September 5, 2006

Today we took care of business and looked at the writing topic again. I handed out the vocab books. For those who did not pay yet, I loaned them a book until they do. The first assignment for tonight was to draw pictures for each of the 10 words. The publishers of the book now have an oral reading of the words. You can find it at www.vocabularyworkshop.com. We are using level B and are on unit 1. The woman read the words and reviewed usage. She is doing what I always did. Since the mp3 can be downloaded, it might be an interesting way to study. Who knows? Maybe the students will put it on their iPods.

Most classes watched a 12 minute piece from the Bob Dylan movie we will be watching periodically. I was trying to give them a small idea of what he was like. I wanted to emphasize that an artist takes the world he sees around him, processes it, and creates something we appreciate, like a song. Bob Dylan saw the world as many did, but he was able to put it into words. He spoke for his generation, even though he said he did not. He was just writing.

I want the kids to think about what they have seen, where they have been, what they have heard, who they have met, and what they have learned. I want them to write an essay saying what they will do now with that information. Sure, the topic is deep. But I can't wait to see what they write!