All posts by missbryant

Socratic Seminar: Mini Project

Middle to High school students face a lot of pressure from stereotyped gender expectations, identity, peer pressure, and other expectations. You will be able to brainstorm some gender stereotypes and find examples of those stereotypes in popular culture and discuss how the stereotypes affect their lives. You will then analyze/evaluate the characters and characters’ speech from the following books: The Female of the Species and Th1rteen R3asons Why (and Netflix series). These discussions and findings will be presented to the class and discussed in your small groups.

On your tear-off poster sheet, during this week, answer the following questions:

  • What it means to you to be male?
  • What it means to you to be female?
  • What personal stereotypes have you faced?
  • How does those stereotypes hold up to what men and women should be? How does race play a factor?
  • How do you personally feel women and girls are supposed to carry themselves? What about men and boys? 
    

Night Draft Submissions

Students this is where you will submit your drafts. You must log in, in order to turn it in. Just as you must log into your G-mail to upload things to Google Docs. Same thing. Please be sure your draft is at least one full page. You’ll click on the title of this post and leave a comment.

FIRST: You’ll need to save your Google Docs file(your draft) as a .doc or .pdf file. Then, upload it to this blog post as a comment. Please do not create a post, upload your work here during your class period. Anything submitted after your class period is counted as late. Due date for drafts are Friday, February 28th.

Delita Martin & The Photograph

Delita Martin

In the honor of Black History month, I would like to highlight my previous mentor and Professor, Delita Martin (@blackboxpress), her work appears in the movie, The Photograph.

Delita Martin is an artist currently based in Huffman, Texas. She received a BFA in drawing from Texas Southern University and an MFA in printmaking from Purdue University. Formerly a member of the fine arts faculty at UA Little Rock in Arkansas, Martin currently works as a full-time artist in her studio, Black Box Press. Martin’s work has been exhibited both nationally and internationally. Most recently Martin’s work was included in the State of the Arts: Discovering American Art Now, an exhibition that included 101 artists from around the United States. Her work is in numerous portfolios and collections.

Throughout history, the marginalization of Black women has led to problematic representations of their roles within community and family structures, as well as problematic visual and textual representations; thus making it difficult to document their positive contributions within collective systems. Martin’s current work deals with reconstructing the identity of Black women by piecing together the signs, symbols, and language found in what could be called everyday life from slavery through modern times. Martin’s goal is to create images as a visual language to tell the story of women that have often been marginalized, offering a different perspective of the lives of Black women.

What is Literature?

What is it?

English Literature and is designed to engage you in the careful reading, composition, visual, and critical analysis of imaginative literature through discussion and writing. We’ll read, watch, and listen to various of Literature and represent a variety of world cultures and authors. English Literature is to polish the speaking, writing, reading, and viewing skills that you have been taught since you began your formal education. It covers a vast range of literature including, but not limited to drama, poetry, short stories, novels, etc. Students are required, but not limited to, but should be able to conduct a critical analysis essay (varies subjects) of Literature. As well as being able to pay specific attention to how a work is structured, theme, style, tone, structure, as well as microscopic details such as style, elements as the use of figurative language, tone, imagery, and symbolism, all contribute to the work’s meaning. As well as the following genres: post structural/deconstruction, intertextual/archetypal, reader-response, gender studies, Marxism, post colonial, psychoanalytic, historical, etc. influences on literature. Keep in mind that Literature is the humanitarian experience; the experience of humans regardless of race, religion, gender, nationality, sexual orientation, etc.

We will focus our writing on critical analysis of literature including analytical, argumentative, and expository essays as well as creative writing to sharpen understanding of writers’ accomplishments and deepen appreciation of literary artistry.

In all, you are reading the literature or work from the author to analyze how the author’s language creates meaning vs. style and rhetoric. We will read and cover various of work from the American Experience, British Literature, Humanities, Mythology, and Reading and Writing Workshops as well as Creative Writing, Journalistic Writing, & Expository Writing.

Tackling the Lit in Literature

Each unit pertains half classical and half modern literacy texts and visual arts. I will teach this class from a more passionate stance utilizing my teaching philosophy while also following the requirements of the college board for AP. In this class, we will all learn from each other and its student-led environment. No one ever comes to class to just hear the teacher/professor talk.

Regardless of your background, as we have discussed already, if you are into pop culture: video gaming, Art, or other interest(s) will somehow tie to everything we do in this class. Don’t believe me? Watch as the class unfold. But you, as the students, have to be willing to make this blog yours (Hence, sort of like the cover photo for this post). It will require your participation as a participation/discussion grade. Fear not, for those of you with Anxiety, myself included, this is an alternative way to participate in class, yay