Tuesday, February 26, 2008

ESSAY ASSIGNMENT (FRIDAY, MARCH 14TH)

Watts Essay Assignment

  1. MARK UP THE TEXT of the Watts Article you found on the internet.
  2. Develop 1 to 3 Discussion question from marking up the text.
  3. Using this article as well as your Watts Article Packet, write a 4-6 Paragraph Essay response to this question:
  4. “What factors led to the current gang situation in Watts and Why has it spread across the country?”

All DUE TUESDAY, MARCH 11th



Monday, February 25, 2008

Notes and Student Examples - Quotations and Paraphrasing

Notes: Quotations and Paraphrasing (concrete details)

Quotations - passage matches source word for word and identifies original author with a citation ( “quotation marks ”)

Paraphrasing - putting the passage into your own words. Still identify original author.

Quotations:

* * Put “ ” around what you are borrowing word for word from the source.
* Surround “ ” with correct punctuation. “ ” introduced or followed by said, observed, etc. need a comma.
* Commas/periods ordinarily go inside “ ”.
* Period follows “ ” when sentence ends with a citation in parentheses ( ).
* !, ? can be inside or outside “ ”. If you are asking the question, put ? outside.

Paraphrasing Example
I think that reading #3 of the Watts Article was a very informational piece. I never knew that there were 30,000 gangs in American and with 800,000 members, in 2,500 communities across the United States.

Quotation Example
Eva always thought to never go against “your own people, your own blood.” Eva felt guilty though because Paco murdered some boy. She had to go against her own. She had to because she felt guilty. She thought of her mother when she looked into the boy’s mother’s eyes. She remembered when her father and brother were going to jail. She kept thinking to herself, “how does it feel to be sending an innocent person to prison?” That made her think of her father and how he went to jail. I think that Eva did the right thing because if it was here she would not want to go to jail for something she did not even do. She went against her people but she did the right thing.

Watts Essay Assignment

Watts Essay Assignment

MARK UP THE TEXT of the Watts Article you found on the internet

Develop 2 or 3 Discussion Questions from marking up this text (How or Why ?’s)

Give a 4 paragraph Essay Response to one of these Questions.

All 3 DUE MONDAY, MARCH 10th

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Developing Final Version of Gang Analysis Survey and Beginning Watts Article Essay

Part 1: Group Gang Analysis Survey

Directions:

1. Open up a word document

2. Type in a minimum of TEN questions from the ones your group brainstormed together (You must have at least TEN QUALITY questions to receive full credit!)

3. You may copy and paste the below example of a gang analysis survey template or make your own template in the word document.

4. Print out a copy of your survey and give it to me to approve.

Sample Survey Template

Academy of Environmental Sciences
8th Grade Literature
Gang Analysis Survey
Administered by: Group Members Names


1. Have you ever considered joining a gang?

___Yes

___No


2. What reasons do you think lead people to join gangs?
(Check all that apply)
___Protection
___Respect
___Love
___Friendship
___Peer Pressure
___Fear
___Money
___Other


Part 2: Running Project - Finding your own Watts News Article


1.Find a News Article online on the current gang situation in Watts, California.

2. Get my approval on the news article and print it out.

3. Develop 1-3 Discussions Questions (similar to the ones we did in class) on your news article and post these on your blog.

Article Examples:

"Two arrested in Watts killing linked to feuding local gangs"

Watts Gang Task Force Making Life Safer for the Community


Notes: Watts, California

Notes: Questions to consider

What factors led to the current gang situation in Watts?

Why and how did it spread across the country?

Important Dates

1940: Mostly black population living in housing projects (Nickerson Gardens, Jordan Downs, Imperial Courts) built to house workers in war industries during WWII.

August 11th, 1965: Resentment towards Police and poor public services (schools, hospitals) led to Watt Riots.

1970’s: Gangs gain strength, 1989-2005 more than 500 homicides, mostly gang-related.

1992: Rodney King Riots; Grape Street Watts Crips, Bounty Hunter Watts Bloods, PJ Watts Crips form the Watts Truce.


Monday, February 4, 2008

LA WEEKLY NEWS ARTICLE - "L A GANGS: NINE MILES AND SPREADING"

Here is the news article that we will be reading in class starting this week.

LA WEEKLY NEWS ARTICLE - "L A GANGS: NINE MILES AND SPREADING



If you lose your packet you can use this to print out a new one.

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Willie Perdomo and others on Def Jam Poetry

Willie Perdomo



Mike Booker



Alicia Keyes



Wyclef Jean


Saul Williams


Dave Chapelle

Essay Notes

Essay Notes: Vocabulary Terms

  • Thesis: A sentence with a subject and opinion. The entire essay centers around this sentence.
  • Concrete Detail: Specific details that form the backbone or core of your body paragraphs (facts, quotations, evidence).
  • Commentary: your opinion or comment on a concrete detail.
  • Chunk: 1 sentence of concrete detail and 2 sentences of commentary. Smallest unified group of thoughts you can write.
  • Ratio: The ratio of 1 part concrete detail (CD) to 2+ parts commentary (CM).
  • Weaving: Blending concrete details (CD) and commentary (CM) in a body paragraph.

Essay Notes: Format

  • Introduction (approx. 3 sentences)
    • Thesis
  • Body Paragraph
    • Topic Sentence (TS) - subject and opinion; “mini-thesis”
    • Concrete Detail (CD) >
    • Commentary (CM) > CHUNK
    • Commentary (CM) >
    • CD
    • CM
    • CM
    • Concluding Sentence (CS) all opinion, sum up point
  • Conclusion
    • Rephrase Thesis (approx. 3 sentences)

Essay Notes: Steps in the Writing Process
  • Prewriting: brainstorming, research, gathering concrete details
  • Shaping the Essay: outline of thesis, concrete details, and commentary ideas
  • First Draft
  • Peer Response
  • Revision
  • Final Draft