Happy Birthday, Harper Lee!

Happy Birthday, Harper Lee! 

Harper Lee, the author of To Kill a Mockingbird, turns 87 today. Will you do anything special in class to mark the occasion this week? (Or perhaps you did last week, along with William Shakespeare on the 23rd?)

Here's a free journal prompt from my A Year of Journal Prompts to mark the occasion:

The text:

Harper Lee, the author of To Kill a Mockingbird, turned 87 on April 28, 2013. 

  The Pulitzer-winning To Kill a Mockingbird is the only novel Lee has written, though some speculate that she has written additional unpublished works. She also helped her friend Truman Capote research and write his nonfiction book, In Cold Blood.

  As a private person, perhaps Lee does not wish to be placed, once again, into the limelight by publishing a new novel. 

  Would you like to be famous even if it meant losing your privacy? How would your life change if you were sought by reporters and fans every day? Would you still wish to have fame? Why or why not?

Writing Prompt for Groundhog Day

You can use this writing prompt Friday or Monday with your students for Groundhog Day (Feb. 2).

The prompt is from my collection of almost 400 prompts to last an entire year: 

A Year of Journal Prompts. 

With the handouts, the prompts align with the Common Core State Standards for reading informational and writing.

Thoughts are of those lost 9/11 and in the Aftermath...and for the Survivors

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center Twin Towers on September 11, 2001. It is also a day to remember those who lost their lives, and a day to serve others.

Many lost their lives on the 11th, but so many more have lost their lives in the aftermath of 9/11, such as the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Many innocent people on both sides of the wars have perished because of the fighting, differences, and lack of compassion and understanding for our fellow human beings. How long must this go on?

In order to break this seemingly unending chain of destruction we humans are prone to, let's try to teach our youth to be kind and tolerant, to serve others instead of using destruction as a means for "peace." (In another post, I will write about my discussion I have with students about "the end justifies the means" in regard to Machiavelli's The Prince, and how this "justified" excuse for criminal acts still goes on in today's world.)

Take time today to do something for others. Tomorrow at school, talk to your students about how they can serve others. Have them write about it, plan it out. Let them take ownership over their service project. Allow them the pleasure of doing something for another person.

You can download my free writing prompt for initiating a service project (anytime of the year) here:
A Day to Remember, A Day to Serve

Get to Know Your Students with a Creative Project

One of my favorite assignments to give my students at the beginning of the year is to create a collage mobile. They are required to fill out a questionnaire of their interests, then based on those answers, create a collage mobile that will hang in the classroom. The third step is to write about the items they chose to include in their collage and why those things are special, or represent who they are.

I like this activity because I'm able to find out the interests of my students and get some classroom decoration up. The 3D effects of a collage adds interest, then hanging them as mobiles make them even more fun. Are they distracting? A little at first. I do give students time to look at them when they first go up. They love seeing what their classmates have created. They stay up most the year and we've even added smaller collages to the originals for true mobiles.

The picture shows how you can assign an addition to the mobile at the end of a novel unit. Have students find images, favorite quotes, and artifacts that relate to the novel.

If you would like the handouts and extensive lesson plan for this project, check here.