Due to technical difficulties, all of the comments I have posted on my partner's blog have continuously disappeared. Both my partner and I have made several attempts to attach them to his blogs, with no success. Therefore, I have decided to create this blog, where I have inserted all of my comments on each of his blogs throughout the six weeks of our blog apprenticeship.
Hope you enjoy my comments and we both apologize for the inconvenience.
Week 1 of Blog Apprenticeship
Matt,
I think you did a very nice job introducing the content-area text which you are reading. Your introduction was informative, clear, organized, and concise. It was very easy for me to follow and comprehend.
I particularly like how you provided background knowledge concerning the events of the text. This truly helps me, as a person who is less knowledgeable about these historical events, understand the context of the text.
Week 2 of Blog Apprenticeship
Matt,
Thank you for sharing your preferred reading strategies. I believe that this may help me better understand how to approach and successfully read through a text in your content-area. I also believe visualization is a great reading strategy. Imagery is very important to much of the literature in my content-area. Many times the authors of English Language Arts related texts attempt to create the image for the reader with their words. I can see how visualization can be useful when reading historical texts as well. It is probably easier to understand the historical event by envisioning the scene, the time period, the figures, and the people.
The photos you have incorporated into you blog this week have truly helped me envision the events which you are reading about in your text, especially the action photos, such as the honor guard for RFK’s funeral; the photo entitled “Beginning of Clash,” which depicts the police on one side and the protesters on the other (this picture is truly symbolic); the photo entitled “Wide Shot of Chaos Outside of Convention,” which is an amazing overhead shot of the convention; and the photo entitled “Infamous Photo of Violence,” which is the most telling photo. I believe the last photo really captures the essence of the text.
My favorite part of your blog this week was how you provided some background knowledge for each photo which you included. I found this very useful and fascinating. I feel more prepared to read this text. I am also excited to do so.
Week 3 of Blog Apprenticeship
Matt,
By reading your blogs over the past three weeks, I have gained a new appreciation for the visualization while reading technique. Prior to these blogs, I may have underestimated the value of creating images in one’s mind during reading. I can now see how creating and connecting images to the words on the page could bring the text to life. This is an especially important strategy for dependent readers to learn and develop. I plan to encourage all of my future students to create their own mental pictures in connection with the words they read on the page.
Lastly, I would like to say that I appreciate how you made connections between past events and events of present day. I feel that those connections are very useful to me. I do not believe I would have been able to make those same connections myself due to lack of prior knowledge concerning these historical events.
Week 4 of Blog Apprenticeship
Matt,
I found it interesting to see a different approach to reading the text than my own, by reading about your reading process and your interpretation of parts of the text. It was especially interesting to gain the perspective of someone who specializes in a different discipline.
I particularly like how you continuously made personal connections between the text and your life throughout your reading in order to make sense of the text.
It was also interesting how you had difficulty visualizing certain scenes. Since this is your preferred strategy, I imagine this must have been a challenge and may have brought you out of your comfort zone.
Week 5 of Blog Apprenticeship
Matt,
I like how you continuously made personal connections to the characters throughout your reading. I believe that this is always a good reading strategy in the literature of my discipline because it tends to make a text more interesting and engaging when you develop empathy for the characters.
I also like when you discussed how the author uses food to demonstrate Tita’s emotions. I believe you were describing symbolism, which is a key literary element, as the author of this text seems to use food as a symbol throughout the book.
One of my favorite moments of this blog was when you connected your discipline to the text. This demonstrates that in reality all disciplines are interrelated and connected.
Week 6 of Blog Apprenticeship
Matt,
I think it is interesting and useful how you have continued to make connections to your discipline. This demonstrates that as readers we try to remain in our own comfort zones, even as we read texts from outside of our content-area. We tend to make sense of the things we do not understand by connecting them to things which we do already understand. I believe this also relates to prior knowledge.
I also observed that you have not used visualization as much while reading this text, compared to when you were reading the text from your own content-are. I wonder why this is so.
I found it both funny and amusing that you began to side with Tita and called Pedro a jerk. This demonstrates the connection you have developed with Tita’s character and the empathy you have developed for her.
Great job with both of the texts!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
My Reading Process of My Partner's Content-Area Text (Part III)
Image #1: .32 caliber pistol (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #2: Large, Black and white Pig (Refer to reflection #2)
Image #2: Large, Black and white Pig (Refer to reflection #2)
This is the final installment of the reading guide I have been creating from my reading of my partner’s self-chosen/content-area text, Battle Ground Chicago: The Police and The 1968 Democratic National Convention by Frank Kusch.
This blog will focus on the final section of Chapter 4, “‘On to Chicago’: Countdown to August,” pages 59-68 of the text.
I will be applying the same format I used with my first and second set of reflections from my reading of this text.
1.
Text:
“Johnson drew a .32 caliber revolver from a flight bag and fired a shot, narrowly missing one of the officers” (59).
Reflection:
I picture a young man, quickly pulling out a small black pistol from his flight bag (I had to look up images of flight bags on Google because I wasn’t sure of what a flight bag looks like. It turns out that it is a type of carry-on bag) and firing off one shot quick enough to prevent officers from stopping him.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
2.
Text:
“On Friday the 23, the Yippies nominated their own Democratic candidate: a 145-pound black and white pig dubbed ‘Pigasus’. The Yippie candidate for president was ‘released to the public’ at the Civic Center Plaza and was promptly ‘arrested’ by the police as he was being ‘interviewed’ by waiting journalists” (60).
Reflection:
I can envision this pig, ‘Pigasus,’ black and white, and big. I can also imagine him running around the Civic Center Plaza, with police officers and others chasing after him.
Strategies:
Here I am again using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
3.
Text:
“Police spokesperson Frank Sullivan said that security not censorship was their main concern” (61).
Reflection:
This makes me think of security and censorship today. I also started to wonder if the mayor would get away with turning away the media in a situation such as this today. I don’t believe that the current mayor would get away with that. When there is an important event, people want to see what is going on, people want full media coverage.
Strategies:
Here I am making a connection between the past and the present in terms of what the government had power to control then and what they do not have the power to control today. I am actively engaging in the text by questioning some of the ideas found in the chapter.
4.
Text:
“Indeed, a disbelieving Hayden realized how much Daley’s saber-rattling had set back their efforts” (62-63).
Reflection:
What does the term saber-rattling mean? I think I will have to look up the definition of this term. (Saber-rattling means a show or threat of military power, esp. as used by a nation to impose its policies on other countries.)
Strategies:
Here I had to look up the meaning of a word in order to clarify and understand the intention of the text.
5.
Text:
“Emboldened by the events in Old Town and the face-off in the park with the officers, however, some protestors became more strident, deciding that the cops had no legitimate authority over them. Pressures soon built between protestors and police near the field house” (64).
Reflection:
I predict that the tension between the police and the protestors will soon erupt and both will be forced to retaliate against each other.
Strategies:
I made this prediction because the tension between the two groups has been gradually building throughout this chapter of the text and this quote from the text appears to show that the tension is coming to a head.
6.
Text:
“Former officer Hank Pacnik recalls that the department was extremely lenient and reasonable with the allotted time for demonstrators to leave the park” (64-65).
Reflection:
This is just one of the many examples throughout this chapter of the text that suggests that the author’s intention was to portray the police in a better light than the protestors. Instead of displaying a balanced recount of the event, it appears to me that the author’s agenda is to place the bulk of the blame on the protestors. The author appears to have used more police testimonial than protestor testimonial, giving the former an unfair advantage in the retelling of this event.
Strategies:
Here I am using context clues from the text in order to identify the author’s agenda.
7.
Text:
“Driver’s began to blast their horns, adding to the cacophony of screams, angry shouts, and the sickening sound of batons meeting flesh and bone” (66).
Reflection:
I can imagine this horrific combination of sounds. I can hear the sounds of the car horns, screams, angry shouts, and blows from the baton in my head. These sounds assist in bringing the terrifying scene described in the text to life.
Strategies:
Here I am allowing the text to activate one of my senses, my sense of hearing. Just as imagery in a text can activate visualization, description of sound can activate an imagination of sound.
8.
Text:
“The cops manning the side streets showed restraint. ‘I remember, I think it was Sunday, when we let them run right by us, thirty or forty of them, they had their hands guarding their faces, and we let them drift on into the night, which was best-they were not up to a fight,’ recalls Tom Freeborn” (66).
Reflection:
This is yet another example from this chapter of the text that suggests that the author’s intention was to portray the police in a better light than the protestors. Instead of displaying a balanced recount of the event, it appears to me that the author’s agenda is to place the bulk of the blame on the protestors. The author appears to have used more police testimonial than protestor testimonial, giving the former an unfair advantage in the retelling of the event.
Strategies:
Here, I am again using context clues from the text in order to identify the author’s agenda.
9.
Text:
“Says Jerry Ewaschuck, “You could feel the cameras on us already-every time you looked over your shoulder, there were journalists there, and they were looking at us, even when we were not engaged, more than they were on the hippies and their placards. They were waiting for us to slip up a bit-just an inch, and then flash their bulbs and go running after the hippies for a comment. It was unfair from the beginning. They portrayed us as storm troopers before the convention even got underway. They were judging us and it was only Sunday’” (68).
Reflection:
What does the term placard mean? What is a placard? I think I will have to look up the definition of this term. (Placard means a paperboard sign or notice, as one posted in a public place or carried by a demonstrator or picketer.)
Strategies:
Here I had to look up the meaning of a word in order to clarify and understand the intention of the text.
This blog will focus on the final section of Chapter 4, “‘On to Chicago’: Countdown to August,” pages 59-68 of the text.
I will be applying the same format I used with my first and second set of reflections from my reading of this text.
1.
Text:
“Johnson drew a .32 caliber revolver from a flight bag and fired a shot, narrowly missing one of the officers” (59).
Reflection:
I picture a young man, quickly pulling out a small black pistol from his flight bag (I had to look up images of flight bags on Google because I wasn’t sure of what a flight bag looks like. It turns out that it is a type of carry-on bag) and firing off one shot quick enough to prevent officers from stopping him.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
2.
Text:
“On Friday the 23, the Yippies nominated their own Democratic candidate: a 145-pound black and white pig dubbed ‘Pigasus’. The Yippie candidate for president was ‘released to the public’ at the Civic Center Plaza and was promptly ‘arrested’ by the police as he was being ‘interviewed’ by waiting journalists” (60).
Reflection:
I can envision this pig, ‘Pigasus,’ black and white, and big. I can also imagine him running around the Civic Center Plaza, with police officers and others chasing after him.
Strategies:
Here I am again using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
3.
Text:
“Police spokesperson Frank Sullivan said that security not censorship was their main concern” (61).
Reflection:
This makes me think of security and censorship today. I also started to wonder if the mayor would get away with turning away the media in a situation such as this today. I don’t believe that the current mayor would get away with that. When there is an important event, people want to see what is going on, people want full media coverage.
Strategies:
Here I am making a connection between the past and the present in terms of what the government had power to control then and what they do not have the power to control today. I am actively engaging in the text by questioning some of the ideas found in the chapter.
4.
Text:
“Indeed, a disbelieving Hayden realized how much Daley’s saber-rattling had set back their efforts” (62-63).
Reflection:
What does the term saber-rattling mean? I think I will have to look up the definition of this term. (Saber-rattling means a show or threat of military power, esp. as used by a nation to impose its policies on other countries.)
Strategies:
Here I had to look up the meaning of a word in order to clarify and understand the intention of the text.
5.
Text:
“Emboldened by the events in Old Town and the face-off in the park with the officers, however, some protestors became more strident, deciding that the cops had no legitimate authority over them. Pressures soon built between protestors and police near the field house” (64).
Reflection:
I predict that the tension between the police and the protestors will soon erupt and both will be forced to retaliate against each other.
Strategies:
I made this prediction because the tension between the two groups has been gradually building throughout this chapter of the text and this quote from the text appears to show that the tension is coming to a head.
6.
Text:
“Former officer Hank Pacnik recalls that the department was extremely lenient and reasonable with the allotted time for demonstrators to leave the park” (64-65).
Reflection:
This is just one of the many examples throughout this chapter of the text that suggests that the author’s intention was to portray the police in a better light than the protestors. Instead of displaying a balanced recount of the event, it appears to me that the author’s agenda is to place the bulk of the blame on the protestors. The author appears to have used more police testimonial than protestor testimonial, giving the former an unfair advantage in the retelling of this event.
Strategies:
Here I am using context clues from the text in order to identify the author’s agenda.
7.
Text:
“Driver’s began to blast their horns, adding to the cacophony of screams, angry shouts, and the sickening sound of batons meeting flesh and bone” (66).
Reflection:
I can imagine this horrific combination of sounds. I can hear the sounds of the car horns, screams, angry shouts, and blows from the baton in my head. These sounds assist in bringing the terrifying scene described in the text to life.
Strategies:
Here I am allowing the text to activate one of my senses, my sense of hearing. Just as imagery in a text can activate visualization, description of sound can activate an imagination of sound.
8.
Text:
“The cops manning the side streets showed restraint. ‘I remember, I think it was Sunday, when we let them run right by us, thirty or forty of them, they had their hands guarding their faces, and we let them drift on into the night, which was best-they were not up to a fight,’ recalls Tom Freeborn” (66).
Reflection:
This is yet another example from this chapter of the text that suggests that the author’s intention was to portray the police in a better light than the protestors. Instead of displaying a balanced recount of the event, it appears to me that the author’s agenda is to place the bulk of the blame on the protestors. The author appears to have used more police testimonial than protestor testimonial, giving the former an unfair advantage in the retelling of the event.
Strategies:
Here, I am again using context clues from the text in order to identify the author’s agenda.
9.
Text:
“Says Jerry Ewaschuck, “You could feel the cameras on us already-every time you looked over your shoulder, there were journalists there, and they were looking at us, even when we were not engaged, more than they were on the hippies and their placards. They were waiting for us to slip up a bit-just an inch, and then flash their bulbs and go running after the hippies for a comment. It was unfair from the beginning. They portrayed us as storm troopers before the convention even got underway. They were judging us and it was only Sunday’” (68).
Reflection:
What does the term placard mean? What is a placard? I think I will have to look up the definition of this term. (Placard means a paperboard sign or notice, as one posted in a public place or carried by a demonstrator or picketer.)
Strategies:
Here I had to look up the meaning of a word in order to clarify and understand the intention of the text.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
My Reading Process of My Partner's Content-Area Text (Part II)
Image #1: Security (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #2: Sea of Police officers in the street (Refer to reflection #3)
Image #3: Football practice (Refer to reflection #7)
This is a continuation of the reading guide I am creating from my reading of my partner’s self-chosen/content-area text, Battle Ground Chicago: The Police and The 1968 Democratic National Convention by Frank Kusch.
This blog will focus on the middle section of Chapter 4, “‘On to Chicago’: Countdown to August,” pages 51-58 of the text.
I will be applying the same format I used with my first set of reflections from my reading of this text.
1.
Text:
“Police were ordered to guard every pumping station and filtration planting starting the Saturday before the convention” (51).
Reflection:
I picture two police officers, one standing on each side of each door of each pumping station and filtration plant in the city, standing completely upright, with serious facial expressions, dressed in full uniform, and weapons in plain sight. I imagine them like secret service security guards.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
2.
Text:
“Fort Daley” (52).
Reflection:
This is the subtitle of a section of text within this chapter. I predict that this portion of text will be about how Mayor Richard Daley attempted to protect Chicago by creating a metaphorical “fort.” Perhaps, he hired extra police security, denied many new permits to potential protesters, and took other precautions in order to prepare for the worst.
Strategies:
Here I am making a prediction. However, this is a little different from the other predictions I have made based on this text. This prediction is based on a subtitle alone. I assume that this subtitle aims to encompass the main theme of this section of the text. In literature this can also be called foreshadowing. Making a prediction based on a title or subtitle is also a pre-reading tactic.
3.
Text:
“The usual contingent of 6,000 officers on the streets grew to 11,900 on twelve hour shifts, up from the usual eight” (53).
Reflection:
I picture a giant sea of police officers in the streets of the city.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization once again. The words, and in this case, the numbers were able to trigger related images in my mind.
4.
Text:
“About 500 SDS members-a fraction of their number-planned to travel to Chicago, along with members of the Chicago Police Council, the Communist Party, the Fifth Avenue Peace Parade Committee, and the Cleveland Area Peace Action Council” (54).
Reflection:
I wonder what SDS stands for. I cannot remember if SDS was mentioned in the prior pages of the chapter that I read last week or if possibly they mentioned SDS in earlier chapters of the book which I have not read. Clearly SDS stands for some type of group of people.
Strategies:
Here I am questioning the text in order to make better sense of it.
5.
Text:
“The plank proposed by Senator Eugene McCarthy a week before the convention, however, left the front-runner with little room to maneuver” (56).
Reflection:
I wonder what “front-runner” means. I believe I have definitely heard the term used before and I may or may not have known the meaning at one point in time. However, at this point I am just not completely sure. I think it must be a political term. (A frontrunner is defined as a person who leads in any competition.)
Strategies:
Here I used both context clues in the text and looked up the meaning of a word in order to better understand the text.
6.
Text:
“By convention time, the antiwar movement reviled Humphrey more than anyone else in the party” (57).
Reflection:
This quote reminds me of the last presidential election. Many people wanted to vote for Obama due to the fact that McCain was seen as more for the war. People who were “antiwar” likely voted for Obama. Therefore, politics in the 1960’s can be compared to the politics of the present.
Strategies:
Here I am making a connection between the politics of the 1960’s and current politics. This is useful because it helps me to better understand what was happening during that time period in relation to what is happening today.
7.
Text:
“Sun-Times reporter Brian Boyer thought the kids looked like a ‘football team going through summer practice’” (58).
Reflection:
I have an excellent image of a football team practicing tackles, passes, and throws. The author makes a very good comparison between the protesters getting ready for the convention and football players getting ready for opening game of the season.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization. The author was able to effectively create an image for the readers to better understand the scene that is being described.
Image #2: Sea of Police officers in the street (Refer to reflection #3)
Image #3: Football practice (Refer to reflection #7)
This is a continuation of the reading guide I am creating from my reading of my partner’s self-chosen/content-area text, Battle Ground Chicago: The Police and The 1968 Democratic National Convention by Frank Kusch.
This blog will focus on the middle section of Chapter 4, “‘On to Chicago’: Countdown to August,” pages 51-58 of the text.
I will be applying the same format I used with my first set of reflections from my reading of this text.
1.
Text:
“Police were ordered to guard every pumping station and filtration planting starting the Saturday before the convention” (51).
Reflection:
I picture two police officers, one standing on each side of each door of each pumping station and filtration plant in the city, standing completely upright, with serious facial expressions, dressed in full uniform, and weapons in plain sight. I imagine them like secret service security guards.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
2.
Text:
“Fort Daley” (52).
Reflection:
This is the subtitle of a section of text within this chapter. I predict that this portion of text will be about how Mayor Richard Daley attempted to protect Chicago by creating a metaphorical “fort.” Perhaps, he hired extra police security, denied many new permits to potential protesters, and took other precautions in order to prepare for the worst.
Strategies:
Here I am making a prediction. However, this is a little different from the other predictions I have made based on this text. This prediction is based on a subtitle alone. I assume that this subtitle aims to encompass the main theme of this section of the text. In literature this can also be called foreshadowing. Making a prediction based on a title or subtitle is also a pre-reading tactic.
3.
Text:
“The usual contingent of 6,000 officers on the streets grew to 11,900 on twelve hour shifts, up from the usual eight” (53).
Reflection:
I picture a giant sea of police officers in the streets of the city.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization once again. The words, and in this case, the numbers were able to trigger related images in my mind.
4.
Text:
“About 500 SDS members-a fraction of their number-planned to travel to Chicago, along with members of the Chicago Police Council, the Communist Party, the Fifth Avenue Peace Parade Committee, and the Cleveland Area Peace Action Council” (54).
Reflection:
I wonder what SDS stands for. I cannot remember if SDS was mentioned in the prior pages of the chapter that I read last week or if possibly they mentioned SDS in earlier chapters of the book which I have not read. Clearly SDS stands for some type of group of people.
Strategies:
Here I am questioning the text in order to make better sense of it.
5.
Text:
“The plank proposed by Senator Eugene McCarthy a week before the convention, however, left the front-runner with little room to maneuver” (56).
Reflection:
I wonder what “front-runner” means. I believe I have definitely heard the term used before and I may or may not have known the meaning at one point in time. However, at this point I am just not completely sure. I think it must be a political term. (A frontrunner is defined as a person who leads in any competition.)
Strategies:
Here I used both context clues in the text and looked up the meaning of a word in order to better understand the text.
6.
Text:
“By convention time, the antiwar movement reviled Humphrey more than anyone else in the party” (57).
Reflection:
This quote reminds me of the last presidential election. Many people wanted to vote for Obama due to the fact that McCain was seen as more for the war. People who were “antiwar” likely voted for Obama. Therefore, politics in the 1960’s can be compared to the politics of the present.
Strategies:
Here I am making a connection between the politics of the 1960’s and current politics. This is useful because it helps me to better understand what was happening during that time period in relation to what is happening today.
7.
Text:
“Sun-Times reporter Brian Boyer thought the kids looked like a ‘football team going through summer practice’” (58).
Reflection:
I have an excellent image of a football team practicing tackles, passes, and throws. The author makes a very good comparison between the protesters getting ready for the convention and football players getting ready for opening game of the season.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization. The author was able to effectively create an image for the readers to better understand the scene that is being described.
Monday, October 5, 2009
My Reading Process of My Partner's Content-Area Text (Part I)
Image #1: RFK's Funeral (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #2: 1960's Little League (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #3: 1960's Veterans (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #4: 1960's housewife with apron (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #5: Hippies 1960's (Refer to reflection #4)
Image #6: Woodstock 1960's (Refer to reflection #4)
Image #7: Bellboys (Refer to reflection #5)
Image #8: Greased Pig (Refer to reflection #5)
Image #9: Black Panther Party (Refer to reflection #7)
Image #10: Full Black Attire (Refer to reflection #7)
Introduction:
This week we begin reading our partner’s content-area/ self-chosen text. My partner’s content-area/ self-chosen text is a historical text, entitled Battle Ground Chicago: The Police and The 1968 Democratic National Convention by Frank Kusch.
My partner has stated that he finds it useful to frequently use visualization and to make connections when reading a historical text. In taking this suggestion, I will attempt to use a lot of visualizing and connection making in combination with other strategies that seem appropriate throughout my reading of this text.
This reading guide will be focusing on Chapter 4 of the text, "'On to Chicago': Countdown to August."
This blog will focus on the first section of Chapter 4, “‘On to Chicago’: Countdown to August,” pages 43-50 of the text.
In the same fashion which I presented the reflections from my content-area/ self-chosen text, I plan to organize each of these reflections into three parts, the first, a direct quote from the text; the second, my reflection; and the third, the strategies which I have used.
The following is the reading guide I have created in the process of reading this text:
1.
Text:
“Boys in Little League uniforms, caps in hand, veterans, women in aprons, the young and the old stood alongside the tracks of the 226-mile funeral train that took the body of Robert Francis Kennedy from New York to his final resting place in Arlington, Virginia” (Page 43, Paragraph 1).
Reflection:
This quote triggered images from the 1960’s in my mind. I could see images of how little league players, veterans, and housewives from the 1960’s are portrayed in movies and television. I could also see JFK’s funeral images in my mind. I have seen video clips from his funeral on television. However, I don’t recall ever seeing video clips from RFK’s funeral. I imagine that they were similar, since they took place in the same decade and in the same nation.
Strategies:
Here I used both visualizing and making connections. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind. And I was able to make a connection between JFK’s funeral and RFK’s funeral because they took place in the same decade and in the same nation.
2.
Text:
“The night before his funeral, former SDS leader Tom Hayden, who had serious disagreements with Kennedy, sat in the back of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City and wept. Among those standing as an honor guard close to the senator’s coffin was Richard Daley, head down weeping. Despair crossed political boundaries” (Page 44, Paragraph 3).
Reflection:
Although tone is a literary element, usually found in literature read in the English Language Arts discipline, this quote gives the reader a real sense of the tone of this portion of the text. The scene described really conveys a very somber tone.
Strategies:
Here I am using my prior knowledge of the writing techniques used in my discipline in order to identify tone.
3.
Text:
“The assassinations of King and Kennedy, Gitlin recalled, constituted the ‘murder of hope’” (45).
Reflection:
Again, although this is a historical text, I have found literary elements within the text. In this particular quote from the text, the author seems to be using metaphorical language. As I have said before, it is important to be able to identify metaphorical language in order to better understand the text. The author is making a comparison between the murders of King and Kennedy and the figurative ‘murder of hope.’ Readers must be able to discern this figurative comparison in order to appreciate the message that the author is attempting to convey. It does not matter whether it is literature, historical text, or etcetera, understanding the purpose of metaphorical language is significant.
Strategies:
Here I am clarifying the text by again activating my prior knowledge of the writing techniques used in my discipline in order to identify metaphorical language in the text.
4.
Text:
“A veteran of Berkeley and the student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Hoffman took his ‘theater of the absurd’ to New York’s Lower East Side where he joined Rubin in a thriving hippie community. The pair devoted themselves to a revolution by drugs and sex, creating absurd situations, uttering outrageous statements, and provoking public demonstrations and stunts-all designed to attract media attention” (46-47).
Reflection:
I picture a Woodstock type of scene, where thousands of hippies, with long hair, big sunglasses, headbands, face paint, peace sign jewelry, and further hippie attire, are openly using drugs and conducting sexual acts.
Strategies:
Here I used both visualizing and making connections. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind. And I was able to make a connection between my prior knowledge of hippies and how hippies are being described in this text.
5.
Text:
“Their well-publicized threats included placing LSD in the city’s water supply, nominating a pig for president, floating 10,000 nude bodies down Lake Michigan, dressing up as bellboys to try seduce the wives of delegates, and picking up delegates in fake cabs and dropping them off in Wisconsin. They also threatened to slash tires along the freeway while releasing greased pigs throughout the city” (47).
Reflection:
This quote conjures up a number of disturbing images, from hippies disguised as bellboys to greased pigs running through city streets. This quote truly allows the reader to envision the hectic scene of chaos which the “Yippies” intended to create.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
6.
Text:
“The Yippies had called for a spring equinox celebration at midnight on March 22 at New York’s Grand Central Station. Six thousand people arrived. Many of those who showed up, however, had more on their minds than to mark the cycle of the seasons. As cherry bombs went off, some climbed atop the information booth and chanted: “Long Hot Summer, Long Hot Summer.” Without warning fifty New York police officers waded into the crowd and attacked with nightsticks” (47-48).
Reflection:
This quote is rich in imagery. There is a lot going on here, visually. It creates a very detailed and horrific scene in your mind.
Strategies:
Again, I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind to create an entire scene.
7.
Text:
“’I remember the years before-the radicals used to wear black all over or turtlenecks when it was hot enough to fry an egg on the hood of your car and sunglasses on cloudy days’” (49).
Reflection:
I picture the Black Panther Party and thieves that strike in the middle of the night because they dress in a similar fashion to what was described in this quote. I picture full black attire, including a black long sleeve turtleneck, black pants, black shoes, black hat, and a pair of black sunglasses.
Strategies:
Again, I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
Image #2: 1960's Little League (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #3: 1960's Veterans (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #4: 1960's housewife with apron (Refer to reflection #1)
Image #5: Hippies 1960's (Refer to reflection #4)
Image #6: Woodstock 1960's (Refer to reflection #4)
Image #7: Bellboys (Refer to reflection #5)
Image #8: Greased Pig (Refer to reflection #5)
Image #9: Black Panther Party (Refer to reflection #7)
Image #10: Full Black Attire (Refer to reflection #7)
Introduction:
This week we begin reading our partner’s content-area/ self-chosen text. My partner’s content-area/ self-chosen text is a historical text, entitled Battle Ground Chicago: The Police and The 1968 Democratic National Convention by Frank Kusch.
My partner has stated that he finds it useful to frequently use visualization and to make connections when reading a historical text. In taking this suggestion, I will attempt to use a lot of visualizing and connection making in combination with other strategies that seem appropriate throughout my reading of this text.
This reading guide will be focusing on Chapter 4 of the text, "'On to Chicago': Countdown to August."
This blog will focus on the first section of Chapter 4, “‘On to Chicago’: Countdown to August,” pages 43-50 of the text.
In the same fashion which I presented the reflections from my content-area/ self-chosen text, I plan to organize each of these reflections into three parts, the first, a direct quote from the text; the second, my reflection; and the third, the strategies which I have used.
The following is the reading guide I have created in the process of reading this text:
1.
Text:
“Boys in Little League uniforms, caps in hand, veterans, women in aprons, the young and the old stood alongside the tracks of the 226-mile funeral train that took the body of Robert Francis Kennedy from New York to his final resting place in Arlington, Virginia” (Page 43, Paragraph 1).
Reflection:
This quote triggered images from the 1960’s in my mind. I could see images of how little league players, veterans, and housewives from the 1960’s are portrayed in movies and television. I could also see JFK’s funeral images in my mind. I have seen video clips from his funeral on television. However, I don’t recall ever seeing video clips from RFK’s funeral. I imagine that they were similar, since they took place in the same decade and in the same nation.
Strategies:
Here I used both visualizing and making connections. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind. And I was able to make a connection between JFK’s funeral and RFK’s funeral because they took place in the same decade and in the same nation.
2.
Text:
“The night before his funeral, former SDS leader Tom Hayden, who had serious disagreements with Kennedy, sat in the back of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City and wept. Among those standing as an honor guard close to the senator’s coffin was Richard Daley, head down weeping. Despair crossed political boundaries” (Page 44, Paragraph 3).
Reflection:
Although tone is a literary element, usually found in literature read in the English Language Arts discipline, this quote gives the reader a real sense of the tone of this portion of the text. The scene described really conveys a very somber tone.
Strategies:
Here I am using my prior knowledge of the writing techniques used in my discipline in order to identify tone.
3.
Text:
“The assassinations of King and Kennedy, Gitlin recalled, constituted the ‘murder of hope’” (45).
Reflection:
Again, although this is a historical text, I have found literary elements within the text. In this particular quote from the text, the author seems to be using metaphorical language. As I have said before, it is important to be able to identify metaphorical language in order to better understand the text. The author is making a comparison between the murders of King and Kennedy and the figurative ‘murder of hope.’ Readers must be able to discern this figurative comparison in order to appreciate the message that the author is attempting to convey. It does not matter whether it is literature, historical text, or etcetera, understanding the purpose of metaphorical language is significant.
Strategies:
Here I am clarifying the text by again activating my prior knowledge of the writing techniques used in my discipline in order to identify metaphorical language in the text.
4.
Text:
“A veteran of Berkeley and the student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Hoffman took his ‘theater of the absurd’ to New York’s Lower East Side where he joined Rubin in a thriving hippie community. The pair devoted themselves to a revolution by drugs and sex, creating absurd situations, uttering outrageous statements, and provoking public demonstrations and stunts-all designed to attract media attention” (46-47).
Reflection:
I picture a Woodstock type of scene, where thousands of hippies, with long hair, big sunglasses, headbands, face paint, peace sign jewelry, and further hippie attire, are openly using drugs and conducting sexual acts.
Strategies:
Here I used both visualizing and making connections. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind. And I was able to make a connection between my prior knowledge of hippies and how hippies are being described in this text.
5.
Text:
“Their well-publicized threats included placing LSD in the city’s water supply, nominating a pig for president, floating 10,000 nude bodies down Lake Michigan, dressing up as bellboys to try seduce the wives of delegates, and picking up delegates in fake cabs and dropping them off in Wisconsin. They also threatened to slash tires along the freeway while releasing greased pigs throughout the city” (47).
Reflection:
This quote conjures up a number of disturbing images, from hippies disguised as bellboys to greased pigs running through city streets. This quote truly allows the reader to envision the hectic scene of chaos which the “Yippies” intended to create.
Strategies:
Here I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
6.
Text:
“The Yippies had called for a spring equinox celebration at midnight on March 22 at New York’s Grand Central Station. Six thousand people arrived. Many of those who showed up, however, had more on their minds than to mark the cycle of the seasons. As cherry bombs went off, some climbed atop the information booth and chanted: “Long Hot Summer, Long Hot Summer.” Without warning fifty New York police officers waded into the crowd and attacked with nightsticks” (47-48).
Reflection:
This quote is rich in imagery. There is a lot going on here, visually. It creates a very detailed and horrific scene in your mind.
Strategies:
Again, I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind to create an entire scene.
7.
Text:
“’I remember the years before-the radicals used to wear black all over or turtlenecks when it was hot enough to fry an egg on the hood of your car and sunglasses on cloudy days’” (49).
Reflection:
I picture the Black Panther Party and thieves that strike in the middle of the night because they dress in a similar fashion to what was described in this quote. I picture full black attire, including a black long sleeve turtleneck, black pants, black shoes, black hat, and a pair of black sunglasses.
Strategies:
Again, I am using visualization. The words on the page were able to trigger related images in my mind.
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