doubled letter in the name Mediterranean. __ .
3. South of Paris is a city that is also the name of a palace created by Louis XIV: __ .
4. This region lies along the English Channel: a) Champagne b) Provence c) Normandy d) Bordeaux.
5. This French city is on the border between France and Germany. __
6. The second most-populous French city is on the Mediterranean coast. When it was a Roman city it was called Massilia. It is named __ .
7. The French call this body of water La Manche. It connects the North Sea and the Atlantic. It is also known as the __ __ .
8. North of France on the North Sea is a nation famous for French fries and mussels: __ .
9. On the southwestern edge of France is the Iberian peninsula. On it are two nations: Portugal and __ .
10. Tucked between France, Germany and Belgium is the tiny European nation of __ .
11. Across the Rhine River from France - to the east - are 2 nations. Name one of them.
__ .
12. Across the northwestern strait from France is an island. The island is known as the nation of __ .
13. Which body of water is missing from this list of seas that border France? The North Sea, English Channel, Bay of Biscay, and the Atlantic. One more: __ __.
14. Which great city of France is on the Seine River? __ .
15. On the Mediterranean coast the nation of France borders a major European nation. It is __.
16. A minuscule European nation on the edge of the Mediterranean is a neighbor to France. Its capital city is Monte Carlo. The nation is __ .
Savoring French culture: make a quiche to sample in class
Quiche is a savory, open-faced pastry crust dish with a filling of savory custard with cheese, meat or vegetables, says Wikipedia.
Quiche lorraine is a popular variant that was originally an open pie with a filling of custard with smoked bacon. It was only later that cheese was added to the quiche lorraine.[5]
The addition of Gruyère cheese makes a quiche au gruyère or a quiche vosgienne.
Quiche au fromage (quiche with cheese) and quiche aux champignons (quiche with mushrooms) or florentine (spinach); provençale (tomatoes); and so on.
Served cold. Slice into many narrow slices, s'il vous plait.
12 pts indie work. Any day this week or next.
Saturday, December 01, 2012
Essay on the Crepe Myrtle planting
Descriptive essay in third person to be written in class.
12 pts.
Vocab:
- grassy turf
- Red River valley
- Bayou Pierre slough
- open field
- E wing
- Viking Dr
- Stoner Ave
- bags of Grow Mix
- top soil
- clay
- rocks, bricks, concrete
- shovels, one rake, one hoe, one post-hole digger
- garden hoses
- photos
- chilly, muddy
- shoes
Lagerstroemia, commonly known as crepe myrtle, is a genus of around 50 species of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs native to India, southeast Asia, and northern Australia, says Wikipedia. They are cultivated in warmer climates around the world. And are chiefly known for their colorful and long-lasting flowers.
- Trudeau quote.
- classmate quote.
- Grammar.
- Construction.
- Colorful opening and vivid title.
